Server Login Queues vs Sharding vs Other

WoW Classic WoW Classic General Discussion
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Edit: This thread is not about sharding as per usual but about Login Queues, finding answers around Login Queues if they become too long and getting overall opinions on Login Queues vs Sharding and finding the best results. It is based on the IF Classic does much better than Blizzard’s expectations point, not launch.

So I have read a lot of the threads of sharding. This thread is not a repeat on that however, instead I want to focus on something else.

Before that I feel I must state this. Based on everything I’ve read on these forums it is the dominant opinion to be anti-sharding in general obviously. With a growing acceptance of a TIME LIMITED launch experience with sharding for the first “few weeks” in the beginning zones (I assume 1-10 such as Elwynn) as was stated by Ion if I am correct.

Yes there are those who do not trust Blizzard to disable sharding after this and those who want a “crazy launch”. I perfectly understsnd both arguments. This is not a thread about launch sharding whether it should be a thing or not however. What this thread is asking however is this.

There will be events post launch such as but not limited to the AQ Gate opening that will likely, if the servers maintain a high enough population, cause enough of an issue as to require technical aid in preventing server failure. In these cases I would not mind the idea of Login Queues. It’s a first come first serve idea. In fact I am supportive of that option for these cases.

However it has come to my attention that there are numbers of this community who stand against login queues for the obvious reason of missing an event due to the way that they might work. That is a very understandable and respectable opinion. However I feel as I am sure many would agree that sharding is a much more dangerous threat even if brought back for a single day. Opening that door opens the possibility of it being a widely used tool.

So this is my question to you, the Classic forum community. Overall what is your opinion? Are you okay with Login Queues for events that might cause such a harsh load on the servers? If not then what would you prefer? I also would love to hear if anyone has any ideas for something that could ease the load on the servers.

I hope this thread assists the community managers and devs in seeing how we view things and helps them decide on what is best for Classic. Thank you for any responses. I always want to thank the developers and CM’s for your great work! You are doing us proud.

This thread is not to argue on what opinions are better but to attain opinions and hopefully gain ideas for a better less invasive solution.

After much discussion one good idea that actually comes from Vanilla has really sprung up. This discussion however is all about the concept and idea of the servers being over-populated whereas login queues are more prominent and longer than acceptable.
The idea which was used back then bases on the idea that the population is already stable or growing still. To carefully add a new server and then offer free transfers from over-populated servers to said server. Really simple and yet easily allowing for groups to move forward to the chosen server if they feel that their queues are a problem.

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Honesty, I’m not gonna fret about it. I’ll deal with whatever they will use. Roll with the punches.

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No sharding post launch. If that means queues, oh well

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No sharding at all. Queue me up

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When I first log in for Classic, I’m more worried about sharting than sharding. I’m going to be excited okay, don’t judge.

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Player 1: I’d rather have sharding than a long login queue. And New Shimmer is a floor wax.

Player 2: I’d rather have a login queue than sharding. And New Shimmer is a desert topping, you cow!

Blizzard: Hey, hey, hey calm down you two! Classic will have sharding and unbearably long login queues. We’ll throw in scarce resources, slow leveling, and extreme competition for the next Hogger kill. Your friends will disappear one minute and be there the next, and also the server will have horrible lag and crash frequently. Something for everyone!

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Even if they did a queue, massive amounts of people are gonna be upset because they couldn’t play with a streamer, the guild, or friends.

Again, I think login queue would be “better”, but from a business stand point, sharding would be better.

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Same here. I am ok with sittin in queue for hours. Game is not that demanding anyway and I have lots of other things to play in the mean time. But when I finally login I want to experience the real Vanilla, not ghosts of people that I will never see again after the sharding is gone.

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Thanks for bringing the business point up. This is exactly why I feel it is important to flush out the Classic Community’s stance(s) on these things.

Classic’s devs/CMs are listening well and I feel that if we can give better more detailed overall feedback then the overall outcome will come out to be a much better experience.

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Imagine being the main tank for a guild. They are relying on you to hit 60 as soon as possible to begin the pre-raid gearing process. You go to log in at release and your place on queue is #21,267 – wait time approximately 18 hours. Once people get in, they aren’t going to log out for fear of not being able to get back in. The wait times will be absolutely enormous, and there will be a lot of very upset people.

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We’ve never seen login queues of such ridiculous numbers from what I’ve known and experienced. I mean even during Vanilla the longest I got was like 2 hours or so. Correct me if I am wrong.

However this is something I do feel we should address. I think login queues are good but only to an extent. If they get overdrawn out then there should be something in response such as making another realm or two but only in response when population is showing a positive growth curve.

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You know, I get the whole balance between population control and community building, but the idea that the game should be tuned around maximizing the leveling/gearing efficiency for level 60 endgame seems, to me, to be antithetical to Vanilla and more of a raid-or-die/game-starts-at-max-level attitude of retail.

While I empathize with those who want to play and not want to wait hours to just get in, I don’t empathize as much with those who want to be hiding away in their dungeon/raid instances within a week or two of launch grinding their gear and such. It just seems so… not-Vanilla to me.

YMMV

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100% Agree spot on.

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WHY!! Just stop!! Its been raked over the coals and your thread is only going to get the same actors out saying the same things as the other threads.

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I understand that. I do. But I think we need to emphasize on the concept of login queues and their validity vs non-validity.

There’s been enough argument against login queues that I feel there might be a tipping point in Blizzard preferring sharding over them. Thus I felt that there should be a thread flushing out the community opinion of login queues specifically.

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But we have covered that.

I don’t want sharding for anything more than Ion said in the past. Just the beginning…

BUT I DONT WANT QUES!!

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I’m not trying to be a jerk here but your question has been answered several times over in the countless other sharding threads.

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Have other people expressed their worry about sharting as well? That makes me feel better…

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I’m with you OP id rather have login ques then sharding. Sharding is much more dangerous to the long term health of the game.

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Then what can or should we do? I am getting at the heart of this argument. Nearly all agree no sharding in future events. But what about future events? My focus is this.

Are login queues okay with the community overall? If so to what extent? If not then what else could we rely on other than them and sharding since as I agree sharding is off the table after launch.

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