Game Improvements - June 18, 2007

www.runescape.com

Ever got frustrated when you couldn't right click and quick bank with Gundai? Ever wondered why the Monks of Entrana have memory loss and search you every time? These are but two small annoyances which have been changed as part of a collection of disparate but subtle alterations to the game - all suggested by you, the players!

In the first of our 'Improvement Project' updates we've bundled together a whole host of little additions to the game that many of you have suggested. Most of these are improvements to existing features, adding new detail or extra benefits. We have identified many more in addition to these, so there will also be a steady flow of them coming out over the coming year.

In the first batch we have additions that range from useful to humorous.

First up, we've rebalanced the crossbows to make them a really appealing option for rangers. This means that your crossbow will fire faster and hit harder. We've also made grapples tradeable at every stage in their construction. It was a bit odd having them untradeable as soon as you add a bit of rope. Onyx bolt tips bought from the TzHaar are also cheaper now. With all these adjustments, we feel that the crossbow is a really viable choice for the discerning ranger.

We've also rejigged the combat selection so now you'll stick to the same fighting style after you log out. This means that when you log in again, you'll automatically use your preferred style - no more defending yourself by hitting someone over the head with a staff when you have plenty of runes!

We have updated the graphics for cyclopes to make them look better than ever. Stop by and visit the Ardougne Zoo and take a look at some of the less common creatures.

Players who have completed Dream Mentor will now be able to bank items without a seal of passage on Lunar Isle. They can now speak to Bird's Eye Jack, left click the booth directly in front of him or right click to use quick-bank. Previously, you were required to have your seal of passage on you before you could access the bank.

Players can now fill all available buckets in their inventory with slime from the ectofuntus temple just north of Port Phasmatys. This change removes the need for multiple clicking to fill each bucket individually.

We've been told that Gundai in the Mage Arena is not nearly as helpful as he could be, so we've added a 'quick bank' option. Similarly, the monks on Entrana have a right-click 'quick sail' option, which gives the monks the right to check you for the usual armour and weapons before you hop aboard their boat.

The dastardly aberrant spectres in the Slayer Tower will be getting less to eat now, as we've added a short warning to the spiky chain that leads to their lair. Hopefully this will save inexperienced adventurers from getting a painfully bad smell assaulting their senses (not to mention their limbs).

The glassblowing interface wasn't pretty enough, and also a bit awkward to use, so we've upgraded it to make it simpler to turn molten glass into useful vials and the like.

To save fletchers standing about looking as if they're doing nothing, we've added an animation to stringing bows. On top of this, you'll save quite a few clicks with the new 'String-all' option!

As impressively mighty as the skeletal wyverns are, we felt their drops didn't really reflect the challenge, so they now drop some more desirable loot.

Gloves of silence (made from the stealthy dark kebbit's fur) can now be inspected to see how they're going after your pickpocketing fingers have been caught a few times. You can also grab some more fur to repair damaged ones, saving you a trip to the fancy dress shop.

For the fashion-conscious among you, Patchy on Mos Le'Harmless has been given a better set of tools, so he'll now combine a black cavalier hat with a highwayman mask, and a black beret with a mime mask. How dashing!

Finally, everyone's favourite pet, a rock, has been made even more exciting! Now you can play fetch, tell it to stay, or even wield it.

We've also identified a number of bugs, which are now fixed. These include:

The infinity hat has been adjusted due to an issue with players' hairstyles. Certain hair would occasionally appear through the hat, which looked a bit strange.
Wizard boots have been relocated in the treasure trails chest of your costume room. Up to now, players could store these in the level 1 clue scroll section; however they are obtained from level 2 clue scrolls.
The rune helm painted with Varrock colours has had its looks adjusted. This is to help differentiate between the gilded full helm and itself. The new looks are now more befitting to such an item.

A bug was fixed to allow anyone who's been lucky enough to find and catch implings to open the jars containing captured implings around the Catherby area.
There are plenty more wee additions coming up for the future, all of which are designed to make your gaming experience easier, more enjoyable or just entertaining.


wow, jagex has been busy!

OMG - I never knew Jagex was this hard working...

I'm going to move this and the dragonfire shield topic to Runscape talk, if you don't mind