#1 - Aug. 14, 2018, 4:32 p.m.
I'm going to assume that everyone who was on the minute BfA released was excited to play, and I do believe that is a fair assumption to make. I think we all agree that the first time logging into an expansion is something special.
The problem here is that (let's just throw a very moderate estimate out there) 90-95% of you were able to play, while the other 5-10% were sidelined. It wasn't because some had better PCs than others. It wasn't because some were late to the party. It was because certain servers were unable to handle the amount of people who wanted to experience BfA on the first night. Instead of experiencing the new content on a night where we all took the time to log in, 5-10% of players only experienced a night of troubleshooting and eternal login screens.
We see those who had a smooth night of gameplay praising Blizzard, which they totally deserve. We also see those who were unable to play voicing their disappointment and anger to Blizzard, and honestly, they have every right to do so.. without being attacked.
If I get a new job with 20 other people, and 2 of us show up and don't do a damn thing, of course our boss is going to be upset. He expects us to work since he is paying us. It's a trade off. If you're in a raiding guild, and the first night of raiding new content 5-10% of the guildies who signed up just don't show up and the raid falls apart, of course people are going to be upset. It should be clear that people were upset that almost everyone who wanted to was able to experience BfA with little to no issues last night, while others were completely locked out.
These forums are a minefield of hard-headed opinions. It seems that most people only have sympathy/empathy for others when they are directly affected (when log in issues prevent you and your guild from raiding, for example). And sure, a few people on the forums are incapable of understanding, and truly are just here to troll.
Yes, it was (and is) pathetic to request financial compensation for 5 hour downtime, and sure, some complaints went overboard. There was no reason to post in all caps. There was no reason to use foul language or threaten... but the majority of those locked out were quite reasonable.
They were just upset. The little magic moment was gone. Their first impression was once again ruined. Their plans were kicked to the dust... and on top of that they were talked down to on these forums as if they were all children. It was sad to see.
It is a fact that for some, opening night of BfA was ruined. This wasn't some Tuesday 6 months in to the expansion, where the QQ comes when maintenance takes an hour longer. The first few hours of a new expansion are special. and their first impression of BfA was a vicious circle of login screens and a search for solutions.. and these people were called cry babies. They were told to go do something else.. and I think a lot of them should be owed an apology... not only from Blizzard, but from the community on these forums.
___________________My Response to the Blue Post___________________
While I agree that this was a very successful launch overall, the truth is that the verdict is different for everyone, from the person who wasn't able to play "all night" because they gave up after 4 hours, to the person who didn't even experience a lag spike.
It can be even more frustrating being in the minority of players who couldn't play for six hours than if everyone was locked out due to patches and such. One feels even unluckier. They see that everyone else is playing and enjoying themselves while they can't, and it wasn't a consequence they deserved or could have changed in any way shape or form. It's truly bitter... and that's on a night where we were all MOST excited to play BfA. That excitement died for a lot of us yesterday, or at least wasn't the same as if we had gotten to play. That's the truth.
We can talk about the overall, but that isn't what this was about. Sure, I'm happy for alllll the players who had a successful night of leveling, but here we even have a Blue Post redirecting, or replying to a redirection, which really gives off the vibe that it's okay, or better worded- it's not that bad, even in comparison.
There were definitely people, such as my girlfriend to name one, who experienced a Blizzard Expansion Launch for the first time with BfA. There were definitely people, such as Rumbled in this thread, who didn't get hit quite as hard in previous launches, who were affected this time.
I believe any percentage above 1% should not be taken as a success. Let's not set the bar so low. I understand there are issues that come up and can't be foreseen.. but the megaservers being overloaded should have been foreseen. It could have been way way worse, I agree, but it wasn't ideal by any means, and it wasn't the first time this has happened. This goes all the way back to Vanilla, when more people wanted to play the game than Blizzard thought or had prepared for. This was avoidable, even if Blizzard had to gravitate toward unconventional solutions.
So, sure - this may have been a successful launch overall, but there were plenty of people who felt they were left on the beach while the BfA cruise ship set sail with everyone enjoying themselves on board.. and I'm deeply saddened that these players continue to be not only alienated by fellow gamers, but also by responses such as these from Blizzard staff.
