Getting more people on a server?

[Captain Cody]

I was planning on just shutting down my server because it seams no one is joining, then selling the scripts. Ive gotten no emails or messages from any one about actually wanting to buy the scripts.

So the question I have is, how would I manage to get more people on my server. It has full custom built base game mode, custom jobs, features that most RP servers do not include, there's absolutely no lag, constantly being updated and for months has been ready to play. I just cannot seam to get any one to join, the most people who have joined is 3 people. They enjoyed their experience, then left never exactly came back.

Any ideas?

[alberto2345]

Ok, so after playing around on the server with you (and believe me, if you weren't there showing me stuff, I would've left within about 5 minutes), here is a list of Pros and Cons:

Pros:

- Download was small and fast enough, though could've been faster (setup fastdownload)

- Truck job is good, simple and easy to use.

- Vehicle shop is nice and well made, needs some UI design changes and some more information though.

- Vehicle upgrades thingo you showed me was cool, but needs extra features.

Cons:

- I pressed Play as Guest and it did nothing (either a bug or the feature isn't finished)

- Password fields shouldn't show the actual password, it should be censored (showing ***)

- Don't output the password in chat

- When you spawn in/login for the first time, you have no idea on what to do. When you press F1, there isn't very much information

You should make some tutorials when the player first logs in that actually make the player do something like go and buy a gun.

- Lots of spelling and grammar mistakes

- The UIs of the jobs are poorly designed and dont have much information about the job.

- When you press Accept, you don't get any indication on what to do for the job. (and a bug that I found, if you press Accept multiple times at the Bus Driver job, it spawns more buses)

- Bus Driver job has pretty much nothing for you to do since it requires other players. You should make missions with AI or something.

- Taxi job is the same. And you should also do the same for taxi job like I said for the bus driver

- Pilot job isn't at all descriptive as for what to do. Saying "Head to the airport to get a load, or pick people up ||/Pilot||" as soon as you take the job doesnt tell me what to do or how to pick up a load.

- The weather type (stormy) made it hell it fly around. Either have an option to change the weather or don't have stormy weather on.

- Medic job is the same as all the other jobs. It requires players in order to do anything. And the command in the output has a spelling error (/healp when I think its /heal ?)

- Same thing for Police job. Add side missions to do for when there is nobody else online.

- Some jobs aren't even marked on the map or have different blips

- The blip for /wanted is the same for the jobs, so its not very easy to find players.

- The colour for police is very dark, you can't even see your name in the chat.

- When you die, the camera position over the hospital shows for too long (in my opinion)

All in all, you have really nice ideas and I can see what you're trying to do, but its the way you've executed them that is the problem. Add more information, make ingame tutorials for almost everything.

When I say tutorials, try and make then interactive as well. For example, when the player first joins and makes an account, give an introduction, explain what the server is about, then maybe guide them to spawning a vehicle and going to buy their first gun. Give them an objective to get them started. Spawning them at the airport with no information is going to have players leave and never come back.

With your jobs, give them something to work for. Make ranks for all jobs and when you get to certain ranks, other things become unlocked like different vehicles, different types of deliveries or something.

I like how alot of your jobs are player interactive, but if nobody is online, there is pretty much nothing to do. Add AI missions.

Add more criminal stuff. Alot of people like to play these kinds of servers so they can take turfs and cause havok, yet I saw nothing in regards to criminal activity. Add turfs, add store robberies, stuff like that.

Definitely change your UI designs. Some of them are pretty poorly designed. Take advantage of DX or even CEF if you know web development. It requires more work, but in the end, if you design things right, it'll look ALOT better.

Hope this helps, and yes its alot to read, but you should take the time to go through what I'm talking about.

I suggest to all servers owners to take a step back, clear their head and make an account on there server like as if they're a new player and try to play like as if they know nothing about the server and see if you find it enjoyable. I reckon if you did that, you'd see a lot of your problems.

[Captain Cody]

I'll redo some major parts of the server tonight, spelling / grammar mistakes are due to me working on the jobs quite quickly I have a huge list of stuff I planned to get done, Gui will be redone tonight to. And I'm also going to redo login panel, and add some of the stuff you advised.

[alberto2345]

Thats good, but don't rush it too much either. It will take time and it doesnt all need to be done tonight or in 1 day. Try and plan what you're going to do before doing it. Write up a wishlist of stuff you want and even write notes on how you might make it and what it would do.

[Captain Cody]

Yeh I just pulled up list I had of stuff I needed to do, I remember exactly why I shut down server.

First. Lack of players

Second. The amount of stuff I needed to get done to complete it, working on it myself, no other scripters on the team I have over 5 pages filled with stuff I need to get done. Probably going to just keep server down, and sell the resources as I planned before.

[alberto2345]

Well thats up to you, but I'd suggest not selling them and just keep working on the project with the goal to maybe one day open a server.

Making a server properly takes months, sometimes years depending on your skill level, the features you want to make, the time you have spare and how many people are helping you.

My suggestion is to just keep working on it whenever you have spare time. If you get to the stage where you'd call it finished, then I'd make up my mind about whether to sell them or make a server out of it.

But hey, thats completely up to you.

[killeryoyo]

Well if you want players, then there is major things you have to do for the server.

If you are a good scripter. You should make a good development for the server. Such as making unique jobs, Great gui, Making features for your server, Make something that people can be like this .

Second thing you should do ads for the server. Make a good English Topic with all the features, make the reader intersted in trying the server or joining it. Put the best screens you can do.

Thirdly, You should do some videos that people majorly love. Share it in all social mta groups or to your friends to invite them in. Hire some good people that can give you popularity and friends.

Fourthly, you need to make a sexy forums to for people to make topics in.

So all these things can get you players. I know it's not easy, but it needs some how hard working Like SAES,SAUR,CIT. Those servers took a lot of time to be developed. As you see now, they have above the 300 players or maybe more. Those servers are working hard to make the best ideas and features to the community/people. You can say they are somehow old servers, but they took time to develop. There is also good servers that has kinda of players NGC and GTI. They did what i told you up. You can take a look to them and take ideas and make with yourself.

That's all i have. I would be happy if that helped you

Thank you,

Regards

killeryoyo

[tosfera]

First things first, don't expect people to like scripts that are rushed. Everyone with a bit of common sense can see if a script has been rushed or made with a lot of effort and time. A lot of people have done this before, you're not the first. But a lot of people have failed due to this, don't follow them to that path. Take your time, people will notice it in the designs and the stability of your scripts.

[Captain Cody]

Yeh I've began a new project. That will not be at all rushed.

[Wisam]

I can't find your server on the browser did you close it?

[Captain Cody]

Yes original server has been shut down, near the end of the year I'll be opening up a new one that'll be alot better.

[Simple0x47]

To get players in MTA, it's a pretty difficult task. I'll recommend you to make friend of a large amount of SAMP players, and make them install MTA. If you're lucky your SAMP friends will recommend to their friends to come to MTA.

[Noki]

Yeh I've began a new project. That will not be at all rushed.

If you don't want to rush, don't put a definitive deadline/release date on your server. Instead, set smaller goals you want to accomplish (eg finishing the account system in 3 days, creating a gang system in one week etc). From experience, that makes it easier to keep working as you're breaking down the problem into smaller bits. Isn't that what coding is anyway?

[Captain Cody]

Well I set deadline to December 1st, as to give me plenty of time to make the scripts then continue on to test and edit the scripts. I have the time period broken up into 4 sections, just did not post the dates on the thread as there has been a delay I did not expect.