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runebooks/devs

MalagAste

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I said the people who are complaining are likely to be trammel players, that does not mean to say that all trammel players will complain.
I actually LIKE the change, think they look way better.
 

BrianFreud

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In isolation, maybe. In a 3x6 rows in your pack? No way in hell. All that yellow just looks awful and makes it far harder to find things in the pack.
 

Merlin

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In list view or grid view, it is much easier to distinguish from spell books.
 

Petra Fyde

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Theory: The runebook colours haven't, in actual fact, changed. What has happened is the gold hue of the corners and ankh has been fixed so that it now only colours the part it's meant to instead of slightly overlaying the whole book - making the book colour slightly lighter than it would have been. The fix has revealed the true colour of the book, rather than the lightened by overlay colour we're used to.
 

Smoot

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its really sad that of all the problems with UO, this is actually whats making me seriously consider the UO "exit process" of clearing out accounts. its more of an example of where the game is headed with graphics. i just dont like the look, and runebooks arent something we can really just choose not to use (as opposed to new gifts, rewards, armor, basically anything with the new art. and dont get me started in EC. the disparity of features from EC to CC is another example of how many people would rather quit than gain access to those features but have to look at at graphic styles not original to UO)

I play UO largely for aesthetics and nostalgia now. this change destroyed a large part of that.
 
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TimberWolf

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I think this is more proof of just how out of touch Bonnie and her developers are with their player base. Or as I have come to believe they really just dont care about our thoughts and wishes.

that said....for myself ( Although I really dont like the new look) it isnt something I am going to lose any sleep over. It isnt like how they totally screwed up the Atlas!
 

Hannes Erich

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I like the new look, but as the thread is filled with comparison pictures, I can see why it's debatable whether the change is "better".

The old books appear dull and washed out compared with the new books. But as this is a Medieval fantasy game, the old books have a more rugged and worn feel, and the upraised ankh looks as if it is stitched into the leather, rather than a completely separate (and shiny) object fastened down to it. The new look "fixes" the rugged look by giving each color its own definition, sharpening the books as if they just came newly off a shelf at Barnes & Noble, rather than some old wizard's dusty chamber.

Which would you prefer? It's a matter of personal taste, isn't it? Thus, while I approve of the improvement, I have some criticism for the way it's been implemented. I prefer when newer, better-looking versions of assets are put into circulation instead--as additions, not changes. Changes to long-standing art assets in a sandbox are often detrimental to the player experience, such as with decoration schemes and organization. It was UO and other old MMOs that taught the rest of the MMO industry this simple lesson.

The game is bathed in a rugged fantasy aesthetic, as rugged as you can go with oldschool graphics. But more recent years have begun to shower the game with sharper, cleaner art, more like you might find in mobile games. Perhaps they have a whole schedule of assets they've planned to sharpen. Could be leftover to-do jobs from the high-res art revamp which otherwise fell through. Maybe resulting from complaints about dull or washed out art, especially in the EC. Be careful what you ask for, I guess.
 

Zosimus

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Is it really that bad?

It's like somebody dropped your pop tart and you forgot to chill :)

No Easter presents for you!
 

Hannes Erich

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Well, like I said, I like the new look. (Come on man, that was my first sentence. Talk about no Easter presents.)

As for my criticism over its implementation, I really had to struggle not to delete that part right after a second thought. I'm not sure I agree with myself heh. Fact is, if they had gone ahead with the high res art revamp, they would have had to break some eggs to make that omelette and we would have seen some accidental ruggedness like this disappear. And I spent years requesting that revamp! So now I'm criticizing across-the-board touchups like this?

That might be a little contradictory, or it might not be; they aren't going to DO the revamp after all. But I don't want to fall into the trap of just complaining about everything. I agree that lots of people already have that covered.
 

Zosimus

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LOL Sorry my post wasn't directed to you. Just all the upset peeps. Its so game ending I just felt a little humor was needed.
 

Zosimus

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OMGOOSES bro! I just choked on my cappuccino when I read that. I'm soooooooooooooooooooo still laughing still even as I type this.

OK if people are going to leave/exit the game over this I have one question..... Can I have your runebooks. Not your stuff, just you runebooks.

Seriously it's not that bad. I like them.
 

Hannes Erich

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Yeah preferences and criticism are one thing. But hyperbole and overreacting don't add to anything or help anything.
 

Dizzy

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I like the look of the new runebooks.

But they all look alike to me now. Maybe it's my colorblindness, but the colors differentiated my old books. Now there's no difference, they're identical.

Not much of a problem since death doesn't affect the location in my backpack. Remember the old days when your entire backpack would scrambled? Played havoc on my t-hunter who carried 20 runebooks.
 

Tyrath

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OMGOOSES bro! I just choked on my cappuccino when I read that. I'm soooooooooooooooooooo still laughing still even as I type this.

OK if people are going to leave/exit the game over this I have one question..... Can I have your runebooks. Not your stuff, just you runebooks.

Seriously it's not that bad. I like them.
#1 You are not my Bro keep that new age man love crap to yourself. #2. No if you try really hard I am sure you can read what I wrote and comprehend that I did not say people would quit over this alone. I realize most kids now graduate from high school with a 5th grade reading level so I will cut you some slack there. And I am glad you like them, however A LOT of people hate them.
 

Zosimus

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Dude, bro, bro-ette, brah or whatever.

So its new age to you? Ok bro is short for brother and I can go back old age then since Hulk Hogan used it during your time :) I said it in no disrespect.




Btw you did refer it was one more step for people to exit. Your exact words "Just another straw on the camels back that moves more people a little closer to the exit" So if you are not saying people are going to quit "eventually" ( which it means exactly how you put it) then please inform my 5th grade reading level what you meant exactly. The lord only knows that I cant comprehend the meaning for the word exit in any other way you said it. You are now saying you didn't make it sound that way so it surely means something else that I and the rest of the world would like to know what it means. :)

ex·it
[ˈeɡzət, ˈeksət]
NOUN
  1. a way out, especially of a public building, room, or passenger vehicle:
    "she slipped out by the rear exit" ·
    [more]
    "a fire exit"
    synonyms: way out · door · egress · escape route · doorway · gate ·
    [more]
    gateway · portal
    antonyms: entrance
    • a ramp where traffic can leave a highway, major road, or traffic circle:
      "he pulled off at an exit and stopped his Mercedes-Benz"
      synonyms: turning · turnoff · turn · junction

  2. an act of going out of or leaving a place:
    "he made a hasty exit from the room"
    synonyms: departure · leaving · withdrawal · going · decamping ·
    [more]
    retreat · flight · exodus · escape
    antonyms: arrival
VERB
  1. go out of or leave a place:
    "they exited from the aircraft" ·
    [more]
    "the bullet entered her back and exited through her chest" · "elephants enter and exit the forest on narrow paths"
    synonyms: leave · go (out) · depart · withdraw · retreat
    antonyms: enter
    • (of an actor) leave the stage.
    • (exit)
      used as a stage direction in a printed play to indicate that a character leaves the stage: See also exeunt.
      "exit Pamela"
    • leave a particular situation:
      "organizations that do not have freedom to exit from unprofitable markets"
    • computing
      terminate a process or program, usually returning to an earlier or more general level of interaction:
      "this key enables you to temporarily exit from a LIFESPAN option"
    • bridge
      relinquish the lead.

ORIGIN
mid 16th cent. (as a stage direction): from Latin exit ‘he or she goes out,’ third person singular present tense of exire, from ex- ‘out’ + ire ‘go.’ The noun use (late 16th cent.) is from Latin exitus ‘going out,’ from the verb exire, and the other verb uses (early 17th cent.) are from the noun.


RELATED FORMS
exit (noun)
exits (plural noun)
exit (verb)
exits (third person present)
exited (past tense)
exited (past participle)
 

Larisa

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I have to agree with Petra on this...the color's look the same to me, just the embellishments on the books are brighter now, more defined, less blurry. I like the change!

upload_2016-3-9_22-48-16.png
 

Tyrath

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Dude, bro, bro-ette, brah or whatever.

So its new age to you? Ok bro is short for brother and I can go back old age then since Hulk Hogan used it during your time :) I said it in no disrespect.




Btw you did refer it was one more step for people to exit. Your exact words "Just another straw on the camels back that moves more people a little closer to the exit" So if you are not saying people are going to quit "eventually" ( which it means exactly how you put it) then please inform my 5th grade reading level what you meant exactly. The lord only knows that I cant comprehend the meaning for the word exit in any other way you said it. You are now saying you didn't make it sound that way so it surely means something else that I and the rest of the world would like to know what it means. :)
Yet the fact remains you are no relation of mine so again keep the Bro crap to yourself. Since you are obviously not grasping the camels back metaphor, put enough little things on something and it will break under the weight. Now I am going to type very slow for you........ The Rune Books....... Are just one more little issue weighing down a already cranky and overloaded camel. And yes it is very new age all these guys bro this, bro that hugging and having emo parties, with their cute little man buns and saggy pants.
 

Philly

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I see this argument still going. I'm a scribe and I carry 50 plus runebooks with me at all times and each night I buy blank runes and make runebooks. My eyes are sore and red rimmed now I cannot tell the mage from the spell books much less the colors from the runes and all this babbling apparently isn't changing anything. When I am done with the huge job I have been working on before this change I wonk be taking any more special orders. As far as I know I'm the only one that does this. Opalala of Atlantic and I have played 18 years so there.:p
 

Hannes Erich

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^^ That's why I keep going back and forth in my mind about it. Change is good when it's an improvement. And MMOs always have to change. Some players will always be negatively impacted. Some players probably ought to just switch to non-MMOs before they have strokes.

I'm a big fan, I sympathize with all the reasons the studio has kind of become a fortress. Small team, crappy community, and so on. But still, it would be good for them to check, periodically, whether the ol' development pipeline is feeding or flooding the village plebeians down below.

Send one of the artists out to have a dialogue, start a thread, ask what the unwashed masses want, talk a little about what's attainable; then trudge back inside the fortress, shut the door and mull things over. You can't substitute that kind of discussion with the brevity of a meet and greet.

That conversation is going to go terribly and everybody is going to be rude. Both sides already know this. They still need to have it every once in a while in order to improve the game in the best ways.
with their cute little man buns
Tell us how you really feel! You rascal, you.
 

Tyrath

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No one has ever accused me otherwise :) That is why I have a PR and Marketing team so the fragile mayors and city councils that lean to the liberal side are insulated from me. My PR girl keeps threatening to get a ball gag for my public dealings....... Or was it a shock collar...... What grinds me is Broadsword/EA has a very marketable product, still has a loyal customer base (myself included), Market the game to the fastest growing population in America the baby boomers, and the Gen X. Harsh reality is very few people under 40 are going to be interested in UO no matter what bells and whistles they put in it. On the other hand my Mom who is 64 just started playing and likes it much better than the "Too busy cartoon games" That is where UO shines, hell I started playing when I was 29 and am 47 now, if they get their heads out of their hind quarters I will still be playing when I am 67. Over the years when there have been mass exodus from UO it has been after fundamental changes to the game have been made, everytime it was going to bring in new subs and make the game better. I don't know but from what I see those masses of new subs never came and those who could not stomach the changes hit the EXIT. But hey what do I know my little farm and corporation has been growing at 350% per year for the last 15 years...... Selling products that are old school to a average age customer of 43 and female. And no that is not apples and oranges it is exactly the same mindset. Focus on the maturity of the game, the community aspect, divert resources to reaching the target demographic with advertising. Don't make things like runebooks harder to see and distinguish from each other......
 

MalagAste

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No one has ever accused me otherwise :) That is why I have a PR and Marketing team so the fragile mayors and city councils that lean to the liberal side are insulated from me. My PR girl keeps threatening to get a ball gag for my public dealings....... Or was it a shock collar...... What grinds me is Broadsword/EA has a very marketable product, still has a loyal customer base (myself included), Market the game to the fastest growing population in America the baby boomers, and the Gen X. Harsh reality is very few people under 40 are going to be interested in UO no matter what bells and whistles they put in it. On the other hand my Mom who is 64 just started playing and likes it much better than the "Too busy cartoon games" That is where UO shines, hell I started playing when I was 29 and am 47 now, if they get their heads out of their hind quarters I will still be playing when I am 67. Over the years when there have been mass exodus from UO it has been after fundamental changes to the game have been made, everytime it was going to bring in new subs and make the game better. I don't know but from what I see those masses of new subs never came and those who could not stomach the changes hit the EXIT. But hey what do I know my little farm and corporation has been growing at 350% per year for the last 15 years...... Selling products that are old school to a average age customer of 43 and female. And no that is not apples and oranges it is exactly the same mindset. Focus on the maturity of the game, the community aspect, divert resources to reaching the target demographic with advertising. Don't make things like runebooks harder to see and distinguish from each other......
I still say they ought to market UO to the Horders..... it's a great game for them... horde in game not IRL.
 

Tyrath

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I still say they ought to market UO to the Horders..... it's a great game for them... horde in game not IRL.
We don't make jokes about moms refrigerator and closest for no reason :) Serious she has been playing for a month and has a 14x14 packed full of everything she walks by.
 

MalagAste

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We don't make jokes about moms refrigerator and closest for no reason :) Serious she has been playing for a month and has a 14x14 packed full of everything she walks by.
hehe....
 

Zosimus

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Yet the fact remains you are no relation of mine so again keep the Bro crap to yourself. Since you are obviously not grasping the camels back metaphor, put enough little things on something and it will break under the weight. Now I am going to type very slow for you........ The Rune Books....... Are just one more little issue weighing down a already cranky and overloaded camel. And yes it is very new age all these guys bro this, bro that hugging and having emo parties, with their cute little man buns and saggy pants.
Well that explains alot. Now I can understand why the way you are.
 

Kirthag

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*sigh*
With all the tech, I'm surprised no one did this yet.

Yes, the colors are indeed different. No, it is not just the optical illusion of the new gilding on runebook covers.

I sampled a single pixel on the red books, for red is, indeed, one of the colors that is most warped and subjective in the entire spectrum. Here are the results.



Now, some people might not have good graphics cards which will not render colors so much. I know for a fact low-end cards will not fully render the color spectrum, and only will render 256 colors regardless of the actual digital image's compression. However, numbers NEVER lie.

Although the color is off slightly, it is, indeed, a "mute" to the vibrant colors some have applied using neon dyes (and sorry, I hate the neons). I will note, Rune libraries that have used closely related shades are now such a hassle to navigate, particularly larger libraries.

I prefer the non-gilded runebooks - but I'm old-skool like that.

*edited
I will add that the source image used (the large one JC reposted) is most likely a screen shot from a better-than-most graphics card. As I do graphics and such for a living (still), my card is also a bit better than average, but is NOT the uber-card I know many have for their gaming rigs.

Monitor settings do affect the color distinction of the runebooks - when I brighten my screen, I see more of a color variation from what I remember. If I darken my screen, the hues look just about similar.

Color is all theory - for we all perceive it differently based on monitors and our own vision. However, when the majority noticed a significant difference in hue/shade - and it essentially "breaks" their game play (or usability of features such as gargantuan rune libraries) - I can see the ruckuss as being justified.
 
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JC the Builder

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Now, some people might not have good graphics cards which will not render colors so much. I know for a fact low-end cards will not fully render the color spectrum, and only will render 256 colors regardless of the actual digital image's compression.
Can you post an example of a graphics card that can only render 256 colors? Unless someone is using a computer from the 90's, this should not be relevant.
 

Tyrath

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This entire thread.... :facepalm:

While some like the new look and for others it just does not matter..... For a lot of us it is not only a eyesore but hinders functionality. Face palm all you want but for a lot of us the books are just broken or atleast a major hinderance in executing our daily duties :) Most annoying is there was no practical purpose in fixing something NO ONE had a problem with.
 

MalagAste

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While some like the new look and for others it just does not matter..... For a lot of us it is not only a eyesore but hinders functionality. Face palm all you want but for a lot of us the books are just broken or atleast a major hinderance in executing our daily duties :) Most annoying is there was no practical purpose in fixing something NO ONE had a problem with.
A lot of you are overreacting. You will get over it.
 

Lythos-

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I just logged onto a crafter/idocer for the 1st time since this change. I carry 18 runebooks on that character for npc shops, idocs and a few I use to carry runes that I can remark at idocs. Each book was color coded. The books I didn't color look like loose runes in my pack and I really can't tell at a glance which book is which anymore.

I fully support a revert.
 

Tyrath

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Just to point out incase the big lady M. has not noticed........ RUNE BOOKS ARE STILL BROKEN. :)
 

Kirthag

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Can you post an example of a graphics card that can only render 256 colors? Unless someone is using a computer from the 90's, this should not be relevant.
I still play UO on an old IBM thinkpad circa 1997... I'm just not one to go buying a new laptop if my older one still does what I want it to do - check email, play UO, use word (altho windows 95 version >.<).
I'm one of those ppl that refused to trash my G3 mac simply because Apple decided to go and change the OS.

My point is that there are still people who use the CC on older rigs simply because they can - I personally know some old-skool-players who ONLY play UO because it will run on their older computers and they cannot afford a new one due to fixed income or what not. I know because I keep their machines running. My old thinkpad is used when I go to the beach. Yeah, I'm such a geek I take it to play UO at the beach (don't ask how I get internet - lol - don't wanna take this thread too far off topic).
 

JC the Builder

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I still play UO on an old IBM thinkpad circa 1997... I'm just not one to go buying a new laptop if my older one still does what I want it to do
You can literally go out and spend $25 or $50 on a ten year old computer that can play UO. I very much doubt you are "playing UO" on a 20 year old computer. You might be able to load the game and login, but you are not out doing PvP or PvM.

Also, Mesanna said for the second time in the recent town hall the change won't be reverted. I guess that's the end of it.

I feel like just tossing a lot of my books in the garbage. After a few weeks it is still distracting with the bright gold ankhs. I have never dyed my runebooks, so the new dark brown disappears into my brown backpack.
 

Tyrath

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Also, Mesanna said for the second time in the recent town hall the change won't be reverted. I guess that's the end of it.
End of it perhaps but another straw on the camels back. Did she happen to give any reason or logic behind this wonderful change that everyone just loves so much?
 

Tyrath

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Ahhh basically another FU PEOPLE WE DON'T Care what you mere players want or think.
 
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