Hi, gang. Let me first apologize for dredging up this relentlessly awful thread. I had a difficult time deciding whether I should post here, PM a handful of you, or simply not say anything. I know many of you probably don't know or remember me. I rarely ever played. I did a little bit of conceptual work several years ago, most of which seems to have been understandably tossed. I was checking an old email address and noticed a peculiar announcement from Platyna, regarding the ahem.. hierarchical changes.
Regarding this matter, as little as I’m sure you all wish to discuss at this point, I want to say that to me, the unnecessarily complicated and rather ambiguous hierarchy of the old days was absolutely one of the biggest turnoffs. While I’m sure nobody will claim that the current system is absolutely perfect, as Melkior just pointed out, I still want to commend those of you who made the decision to part ways. I suppose that's technically me 'taking a side' .. but whatever; I don't really have a dog in this fight. Rather, a (probably misguided) compulsion to speak, after reading parts of this drama. I suppose that technically means I'm trolling..? Though I surely had my own maturity and professionalism issues (and probably still do) and though I seldom (if ever) had any direct interaction with Platyna, I consistently viewed her as more of an annoyance than a benefit, as well as a potentially disruptive force in your team. I hope that's not too hypocritical of me, but hey.. I didn't send a mass email.
Suffice to say, I find it somewhat ironic that what I have read, as a direct result of receiving that email, only confirms what I had already suspected years ago; that Platyna is a pretentious and insufferable egomaniac. So I suppose I can thank her for validating those past perceptions.
I am not claiming at all to have predicted any of what has transpired.. who could have? I suppose I'm simply recollecting the vague gut feelings I once had. In my opinion, Platyna's domineering, holier-than-thou attitude was (and still is?) one of the most significant of a few thorns in the side of this project and it sounds as if that problem only grew over time. While I agree that she did indeed provide a valuable service to The Mana World, it’s obvious that she ultimately acted with outweighing disservice, by arrogantly asserting de facto ownership of the data, from which the default server is comprised. I will never claim to be anything close to an expert on any of the licensing gobbledygook, but as a disclaimer was one of the first things I remember reading, prior to contributing to TMW, it was always my understanding that everything that went in to the default server, was considered to be property of the project-
not the web host. Suggesting that the player data residing on the project’s default server was somehow exempt from that rule, seems like a blatant exercise in the mental gymnastics of double standards. Platyna's email campaign to portray many of you as illegitimate usurpers and even malicious criminals, immediately seemed suspicious and seems to have almost completely backfired on her. Her behavior only compounds the negative opinion I and apparently many others already had of her. The suggestion that any of this belongs in a court of law seems far beyond absurd. I hope for the sake of TMW and the sanity of everyone involved, that Platyna eventually figures out how underhanded and fruitless the rather transparent attempts to unfairly smear her detractors have been.
That said and very possibly completely off-topic, I must admit that I always felt the decision to continue using/developing the eAthena server and the apparent delay (abandonment?) of the idea to transition to an ‘action-based’ system, more closely related to that of Secret of Mana, was preventing the game from fulfilling its true potential; inhibiting the realization of the original vision and intent upon which the project was apparently founded. I realize that may be an egregious oversimplification, or even a total misunderstanding of the facts, surrounding various design and technical decisions. I promise that I intend no offense by expressing that opinion. To put it simply, ‘TMW-eA’ always seemed to me like a crutch in dire need of kicking.
Regardless of my admittedly unsolicited, somewhat incendiary opinions, whatever ends up happening and whatever direction TMW takes, I sincerely wish you all the best. Stay safe and good luck with your various endeavors. I apologize once more for adding fuel to the flame. I will probably regret doing so.
Take 'er easy, everyone.
