The Changing Face of Vindictus NA

Ruin3d has provided the Forum Community with an update on the various actions and activities that the Nexon Support team has been putting in place for Vindictus. This includes the new image, community involvement and in game improvements.

We're capturing this so we can cheer as NexNA actualizes on these changes.  We also plan to hold their feet to the fire in the event these promises don't come to fruition.

What improvement are you most anticipating?  Do you feel positively about the changes? Talk to us in the comments below.

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Ruin3d - Communications Director, Nexon NA (June 26, 2014)
Vindictus Forums


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Hey everyone,
I wanted to give you a quick update from Nexon America on Vindictus in our territory and some of the changes you will be seeing over the coming months.

As this might well get pretty lengthy I’m going to split it into sections.

Nexon Launcher
Some of you will have already noticed that Vindictus is now available on the new Nexon Launcher. The launcher is currently in beta but is already outperforming both web and desktop clients for speed of updates and stability.
A number of additional changes and features will come online in the near future.

To switch to the launcher download the installer here:

http://games.nexon.net/nexonlauncher/

It will automatically transfer your Vindictus files across so you won’t need to re-download the game.

Vindictus Websites

This week we launched a redesigned Vindictus landing page for new players. This summer we are starting a new advertising campaign for the game so needed a new landing experience to tell new players why they should play the game.

You can check out the full landing site here:

www.vindictus.nexon.net/landing


Help us spread the word by sharing this with friends you think might be interested in playing the game!
Coming next: A full website redesign and all new forums.

Community

You will all be familiar with our rock-star CM Zoltar. He took the helm at the start of this year and has been working hard to improve communication and interaction with you, the community.

One of the first changes we made was adjusting the communication process, Nexon employees now post more frequently and we try to be more candid with our responses. We are all gamers so want to talk to you guys as players first.

Exclusive content is another focus area for us. This week we released the first of our Battle Reports, which is a new video series where Zoltar will show the community upcoming content.

You can watch episode #1 here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFpjzhHo79c

Going forward we will have regular Battle Reports as well as Twitch streams, community events (in and out of game) and other exclusive content.

Customer Services

The Customer services and GM team have also been hard at work refining how they work. First up was revising the guidelines the GMs work by to ensure that less players are incorrectly caught up in actions taken to stop hackers. These guidelines are in play now and will be continually evaluated and improved.


We also now have more options for support with forum ban appeals, live chat and GM presence on the forums and on social. In the near future we hope to start opening up even more channels to help solve problems faster and more efficiently.

Game Service

Our game team is working hard to deliver the best experience for Nexon America customers.

As an example recently we took the decision to push Lynn back a week in order to fix some bugs and ensure a better service. We also chose not to release the Iset/Keaghan outfitters alongside Lynn as we wanted to evaluate the distribution method for them with the devs.

Our team is dedicated to helping make Vindictus a more enjoyable, more fair experience for everyone.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, please continue to give us your feedback and we hope to keep improving our service.

Team Vindictus

Vindictus: Enter a World Beyond

Enter a World Beyond...

Out with the old and in with the new. 
Just yesterday we were talking about how the old logo was ushered out in favor of the new logo that better suited the "darker and more depraved Vindictus"...well look at what the Vindictus NA team has been up to! 

Vindi's Community Manager, Zoltar presented the world with this fresh new trailer of Vindictus.

Vindictus releases a new gameplay trailer June 23, 2014. 

 Coinciding with the "World Beyond" message, the trailer features a snippet of the original cinematic trailer (refreshed to fit with the theme) and quickly proceeds to the new world filled with action shots of a few of our most treacherous foes from both Season 1 and Season 2. The trailer is simply stunning and of course puts the new logo and brand out front for all to see. The apocalyptic trailer concludes reminding players that Vindictus is FREE TO PLAY.

Check it out and let us know what you think!

Play today - Vindictus - www.vindictus.nexon.net/landing

Vindictus: June Battle Report

Zoltar, Nexon Community Manager for the Vindictus NA team is really stepping things up for players. 

After a long period of hands off game management we FINALLY have a CM that gets it.  Zoltar has been at the helm of the player Community for just over 6 months and we've really begun to see some much needed changes. Many of those have brought our game up to par with the basics that we'd lacked from previous management. 

Rejoice for the return of game news! 

Not too long ago we practically begged Nexon to get in our face with news (Spotlight:Vindictus Production Team News), details and to keep us in the loop as to what is to come. Well folks, the team has answered the call!

Last week, Zoltar started a new series called: Vindictus Battle Report. 

First Battle Report - Lynn Overview and Season 2, Episode 4 Sneak Peek

The Battle Report is a video series that will cover upcoming content, special announcements and all other things Vindictus so stay tuned for more!

Vindictus Season 2, Episode 4 Boss Preview

Vindictus Logo End of an Era

A month ago Friday marked the end of an era. The end of the Vindictus' Golden Logo.

 A new world rises. NexNA staff announced that our Vindictus would be getting a new symbol to stand for our game. A new logo along with a complete rebrand.

As we reported at the time, plenty were outraged. Since then we've slowly seen the old logo being ushered out. Nexon has stated that the replacement logo better fits their vision of a darker Vindictus, a world of epic battle beyond that which we've seen.

A little over a month later and several questions still haven't been answered with the most concerning being, "what about EU?"

Nevertheless, we must move on. We have a new logo and its time to send off the old one properly.  Please take this time to remember the old logo, one last time before completely putting it to rest.

The following is a collection of the interwebs best versions of the Vindictus Logo.
Click on each one to view it in its version to view originals.

~ Rest In Peace Logo  ~ 
You served us well as our symbol for vindication, thank you.

A New World Rises - Vindictus Changes [NA]

"Welcome to the New Vindictus. Welcome to a world beyond."

The times they are a changin' in Vindictus

Directly from the desk of...Zoltar, Vindictus Community Manager, More Changes in store for Vindictus NA...

This is a big one. Zoltar has posted a message indicating seemingly drastic changes for our world. A post entitled "A New World Rises" was added to the forums.

It reads like a memo, describing things to come, touching on major aspects of the CHANGE but remaining as ominous as ever, the message did manage to include a semi-official statement on the significance of the "new logo".

Click to read Zoltars Message

It seems that we will be getting a "sexier and sleeker" Vindictus coming with the new forums (thank gawd) and that the ingame in experience will also be changing... 

Whoa...whoa...whoa...Personally, I'm not sure what exactly to think about that part. I'm all for "good" change, but watering down the game is not something I'm up for.  While that MIGHT not be what is being indicated, I can't help but think about all those constant complaints on the forums. As loud and comprehensive as some of those complaints are there is good reason to avoid listening to them.  In fact, caving in to the majority of those would be bad for business. Ironically, I wrote a spoof article on that a few months ago called "This Isn't the Game You Want".

Though Zoltar was rather ominous in the pronouncement of change, he did try to correlate the new logo to the change and describe how they felt it embraced the Celtic lore that resounds throughout Vindictus. This connection is a bit late and probably should have been delivered with the initial message to avoid the rollout reaction, but is appreciated none the less.  

I can say I most definitely am up for actually improving the game and player experience, both the little and big things without watering it down or catering to only one type of player. 

As someone who gets excited about any type of change from a business perspective, I'm especially intrigued as to what Nexon has in store for us and more importantly - how they handle the transition.  

Zoltars message can be read below and includes the following highlights.

Changes covered include:

• New Logo/Rebranding
• New Forums

In game Experience

• Combat
• Battle EXP
• Character Selection Screen
• Rebuild of the Monetization system...from the ground up

...I'm reserving my official judgement until we receive more about these changes "in print" and they become actualized. There is no sense in speculation right now but we'll be watching closely and providing some insight (and scrutiny) in the "Focus on Quality" segment.
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Zoltars Avatar
(Stribog)

Posted by Zoltar, Vindictus Community Manager - Nexon [NA] [2:26 PM PST]

As you may have noticed, Vindictus now sports a new logo, both on the Nexon Launcher and in-game. Astute players may have noticed that the logo, inspired by the same Celtic mythology Vindictus is based on, features the goddess Morrighan at its center. This attention to detail not only shows our appreciation for the game's lore, but the direction we are taking Vindictus in the future. We want the style, look and feel of Vindictus to match the brutal combat and dark world players have come to know and love.


To that end, we are improving the in-game experience in addition to the new logo, new art, and new brand image. From technical changes that will improve the combat and battle experience to a more streamlined character selection window, we're implementing changes that will improve your Vindictus experience across the board. We're also redesigning our game forums to provide you with a deeper, more immersive, and more enriching community experience. More details on forum changes will arrive later this summer.

In addition, we're rebuilding the monetization system from the ground-up. We hate the label "pay-to-win" and want to ensure that Vindictus is fun for all. This is a work in progress, and we’ll have more details for you on our new shop system in the coming months.
Though we know change can be scary, we believe that ultimately these adjustments will better reflect the true spirit of Vindictus.

Welcome to the new Vindictus. Welcome to a world beyond.
- The Vindictus Team

Vindictus Receives New Logo

Change is in the air over at Vindictus [NA]

Friday, Nexons North American action title, Vindictus unveiled a new logo that sent shockwaves through its playerbase. Players were led on a scavenger hunt spanning several hours of hunting for clues revealed on Facebook, Twitter and the NA Forums.

 The effort was led by Zoltar - Community Manager [NA], feeding the clues directing the crowd to put together the puzzle. Piece by piece the tension built, excitement boiled and players were intrigued as they attempted to "Unravel the Mystery".

Once the final piece was in place, my fellow Vindiers processed the news...

Vindictus is getting a new logo. 

Nexon Reveals New Vindictus Logo

Change is in the air over at Vindictus [NA]

Friday, Nexons North American action title, Vindictus unveiled a new logo that sent shockwaves through its playerbase. Players were led on a scavenger hunt spanning several hours of hunting for clues revealed on Facebook, Twitter and the NA Forums.

 The effort was led by Zoltar - Community Manager [NA], feeding the clues directing the crowd to put together the puzzle. Piece by piece the tension built, excitement boiled and players were intrigued as they attempted to "Unravel the Mystery".

Once the final piece was in place, my fellow Vindiers processed the news...

Vindictus is getting a new logo. 

Part 2: Nexon Promises to Focus on Quality: Q1 - Strategy and Vindictus

Nexon has promised shareholders to renew its focus on quality this week as its first quarter results show revenue and profit growth have slowed.

Part 2 - Strategy and Vindictus

Part 1: Nexon Promises to Focus on Quality: Q1 - Financial Results

Nexon has promised shareholders to renew its focus on quality this week as its first quarter results show revenue and profit growth have slowed. What will this mean for Vindictus? Pt 1 of 2.

Spotlight: In Memory | Vindictus Communication

In this weeks' Spotlight - I'm remembering better times. Times when we had something we expect, need and are sorely missing right now. I'd like to remember something that we used to have that has been gone for far too long...communication!

Alteris Former CM, Vindictus NA

BRING BACK

Vindictus Production Team News

The Mahoney Era: Going after Whales

Nexons new CEO, Owen Mahoney talks about Free to Play games and his vision for expanding Nexon in the West.

From the Re/code interview : Free to Play is Not What You Think It Is:

[Q:] Re/code: What's the first step toward finding a better foothold in the West?

[A:] Owen Mahoney: We think there's a couple things. We're going to make immersive games that are properly done free-to-play. Free-to-play does not mean trick your customers into paying you money or give them something that is potentially free or supposedly free but, in fact, in order to really enjoy yourself, you have to pay money. That is not free-to-play. 

Going after whales is a fundamental misunderstanding of what that really is. Our objective is to bring really good, immersive, synchronous online gameplay to the West. We have to have an infrastructure, an operating team that can execute that as well as we do in Korea, China and Japan, and also we have to have the types of IP that really resonate with Western users.
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Hopefully his vision will sink in on Vindictus quickly. Its a good vision even it isn't exactly what his operational support teams are putting out into the world.


We hope he's got his drill bit ready because the North American branch has some work to do.  The NA version of Vindictus hasn't exactly been operating under a best practice, Customer first mentality putting them far from this vision.  There have been more than their fair share of instances that have led to player dis-satisfaction - more than I care to count. They include massive bannings for "just" playing the game, lack of communication on everything from outages to events, erroneous mistakes (you can almost count on an Event notification having at least one mistake), and a Customer Service team that flat out does not seem to care about us as their customers (burnt out or not) - they can use a lot of work.

Here is to looking forward though. 

We are absolutely looking forward to toward any potential changes that might come from his leadership that trickle down and improve our game.  We're specifically hoping that Vindictus Production Managers - take a real honest look at those enhancement and enchant rates, drop rates, P2W events (and gachapons) and other "stuff"  that can be fixed to fit into the mold a bit better.

I'm sure we are willing to continue to deposit funds into the Nexon Piggy bank if the game were changed so that one did not have to depend on these things or even have them at all. There are other offerings that would probably make more money and leave us as players, feeling more fulfilled in the long run - like Dye Ampoules for Outfitters. <hint, hint - nudge, nudge>

I'd love a return to the "normalcy" that we used to have when we could pay for "fun, pretty and non-P2W" items instead of things that should be achievable by normal dedicated players. I would also personally like to see us have the service quality that EU does. Their Customer Support team is impeccable - they are both seen and heard and its a refreshing change from the laid back attitude of NA.

Read the full Q&A with info on the Westernization of Nexon here:
Free to Play is Not What You Think It Is

Meet Your New CEO, Owen Mahoney

Owen Mahoney, CEO Nexon

This just in Re/code is reporting that Nexon has promoted Owen Mahoney to the helm as  CEO (Chief Executive Officer and President). The change is set  to take effect given shareholder approval at the March 25th meeting.

Owen Mahoney is currently the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administrator. He has been with Nexon since 2010 after leaving EA where he was the head of Mergers and Acquisitions and Business Development.  A major achievement for Mahoney was ushering Nexon through its 1.2B IPO on the Tokyo Stock Exchange back in 2011.

But wait there is great news. Mahoney is indeed an American.  Originally from California, he will be the first American to lead the company.  His vision for the future seems to include a passport back to his roots where he intends to extend and solidify the companies holdings.

"I and we believe that there is a huge market opportunity in the West," Mahoney said. "And the industry is moving in our direction, which is online, synchronous free-to-play games."

I definitely dig the fact that he's an American and wants to see Nexon do better here. Hopefully this will be the much needed change we've been desiring.  As our previous CFO, he already has an understanding of the company, where we are - what works and what doesn't to make the game profitable. Hopefully his desire will translate into support and guidance for NA.

Read the Re/Code article here: Nexon Names New CEO: Ex-EA Exec Owen Mahoney
Follow the forum discussion: Meet Your New CEO
Check Out Credentials via Crunchbase: Owen Mahoney