Algorithm: Black - Feedback

**GypsyJuggler**

I thought it would be a good idea to have a seperate thread for feedback on the event. This way the main thread doesn't get clogged with people saying "OMG this is so cool!". Hopefully feedback supplied here can be used in the future planning of events like this one. Please share with us what you like and dislike about A:B and why you feel that way.

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My favourite thing about A:B right now is how so much of it is going on 'IRL' but operatives still have to jack in to do the dirty work. There's investigation of websites and strange phone calls to deal with and then you jack in for clandestine meetings, surveillance and revolution. It's really delivering that 'Matrix feel' that we all love so much.
The only thing I don't like is that I don't have enough spare time to make the most of the event.

**MatrixRefugee**

There are maybe three people who had my cellphone number; I'm a very cautious, private person when it comes to very personal information, but when they asked for the cellphone number as a registration option on the Black Boards, I didn't hesitate to give it to them. This makes it even more immersive and intrigueing!

**Phluff** · 11/01/2007 22:11:47

All of the above... plus, this is the most phun I've had since I started mxo over 2 1/2 years ago. Hats off to the A:B Team! I'm totally astounded and surprised be everything so far! Keep it up!

And for the rest of you who may be reading this, and have not gotten involved yet....... DO! You won't regret it.

/phormalcurtsey

**CrimsonKiller01**

Phone calls. emails, You Tube messages, puzzles, newspaper clips, interaction with players in game, a website dedicated to this...I think it's safe to say that the bar has been raised as far as events go.

What makes this all the more interesting is that it is a player run event, and yet by the reactions from us you would think it was a LET Event. On their website you actually get input from the main characters of the game (via forums) and a few of us already have received buddy keys.

I said before that this is what the Matrix is all about and I stand by that statement. I could care less whether the event itself is "canon" or not, but my personal opinion is that it is.

For me it is a culmination of what an event is supposed to be like. It has spanned across the three servers and through it we have all come together to try to unlock this dark mystery. For the first time (and I think this really is a first) EPN, Cyph, Zion, Merv and Mech have come together and are pooling our resources (well it also opened up RP for back alley deals and business, something any Merv worth his or her salt lives for.

.)

And it's not so hard to do in this case, especially with the stakes so high.

The AB Team has given us an incredible story, and even with the limitations they have (well SOE obviously didn't back this) they have brought back the excitement and feel of the game that what made it great.

It has left everyone involved with a sense of anticipation of what is to come, and i for one would love to see more events of this caliber. If this is just the beginning....well then ....

Folks we just dove deeper into the rabbit hole....

Liliane

This has been the best time I've had in MxO since that period in its history when I was still blissfully unaware SOE had bought the rights to it. It's like I'm right back in the Matrix Universe I fell in love with. Except, like, better. *grins*

Criticism...

Characters: (this does not apply to anyone specific) be cautious to have something of a prepared background for your character. Even if it is a "minor" character, it is still important.

Acting: Try to find a balance between somewhat inanimate and cheesily overdramatic. And for the record, I haven't seen anyone be overdramatic yet. Just add a kick of "Oomph!"

Understand...I am still -very- impressed by the movies, and everything really, but this is a feedback thread. :p

**ChloeAnn**

I still say hats off to the Algorithm: Black team. This is an awesome event, and I can't wait to see what happens. It's gunna be awesome!

Jack's Wasted Life

Dear, Algorithm: Black Team

Thank you

-Jack

Wharmaster

I think this is a great step in teh right direction for MxO, and has breathed new life into the game.

A little more coverage in sites like MMORPG.com might not be a bad idea. This is the kind of thing that people wish other games had, and would probably bring more subscribers.

**Yasamuu**

The interaction on external chat programs was cool I enjoyed that.

The general idea was a little meh...peace is never going to be achieved until it happens in the main story(and even then some would argue that it wouldn't happen, if the war ended).

The use of external sites and such like is great though, it wouldn't suprise me if we saw this become a trend.

**Ballak**

Just seems like there are those who seems to close the blinds on their involvement while acting obliviously positive towards the event. Not naming anyone, it's a good tactic.

A negative review?

Well, the fact that there are people who were willing to give the people from this PE disclosed information is sort of disturbing. To promote that on the internet is sort of riskae, and it's not something I'd want this AB to be doing to me. Even the out of game interactions is a little over the line. Sure, they're probably people you know just under a different alias trying to improve the gameplay in our little game.

The idea of Algorithm Black is a little over-used. It seems they are starting to become sort of intertwined with Scanline, which is something I really would advise against. If this is strictly a player event, then in the LESIG/LE world they do not exist. They will not be recognized as part of the storyline just as 700-year-old lesbian vampires are easily thrown aside by the Matrix-storyline bible that Rarebit holds so dear.

It's obvious that although the event is criticized in some ways, everyone here can agree that at least the fact that this team is trying to liven up the community again is definitely something for the better good.

The many "RP" conversations with the AB members listed in the thread can sometimes make it confusing when you try and grasp what the gist of the situation is. Sometimes there are players in the thread that just start making their own RP stories that relate to AB in an obscure way, while there are others completely OOC in the thread. It's sort of an up-down road and you're trying to just pick out the pieces that matter and cut the poppycock along the way. Also, poppycock in my opinion is a really bad replacement for the manure of a bull.

So, in review.

Giving out personal information = Bad.

Assuming an Alias while although you may know the person and then contacting them outside of the game = Bad.

Attempting to give the community something to do = Good.

Trying to solve the puzzle through various bits and pieces of information while weeding out the useless things = So-So. Some of the stories are interesting, others just simply are not.

Also, I was a little disappointed when Halloween kicked through and Algorithm Black, 10-31-07 didn't have anything big go through (or at least that I noticed), but just a sign of declaring that they are "Active". Although I may be alone in this, I'm not exactly a fan of lengthened trails of clues that ultimately lead to frusterations in some cases. So the fact that they've teased us with names off a list and some garbled messaging isn't that appealing to me. I've never been one to actively pursue puzzles, probably because some of them are simply fruitless. Fortunately, you have people who are just simply adept at this sort of thing. I'm not a "fan" of this event, but I'm not saying I'm pro to get rid of it. If people are content and happy with it, then I'm in the minority. Minorities just ignore it unless it becomes their problem, but it isn't my problem. Minorities just offer their feedback here or there, while the ignorant people just simply ignore the thread. Conceivable enough, yes?

So have fun.

**Vanil**

Ballak wrote:

Just seems like there are those who seems to close the blinds on their involvement while acting obliviously positive towards the event. Not naming anyone, it's a good tactic.
A negative review?
Well, the fact that there are people who were willing to give the people from this PE disclosed information is sort of disturbing. To promote that on the internet is sort of riskae, and it's not something I'd want this AB to be doing to me. Even the out of game interactions is a little over the line. Sure, they're probably people you know just under a different alias trying to improve the gameplay in our little game.
The idea of Algorithm Black is a little over-used. It seems they are starting to become sort of intertwined with Scanline, which is something I really would advise against. If this is strictly a player event, then in the LESIG/LE world they do not exist. They will not be recognized as part of the storyline just as 700-year-old lesbian vampires are easily thrown aside by the Matrix-storyline bible that Rarebit holds so dear.
It's obvious that although the event is criticized in some ways, everyone here can agree that at least the fact that this team is trying to liven up the community again is definitely something for the better good.
The many "RP" conversations with the AB members listed in the thread can sometimes make it confusing when you try and grasp what the gist of the situation is. Sometimes there are players in the thread that just start making their own RP stories that relate to AB in an obscure way, while there are others completely OOC in the thread. It's sort of an up-down road and you're trying to just pick out the pieces that matter and cut the poppycock along the way. Also, poppycock in my opinion is a really bad replacement for the manure of a bull.
So, in review.
Giving out personal information = Bad.
Assuming an Alias while although you may know the person and then contacting them outside of the game = Bad.
Attempting to give the community something to do = Good.
Trying to solve the puzzle through various bits and pieces of information while weeding out the useless things = So-So. Some of the stories are interesting, others just simply are not.

Also, I was a little disappointed when Halloween kicked through and Algorithm Black, 10-31-07 didn't have anything big go through (or at least that I noticed), but just a sign of declaring that they are "Active". Although I may be alone in this, I'm not exactly a fan of lengthened trails of clues that ultimately lead to frusterations in some cases. So the fact that they've teased us with names off a list and some garbled messaging isn't that appealing to me. I've never been one to actively pursue puzzles, probably because some of them are simply fruitless. Fortunately, you have people who are just simply adept at this sort of thing. I'm not a "fan" of this event, but I'm not saying I'm pro to get rid of it. If people are content and happy with it, then I'm in the minority. Minorities just ignore it unless it becomes their problem, but it isn't my problem. Minorities just offer their feedback here or there, while the ignorant people just simply ignore the thread. Conceivable enough, yes?
So have fun.

Because LESIG events are so much better and well-conceived? Lollerskates.

Algorithm: Black is arguably the best player event this game has ever seen, in my opinion. It never ceases to amaze me what a few people who love this game and the Matrix this much can do.

~V

**Ballak**

naes177 wrote:

Because LESIG events are so much better and well-conceived? Lollerskates.

You would know, amirite?

I never said Algorithm: Black is bad, just certain parts of it I don't agree with. It's good, people like it. Don't get rid of it. Some of the things they do are questionable, but there really isn't that much of a majority against it. You even said yourself you think it's one of the best player events since the beginning and that's fine.

**Phluff**

Algorithm: Black is arguably the best player event this game has ever seen, in my opinion. It never ceases to amaze me what a few people who love this game and the Matrix this much can do.

~V

DITTO!

**Foxxdie**

Ballak wrote:

naes177 wrote:
Because LESIG events are so much better and well-conceived? Lollerskates.

You would know, amirite?
I never said Algorithm: Black is bad, just certain parts of it I don't agree with. It's good, people like it. Don't get rid of it. Some of the things they do are questionable, but there really isn't that much of a majority against it. You even said yourself you think it's one of the best player events since the beginning and that's fine.

I would know, and yeah it is, by far.

Criticism is always nice and I've offered mine, but it just sounds like you are pissy because you can't/don't want to solve puzzles. Ok, fine, continue about your business.

**CrimsonKiller01**

I think what we should also take into consideration that this is the first time we had a player event of this magnitude and complexity. So yes there are going to be some aspects that need to be worked on. I sincerely doubt the AB team went into this thinking it was going to be a smooth run or that the majority of players were going to like this event so much. But the fact is it has struck a cord with the masses and I honestly think it's because it takes us back to a time when we did have events that were involved and brought out the best of this game.

Hell I can remember a time when that was the selling point of this game. If the AB Team can set a trend like this, and hopefully if SOE can see that it's not so far out of the realm of impossibility then I'm all for it.