[Timberg]

Spoiler

Greetings!
With the drop of the NDA, the last few days has been hectic and exciting. There is an even more intense interest in WAR and this trend will only continue as we approach Open Beta, Head Start and LAUNCH! Here are some questions and answers which have emerged from this.


Will the Flash website be exchanged for an HTML-based website?
Whereas we have many improvements and new features coming up for our website, we will not be exchanging it for a HTML-based website for now.

Upcoming features include:
• Realm WAR pages
• New Account Management pages (will be online by the start of Open Beta)
• Web-Shop (will probably not be online by launch but it's coming)

Phew… With that out of the way, please keep reading!


Will CE Pre-Order customers gain an extended head-start?
Yes. The final dates are almost but not quite set in stone. For certain, though, CE pre-order customers will have a somewhat longer Head Start than SE pre-order customers.


How many servers will there be for the Head Start? Will I be allocated a server, and if so, what happen if my non-Head Start friend want to play on the same server and it's full?
Players will not be allocated a server, but will be free to choose from the same selection of servers as will be available on Live Launch on September 18th. Naturally, we will be monitoring our servers intensely; if there is a need for more servers, we will plug in more of them from our stock. As of now, we cannot share any specific numbers on this.


When will the actual CE box be available in retailers?
September 18th.


Will EU SE pre-order customers get into WAR Open Beta?
No. This was a solution well suited for the American market, but less so Europe. With more diverse demographics, we have opted for a solution where we will be giving away 55 000 Open Beta keys through the EA Store and other community sites. This allow for a more focused approach, better suited the five-language market we operate in.


Will EU CE pre-order customers get into WAR Closed Beta?
No. When the Collector Edition pre-order program was designed last autumn, we decided to include Open Beta access as a bonus and we are sticking with this. Naturally, neither will SE pre-order customers.


Will there be a European Preview Weekend?
No. When the Preview Weekend was announced we were frankly caught by the bed. Our schedule leading up to Open Beta and Launch have included large scale testing all along, and a Preview Weekend event of sorts was never part of this plan. In the end, making such large scale changes with such short notice proved unrealistic.

Europeans will not be left in the dark, however. As we speak, WAR is being shown to approximately 200 000 people at the Games Convention, Leipzig.


When will the Open Beta start?
The EU Open Beta is scheduled to start September 7th. This is the date we have been working with for some time but naturally, anything can happen up until then.


Will we be able to download the Open Beta client in beforehand?
Yes. The client will be hosted from the EA Store from the first week of September.


Will WAR be localized in my language on launch?
Warhammer will be launched in Europe on September 18th in Italian, Spanish, German, French and English with 24/7 in-game support.


During EU Beta, servers have often been down during weekends, and with French labour laws in order, there has been no one there to fix them. How do you plan to meet this challenge?
The Closed Beta servers have indeed been hosted and maintained in France, thereby being subject to the infamous French labour laws. Again, the very reason we relocated to Dublin was so that we could get around this in preparation for WAR. The Live servers will be monitored 24/7 from Dublin.

What about download options for Europe? Will we have a Fileplanet download like in the US?
I realise this is a hot topic, but I'm afraid I don't have any solid information right now. EA are big players and I have great faith in their ability to satisfy the downloading needs of our would-be open beta testers. That said, I'll try to find more information on this and share as soon I can.


What is the deal with the web-shops such as the EA Store and Direct2Drive who are selling SE Pre-Orders, claiming them to include Open Beta access?
Both myself, Iain and Mythic representatives have stated on several occasions that European SE pre-order customers will indeed not gain automatic access to the EU Open Beta as we have chosen to distribute keys through partner websites and the EA store instead.

We remain steadfast on our current line: Open Beta access is not planned to be a part of the European SE Pre-Order offer. In fact, we haven't even launched the SE Pre-Order campaign yet. This is due August 28th. At the end of the day, EA is in charge of distributing WAR in Europe. This is not to say they are to blame; it takes two to tango. They, just as we, are involved in this and we need to find a solution to this mess. GOA seniors have engaged in dialogue with EA and we are all eagerly awaiting the result of this.
This is a very important issue which has a high priority for us for many reasons. Trust me, we are working hard to get an answer to this asap.


Which server types will Europe have?
GOA will be offering the same server types as Mythic: Core, Open-RvR and RP-Core. This is still not fully set in stone and we may or may not offer RP-Open RVR as well. Please understand that this may change before Launch.


Why is the Open Beta so short?
EU players will be able to play WAR for years and years to come. EU players will not, however, be able to test the Open Beta for an extended period of time. Why? It is not needed and there is no time. Below are a couple of quotes from Mark Jacobs regarding the length of the Open Beta.

Mark Jacobs:
"As to the length of the OB, we have never said that it was going to be a month nor have we ever hinted at it that. The vast majority of OBs run by MMORPG companies have not lasted a month. Is a week too short? I wish we could have made it longer (maybe 2 weeks) but the timing just didn't work out."

Mark Jacobs:
"As to whether one week will be enough, well, it wouldn't be if we weren't already doing the scale of testing we are already doing but given the testing that will be going on over the next 3 weeks, I think it will be."


Which payment methods are planned for WAR?
I'm afraid I don't have confirmed information on payment methods as of now, but I have made enquiries about this and will get back as soon I can. Until then, I'll simply share the information from our press release: beside subscriptions, we will offer pre-paid 60-day Game Cards via participating retailers.


With North American players being treated a Preview Weekend and guaranteed Open Beta access for instance, it seems the American beta is both bigger and more important. Is this so?
Whereas the exact number of invites planned for EU and US will stay internal for now, I can say that there will be many, many European Beta Players. Basically, the Warhammer franchise has its origins in the UK and Warhammer have always had a stronger hold on European gamers than US gamers. WAR will be big in Europe and so will the Open Beta.


If I’ve pre-ordered the game and my local retailer fail to provide it to me on September 18th, will I be unable to play?
Whereas EA will do everything in their power to make sure WAR is distributed on-time in all language areas, mistakes and delays are bound to happen with such a large release. To counter this, we will enable Head Start players to continue playing the game a few days after release, even though they may not actually have the full game yet. Whereas the end of this period is not finalised, the date we are looking at right now is September 22nd. Unless a full retail code is entered by this date, the account will be closed and remain so unless activated.

Rumours about UK price cut
This is a big one, naturally. As far as I know, these rumours origin from a blogger (forgot which) who called EA to ask about the UK prices, only to be told that they were lower than those announced in our Press Release last week.

As of now, the information we have at hand is those stated in named PR document. If there are any changes to the UK pricing, we will announce this. I've made enquiries about the truth behind these rumours, but I'm afraid I have nothing solid to go on so far.


Will there be an EU WAR Herald and a Realm War page?
There will not be an EU Herald as such, but its features is in one way or another to be found at war-europe. We will certainly have some sort of Realm War feature, I just don't have any details on this.


What is your advice to players who are considering buying the SE Pre-Order from the EA Store or the Direct2Drive show?
There is no reason to rush into buying the SE Pre-Order especially as the Standard Edition - unlike the Collectors Edition - is not subject to limited supplies. August 28th is one week away from now and there will be plenty of SE Pre-Order boxes to go about. Also, by then, the confusion surrounding the offers provided by the EA Store and direct2buy will surely have evaporated.

SE Pre-Order customers will have plenty of time between August 28th and the Head Start to insert codes and download the client and once you receive the actual box at launch, you'll also gain access to the in-game bonuses associated with this offer.


Phew, if you read all that, you are true WAR fans!



Peace, Love and WAAAAGH!!
-Magnus

[veso]

Et siis... WAR SE pre-orderijad ei saa niisama Open Betasse ikka? >.<

[Timberg]

Aeg näitab. Ma ei viitsi ise süveneda, closed betat piisavalt taotud. Ootan juba 18. septembrit.

[ShinsouY]

ei tea kas pühendan end ikka sellele pelile, hetkel väga hoos Silkroad Online's

[eShelobik]

eks näha ole. d2d siiani kisab välja, et open beta accesss... kui seda pole on see kliendi petmine... samas on selles jutus kirjas, et d2d ei oma open beta accessi... kahju muidugi oleks, kui seda ei saaks, sest tahaks näha klasse ja mängu enne 18ndat...

[Ravenclaw]

Tundub et peab ka ära proovima, ma kunagi mingis algses betas osalesin ja siis jättis Shaman täitsa toreda mulje, chaos nii väga ei istunud ja Dark Elfe siis veel betas ei olnud.

[Timberg]

Tore näha, et keegi delfi endale teha julgeb. Mina isiklikult kellegi teisega peale blorci või sqherderi ringi joosta ei julgeks.

[veso]

[Timberg]

[eShelobik]

niih, tundub, et d2d kasutajad ikkagi saavad open beta accessi:

[TheSiim]

Ei tea kas Eestis on juba võimalik plaati ette kah tellida?

[Timberg]

Ei ole ja suure tõenäosusega ettetellimist Eestis ka ei tule.

[Rabakoll]

Nii. Ostetud D2D'st http://www.direct2drive.co.uk/6/6566/product/Buy-Warhammer-Online:-Age-of-Reckoning-UK-(Pre-Order)-Download

Liitun nendega kes valivad serveriks Core ning realmiks Destruction

[eShelobik]

ise veel serveri üle mõtlen, uurin guildide kohta erinevates serverites... aga plaan on miski semi hardcore või isegi hardcore guildiga ühineda...

[Timberg]

Arvan ise sama, et alguses "EESTI" gildi jaoks piisavalt rahvast kokku ei saaks ja mõni suurem rahvusvaheline gild on õige valik. Samas võiks enamus eestlased siiski ühes serveris mängida, juhuks kui..

[eShelobik]

no tänu aoc'ile on paljud väga pessimistlikud preorderi suhtes ja sellist eestlaste kogunemist nagu sinna tuli (100+ eestlast koos day1) me kindlasti enam ei näe ... ja 10 inimese guildil pole pvp mängus mõtet jah...

[Timberg]

Eks esimese paari kuuga peaks olema selge, mis saab .)

kuidas meeldib
kellele meeldib
kui palju meeldib
kellele ei meeldi
miks ei meeldi
kas see takistab mängimist jms

Endiselt tahaksin väga näha enamus eestlasi ühes serveris, olgu kasvõi eraldi pooltel. Saaks kaugemas tulevikus ehk kaasmaalasi veristada :)

Muide shlob.. ma usun, et aoc sarnast massi on täiesti võimalik näha, kuid isiklikult sellele ei panustaks. lich king pole veel välja tulnud, mmo rahvas otsib endiselt meelelahutust, sest paljudel on wow üle visanud ja aoc ei meeldinud vast. Pealegi sügis tulekul. Müüginumbrid kasvavad. Inimesed lähevad kooli, tööle. Puhkused varsti läbi. Ilmad lähevad halvemaks. Istutakse rohkem toas jms :)

[veso]

Ma liituks hea meelega eesti gildi, hea meelega kobiks ka Core serverisse, ja Destructioni teen ma 100%

[Ravenclaw]

sama siin, kui leiab aega mängida ja arvuti välja veab siis kindlasti Destruction kuigi warhammeri lauamängus mulle greenskinnid väga ei meeldi siis mmo-s on just goblinid mulle siiani kõige lahedama mulje jätnud

[Timberg]

[eShelobik]

open beta download on avatud war-europe lehel ...

[ShinsouY]

[eShelobik]

[ShinsouY]

[Timberg]