The Chief GM of ToP Unhoods His Mysterious Veil

News

Dear fellow pirates,

With such a large and vibrant player community, Tales of Pirates  has their own urban legends and famous players. Someone who is a little of both is the Chief Game Master Kevin Lee. Recently he sat down for an in depth virtual interview with one of TOP's own player journalists.
 

1.- I heard some history about TOP Kevin from some senior players in forum, but there are a lot of new players in TOP now who don't know all the GMs, so could you explain us what do you do as a GM?

Us GMs are part of the Customer Service Dept and our responsibilities include manning Live Support, recording information about player problems and feedback, helping solve problems, planning activities and sort of being a bridge between the players and IGG. We do a lot of things to make sure our players have a fun, safe, bug free environment to enjoy playing Tales of Pirates.
 

2. - And what is the best thing about been a GM? Or maybe isn't there anything fun been a GM?

I choose this job because I have enjoyed playing games since I was a little kid. Someone once told me that if you can combine your hobby and your career you'll be happy, and I really took that lesson to heart. Also, many GMs have their own small fan groups, eager players who enjoy interacting with us when they have problems or when they've accomplished something difficult, in good times and bad, which is just part of being a part of such a large and passionate community and also a bit of an ego boost. As a GM I work hard everyday to help players and make friends with players so that everyone has someone they can turn to in game.
 

3. - Do you remember any funny or amazing moment with players in TOP?

The most unforgettable activity was the 'Take a Photo with GMs', which we first held in March 2007. Getting together with players is one of my favorite things to do, making this job a joy everyday. The creativity and enthusiasm they show can be infecting which is why events like this are so much fun! I still have this picture and to this day its one of my favorites.
 

4. - Btw, you are a GM and you can create incredible chars, but do you normally play on TOP?, are you in a guild, do you level up like a normal player or you just use your GM account?

Well, having a GM account is nice, but I also have a regular account that I often use to play just like any other gamer. I think that in this way I can see through player's eyes and know what they know - specifically for problems they describe. If you care a little more and open up to other players, you may find that many GMs are the people you go adventuring with all the time, and that GMs are not always the players with high level characters strutting through the game - we're players and fans just like you.
 

5. - What do you think about the Phyllis crusader? Some players thing IGG is delaying too much to release it.

Phyllis crusader is an all new class in TOP. Some players might be upset about how long it has taken us to add this class, but I know that IGG just wants to make sure its done right. The class appearance has also been changed to make it more updated, so its not that we are holding out on our players, actually we just want to make sure we deliver the best new character we can.
 

6. - You are a GM, so I'm sure you know the TOP projects coming soon, could you tell us some about them?

So far as I know, besides the Phyllis crusader, we're also planning or evaluating some new projects that include new pets, new apparel, enhancing the fairy level upper limit, preparing another large-scale All-server Championship and much more. We will be announcing these periodically in our official and media news, so make sure you keep up to date on all the latest.
 

 
7. - And what do you think about the classes unbalance? Will be there some adjustments to minimize this unbalance?

We have received some reports about imbalances among classes, and we are talking with players about how we can resolve this. For example, we've had some posts in the forum with petitions asking for one thing or another and we'll definitely be looking into it. This is something that we can't decide alone, and we'll be working closely with the game developer to see if we can resolve it.
 

8. - And I'm sure all the level 100 players in TOP are wondering when the max level in TOP will be more than 100?

Our TOP research and development team is planning to expand the upper level cap to 100+. And we are working hard to update our game with more interesting and challenging content. If any of our players have advice we welcome that as well.