Googi is right :)

[Draenin]

Originally Posted by Googi

Wrong. For an exp-based server, it's important that reaching the highest level be almost impossible. The ease with which the highest level can be reached on Zodiac is going to cause the server problems in the future.

Actually, the issue's not going to be that everyone will be the highest level, but rather that the only thing to do right now at the highest level is pvp, and pvp isn't that exciting when you do it for 5-8 hours every single day. Sometimes a lot of fun can come through earning things as well, but there should always be things to do with what you've earned.

Originally Posted by Googi

Constant updates can keep pretty much any server alive, but the developmental resources simply don't exist to create the kind of updates that would be needed in the amount needed. That's why the goal is to create a server that can sustain activity without needing frequent updates.

Correct. A server that can sustain itself is one that stays around longer. However, as I've said before, Kingdoms has the problem of eating itself, and it's due to the engine having too many loose ends that are never going to be tied up.

If you want a good example, the server crashed once when someone tried to use create food to make a mana crystal. In theory, it should have worked, but the fact that the create food system depeneds solely upon the ratio of a player's level and how many food points the food being created has caused the server to go into an infinite loop of dividing by zero.

You could look at it funny and the server would crash, and there's something really sad about that.

[bgumeny]

Nothing against Zodiac as they seem to be doing quite well, but I find it to be quite boring. All there is to do is sit there and slash at monsters, no skill required. Once you reach a certain level you have to find a new cave with tougher monsters, and repeat the same things. There is no strategy involved, which makes all the hacking and slashing boring after a while. Top that off with the fact that you have to be like level 30 before a nation will even consider letting you in and the complete lack of an economy, and you get a very exclusive, boring server.

The staff seem to be working very hard and coming up with new updates, but they don't really add any substance to the server.

Kingdoms seems to be a little different in that its slightly more complex. While there still isn't much skill involved in fighting and leveling up, there are some monsters that you can outmaneuver and the economy played a huge role in the server, thus giving people who didn't like to just level and fight something to do.

[Googi]

Originally Posted by Draenin

Correct. A server that can sustain itself is one that stays around longer. However, as I've said before, Kingdoms has the problem of eating itself, and it's due to the engine having too many loose ends that are never going to be tied up.

Systemic problems ceased to really impact the average player a long time ago. Kingdoms was a good server and that's why it was able to last so long. It's just that it's impossible to make a server that lasts forever.