Ask Me Anything: Answers

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Ask Me Anything Answers - First Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is the first batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 1: CVDBLG, Romania

Do you plan level 100 upgrade anytime soon?

BB_Alex: We have a couple of ideas on how such a level cap raise might look like. Those are just simple ideas and there is not even a high-level concept. We would like to focus on the existing 75 levels and provide improvements and exciting content updates there.



Question 2: ArchEnemy, UK

Will we be able to get more gem pits in the future?

BB_Alex: While we do have plans on increasing the limits for several different items, there are no plans to increase the limitation for gem pits.



Question 3: Redginger, Germany

Why are so many important contents limited to higher levels?

BB_Alex: There are several reasons to why it is important to provide new, exciting content and mechanics through progress. The first one is to not overwhelm you with all the different mechanics at once and give you time to be prepared for them by building up your economy and knowledge. The other one is to reward your progress and to provide diversified opportunities, which will help you to progress even further and create fun.



Question 4: Giftzwerg_1, Germany

Is it planned to implement more stages of a building (as an example from level 6 an upgrade up to level 10)?

BB_Alex: We do not have any plans to increase the upgrade level for existing buildings from 6 to 7 or above.



Question 5: CaptHolmes, US

I was wondering if the Christmas event at the end of this year and for years to come will be giving out more Vargus, Nusala and Anslem generals?

BB_Alex: For us, it is important to keep the high value and uniqueness of Vargus, Nusala and Anslem. Their traits, use and look are making them really special and we would like to keep it this way for now.



Question 6: Gabo31 , Latin America

Will there be skills tree to the buildings?

BB_Alex: No skill trees for buildings, instead we have a couple of ideas for other different skill trees. Those are very rough and the details have to be worked out. I do not know when we will be able to focus on those ideas.



Question 7: palindromo, Germany

Where exactly is Tuxingen located? When I open the game in the morning, it is daytime. If I open the game at night, it is still a nice sunny day in Tuxingen... So where is it located? Even at the polar circle, it gets night from time to time.

BB_Orowa: We theorized that we accidentally opened a window portal to another world, which follows different rules. Apparently, there are multiple suns that can keep all areas of the world illuminated, but technological advancements allowed them to develop a way to switch the sun on and off at wish.



Question 8: thrus, Germany

Will Blue Byte take part in this year's Gamescom?

BB_Pandur: We cannot speak for Blue Byte. TSO will not be represented on the Gamescom this year. We will publish details about planned community specials 2017 in June.



Question 9: werichbin, Germany

How many people play TSO?

BB_Pandur: More than you can possibly count with two hands .



Question 10: ATXTA, US

I always wonder what will be the punishment for those who violates the game's code of conduct, and what has been done to those reported misbehaviors. Shall there be some public notice of such treatment as a result of report and warning for other players?

BB_Pandur: The rule "do not denunciate other players" regardless of being right or wrong is not only valid for players, but also for us. We always take care of reported problems and talk to involved players only. We do not want a blacklist of some sorts to be a sword of Damocles for players.



Question 11: StaTiC2206, Germany

Are there plans to change the limits of the items in the shop and if so, when? (e.g. for gem pits or demolition crews)

BB_Alex: With the introduction of Nusala, Vargus and Anslem we developed a mechanic allowing us to have better control and tracking for limited items. We will use this mechanic to increase the limits for several items in the near future. While the demolition crews won't be part of the limit increase, we do have some ideas on how we want to proceed with them in the future.

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Second Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our second batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 12: Becca1971 , UK

I was just wondering if it would be possible to get shot firer or demolition crew for beans or stalks instead of just gems.

BB_Alex: As mentioned in a previous answer, we have several ideas on how to proceed with the demolition crew buffs in the future. Among those, there are some ideas for increasing limitations, for using demolition crew buffs as unique rewards for challenging tasks and also for providing the opportunity to obtain some of them with high tier resources like magic beans or beanstalks. We haven't evaluated those ideas yet, nor have we decided for an approach yet.



Question 13: Fogghost , Germany

When will we finally get the guild bank? That would enrich the guild life because more guilds would accept and support new members.

BB_Alex: As with all kind of wishes, ideas and suggestions, we did create a very rough vision of a guild bank in the game. The details are still missing and we do not know when we will be able to focus on this feature.



Question 14: jaAndrzej, Poland

When will UFO's land on our islands?

BB_Penelopa: When the Halloween Golem shines in all colours of the rainbow, when the Explorer finds Unicorn shaped gold nuggets and The Black Knights run around yelling “Yipiieh!”, you can expect an UFO to land in the centre of your island.



Question 15: sashadamian, Germany

What exactly do the geologists and explorers say if you send them out?

BB_Kumakun: Geologist: "okai, walladebila" - which has something to do with Malzbier. The Explorer has German ancestors and… Well, have fun Googling it. Explorer: "Du musst Bilder rahmen"



Question 16: gedoens72, Germany

I am taking the train daily, so I would love to see a mobile version for TSO. Would it be possible?

TSO Team: The mobile version of the TSO is not on the development roadmap.



Question 17: level232, Germany

When will TSO switch fom the unsafe, old and resource-unfriendly Flash to HTML5?

TSO Team: Switching from Flash to HTML5 is not on the development roadmap. Going this way would require a a big effort on the development side, and would drastically slow down the implementation of the new content, improvements and bugfixes.



Question 18: JackONeil, Russia

Will there be any chat improvements like adding emoji?

TSO Team: Implementation of the emoji is not part of the current development roadmap. Thank you for the suggestion though!



Question 19: Hoggie , Germany

When will you release TSO 2? (is something like this even planned?)

TSO Team: The aim of the TSO Development Team is to continue developing the existing game, bringing new ideas into it, and implementing new features. TSO v2.0 is not on the development roadmap.



Question 20: Grundhil, France

How many people work for Ubisoft ? How is it organized ?

TSO Team: Thank you for asking this question! Ubisoft has more than 12.000 employees all around the globe. More details about Ubisoft can be found here.

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Third Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our third batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 21: maxtrexas, Greece

Why you decided to make levels beyond 50 so difficult to reach? We need months or even years to obtain so many millions of points and raise levels. In the meanwhile, I think many of us will lose the interest for the game.

BB_Alex: The progress calculation follows the same formula used for level 40 - 50, with some small deviations. We decided on this approach in order to have more time and a bigger range to introduce additional content. The requirement of many XP keeps the value of XP as rewards high for a longer period of time. This way we can introduce new exciting content, like the Excelsior, which will give you the opportunity to gather more XP. New content will contribute to a faster progress without getting too fast in the future. Higher levels do provide enough room for additional content.



Question 22: MrM79, the Netherlands

It is possible to give a name to your generals, why the names are not visible to other players in an adventure?

MOD_Tomurckl, Germany: If the Generals' names were visible to other players, we'd almost expect to see violations of our terms and rules. Monitoring this would be an enormous effort. That's why the names are not visible to other players.



Question 23: Napalm, Germany

Will the home island be extended at some point?

BB_Alex: Tough question. Maybe at some point in the far future. Right now we do not have any design or plans for an expansion of the home island.



Question 24: Onejug, UK

We can't move warehouses, we have to pull them down and build new ones. Please make it possible to move warehouses. Will you do this?

BB_Alex: I can't guarantee anything at this point. Making warehouses movable does create critical situations since it is deeply connected to the ownership of a sector and all buildings placed inside such sector. It requires a deeper evaluation and research. We do not have a solution right now.



Question 25: siedlertestix, Germany

Why doesn't BB offer a combat simulator?

BB_Alex: Developing an accessible combat simulator and maintaining it requires a higher quality level compared to the rough and simple simulator used internally. We decided against this additional effort and use the resources to improve and expand the game instead.



Question 26: Solzar, UK

What's the most major addition to the game which we have never heard of that was considered by the designers, but not currently in the game?

BB_Pandur: It was that thing we never spoke of.



Question 27: ToomR, UK

You thought of creating decorative bridges on the islands?

BB_Alex: Yes, this idea did appear in our minds several times. We do not have any specific plan or design yet.



Question 28: VampireMuffinMan, US

Are there any plans to make the events in the News Tab clickable? It would be awesome to click on say "A well has become depleted." and have it center the map on that well.

BB_Alex: No plans here. I like this idea and will write it down. Maybe we will return to this topic in the future.



Question 29: Xypheron, US

Will the loot for coop adventures ever be dramatically increased to the point that it is worth the extra hassles of coordination, timing, etc. for doing them?

BB_Alex: We do have several ideas for loot improvements of adventures, especially co-op adventures. No details and plans defined yet.



Question 30: ferdyduMont, Germany

What do settlers do in their free time?

German CM Team: This depends on people. In most of the cases, the settlers do not have much free time - but they would have enough places to go to. Sightseeing is possible and they can visit some rabbits or golems that appear from time to time on the islands.

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Fourth Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our forth batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 31: Lenagrad, UK

Why didn't you create also African, Asian, or other skin types within the Avatar selection?

TSO Team: Avatars that are currently available in the game are heavily influenced by the characters present in the previous "The Settlers" instalments. Thank you for the suggestion though, in case it is decided to expand the current "avatar base", we will keep your idea in mind.



Question 32: Oliklusive, Germany

Do you have plans for new content for the level range 64-70? Currently this level range is quite bleak.

BB_Alex: Yes, we do have a couple of ideas for new content for the level range 64+. And no, we do not have any detailed plans, yet. This progress status is called "High Level Concept". A High Level Concept contains the vision including goals and preferable actions to reach those. It defines the direction we would like to approach and possible opportunities to support it. This High Level Concept is the very first step and used as foundation to define research tasks, which will help to clarify important questions and to create a clear design. It is too early to talk about it, since so much is shifting and changing right now.



Question 33: Schaefchen_Rdf, Germany

Why isn't it possible to change the game-world?

TSO Team: Currently this is not possible due to certain technical limitations and potential data integrity issues. If anything changes in this regard, we will keep you updated.



Question 34: Schnurpsy, Germany

Will the adventure surprise boxes from the merchant be reworked? We only get adventures which nobody plays anymore.

BB_Alex: We would like to bring the merchant up to date by introducing additional items and rework existing offers. Some of the goals have been defined, while the required changes still have to be listed and evaluated. Because we do not focus on such an update right now, I am not able to provide any additional information, yet. If I have to provide an answer, it would be: no, not yet.



Question 35: Segisjussus, UK

I started Settlers Online 18 months ago by logging in through Steam. How do I log into the browser version? Might I add, I love Settlers Online.

BB_Pandur: It's not possible nor planned to make this possible. The environment used for Steam players is different than the regular one and not compatible.



Question 36: Silkvelvet , Germany

Will there ever be another event that encompasses all game worlds?

BB_Alex: A cross-world event is a huge technical challenge and it requires a lot of balancing effort. Each game world has different amount of players on different levels. A lot of data has to be analysed and evaluated to be able to achieve a balance for such an event. We would rather invest our resources into developing exciting content available in the game all the time. Because of those reasons we do not have any plans to develop cross-world events.



Question 37: tobbydarck , France

Why isn't there a derived Settlers derived product store for mugs and t-shirts, and a bust of my avatar I could display over my fireplace?

TSO Team: While we cannot promise that something will change in this regard, we will forward your suggestion for a further evaluation. In case anything changes, we will definitely let you know!



Question 38: Wormel, Germany

What is the ratio between registered and active users?

BB_Pandur: Unfortunately we cannot tell you the exact ratio between of registered and active players due to business reasons.



Question 39: zecke836, Germany

Will there be new Ali Baba adventures at some point?

BB_Alex: The "Arabian Nights" adventures belong to a coherent series of adventures we call "Campaign". We never had the goal to expand the same Campaign with additional adventures. Our goal is to tell different stories. This resulted in the development of "The Evil Queen" Campaign for the Excelsior. All our Campaigns belong to the "Fairy tale" theme. We still want to create content for all types of settings, tell different stories and avoid using the fairy tale theme for all Campaigns. It is unlikely we will return to "Arabian Nights" any time soon.



Question 40: Blade0761, Germany

Hello, there are so many questions by now, so my question is: Is it still worth it to ask something?

BB_Pandur: Yes, it made sense to ask more questions. We are very happy about the huge amount of questions received and will answer to as many questions as possible.



Question 41: Tevtonec, Russia

What appeared first: a chicken or an egg?

BB_Omris, CM Russia: Our scientists consider the egg to be the first thing to appear. You can't actually call a dinosaur "the chicken", right? Although Sonya Graham saw a lot of exciting things during her journeys, time travel is an art the Excelsior has yet to master. It's one of the most mysterious questions and the answer can be somewhere in between...

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Fifth Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our fifth batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 42: Kassain, Germany

I’d like to offer Lord Dracul a drink. Which is his preferred blood type?

German CM Team: He, of course, does not discriminate against anyone and is currently on a diet, trying different substitutes, such as non-alcoholic versions of Bloody Mary and Bloody Caesar.



Question 43: Alfen, France

Would it be possible to have a French test server ?

BB_Pandur: Game versions and new features on the test server have often not been translated into all available languages yet. The development is done mostly in English. The efforts to provide another language during the development and test server stage may delay the development process. We will investigate if we can do anything about it. Thank you for your question and happy testing!



Question 44: Deano1978, US

Why is PVE/PVP not been redone? It is a waste of resources and still has a ton of issues.

BB_Alex: There are several fixes for the expedition feature which have been deployed over the past months, and we will continue to fix bugs. Besides that, we do not want to rework the whole feature, but to improve and update it at some point in the future. The prio for this part of the game is quite low, so we do not focus on it at the moment.



Question 45: GilligansDad, US

I often see people say that blocking is not supported. What exactly does this mean? The in-game description of the MoD in the shop says "Appropriate for locking and blocking".
If it just means - block at your own risk, that is fine, but I sort of get the impression that blocking is frowned upon by the comments made. Thanks in advance for clearing this up.

BB_Alex: Blocking and Locking are tactics/strategies developed by our community to lower losses in adventures. Those are not official gameplay mechanics supported by us. This means, we do not guarantee the functionality of blocking/locking and we do not compensate losses from a failed block/lock. It is as you already mentioned. "Use at your own risk". Our goal is to create content providing all kind of opportunities and alternatives to create a diverse and fun experience. We want to create a game which has more to offer than just blocking/locking, since not every player uses those strategies. Ventures are a good example for the goal to create fun gameplay.



Question 46: Gilua, Germany

How many hours were spent on developing TSO?

BB_Andreas: Starting from the very first changes done for The Settlers Online and taking only workdays into account, we had around 1.980 workdays until now, subtracted by a couple of days of special non-work situations, multiplied by 8 hours per day we can say:
Approximately 15.680 hours since the start of the project have passed during which there was always at least one person actively working on the game.



Question 47: mr_spook, Germany

Will we get new adventures for Level 60?

BB_Alex: We are already laying out the plans for content above level 60. The process of development is in an early stage ("High Level Concept" as mentioned in one of the previous answers), there are not enough details set into stone to be able to tell much about how it will look like and what challenges to expect. I can only tell you that our goal is to provide a challenge and to create something really unique.



Question 48: Nayeliii, Germany

Will we now get more female NPCs and especially generals?

BB_Alex: Maybe. Our approach for a character is not to meet any quotas. A character has to fit the theme, the setting and role and the vision. During the development, the designer is creating a vision for a character. A vision containing the look, the behaviour and characteristics. Very often such a vision is based on existing persons, which automatically defines the gender. We will continue creating new specialists and NPCs.



Question 49: Klabautermann16, Germany

Are the avatars based on actual people?

Art Department: Avatars people get to choose are not based on actual people. Some of the NPCs used for quests are based on TSO team members.



Question 50: Rainchiller, Germany

How does BB handle suggestions that are posted in the forum? When someone posts a question and it gets a lot of replies, do the MODs/the community manager read it and forward it to the team? Are these suggestions even considered or are they not taken seriously?

BB_Kumakun, Germany: Each entry you posted into the feature request part has been discussed with the team and some wishes are already visible in-game. However, we didn't have enough time to give enough feedback in each thread and this will be taken care of soon.



Question 51: Stallbube, Germany

Since we settle on an island: Why don't we have a harbour?

BB_Alex: One of my personal goals is to provide new, unique mechanics. Creating a harbour would require us to combine it with a mechanic matching the vision and theme of a harbour. Several mechanics matching this theme are already in the game. Trade or transfer of generals for example, leaving less options to create something new and unique at the same time.

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Sixth Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our sixth batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 52: Albatra, US

Where do the topics for the Weekly trivia come from? I'm curious about who decides what the next one should be, and where the pools of questions come from.

BB_Aeyline, US CM: In recent months, a lot of suggestions have geared us toward more game-related questions, but we're always looking for new suggestions of topics from our players. There's also a feedback thread published on the forum for this purpose, so don't be shy and send us your suggestions!



Question 53: Albor83, Italy

Have you considered to add something like the Excelsior in the future?

BB_Alex: We will definitely continue to consider providing new content and mechanics. Those will vary in scope and complexity. It might not reach the scope of the Excelsior with 11 ventures, 9 buff quests and all those new assets, but there is also a chance for such a feature to be implemented in two separate updates. We have a dynamic approach to new content, allowing us to adapt to new goals or challenges.



Question 54: Assassin420, UK

Will we ever going to get crystal mines to dig up some crystals?

BB_Alex: No. Crystals will remain a rare reward for specific limited actions performed by the player. We will also avoid using sources for Crystals, which are not limited to a certain amount during a timeframe (day, week, month). Daily quests can be done once/twice a day. An adventure can be finished several times a day. This approach will keep Crystals balanced and avoid a huge gap between players. If we decide to increase the payout of Crystals, those additional sources will remain limited. No adventure loot and no production.



Question 55: belgarath38, France

Would it be possible to get the copy/paste functionality from the chat again?

BB_Andreas: Unfortunately, due to technical limitations, we are unable to provide text selection for multiple lines with the current chat. You can still select single chat messages, right click the text and select "copy" from the context menu, or using CTRL+C.



Question 56: Bgurlymn, US

When can we have a recycling event to get rid of unwanted items and get either crystals or gems for them?

TSO Production Team: Thank you for this interesting idea; we will evaluate if it could be part of one of the further game versions. Also, in case you haven't done so already, please submit this suggestion in the official forums.



Question 57: bogini, Germany

Do you have plans for further developments for the Excelsior? If so, can you tell us a few more details?

BB_Alex: Modularity was one of the main goals during the development of the Excelsior. This feature enables us to expand its content at any point. So yes, we do have many different ideas for additional Excelsior content. Those ideas include almost anything one can possibly think of; additional quest chains and ventures for existing compilations (we call all subcategories such as Long Letter or Rough Travel Guide, "Compilations"), new campaigns, similar to "The Evil Queen" for the "Books" category, or even completely new categories. The Excelsior also allows us to create new categories, available only during an Event and many other different ideas. Besides having all those ideas, we haven't finished defining clear details for our next steps with the Excelsior yet. This makes it difficult to provide any details at this point.



Question 58: dino1945 , France

Would it be possible to have more adventures that do not involve combat?

BB_Alex: During the past years we introduced additional content, including non-combat adventures: Scenarios and Buff Quests for example. So yes, it is definitely possible to have more Scenarios or other alternatives to combat. Judging from your question, you would rather know whether there are specific plans for additional Scenarios or Buff Quest. And the question to that is "no, not right now".



Question 59: Dregs, UK

Any chance that there could be an "unload all troops" command when generals land at adventures?

BB_Alex: We haven't assessed such an addition in detail, yet. We will create a feature request for this, so we are able to evaluate it at some point in the future.



Question 60: Drulpi, Germany

Why can't I be active in Trade while I'm on an adventure island? A lot of offers are already gone until I'm back on my home island.

BB_Andreas: Trading while being on an adventure is not possible because the player's resources are stored on their home island and are not accessible from the outside.



Question 61: JohnnyStiletto, UK

Do you ever plan on increasing the amount of bookbinders to more than 1?

BB_Alex: No specific plan, just some feature request referring to this topic. The skill tree for generals definitely had an impact on this situation and we will evaluate this suggestion in the future.



Question 62: LordKingDJ, The Netherlands

Would it be possible for trade offers to last longer, eg. 24 hours?

BB_Alex: And another topic for a feature request. No specific plans yet, but this might change in the future.



Question 63: karan-ruth, Poland

How many cups of coffee do you drink during maintenance?

TSO QA Team: Depends on the kind of maintenance. Normally we drink around 1.5 liter (6-8 cups) in the whole team during the maintenance. I will not tell how many people we are. But sometimes we also need to extend the maintenance to create a tasty cappuccino in our amazing machine after lunch.

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Seventh Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our seventh batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 64: M_Bishop, US

Why were weapons removed from adventure loot?

BB_Alex: The Settlers Online is an economy-based game which allows you to complete content such as adventures. In a way, adventure rewards containing weapons were working against the original goal and challenge of the game, which is to build such an economy. Thus, the decision was made to remove weapons as loot in order to maintain the core gameplay loop of the game. The Excelsior is a great example for loot that supports economy building. Our Ventures do not offer resources or weapons, which can be produced, but instead reward Magic Beans which can be used to purchase various items, refillers to fuel your economy, buffs to boost it, and rare buildings to expand it. A good gameplay loop for The Settlers online is using the economy to produce the required resources and spending those resources to acquire buffs, buildings, and resources that can't be produced to boost and expand your economy.

On the right side, you can see how the weapon loots interrupted the intended gameplay loop

Question 65: kefirek300, Poland

What is the opinion of the Polish TSO team about the landing a man on the moon? Hoax or fact?

BB_Penelopa: It is a fact; Sonya Graham, along with the Intrepid Explorer, visited the moon aboard the Excelsior. Their collaboration gave birth to an accurate map of the moon. Maybe some day this intriguing map will be shared with us all...



Question 66: RaHdar, UK

Why does the production stop during the time it takes to upgrade buildings?

BB_Alex: This happens to give an authentic feel and to offer an additional gameplay challenge while building your economy.



Question 67: Rakella, US

will we ever be able to manufacture grout?

BB_Alex: Grout should remain a non-reproducible resource. The game needs such resources to support the gameplay mechanics, as described in a previous answer. Making grout a reproducible item would require the creation of a new non-reproducible building material.



Question 68: cat_flap, UK

Has BB ever calculated what age someone needs to live to to get to level 75 at an average playing frequency.

BB_Alex: Based on our estimations, most of our players will reach level 75 before The Settlers Online celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2020. The Excelsior and all the content we plan on introducing in the future will speed up the level progression even further.



Question 69: Sattva, Germany

Are there already players who reached level 75? If so, from which country are they?

BB_Pandur: The first 2 players who reached level 75 not so long ago are located in Germany.



Question 70: SnowyExWarrio, UK

Has any player played the game for every single day from day one of the worlds? Just wanted to understand who is the most dedicated individual to TSO!!

BB_Alex: Very interesting question. We also wanted to know if there such a player existed, so we checked our data. Yes, there is one player who has logged into the game every day since the tracking system was put in place (Nov 2010).



Question 71: Tricky-Hagen, Germany

Will we get different rewards for the daily login someday again? Only Crystals and gems is boring if it does not change from time to time.

BB_Alex: No, we do not have any plans to switch the login bonus rewards from crystals and gems to other resources.



Question 72: Trixigirl, Germany

What happens with a reported bug? Is it assigned to a specific person in the team, are there people who specifically work on bugs, or is there a pool where team members grab bug reports from? What happens if it has to be fixed fast? Why does it take so long to fix some bugs, while others are fixed immediately? Are bugs divided by severity, and who decides how severe a bug is? Why do we see so many bugs on the live server which were already reported on the test server?

TSO QA Team: A bug report is forwarded to the TSO Quality Assurance team. The lead of this department assigns the bug to one of our testers. From then on, it depends on the tester's qualification and workload. The tester verifies the existence of a bug and the lead sends it to the production team. From the production team, the report will be sent to the right person in the development team. This procedure will usually take between one and three days.
If the bug is critical or blocks the game completely, the team works on a fast fix which translates into the known hotfixes. Other bugs will be collected and deployed with the different game versions. The production manager decides which bug is important and which bug does not significantly impact the game. We are not able to fix all bugs on the fly because we also have to develop new content for our players. But there are special meetings to review all existing bugs and assign them to specific deployment versions.
The development time between the test server and the live server is sometimes not that long. The developers are working on bug fixes, but sometimes it takes an additional version to verify the fix works as intended and to make sure it doesn't impact other aspects of the game. The same process exists for localization, which takes time to be implemented in all game versions.

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Eighth Batch

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Please keep in mind that this is our eighth batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 73: UHU8543, DE

In how many countries is TSO played?

BB_Amta, TSO CM Team: To get a rough estimation of the number of countries where TSO is played, simply access the drop-down menu on the website, found next to "Region" at the top of the page. The listed countries have localized versions in their respective languages, but there's more to it than one might initially assume. There are Austrians active in the German instance; Ukrainian users playing on the Russian instance; Belgian players joining either the Dutch or the French version; Swedish, Danish, Canadians, South Africans, Australians and New Zealanders active in either the US or UK servers - and plenty of similar cases.
If you think that's all, don't forget that there's also a Chinese version of "The Settlers Online". This means that TSO is regularly played in 67 countries worldwide (yes, even in Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Djibouti, Jordan, Iran or Vietnam)! Some of you were rather close yesterday when we asked for your estimation. Pretty impressive, wouldn't you say?



Question 74: dgc2012, UK

If i use a nail gun to hold the chat window up that keeps dropping every time I move to or from something, will it break my computer?

BB_Saqui, UK CM: We advise players not to try and modify their game client with third-party tools; this includes DIY tools such as a nail gun. Doing so may cause irreparable damage to your computer!



Question 75: ijake, DE

There is only one important question: How are the ducks in the BB-pond?

BB_Pandur: Our pond ducks are respawning on a regular, yearly basis. They are doing fine and are procreating, very productively I might add.



Question 76: Chelsea2801, DE

Do we get a Level Update from maximum 75 to 100?

BB_Alex: No, not yet. Our goal is to fill in the level range from 64 - 75 with more content. This content should give you the chance to progress faster and support our personal goal to get more of you closer to the level cap and to provide more exciting endgame content. We can start thinking about a new level cap raise after that.



Question 77: Childerico , Brazil

is it possible on future that we can plant apple trees, so when we chop off that trees we could wood for planks and apples for apple pies and cider?

BB_Alex: I can't rule it out for 100%. Right now we do not have any plans to introduce production chains containing apple trees, pie and cider.



Question 78: Forrel, US

How did you discover The Settlers Online? What led you to work here?

BB_Vierauge: I first tried at TSO when the open beta launched in 2010. I was studying game design in Düsseldorf back then and was naturally curious about the big local studio’s first foray into the browser game market. I used to be more into fast-paced games back then though, so I did not play it for more than a handful of days.
Those same studies eventually scored me a position at Blue Byte, although not as a game designer initially. Out of a desire to familiarize myself with our games, I gave Settlers another, longer and fairer look and have not stopped playing since then. I suppose my tastes have changed over the years.



Question 79: Galactus, France

I've been in the game for 4 years. Anything planned for older players?

BB_Alex: We want to develop content for all level ranges and any age in the future. The focus will be on the endgame first and might change or shift over time allowing us to cover more different parts of the game.



Question 80: invoceusse, France

What are the technologies used behind TSO?

BB_Andreas: Magic beans, glowing stones and a bit of sugar coated rainbow slices! Beside that magic, TSO is using Java for the servers and Flash for the browser.



Question 81: Mark_Explorer, Brazil

Are there plans for bigger adventures with more XP?

BB_Alex: Yes, we never stop having plans. Sometimes those involve world domination. Adventures with more XP? Yes, at some point, definitely. Bigger adventures? We are limited in terms of map size, so the only way to make an adventure bigger is to provide more quests and tasks. We like the idea of making adventures more complex, more diverse and filled with additional challenges, like we did for the ventures inside the Excelsior.



Question 82: opabayern, Germany

Is an event planned for moving buildings for free or cheaper costs?

BB_Alex: Move events will only be used in combination with critical changes to the map or blocking in the future. Re-arranging your buildings and optimizing your economy is part of the The Settlers Online as an economy building game. The past move events had a negative impact on the usage of the move mechanic outside of those events and we decided to not trigger any additional move events, only if it is really needed because of a critical change or update.

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Ask Me Anything Answers - Ninth Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our ninth batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 83: Gregaulait, France

Hi, what is your estimation of the future popularity of the game ? Some players are worried islands will be deserted and are ready to do anything to keep new players around by giving out huge amounts of resources, many times excessive. It's good for the new players but it shows how the vets feel. What's your take from the other side?

TSO Team: We are keeping an eye on the amount of active players on all game worlds worldwide. We are actively looking into this topic. As soon as further information will be available on this topic, we will let you know.



Question 84: Abaxa, UK

Why does general attack (in adventures) on side rather than front, where there is entrance drawn (on enemy camps)?

BB_Pandur & BB_Andreas: The general riding into a bandit camp is a symbolic act – or have you ever seen any troops behind it ? Think of it as if the general and its troops sneak in through a side door to attack the camp, rather than through the front .



Question 85: achim6666, Germany

Is it planned to offer some kind of "trade" for platinum ore? You get really much of those and can't even properly use it yet.

BB_Alex: Yes, we do plan to implement new content using platinum or platinum ore. This, however, won't solve the issue of too much platinum in-game. To solve it, we would have to lower the inflow of platinum ore, not only increase the drain - and to be able to accomplish that, we would have to introduce alternative rewards to compensate for the reduction of platinum ore inflow. Solving the platinum ore issue is definitely not an easy, simple task.



Question 86: michy1960, Germany

The Footie Field will not come in-game but you mentioned that you might reuse it on another way. Is this building still planned and if so, do you have more info about it?

BB_Alex: The Footie Field will stay in-game and it will always be connected to the Soccer Event. We aim to introduce new recipes to unlock additional buffs. We also want to introduce new cultural buildings in the future. We are still thinking about their design and the types of buffs available with these new buildings.



Question 87: fouskoulithra, UK

Why don't you have a WOMEN army?? Thought about it on International women's day.

BB_Alex: The Settlers Online game characters are designed for specific roles in-game. In doing so, fulfilling gender quotas is not our main concern, and there are no current plans to introduce female soldiers or characters solely based on gender.



Question 88: haunted1, Greece

Is it possible to increase the Bookbinder production rate? Even the resin booster (+20%) is not enough considering the enormous number of scripts/codes/books we need.
You have also to keep in mind that in the near future we will obtain new explorers and the generals and they need books as well.

BB_Alex: The recipes introduced with the Excelsior update is one high level alternative to the bookbinder. The production of books inside the rarity provision house is more expensive, shorter in production time, can be queued and buffed. On top of that, we are also evaluating the idea of introducing a second bookbinder to the game. A final decision has not been made, so there are no details available yet. Last but not least, we are also evaluating alternatives, like an event reducing the production time in the bookbinder for several days or new bookbinder buffs. All those might be possible additions to the game. We would like to use those opportunities instead of lowering the basic production time.



Question 89: Hutzeli, Germany

Is it planned to add new Buildings for gems into the merchant, for example, recurring Iron mines?

BB_Alex: No, there are no plans to add endless or recurring iron mines to the game. This might change in the future though. Regarding other buildings, we do implement new buildings, specialists and buffs during every seasonal event, and some of them are added to the merchant for gems after the event is over. Overall, yes we do have plans to introduce new buildings to the merchant.



Question 90: reyrc2260, UK

Could we get a search function for the friends list?

BB_Pandur, CM Team: We haven’t planned such a functionality for future versions. However, since the wish was expressed in our forums, we already added it to the feature request list.



Question 91: Ronnna, Germany

I would like to know how the number of guild coins for guild quests is calculated. I do my guild quest every day, but the number varies a lot from 8 to 40, and I would like to know how that is calculated.

BB_Alex: The guild quest system is working it two stages. The first stage is the upper (main) guild quest for the whole guild. Each upper guild quest contains at least one sub-guild quest for every level range, which is started for single guild members. The sub-quest contains the first guild quest reward based on the triggers of the quest. The second reward step is based on the basic reward value of the upper (main) guild quest and two modifiers. The first modifier adjusts the value based on the guild size. The progress here is not linear. The second modifier is based on the percentage of guild members finishing their sub-guild quest. The progress here is linear.

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[BB_Sious]

Ask Me Anything Answers - Tenth Batch

Note:

Please keep in mind that this is our tenth batch of published answers. Our team continues to process the questions submitted by our worldwide community; additional answers will be provided for selected questions in the future.

Question 92: Alexcom31, Germany

To the person who reads (and probably will answer this): What do you see if you open the top drawer at your PC table?

BB_Kumakun, DE CM: Nothing. I do not have a drawer at my PC table. But everything else on my table is full with sticky notes and you can't say what it once was.

BB_Ondgrund, DE GM: If I would tell you the truth, someone might steal my secret stash of chocolate and cookies. So... just some boring pens and paperclips.

BB_Maxhylere, FR CM: Oh. Well, do you guys remember last year when I thought someone stole my sandwich ? I think I found it. Or it found me, I'm not sure.

BB_Saqui, UK CM: My super secret stash of sweets that the rest of the office doesn't know about! Just don't tell them I told you, OK?

BB_Orowa, DE CM: Some reminders about different topics, that I had on my desk, but eventually was annoyed by... so I moved them to the drawer and forgot about them again.. This procedure still has room for improvement Other than that, some gadgets to fidget with, while I think about difficult topics.

BB_Acadma, UK GM: About 30 random flash drives that need to be consolidated and wiped.

BB_Belegha, DE GM: My drawer is a secret pathway to the Settlers world. When I open it, I get sucked in and randomly pop out in one of the 14 German game worlds. Apart from this special feature, it looks very ordinary and, to be honest, also kind of messy.

BB_Aeyline, US CM: A toothbrush & toothpaste, pair of mismatched socks, a compass, iPhone charger, chocolate stash, list of Trivia questions & answers, old car keys, broken mouse, used batteries... oh, and SirGoofy's expert guide on Global antics.

BB_Amta, CM Team: There is only one thing in my drawer. The most important thing any TSO player should have handy: A stress ball which I squeeze each time my explorers come back with fish plates.

BB_Pandur, CM Team: Drawer? We can get drawers around here?



Question 93: Jenny1501, Germany

Are there any questions that annoy you?

German CM Team: There are hardly any kind of questions that annoy us - we are pretty happy about the amount of questions we got. They ranged from fun questions to serious game related ones and it was a good way to honestly answer questions that seem to be pointed out by many players. Also, we are pretty sure we'd get more of those questions, if we said which annoyed us, so... no ;p



Question 94: KingLuiKong, Germany

Which team member is part of the team for the longest time?

TSO Production Team: Ruslan our Artist and Patrick our DevOps Manager have been on the project the longest.



Question 95: Spicy74, Germany

How much coffee do you guys drink per day? Or did you already switch to something with more %?

German CM Team: Depends on the people. We have some people here who only drink cocoa (no idea where the coffeein comes from and how they can survive the day) but overall it would be 1 or 2 big cups a day.



Question 96: Lupus_C, Germany

Which level do the player accounts of the different team members have?

BB_Pandur: Our official accounts are on level 75, of course. I cannot speak for the other colleagues, but my private account is on level 48 and kind of stuck at it. I know for a fact that most of the other team member's accounts are between level 40-60.



Question 97: schiggi2001, Germany

Why did you start this AMA event?

BB_Pandur: In the first place we created the event to provide everyone the opportunity to ask us a question - no matter the topic. We also wanted the whole team to be able to communicate in some way with the community, without being available 24/7.



Question 98: madmanc, UK

Would you like to see any of your structures built in real life?

BB_Ruslan: Yes, the Powderhut. In the highest level the building would look amazing in real life.

Question 99: bbolekkk, Poland

Whose idea was this event?

BB_Pandur, CM Team: Who invented "AMA"? I think its origins are on Reddit or some other forum, I don't really know. We decided as a team to do this, as everybody can benefit from it.



Question 100: Kitikejt, Poland

What are the real names behind BB_Taku, BB_Anash and BB_Penelopa?

BB_Taku, BB_Anash, BB_Penelopa: Robert, Żaneta, Anna.

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