Could Server Rental Be A Great Addition To Sea Of Thieves?

  • Sockinator
    Captain
    Founder

    I was trying for an hour, with a group of 12 friends, to join in the same server together. After having no luck I though to myself, wouldn’t it be fun to all play in a server together with 3 ships or a larger group of smaller ones? Of course, you wouldn’t want to make things unbalanced and go around destroying anybody not in your crew. So it got me thinking...

    Plenty of games have custom lobbies that you can write a description on and host a server full of friends and newcomers if you’d like. Why not introduce this to Sea of Thieves? I remember when they added this to Battlefield 3 and you could rent a server for a limited amount of time. This could be a way to host a server and play with loads of people.

    It also strikes me as a good idea from a financial standpoint. Rare could make money on server rentals, and Twitch streamers could even host lobbies as special events or limited play with the community opportunities.

    I understand you wouldn’t want to pull away from the general public servers, but you can still leave them open and withhold any sort of booting power from server hosts. It would just be a way to play together with massive parties, and a way for rare to possibly benefit.

    What do people think of that? What are the drawbacks and what are the good parts? If there are problems with this idea, maybe there’s also a solution to them.

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  • Tundra 793
    Captain
    Insider
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    Ideas like this have been brought up since day one, but by and large, have always been voted down by most of the community, with a few mitigating factors.

    A chief concern raised earlier, is that private servers would be too safe. You could literally fill it with your friends, and without the inherent risk of other Pirates stealing your loot, you'd hit Pirate Legend in a week. A private server full of friends would face no challenge they couldn't overcome by sheer power of numbers.

    You could mitigate this by limiting, or completely cutting off rank and gold progress, but I can't imagine many players would enjoy playing like that for long.

    The inherent risk of Sea of Thieves is a key and core gameplay element; You're never safe, and that's part of the game.
    I think all pirates understand the appeal of hosting a fleet of friends, but in practice, it'd either break the gameplay loop, or get really boring, really fast.

  • CotU42
    Lord
    Insider

    @sockinator

    Private servers and lobbies are fine, as long as the progress is seperate from the public servers.

    I even believe private servers should have the ability to unlock every cosmetic for all participants on joining and the ability to set the time. All optional configurations naturally, to provide content creators with the ability to have elaborate cinematography or set up games with teams with their supporters.

    Maybe even additions like cameras for different angle and the likes. Make private servers more an open playground, for people to experiment in or play with specific groups, without the impact being felt on the public servers.

  • NunoAzuldimeter
    Champion
    Insider
    Boatswain
    Founder

    @sockinator I'd love some options to be able to join more friends, or at least people in the same country...

    I'm Portuguese, I was able to find Portuguese people in the same server only Once !!!
    We have a considerable big community of active players and we tried so many times to get in the same servers but it's extremely difficult!

    It's somehow unfair how bigger countries like US can have their entire servers full of people who speaks the same language but small countries couldn't at least find one person.
    Something should be made to turn that around.

    But I don't believe rent servers with real money is the correct way.
    That could be easily turn in a pay to win situation, something that seems to be something Rare is totally against. (And something I personally agree)

    But must have to be another way to manage the servers and it's population.

  • CotU42
    Lord
    Insider

    @nunoazuldimeter well language preference selection and the likes is something that the open crew system is lacking. The open crew system is flawed and simplified to the point that it is just not good. It is my belief Rare is banking too much on external tools like discord and xBox LFG to provide decent matchmaking.

  • Stundorn
    Castaway
    Insider
    Founder

    I like the idea and i dont see any Problem to let people play like they want and decide for themself it it's challenging or boring.
    For sure the pvp aspect is something vital to the adventure mode, but Rare adds an Arena mode focussed on quick pvp action to those who dislike the calm moments and the pve and coop part of the game.
    So why dont give those who dislike pvp a pve coop mode?

    All reasons against it and all who want to reduce xp or split it because of cosmetics and "effort" talk are nitpicking imo.

    The way it was a year ago was much harder to gain xp or earn money.
    I can earn as much money in 2 hours i needed 3 days for a year ago.
    Things are very much more rewarding.
    And the game kept to be balanced for more casual friendly playing.

    I think there is absolutley nothing what prevents Rare to give everybody the option to play SoT like they want.

    And if someone is PLA10 in 5 days playing on fleet servers only, i dont care, i applaud to you like i applaud to someone buyed x levels with dubloons.
    I didn't, i did it the old way, because i didnt care for the level and let it happen by the way. It took me 11 Month to PL and i have never been out grinding something i always just played along soloing or with others. I for sure tried to get this or that event commendation, but never "worked" on it.

    So let everybody play as he likes.
    Why not?
    Why nitpicking, because i became PL with a knife between my teeth and a rowboat only and i swam with every chest i found 1000 miles and only eat sharksoup and drunk Kraken p....
    So whatever you reached, you cannot be more epic and legendary or what?!

    Honestly, all the envy about progression stuff is ridiculous.
    If they decide to remove it and make everyone PL A10 i dont care.
    I'm here for playing a game and not to do an ePeen competition.

  • NunoAzuldimeter
    Champion
    Insider
    Boatswain
    Founder

    @cotu42 I'm not even talking about matchmaking crew. But yes, at least there should be something about preferences of our own open crew.

    I was talking in a wider range, I cross seas with crews from Spain, France, England, Italy and a lot of European countries but never my own country...
    Sometimes it's useless to try to communicate with other crew because they don't understand us (and we don't understand them as well) and obviously not everyone speaks English.

  • CotU42
    Lord
    Insider

    @nunoazuldimeter

    Which could be included in their server search if we had the ability to indicate our preferences. Improve the open crew system and those variables could be used in server management as well.

    Like microphones, languages, activity preferences and other aspects could all be extremely useful.

  • PirateCraggy
    Legend
    Insider

    @sockinator

    I think it would be a great idea. Or at least to have the option.
    Group some mates together, possibly if there was space available, jump on the forum pop up a post.... maybe rally a few forumites.

    It has possibilities. If the concerns mentioned by others could be ironed out.... it could be a lot of fun!

  • Stundorn
    Castaway
    Insider
    Founder

    You all know what i would like?

    My 2-6 crew PvPvE Server with only friendly people playing.
    creating our own Events, battles, races and all of that, even do faction play one evening 3v3 Crews.
    Or 2v2 or creating scenarios and stuff to do cooperative and competetive, but with the people i know and want to play with and what i'm sure they have fun and dont swear or want to ruin another ones Session.
    I would also like to have a heavy roleplay server and PvPvE.

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