Hello, I would like to give my opinions regarding some things I noticed in the past few patches. It's a bit long and English is not my first language, so please bear with me.
A while ago, a conversation in the support channel caught my attention about someone asking where to get a blinking eyes costume. And I was quite surprised to see that the most accessible one, Small Blinking Eyes from 2nd floor Main Office, had apparently been removed. I didn't recall the latest patch notes, or any previous ones for that matter, mentioning that it was going to be pulled out. After double checking, sure enough I didn't see any mention of its removal at all anywhere, except for when the person asked in the channel.
I'm confused—is there a reason why its removal was not explicitly mentioned in the patch notes?
During the Summer Event, the players were given a heads up in advance that due to the planned costume rework, a lot of things involving costumes will become unavailable for the time being, so we should get what we want before they get removed. This did NOT include the Event Coin NPCs found in 2nd floor Main Office. Because of this, I was expecting that the costumes there (minus the Side Roll Pony Egg from iirc Easter since 'pick a color' eggs were explicitly stated to be removed as part of the rework) would not be affected, at least without prior notice. Small Blinking Eyes' sudden removal was due to it getting recolors as stated by GM Icecold. However as examples Gram Peony and Witch Cloak, two other Event Coin costumes from 2nd floor, are still available at the NPC even after getting their recolors. I admit, I consider myself as one of those "fashion players": dressing up my characters is one of my main ways of enjoying and playing the game, so pretty much any news involving costumes is something I want to always be updated with as much as possible. Rather than be excited about future recolors, the way this was sneakily handled just left me with more questions and doubtful feelings about the whole situation.
This brings to mind another thing about a previous patch a few weeks back. In Patch Notes #130 on October 3, the majority of it was about items. It looked like a quiet Patch Day, with most of the things simply being recolors. It did not mention in the notes itself that Tree Sentinels' HP had been buffed as players noticed, which IMO is a pretty major change considering it directly and noticeably impacted player rewards (iirc from a consistent 100+ coins to 70-90+ instead, but I definitely didn't see us hitting 100+ anymore). Back then, I saw players wondering if trees got buffed, and it actually took someone asking about it under the forum post to confirm that.
So again it comes back to the question: why was it not mentioned upfront in the patch notes? Plus, it wasn't even elaborated on as to why it was adjusted.
Regarding the blinking eyes costume: before the rework began on September 19th it was very clearly announced (multiple times even) that things were going to be removed, giving players time to nab what they want. We have been given proper warnings before about costumes being removed, so why no heads up this time for that? Even if we say it's just one costume, since its removal involves recolors, consequently it means multiple items (its recolors) are concerned as well. As for the trees' HP, I'm pretty sure that prior to the October 3 patch, the event felt like it hit a sweet spot where it was already working fine and smoothly for the players. I haven't seen anyone say they wanted bulkier trees, so it kinda feels like all the buffed trees HP did was lower the coin rewards we got, since naturally tankier = longer to kill. I know the Sentinels event had a rough start and needed a lot of adjustments made (and that's proof that GMs have listened to feedback). But if this HP buff adjustment was done because the GMs meant trees to be this tanky from the start, then I really feel like it's something that should have been explicitly stated in the notes, not something that made the players go, 'huh, are they harder to kill now?' and had to ask for confirmation about. It's clear no communication was made with the players regarding this adjustment.
As a regular player, there is of course no way for me to know the specific goings-on behind the development and maintenance of the server. So I rely on the Patch Notes to outline any changes made to the game. If it doesn't mention anything about an item or an issue or whatever, I will assume it has been left untouched or has not yet been fully addressed/fixed. I understand if changes are not listed if they were unintended bugs that arose and didn't get caught. But if changes are intentional—whether it is a bug fix, adding, removing or adjusting something, etc.—then naturally I would expect that players will be properly informed about it in official announcements. Sure, people can bring things up in the global or support channels, but not everyone looks at those channels regularly. Heck, I myself wouldn't have known about the costume being removed from the NPC if I didn't see that player wondering why they couldn't find it there—all because it was never mentioned in the Patch Notes.
I want to be clear that I don't mean to overreact or be offensive/accusatory/entitled, and I'm writing this in good faith as feedback to see things improve. I enjoy the server a lot, and I've seen the hard work and improvements the GMs have put into it. I appreciate the fact that there's almost always a GM around and their fast response rate. That's why I don't want to doubt them when Patch Day arrives. I know I look like I'm talking about two entirely different things, but ultimately my concern just boils down to the matter of transparency and communication. The thing about the trees' HP is a few weeks late I know, but after the stealthy removal of the costume happening not long after it, I felt like I should raise my concerns before it happens again. I go into Patch Days with the full trust that whatever is written in the notes are the only things that have been tinkered with, unintended bugs aside. Information I think players should have been told upfront about being withheld/not clarified instead just… leaves a bad taste in the mouth, and I can't help but feel a little disappointed at the lack of communication involved. It's unfortunate, but being kept in the dark can negatively impact one's trust. 🙁
TL;DR: I'm concerned about certain, recent non-bug changes being left out of Patch Notes for some reason, and only brought to attention when players specifically ask about it. So please, even if it may be a considered minor change, please, be as upfront as possible and try not to leave things out of the Patch Notes because it is one of the most important sources of information for players. Patch Notes exist precisely to keep players aware and updated right off the bat on the status of the server. If addendum notes need to be posted, then sure, go ahead; there's nothing wrong with more clarification. We are not a huge server, and a "small thing" may be relevant to the interests of say 10 or 20 players, practically a small guild, which IMO is a sizable enough amount based on average active player count. If GMs can let us know about a change made that they know won't affect a lot of players (see: the +16 and above grading chance fix and the self-aware comment from the recent patch notes), then surely they can properly let us know about changes they made that players are more likely to run into—like one involving buying a costume from an always-present NPC or one about a mob players fight regularly.
Again I reiterate, this post is meant as feedback and constructive criticism, and it is not my intention at all to come across as hostile towards anyone. I am simply airing my grievances in the hopes that things will be better going forward. Apologies for the walls of text, and thank you very much for reading this to the end.
