Global Agenda - Now Subscription less, GW model.

[Malakili]

I bought this on the last steam sale because well...I don't know, I liked the controls when I demoed it and since I recently tried WoW again I couldn't really justify the fact that it made me PvE for a bit keep me away.  Its actually pretty enjoyable, especially once you get up over level 20, which happens fairly quickly.  I don't know if it will have long term appeal, but for the 7.50 I paid, it was worth it.  I even gave my friend a coupon code and we've been playing together, which has increased the fun value.

So, I eat all my negative words.  At the pay once model,this game is pretty solid.  The fact that the underlying mechanics feel solid gives me a lot of hope for Tribes universe as well, hopefully they can apply what they've done here to the larger scale they are going for in that game.

[Mrbloodworth]

So, I eat all my negative words. 

 


Version 1.4 Public Test Server

Major Highlights since Version 1.39
Medic Class Review:

    * Significantly reworked Healer and Poison skill trees.

Device Changes

    * Paingun:
    *
          o Reduced slowing effect from -50% speed to -30%.
          o Added a Disease effect, reducing healing received on target by 5%.

New Missions:

    * Dome Defense - The Recursive Colony's expansion has become an increasing threat to Dome City and the Sonoran region. There are new reports of robotic hordes attacking the domes on the furthest reaches of the desert, and Bancroft has issued a call to arms to defend Dome City's territory.
          o The Dome Defense Raid queue is now available for agents level 40+. It is an Ultra-Max Raid mission that presents an extreme challenge for groups of highly coordinated agents. In it, Agents defend Dome City from the Recursive Colony alongside Dalton Bancroft. Recommended for highly coordinated premade teams.
    * Demolition becomes Acquisition with the following Game Rule changes:
          o Teams must now pick up their robot from the opposing team's base and bring it back to theirs for the cap
          o The Robot has had its weaponry upgraded. It now comes standard with a powerful burst Heat Ray and short sprint burst (useable on a cooldown)
    * New Merc PvP Payload Map - Haulin' Acid
          o A new PvP Payload map in an outdoor Sonoran desert setting.
          o NOTE: This map may actually be pushed to a release later than Version 1.4, but feedback and bug tracking is needed.
    * New Merc PvP Control Map - Magmarock
    *
          o A new twist on a Volcanic setting.

PvP Map Changes:

    * Toxicity
    *
          o Moved and/or removed meshes that were visible on one side, but invisible from the opposite side.
          o Cleaned up some exploitable areas.
          o Toxic waste now causes damage in areas that were previously unaffected.
    * Volcano Assault - atmospheric pressure changes in the area have increased to the point where agents will not be able to fly upwards indefinitely.
    *

      Himalayan Point - Lion status can no longer have turrets deployed on their heads.
    *

      Blackwater Loch - layout changes around the top objective location.
    *

      AvA Factory 3 - Architectural changes around the first objective.
    *

      All AvA maps have had their spawns upgraded to ensure both players and tech are invulnerable to nukes while in their spawn.
    *

      Payload: Ravine - adjusted teleport boundaries above Attacker spawn.

Open Zone Changes:

    * The Sonoran Zone had a significant art/performance cleanup pass.
    * Added a teleporter from New Yuma back to Junk Town
    * Commander Rollins has a new mission that sends players to Dome City to acquire repeatable bonus missions for successful Mercenary PvP runs.

Mercenary PvP loot

    * 30+ Merc matches should now no longer award Uncommons.
    * 30+ Merc matches had their Epic drop rates increased significantly.
    * 30+ Merc matches now reward Crescent Jetpacks much more often.
    * 30+ Merc matches now have a chance to reward new Tier-5 Dyes: Dragonscale, Chameleon, Iguana, Giraffa, and Betta Fish.

Special Ops PvE Changes:

    * Checkpoint Beacons should no longer take damage in PvE.
    * Sector 20 Agent Inception Center: Commonwealth maintenance has patched an area where ARM agents could shoot through a gap at the boss.
    * Remote Operations Control Center: Through the generous donations and dedication to the Commonwealth of double agents, facility additions were added that prevent agents from utilizing unintended routes to bypass portions of the mission.
    * Dweller Hideout: Fixed an area where players were getting stuck behind meshes near the dropship.
    *

      Due to further budget cuts in the CPSD manufacturing division, Commonwealth Support bots are no longer immune to EMP stun (Widow, Guardian, Recluse, etc).

Vendor Updates:

    * Level 40 perfect stat armor can now be purchased from the Dome City armor vendor for 12,000 tokens.
    * Added new Tier 3 dyes to dye vendor - Teal and Burgundy.
    * Adjusted Profile Slot prices - they are now 6000, 8000, 10000 and 12000 tokens respectively.

AvA Changes:

    * Every agency's HQ starts by default as a Defense Facility, along with the free tech they currently get for an HQ.  NO Additional Defense Facilities can be placed by an Agency so every Agency has at most a single Defense Facility (as their HQ).
    * Defense Facilities can no longer be purchased from the AvA vendors.
    * A tab for AvA has been added to the M screen for better visibility.

Dome City Changes:

    * Captain Devore has arrived in Dome City and has new repeatable bonus missions for successful Mercenary PvP runs. He can be found in the A.R.M. CONTROL room alongside Ava.
    * Ava Lockhart has new repeatable bonus missions for successful Special Ops PvE runs of all difficulties.
    * Activity around the North Door of Dome City is increasing as Recursive activity continues to rise in the desert.

Other:

    * Video Setting: Particle Detail has been reenabled, allowing higher particle detail levels.
    * GMs should now be bolder/different color in City Chat.
    * Added a confirmation dialog box when a player removes himself or another player from his Agency.

Bugs Fixed in Version 1.4

    * Fixed Rare quality icon for Aftershock Launcher drop. It was previously incorrectly the same as Epic icon.
    * Fixed a typo in the descriptions for the Special Ops Team Elite and Advanced achievement helms.
    * Should not be able to challenge someone that is already in a match (or ignoring you).
    * Sound Issue (Loud pop followed by loss of sound). - SOME IMPROVEMENTS MADE. TESTING REQUIRED. (Changed default audio class to XAudio).
    * Slight delay when trying to use melee; make melee feel better in net env.

[Ghambit]

http://forum.globalagendagame.com/gablog/index.php/2011/03/18/hi-rez-studios-pledges-100-of-global-agenda-weekend-sales-to-japan-relief/

Game goes on serious sale this weekend and ALL proceeds will go to Japan relief.  Good time to try out the game if you've got the spare lunch money.

[Mrbloodworth]

Such an awesome group of developers.

[Malakili]

Such an awesome group of developers.

Yeah, I suggest anyone whos looking for a solid shooter fix give it a try.  When you get over the fact that it isn't much of an MMO, a good shooter remains. 

[Mrbloodworth]

I suggest any dev house looking at how stuff should be done, look here. Under budget, well priced, solid game, fun, casual, frequent free updates, feedback forward thinking.

[Setanta]

I went through 30x entering passwords/game name/code to try and register so that I could purchase this. Time and time again the user name was taken and I had to retype it all.

Gave up and took my money elsewhere (beer to calm me down over that experience).

Tey might like to re-think their game-name policy

[Mrbloodworth]

If a name is taken, a name is taken. Not sure how that's different than every other game out there.

[Malakili]

I went through 30x entering passwords/game name/code to try and register so that I could purchase this. Time and time again the user name was taken and I had to retype it all.

Gave up and took my money elsewhere (beer to calm me down over that experience).

Tey might like to re-think their game-name policy

I'm not exactly sure what you are talking about, what would be better?

[Mrbloodworth]

I just went and checked, it does lack the fancy "This name is taken" dynamic check.

[Ratman_tf]

My favorite is when all your chosen names are taken, you hit "reccomend a name" and it's taken too. 

[Setanta]

Took a punt and switched fields - they had the game name as taken, but they meant the account name - sorted and yeah, dynamic check instead of retyping all the shit every time would have been good.

So far I'm having fun - it's not Tribes but it's promising.

[AcidCat]

I picked it up last Friday and I've actually been impressed, the shooter mechanics seem solid and it's been fun so far.

[Mrbloodworth]

Global agenda will be moving to a Free to play model.

Global Agenda to Adopt Free-to-Play Model

Mid-April "Free Agent" Update Delivers New Content and Unlimited Play For FreeImage

ATLANTA - April 7, 2011 -- Hi-Rez Studios today announced that "Global Agenda: Free Agent", the latest update to the Shooter MMO, will enable free-to-play access to all of the game's current playable content and levels with no purchase required.

The version 1.4 Free Agent update, expected to go live in mid-April, will support free play across all character classes through level 50.  This update also introduces a new Dome Defense Raid as high-level player content, a CTF- style Mercenary PvP game-mode with pilotable robots, revised skill-trees across all four character classes, and other changes and content.

For an optional one-time purchase of $19.99 USD (£13.99 GBP, €15.99 EUR), players may upgrade to Elite Agent status, which will accelerate the rate of earning character Imagelevels, gear, and currency and also grant access to premium features such as the login priority, auction house and in-game mail. All players that have previously purchased Global Agenda will be automatically upgraded to Elite Agent status.

"Global Agenda has never required a monthly subscription to play and, for a while now, we have offered a generous free trial for the game." said Todd Harris, Hi-Rez Studios COO.  "Our experience with the limited free trial has demonstrated to us the great demand among free-to-play gamers for a AAA-quality Shooter MMO like Global Agenda. We believe this latest change will further broaden the game's popularity and appeal."

"With this change, we allow players to experience all of the game's current content and levels for free. We've done this in a way that ensures that free players do not have to spend real money to compete on a level playing field with those who do, while still rewarding those loyal players and fans that have purchased the game or otherwise supported the game."

[Malakili]

Huh, odd move to my mind.  The model they have now seemed pretty accessible, especially given the fact that there was a free trial, and the game is regularly 15 dollars or less on sale at various places.

Ah well, whatever.

[Ratman_tf]

The next step is to pay people to play! 

[Vaiti]

And people still wouldn't play even then. Game is such a let down, so much potential squandered.

[Kageru]

It should have been free to play to play from day one. If they really believe they were that much better than the free competition that they deserved a monthly subscription they were downright delusional. Free to play would have let them keep some of their numbers from launch, keep the battles populated, while they get their act together. Same applies to Crimecraft, APB.

[Spiff]

I bought this and enjoyed it greatly for a while, reason I haven't logged in for months is simply it doesn't offer enough.
Gameplay can't really compete with something like BC2 imo and the persistence (main selling point of the game) is underdeveloped and at the same time quite hard to get into for more casual players.

I agree they should have just gone with a F2P/B2P model at launch, but I doubt many more people would be playing it now, there's just not enough to hook you.

That said: for a first effort they've done pretty well and they seem to just be testing the waters, with their tech and their payment models.
I'm glad they're fooling around like that, makes me hopeful they've learned some important lessons for Tribes 2.

[Mrbloodworth]

Recently, Hi-Rez Studios announced that their flagship title Global Agenda would be converting to a completely free-to-play revenue model. We caught up with Todd Harris to chat about this decision, what it means for the game, and where the future lies for Global Agenda.
MMORPG.com:
   

Global Agenda was already sporting a pretty substantial free trial mode, what caused you guys to make the extra leap into a fully F2P model?
Todd Harris:
   

Going fully Free to Play is very much building on the success we've seen from the free trial of Global Agenda. Our free trial program has been very well received. Even on a slow day we'll bring in well over 500 new accounts thanks to Free Trial. But there are plenty of gamers out there hesitant to download and even try any game that has a required price tag. Do we try to convince those gamers with a huge marketing spend or do we make the entire game free and let users experience it for themselves? Thanks to other titles, there is less stigma these days that free to play means low quality. Certainly there are some games that do it poorly in terms of quality or how they implement the cash shop, but some do it well. And we think what we offer will be refreshing in terms of the Global Agenda class-based shooter gameplay, AAA production values, and the way we implement F2P purchases as optional and balanced.

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MMORPG.com:
   

There’s obviously going to be some talk about how this might be “testing” the waters for future Hi-Rez titles. But I’m more curious as to what it means for future content in GA. Will you be looking at DLC styled updates from here on out? Basically, how does the team see the game drawing enough funding to keep pushing content out at a regular basis?
Todd Harris:
   

I suspect some will fear that going Free To Play signals the end of updates to Global Agenda when nothing could be farther from the truth. We have a dedicated Global Agenda team currently working on new content. In general we believe this move to F2P will allow us to deliver content and updates more frequently, not less.

MMORPG.com:
   

Fair enough. So let’s talk a bit about the new content that launches with Free Agent. There’s a new Capture-the-Flag styled PvP map right? As we understand it, there are some special features to this mode. Care to go into a little detail for our readers?
Todd Harris:
   

Within Mercenary PvP we offer multiple game-modes and our least popular mode was called Demolition. It played kind of like Bombing Run and driving the robot was fun but he felt a little wimpy. In this upcoming version we changed that game-mode from Demolition to Acquisition and it plays more like traditional Capture the Flag so you now run the Robot back to your own base rather than into the enemy base. The robot itself was beefed up with powerful heat ray weaponry as well as a short sprint burst. It was a fairly significant change but the game-type is now a lot more fun. All our other game-modes remain the same but we did modify map layouts across many existing PvP and PvE instances where exploits existed or we could improve gameplay around objective spaces .
MMORPG.com:
   

There’s also a new Dome Defense raid, but how is it different from what’s already in-game?
Todd Harris:
   

This new Dome Defense Raid is definitely our most challenging, intense, and immersive mission to date and reserved for characters level 40 and up. Recursive Colony robots including two new huge bosses are now raiding an instance of Dome City itself. The vendors are boarded up and the enemies are busting thru the walls. In previous Defense Raids players have been protecting an objective that is static or moving along a defined Payload track. In this Raid you are protecting and fighting alongside the AI-controlled hero NPC Dalton Bancroft who is moving through the large Dome City area trying to secure it against attack, calling in air-strikes, and even delivering the occasional buff if you time it correctly. Winning requires very tight coordination across your entire 10-man team but also drops epic loot.

MMORPG.com:
   

Can you tell us about the decision to switch up the skill trees for each class? What kinds of changes have been made, and will players be getting a free re-spec for their characters?
Todd Harris:
   

We reviewed and revisted every class in order to support more sub-class specialization and gameplay diversity. On Medic for example, players had gravitated over time toward allocating most of their skill-points within the Balanced tree regardless of whether they were healers or damage-dealing poison medics. These new trees do a better job supporting dedicated healers or combat medics or hybrid builds with more specialization within each tree and harder trade-off decisions in certain areas. Across each class we have worked to support similar more specialized trees. At the same time a lot of the fun within Global Agenda comes from experimenting to find your ideal builds and so we continue to support free-respecs .
MMORPG.com:
   

You’re opening up almost everything in the game for free players now… with the exception of a few things like mail, auctions, and so forth. You’re team is calling this “Elite Agent” status. What other sorts of perks will Elite Agents be getting? Nothing that will give them too much of an upper hand in combat I hope.
Todd Harris:
   

Our philosophy with free to play is to offer players a choice between spending time or money. We've seen that this works well with our current optional Boosters. Boosters do not give an upper hand in combat but they do allow me to earn levels and items faster. Similarly as an Elite Agent I'll earn levels more quickly and earn in-game currency and loot more quickly, but I will not have a gun the Free Agent can't earn thru gameplay. And, as a shooter, ultimately my success in the game has a lot to do with my player skill in actually aiming that gun.

MMORPG.com:
   

Obviously, it’s great to see that Hi-Rez is still invested in their first-born. Can we get some hints about what else is on the docket for the future of Global Agenda?
Todd Harris:
   

The Global Agenda dev team is working on a bunch of new content themed around the Recursive Colony faction that is now becoming aware of the human threat and attacking Dome City. We are excited about delivering another open zone with a quest-line and repeatable quests, new devices, new PvE Special Ops content and new PvP content.
MMORPG.com:
   

Thanks a lot for taking some time to chat with us Todd. We’re all looking forward to the launch of Free Agent.
Todd Harris:
   

Thanks. We are putting the latest cut of Free Agent on the Public Test Servers this weekend and the dev team is working hard to take it live and make it freely available by mid April!

You guys were saying?  

[Kageru]

30% of the raid group chain healing an NPC sounds awesome...

... no, wait.

[Mrbloodworth]

30% of the raid group chain healing an NPC sounds awesome...

... no, wait.

Would you like a friend code so you can play the game?

[Malakili]

As an MMO - this game is pretty mediocre to bad.

As a shooter - its a lot of fun and there is a nice variety of PvP and Co-Op missions to do.  If you are interested in the idea of a class based shooter which also has a co-op mode attached to it, this is a pretty good execution of that.  Seems like people are always clamoring for more co-op modes in games (myself included), but since this game got labeled an MMO suddenly co-op got translated into "PvE" and people don't want that, so it sounds crappy even though its you and 3 people blasting the shit out of robots - pretty good time.  It is not Planetside Next though, and thats what drove me away at first.  But its actually pretty good for what it is.

[Mrbloodworth]

Yeah, its not a traditional "MMO" PvE game thats for sure. However as noted, they are expanding this aspect all the time. For a game with fun PvE, and really fun PvP it does what it does well, and provides some good fun.

[Kageru]

I have played it when they first had the f2p to L.15. Then they made the group instances sort of silly. At that point it was a shooter inferior to BC2 and TF2 and the idea of it getting cash was laughable.

I may well try it again, because I do like the idea of a persistent shooter. Wonder if I can remember my account details.

[Furiously]

Level forty for the good stuff seems odd. Aren't you maxed at 30?

[Mrbloodworth]

As it stands right now, the level cap is 50, and the stat cap is hit at 30.

[Modern Angel]

Would you like a friend code so you can play the game?

Can I? I'm intrigued.

[Mrbloodworth]

Would you like a friend code so you can play the game?

Can I? I'm intrigued.

It was kind of a trick question, there is a trial on steam. But I do have 10 coupon codes for 50% off buying directly from High rez if needed. Using them also gets me in game cosmetics :)

Let me know.

[Von Douchemore]

I think it's a good move, I mean, they are probably getting their money thru boosters, which speed up the leveling and getting the best gear (ie tokens) greatly. With the influx of free agents, mercenary queues will be almost instant, hooray.

[CImperial]

This game was TF2 designed by people who had no intentions of making a shooter. It going f2p restores sanity to the universe.

[Ratman_tf]

I want to love this game, but I'm burned out on random teaming. I hates pickup groups and the frustration that comes with it. If I had a group of buds I'd probably be all over it.

A night of decent random teams can be ruined by one guy yelling into his goddamn mike, and me not being able to figure out how to squelch his ass, while we're trying to actually play the goddamn game.

[Spiff]

I want to love this game, but I'm burned out on random teaming. I hates pickup groups and the frustration that comes with it. If I had a group of buds I'd probably be all over it.

Perhaps they changed it (although I haven't heard anything of the sort) but you can't queue for Mercenary missions with more than 2 people. Which is one of the things that made me throw this aside a lot sooner than I would have.

The only alternative is the more persistent map/agency combat, but that's a clusterfuck of bad decisions and bad implementation imo.

[Kageru]

How did that actually end up playing out? When I did the trial their original model was pretty much disabled while they tried to come up with something better?

[Mrbloodworth]

I want to love this game, but I'm burned out on random teaming. I hates pickup groups and the frustration that comes with it. If I had a group of buds I'd probably be all over it.

Perhaps they changed it (although I haven't heard anything of the sort) but you can't queue for Mercenary missions with more than 2 people. Which is one of the things that made me throw this aside a lot sooner than I would have.

The only alternative is the more persistent map/agency combat, but that's a clusterfuck of bad decisions and bad implementation imo.

That change impacted my group of friends as well. Stackers are why we can't have nice things. It only affects Mercenary however ( Pick up PvP ). The PvE in this game is still more fun then any DIKU game I have played, so I have to disagree with your last bit. The PvE in this title can be very fun, if not repetitive after a bit, however the dynamics of the maps and enemies within helps a bit. Thankfully they are still adding more content in this area, rather consistently. AvA is not something I have really gotten into, but I hear its highly competitive, its also where you get to use the mechs and use deployable equipment not found in the rest of the game.