Curse

Bekkr · Feb 02, 2006, 10:59 AM // 10:59

While I understand that there will be teething problems with any new software, the current state of Guild Wars is not inspiring much confidence in the upcoming expansion. I've been playing Guild Wars on cable internet for over 2 months now, and from the beginning until just before the "free" weekend, my experience with the game has been stellar. My problem (and that of what seems is the majority of users) is the obvious lack of preparedness on Arenanet's part with regards mostly to server capacity (lagging), but also to game code (bugs/broken missions, etc.) Even now that the free weekend is over, during peak times, though all other internet traffic works normally, the delays and lagging make the game very frustrating, and sometimes unplayable (tonight is a good example of that - I've just logged off in utter frustration). I find it unacceptable that your company has effectively broken or made poorer my gaming experience (five copies of which have been paid for by my family) in order to basically advertise your new product. We, the customers, having in effect paid for the game servers and bandwidth, which Arenanet has decided to now compromise in the interest of free advertising, are now forced to either not play, or endure a much worse game. For what it's worth, as it stands now, I will not be purchasing expansions for any of the five accounts in this household, and I know I'm not alone in my opinion. Please, ArenaNet, get your house in order, and sort out these server/bandwidth issues, as I do enjoy the game, and would like to see it continue to grow and improve - I only wish it didn't have to be at the current customer base's expense.

Thank you,
a concerned customer.

After sending this same email to the support address on www.guildwars.com, I received this:

Hello,

Thanks for contacting the Guild Wars customer support team with your feedback. We always appreciate hearing from our players. The Guild Wars development team is continually making changes to improve the game and looks at your feedback very closely to make this happen.

Please note that in addition to writing us, you should always feel free to post your constructive opinions/feedback/suggestions on any of the numerous Guild Wars message board ( http://www.guildwars.com/community/default.html#forums ), where your fellow players and the dev team will be able to view them first hand. Thanks again!

Please feel free to contact the support team again if you encounter any other problems.

Regards,
The Guild Wars Support Team

I understand that not everyone will be experiencing the same issues as I am, but I also know that many are complaining about this recently. Is there anything we as customers can do to make Anet sit up, take notice, and do something about this?

Savio · Feb 02, 2006, 11:02 AM // 11:02

I lag, but it's more because my campus sucks at maintaining their routers. You realize that the problem could be somewhere between you and Anet? Have you tried tracing/pinging Anet's servers as described in number 5 (Contact Your ISP) on this page?

Kaguya · Feb 02, 2006, 11:12 AM // 11:12

Yeap, I haven't had any network lag, other than what I'm causing myself by downloading stuff via bittorrent while playing.. Atleast European servers seem to work perfect.

Zehnchu · Feb 02, 2006, 04:44 PM // 16:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bekkr

Even now that the free weekend is over, during peak times, though all other internet traffic works normally,

As in web pages? Or other online games.

Loviatar · Feb 02, 2006, 05:27 PM // 17:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bekkr

I understand that not everyone will be experiencing the same issues as I am, but I also know that many are complaining about this recently. Is there anything we as customers can do to make Anet sit up, take notice, and do something about this?

HI

JUST EXACTLY WHO IS THAT*MANY* COMPLAINERS YOU REFER TO? (and how did you find them)?

are they friends who have the same cable company perhaps?

use the same ISP perhaps?

note that there are very few posts complaining of your individual problem of unplayable conditions

when they did have a short problem the boards at sites all over were filled with complaints.

look at the boards during and after the event and you are almost alone compared to an avalanch of complaints.

it doesnt seem to be Anet

EDIT

you may not know that the first response is always automated and you have to confirm a problem still exists within 24 hours to get a person.

have you actually done the series of tests outlined on the support page to try to isolate the problem and get the information which will help them help you?

or are you just saying i dont care whose fault it really is because you made the game it HAS to be YOUR fault?

Tuoba Hturt Eht · Feb 02, 2006, 06:04 PM // 18:04

Well, I live and play Guild Wars in Malaysia, my ISP is TM NET.

Before the factions preview, lag issues with Guild Wars were almost non-existant.

However, since the update, lag issues will occur while in outposts with many players.

But when the battle begins, lag hardly is an issue for me.
And I will still be able to kill, or be killed, without lag interfering.

That's me though.
Cheers.

007Bistromath · Feb 02, 2006, 06:38 PM // 18:38

I lag, but I've been lagging on everything lately, and I hear similar things from others. I think somebody just turned the internet down.

Epinephrine · Feb 02, 2006, 06:52 PM // 18:52

No, I noticed an increase in lag since the PvP factions weekend. The performance is way down; while I haven't had error=7 much I will often freeze, with a skill icon flashing at me as I try to cast it. Then (and this is funny) apparently, since nothing is going on, peope go into their waiting around animations, so a previously tense combat scene suddenly looks like a bunch of adventurers and titans waiting around bored for example.

Then suddenly it'll come back, everything that happened server-side will flash by in a moment and I'll find myself generally dead or at the very least mobbed by foes, since I apparently just stood there for the past while.

beanerman_99 · Feb 02, 2006, 07:26 PM // 19:26

I get game freezes, lag and disconnects like crazy. It started before the Pvp weekend and has continued, unrelentingly. Members of my guild and people in PUG's also complain about lag/freezes.

Vilaptca · Feb 02, 2006, 07:36 PM // 19:36

I never lagged on campus until around exam time, but now I'm fine again.

I only lag at home because of my wireless connection.

The lag is probably you...not ANet.

Zehnchu · Feb 02, 2006, 08:08 PM // 20:08

Could be the cable, peak hours more people who are on bandwidth goes down.

Loviatar · Feb 02, 2006, 08:17 PM // 20:17

HI PEEPS

here is where you start

http://support.guildwars.com/cgi-bin...&p_to pview=1

and this is where you wind up

Quote:

Contact your ISP (Internet Service Provider).

Contact your Internet Service Provider to inquire if they are currently undergoing maintenance that might be effecting your connection status. They will most likely need a "traceroute" to our servers. You can obtain one going opening your Windows START menu, selecting "Run...," then typing "cmd" into the space provided and clicking "OK." On the command prompt, type the appropriate command for your operating system:

If you are using Windows XP/2000:

pathping -p 30 206.127.149.36

If you are using Windows 9x/ME/SE:

tracert 206.127.148.36

Once the command completes (it may take a few minutes to compute the pathping statistics), copy all of the information in the black box into a text file. You can do this by following these steps:

Click on the C:\ icon at the top left of the window.
Select "Edit" and then "Select All"
Click on the C:\ icon at the top left of the window again.
Select "Edit" and then "Copy"

Open up Notepad (Start->All Programs->Accessories->Notepad), click on the Edit menu and select "Paste." This should paste all of the information in the black command box into Notepad. Save this file with a name you'll remember. You can then provide this information to your ISP.

Note: Be aware that our servers block ICMP requests for security reasons. If you ping the servers they will not respond.

If you are still experiencing abnormal lag after performing all of these troubleshooting steps, please contact our Technical Support department via the "Ask a Question" tab and provide them with the following information:

Are you connecting through a router, hub, or switch? If so, what is the name and model number?
Are you on a home, campus, or business network?
Are you using a firewall application? If so which one?
Do you use any Internet security applications (ISA) such as CYBERsitter, Net Nanny, ZoneAlarm®, McAfee®, or Norton™?
What is the name of your Internet provider?
What type of connection do you have (cable, DSL, dial-up)?
Where are you located?
Download our Network Information Tool, run it and attach the "network_data_GW" text file that it produces: ftp://ftp.guildwars.com/diag/netinfotool_allos_gw.exe
Run HijackThis and attach a logfile of the scan results.
If you contact us regarding a lag issue and do not provide the above information, we will assume that you have not reviewed this article nor have you performed the troubleshooting steps contained within. As a result, our first response will recommend that you complete these initial troubleshooting steps and reply with the requested information if they do not resolve the lag issue.

konohamaru heaven · Feb 02, 2006, 10:53 PM // 22:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bekkr

While I understand that there will be teething problems with any new software, the current state of Guild Wars is not inspiring much confidence in the upcoming expansion. I've been playing Guild Wars on cable internet for over 2 months now, and from the beginning until just before the "free" weekend, my experience with the game has been stellar. My problem (and that of what seems is the majority of users) is the obvious lack of preparedness on Arenanet's part with regards mostly to server capacity (lagging), but also to game code (bugs/broken missions, etc.) Even now that the free weekend is over, during peak times, though all other internet traffic works normally, the delays and lagging make the game very frustrating, and sometimes unplayable (tonight is a good example of that - I've just logged off in utter frustration). I find it unacceptable that your company has effectively broken or made poorer my gaming experience (five copies of which have been paid for by my family) in order to basically advertise your new product. We, the customers, having in effect paid for the game servers and bandwidth, which Arenanet has decided to now compromise in the interest of free advertising, are now forced to either not play, or endure a much worse game. For what it's worth, as it stands now, I will not be purchasing expansions for any of the five accounts in this household, and I know I'm not alone in my opinion. Please, ArenaNet, get your house in order, and sort out these server/bandwidth issues, as I do enjoy the game, and would like to see it continue to grow and improve - I only wish it didn't have to be at the current customer base's expense.

Thank you,
a concerned customer.

After sending this same email to the support address on www.guildwars.com, I received this:

Hello,

Thanks for contacting the Guild Wars customer support team with your feedback. We always appreciate hearing from our players. The Guild Wars development team is continually making changes to improve the game and looks at your feedback very closely to make this happen.

Please note that in addition to writing us, you should always feel free to post your constructive opinions/feedback/suggestions on any of the numerous Guild Wars message board ( http://www.guildwars.com/community/default.html#forums ), where your fellow players and the dev team will be able to view them first hand. Thanks again!

Please feel free to contact the support team again if you encounter any other problems.

Regards,
The Guild Wars Support Team

I understand that not everyone will be experiencing the same issues as I am, but I also know that many are complaining about this recently. Is there anything we as customers can do to make Anet sit up, take notice, and do something about this?

You got to consider there will always be a bug or a glitch caused by changing something even the best programmers make mistakes like that. Compared to other various games like WoW, EQ, EQ2 AreanNet normally fixes the problems rather quickly.

Reguarding the lag situation, most of the lag normally is on the users end or somewhere along the different relays that go from ArenaNet servers to a number of relay points to your computer. Durring a large event like the GW:F weekend event they have to estimate the ammount of people that play. All games have lag and even when I was on dial up I didnt find anything too laggy to play

ArenaNet does like to hear what their customers say, whether it be positive, negative and I am sure ArenaNet is looking into the matter.

~Konohamaru

Bekkr · Feb 02, 2006, 11:02 PM // 23:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by Loviatar

JUST EXACTLY WHO IS THAT*MANY* COMPLAINERS YOU REFER TO? (and how did you find them)?
< snip >
it doesnt seem to be Anet
< snip >
have you actually done the series of tests outlined on the support page to try to isolate the problem and get the information which will help them help you?

or are you just saying i dont care whose fault it really is because you made the game it HAS to be YOUR fault?

Okay, in order:

The many complainers I refer to are other people in-game, and the only common thread seems to be we all live in Australia. Different ISPs (from dialup to ADSL2), different locations, etc.

Is *does* in fact seem to be Anet. I've run all the diagnostics suggested on the support pages, and while pings to different (US west, US east, EU, KR, and ICMP) arenanet servers all have times in excess of 100ms, they all also have packet loss (from 40%, all the way to 100%) and ALL the packet loss occurs at Arenanet's end.

And no, I'm not saying I don't care whose fault it is, but I can see in black and white the packet loss from anet's servers (no packet loss from any of the hops) using both pathping and netinfotool. It's made even more clear where the problem lies when you take into account that at times we have 4 people playing here on the same net connection - some will play fine, some lag a little, and some can barely play. At least the Err 7 thing seems to have stopped.

Basically my experience seems to mirror that of both Epinephrine and beanerman_99, and not always on all computers here at the same time. Sometimes even on none of them.

Also, with regards to peak times, I wasn't referring to peak internet usage time here in Sydney, but rather peak EU gaming times, when the european servers are more active, and places like Lion's Arch have several EU-english districts. These times are generally from about 8pm here, but the lag almost always continues on through the times when most people sharing my cable node would be in bed (ie after midnight on a weekday).

I appreciate all the suggestions, however I *have* looked into this pretty thoroughly, and the only logical conclusion is that anet's servers and/or bandwidth have become inadequate recently. It's very frustrating, mostly just because everything used to work so well.

konohamaru heaven · Feb 02, 2006, 11:11 PM // 23:11

Packet loss occurs after it leaves their severs and occurs durring the transfer to your side so its mainly the fualt of the different relays.

~Konohamaru

Kool Pajamas · Feb 03, 2006, 01:14 AM // 01:14

I've had the game freeze up on me a bunch of times lately. I always have to exit out of the program and go again. Sometimes it will continue to freeze after I log back in. I dont know if its the game or my computer. I just got a new computer and installed guild wars. It has been running great except for occasional freezes. It happens a lot in PvP areas. Could just be coincidence though.

Bekkr · Feb 03, 2006, 03:47 AM // 03:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by konohamaru heaven

Packet loss occurs after it leaves their severs and occurs durring the transfer to your side so its mainly the fualt of the different relays.

~Konohamaru

Hop RTT Lost/Sent = Pct Lost/Sent = Pct Address

0 localhost [192.168.***.***]

0/ 10 = 0% |

1 1ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 192.168.***.***

0/ 10 = 0% |

2 22ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 10.24.0.1

0/ 10 = 0% |

3 9ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% sbr1-pos3-1.gw.optusnet.com.au [198.142.192.65]

0/ 10 = 0% |

4 9ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% mas1-pos11-2.gw.optusnet.com.au [198.142.144.17]

0/ 10 = 0% |

5 10ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% mas3-ge1.gw.optusnet.com.au [211.29.129.169]

0/ 10 = 0% |

6 190ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 203.208.148.129

0/ 10 = 0% |

7 204ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 203.208.168.217

0/ 10 = 0% |

8 198ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 203.208.172.102

0/ 10 = 0% |

9 195ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% ge-6-8.car3.LosAngeles1.Level3.net [63.209.82.185]

0/ 10 = 0% |

10 204ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% ae-1-51.bbr1.LosAngeles1.Level3.net [4.68.102.1]

0/ 10 = 0% |

11 351ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% ae-1-0.bbr1.Frankfurt1.Level3.net [212.187.128.30]

0/ 10 = 0% |

12 352ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% ge-10-2.ipcolo1.Frankfurt1.Level3.net [195.122.136.99]

0/ 10 = 0% |

13 --- 10/ 10 =100% 10/ 10 =100% 62.67.38.74

0/ 10 = 0% |

14 --- 10/ 10 =100% 10/ 10 =100% 206-127-156-82.plaync.com [206.127.156.82]

0/ 10 = 0% |

15 340ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 206-127-145-228.plaync.com [206.127.145.228]

Trace complete.

This is for EU servers, and all the tracert logs from the other servers are similar, though the last bits (where the loss is) are slightly different.
West US:
16 381ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 211.174.55.246

3/ 10 = 30% |

17 379ms 3/ 10 = 30% 0/ 10 = 0% 222.231.14.228

or Korea:

16 382ms 0/ 10 = 0% 0/ 10 = 0% 211.174.55.246

7/ 10 = 70% |

17 380ms 7/ 10 = 70% 0/ 10 = 0% 222.231.14.228

Packet loss is bad, mmkay. And it's always on their end. How can you say packet loss is *always* after it leaves their servers? Why do so many people seem to want to blame anything BUT Arenanet for this? I've paid good money for a game that *did* play very well, but since all the updating over the past couple of weeks, it doesn't anymore. I've not changed my configuration, and any websites anywhere in the world are just as quick to load as always. I can pull down files from the US and Europe at the usual speed, with no corruption. Something is wrong here, and I'm betting it's not got anything to do with my internet connection, or the hops between here and anet. My point is that whether you want to believe it or not, many are having these same problems, and in my opinion anet should already have taken, or at least be taking steps to rectify the situation.

Arenanet, if you're listening, please help!

generik · Feb 03, 2006, 04:39 AM // 04:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bekkr

Packet loss is bad, mmkay. And it's always on their end. How can you say packet loss is *always* after it leaves their servers? Why do so many people seem to want to blame anything BUT Arenanet for this? I've paid good money for a game that *did* play very well, but since all the updating over the past couple of weeks, it doesn't anymore. I've not changed my configuration, and any websites anywhere in the world are just as quick to load as always. I can pull down files from the US and Europe at the usual speed, with no corruption. Something is wrong here, and I'm betting it's not got anything to do with my internet connection, or the hops between here and anet. My point is that whether you want to believe it or not, many are having these same problems, and in my opinion anet should already have taken, or at least be taking steps to rectify the situation.

Arenanet, if you're listening, please help!

Good day Bekkr, I'm the stand in fanboi for today.

The best response that I can throw back at you is.. you have not paid enough

Unlike other games like WoW where you have to buy the game, THEN pay a monthly, here in GW you only buy the game and that's it! Do you suppose your $50 is enough to pay for a potentially lifetime bandwidth utilisation on Anet's servers? Of course not!

So please be thankful that The Great Anet has brought us such a wonderful game in GW, and even as you get a err=7 just as you are about to pick up your Victo's Bulwark, please remember that all items are the intellectual property of Anet Inc (tm).

As such you should be thankful that The Great Anet even has the great grace and mercy to bestoy upon you the right to use some of their precious IP, such that it would bring glory, enjoyment and happiness into your life!

Thank you for your attention.

shadowfell · Feb 03, 2006, 04:49 AM // 04:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by 007Bistromath

I lag, but I've been lagging on everything lately, and I hear similar things from others. I think somebody just turned the internet down.

lol. It was getting a bit loud and randy.

Manic Smile · Feb 03, 2006, 05:12 AM // 05:12

Everyone has to admit GW's lag has gotten much worse since it's become more popular. I remeber the days when it first came out with such relish. While this guy's case is extreme and likely self inflicted, everyone has to know the stress has become noticable in game. While I understand that's how it is with online games...and I've experienced much worse it would be nice for A.net to beef up their end some...but by no means should it be expected.