Too hard to develop servers?

[Darklux]

As my thread on the Main Forum was not released,
I wan't to open up a small discussion relating in development servers.

My impression as staff member on various places and long time player is,
that it's just too hard to develop a server nowadays.

Why?

- Graphics, Graphics, Graphics

It's hard to build a new server without a hell lot of graphics.
You need a tileset (of course you can use the official one, but it's just been used too much over the past years, you see it nearly everywhere you go),
graphics for furniture, weapons, or anything you can think of, while you can number the count of active graphics designers on graal with one hand, most of them are blocked with work on other servers.

So how to compete with servers like era, or other nicely styled up playerworlds? You always need a graphics artist and there aren't really any available.

- Lack of developers

Most players who develop are already bound in projects and rarely new, good developers are coming.
Why? The tools are as attractive as Windows 95 on a 486 Machine:
Outdated, Slow, Buggy.
Manpower instead is put in projects never released, like Graal 3d, Flying Technology, or odd platforms like the iPhone (okay it could attract outsiders, but I guess they will run away when they will hit the REAL graal, with the problems I am currently stating here)


So what would I say?

Invest time in a graphics and scripts database available for anyone, more different Tilesets to use, Graphics and so on, so that more players can build good playerworlds without a degree in computer science and/or design.
Invest more times in essential things for graal:
Level Editor and Gani Shop - Scripted or not! The last versions were published a decade ago, are buggy and unhandy.


I hope more people will agree - but graal is a development platform - and it nearly seems that Cyberjoueurs is trying to ruin this very aspect of it by not listenting to anybody and just working on nice daydreams like Graal 3d or iPhone Graal, while important aspects of the main game are in urge need of maintenance.