Just had some thought based on my small experience in MMO's.

After games starts then it looks almost impossible to change any basic rules that had been set at the beginning.

Examples of such big shifts:

- global AH - (we do not discuss if it makes sense or not) if current solution (with AH in guild keeps) does not work as expected, then could be created

- CD - it looks that CD is better, so it is introduced to game (CD might be bad example as it required planning from beginning)

- unlimited number of arrows is changed to limited

- so it is not about adding some new gameplay, but changing something that does not work as expected

And question:

Do you know if such big changes happened in other MMO games? Had they some positive feedback from players?

Thing is, adding CD would be such a big overhaul due to the game being built around it not being in. The changes would basically change the way the game plays and could drive a lot of players away just because of the changes made to stuff such as tactics, combat and the sudden increase in griefing by idiots with their new toy.

As for unlimited arrows becoming limited, again a big overhaul, especially as all other classes would then need an additional handicap themselves to balance it out. Again, the result would be a lot of people quitting in frustration at such an unwanted change,

edit: as for games with big changes. Some may have gone well others haven't. The combat overhaul for SWG pretty much killed that game (And the shameless marketing of prequel content), but even the big changes in WoW haven't been universally accepted.

This is like the perfect storm thread of "this game svcks because _______". Almost all of the biggest hot button topics rolled into one. Someone hold me, I'm scared.

To answer the OP, though. Yeah I've seen a few other games make massive, sweeping game overhauls after launch (usually long after launch though, like years later) just to keep things fresh or to go in a different direction or hell I've even seen one game make a ton of system overhauls because their old coding was a mess and it was holding back advancement in new systems so they just redid it all from the ground up. CD could make it into the game in a later expansion but would likely require an engine rewrite, global AH would be a lot easier and more likely than any of the above mentioned, and the arrow thing is just probably not going to happen because games generally don't go backwards on stuff like that, they go from having arrows to unlimited, never seen unlimited to limited before.

I for one Think that a global Exchange is needed, but I'll have to wait and see.. what they got might work just as fine..

Yes, I did not mean these I listed are the things that should be changed. Except CD that I just have no idea what is better, I just provided examples that I actually prefer current solution.

If there is some uncertainty the developers should concentrate on the things that are most critical and most difficult to change later.

I was just thinking if the game is to grow then some extensions to current game play must be planned, so it also means game rules also need to change, but if it is possible then why worry so much? If something will be wrong then it will be fixed, if something is incorrectly planned then should be found and fixed first during beta tests, but also later.

Taking it all together I see no reason to be upset by some option - it is just pointless because incorrect decisions can be also fixed later if there is big demand for change.