Bug Thread usefull in the current form?

[Edi]

If somebody feels up to writing a shortlist of known issues, then we could use that as the basis for a second bug thread. If we keep the bug threads limited to around 20 pages at a stretch before locking and making new ones, they would stay usable.

This would also require that moderators actively monitor the thread and summarily delete EVERYTHING that is not an actual bug report. Discussion about the bug in question? Delete. Typo reports? Delete. General commentary? Delete. Feature wishes? Delete. Complaints about issue xyz? Delete. Ruthlessly axe anything and everything that is even slightly off topic. And if any user here doesn't like that, why, he or she is perfectly welcome to bugger off at the earliest convenience.

If people want wider discussion of any given problem, then they can damn well post a separate thread and take their analysis, comments, complaints and wishlists there. A link to the separate thread can always be put into the actual bug report post in the bug thread.

That way the bug thread stays clear and concise and serves a useful function.

Edi

[Kristoffer O]

I agree. I admit to not having looked much in the bug thread lately. In other words it is not useful in its current form

Perhaps a bug discussion thread and a bug collection thread?

[Folket]

Why not have a sticky thread with known bug and look the thread?

New bugs can be posted in new thread and when discution is over the bug is added to the bug thread.

Why not have a forum. Technical support or Bugs and Suggestions. Many games have this solution. Will give much better overview of bugs.

[NTJedi]

Kristoffer O said:
I agree. I admit to not having looked much in the bug thread lately. In other words it is not useful in its current form

Perhaps a bug discussion thread and a bug collection thread?

I completely agree and have recommended to a moderator any post which did not contain a report of an actual bug be deleted. Even tho the thread contains posts which are nothing except a question... I was told these posts cannot be deleted. Despite offering to list the posts which had ZERO bug information I could not convince a moderator to delete them.

Thus I could only watch while the topic became more and more filled with unhelpful posts. There's people posting questions, game tips, and other non-bug related material which clutters the purpose of the bug thread topic. One of the reasons I started the Patch Improvement topic was so the developers had one page where they could see exactly what features gamers would like within a patch. I would love to organize the bug thread in the same manner yet I don't have the time. Perhaps one of the moderators with time will do some spring cleaning and remove the non-bug related posts.

I have some vacation time coming so hopefully by the end of December at least the patch improvement topic will be updated providing the developers an easy fast way to read everyones opinion. Here's the link: Patch_Improvements

[Endoperez]

Whilte the Patch Improvements thread is very nice, it's not everyone's opinion. It's "how many forum users think they want to see this added to the game".

Bug subforum could work. A new thread for every new bug report, and a compilation thread that would be agressively managed. Duplicate bug reports wouldn't matter as long as they aren't added to the compilation thread.

What about this major/minor distinction? Bugs that directly affect at least one whole nation could be major. Miasma bug would be major. The dominion spread strangeness/bug would be major. The fact that LA C'tissian capital-only mage isn't actually C'tis-only wouldn't be major, because it only has an effect if another nation has conquered C'tis capital. A bugged random site wouldn't be major. What about a bugged unit? A bugged sacred unit? A bugged capital site (i.e. EA Abysia having no heat-spreading sites)? A mage with bugged random stats?

[NTJedi]

Endoperez said:
Whilte the Patch Improvements thread is very nice, it's not everyone's opinion. It's "how many forum users think they want to see this added to the game".

I completely agree, but this forum is the best tool Illwinter has for identifying what gamers enjoy, want or dislike. I wish I could encourage all the silent readers to take two minutes and drop their opinion within the patch improvement thread.

Endoperez said:
What about this major/minor distinction? Bugs that directly affect at least one whole nation could be major. Miasma bug would be major. .... What about a bugged unit? A bugged sacred unit? A bugged capital site (i.e. EA Abysia having no heat-spreading sites)? A mage with bugged random stats?

Coming from a software company I would recommend setting a severity status for each bug.
Severity_1 = Can occur during any game causing the game to crash or unable to continue.
Severity_2 = Game bug which effects an entire game when using a nation such as the Miasma bug within C'tis.
Severity_3 = Bug on a specific spell, magic site, building, item, or unit.
Severity_4 = Description not matching qualities/characteristics of a unit, item, or spell.

[Edi]

That severity level thing is a good idea. We might as well use it. Especialy if we also get a bug report and discussion subforum, it'll make maintaining a concentrated bug report thread easier.

Edi

[calmon]

I'm not sure how much benefits a subforum would bring to us. A discussion thread and a well maintained concluded buglist in the first post (maybe second and third as well) should do the thing. The only big advantage i see is that we could link from the buglist to a thread which explains the bug more detailed but this should work in other ways likewise.

Working in a software company too i also prefer categories for bugs. I would combine your severity 1 and 2 to just 'major bugs'. I don't think that there are that much Severity 1 in future and johan acts very fast in such a case. Using 'major bugs' everyone knows on first look what it meant.

Severity 3 would be just 'bugs' ('minor bugs'? Sounds like peanuts )

Severity 4 would be 'description bugs'. Maybe including typos but its also possible to do simple typos in an extra thread.

There should be a fourth category for 'mod bugs'. But i would seperate this bugs in another thread. Maybe we can've such a bug list in the mod subforum.

In moment i'm analysing the bug thread. When finished i would write a list and try to categorize the bugs. This list will be as compact as i could do it. I'll try to group bugs to one if possible. Bugs which aren't reproduceable wount be in the first run of the list. We could discuss/analyze such phenomena.

I'm not sure when i've finished a first version. Most likely between christmas and new year.