Design Notes

July 24, 2017

PTR Test: Auto-Enhancements

Help us test a new feature on the PTR Server!

About 2 weeks ago, Artix and I were in the command center, discussing what else we needed to put the server rewrite live. And one BIG thing came up -- making sure the game felt right to you guys that first time you log in on the new server.

Based on your feedback, a majority of our community feels positive about the changes (even if there is still room for improvement). That tells us that we're at a point where we should move forward with launch planning. BUT we want to make sure the game feels good to you, and that you can jump into it and play easily, regardless of the combat changes. To help with that, Yorumi built (in record time!) the new...

Auto-Enhancement Feature

With this new feature, you'll be able to click a button and have all your equipped gear enhanced with the best, most useful specs. Some notes:

• Only the gear types you currently have equipped will be auto-enhanced
• If you want to change any of the auto-enhancements, you can go in and manually re-enhance the item
• During the auto-enhancement testing, enhancing is free

Note: because of how different the enhancement systems are on the new vs old servers, if you enhance gear on the PTR server and then go back to the regular servers, you may encounter glitches. If you encounter issues with loading on the regular/old servers, return to the PTR and change gear to things that are showing as currently enhanced.

If you are experiencing any bugs with the Auto-Enhancement system, please report them at Artix.com/bugs. Thank you!

Did You Say... Preparing for Launch?

Yes, yes I did. We've gotten a TON of feedback, and we appreciate all of it. At this point, there are a few issues that cannot be fixed until we make the changeover to the new system/server. Yorumi is going to spend the rest of this week monitoring the auto-enhancement feature and feedback to hear your thoughts.

While he does that, he will begin preparing the servers and systems for the changeover. 

This also means it is your LAST chance to farm up the Quest Mission Sprocket requirements to unlock the 0 AC Sir Ver Bank Pet.

Once the rewrite IS live, the team will focus on fixing the issues mentioned above. We'll also begin heavily focusing on the class balance, combat changes, and class bug fixes that can only be done on the new server. 

At this point, any class bugs still occurring on the PTR server will be fixed once the rewrite is live, and new systems/features available to address them.

March 04, 2015

AQWeekly Newsletter: March 6

Dage's New Class, Items, and New Storyline Release!

After crushing the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, complete the Champion's Gauntlet Daily Quests, score hot new loot by Dage & Laken, and then embark on Dage’s new storyline release!

March 20, 2015

New Flash Player Update: 17.0.0

How to update Flash Player and keep it up to date!

Adobe Flash Player upgraded to level 17 (this comes after last month's update to 16.9). And this has caused some problems for some online games that use the Flash Player plugin—like, for example, all Artix Entertainment games!

From our end, we think we have solved most of the issues, so now it’s our turn to help YOU get rid of some your Flash bugs if you have them!

What is the Adobe Flash Player?

The Flash Player is a plug-in that is required to play all of our games, and is automatically ‘plugged in’ to your browser (Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, Safari, etc.). Adobe Flash Player makes our games run, displays the flashy animations, makes your shiny Blade of Awe glow bright, and plays all the epic cutscenes!

Which version of Flash Player do I have?

First of all, you might need to know which version of Flash Player you have on your browser. To find that out, follow these easy steps:

1. Open your browser.
2. Go to www.aq.com/play-now
3. Right click somewhere near the ‘Login’ button.
4. In the menu that then opens, you need to READ the last line, which says something like “information about Flash Player 17.0.0.305…”
5. IF it DOES NOT say “Information about Flash Player 17.0.0.…” and gives another number, then you need to upgrade your Flash Player to the latest version.

How to upgrade Flash Player to the latest Version?

If you do not have the latest version of Flash Player, you‘re in trouble….  O__O ….. because older versions of the Flash Player will cause your game will lag, disconnect, have sluggish animations, etc. So it is ALWAYS better to upgrade. Here is how to upgrade your Flash Player if you do not have the latest version:

1. Open your browser
2. Go to http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
   • If you have an older version of Flash Player, the page will automatically tell you to upgrade it.
3. Click the link “Download the Adobe® Flash® Player system plug-in”
4. Click “Install now” to download the newest version and install it.
5. Follow the instructions given by the program.
6. Restart your browser and it should be working fine now!

This method should work for any browser you use. Some browsers, like Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox, automatically update Flash Player when a new version is out. Other browsers do not and then you will have to update Flash manually.

I want Flash to automatically update!

When you update your Flash Player, there is an option in the installation process where you can check the box to make Flash Player update automatically, like in the picture.

However, you may not know if you enabled that for your computer. Or that you are sure your computer has not enabled automatically updating Flash Player. In that case you can still enable it in this way:

1. Go to www.aq.com/play-now
2. Right click near the “login” button.
3. Click “General Settings” in the dropdown that opens.
4. Go to the tab “Advanced Options” in the Settings Manager that opens.
5. Click on the button “Change Update Settings”, this might require administrator rights.
6. Check the bullet/box of “Allow Adobe to install updates”
7. Additionally you can click “Check now” to see if there are any updates for Flash Player.
8. Close the window and you should be fine.

I am using Google Chrome and it does not work like that!

Oh yes, Google Chrome acts a bit weird in that case. Chrome usually updates Flash automatically, unless something (or someone!) disabled it. Here’s how it works for Google Chrome:

1. Go to www.aq.com/play-now
2. Right click near the “log in” button.
3. Click “General Settings” in the dropdown that opens.
4. The browser will bolt you to a help page of Adobe in a new tab.
5. Scroll down till you see a link called “Panel General Notification Options” and click it.
6. Set “Check on updates” in the screen that follows on 14 or 7 days, and check the box “Warn me about new updates”
7. Close the tab and it should be set now.

What if it still does not work right?

Curse technology!! It could be that your computer just refuses to update the Flash Player, or that it keeps messing up because of conflicting versions.

In that case, it is better to entirely remove Flash Player and re-install it. To remove Flash Player, it’s best to do that via your computer’s configuration panel. (Note: this might differ per Operating System)

1. So go to “Start”
2. Open the configuration panel.
3. Go to “Programs and Software”
4. Search for “Adobe Flash Player” (there might show multiple of them)
5. Right click them, and select “uninstall/delete”
6. If you had more “Adobe Flash Players” showing in the list, uninstall these too.
7. Then open your browser and go to http://get.adobe.com/flashplayer/
8. Click the link “Download the Adobe® Flash® Player system plug-in”
9. Click “Install now” to download the newest version and install it.
10. Follow the instructions given by the program.
11. Restart your browser and it should be working fine now!

Still having troubles after? Then you might want to check if your Firewall or Security programs are not blocking it. Programs like AVG could still be blocking it. Quick options to change that would be:

1. Open the AVG panel
2. Go to Firewall
3. Go to Options
4. Go to the tab Applications
5. Make sure “Adobe Flash Player” is on the list of allowed applications.
6. If it’s not, add it manually.

This is all we can teach you about Flash Player—a tricky but very good plugin that all our games run and live on. If you have additional questions, feel free to comment below and we will try our best to help you out! Please only write our Player Support team if there is a serious and/or complicated problem.

Thank you, Gjappy!!

When you see Gjappy in game, be sure to give him lots of /cheers for helping US help YOU! We could not have done this without his help, and we cannot thank him enough. So if you want to share your love, be sure to thank him on Gjappy’s Facebook and on Gjappy’s Twitter!

January 21, 2015

New Game Updates on Jan. 23

Special Event Finale! Za'nar: Ring of Light

Battle through the Tombs of De’ther, recover the Ring of Light, and defeat the dragon Jir’abin. Embrace the Void by becoming the Void Defender! Read more here.

More Items this Friday by Nulgath!

ArchFiend fans LOVED the Hanzo gear, so Nulgath is releasing even more! Get the Golden & Shadow Hanzo Sets, plus new items! Read more here.

Epic Loot: New HeroMart Arrivals this Friday

This Friday, get your gauntlets on Za'nar: Impossibility book & new J6 shirt! Buy both J6 shirts & get a limited item! Za’nar book also includes game item. Shop smart, shop HeroMart!

Coming Soon: Northpointe Village

In the upcoming weeks, journey to Northpointe--the starting zone for the new main AQW storyline. And then... prepare for the FireStorm Assault!