I think I might be done with this game

[Shambhala]

Top reasons that make me believe this game is slowly dying


Maybe it’s because it’s no longer very profitable, since the technology that made this game possible is also becoming obsolete.


Maybe the staff and developers who keep everything running are simply tired after almost 20 years working on the same game.


Maybe the community is exhausted by the lack of response and meaningful support from the staff.


Maybe it’s the lack of real updates to core game mechanics and classes, which makes everything feel stagnant.


Or maybe it’s just the frustration of seeing effort put almost exclusively into cosmetic gear, while animations, gameplay improvements, and real innovation are constantly ignored.

 

[DBZ]

AND STILL NO AWESOME SCYTHE COSMETICS

Just more of the same dumb wings

 

[Gimp]

 

[Ying]

SSG has been very open for communication in the past about bugs and their fixes, slow but open.

You and I are playing very different games then. SSG's transparency has been horrible. Ship lag still remains an issue today, yet not a peep out of them for months about progress, goals, etc. Their help desk queue has got terrible resolution times. It took 18 months to get a rare MD helm fixed when it was repeatedly reported and brought up on the forum.

 

[32bliss]

Maintaining the security of your account is the user's responsibility when using third party software or add-ons. Not saying some of these reports that players are claiming are disingenuous, but no one using them will likely admit it even knowingly if it is the case. Also, maintaining the security of your private email is not SSG's responsibility either. SSG definitely needs to take game account security as the highest priority. People have been asking for 2 factor authorization for a long time. The extra layer of defense seems standard these days.

 

[Br4d]

Top reasons that make me believe this game is slowly dying


Maybe it’s because it’s no longer very profitable, since the technology that made this game possible is also becoming obsolete.


Maybe the staff and developers who keep everything running are simply tired after almost 20 years working on the same game.


Maybe the community is exhausted by the lack of response and meaningful support from the staff.


Maybe it’s the lack of real updates to core game mechanics and classes, which makes everything feel stagnant.


Or maybe it’s just the frustration of seeing effort put almost exclusively into cosmetic gear, while animations, gameplay improvements, and real innovation are constantly ignored.

Entropy suggests strongly that anything that is growing and aging is also dying in the process. You could make a strong argument that for DDO to survive much longer SSG should be looking for ways to cut the spectrum of play back to a manageable state. That wouldn't halt entropy in it's tracks but it would enable SSG to better contain the fallout as the game ages. It would likely also cut the risk of a catastrophic failure significantly.

I'm at the point where any big change/advance in DDO also feels like it could produce catastrophic results leading to the shutdown of the game. This assuming that EG7 has not decided for some reason to just endlessly support the game, come what may. D&D is a prime IPL and EG7 may have decided they'll never get a real shot at the property again so they maintain the one they have in their portfolio currently.

 

[Br4d]

You and I are playing very different games then. SSG's transparency has been horrible. Ship lag still remains an issue today, yet not a peep out of them for months about progress, goals, etc. Their help desk queue has got terrible resolution times. It took 18 months to get a rare MD helm fixed when it was repeatedly reported and brought up on the forum.

The bug backlog is probably literally a decade long with hundreds if not thousands of reported items. We should assume that if a bug is reported and it does not effect the stability of the servers that it will not be looked at. Every now and then a tree revamp or something similar may force an old bug to the surface for necessary action (or the revamp would fail) and then it gets addressed.

However these revamps almost inevitably are accompanied by one or more non-critical bugs which go on the list, never to be looked at again.

 

[kmoustakas]

Accounts are getting compromised and people are losing their items, characters and money. Support is incompetent and blames the victims instead of helping them. Devs haven't said a word about it. The lack of communication is disrespectful.

What's the point of investing more time and money when it can all be lost in a second? Knowing that this can happen to any of us at anytime and we won't get any help is terrifying. I might still log in occasionally to run some raids with friends for a few hours but that's about it, I'm never giving SSG money ever again.

I hear you. This is actually terrible.

Me personally I was hacked once but my credit card info was super old and useless and at the time I didn't have enough ddo points for a box so I escaped the consequences. Changed password and was fine

 

[Bjond]

maintaining the security of your private email is not SSG's responsibility either

Email is neither secure nor private; it's multi-hop and each hop is 100% public. It's a copy and forward mechanism. Most delete the copies after forwarding, but they aren't required to do so. They can read it, analyze it, print it for lining bird-cages, do whatever they like.

This is why "going paperless" for billing and such is a really bad idea. At least if the post opens or steals your physical mail, you'll know it happened.

Encryption is the only way to ensure privacy and authentication (eg. s/mime & pgp), but SSG does not support that. So, yup, that's on SSG, too.

BTW, 2FA is not the answer. There are serious issues there, too -- VERY easy to break -- but, IMHO, no one cares about your 2FA'd game account. It's your 2FA'd banking (or especially crypto) that's at risk.

 

[32bliss]

Email is neither secure nor private

While technically nothing is 100% secure, the integrity of your email is still not SSG's responsibility.

BTW, 2FA is not the answer

It is another layer of defense and absolutely can help stop unauthorized access.

 

[FaceDancer]

They're still working on server transfer fixes. At least I think they are? We wouldn't know because when was the last time they gave us an update?

 

[Bjond]

While technically nothing is 100% secure, the integrity of your email is still not SSG's responsibility.

When SSG shouts private information in public (ie. unencrypted email), that's indeed their fault. They are not taking the very most basic steps to keep it private. Most of the emails you get from them do not contain private information, but IIRC, they do send your login.

The things you can do yourself to increase email privacy are beyond extreme for most people; ie. run a private email server or use a secure provider with zero local access. Either will cut out the most common breach risk, but end-to-end encryption is still the only sure thing.

 

[Reifee - Orien]

It doesn't take a lot to Add MFA to the accounts.

Someone will eventually sue, pierce the contract you agree to and get damages.
thats the thing that creates change.

 

[Jummby]

When SSG shouts private information in public (ie. unencrypted email), that's indeed their fault. They are not taking the very most basic steps to keep it private. Most of the emails you get from them do not contain private information, but IIRC, they do send your login.

The things you can do yourself to increase email privacy are beyond extreme for most people; ie. run a private email server or use a secure provider with zero local access. Either will cut out the most common breach risk, but end-to-end encryption is still the only sure thing.

There is no doubt that the absolute silence on what is happening either came from a corporate mandate or (more likely), there is potential litigation coming not just for DDO but Daybreak Games as a whole. ALOT on Reddit, start looking there. Also learn how to dig for real info. ENAD Global is a publicly traded company. Be surprised on things you can find out. ENAD owns Daybreak.

 

[Yulrem]

Accounts are getting compromised and people are losing their items, characters and money. Support is incompetent and blames the victims instead of helping them. Devs haven't said a word about it. The lack of communication is disrespectful.

What's the point of investing more time and money when it can all be lost in a second? Knowing that this can happen to any of us at anytime and we won't get any help is terrifying. I might still log in occasionally to run some raids with friends for a few hours but that's about it, I'm never giving SSG money ever again.

This post is about the 12652nd of the exact same subject without any effect. Even writing a post like this is futile. Not to mention a response like mine and the other 562574.

 

[Blaster]

Top reasons that make me believe this game is slowly dying


Maybe it’s because it’s no longer very profitable, since the technology that made this game possible is also becoming obsolete.


Maybe the staff and developers who keep everything running are simply tired after almost 20 years working on the same game.


Maybe the community is exhausted by the lack of response and meaningful support from the staff.


Maybe it’s the lack of real updates to core game mechanics and classes, which makes everything feel stagnant.


Or maybe it’s just the frustration of seeing effort put almost exclusively into cosmetic gear, while animations, gameplay improvements, and real innovation are constantly ignored.

To your points:

1 - The game is still profitable. After an underperforming first half of 2024, the game rebounded and ended up having "increased player activity" IE engagement and spending overall for the year. Then this last year after the disastrous transfer process, with people complaining and threatening to leave, the game actually had a better Q3 in 2025 than it did in 2024. (Numbers per EG7's financial reports.)

2 - I think the devs are just happy to have jobs. With the recent mass firings in the game industry, I can't imagine many of them would get opportunities elsewhere. I've read several articles with devs from other newer games who have experience with the latest engines and systems not finding work. What work would be out there for someone who has experience in a 20 year old game with outdated systems?

3 - I can't speak for everyone, but if you told me that the majority of the player base was exhausted, burnt-out, frustrated, disappointed, among other things, I'd believe you.

4 & 5 - Development and what SSG's time and budget are allotted to is a tricky thing. There's so much that needs to be fixed/updated, along with their corporate mandate to keep pumping out new content -- which is the priority under their business plan. (Per EG7's 2023 Markets Day Presentation.)

 

[Marshal_Lannes]

There was this movie from years ago, Mystery Men, where they had a character named Mysterio or something like that, who would give comical Buddhist sayings that never meant anything. I feel a bit like that reading these forums at times. One or two examples are turned into a pandemic. Another wave of Jacobite sentiment, I shall give DDO not one more dime! And they are mean to casters, too!

The critical hit, my puzzled warriors, is but the thunderclap of ego shattering against the void. Roll wisely... or do not roll at all.

 

[Grumgrim]

It is worth people posting these threads at least some idea of whats going on can be seen by players and devs. if nothing is said nothing will change or improve.
Allways hopeful that there can be a way forward

 

[mbartol]

Things still don’t seem to improve, though. The only change I see is players trust being eroded a little more each time.

 

[Dude]

We should definitely all panic. /s