Next Island has an alternate name ...

Right on MS9.

Code monkey, realize that douchebags can be successful businessmen too. This does not cancel out the douchebaggery

 

i get the facts, and i do see you have valid points in some things, BUT..

why did you miss the point with the "if you dont like it, then dont play the game, and leave".

seems you guys dont want to talk about that huh?

well ill tell yah what, unless neverdie kidnapped this david guy, and tied him up, im under the impression that this is a legit business deal.

im pretty sure that david is well aware of the situation, other wise he would be speaking out about this.

and no, i origianlly came here to post about the bestiary and tp list thing, but since i was here, i saw this and then i decided to make a post.

i specifically hate forums for posts like this, and do not like to partake in these discussions.

but i dont see anyone else really standing up and making a statement against you.

i have a open mind enough to realize that there is more to this then what we see at face value with you posts.

 

much of what you describe sounds like typical entertainment industry lifestyle. it certainly does raise important questions about how far the love is spread with people gaining unfair insights and knowledge. this is far more significant issue than the fact ND has relocated to NI which is being focesed on here and elsewhere.


though on another side, it makes one wonder just how much control partners have beyond graphics. it creates a obvious risk, simplest way for MA to avoid problems is to control balancing, LA distribution and everything economicly related themselves. they have stated they do the former, so do we assume to much input from the partners?

 

because it's stupid and adds nothing to the discussion?

 

oh so its only stupid and adds nothing to the discussion when its in your favor, but any other time you neg rep the hell out of the other people and bannish them from the forum cause it brings you down.

you cant have it both ways, negativity is negativity, there is no middle point.

this should be an objective ethical issue that can be handled with constructive critism, but you guys are way too subjective, and thrown ethics out the window, and favor everyone that agrees with you guys.

 

ND hasn't done anything that we haven't already seen on Calypso via MA/FPC.

I don't think anyone other than ND and/or David Post has the right to comment/speculate on ND's land areas/interests in Next Island.

The guy started with a mortgage on his house, and now has gotten to the point where he always VISIONED he'd be. How do we know that he didn't pay 1/2 million U.S. dollars for that land via contract work on designing the planet? How do we know David Post didn't offer it to him as a signing bonus? Would anyone else turn down the opportunity to collect taxes in-game if they could "swing it" one way or the other? No-one complained when he paid 1M PED for an asteroid then named it after his avatar and had "@ Club NEVERDIE" spamming global chat all day. What makes this any different? Also, as far as him potentially "abusing the system" is concerned... any non factual implications that he is doing so is nothing short of libelous and slanderous.

If I had the ability to design planets you'd see "Club Menace" and "Menace this", "Menace that" everywhere too. Difference between me and ND is that at the first sign of someone insinuating that I MIGHT be doing something "shady" I'd start a legal shit storm like this community's never seen before.

Take it for what it is.... wait till the rest of NI goes live and CHECK THE PLACE OUT thoroughly before jumping to conclusions. To take the piss because someone is trying to realize long term dreams, goals, and visions just comes across as blatant jealousy to me. Heck.... FOMA hinted that in his "name the asteroid" competition that "FOMA" could possibly be used.... so let's crucify him then.

If MindArk truly DOES have a secure loot distribution system then NO planet partner (FPC included) should have ANY knowledge of what is gonna drop when and where. So who cares if ND has an active avatar.... if you're that worried about ND having an active avatar then that's something you have to take up with MindArk because you have a lack of trust in their security.

Menace

 

[edit] oops, shouldnt get so distracted when answering ^^ mostly covered by tass[/edit]

uhm... what are you talking about?

just... wow. big fan of free speach, arentcha?

a storm that would stop dead in its tracks when you suggest it to a lawyer. lmao
if someone claims as a fact that something shady was going on, than you can sue them. if there is general speculation based on public perception than you can either try and prove it wrong or try and hide until it goes away.
you may have your views on things, but they are your views. as long as I live in a more or less free country and something looks shady to me I'll voice my concerns, like it or not.

 

Menace does have a point, which i think i've been trying to make too. where there is a conflict of interest, it might be in where ND's lifestyle and outside friends and family might well profit from his information and position.

the concern over the fact he has created a LA on a new planet seems to me misguided though. people seem to ignore he own an entire planet, so he is only going to erode his own earning potential and undermine his own planet investment. 5% of an LA vs 50% of decay on a planet, which do you think is the greater? (clue, MA retain the other 50% and have no interests in running LA's).

If we really do think that his position is a most serious conflict of interest as he has financial interests beyond the LA in question, then where does that lead us? Presumably no other participant should be allowed to invest in planets, so Deathifier should withdraw from funding Ozi'a planet. indeed should Ozi be allowed to have started a planet without first withdrawing his avatar rather than planet first, avatar second? in the event of an IPO, should any shareholder be allowed to own an LA since they have a potential conflict of interest as both shareholder and revenue collector? there is concerns certainly, but they are misguided.

really, as Tass puts it above, the real problem is "CND 2 does not fit the setting of Next Island which was supposed to be consistent.". if ND hadnt have so heaily branded the new LA on NI, i wonder if it would have had the impact and controversy. and for some it is a very large dose of jealously.

for me, i believe the only reason why MA have allowed it is precisely because there is little gain, they control all meaningful parameters in the game and its economy, so let him do his thing. I do however also think they'll come to regret it if ND, and NI for that matter, dont keep their side of the bargin and drive new participants into the world. i certainly reckon the Cyrene and Arkadia will be more proactive in driving new participants with far clearer and deeper worlds being developed.

 

Hmm.... can you please post your proof that this "mini-launch" was SUPPOSED to happen in the manner it did? Cuz to imply that this was all done on purpose may very well be slanderous without any real proof.

20%??? Are you kidding me MS9? Aren't you supposed to be a reporter or something? YOU of all people should be a little smarter about stuff like this. ND's land on NI is um..... wow.... we don't KNOW what % it takes up as Greece and the Ice age, etc, etc, etc, aren't even live yet! For all we know when the planet is completely operational it might make up 1% or less of total land mass!

As per the statements that he has the potential to "abuse" the system.... like I said... if you TRULY BELIEVE that he can abuse the system as an avatar then you have no faith in MindArk. As per abusing the system as a planet partner.... it's no different than FPC telling us to hunt robots by implying that there's gonna be new and valuable items in the loot. FPC used their "behind the scenes knowledge" to create additional revenue.

As per Ozi retiring his avatar.... you don't think he's not gonna tell DK SOC "Hey we got some really cool shit coming out with the next update. One of the items is gonna be XXX gun with YYY stats and will probably drop from either A, B, or C mobs.

FFS MS9. NEVERDIE doesn't even know where the teleporters are on NI! Why? Because he has THAT much say as to how a planet is constructed. In the end, MA has final say in everything! Now if NEVERDIE himself doesn't know the co-ords of the teleporters he requested be put in place tell me WITHOUT A DOUBT that he fully intended ONLY ND land to open initially. AND please explain to me how he can abuse the system if he don't even know the locations of the damn teleporters because in the end MA puts them where they think is required.... Yup... they're that picky with the "balancing" of things......

I still maintain that other than maybe having a little more "pride" than most of us, ND hasn't done anything that hasn't been done before.

Maybe when the rest of NI opens I'll change my views if it does in fact end up being a "Next Neverdie". AND....if that ends up being the case..... whoever did that interview about David Post being such a GREAT business man.... I'll call them a Noob reporter as well for reporting misleading information to the public!

Also, I read Stoikow's reply to my post. The ONLY truly valid point that ANYONE's EVER made against ND in these threads is that it LOOKS bad with him having an active avatar in-game. That being said.... what the hell does that have to do with "NEVERDIE" being branded everywhere?

Menace

[FONT=georgia, bookman old style, palatino linotype, book antiqua, palatino, trebuchet ms, helvetica, garamond, sans-serif, arial, verdana, avante garde, century gothic, comic sans ms, times, times new roman, serif]Some scientists claim that hydrogen, because it is so plentiful, is the basic building block of the universe. I dispute that. I say there is more stupidity than hydrogen, and that is the basic building block of the universe. ~Frank Zappa
[/FONT]

 

Alright, a little more of my personal opinion here ... after finishing the EntropiaTimes magazine, and finaly having some time to actual THINK of other things lol

First of all, let me point out to people, that even though I'm a forum owner, I'm also a player with a lot of years in game. I have seen how things have been eated up - but also been a part of ups and downs for a long time now.

I have known the 'brand' NEVERDIE almost since I started and my look at the whole thing is this:

NEVERDIE
started out as a brand - as a virtual caracter. Jon worked a lot to become famous for years in the real world, as a DJ, Actor, Musician - and he was surrounded by famous people all his life (see the article in EntropiaTimes) - but it was when he bought an Asteroid and promoted NEVERDIE something really happened. He loves the game and to play the game. So much he dedicated all time in there with his ex wife, Tina. The caracter changed from being a virtual figure to also affect his real life. As he says: Become your avatar, and Jon proved, that it was possible. NEVERDIE is not only a brand anymore - Jon IS NEVERDIE. And NEVERDIE likes to see his name in NEON!

Club NEVERDIE
When Jon bought his Club NEVERDIE it was with the vision of creating the first virtual club with live shows of different musicians on big screens. He did not have much to say when it came to the coding of the astreoid, and he waited a long time for things to finish up, because MA was delayed. Some things like the arena never finished though. He didn't have any influence on the loot, the mobs, the drop rate. Jon had 'only' owned a LA (a HUGE one) like everyone else with property in game. He was like Deathifier owning TI or Buzz owning CP.

Jon sells CND - and my thought is he needed money to create his planet. The planet would then be his REAL place in game - a place where HE can decide the outcome - the look of it, items, mobs etc. But he does not wish to loose his whole idea of having his Club NEVERDIE - and since he knows the name will change when selling - he moves it to ROCKtropia.

When Jon decides to make his own planet and be a part of the creation - he also moves his own position from being a normal player who bought a piece of the game, to actual be a part of the developers who creates the world. Suddenly he is a part of decisions other LA owners are not able to. NEVERDIE is not a LA owner anymore - he is a Planet Partner. And exaclty the word 'Partner' tells, that he has access to things, normal players doesnt have: inside information, naturally, no other players have access too. He can now create his own properties, mobs, items, weapons - and most important, he can decide how they all fit together, etc. - and most of all, he has access to knowledge normal players doesn't have and can prepare himself and the players he share things with.

Jon are not only able now to sell LA's and Shops and Appartments on his planet, he also earns on the taxes and everything which is been done on his planet.

Confidential material
I do not, for good reasons know what is beeing agreed on when you sign up as a Planet Partner. But there MUST be some kind of agreement which contains confidential material. For example rules about what you share with players. Since all FPC staff members are not allowed to play 'normally' but only through 'official' avatars, you would believe there are such rules. And if there are, and you're not allowed to play the game and earn in it, you will also naturally go against those rules, if you still play or share inside information to other players. It IS a conflict of interest no matter how you turn it.

Common sense
would be, that NEVERDIE's caracter is Jon's official caracter. That he is not allowed to hunt/craft and mine - and not allowed to share inside information to any players. Which also means, if he in real life is interacting with players in his studio, they are helping him etc. they should not be allowed to play the game either.

When you commit yourself to become a Planet Partner, you should commit yourself to be professional. I do not mind or care about what people are helping what planet partner - or what relation the CEO's of the different Planets have to their staff. But I do care, if it turns out to be a conflict because this game is about money. Real money. And a lot of it! In 'real world' for example, there are also very strict rules about what you're allowed to do or not to do when you work or own a company. To take one example: You're not allowed to speculate in Company shares. And of course those rules are there to secure, that other investors are not being screwed.

I still believe NEVERDIE has a great name to it - ROCKtropia is a great thing. I'm still excitingly awaiting what else Next Island will have to offer - even though I was rather disappointed about the small release. I would rather have waited for the whole awesome island, with a small NeverWorld in the corner - than having something half done. But I will wait and see what happens next time before shooting around.

Wether David Post knew about the early release or not is hard to tell, because we haven't heard anything official from any of them. And personally I do believe things could have been done a lot better. I do hope people behind NI see that too now, and that's why we didn't see more of NI or hear anything from anyone, though I believe that would have been a great and important move too.

I am almost sertain David knew about NEVERDIE's part of the island though - it's not something you make 'over night'. And I can imagine David hoped for NEVERDIE's fame to drop a little on him too ;) It's easier to release something new if you have a well known name attached to it. What David might not have predicted is the community's reaction on it.

The above is ONLY my own assumptions and I know absolutely nothing more than the rest. It's just a blurth honest feeling of how I see things - and how I wish things were like.

NEVERDIE is his avatar. Being NEVERDIE is a Lifestyle. And I believe he has great difficulties separating the real world with the virtual Universe - and I do not believe he wish to separate them either. And in the shadow of that lies the real challenge.

And the above will be my last input about all this. Because things are like they are now - and things have been said all around on the forums. I just rather wish to look forward and hope for the better - as I will also, with my natural curiousity, explore what the new planets and islands have to offer. And I can't wait for that.