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are there new features in Java7 that you are looking forward to, do you know when the Java7 will finish beta and mature, will the Java7 be as available as java6 to all the existing players and do you have plan to make something exclusive for Java7
Is the development of the game hindered by some delay in Java development(past and now and future)? Do you have any roadmap or plans to keep pace with the latest technology

- Java 7 doesn't really provide us with anything extra we can use in RuneScape. In reality, we are locked to the minimum version we support (6, update 10), anything new we want we write ourselves on top of this base.

What is your view towards DirectX 11?
some games used the DirectX 11 code path to increase the fps while keeping the same gfx detail, more and more devices are going to support DirectX 11, like next gen iGPU of Intel and SoCs of tablets, is there any such plan for future like 2013, 2014?

- Again, we have to support DX9 as our base. Whilst we could have a DX11 gfx mode, so few people could use it at the moment that it wouldn't be worth the time, sorry.

In the last Q&A, you said there was a new engine in development that render objects progressively with increasing detail from far to near, that there will be no "loading, please wait", how are they now?

- Still working on it, sorry!

i've heard that Transformers Universe and stellar dawn will use a“new Runescape engine", so will that be used in Runescape in the future, are you working together? and will it or at least some be used on RS in the future, how big the differences will be? ( can you ans by avoiding telling what they are like)

- It is unlikely RS will be ported to the TU engine as they've grown very far apart. That doesn't mean that RS won't get engine upgrades, just that they will likely come from a different source.

Java is dying?? Will the future mainstream consumer products no longer support Java, like the Android and iOS now, I’ve heard that future browser will no longer support plugin, and do you plan to make Runescape available to tablets?

- Yes, it is. We have plans, watch this space!

What will next gen engine be if there is one
Will you increase the system requirement in the future. And what you think the future requirement will like

- We never plan to increase system reqs unless completely necessary. We don't have any plans for this at the moment, certainly.

What restrictions you are facing now due to Java

- Not really Java, but its deployment to PCs grows less all the time and persuading people to install it gets harder and harder

13-Apr-2012 17:50:34

@Mod Jane; Will your sanity deteriorate as the Q&A goes on as it did last time ?

Was I really that bad last time Trevorghost?

In truth, I love arranging these Q&A's. With everyone so busy, it can be tough pulling it all together, but when it comes together it's great! I generally love seeing people get their questions answered.

Mod Jane - Community & Events Director
Follow me on Twitter - @JagexJane

13-Apr-2012 17:50:39

Sorry if its slighty off-topic, but its related to the Game Engine .

1) In regards to the game engine, my question is directed at specific areas within the game. My two main areas are Edgeville and the Gnome Stronghold. I know I am not the only one who has noticed it, but the enormous lag from these two areas makes playing within them sometimes almost impossible, if you do not get disconnected from the game.

Might I inquire as to why these two areas, and sometimes the citadel disconnect or kick players from the game, and is there any possible short or long terms fixes being created or are about to be implemented to solve this issue? Also, does this issue directly relate to the extremely poor frames per second issue, or is that an entire different category ?

- Yes, we know those areas have problems. A lot of this is down to the new graphics assets that are created for them and some of it is down to the Cluster Flutterer eating performance. We're working with the QA teams to get some better guidelines for what are acceptable asset performance so we hope to reduce these problems in the future.

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13-Apr-2012 17:53:51

Hi Agile Sam:

"Since the release of clans and the chat therein, I personally along
with many others will often type the wrong number of "/"s depending on
whether we would like to speak in a friends chat, clan chat, or guest
clan chat. Would it be possible to switch the symbol used for clan
chat (ie to one . instead of 2 /s), and do you see that likely to
change in the near future?"

I definitely agree the '/' to type is rather fiddly. There are ways we could improve this, such as remembering where your last chat message was sent to and using that by default for your next chat line (and showing this as you type), and also using numbers or letters after a '/' to choose which chat you want to talk in rather than lots of slashes. It's something I'm sure we could look at with the content team in the future.

"Are there any plans to add additional Grand Exchange locations in
order to thin out the crowds even further (similar to creating 4 GE
spots, just having them spread to other locations in Gielinor)?"

Far as I know there aren't any plans for Grand Exchange locations at the moment, but if enough people ask the content team to add them, I'm sure they'd consider it!

13-Apr-2012 17:55:16

Agile Sam:

"Mod Philip,
What measures have been taken since the officially announced “Bot
Nuke” against botting? I have noticed significant drops on my
highscore ranks specifically on March 1st, March 15th, and March 27th
for no exp gain, and assume that those were days on which large
anti-bot actions were taken. I appreciate the fact that you understand
that bots are still around, which is apparent if you’ve recently
teleported to the Sorceress’s Garden with your broomstick. Do you
foresee a time in the near future when botting itself will be rendered
near impossible and ALL botters banned, or will it continue to be a
kind of 1-by-1 hunt to find the abusers? I understand you can’t talk
specifics about the game engine’s functioning concerning botting, I
just want to know if you have a real reason to believe that botting
can be done with entirely at some point."

We are working hard to try and come up with an arsenal to throw at the bot makers, so that we can take them out. Any battle to defeat the botters is going to be an ongoing one. The bot makers make too much money out of it for them to give up easily, so we are going to have to keep on throwing change after change at them to keep them guessing. That should mean we get rid of the worst bots completely.

This is not our only line of attack. We are working on several different things that should help to get rid of botters, and should tidy up any we miss with our major updates.

I think it is not unreasonable to say that we are going to get rid of all of the botters. We are not afraid of a challenge, and if we put our minds to it, I am sure we can beat them Technical Director

13-Apr-2012 17:57:33

Agile Sam:

"Second,
I don’t necessarily know if this is relevant to your work at Jagex,
but why was the Barbarian Advanced course slowed by about 2 seconds
per lap? And will it be changed back? Not only was it faster, but the
way you used to be able to go straight from a cartwheel to a jump made
every lap a bit more enjoyable to run."

Not sure about that one - I'll pass it on to the content team Technical Director

13-Apr-2012 17:58:32

13-Apr-2012 17:58:56 - Last edited on 13-Apr-2012 17:59:05 by Mod Chris E

Mod Jane,

As there was no emote this easter event, could the team make an emote after the winner has been known and make an emote for it? So we can have a new awesome Chocatrice emote after the Evil Chicken has been kicked.

There is an emote of sorts, when you shoot your Eggsterminator at a player that is wearing one of the Easter hats, they spin on the spot.

However, as for your suggestion, we'll ask the question.... nothing wrong in asking... right?

Mod Jane - Community & Events Director
Follow me on Twitter - @JagexJane

13-Apr-2012 17:59:43

13-Apr-2012 18:00:05

13-Apr-2012 18:00:48