August 11, 2015

Server Rewrite Update: 75% Complete

AQWorlds is Evolving Before Your Eyes!

We've made a lot of changes to AQWorlds over the last year or two, and gained MANY new players! That's great, because it means there are tons of new heroes for you to quest with, battle with, and talk to... but also puts our servers under a great deal of strain. 

To make AQW the BEST game it can be, we need to take the time to FIX the current issues. So... how do we DO that? WE REBUILD AQW'S SERVERS!

Phase 1: Rebuilding the Current Game (75% Complete)

Back in February, we estimated 3-4 months for the core server rewrite (which addressed the lag, failed quest turnins, and disconnects), then several additional months as to build the foundation for additional changes to the game. We are still on track to finish Phase 1 in late Fall.

Phase 1 progress so far:

• Maps 
• PvP 
• Monster AI 
• Combat 
• Inventory 
• Enhancements 
• Stats 
• Chat (partially done, need to finish chat filter) 
• Quests are very close (finishing up reward drops)

Phase 1 still to finish:

• Shops 
• Guilds 
• Houses 
• Parties 
• Crafting

What Comes Next? Phase 2!

If Phase 1 of the server rewrite is porting the game over to the new servers, Phase 2 is where we're planning to make the changes you have all been asking for. We cannot start adding in Phase 2 functionality until after Phase 1 is complete, but once it is, we can start working on things like:

• friends list syncing 
• bank item previews 
• the buyback shop
• better PVP and guilds functionality 
• adding rank 10 passives to new classes 
• cross-server/world chat 
• better anti-bot and reporting functionality and more. 

Remember, we will still be releasing EVERY Friday! AQWorlds isn't going ANYWHERE... but to keep the game running as smoothly as it should, we need to make these changes. In the long run, this will make AQW even MORE fun to play! 

Server Rewrite Progress Chart

So that we all have a clear idea of where the server rewrite progress is at, we'll use server rewrite version numbering (SRV) and phases.

Phase 1: Porting the existing game over to proprietary server software (that we built ourselves. This is what Oversoul currently runs on).

Phase 2: Updating core game functionality on AQW 2.0. 

• SRV 0 - research begins
• SRV 0.01 - server architecture meeting with Zhoom
• SRV 0.02 - staff-only test of new combat system
• SRV 0.5 - member-only PTR test of different systems -- we are here
• SRV 0.6 - member-only test of full working Alpha stage on PTR test server
• SRV 0.8 - all-player live-test on PTR 
• SRV 1.0 - full launch of Server Rewrite, Phase 1

With the current calculations, we expect SRV 0.8 (the player live-test PTR) to begin later this Fall.

Why We Need the Server Rewrite

We have a good deal of control over the game, but currently we are using server software whose base we did not build ourselves (though we created all of our server-based game functionality)... and that means there are some things we cannot change.

This is one of the main causes of the random bugs some of you are reporting. It's also one of the reasons some bugs (like desynced friends/guild lists) have not been fixed and why some features (like the better botting detection, all-new class skills, and finished Guild cities) have not been released.

If you want to get a sneak preview of what's coming in the server rewrite or help us test on the PTR server, you can help support AQW's continuing development by upgrading your account. We make our games for and with you, which is why you should also tell us what you'd like to see next in our Suggestions board!

Keep an eye on the Design Notes for future progress updates, then give us your feedback on the Artix.com Design Notes post!