What happens with Names and Pre-Order
Copied from the Beta Board. Post is by Aura:
Important Information – Read Carefully!
Are you a City of Heroes beta tester or pre-order customer waiting for details surrounding the game’s big launch on April 28th? Well, we’ve got all your info right here, so let’s get down to business!
Please Note: The following information pertains to those currently holding beta testing and pre-order accounts only. If you plan to purchase City of Heroes in a retail store and play upon or after release, simply follow the registration information included in the box to get up and running!
Beta Testers Who Also Have Pre-Order Accounts
We know you’re out there! Maybe you’ve been busy…or maybe you’ve been having too much fun playing on your beta account…but the time has come. All beta testers who also purchased pre-order boxes need to register and start utilizing their pre-order accounts RIGHT AWAY (if this hasn’t already been done). The pre-order account is theonly one that grants you a cool Prestige Power and lets you participate in the 3 Day Head Start on 4/25 (when you get to create your characters and play the game 3 days before all the retail players get in). This is also the account you’ll want to claim your name reservation with AND turn into your final paying account once the game releases. So what are you waiting for? It’s time to shove that beta account to the side and start focusing on what’s really important – your Pre-order account. Register at www.plaync.com TODAY!
Character Wipe and Name Reservation
Most of you are already aware of this, but we wanted to take just a moment to reiterate that when the beta test officially ends – at 11:00pm CDT on Thursday, April 22nd, the servers will be taken down and all characters will be wiped in preparation for the 3 Day Head Start. We want players to start off on somewhat equal footing come launch day.
What will not get wiped on the 22nd, however, is your hero name reservation.
Here’s the good news about name reservation – both beta testing accounts AND pre-order accounts have the ability to reserve a character name ahead of time! (If you have both types of accounts, remember that you’ll want to apply the name reservation to your Pre-order so you have the name reservation, Prestige Power and 3 Day Head Start all on the same account. If you only have a beta account or a pre-order account, you’ll want to use your respective one for the name reservation).
The Name Reservation process has significantly changed from what we last told you. Sorry for the switcheroo, but the revised process will be much more efficient for all involved. Now, listen carefully. This is how it will all go down.
Name reservation is now accomplished by logging into a specific server, creating a throw-away hero in the number one character slot (just so you can get to the naming part), and then logging back out as quickly as possible. Doing this will reserve your chosen name across all game servers that go up for the 3 Day Head Start, and any additional servers that go up before Saturday, May 15th (we are approximating this to be anywhere from 8 -12 servers total). Here’s a step-by-step walkthrough of the name reservation process:
1. At an undisclosed time on Tuesday, April 20th, a game server named “Name Reservation” will be put up and will remain up until 11:59pm CDT on Thursday, April 22nd. At your earliest availability, log into the game with your pre-order or beta account. (Remember if you have one of each; always go with the pre-order account!)
2. Don’t waste time – click through the process as quickly as possible to make sure that you get the name you want before anyone else does. The origin, archetype, power sets, individual powers, and costume options you choose don’t matter – just choose anything and whip right through them. Remember – this character is going to get wiped come the 22nd – it’s the name you want to concentrate on.
3. When you arrive at Hero Registration, type in your desired name and click on “Enter Paragon City.” (Don’t worry about Character Description or Battle Cry – these will not be saved).
4. Wait until the tutorial loads, and you see your character standing inside the game. Then quit out of the game right away. Congratulations! You will have reserved your desired name in the number one character slot.
5. Your character name will be reserved until 11:59pm (CDT) on Saturday, May 15th at which time all unclaimed reserved names will be released for use by anyone who has purchased a retail box. Once you’ve applied your retail code to your pre-order or beta account , you will need to claim your name by logging into each server you wish to play on, creating a character (exactly how you want it this time), and then naming him/her your reserved name (which should be available to your account only). Again, your character names must be claimed by end of day May 15th. All character names not claimed by this date and time will be wiped from the database and can be used by anyone.
Important Things To Keep In Mind:
Please, please, put some thought into your name reservation!
Have it decided upon before you log into the Name Reservation server. You need to get in and get out as quickly as possible. If you pick a name, set it in the system, then later change your mind and go back in again to delete the character and repeat the process…yet something goes wonky…we will NOT fix it for you. You will be stuck with NO name reservation.
Absolutely DO NOT create additional characters/names in the other character slots
One name in the number one slot - that is all you are to create. If you have more than one Character Name on the Name Reservation Server, we will assign you a random one!
3 Day Head Start!
The3 Day Head Start is for individuals who have pre-order accounts ONLY. These folks will be able to play the game before anyone who has bought the final retail version of the game is let in.
During the Head Start, we expect to be putting up anywhere from 4-6 game servers. Here is the schedule that will be followed for the 3 Day Head Start:
Thursday, 4/22, 11:59pm (CDT) – Beta officially ends. Servers go down and are character wiped. Blackout period begins.
Sunday, 4/25, 12 noon (CDT) – Head Start begins. Pre-order accounts are the only accounts with access to the game servers.
Tuesday Evening, 4/27, 11:00pm (CDT) – City of Heroes officially launches! Access to the game is only allowed to those with a retail version of the game. Pre-order people must have a final version of the product in order to continue playing past the Head Start. Again, all pre-order players have until end of day May 15th to buy the game and claim their reserved character names.
Launch Day!
So what do you do on release day (and after) to convert your pre-order and beta accounts into live, paying ones? It’s easy – but pay attention; you’re going to want to follow these directions closely:
1. Visit PlayNC by going to www.plaync.com
2. Click on “Account” in the left navigation bar. Now click on “Sign In” under Account.
3. Enter your PlayNC Master account name and password.
4. You should now be on the “Manage PlayNC Account” page. Scroll down to “Games List”
5. Next to your CoH game account/s, you will find “Activate” buttons. Always make sure that if you have a Pre-order account, that it is the one you are activating! If you don’t have a pre-order account, you want to focus on your beta account. Game Versions will show up in PlayNC Account Management as follows:
BETA
PREORDER
*Warning: If you activate the wrong account Customer Service will be unable to assist you with this mistake. In this case, you will need to purchase another complete retail code to activate the account you intended to activate.
6. Hit the “Activate” button next to the account and when prompted, enter the serial code provided with the retail version of the game. You will then be prompted to enter your billing information Congrats! You’re done and your first 30 days of included game play begins!
*Note: When entering your billing information you will be able to choose between credit card or prepaid 60 day game time card. You MUST enter one or the other. If you do not have a valid credit card you will want to be sure to purchase a 60 day pre-paid game time card from your retailer at the same time that you purchase your retail box. You will be unable to activate your account without entering the requested billing information.
Getting Help
We’ve now mapped out for you how everything leading up to launch should work for beta and pre-order customers. But you know as well as we do, that sometimes people get stuck. If you have problems during any of the processes we’ve described, we want to make sure you know where to go to get assistance.
If you have any questions or you are experiencing a technical issue, please visit support.coh.com and use the “Ask a Question” tab.
If your problem is related to your game accounts or your message board account, please visit support.plaync.com and use the “Ask a Question” tab.
Re: What happens with Names and Pre-Order
Something that the Dev's cleared up was that you WILL be allowed to use your reserved name during the three day pre-order release. Gaffer said they made a slight error stating that you "needed to have the retail code" when creating your reserved character. Irregardless, a reserved name will be reserved for your account until 11:59 pm cdt on may 15.
He also said that the name is reserved across every server due to technical issues. I would have liked to have seen it reserved on only one server so once you create the name on server X, it would then be free on all the other servers. That way Migraine would have been able to have a better chance at getting his name.
You do need to have the retail code after the three day window as it stands now to continue to play, so it may be that if your pre-order is late arriving ala 29, 30 et, you may not be able to play your account until the code arrives. I suspect that they will change this to allow people that get late pre-order shipments a larger window.
I mention this because of all the panic and grumbling on the beta boards over the 3 day pre-release confusion. In a nut shell:
1. Your name is reserved until midnight of the 15th.
2. You can use your reserved name on the 3 day pre-release
3. You (as of now) need to have a retail code to keep playing after Tuesday the 27.
4. Preplay servers open up on Sunday at 12 noon CDT.
Hope this helps relieve a little stress over the whole name (dare I say fiasco?).
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