Community Suggestion Monthly Q&A For Update Demand

[MalekIsWeird]

Suggestion Title: Monthly Q&A For Update Demand
Suggestion Description: Staff look at what suggestions have garnered the most upvotes, then they list them in a top 10 to be voted on from most to least desired by the community.

Why should this be added?:
- Development and Community will be updated on how they currently feel about the game
- Development and Community will be able to vote on specific ideas that were nominated through their initial overwhelming positive reception that set them up for this ranking.
- Reorganize the priorities of what should be focused on to be up to date. Some suggestions were very in demand before, but now they may not be as much despite their initial nominated status to appear in the list that would be shown.

What negatives could this have?:
- Hassle to do every month once?

What problem would this suggestion solve?: Lack of communication. Some posts can get tons of upvotes but can be lost in the mountains of new suggestions never to be seen again, Also people's feelings on the game change. New people come and stay as well, this gives everyone a chance to give their thoughts through a vote and helps Developers understand what people really would enjoy.

 

[Allen Kennedy]

Maybe once a quarter, as opposed to once each month, as this gives suggestions time to mature and be judged by the community.

 

[peeps]

This is unlikely to be very helpful overall. I want to start by saying that the development team are very aware of what players want already, we read the forums, and keep up to date with the suggestions players make. That being said, community wants don't always line up with our long term plans, and regardless of that, if no one wants to make a specific update, it won't get done. For that reason ranking the most wanted suggestions in an official capacity won't achieve much. We will continue to work on the updates that we think are best for the community given our knowledge of the gamemode and its plans for the future regardless.

I understand issues with communication, but it is best for us not to promise things that we might not do, that will just end up with disapointment and anger. That's why things are only greenlit once we know someone on our team is going to actually do it. I know @rogue plans on incorperating a small section of the community spotlight to confirmed upcoming features so perhaps that will help.

If you wish to go through a months suggestions and pick the most upvoted and make an unofficial thread you are more than welcome to, but from our perspective, we already know what people want because we do read the suggestions and spend time on the server. I hope this explains our proccess and perspective somewhat.

 

[blobvis 2.0]

I heavily disagree with this, I do not trust the community enough.

Where as I perceive the best updates to be around furniture, map and things that improve RP, majority on this server just cares about money so anything like cheaper guns to improved drugsystem will pop up the easiest.

Take a look at the mayoral voting system that was implemented for laws, anything that profited criminals was easily voted through, rest was blocked.
Take a look at the yearly awards, some categories are just voted on for fun and with the little response they get, if lets say one org votes one answer there is a significant chance of that person actually getting it.

The more it repeats, the less interest is put into it and the quality will go down hill significantly as it will be more of a chore than an opportunity.

Furthermore majority of our developers team are doing this as their side project or hobby not as their job, we cannot expect them to bend backwards every month and work on things they truly dislike as it will work very counterproductive as than even things they do like get put to the sidelines due to no motivation to work on it. (Take for example blueduck, PLPD 2.0 that just took so long and was forced on so bad it was abandoned and a new team had to pick up from the start)

Where it might sound like a good idea, this is not the place it would do right, in my opinion this will do more harm then good for the development of perp,

I do like the idea which can be voted on, but I think @rogue is already trying to show a more open view of what developers are upto and try to speak to the developers or community managers and see how u can get certain ideas through and if they are feasible.

 

[Tyla Jai]

Surely the existing upvote downvote system already shows what the community wants

 

[Acerius]

I do appreciate the sentiment behind the suggestion and - while @peeps covered most of the essence of my thoughts on this suggestion - there is another point that I'd like to make, and it relates to this comment:

Reorganize the priorities of what should be focused on to be up to date.

It really irks me when things such as this get said because it's incongruent with the reality.

The development team consists of volunteers who are offering their skills because they love the server and the community. They're not employees and they're not providing a service. Mentioning "priorities" and "what should be focused on" gives the impression that we - as a player-base - are owed anything.

The truth is we aren't owed anything. The very fact that they are volunteers gives them all the prerogative to work on whatever they want to, whether that be because it's something they personally want in the game; they think is cool and fun; or for any other reason.

Sure, there's nothing wrong with taking the thoughts and feelings of the community on-board. In-fact it's probably conducive to development because nobody has a monopoly on good ideas. We have the Ideas & Suggestions sub-forum for that. But they're just that: suggestions. What you're proposing would bind what are ultimately people giving up their time and skills for free to commitments for delivering things that they might not actually want to work on, or when evaluated holistically on balance with everything else, might end up doing more harm than good for the server.

Sure, the development team could spend more time communicating what they're working on so that players know what's up and coming, but you also have to appreciate that this would be time taken away from them actually working on and testing the things they want to implement, and instead spent on crafting posts and ensuring the optics of what is said and shown is consistent.

The development team have a good track record and have continually delivered for the community, and I take comfort in having learned that silence does not mean the absence of great things being worked on. We just have to be patient and give them all the motivation and support we can, as well as thanks for their continued dedication.

 

[rat]

Democracy is of the people... By the people... For the people...

But the people are... Retarded