I don't think it is a bad idea to see what kind of player is out there right now, as anyone who might be considering putting together a live-like server and lot of personal time investment might be in for a surprise. Besides, if we know where we are now, and know where we want to be, then we can work to get from A to B.
So far as getting from A to B, these are in brief the suggestions that have been listed to date:
1. Have GMs readily available to assist players.
2. Don't wipe the player database and the items that have been collected from a given release.
3. Have unique content
4. A more stable server
Notes:
1. What is the purpose for a GM? Is it to have a central actor to whom people can roleplay too? Or is the GM more for QA, to unstick players and help them when something breaks? Definitely one role is to put in place a police-structure to keep the server healthy.
2. Even if a new database structure has been released, in theory, one could transfer the accounting information of the players over to the new format with minimal or no data error.
3. Is it unique content or a unique play experience? Or both?
4. A more stable server does not necessarily mean one that is more feature rich than any other. Just one that is more consistent and/or more reliable.
--MV
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