Questions and Answers from MMORPG.com's David Brevik

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Q: I'd like to see a schedule for new heroes being added. Are there any plans to have such a release schedule, or are you guys more or less playing it by ear?
A: Great question and thanks for your support! It's a little "play it by ear" still. There are many heroes we want to get to, but no exact schedule. Honestly, we keep debating internally about the list. The idea is to get to a new hero every 4ish weeks. Who knows if we can get there, but we are organizing the team and our pipeline to try and make it possible. Most of the next heroes we will be focusing on already announced Ultimate Pack heroes, but there may be a surprise in there

Q: David- When should we expect to see Player trading and an in game auction house in Marvel Heroes?
A: The player trading tech is about half done. We have a lot of things we would like to balance before we progress much further to ensure we have a robust trading economy and we don't have a huge negative impact on the game. So, no exact ETA on trading, but it is scheduled for the next few months. After that tech, we need to develop in-game-email which we would then build the auction house on top of that system.

Q: I was wondering would we ever have player housing as in to earn trophys and show them off and such? Same goes for Supergroup hubs?
A: Player housing is something we have talked about a few times. There are no set plans at this time, but there is quite a bit of interest on the team. We would also think about Supergroup housing as well.

Q: Hello when will we see any change to chase costume situation ? and is there already options on the works ?
A: We've been talking about this a lot internally lately. We currently don't have any definite plans. One possibility involves crafting recipes, another could be Raid loot. We may offer them for sale in the store at some point, as there are many players who want these costumes more than any other costume in the game but with the current drop rates, have no way to obtain them. We will come up with something great for everyone. We agree that we want these in more people's hands.

Q: When can we expect more depth added to the game, I've invested 400+ hours but I feel like the item hunting and game difficulty is not up where I'd like it to be. I want to take my character to the next level but I feel like there is no opportunity for me to do so.
A: We agree that the depth isn't where we want it quite yet. I hope that difficulty modes will help a bit and we have a bunch of new end-game modes coming (like our endless X-mansion defense). We will also be putting in match-based PvP. A little further out, we want to get into larger-group activities like raid targets. Also, keep in mind that we are going to be re-balancing the game quite a bit once the defense system changes in the next patch. I expect it may end up being a bit more challenging than it used to be. Thanks so much for the support! 400 hours is impressive!!

Q: Hello Mr. Brevik! I'm really enjoying Marvel Heroes thus far, especially the new Midtown Manhattan area. Can we get Marvel NOW costumes for Thing, Torch and Cable please? I'm waiting for those before I actually play them as I'd like them to be as current as possible. Thank you.
A: We're always looking to add more costumes to the game, whether they're from Marvel NOW! or a fan-favorite classic costume. We constantly monitor the forums for new costume ideas, so if you want to see the Marvel NOW! looks for those characters, let us know there!

Q: David is there any fix for the Test server's Launcher soon ? I've been trying everything to fix that whole day , Reading topics trying and still not working , tryed the repair and still not .
A: Sorry you are having problems with this. We are aware of it and I have "Top-Men!" on it I hope we have a fix in the next couple of days. Thanks

Q: David, I saw someone post notes for new things going on the test server I found this one perplexing... "A new starter zone with Black Cat (Occurs before Raft for new players)"... why "before" the Raft zone? It's not as if the Raft zone was terribly hard or anything? What drove including this "pre-starter" zone?
A: We feel that it's important to have an incredibly strong early-game experience, and while the Raft is fun, it's not what we were looking for. (It's single-player, and very dark). The Black Cat mission will allow you to play with other players as soon as you start the game, giving you a much better feel for what the rest of the game feels like and will hopefully provide a much better experience.

Q: Hey David, I am enjoying the new patch and the game thus far. Just for kicks I have a few questions for you. Is there a set date for the August patch? When will we be seeing Psylocke as a playable character? Have you considered making a Rogue Storm transformation for Storm? Will there be any other way to collect costumes in game? Thank you for your time!
A: We currently don't have a date for the August patch, but it's definitely coming up quickly. We are trying to get the patch into test center late next week. We will see if that happens... As for Psylocke, she's a fan-favorite member of the X-Men, so the chances of us doing her some point are very good! (You can find her as an NPC in the X-Mansion!) As mentioned previously, we've had internal discussions about changing how to acquire costumes in-game, but nothing has been defined yet.

Q: Who is Doomsaw's alter ego?
Was Doomsaw always on the team, or a post-live addition? Do you have past working experience with Doomsaw, if so, on what games/projects? Great job on the enhancements to the game since launch; you've come a long way in a short period of time... I look forward to seeing what the next 3 months bring to the table too! Thanks!
A: Thanks for the props! As for Doomsaw, I'm not quite sure... Maybe I should walk around and ask =P

Q: Hey David, My major question and concern is, how are you making sure every existing hero is getting the attention that is needed, especially with the hype of new characters being released? I don't know how far you know about the situation on the forums, but 95% of the Jean Grey players are disappointed in how she plays. She has major issues with mobility, survivability and she has been said to be "boring" by most people I have come across. There is also a major complaint that in comparison there are never any dev posts in her thread.
A: Our team is working hard right now on ensuring every hero we add feels powerful and fun for the players. The team is actually going to be making improvements to Jean Grey in the very near future (as well as Iron Man, Deadpool, and many others). You can expect to see some developers posting in her threads very soon (if they haven't already). We won't be "forgetting" about the heroes that are in there. One of our groups will be focused on making sure that every existing hero gets attention and upgrades. I think that Doomsaw posted a bunch of stuff to JG's forum last night

Q: I have a few questions:
1) As much as this game is an ARPG, many players are so accustomed to MMORPGs that the game seems to being moving in that direction. Is this something we should expect?
2) Skill trees for certain characters have recently been changed, much to the approval of the community. Wolverine and Hulk are prime examples. Something I noted was that a huge part of the change was passives for players to dump their power points in. Can we expect similar changes to other characters?
3) What's the goal of adding content? This falls back on #1, but this game has been trying and stated (via dev blog) that it will add end game content. But isn't that counter intuitive to normal ARPG standards? How are we supposed to grind for gear (if we enjoy that) if there will be endgame content which'll probably have some perk to doing it over farming harder difficulties of the story mode, etc (assuming) Heroic and Superheroic modes.
A: 1) The game is a mix of both an MMORPG and an ARPG. I want to use the best parts of MMOs (mainly group/social elements) and make them part of an ARPG. We will be different from MMOs because we don't really have the holy MMO trinity of Tanking/DPS/Healing and because we are an action game, but we will be putting in features that MMOs use to great use and make it an overall brand-new type of game.
2) There will be other changes to many of the heroes, but there will also be new abilities, not just passives.
3) We are going to be adding new content constantly. New end-game activities (both PvE and PvP) plus difficulty modes and even new story content is planned with announcement of Asgard. We will have difficult challenges for level-capped people and many interesting things to do to get to the level cap. And remember, the level cap is a number that can always be changed

Q: Hello I've been wondering for awhile. Your title is President and COO, not sure what that means. Can you explain a bit what an average day as your title is at Gazillion? How much of your influence and work is just focused on Marvel Heroes, or is it a mix between bankers and the game. Also Who is Doomsaw
A: My title has changed! I'm now CEO Each day is completely different. It can be talking to investors or bankers or working on the design for a new hero or doing an AMA or traveling to a trade-show or playing the game. I would say I spend an average of about 6ish hours a day working on Marvel Heroes, so about half my work day.

Q: Hi David Was wondering if there's any plans to bring more visual uniqueness to our characters? this is quite a big concern among many, and wonder if there's any plans to add items that will enhance our characters look and that type of thing?
A: Right now we are focused on costumes as the main way to change your appearance. We also have some new VFX that will help and we have talked about creating one item that would give you a special look or change just part of your look. We don't quite have the tech for that yet, but it is something we are considering.

Q: Hey David! Awesome game a big fan of your work! Can you explain your philosophy on level 60 in MH not being the "end", and potentially wanting to go to 100 or beyond. I understand some people think hitting 60 is it, game over, but MOST people that play these kind of games think 60 is just the beginning and strive to get there so they can start looking for the best gear/items.
A: Thank you! Yes, level 60 isn't the end. We will have some very specific activities for level 60 players coming in the next few patches. There are going to be incredible new items, more competitive PvP and big-group activities coming soon. There may also be a bit of a surprise coming, but Leo our marketing guy is giving me the stink eye and saying I can't talk about it =/

Q: Are there any plans yet to have separated inventory for your characters, rather than the one unified inventory? And will there be an option to test out a hero before purchasing if it's not already implemented?
A: Great questions 1) No plans at this time, but it is something we have talked about a few times. Because you can swap heroes so easily it doesn't make as much sense in this game.
2) We have talked about this a lot. Right now the best way to do this is to play in Test Center where we give you free money! There will probably be a more formal program in the future.

Q: David - The game gas definitely gotten better since launch. Midtown is super fun. Cosmic items were much needed! I have a few issues and I'm not sure how you can answer this but here it goes:
1.) Terminals seem only used for daily Cube Shards. I feel as though there could be more incentive to go inside because Midtown trumps terminals at the moment.
2.) Crafting has huge potential! Any plans to add a bunch more recipes such as: ---Gambling greens + Credit to have a chance at a blue ---Gambling a purple item + credits to have a chance at either a new purple or a cosmic item....
---Trading in 5 cosmic items to have a chance at either a new cosmic item or an eternity shard or just any recipes that add more flavor.*
3.) When can we see a real defense tweak? (And I think it goes beyond defense. Red terminals are just ridiculous in the amount of damage we take)
4.) I recently switched from Rocket Raccoon to Cable. (This is just one example) Cable is by far light years ahead of RR. Cable is super fun to play and has a nice kill speed. The issue is that there are a lot of scenarios where this is true. Some heroes are just underpowered. Instead of "nerfing", I think every hero should have there own powerful feel. While I talk about RR, I feel he can use a HUGE turret tweak. They are just too weak, squishy, and too situational to truly
get used much.
A: 1) Terminals are definitely great for their Cube Shards (we're actually changing the way you trade these in very soon), and we're improving the XP for red terminals in the same patch to make them more worthwhile. While it's true that Midtown is currently a better source of XP, Terminals offer a way to break up the gameplay of Midtown as well as a more focused boss run for loot.
2) We're working on expanding crafting in the coming months with new functions and recipes, and those are some great suggestions!
3) The new defense system should be coming to live servers some time this month (even sooner on Test Center), and will fully integrating percentage-based defense as well as a new statistic rating system. This is heavily focused on insuring melee heroes stand a chance against some of our heavy hitting bosses, and that all heroes will properly scale with the endgame content as they level.
4) Good notes on Rocket Raccoon vs. Cable. Rocket Raccoon and his turrets are definitely going to be reviewed by the team soon along with the rest of the heroes who haven't received an upgrade lately.

Q: Hi David! few things. - ill keep short and brief 1. Can you share any tips for collecting chase costumes? I have been grinding daily since launch to no avail- any tips will help! 2. In the official forums for MH I suggested Chase Heroes. Im curious if there has been any talk in house about it. I would lovve more things to grind and chase! 3. May I suggest having some sort of contest where the winner will choose the next hero to develop (given it gets the ok from Marvel) How exciting would that be!? 4. Can you please give us a little bit of info to chew on about the alleged upcoming X-Mansion event? Thanks David! Your the man sir!
A: 1) If you have a good luck charm, use it. Those suckers are rare! 2) We have been focusing on getting currently announced finished and currently released heroes as good as they can be. If we decide to do a "Chase Hero", it would be a while! 3) We'll look into it! Would you also be interested in something like "design an artifact"? 4) The one thing I can say about the X-Mansion event is that you're not going to be able to "win", but you'll be able to get lots of great XP and loot while having a blast!

Q: Do you have any plans for a real auto-group making system? Midtown and the terminals would be 10x better if I just joined and I had a group or I was put into a queue until I had a group.
A: We're currently working on a queuing system that will be integrated with our PvP mode that functions similarly to what you'd see in most MMOs. Our plan is to integrate it into PvE Endgame modes in order to smooth out the experience and always give you people to play with. For Midtown, you can hop right in on an ongoing game and join up with other players any time!

Q: Hey David! Got a couple questions for you =) 1) Now that difficulty modes are coming to test center, can you tell us what's the "perfect balance point" for heroes? I believe normal mode is supposed to be the "faceroll" mode for all heroes, right? Is there any reward (increased xp/loot/vanity items) for playing at heroic/superheroic or it's just for those that want to enjoy a more "hardcore" experience? 2) Any news if/when we can expect multispecs? PS: Since I mentioned hardcore, do you plan to implement it in the future? Thanks and have a good night, sir.
A: 1) Yes increase risk = increased reward!! 2) No plans yet I LOVE hardcore. Stay tuned!