GM Meetup QnA Summary - May 16-17, 2017

Combat System Changes

Q. The last content update you did was considerably fast and had almost no differences from kTOS. Can we expect future content updates to happen at that pace now?
A. The pace at which content is updated to iTOS will always differ according to the situation, but in cases such as big system reworks and the like, our goal is to bring them over to iTOS as fast as possible, like we did with the recent patch.

Q. Saalus Convent missions feel harder than they were before the big changes. It’s only the bosses there that seem harder though; was this intentional?
A. If you feel that Saalus Convent bosses became harder than before, you may want to check your defense and penetration numbers. A lot of combat-related values and calculations changed, so dealing with certain monsters is going to feel a little different.

Q. How do you feel about the spike in players you saw after the combat changes, events and advertisement?
A. We feel very grateful to the players who returned to TOS, those who just started playing, and of course all the others who continued to play, for the interest they have shown in our game. We certainly hope to continue providing more exciting events and working towards a fun TOS for everyone.

Future Plans

Q. Will you keep rebalancing other classes after the big changes?
A. After the big combat changes and the character reset event, our goal is to keep improving on the specific problems of multiple classes. We briefly talked about this in our last Dossier post, so feel free to go over there to read about some of our plans for the future.

Q. What plans do you have regarding GvG? When are the Regional Guild Battles coming back?
If you’re thinking guild wars, we also mention a few changes we want to bring to guild contents in that last Dossier post we made, so you should definitely give it a read. As for Regional Guild Battles, they’ve been on standby for a while now, but our hope is to rearrange the format so we can bring them back for good. Please wait while the specifics are being sorted; we will announce more about the new format when it is ready.

Q. What about Team Battle League? What can we expect for the future of TBL?
A. It’s hard to be specific as of now, but we did discuss a few changes we’re thinking of implementing, again, in the fifth Dossier post. Please read that post for the full explanation, but in a nutshell, we want to revise both the format and the balance of Team Battle League matches.

Q. When can we see Rank 9 and the new classes?
A. Our goal is to release Rank 9 within this year; that’s what we’re working towards to at least. We can’t disclose any information about new classes yet, but we’ll make sure to lay out more details once we have something concrete.

Q. Will the Adventure Journal be removed?
A. The Adventure Journal will not be gone from the game; instead, we will be making some significant changes to how it works. We made an initial announcement about this some time ago in our official website, and we’ll continue to inform you via future announcements once more details about the Adventure Journal changes are out.

Feedback

Q. Do you see the feedback we leave on the forums about the latest issues?
A. We always monitor the official forums and take note of the players’ feedback. We’re glad to see players discussing the issues there, and we hope you’ll continue to share with us your opinions and thoughts on the game.

Q. I like Hunting Grounds, but the cube drop rates are too low.
A. Item drop rates in Hunting Grounds are based on the same principles as those of other fields, so we haven’t felt like it was particularly difficult to obtain specific items in them. That said, we realize that the appeal of Hunting Grounds is largely due to unidentified items, so we won’t shy away from continuing to improve on them whenever we deem it necessary.

Q. Clerics are too strong in this game, it seems like there’s nothing they can’t do. Is there a reason why only Cleric classes are like this?
A. We understand why some players would feel this way, and considering that one of our goals for now is revising the balance of specific classes, the players’ feedback about them is definitely something we should keep in mind. We can’t say any changes will happen overnight, since these things take time, but do keep discussing the ways in which you would like to see each class improved.

Q. Would you consider reducing the price for changing your team name?
A. We may consider temporarily applying a discount for team name changes in the future during an event. However, we don’t currently have plans to permanently reduce the price.

Q. We would like the option to change the name of a companion / not see the names of other players’ companions.
A. We can see how those options would reduce two very real companion name-related frustrations. We do intend to improve some aspects of the game’s UI so we will take note of those ideas for the future.

Bugs and Issues

Q. After more people started playing in [SA] Silute, the lag became really bad, but it seems to have gotten better after the temporary maintenances. What changes did you make?
A. We did notice quite an increase in the population of [SA] Silute after the big update, which caused a series of lag issues in the server. As explained in our announcement after the temporary maintenances of May 16 and 17, we added more machines to the server to expand its capacity and allow for a larger number of concurrent players. We’re continuing to monitor the situation in [SA] Silute both by checking the server ourselves and via player feedback.

Q. If you write to a certain extent in the chat input window, the letters will become “hidden” in the UI and you can’t see what you’ve written. When is this bug being fixed?
A. This is a bug we’re well aware of and working to fix. We don’t think it will take that much longer, and we’ll make sure to apply it to the game as soon as we have a solution.

Cosmetic

Q. The fashion sense of TOS costumes seems very Korean.
A. As a game of Korean origin made by a Korean team, we believe it’s only natural that our costumes would be influenced by that, although we do tend to try on different concepts every time we release a new set of costumes. Feel free to leave your suggestions for new costumes in our official channels, too. It wouldn’t be the first time player feedback has inspired a new TOS outfit ;)

Q. Would you consider introducing costume dyes?
A. We like the idea of a costume dye that would allow you to change the color of your costume in the same way you do with hair dyes. Unfortunately this is an idea which has been postponed, as we found some unexpected obstacles inherent to how our system works when trying to develop a similar item.

Q. How do you feel about a frying pan shield / candy cane rod? What about a bandana / leaf / giant bow hair accessory? [There were many more good suggestions; these are just a few examples.]
A. The frying pan could very well work as a weapon, too, we think. A candy cane rod would look lovely paired with a Christmas costume or a candy hair accessory. We’re always surprised by the ideas players come up with for new items and we wish we could make them all a reality… We’ll make sure to continue creating more fun and quirky cosmetic items in the future.