I have been playing TSO since July 2011 during the closed beta. The game was known then as Castle Empire. It has been a fun game to play, at least for me. There have been many changes, new things and updates. Many quite nice. Some a waste of time and effort. However in the last 12 months or so we find an increasing number of bugs and problems. These are not getting better, they are now getting much worse. Why is this?
It is my opinion that the developers are completely ignoring the Rule of Unintended Consequences when they make changes. The effect of this is that when a change is made, something else stops working right. Some are rather minor, like the arrow in the White Castle. Others can be quite serious. Like the ability to logon to the game, being dropped from the game and losing stuff.
The test server should make it possible to eliminate a good percentage of these unintended consequences. But this is not the case. We have heard of problems showing up on the test server and rather than being fixed they are introduced into the main game. Why is this happening. One possible reason for this might be the lack of manpower. It is my guess that there are fewer developers now than in the past. Everything is now "rush" "get it done". It is also my guess that there has been a significant loss of income. There are fewer players now that ever before. The loss of players is evident when you look at the postings in the forum.
I don't have all the answers but I do know that it behooves the developers to pay close attention the the Law of Unintended Consequences. Doing this may keep Murphy's Law from causing additional damage.
Wimpy
