DARKSIDE DEFENDERS

Wir haben gerade eine Nachricht für euch von unserem Kollegen Chris Collins bekommen. Hier sein Kommentar zu den EU-Spieltests:

Zitat:
Zitat von ChrisCollins
Wie versprochen habe ich ein Update bzgl. der Game-Testing-Einladungen, welche an die EU-Spieler versendet werden.
Nach einer längeren Diskussion hier in der BioWare-Zentrale, wurde aus verschiedenen Gründen die Entscheidung getroffen, die Game-Testing-Invites für EU-Spieler zu verschieben.

Zunächst einmal nähert sich ein neues Build des Spiels am Horizont. Dieses wird ein größeres Build, in dem es einen Wipe aller Charaktere geben wird und einen neuen Client zum downloaden. Wie ihr vielleicht wisst, ist der gegenwärtige Client-Download 27 GB groß. Wenn wir nun neue Spieler in Massen einladen würden, müssten diese Spieler den gesamten Client herunterladen, um Zugang zum Spiel zu erhalten. Nun besteht aber die Möglichkeit, dass diese Woche der Service offline genommen und diese neue Version aufgespielt wird, was bedeutet, dass nicht nur alle Tester den gesamten Client erneut downloaden müssen (ein weiterer 27 GB Download), sondern ihre Charaktere wären gelöscht und sie müssten neu anfangen. Das ist eine relativ große Datenmende zum downloaden in Anbetracht der kurzen Zeit und insgesamt keine Erfahrung, die wir unseren neuen Testern zumuten möchten.

Zweitens wird dieses neue Build die erste lokalisierte Version von Star Wars: The Old Republic mit sich bringen. Dies bedeutet, dass jene von euch, die Französisch und Deutsch sprechen, zum ersten Mal überhaupt die Möglichkeit haben werden, in ihren eigenen Sprachen zu spielen. Wir sind sehr aufgeregt, dass wir unseren Spielern dies anbieten können und entsprechend sehr daran interessiert, eine Menge Feedback von den europäischen Testern zu erhalten.
Für all jene, welche diese Nachrichten hier vermisst haben: In der letzten Woche ergaben sich einige Vorfälle mit den Zugangs-Systemen, welche uns davon abhielten Einladungen an EU-Spieler zu senden. Wäre alles nach Plan verlaufen, wären es uns möglich gewesen, den Usern zwei Test-Wochen anzubieten. Wie auch immer, dies war aufgrund der gegebenen Umstände physikalisch nicht möglich.

Da wir verstehen, dass diese News nun nicht gerade das ist, was ihr heute hören wollt, hoffen wir, dass ihr unsere Position dennoch versteht. Mit den gegebenen News zum neuen Build ist es nun noch wichtiger als je zuvor europäische Spieler in die Spieltest einzuladen. Ihr habt also mein Wort, dass die große Welle von Einladungen geschehen wird, ihr müsstet nur noch ein bisschen länger darauf warten.

Es ist auch wichtig sich daran zu erinnern, dass dies nur der Anfang ist. In der Zukunft werden wir immer mehr und mehr Tester in die EU-Spieltests einladen, ebenso in die zukünftigen Spieltest-Wochenenden. Selbst wenn ihr also in der kommenden nächsten Runde nicht eingeladen werdet, wird es immer noch eine Menge weiterer Chancen geben involviert zu werden.
Wie immer: Sobald ich irgendwelche handfesten neuen Informationen über dieses Thema bekomme, werde ich euch alle diesbezüglich auf dem Laufenden halten.

Hello all,

There is no Beta Testing Weekend scheduled for this weekend. There may be further Beta Testing Weekends during September, but we're not going to guarantee it. The weekend that just finished was really our first dry run of Beta Testing Weekends as a whole, and we have plenty of data to crunch, and decisions to make before we start things up again.

Further to that, as Chris Collins explained in another thread, we are about to roll out a major new build for The Old Republic. That build won't be ready for this weekend. Just as we did not feel it was a good decision to ask potential EU testers to download our client only to have to download it again, the same applies for this weekend.

That does not mean, however, that as soon as our new build is available we'll be rolling out a Beta Testing Weekend immediately. As with any new build of the game, we need to get feedback from internal testing and our ongoing Game Testing program before rolling it out to a massive audience. That process takes a while, and that time varies depending on how testing goes.

We rolled out this previous weekend as a relatively small scale event; from now we will do bigger and bigger events, but that doesn't mean it happens every weekend. When we do resume, we'll be inviting many more people in.

While many of you are excited and anxious to know what's happening regarding Testing Weekends, I want to point out that a lot of posts on the subject with a lack of corresponding posts from us does not mean that we're not listening, or not aware of your interest. It shows your interest in the topic, which is understandably high, but we will not always be able to react instantaneously.

In the past couple of days we've been preparing a comprehensive FAQ regarding Game Testing Weekends as a whole, along with some details about the weekend that just happened. We'll post that tomorrow - in all languages, as we know the subject is of interest to everyone.

Beta Testing Weekends began last weekend, to get more people than ever before testing Star Wars: The Old Republic. We invited a number of testers in to experience the game this past weekend, and will continue to invite more testers, in greater numbers, as we move towards launch.

While the number of those invited will increase over time and while we plan to invite as many people as possible who are signed up for Game Testing to test, there are no guarantees that everyone who applies will be invited.

It is also important to note that not every weekend going forward will be a Beta Testing Weekend. In September, we're hoping for one more Beta Testing Weekend, which will be larger in invite size than the last.

Now, onto some FAQs and answers:

What's the difference between Early Game Access, Beta Testing Weekends, Guild Testing and Game Testing?

They are four different ways to get access to play The Old Republic. Details are as follows:

Early Game Access: Available to everyone who pre-orders any edition of Star Wars: The Old Republic and redeems their Pre-Order Code. Essentially a head-start, it will begin before the formal release date/launch day of the game. The final release client will be used to play. Exact duration will be revealed closer to our release date.

(Edited to reflect that Early Game Access is not another phase of testing; apologies for any confusion. )

Beta Testing Weekends: Large scale, short-term testing. We will be inviting registered testers to play the game in greater invite numbers than ever before. The first Beta Testing Weekend started on September 2nd. They will continue beyond September and will not necessarily occur every weekend.

Game Testing: The ongoing testing program. We continue to invite those who have registered for Game Testing into the program on a regular basis. Those selected will generally test the game for an extended period of time, as opposed to a Beta Testing Weekend.

Guild Testing: We are selecting guilds who are registered on our Guild HQ for inclusion into general Game Testing (see above). Invites to a guild do not necessarily extend to all guild members.

As part of Beta Testing Weekends, will the Game Testing Agreement (specifically, the Non-Disclosure Agreement) be lifted or modified?

No. The Game Testing Agreement is still fully in effect for Beta Testing Weekends. As before, you may tell others that you are part of the Game Testing Program (or that you have been invited to a Beta Testing Weekend). However, you may not reveal any other details about your game testing experience, including any aspect of the testing process, any details of the client, or any assets from the game (including text). Even after the Game Testing Weekend is over you may not detail your experiences.

Any breaches of the Game Testing Agreement at any time will result in your potential immediate removal from Game Testing and/or prevent you from being invited to any future testing.

Will Beta Testing Weekend invites be sent in the usual way Game Testing invites are sent?

Yes. Those invited will receive an email to the email address they have registered on their SWTOR account. The email will come from no-reply@bioware.swtor.com. Ensure you have that email address registered in your email whitelist so that the email does not go into your spam folder. If you think you have deleted the email by mistake, you can check to see if you have been invited by logging in to the SWTOR.com web site at www.swtor.com/tester/. If you are unsure of an email's authenticity, we strongly advise you to login to the website to confirm. If you are still unsure, please email support@swtor.com

After a Beta Testing Weekend is over, will I get re-invited to a future Beta Testing Weekend?

At this time, we are not planning to re-invite those who are invited to a Beta Testing Weekend to future Beta Testing Weekends. This may change in the future.

I previously participated in Game Testing, but am no longer participating. Does that omit me from being re-selected, either for a Beta Testing Weekend, or Game Testing generally?

Currently, if you have previously been selected to test Star Wars: The Old Republic, you will normally not be re-selected for future testing. (This applies whether you were selected previously for Game Testing, a Beta Testing Weekend, or any other testing access.) That may change closer to launch, but we want to get as many fresh eyes on the game as possible.

Will future Beta Testing Weekends be three days long?

Most Beta Testing Weekends will last roughly from a Friday evening to Sunday evening. In some cases, we may choose to extend the time available at our discretion.

I got an invite to a Beta Testing Weekend, but can't test during that weekend due to other commitments. Can I postpone my invite to another weekend?

You may choose, if you wish, to decline a Beta Testing Weekend invite. If you do this, you will be put back into the general 'pool' for potential future selection. However, your selection in the future is not guaranteed; you will be picked randomly.

Will those invited to Beta Testing Weekends be playing on the same servers as those in Game Testing?

For the first weekend, those invited will be playing on a separate server. This will probably be the format for future Beta Testing Weekends, but if our requirements change, we may invite people to specific servers (or potentially allow them to choose from multiple servers).

Will extra time be given to download the SWTOR game client before a Beta Testing Weekend starts?

Yes. Invites to Beta Testing Weekends are generally sent out a few days before the weekend to allow time to download the client. However, because of internet download speeds and the invite schedule, we cannot guarantee you will have the game client downloaded and installed before the weekend starts.

The size of the game client is currently approximately 27Gb.

Can I use the same game client in testing and then at launch?

We cannot guarantee that you will not have to re-download and re-install the game client at any point before the start of Early Game Access. Periodically addditional content patches may be required during any period of Game Testing.

Do those invited to Beta Testing Weekends get access to Forums to talk about their experience and give feedback?

Yes. Specific Forums for Beta Testing Weekends will be opened from when invites are sent out for that weekend, until a short period of time after the weekend's testing is over. These will only be accessible to those invited to the specific Beta Testing Weekend.

Are invites to Game Testing still random?

Yes. Those invited to Game Testing - of any kind - are still currently randomly selected from those who have opted-in to be eligible for Game Testing.

There used to be a 'System Scan' function on the website as part of Game Testing sign-up, and now it's gone. How does this affect me?

We no longer require potential Game Testing applicants to perform a 'system scan'. If you have previously scanned your PC and have since upgraded it, don't be concerned. You're still eligible for selection to Game Testing.

When does Game Testing for EU-based players start?

Game Testing for EU-based players is imminent, and will include localized French and German versions of the game. Future phases of Game Testing for EU players will happen on EU-based servers. Beta Testing Weekends will also begin specifically for EU players in the same timeframe.

As EU players are being invited now and other players have been testing for longer, will feedback from EU players make a difference to the game at launch?

Yes. Every piece of feedback from a tester is potentially useful. Even if a piece of feedback is not acted upon before launch, it may be used to change the game in some way in the future.

As part of Guild Testing, will guilds be invited to Beta Testing Weekends?

Guilds are generally invited to the main Game Testing program. Individual guild members, through random selection, may be invited to Beta Testing Weekends, but guilds will not be selected for inclusion in Beta Testing Weekends as part of Guild Testing.

I have infractions on my Forums account. Does that prevent me from being invited to Game Testing?

No, it does not, although accruing enough infractions could lead to a Forums ban. If you are banned from the Forums, you would also be removed from Game Testing.

I pre-ordered The Old Republic; does that allow me access to Game Testing or Beta Testing Weekends?

At this time, pre-ordering The Old Republic and redeeming your Pre-Order Code ensures you gain Early Game Access.

I live outside of the initial launch countries for Star Wars: The Old Republic; will I be able to take part in Game Testing in any way?

We're hoping to extend Game Testing to many more countries before launch, but we have no estimate on exactly when that will happen.