There is at least one happy customer at the SWTOR release date change

I realise that to most readers, Bioware tweaking the EU release date of SWTOR forward by couple of days is an incredibly minor detail.

But I’m seeing it as a nice touch, and it’s because of the Christmas timing. I can live with being a couple of days behind the yanks, but having a release on Dec 20th as opposed to 22nd means a better chance for anyone who ordered from a mail order company like Amazon or Game to get their copy before the Christmas holidays start.

Like I say, not a huge deal, especially since servers are going to be under a lot of stress at the time. But it’s a nice touch and I appreciate it.

[LOTRO] Farewell to Codemasters – the great migration

So tomorrow is the big move to US servers. We don’t know the final details yet of the process players will have to go through but it probably will involve creating a Turbine account and then associating the old EU one with it. The advice we’ve been given so far in the FAQ is to wait until the official migration has started for more information.

When we have it, I’ll post it up here. Meanwhile, enjoy the bittersweet (but very appropriate) loading screen that Codemasters put up today. I know that on the whole I’ve been happy with the job they’ve done, and hope they didn’t get too screwed over in whatever deal was cut with Turbine.

5 advantages of patching the day after the US

Gone are the days of old when players on European servers had to wait months to get our patches; presumably while code was translated, bit by bit, into metric (which is, by the way, infinitely superior to imperial measures, except when it crashes space orbiters).

We still patch after the US but these days, we can expect our patch the same week. In WoW, the European patch is done the next day, and I think in LOTRO they usually aim for the same week also.

While it’s a shame not to be all starting on the new content at the same time, if only because of spoilers, there are some real advantages in the delayed patch.

1. Problems with the US patch are usually fixed overnight, before we get them. Our patches are generally smoother. I know my raid group confidently schedules raids now for patch day. Although sometimes we suffer lag (from everyone else doing the same thing), we certainly had no major issues in Ulduar and I’m looking forwards to taking a peek into Icecrown tomorrow.
2. Patch time is also usually shorter. We rarely get the long extended maintenances that the US servers do, which is the other reason we are confident to schedule raids for patch day evening.
3. Addons are up to date. Although most of the addon writers have been working on the test realms, there are always some final tweaks to be done when the patch goes live. But by the time we get the patch, that work will mostly have been done.
4. Guides and Tutorials are tweaked and available. This isn’t an advantage if you planned on writing one but if you are a fan of researching content before you try it, you’ll benefit from more polished guides. US players will also be able to warn you about any killer bugs to avoid.
5. Advance warning of AH swings. If you enjoy predicting how the economy will turn after a patch, you can get a one day heads’ up from the US servers as a guide. Generally what happens there also happens here.