It’s been a fascinating couple of weeks on Bungie.net. Just about everything you know about swapping ideas with your fellow members of this community changed. We laughed together. We cried together. We muted some fools that had it coming for years.
Some traditions can withstand any cultural shift, and you had to know that the Mail Sack would be one of them. We’ve grown accustomed to these heaping bundles of curiosity – overflowing with demands for full disclosure on any number of topics. Using the new forum, we collected more questions than ever before. And, for the first time ever, we let you point out which ones we should answer. It’s time to complete our first experiment in the new lab.
Let’s open the Sack.
{{more}}
Waxy Pentathlon?
Yessir! Our company-wide bloodbath celebration is the reason why your mail is being delivered early. Tomorrow, I’ll be blogging the day’s events as they unfold. Games will be played. The victors will be immortalized. And, you’ll peer through an open window as our studio is transformed into a seven-ring circus.
BlackHeaven Can we expect a Breaking in: Paul McCartney? Please?
If you got to make sweet music with an artist of that magnitude, would you tell the story? Now’s certainly not the time, and if and when it is, rest assured we’ll elevate the discussion far beyond a Breaking In interview.
TheDonWan How many testers do you have working on Bungie.next? Are any of them hot?
There are a handful of dedicated testers who have held the hand of this website as it grew from an idea to become the Beta that lies before you. All of them are dashingly handsome in their own way, but there is one among them who stands apart from the crowd. He’s got a quiet way about him - a solid core of smoky Latin strength, wrapped in a warm exterior of calm focus. He keeps us honest. He even reads these words before they make their way to you, turning the Mail Sack into a message in a bottle that I can drop upstream from him.
If you listen closely, you can hear his name whispered on the wind. Sancho.
[Fake]Bungie How many years has the studio put into [Bungie’s totally top secret and still unannounced and unnamed game]?
Some of us have been dreaming of building something new, inspiring, intriguing, brimming, and beautiful for longer than you would believe. Others were kept busy, entangled with other, long-established love affairs that required their undivided attention until much more recently. Today, the entire studio is entirely focused on creating something that can only be built by a truly unified team, and that’s been a longtime coming.
KIKNWING How long do we have to wait for a ViDoc?
Ah, yes. The ViDoc. During my many years as a Bungie fan, it was my favorite fare served up on Bungie.net as well. The answer to this question is tied to the questions about when we’ll reveal our next game. I’m afraid I can’t get into specifics.
As the curtain is lifted, we’ll tell our own story in moving pictures about the lengths to which we’ll go to occupy your controller wielding hands. I sit back-to-back with the unseen auteur who directs those multimedia punches to the face. Did I just hear him use the word ViDoc as I was typing this? Yes. I believe I did.
POKEY CLYDE What has not been revealed yet [about Bungie.net]? We are learning of features when they arise. Are there still things to this beta we don't know about?
Yes. That’s the nature of a Beta. The more you use the new features on the site, the more we learn about how we can make them better. An entire team of web developers is studying your every move, drinking in every delight, and scrutinizing the root of every nervous breakdown. We’ve already deployed two hotfixes. More are on the way. Some ideas are on the operating table right now. Others are being explored furiously on white boards. If you stay tuned, you can watch the site evolve in real time. Years from now, you’ll be able to tell your friends that you helped build the joint.
The Deisman When can we expect to see an update for the Bungie Mobile app?
In the near future. In the meantime, we’re fixing the Mobile App so that it works the way it did before the Beta, but we know that’s not what you’re asking about. Stay tuned.
Jessica What made you switch back to a threaded view for the forums after nearly a decade of the alternative?
Within your question, Jessica (assuming that’s your real name), lies a truth that cannot be overlooked. The Bungie.net that you remember was built on thinking that was done ten years ago. Ever since then, we’ve studied the Seventh Column as it has grown into the impassioned mob that it is today. Bungie.net Overlord Achronos said it best:
“When you’re aiming for the scale of discussion we are, we felt that a strictly flat view made it much harder to following conversations, especially if people fail to quote their posts. With the option to reply to each other, quoting becomes less necessary. There are also several technical wins we get (performance wise) by using the threading as natural breaks to limit how many posts we need to search through to get you your data.”
D1mik Have you really thought this through? This site used to be so clean. You even taught us "You have no rights" which kept us from abusing the system. Now, you've opened up a whole bag full of opportunity to spammers and misbehaving kids.
What forum have you been surfing all these years? Are you sure it was Bungie.net? We’ve loved every second of the party we’ve hosted in our own corner of cyberspace, but we wouldn’t describe is as “clean,” and we have the ban histories to prove it. Those “misbehaving kids” will spam and abuse any system that you put before them. What we’ve done is take a flying leap of faith in the Bungie Community, and put the tools to deal with those ne’er-do-wells in your hands. Now, you have [some] rights. You should still play nice, though.
Duardo DeeJ, what was your first reaction upon seeing Bungie.next?
Something so new and so different can produce quite a shock. I wasn’t immune to that. Change is hard, especially when it breaks a decade of habits (some good, some bad). Evolution is painful, but learning to walk upright is worth the challenge. At first, I questioned some of the new logic. Then, I started to realize the potential for new ways to share a conversation with a larger community. Having used the new forum to sort out your initial reaction to the Beta, I would find it very hard to return to the old stomping grounds.
Brian Will we see the return of the webcams before the end of the beta?
You’ll see the return of the Webcams to chronicle the events of the Bungie Pentathlon. So, yes. Sorry they were offline for so long; we literally lost them.
ecartman1214 How long do you expect the beta to last?
It will last until we’re satisfied. So far, we’re thrilled with the fact we built a new house, and your initial rush failed to knock it down. Now that we’ve captured you on the grotto with your history as a community intact (no easy feat, by the way), we can start building the more advanced structures you’ll need in the future. You’re helping us do this. Witnessing your initial land rush has given us the intel we need to draw some lines on the new map. Keep the feedback coming.
burritohsenior Can we please be told about what changes to Bnext are coming, whether Community suggested or not, and get at least some vague ETA on the stuff the webteam is working on?
“Never make a girl a promise you can’t keep.” –Cortana
What I will promise is that I’ll keep you informed every step of the way. Follow
me for news and updates on the fixes.
dmg04 Did you expect these reactions to the new website?
There is very little that surprises the online team any more. They’ve been with you since our game was called Halo. They’ve followed your every move since you were scraping and clawing towards rank 50. They created everything you remember, and everything you see now. And, as you have witnessed, their work is never finished.
Jamil Which responses from the community regarding the Bungie.next beta has most surprised you?
No one could have anticipated how badly all of you would want to be back in black. And hit the sack.
And thus, we complete the first test of answering mail on the new blog! Time to clear away the beakers and burners. We need the space to continue other experiments that will move us closer to where we want to be. More updates are on the way, Bungie Community. Keep up the chatter.