Mesanna

[Windarian]

I've recently returned after a ten year absence and I hear a lot about Mesanna. I've searched and maybe just missed it but, who is Mesanna? I've gathered that she is the avatar of a GM I think but she seems to be more important than that. Can someone explain?

 

[Captn Norrington]

Mesanna is the Producer of Ultima Online, and the highest ranking developer. So, basically she is the boss of every GM, EM, and developer in UO.

Her real name is Bonnie Armstrong.

 

[Windarian]

Mesanna is the Producer of Ultima Online, and the highest ranking developer. So, basically she is the boss of every GM, EM, and developer in UO.

Her real name is Bonnie Armstrong.

View attachment 43844

Thanks!

 

[Drakelord]

And she is a really nice "Dragon Lady". Back last year when I was trying to get back to UO, after being gifted codes to put on accounts, she helped with me getting my main and mine wife's main account back. If not for her help last year I would not be here today, Bonnie is my UO Hero today!

 

[Capt. Lucky]

Just waiting for the attacks to start *munches popcorn*

 

[OREOGL]

Just waiting for the attacks to start *munches popcorn*

While I'm not a fan, I'll let them draw their own conclusion.

 

[GarthGrey]

I don't think anyone should overly attack her, or overly schmooze her either.

 

[Capt. Lucky]

I don't think anyone should overly attack her, or overly schmooze her either.

This *is* Stratics right?

 

[Scribbles]

*grinds teeth* *keeps mouth shut*

 

[Goodmann]

Very dedicated lead for UO. While sometimes peoples opinions vary she puts a lot of work into uo and that can't be denied

 

[MalagAste]

She pours her heart into the game that I will never deny. She truly does love the game... sometimes though... I just wish she'd actually play more with players "incognito" and learn to see the world the way we do.

 

[Ansel]

Nothing personal, but she's not a professional software developer, has no communication skills, she's worked on only one game, she has no technical background, and the game has bled more players under her leadership than under any other.

A game at this stage needs every member of its development team to be a developer. It has to run as a startup.

 

[Yadd of Legends]

And here it comes ...

 

[HoneythornGump]

All one has to do it look at the decision that have been made over the past 5+ years:

Pull KR Artwork , still not available
Introduce Shard Shields
Cancel the Art Upgrade
Place the CC client on the download page.

These things happened on her watch. No Vision for UO.

Nothing has been done to try and breath life into the game.

UO has zero future as long as they continue to support the CC client.

Mesanna is a Jurassic who thinks the game is okay on a client from 1997, and graphics right out of Ultima 8 Pagan.

The ship sailed a long time ago...

We could have charted a different course, but she's chose to point us in direction where were going to fall of a cliff.

 

[DJAd]

In before the lock!!

 

[Windarian]

In before the lock!!

Sorry I opened the can of worms. :-(

 

[JDs]

What does the name "Messana" mean?
M is for musical, your hidden talent!

E is for extra, those little things you do!

S is for sincere, a model of truth.

S is for serious, not always joking.

A is for acquaintance, the many friends you know.

N is for natural, the genuine side of you.

A is for abundant, your cheer knows no bounds.


Your name in reverse order is "Anassem". A random rearrangement of the letters in your name (anagram) will give "Nsemaas". How do you pronounce that?



Past life for Messana

I do not know how you feel about it, but you were a female in your last earthly incarnation. You were born somewhere around the territory of New Guinea approximately on 1050. Your profession was medicine man, surgeon, and herbalist.

You had a mind of a scientist, always seeking new explanations. Environment often misunderstood you. Had a respectable knowledge. Your lesson - to study, to practice and to use wisdom, enclosed in psychological sciences, and in ancient manuscripts. With strong faith and hard work you will reach your real destiny in present life.

 

[OREOGL]

What does the name "Messana" mean?
M is for musical, your hidden talent!

E is for extra, those little things you do!

S is for sincere, a model of truth.

S is for serious, not always joking.

A is for acquaintance, the many friends you know.

N is for natural, the genuine side of you.

A is for abundant, your cheer knows no bounds.


Your name in reverse order is "Anassem". A random rearrangement of the letters in your name (anagram) will give "Nsemaas". How do you pronounce that?



Past life for Messana

I do not know how you feel about it, but you were a female in your last earthly incarnation. You were born somewhere around the territory of New Guinea approximately on 1050. Your profession was medicine man, surgeon, and herbalist.

You had a mind of a scientist, always seeking new explanations. Environment often misunderstood you. Had a respectable knowledge. Your lesson - to study, to practice and to use wisdom, enclosed in psychological sciences, and in ancient manuscripts. With strong faith and hard work you will reach your real destiny in present life.

I think I threw up in my mouth a little...

 

[S_S]

What does the name "Messana" mean?

You do realize she spells it M E S A N N A.

 

[Aibal]

Sorry, but I know several players, myself included, who are out of here if they can't play the CC. Sorry to burst your bubble, but I find the EC to be, quite frankly, hideous.

All one has to do it look at the decision that have been made over the past 5+ years:

Pull KR Artwork , still not available
Introduce Shard Shields
Cancel the Art Upgrade
Place the CC client on the download page.

These things happened on her watch. No Vision for UO.

Nothing has been done to try and breath life into the game.

UO has zero future as long as they continue to support the CC client.

Mesanna is a Jurassic who thinks the game is okay on a client from 1997, and graphics right out of Ultima 8 Pagan.

The ship sailed a long time ago...

We could have charted a different course, but she's chose to point us in direction where were going to fall of a cliff.

 

[GarthGrey]

S

You do realize she spells it M E S A N N A.

hehe

 

[S_S]

S

hehe

?

 

[Lord Nabin]

I've found Mesanna to be very helpful over the years.

There have been several pluses she has brought to us. Mostly focused on things for the players like the em program, advisor program, custom banks in britain, historical banners for houses.

Your never going to please everyone

There has been a fair amount she has lead the team in brining to UO

That group works hard with what they have to work with. Prioritizing is a bug part of that

 

[Hannes Erich]

She's a fine producer for the game in its current stage of existence. Nobody in the industry (with career ambitions) is going to want that position at this point; Mesanna does it for the love of the game, and I'm very grateful for that. I wish she'd pushed the art upgrade through and some other things; but I don't doubt the resources are no longer there.

Broadsword isn't a startup. UO is nearly a twenty-year-old game; Broadsword basically functions like its nursing home. Various teams did some cool things with UO, but didn't get around to other things, and now here we are. That's life. Accept and appreciate things for what they are and simply enjoy the game while it's here. You'll always be able to complain about UO on Internet forums; you won't always have official UO. Want big improvements? Ask EA for a sequel. That's at least marginally realistic. Anyone who spends hours arguing about UO development in 2016 is living in la-la land.

 

[Angel of Sonoma]

Nothing personal, but she's not a professional software developer, has no communication skills, she's worked on only one game, she has no technical background, and the game has bled more players under her leadership than under any other.

A game at this stage needs every member of its development team to be a developer. It has to run as a startup.

you are describing MY manager (and we are talking about a fortune 500 company). he is not a software developer but manages a team of developers. describing his communication skills as poor is generous. half the time i can't understand him and when i do understand the broken english i can't decipher what was said. mesanna has stellar communication skills compared to this guy.

UO was on the decline before mesanna took the producer role.

 

[MalagAste]

Well given what the poor woman was left with by the time she got the reigns can you REALLY fault her?

I mean.... look at the crap she's been left with... half ass finished projects... tons of lands with no purpose... dozens and dozens of unfinished story lines... strings of code pieced together with enough ducttape to encircle the globe 100 times.... years of failed additions, no documentations of tons of stuff.... having had to move at least 3 or 4 times... no crew to speak of..... a seriously outdated engine that most sane people would have abandoned YEARS ago....

It's like inheriting an old model T someone found that's been at the bottom of a lake the last 80 years and expecting her to get it up and running with a budget of 40 dollars and a can of spraypaint and a roll of ductape... while watching a herd of goats, on the middle of a football field while the stands are filled with hecklers and on the sidelines are 200 engineers who all tell her to do something else... meanwhile her boss is breathing down her back wondering why in the hell she hasn't gotten it up and running yet.


While I'm sure somewhere she has a beautiful picture of how she'd like that Model T to look.... I don't think she has the resources to get it that way.... most likely she only has enough for one fender.

 

[Aran]

All one has to do it look at the decision that have been made over the past 5+ years:

Pull KR Artwork , still not available
Introduce Shard Shields
Cancel the Art Upgrade
Place the CC client on the download page.

These things happened on her watch. No Vision for UO.

Nothing has been done to try and breath life into the game.

UO has zero future as long as they continue to support the CC client.

Mesanna is a Jurassic who thinks the game is okay on a client from 1997, and graphics right out of Ultima 8 Pagan.

The ship sailed a long time ago...

We could have charted a different course, but she's chose to point us in direction where were going to fall of a cliff.

Without the real client, UO is dead. If you want pretty modern graphics, a pretty modern client, go play any one of a hundred and more MMOs, with more being released regularly, that are pretty, modern things. Let UO be UO.

 

[Ansel]

you are describing MY manager (and we are talking about a fortune 500 company). he is not a software developer but manages a team of developers. describing his communication skills as poor is generous. half the time i can't understand him and when i do understand the broken english i can't decipher what was said. mesanna has stellar communication skills compared to this guy.

UO was on the decline before mesanna took the producer role.

And I was utterly unfair in one respect. She is very much a professional and performed admirably supporting the game for many years. Yet we are, all of us, one promotion away from either misery or The Peter Principle.

Forgive me, however, if I do not find incompetence in your boss, no matter what the ranking of the company you work for, even close to a viable counterargument. It does not follow that if your boss lacks skills we should not be bothered if other bosses do.

The game was in decline. True. But the acceleration of that decline has, objectively, been the most rapid under her leadership than under the leadership of any producer in the game's long history.

I'm not here to trash this person, though it may sound like I am. The game owes a lot to her. And it's not her fault that she's out of her depth now.

Finally, remember this. She is our employee. If you would retain her as an employee in her current role, that's up to you. But I know, from direct and long experience, that you can demand brilliance, drive, insight and passion in a leadership role in the games industry and get it.

So I put it to you, what is it in us that can imagine that the current situation is okay? It is not our job to understand the problems of our developers. We're paying for a service here. Those are not our problems.

 

[Ender]

Without the real client, UO is dead. If you want pretty modern graphics, a pretty modern client, go play any one of a hundred and more MMOs, with more being released regularly, that are pretty, modern things. Let UO be UO.

And why can't UO still be UO with a good new client?

 

[Dot_Warner]

And why can't UO still be UO with a good new client?

Because way too many people are caught up in the self-defeating spiral called "nostalgia," thus virtually any and all change is bad...preferring to selfishly wedge their heads in the sand as UO hemorrhages players

 

[Lythos-]

Because way too many people are caught up in the self-defeating spiral called "nostalgia," thus virtually any and all change is bad...preferring to selfishly wedge their heads in the sand as UO hemorrhages players

I like the cc graphics and I get motion sickness trying to play some games with beautiful artwork. There's a lot of free versions of this with a lot of players and the same graphic design.

Anyway Mesanna seems to be helping players with problems more than i remember anyone else doing so that's a plus. It's always a good thing to have a person that cares enough to take time out to help someone else. She didn't have to help with account problems. She didn't have to log in to help with individual in game problems. I think I'd like to see a different path for the game but overall this whole team cares enough to take some of our ideas into consideration.

 

[Uriah Heep]

It's like inheriting an old model T someone found that's been at the bottom of a lake the last 80 years and expecting her to get it up and running with a budget of 40 dollars and a can of spraypaint and a roll of ductape...

Well hell, therein lies the problem. You also need baling wire!!! sheeesh

 

[Aibal]

Not liking the EC, nor wanting to play it, is NOT synonymous with being nostalgic. It's a POS client that needs an aftermarket fix, just like the CC, to function well. I'm sure there are lot's of folks, me included, that would have no problem with a new client that was supported by the game with no third party apps needed AND had pleasing graphics. I think most that don't use the EC acknowledge the benefits of the client, but the graphics are absolutely hideous.

Because way too many people are caught up in the self-defeating spiral called "nostalgia," thus virtually any and all change is bad...preferring to selfishly wedge their heads in the sand as UO hemorrhages players

 

[Tina Small]

Because way too many people are caught up in the self-defeating spiral called "nostalgia," thus virtually any and all change is bad...preferring to selfishly wedge their heads in the sand as UO hemorrhages players

I wonder how many people who use the CC would be more inclined to at least try the EC if Broadsword would improve the paperdoll and in-game appearance of male characters and fix the appearance of some pets like hiryus. Maybe take a poll and find out whichspecific EC artwork is most objectionable and make it a priority to improve it.

 

[Cyrah]

I gave up CC for KR. Than KR was just gone. Why?

 

[Lythos-]

I wonder how many people who use the CC would be more inclined to at least try the EC if Broadsword would improve the paperdoll and in-game appearance of male characters and fix the appearance of some pets like hiryus. Maybe take a poll and find out whichspecific EC artwork is most objectionable and make it a priority to improve it.

It's all bad. I've seen Sibbles pvp stream and he plays in EC. I know most pvpers do anything to get an edge but I couldn't force myself to play in that. The pets look awful, paperdolls look awful and even the grass looks awful. It's all pure garbage.

 

[Cymidei]

I don't like how anything looks in the EC client. Tried it but eww! I don't care what kind of functionality it has, it's just not my preference to use it. No I am not a "Jurassic" and I have played plenty of modern MMORPGS. Trying to make a new client that functions with this old game and it's old servers and data..meh of course it's ugly.

If they could have I am sure they would have just start hired a low budget Chinese or Korean game studio, and given us a fresh new game called UO 2 with modern graphics, that uses a modern game engine, completely free of the old servers and call it a day.

 

[Dot_Warner]

Not liking the EC, nor wanting to play it, is NOT synonymous with being nostalgic. It's a POS client that needs an aftermarket fix, just like the CC, to function well. I'm sure there are lot's of folks, me included, that would have no problem with a new client that was supported by the game with no third party apps needed AND had pleasing graphics. I think most that don't use the EC acknowledge the benefits of the client, but the graphics are absolutely hideous.

The majority of EC haters trot out the "its not UO" line of BS, saying its not the game they love (regardless of the objective fact that all the workings of the game remain the same). They want UO to remain mid-90's sprite time warp. This is the nostalgia.

The aftermarket fix amuses me. The CC desperately needs UOA to reduce carpal tunnel aggravation and fill gaps in the outdated clunky "UI," while the EC was specifically designed to be modded by players. Reducing the comparison to apples and oranges. The full version of Pinco's (remember, the EC's default UI is a version of Pinco's) adds a lot of bells and whistles, 90% of which are convenience features and aren't needed to play.

"Pleasing graphics" is a way too subjective phrase at this point. Aside from mobiles, the EC's graphics come straight out of the CC. Sure, some of the mobiles were radically changed for no apparent reason...the hiryu and the ki-rin being a prime examples.

The problem with people clutching so tightly to the CC is the simple fact its wildly outdated and difficult to work on. It has held UO back since Third Dawn.

I wonder how many people who use the CC would be more inclined to at least try the EC if Broadsword would improve the paperdoll and in-game appearance of male characters and fix the appearance of some pets like hiryus. Maybe take a poll and find out whichspecific EC artwork is most objectionable and make it a priority to improve it.

There is a toggle for legacy paperdolls in the EC. Though as with all the other CC assets in the EC, its been scaled up...with mixed results. The EC's native male paperdoll does need a redo, but that promise has languished since KR..

I gave up CC for KR. Than KR was just gone. Why?

EA Japan gave someone a completely unrealistic release date that somehow the rest of EA was held to. Unfortunately, KR was poorly received due to a mix of graphical styles and an untenable UI. So the EC, which is a bizarre mix of KR and the CC was born. Most of the KR world art is still lurking in the client, but the devs won't turn it on for whatever reason.

 

[sibble]

It's all bad. I've seen Sibbles pvp stream and he plays in EC. I know most pvpers do anything to get an edge but I couldn't force myself to play in that. The pets look awful, paperdolls look awful and even the grass looks awful. It's all pure garbage.

I don't have to force myself to play EC, the game play feels much different and I enjoy it more than playing in CC. If they could make EC look like CC they could probably have a client all players would enjoy.

With that being said, back to the topic. Mesanna is here for the players and that's clear when we as a community speak up and say "hey this needs to be fixed." When enough players get involved, a response is given with either a patch or a reason why not. Unfortunately, we have a relatively small gaming community with people who don't test patches fully, beta test content to it's fullest and most importantly give appropriate feedback to our team.

Ultimately what this game needs is developers who play the game to it's fullest. I don't believe we have this. The next best thing would be to get non-biased veteran players who can discuss changes in a meeting and communicate with the developers. Instead we have a community-wide forum where trolls are not filtered and we get biased opinions, thus we will never ever get the proper changes that this game really needs.

 

[Aibal]

Then if that's the case, why are there threads on this forum, at least somewhat regularly, with people soiling their undies that Pinco is going to close shop? Hmmm......

The aftermarket fix amuses me. The CC desperately needs UOA to reduce carpal tunnel aggravation and fill gaps in the outdated clunky "UI," while the EC was specifically designed to be modded by players. Reducing the comparison to apples and oranges. The full version of Pinco's (remember, the EC's default UI is a version of Pinco's) adds a lot of bells and whistles, 90% of which are convenience features and aren't needed to play.

 

[Goodmann]

I don't have to force myself to play EC, the game play feels much different and I enjoy it more than playing in CC. With that being said, if they could make EC look like CC they could probably have a client all players would enjoy.

With that being said, back to the topic. Mesanna is here for the players and that's clear when we as a community speak up and say "hey this needs to be fixed." When enough players get involved, a response is given with either a patch or a reason why not. Unfortunately, we have a relatively small gaming community with people who don't test patches fully, beta test content to it's fullest and most importantly give appropriate feedback to our team.

Ultimately what this game needs is developers who play the game to it's fullest. I don't believe we have this. The next best thing would be to get non-biased veteran players who can discuss changes in a meeting and communicate with the developers. Instead we have a community-wide forum where trolls are not filtered and we get biased opinions, thus we will never ever get the proper changes that this game really needs.

 

[Dot_Warner]

Then if that's the case, why are there threads on this forum, at least somewhat regularly, with people soiling their undies that Pinco is going to close shop? Hmmm......

Hyperbolic much?

People want Pinco to stick around for when BS breaks the UI, which happens randomly. They also might want him to add a feature to the UI for whatever reason.

 

[Kirthag]

 

[Aibal]

Hyperbole Dot. Really? Search the forums. This goes back to one of my original points in this discussion. Get a good client, that the game/developers build for the game (and this includes updating REGULARLY), utilizing many of the features of the current EC. THEN, get rid of the ****ty graphics that, I'm sorry, go FAR beyond just hiyrus and kirins, and get a solid graphics....maybe more KR like....and you'll probably have a ton of players that use it. Even in vent I've never argued the functionality with you, but the graphics suck. You can paint a turd shiny colors, and it's still a turd.

Hyperbolic much?

People want Pinco to stick around for when BS breaks the UI, which happens randomly. They also might want him to add a feature to the UI for whatever reason.

 

[sibble]

 

[Merlin]

Get a good client, that the game/developers build for the game (and this includes updating REGULARLY), utilizing many of the features of the current EC. THEN, get rid of the ****ty graphics that, I'm sorry, go FAR beyond just hiyrus and kirins, and get a solid graphics....maybe more KR like....and you'll probably have a ton of players that use it.

Easier said than done. Clearly not going to happen at this point in the game's life cycle considering they tried this back when the game had nearly 10x subs and significantly higher number of staff members and revenue.

Also, you completely discount the fact that not everyone wants that. Look at this thread even. There are very heated opinions about preferences of CC versus EC. Do away with one or the other, and this game likely loses subs at an exponential rate that contributes to the eventual shut down of the game.

 

[blend]

Sometimes, Mesanna give to us. Gray Robe or Something....

 

[popps]

I have never understood why gamers put so much emphasys on Graphics.....

Personally, what keeps me playing a game is CONTENT and, to my opinion, I have yet to find a game that has so much stuff to do and complexity of game play as Ultima Online has........

If I need to describe Ultima Online to someone, I do not even know where to start from considering the enormous number of things one can do in it.

I mean, just look at whatever other game out there and sure, they may have great graphics but you can't have a House to customize, or you cannot craft so many things or you can't grow plants or you can't have vendors or you can't etc. etc etc.

Sure, it would be wonderfull to have better Graphics in Ultima Online but I would never ever trade the game content for better Graphics, EVER.

Graphics might be the initial attraction to a game but, to my viewing, it is content which most often, I would imagine, keeps one playing it and, infact, Ultima Online is approaching its 20th Birthday Anniversary...... this should show something about the "power" of its immense content.....

To create a game with the amount of content like Ultima Online currently has, but modern looking graphics, I would imagine would require a very large investment of resources and who knows how many Developers and probably would take years and years of time......

The only one real problem I have always had with Ultima Online is how easy it is to cheat in it with scripts, multiboxing/multiclienting and all that. I think that overall cheating in UO lost many more players to the game then what it kept playing the game, but that's only my personal opinion.....

What would be cool, but I have no idea whether it would be technically even thinkable, would be if the current content of Ultima Online was "convertible", so to speak, into a modern day graphics but without losing anything of the many many things one can do in UO.....

Like, creating new modern graphics and then "convert" all of the game play currently possible to that new, modern Graphics. But I guess, that if it was not done already it means that the technical difficulties are so high that it is not feasible and, clearly, startiong from zero would be a daunting task to imagine for the amound of work that would be necessary as well as of the resources......

 

[Finley Grant]

I know both Clients very well and i dont play CC anymore as its 20 yr old rubbish

I think what most Posters who defend the CC simply ignore is that their doing will somewhere lead to turn the Servers off due lack of revenue.

Why? Because BS dont have Ressourcen to maintain and develop 2 Clients plus create New content in a solid way. And i dont Start with high res grafix here...

The future of the game will be like.
A part play EC even with its issues.
Half of the CC player get older and focus on life (yes that thing outside the Front door)
Other half of the CC player die sooner or later

Result: less money for BS/EA

If you really think that uo and the CC is good the way it is than u are selfish dreamers. The game need New players to get revenues to keep it running. And with an interface like CC and EC this will not happen (and dont Start with: oh last week we had a new joiner)
AS long are people force EA to work on CC nothing will improve or move forward.

I dont know how much of this is because of mesanna but when i see descisions like shard shields and Kindergarten colored event items i feel that this was wasted time to code...

 

[Petra Fyde]

Mesanna is the caring and dedicated producer of UO who works far more hours than she ought for far less appreciation than she deserves. However, like all humans on this planet, she's not perfect and some people delight in pointing out the imperfections.
A misquote I've often thought applies is this:
You can please some of the players all of the time
You can please most of the players some of the time
But some players you just can't please any of the time.