Design Fireside Chat Edition
Heads up - this is pretty long. There's a lot to unpack, both foundationally and topically. We’ve heard the concerns about splitting focus between increasing relic levels on older characters to account for Relic Delta while still wanting to pursue newer characters. With our upcoming release, we will be changing how players get and invest in new characters. More details to come on that later, but the relevant portion for Relic Delta is this: You will be progressing through gear tiers and lower relic levels without needing to use gear or relic materials, which frees up those resources to be spent on older characters. Additionally, both Droid Brains and higher level Signal Data will be added as outputs from the Scavenger, giving players an alternate means of acquiring those materials. Lastly, the playtest is still ongoing, and we are continuing to gather feedback from the testers and the community. We simply wanted to provide the context that folks have been requesting. Let’s get into it. Table of Contents The Basics: Vertical Progression The Problem: Scalability The Options: Possible Solutions The Chosen Solution: Relic Delta The Variations: Alternative Versions The Future: Where Does This Leave Us? The Basics: Vertical Progression Games with progression fall into two main categories: Horizontal progression: As a primary vector, power does not increase. Rather, over time you gain additional tools in your toolbelt to solve the same sorts of problems at similar power levels. Vertical progression: As a primary vector, power increases with new releases. This doesn't have to be a rapid increase, and the team has done an excellent job of taking measured and calculated steps when it comes to power increases. This power increase can come from new equipment/stats, new kits/abilities, new systems, etc. Both types of games need new content, at least in the context of a live service game. They have different constraints and objectives with this new content, but they both need it. Vertical progression games generally need new content at a higher power that players transition to (and transition away from older content). We see this in Galaxy of Heroes because it is, of course, a primarily vertical progression game (with some horizontal progression elements). Your account gets stronger over time as a result of gaining stronger characters, increasing gear and relic levels, acquiring and refining better mods, etc. And you rightfully want to engage with new content, which most of the time needs to be at higher power levels to absorb, showcase, and reward the power increase of your account. Please note that this doesn’t mean we’re suddenly going to leap forward multiple relic levels. We do want to introduce new relic levels over time, but we also want to bring players along at the same pace and catch players up to make sure all players are able to engage with and enjoy new content. The Problem: Scalability In Systems Design, we try to make systems as scalable as possible. If you can build your system in a way that adapts to or accounts for changes to the game that you don't yet know are coming, you've built a robust and scalable system. If you build a bunch of features that aren't scalable, at some point you have to spend all your time updating older things rather than building cool new stuff for players to enjoy. That isn't to say we shouldn't or don't update older systems (just look at GAC out of GA, Raids 2.0, Ships 2.0, etc). Even scalable systems need updates sometimes. But the more you can build your game to have scalable systems, the easier it is to maintain and make more fun stuff for players. 6 years ago, we transitioned from Gear to Relics as the primary progression system for characters. Relics were added because adding a new gear tier was a massive undertaking. New pieces with a variety of stats had to be designed that somehow benefited the entire roster roughly equally using different combinations despite kits wanting to focus on varying stats. The balance work was even worse, needing to account for multiple possible combinations of these “buckets of stats” for each character. And the roster has only grown since then. The reason for Relics’ entire existence is to solve the scalability problem of the gear system. However, Relics haven’t seen a new level of progression for 4 years. This is due to two aspects - there was nothing to absorb, showcase, and reward that power increase, and there was minimal-to-no reason to push for higher progression. New content usually isn't cheap, and it's never free, so we often have to make difficult choices around what gets built. It's bad to introduce a new level of progression without the content to absorb it, since there's no reason to invest or use the new level of progression. It's bad to introduce new levels of content without the increased progression to enter and take it on because, well, you can't enter it and complete it. The core problem is that Relics don't have a scalable system component promoting and rewarding investment. What eventually happens to a live service vertical progression game that stops releasing vertical progression? What happens to any live service game when the core gameplay loop is removed? There are two operational reasons to invest - the stats given on each individual level and content entry requirements - but at some point the stats have diminishing returns, and requirements can’t update as players’ rosters evolve. Players invest in unlock/entry requirements for content they want to engage, but the higher the relic level, the scarcer its materials and the less likely players are to invest those resources. We've heard from the community that players don't think R9 is worth investing outside of requirements, GLs, and the occasional tank. R9 still loses to R5 just like R8 does. R9 doesn't make battles in early phases of TB meaningfully faster. R9 doesn't make Assault Battle challenge tiers or Proving Grounds or other events much easier. It comes up short in both PvE and PvP content, both solo and group content. You could say "just make the stats on R9 bigger", and we'll address that possible approach in just a bit, but the short response to that is a series of questions: What does that mean for R10? What does the impact on R10 mean for R11? Higher relic levels in the future? How will this be sustainable for multiple future levels of progression? How does an increase in stats on R9 help players below R9? We have to look at the long-term future of Relics, not just the levels that players currently own. In the end, the problem is far bigger than "protect higher relic investment", which is as much as we revealed to the testers initially. Yes, that is part of the problem, but it's not the whole problem. We need to facilitate all players having a systemic and scalable game-wide reason to pursue upward progression. The Options: Possible Solutions We've seen some suggestions from the community on other ways to solve this core problem (albeit without knowing what the problem was). Now that the problem is revealed, let's take a look at why these other options weren't chosen. Do nothing Example: The game stays at R9. Result: Players eventually have enough resources to take the entire roster to R9. There is no new level of progression, no new challenging content that players can strive to overcome. As players don't have upward progression to pursue (in a primarily vertical progression game), there is no longer a reason to engage with the core gameplay loop of Play > Get Rewards > Invest > Get Stronger > Play. Rewards don't matter and there is nowhere to invest. The core of the game ceases to function and the player experience is ruined. Change relic stats on existing relic levels Example: R9 is updated to add an additional 50 Mastery and 100 Speed. Result: The value that players receive from their prior investment and upcoming investment goals changes. Some characters probably come out "winners", but many would certainly be "losers". Different characters are impacted to differing degrees, which results in a fractured solution rather than a solidified one. The meta still shifts, potentially drastically, especially if Mastery constituent stats are touched. Relic levels beyond R9 aren't directly supported, and this doesn't address the core problem of scalability. Introduce R10 Example: Add R10 by itself. Result: R10 exists with no new content to support it. With R9 being difficult to acquire, many wouldn't have any R10 characters. The top end would invest as much as necessary for any new requirements and also updating GL teams, and then R10 would be in the exact same state as R9. It plays into and exacerbates the existing problem rather than solving it. Add the damage increase/decrease on the top few relic levels Example: R7 deals 10% more damage to and receives 10% less damage from R6 and below. R8 deals 20% more damage to and receives 20% less damage from R7 and below. R9 deals 30% more damage to and receives 30% less damage from R8 and below. Result: This is honestly the closest these possible solutions came to solving the problem before Relic Delta was chosen. Unfortunately, this does nothing to help players below R7. It even creates a bit of a wall at R7, or wherever the value is introduced. Additionally, it would need to be removed and shifted up as new relic levels were introduced, since increasing to +/- 40% and beyond isn't scalable (eventually a single relic level is unbeatable by any relic level below it). And removing value from players' investment feels terrible. Sometimes it has to be done for the greater good of the game's health, but it's never something we relish doing, and we avoid it whenever possible. The Chosen Solution: Relic Delta Relic Delta was conceived about a year ago at this point. The basis of and inspiration for this system actually comes from within our own game. 10 years ago the game launched with a level delta system whereby attacks would experience modified Crit Chance, Accuracy/Evasion, Damage, and resist chance based on the difference between the attacker’s and defender’s character levels. Only Crit Chance and resist chance have any values, so only those two were ever in play. Recognizing that most vertical progression live service games have some kind of delta system to facilitate conquering old content and not pushing too far ahead on higher level content, we decided to update relics to use a similar system. A level delta system is used so broadly because it is incredibly scalable. While players are leveling and working toward max progression, the delta "sticks with them" and applies equally to their experience regardless of where they're at in the progression curve. If progression levels are increased, the system accounts for that by automatically applying equally as players work toward the new cap, without requiring bandwidth from developers to balance and maintain bespoke bonuses. For all players at all relic levels: It speeds up and/or simplifies older content. It protects newer content and investments made to engage with that content. It supports a distinction in power level in PvP. It rewards those who have "made the climb". It promises that “your investment of time and resources will be rewarded.” We chose for Relic Delta to only apply to damage because we wanted the stats on the relic levels themselves to still matter. Individual relic levels should still be able to express varied stats based on what the meta needs at the time that relic level is introduced. We’ve heard the concern around Relic Delta eliminating strategy (mods, counters, theorycrafting), but we aren’t seeing a complete elimination of strategy during either internal testing or the current playtest. We fully intend for strategy to continue to be a central aspect of both PvP and PvE content. Yes, Relic Delta eliminates some cases (e.g. G12 Malicos beating R8 Rey), but it also introduces some strategy around which characters to invest in and by how much based on your usage of them and their place in the larger meta. We are aware that there have been other similar games with what seems like the same concept on the surface, but there are 2 critical differences that make this more favorable for F2P and folks who have invested into Galaxy of Heroes: This system is a gradual curve rather than a massive boost at just one level of difference. This system has a single progression path (Relics, which are becoming more accessible in the same release) rather than requiring investment in multiple disparate systems that have differing rates of accessibility. The Variations: Alternate Versions There are some alternative executions of a Relic Delta system that we considered, some of which we've seen suggested by players. Similar to above, I wanted to briefly cover why we didn't go down those routes. Kick in later Example: Relic Delta doesn't take effect until you're at R7 or R9; lower relic levels are unaffected. Result: This introduces inconsistency in how the system is applied. Messaging for a system that suddenly turns on after you've crossed a threshold is difficult. Additionally, how do you say "R9 has Relic Delta active" and not have that apply to R3 when they’re battling each other? A delta implies two different values. It requires the context of the other side, at which point the lower relic is inherently involved in the system and affected by it. Why shouldn’t lower invested units also benefit from having a higher relic level than units below them (whether PvE or PvP)? When adding new relic levels, should the threshold move up or stay the same? If it stays the same, eventually all relevant relic levels are affected anyway. Only increase damage, don't decrease it Example: The higher relic character deals more damage to the lower relic character, but the lower relic character deals its normal damage to the higher relic character. Result: This helps address the problem, but it doesn't protect the higher relic character. Think of a glass cannon build in an ARPG - you can add more damage, allowing you to kill things faster, but you still die to that 1 ground effect you step in. You're still susceptible to the same things, you just get more efficient in between dying to the same stuff. It's not holistic enough of an impact. Use the average relic level of the team (or lowest level) Result: Both of these approaches have unintended effects on undersized squads. If an R9 SLKR gets weaker because a player brings in R5 General Hux, it feels bad to use Hux even though he synergizes well with SLKR. It negatively impacts a player who brings in weaker units, dropping the entire squad down rather than just the one character being affected. There's also a lot of gamification and cheesing of the system that can be done if the average is used. The Future: Where Does This Leave Us? With these changes, Relic 10 is being added to the game (though please see above as to why it doesn’t solve the core problem). It will use a new Signal Data, which will not be farmed with energy (so it doesn’t disrupt your current Signal Data farming). Instead, the new Signal Data will be available in both the Scavenger and other game modes. Finally, there will be a new game mode, new events, and an update to Era-related Journey Guide events, ensuring that all players get to use new characters right away for valuable rewards. We want all players to be able to enjoy the latest characters and content being released to the game. We hope this context helps our choices around Relic Delta make a bit more sense. We will monitor the impact of Relic Delta in PvP modes and make adjustments as needed. We are passionate about the game and care about you, our players. As always, we’d love to hear your feedback on this and your continued feedback on Relic Delta. Until next time, CG Dev TeamEra of Deadly Pursuit
Hello Holotable Heroes! Welcome to the Deadly Pursuit Era! Episode 1: Rogue One Episode 1: Rebel B-wing Episode 2: 4-LOM Episode 2: Zuckuss Conquest Character: The Stranger Title Earned: Call of the Hunt Era Battle: ANALYSIS / PARALYSIS 4-LOM and Zuckuss pursue the Rebellion's greatest heroes through the environments from Empire Strikes Back Episode Track Information: Free Track Item Episode Pass 1 Episode Currency 3,000 Rogue One Ship 20 2 MK 2 Pulse Modulator 40 Episode Currency 6,000 3 GC Gear Salvage Blue A 12 Gyrda Keypad 1 4 Mk 12 ArmaTek Multi-tool Prototype Salvage 5 Ability Material Zeta 1 5 Injector Cell Salvage 20 Aeromagnifier 1 6 Episode Currency 3,000 Episode Currency 6,000 7 MK 1 Amplifier 48 Ability Material Omicron 1 8 GC Gear Salvage Blue B 8 Zinbiddle Card 1 9 Injector Head Salvage 10 Impulse Detector 1 10 Mk 2 Variable Resistor 60 Droid Brain 1 11 Episode Currency 3,500 Episode Currency 7,000 12 MK 1 Capacitor 80 Ability Material Zeta 1 13 Ability Material Omicron 1 Zinbiddle Card 2 14 Mk 2 Circuit Breaker Module 80 Aeromagnifier 2 15 Mk 9 Kyrotech Battle Computer Prototype Salvage 6 Impulse Detector 1 16 Episode Currency 3,500 Episode Currency 7,000 17 GC Gear Salvage Purple A 8 Gyrda Keypad 1 18 Mk 7 Kyrotech Shock Prod Prototype Salvage 6 Zinbiddle Card 3 19 Mk 2 Thermal Exchange Unit 128 Ability Material Zeta 2 20 GC Gear Salvage Yellow A 4 Player Title 1 21 Episode Currency 4,000 Episode Currency 8,000 22 Mk 2 Micro Processor 24 Impulse Detector 2 23 Ability Material Omicron 1 Mk 7 Kyrotech Power Converter 1 24 Injector Handle Salvage 20 Ability Material Omicron 1 25 GC Gear Salvage Purple B 8 Zinbiddle Card 4 26 Episode Currency 4,000 Episode Currency 8,000 27 MK 2 Pulse Modulator 40 Gyrda Keypad 1 28 GC Gear Salvage Blue A 12 Aeromagnifier 3 29 Injector Head Salvage 10 Impulse Detector 2 30 GC Gear Salvage Yellow B 4 Zinbiddle Card 5 31 Episode Currency 4,500 Episode Currency 9,000 32 GC Gear Salvage Blue B 8 Ability Material Omicron 1 33 Ability Material Omicron 1 Gyrda Keypad 1 34 Mk 2 Variable Resistor 60 Droid Brain 1 35 Mk 9 Kyrotech Battle Computer Prototype Salvage 6 Mk 7 Kyrotech Shock Prod 1 36 Episode Currency 4,500 Episode Currency 9,000 37 GC Gear Salvage Purple A 8 Impulse Detector 4 38 Mk 2 Circuit Breaker Module 80 Ability Material Zeta 2 39 Mk 7 Kyrotech Shock Prod Prototype Salvage 6 Droid Brain 1 40 GC Gear Salvage Yellow A 4 Ability Material Omicron 2 41 Episode Currency 5,000 Episode Currency 10,000 42 Mk 2 Micro Processor 24 Aeromagnifier 4 43 Ability Material Omicron 1 Gyrda Keypad 1 44 Mk 12 ArmaTek Multi-tool Prototype Salvage 5 Droid Brain 1 45 GC Gear Salvage Purple B 8 Ability Material Zeta 4 46 Episode Currency 6,000 Episode Currency 12,000 47 MK 1 Capacitor 80 Mk 9 Kyrotech Battle Computer 1 48 GC Gear Salvage Yellow B 4 Ability Material Omicron 3 49 Mk 2 Thermal Exchange Unit 128 Droid Brain 1 50 Bronzium (Tier 2) Lightspeed Token (Rebel) 1 Chromium (Tier 3) Lightspeed Token (Rebels) 1 Episode Shipment Information: Item Episode Currency Cost Quantity per Purchase FDC - Light Side 6,000 1 FDC - Jawa 2,000 1 FDC - Separatist 6,000 1 FDC - Dark Side 6,000 1 Ability Material Omicron 3200 2 Ability Material Omicron 3200 2 Ability Material Omicron 1600 1 Ability Material MK III 7500 25 Ability Material MK III 4500 15 Ability Material MK III 3000 10 Ability Material Omega 1800 3 Ability Material Omega 1200 2 Mk 7 Kyrotech Shock Prod Prototype Salvage 1750 10 Mk 9 Kyrotech Battle Computer Prototype Salvage 1750 10 Blue Wildcard Mod (Slot 1) 75 1 Blue Wildcard Mod (Slot 2) 75 1 Purple Wildcard Mod (Slot 3) 200 1 Purple Wildcard Mod (Slot 4) 200 1 Gold Wildcard Mod (Slot 5) 400 1 Gold Wildcard Mod (Slot 6) 400 1 Injector Cell Salvage 1200 5 Injector Handle Salvage 1200 5 Injector Head Salvage 1200 5 Shin Hati 2500 20 Marrok 2500 20 Great Mothers 2500 20 Captain Drogan 1500 20 Pao 1000 20 Bodhi Rook 1000 20 Cassian Andor 1000 20 K-2SO 1500 20 Jyn Erso 1500 20 MK 1 Amplifier 2500 25 MK 1 Capacitor 2500 25 MK 2 Pulse Modulator 5000 25 Mk 2 Circuit Breaker Module 3500 25 Mk 2 Thermal Exchange Unit 3500 25 Mk 2 Variable Resistor 4000 25 Mk 2 Micro Processor 4000 25 Micro Attenuators 4000 16 Micro Attenuators 4000 16 Carbonite Circuit Board 1500 25 Bronzium Wiring 3500 20 Chromium Transistor 4000 10 Aurodium Heatsink 5000 5 Electrium Conductor 6000 4 Mk 12 ArmaTek Fusion Furnace Prototype Salvage 1000 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Stun Gun Prototype Salvage 1000 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Thermal Detonator Prototype Salvage 1000 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Holo Lens Prototype Salvage 1000 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Key Pad Prototype Salvage 1000 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Data Pad Prototype Salvage 1000 2 Mk 12 Czerka Stun Cuffs Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 Czerka Hypo Syringe Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 Czerka Sensor Array Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 Czerka Implant Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 Czerka Security Scanner Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 Czerka Shield Generator Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Multi-tool Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Armor Plating Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Bayonet Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Tactical Data Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Visor Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Wrist Band Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Cybernetics Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 12 ArmaTek Medpac Prototype Salvage 800 2 Mk 8 Nubian Security Scanner Salvage 800 2 Mk 7 Nubian Design Tech Salvage 800 2 Mk 7 Chiewab Hypo Syringe Salvage 800 2 Mk 8 Nubian Design Tech Salvage 800 2 Mk 7 CEC Fusion Furnace Salvage 800 2 Mk 6 Carbanti Sensor Array Salvage 800 2 Mk 7 Merr-Sonn Thermal Detonator Salvage 800 2 Mk 6 Athakam Medpac Salvage 800 2 Mk 4 Carbanti Sensor Array Prototype Salvage 300 2 Mk 5 A/KT Stun Gun Prototype Salvage 300 2 Mk 3 Carbanti Sensor Array Salvage 300 2 Mk 3 Czerka Stun Cuffs Salvage 300 2 Mk 4 Zaltin Bacta Gel Salvage 300 2 Mk 5 Arakyd Droid Caller Salvage 300 2 Mk 8 Biotech Implant Component 300 2 Mk 6 Arakyd Droid Caller Salvage 300 2 Mk 4 A/KT Stun Gun Salvage 300 2 Mk 7 Merr-Sonn Shield Generator Salvage 300 2 MK 8 Neuro-Saav Electrobinoculars Salvage 300 2 Mk 9 Neuro-Saav Electrobinoculars Salvage 300 2 Mk 7 BioTech Implant Prototype Salvage 300 2 Mk 3 Zaltin Bacta Gel Salvage 300 2 Mk 6 CEC Fusion Furnace Salvage 300 2 Mk 6 Chiewab Hypo Syringe Salvage 300 2 Mk 6 Merr-Sonn Thermal Detonator Salvage 300 2 MK 6 Nubian Design Tech Salvage 300 2 Mk 9 Biotech Implant Salvage 300 2 Mk 1 Athakam Medpac Salvage 200 2 Mk 4 CEC Fusion Furnace Prototype Salvage 200 2 Mk 6 BioTech Implant Prototype Salvage 200 2 Mk 8 BlasTech Weapon Mod Prototype Salvage 200 2 Mk 5 Chiewab Hypo Syringe Prototype Salvage 200 2 Mk 10 BlasTech Weapon Mod Component 200 2 Mk 3 Chedak Comlink Prototype Salvage 200 2 Mk 2 Zaltin Bacta Gel Prototype Salvage 200 2 Mk 4 Arakyd Droid Caller Salvage 200 2 Mk 5 Merr-Sonn Thermal Detonator Prototype Salvage 200 2 Mk 5 Athakam Medpac Component 200 2 Mk 9 Fabritech Data Pad Component 200 2
skate. - Season 1
As we drop into Season 1, we wanted to give you a little refresher about our Seasonal process and get you ready for Season 1. Each Season in San Vansterdam will add more to the game, such as new skateable areas, new Challenges and Tasks, Seasonal events like Skate-o-Ween and the 7-Ply Maple Harvest, new brand partners, additional cosmetics, new tracks to the soundtrack, and a new skate.Pass, plus bug fixes and quality of life improvements. We’ll add more life and style to the city, like some spooky decor around the city for Skate-o-Ween and in-game events. With Season 1, we’re also implementing our first pass of visual updates, as shared in The Grind: Vol. 6. So what’s in Season 1? First, San Van is going to get a little makeover to do it up for the Season, and there’s plenty to discover once you drop in. Check out some of the seasonal decor we’re bringing to spots like The Orb, The Skateway, and new skateable areas around the city. Here’s a preview of what’s coming to the city. Skate-o-Ween Skate-o-Ween, as it's called in San Van, is the annual Halloween celebration, less focused on the spookiness and more about getting a chuckle out of someone, creating an inventive costume, and just getting together to skate in a fun outfit. During San Van’s Skate-o-Ween, skaters often don outfits that are callbacks to the origins of skateboarding - you'll see costumes, wild styles, or the baggy pants and chunky shoes of the early aughts worn ironically (and sometimes unironically). What a time. Even the companies of San Van get in on the fun - seizing on the opportunity to market their brands by selling corporate mascots for people to wear around the city. 7-Ply Maple Harvest The annual 7-Ply Maple Harvest occurs every year with the harvesting of San Van’s famous 7-Ply Maple trees. The Maple Harvest began in the early 20th century when a particularly robust variety of Maple Tree was discovered here. In the 70s, skaters discovered that by harvesting the San Van Maple every seven years, the wood produced would be perfectly suited for skateboard construction. Since then, the Harvest has evolved into a festival that embodies respect for the hearty, humble hardwood, as well as a celebration of accomplishments, growth, and reflection on the year since the last harvest. Each of these events will have community parks updated to celebrate the event. Plus, there’s themed cosmetics you can earn from participating in the events and earning Tix, and some you can grab from the Extravert Shop in-game. Community parks are public spaces in SV with custom layouts that rotate daily. Community parks will change each season, with the most popular ones returning in future seasons. Skate-O-Ween runs from Oct. 21 - Nov. 11, with the 7-Ply Maple Harvest dominating the city from Nov. 18 - Dec. 2. As you complete the in-game seasonal events, you’ll earn event currency to exchange for special Event cosmetics in-game. We’ll have more details on each event before they go live in-game. Seasonal events aren’t the only thing to do during Season 1. We’ll have 40 new Challenges for Season 1, with new Challenges added weekly, on top of the Challenges already live in the game.We’ll also have Seasonal Tasks – daily, weekly, seasonal and event tasks: Daily (~3-5/day)- a list of objectives that update daily Weekly(~10/week)- an event that unlocks each week and lasts until the end of Season 1 Seasonal (~10)- larger objectives that last all of Season 1 Event- objectives tied to the in-game event, which reward specific event currency Doing all those Challenges and Tasks gets you Tix, and those Tix get your rewards. As we mentioned for each Season, we’ll also have the skate.Pass. The skate.Pass has two tracks - the Standard (free) and Premium track - where you earn currency called “Tix” each season to buy items from the in-game store, which can be earned via: Daily, weekly, and Seasonal Tasks (including completion bonuses) Seasonal Challenges Daily grants (Premium skate.Pass only) Exchange for San Van Bucks skate.Passes can only be obtained from the in-game store during the seasons in which they are released. You’ll always be able to complete the Standard (Free) track without having to purchase the skate.Pass, but you’ll need to upgrade to the Premium track for 1000 SVB to get access to the Premium items. By acquiring the Premium skate.Pass, you’ll also be able to continue progressing and unlock rewards for up to one additional Season. Once the following Season ends, you can’t complete progression against the legacy skate.Pass. Now, if you want to get a bundle of SVB, some cosmetics, AND the Season 1 skate.Pass, you can purchase the Founder’s Pack or Founder’s Deluxe Pack – available on the skate.Shop. Fun fact: SVB purchases on the skate.Shop gives you 10% extra SVB. For EA Play subscribers, you can also get 10% off any purchase on the skate.Shop, including add-on content Packs and SVB purchases. Through the progression of the Standard and Premium skate.Pass tiers, you can earn up to 400 SVB to buy some gear in-game or to help purchase the next Season’s skate.Pass. So what are the rewards in Season 1? For Season 1, as it’s a little shorter season, you’ll have 82 tiers to work through (38 Standard and 44 Premium) to earn 32 free cosmetic items and 6 tiers of SVB on the Standard track, and 42 cosmetic items and 2 tiers of SVB on the Premium track, bringing your total rewards for both the Standard and Premium track (combined) to 74 cosmetic items and 8 tiers of SVB (up to 400 SVB total when you complete progression). This includes board items (like decks, stickers, trucks, griptape, and wheels), character items (like clothing, shoes, costumes, hats), gestures, as well as profile items like banners and avatars, with tiers ranging from uncommon, epic, rare, and legendary. What are some of the cosmetics? Some of the Free items are: Fresh Green Stripes Polo, Beige Baggy Jorts, PRMAFLO Puffletic White, Backwards White Baseball Cap are part of the Standard (Free) track rewards. Lucky Stripe cargo pants, Jazz Bucket hat, and PRMAFLO Afterlife Gumball shoes can be acquired through the Standard track; Tie Dye Kitty Baby Tee is part of the Premium track rewards. And for some of the Premium items, we’ve got: Hesh Leather Jacket, Ripped Jeans, and Camden boots are part of the Premium Track Rewards. Yes, we also mentioned costumes, such as the Livingston costume, featuring the mascot of San Van, as a skate.Pass Premium Reward: There are endless ways to express yourself with new collabs and gear from some of the best brands in skateboarding. We’ve got Girl Skateboard, Chocolate skateboards, Thrasher, Royal Trucks, Vans, Dickies, & Dime already in the game, and with Season 1, we’re bringing Santa Cruz, Creature, and Independent to San Vansterdam, just to name a few. Now that’s just a sample of some of the cosmetics you can get through Season 1’s skate.Pass Standard Track and Premium track, but that’s not all we’re bringing to San Van for Season 1. As we’ve mentioned in The Grind, we’ll be updating the in-game soundtrack every season. This season, we’re bringing 21 new songs into the rotation, and we’re definitely bringing a 90s vibe. Bad Religion - Against The Grain Dinosaur Jr. - Freak Scene Gang Star - Full Clip Jane's Addiction - Stop! Sonic Youth - Teen Age Riot Joey BADA$$ - Pardon Me Ice Cube - Bop Gun (One Nation) Naughty By Nature - It's On Operation Ivy - Sound System Skegss - L.S.D (Live. Sleep. Die) We’ll be dropping the full list of new music coming to San Van next week, so stay tuned. There’s a lot more for you to discover when you jump in, and we’re stoked to welcome you to skate. Early Access Seasons. See you in San Vansterdam, The skate. TeamJedi Master Mace Windu Event Investigation
Hello Holotable Heroes, The team is aware of the issues with the JMWW event and are going to be tackling it to get it back to where it was. With that being said, we wont be able to fix it for the current run, but will aim to get a rerun of the event at our next update (not tomorrows). Thank you.September Events Calendar 2025
Hello Holotable Heroes, Here is a list of some of the upcoming events for September 2025. The daily login unit for September is Great Mothers DISCLAIMER: ALL DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE. Omega Events Omega – Rebels and Geonosians Dates: 09-01-2025 Omega – Ewoks and Empire Dates: 09-08-2025 Omega – Jedi and Tusken Dates: 09-15-2025 Omega – Sith and Droids Dates: 09-22-2025 Omega – Nightsisters and Jawas Dates: 09-29-2025 Omega – Resistance and Clones Dates: 09-05-2025 Omega – First Order and Scoundrels Dates: 09-12-2025 ____________________________________________________________________________________ Assault Battles Imperial Remnant (Peridea Patrol) Dates: 09-06-2025 Forest Moon Dates: 09-13-2025 Military Might Dates: 09-20-2025 Ground War Dates: 09-27-2025 Places of Power Dates: 09-03-2025 Fanatical Devotion Dates: 09-10-2025 Secrets and Shadows Dates: 09-17-2025 Rebel Round-Up Dates: 09-24-2025 Duel of the Fates Assault Battle Dates: 09-26-2025 ____________________________________________________________________________________ Mythic Events Grandmaster’s Training Mythic Event Dates: 09-13-2025 ____________________________________________________________________________________ Fleet Mastery Executor Dates: 09-15-2025 Leviathan Dates: 09-20-2025 Profundity Dates: 09-30-2025 ____________________________________________________________________________________ Territory Battles Rebel Assault Dates: 09-01-2025 Republic Offensive Dates: 09-01-2025 Imperial Retaliation Dates: 09-15-2025 Separatist Might Dates: 09-15-2025 Rise of the Empire Dates: 09-01-2025 Dates: 09-15-2025 ____________________________________________________________________________________ Territory Wars War 392 Attack Date: 08-30-2025 War 393 Attack Date: 09-09-2025 War 394 Attack Date: 09-13-2025 War 395 Attack Date: 09-23-2025
Community Concerns with Save File Issues - October 2025 Update
Sul Sul Simmers, In our last blog, we shared our commitment to investigating concerns that some players had around save file corruption, and we’re here to update you on what our team has been working on and where our investigation currently stands. In this update, we’ll share our progress, what we’re still investigating, and the next steps we’re taking. From collaborating with players to analyzing save data and exploring technical leads, here’s where things stand today. We’re committed to being transparent with you about our processes, and while we don’t have all the answers yet, progress is being made every day. Thank you for your patience, your feedback, and your passion for The Sims. The Sims Team Our Progress So Far We’re focused on identifying any potential causes of corruption, implementing preventative measures to avoid future issues, and resolving any identified problems to ensure your gameplay experience remains safe and reliable. When we refer to “save corruption”, we mean situations where the game itself won’t load, a save file fails to load, or a save loads but is missing assets, such as thumbnails or Lots. To tackle this, our specialized team is focused on save integrity. Here’s what’s been happening: Community Collaboration: We asked you to share your impacted saves, and we’ve received dozens of them so far. Thank you for providing these, please keep them coming! New Tools: We’ve developed a new Python-based tool that helps us extract, analyze, and summarize the data in save files provided by our players. This is helping us provide more actionable data to investigation teams. Player Save Database: We’ve organized incoming reports to better understand potential patterns, such as file size, code versions, number of packs, use of mods, and more. Review of Past Fixes: Our team has analyzed historical corruption cases to learn from previous solves and spot any recurring causes. Our Current Investigations From attempting to reproduce the issues reported by players both with and without mods, we've identified the following issues as strong leads. These require more time to investigate before we can confirm anything concretely, but we wanted to keep you updated on what we've learned so far. Scratch File Concerns: One of our most pressing leads involves scratch files. These are important but temporary files the game relies on, and reports suggest they may be disappearing or getting deleted, which could trigger corruption. We’re looking into the root cause of these deletions now, focusing on any areas where The Sims 4 files would come in contact with other systems, cloud backup services, and other external factors that could be deleting or overwriting these files. Lot Data Issues: Another major area of focus is Lot data: Some Lots provided to us show up with missing or extremely minimal information in saves. We’ve reproduced cases internally of endless loading/white screens linked to certain build behaviors like super-stuffed Lots, with and without mods. We’re also tracking any potential links to specific expansion packs or objects, though corruption reports predate packs like The Sims 4 For Rent. Other Areas of Focus: Excessive rental units alone don’t seem to be the primary cause of corruption at this time. While more units do increase error reports, data also suggests it’s likely tied to overall save complexity rather than unit count alone. Instances of corruption existed before the release of For Rent, and our investigations into individual packs remain a top priority. In some cases, specific types of mods called script mods are leaving behind files after the mod is removed that can cause issues in The Sims 4, though we have not yet linked this to corruption. Our Next Steps: Continuing to test venue type data transfer across saves. Deepening our investigation into scratch file deletion and common external programs. Exploring historical cases of save bloat to understand potential connections. Out of an abundance of caution, we’re removing the bb.increaserentalunitcap Residential Rental Unit cheat in an upcoming update, as a preventative step while broader fixes are developed. This step is needed to mitigate any potential risk. We know how much your saves mean to you - they represent countless hours of creativity, storytelling, and play. Please keep sharing reports with us, as each one brings us closer to understanding and solving these issues.Kit Reveal: B-Wings and Fries (Chips)
UNIT NAME: B-wing ALIGNMENT: Light Side CATEGORIES: Attacker, Rebel ------ Key Attributes: Lifting Home One’s Rebel fleet to greater heights! The B-wing is most compatible with a fully non-Scoundrel Rebel fleet. B-wing makes greater use of Home One’s strengths by reducing the capital ship’s cooldowns. Create more chances for Rebels to deal devastating amounts of damage under Home One’s Master Plan ability. Home One will have a new effect added to its Unique ability, Band Together, which allows the capital ship to reinforce B-wing immediately at the start of battle. Inspiration: The B-wing first appeared in the Battle of Endor in Return of the Jedi as a mainstay heavy fighter for the Rebel fleet, and has been on our radar to add to Rebels ever since we added ships to the game The original “Blade Wing” prototype was seen in Star Wars: Rebels, flown by Hera Syndulla. Unfortunately this version of Hera in Galaxy of Heroes already has a ship so she couldn’t be the pilot of this one. During that episode, and in the show Skeleton Crew, we saw the B-wing fire its focused laser beam to cut through the enemy ships. We knew that if we ever added B-wing to the game we would want to show off this move as part of its kit. Strategy Tips: Reinforce B-wing quickly at the start of battle for a potent burst of damage across the entire fleet before your enemy can even make a move. Use B-wing to assist as much as possible to reduce Home One’s cooldowns as fast as possible, giving more opportunities to use Master Plan. Using B-wing’s Special 2, Composite-beam Laser, consecutively under Master Plan will be most effective in dealing more damage. FAQ: How do I unlock B-Wing? B-wing is a Marquee event starting on 10/7 at 11am Pacific. Like all our Marquees at this point, the event will give out rewards daily, so make sure you keep coming back and playing it every day. Who is the pilot? Since Hera Syndulla was not available, we noted that Captain Drogan was qualified on the B-wing in his service record, so we tapped him in as pilot for the ship. You will earn Captain Drogan shards during the Marquee for B-wing to ensure your new ship has a crew to fly it. Where does this ship and fleet stand in the meta now? B-wing under Home One, starting in reserves, is an extremely potent upgrade to that fleet. Save for the Big Three (Executor, Profundity, Leviathan), the new Home One/B-wing fleet should be performing exceptionally well against fleets of equal investment. ------ ABILITIES: Basic - Gyrhil R-9X Heavy Laser Cannons Final Text: Deal Physical damage to target enemy with a 20% chance to Target Lock them for 1 turn, 100% if the allied Capital Ship is Home One. If the allied Capital Ship is Home One, Rebel B-wing gains Offense Up for 1 turn. Target Lock: Inflict Evasion Down to target enemy for 1 turn. Special 1 - Blockade Buster (Cooldown 3) Final Text: Deal Physical damage to all enemies and inflict them with Accuracy Down and Defense Down for 2 turns. Rebel B-wing dispels all debuffs on itself and gains Protection Up (10%) for 2 turns. If the allied Capital Ship is Home One, call a random ally with Defense Up to assist, dealing 50% less damage. Grant the assisting ally Critical Damage Up for 1 turn. Target Lock: Daze all enemies with Target Lock for 1 turn. Special 2 (Crew) - Composite-beam Laser (Cooldown 5) Final Text: Deal Physical damage to all enemies and Rebel B-wing gains Critical Damage Up for 2 turns. If the allied Capital Ship is Home One, inflict Evasion Down on all enemies for 1 turn. If target enemy is already inflicted with Evasion Down, Ability Block them for 1 turn instead and deal 100% bonus damage. This ability starts on cooldown. If the allied Capital Ship is Home One, the cooldown of this ability is reduced to 1 at the start of battle. Unique - Tactical Maneuver Final Text: At the start of battle, if the allied Capital Ship is Home One, gain 10% Max Health until the end of battle. Whenever Rebel B-wing is damaged by an enemy, gain 25% Turn Meter and Retribution for 2 turns. Whenever Rebel B-wing attacks out of turn, reduce all cooldowns on Home One excluding Call Reinforcement by 1. Whenever Rebel B-wing gains Master Plan, all Rebel allies gain 25% Critical Chance (stacking) for the rest of the encounter. Whenever Master Plan expires, Rebel B-wing gains Tactical Supremacy for 2 turns, which can't be copied. Reinforcement- Stay On Course Final Text: Enter Battle: Grant Rebel allies Advantage and Defense Up for 1 turn. If the allied Capital Ship is Home One and there are no deployed Scoundrel allies, grant Home One a bonus turn and their cooldowns are reset excluding Call Reinforcement.
Adventure Awaits - New Features and Gameplay Q&A
Welcome to Gibbi Point, an exciting new world full of natural wonders and adventure at every corner. With three new neighborhoods to explore, four new skills to master and a new career, Adventure Awaits is brimming with possibilities and discoveries. We know you have questions about Getaways, Custom Venue Lots, and how these new features differ from other packs, so let’s dive into the details! What's the difference between a Getaway and a vacation? Getaways are more than just a vacation, they’re a new way for your Sim to discover exciting experiences and adventures. With Getaways, you can set a custom schedule to plan out your adventures with the new Schedule Planner feature - keep reading for more info below. While vacations lock you to one specific world, you can place Custom Venues and plan Getaways anywhere you want. Whether you're planning a family vacation to the scenic beaches of Sulani, or an occult-only retreat in Moonwood Mill, the choice is yours! What new activities do I get with Adventure Awaits? Gibbi Point has three new neighborhoods to explore - Wanderwood Wilds, Crystal Valley, and Jellyfish Junction, each with new and unique experiences. Wanderwood Wilds invites you into a lush sanctuary of winding forest trails, bubbling geysers, and an air of mystery. You can catch butterflies, or hop into a camp Getaway on the water. Crystal Valley dazzles with glittering rock formations that spark the imagination and inspire awe. You’ll be able to pan for crystals, or discover a mysterious Plumbird. Jellyfish Junction is a waterfront gem, where a shimmering lagoon meets a community that celebrates its beloved jellyfish. You can experience tons of different activities and events by the water, from spin class to kayaking. Modular Playgrounds are new items you can find in Build Mode to create customized playscapes for your Sims and even their new imaginary friends. Build, play, and share on the Gallery using #Playground so other Simmers can enjoy your creations. Imaginary Friends give even the most timid of Child Sims the perfect companion to play with, offering four interchangeable personalities - Goofball, Creative, Competitive, and Evil - that shape how they interact. Imaginary Friends are more than just a childhood companion, these friendships are meant to last a lifetime. If your Child Sim has a strong enough bond with their Imaginary Friend, once they age up into a teen they’ll be able to turn their Imaginary Friend into a fully real Sim! There are several new skills with Adventure Awaits, each with their own deep-dives on our EA Help site: Archery Skill Papercraft Skill Diving Skill The Park Worker career lets your Sims trade the office for the great outdoors as you start as a Cabin Cleaner and climb your way up to Park Counselor or Park Ranger. For full details on this career, check out the guide on our EA Help site: Park Worker career What is a Custom Venue and how can I use it? A Custom Venue is a new type of Lot that lets you build and design your own venue types with more control and customization options through schedule planning. You can use the schedule planner to control the itinerary for your Getaway to add as many or as little activities as you want. You can choose from 1 of 3 Pre-set Getaways, or use Custom Getaways that allow you to determine the location, the schedule, the rules, and even the roles. For more details on rules, roles, and how to set up or schedule your Getaways, check out our EA Help guide here. What is a Formative Moment and how is it different from a Milestone? While Milestones will give your Sims a head start on certain skills, Formative Moments will give your Sim a bonus on various social interactions, career advancements, and even moodlets as they age up. With Growing Together, completing a Formative Moment also increases your Sim’s Childhood Confidence. Formative moments are a new way for your Child Sims to shape their skills and personality through traits and evolving Childhood Sentiments that will provide lifelong benefits. There are four types of Formative Moment challenges - Adventure, Independence, Inquisitiveness and Social. Each challenge will provide a new trait for your Sim that will influence experiences well into adulthood. Still have questions? One of our very own Creator Network members EmmaVane might just have you covered in her Q&A: Adventure Awaits!Crystal Pop Up Notification Clarification
Hello Holotable Heroes, If you closed down the pop up that gave you Crystals, it'll pop up again tomorrow so be on the look out. Also note: You had to be level 85 to see the pop up And screw it, if you decided to read this post, let me know about a character you'd like to see in SWGOH and why, leave your Ally code and ill swing through here in a couple days to sling some more Crystals, just don't tell the PM
October’s Game of the Month Challenges
Get ready for the Game of the Month! This October, Garden Blast takes center stage with four exciting new Challenges. Complete all four by 11:59 pm on October 31 to earn a brand-new animated Reward Badge! Follow the link below to see all the Challenges and track your progress. Game of the Month Challenges may be completed in any order. Explore October’s Game of the Month Challenges Good luck and happy gaming!
