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Thread Statistics | Show CCP posts - 11 post(s) |
S Park Finner
Guardian Solutions
DARKSTAR ARMY
217
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Posted - 2013.08.31 00:30:00 -
[1] - Quote
So the optimal strategy is...
- Everyone jumps into an ambush match and sits around roasting marshmallows on their lasers and singing kumbaya for 10 minutes.
- Everyone quits the game.
- Repeat 66 times.
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S Park Finner
Guardian Solutions
DARKSTAR ARMY
220
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Posted - 2013.08.31 17:18:00 -
[2] - Quote
This might better go in another thread but it's the event that set me to thinking about it...
There are a lot of reasons why marketing / game-design folks might not want to say outright why they are doing something...
- The reason might not be popular with clients even though it's thought to be in the best interest of the company
- Letting people know the objectives might bias them to behave in a way that changes the outcome of what they are trying out
And there are many times that the purpose is clear and it really doesn't need to spelled out...
- If a restaurant wants to build up Wednesday business they offer a special on Wednesday
- If they want more families to come in they discount kids meals
But for the life of me I can't figure out why CCP planned this and other events the way they did. And if they did have simple objectives, why did they choose not to share them?
If they wanted to draw new players in on the week end or
Get more players into ambush to test match making or
Get people excited about 1.4
Or .... who knows?
Why not just say...
"We want new players to come in on the week end. We will give characters with less than 2 million skill points a 3X bonus for every game they play. Older players could get some benefit by playing alts and trying out new weapons or play styles."
Or
"We want to really test the new matchmaking system so we want to load up ambush on the week end. Players will get a 1500 SP bonus for every ambush game they play during the week end no matter if they have capped or not."
Or
"We have a lot of new team play features in 1.4 and we want to have players try them out and give us statistics and feedback. Everyone who plays in a full squad for the whole game will get a 2000 SP bonus for the week after 1.4 is introduced."
Sure, people will still *****. But at least we'd know what what going on and could focus comments a bit more usefully. |
S Park Finner
Guardian Solutions
DARKSTAR ARMY
227
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Posted - 2013.09.02 14:54:00 -
[3] - Quote
Bottom line of the 3000 SP mechanism as it is set up now... play less time, earn less points, get more bonus.
Some things that have come out...
- Newer players are more likely to earn more bonus if they play more games
- Older players are more likely to back off before they hit their cap to get a bigger bonus
Something that hasn't changed...
- Any game that runs over 10 minutes reduces the bonus for all players
The apparent goal of the set-up is to give a boost to new players who are more likely to just jump into ambush, blast around, not make too many SP, and play on the week-ends while leaving the rest of the game unchanged.
That's not too bad an idea. If it's true why couldn't CCP just have said so? Almost no one here would have complained about a bonus weekend for new players.
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S Park Finner
Guardian Solutions
DARKSTAR ARMY
229
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Posted - 2013.09.03 13:44:00 -
[4] - Quote
TL:DR Players want to play the game AND earn the maximum skill points possible during the event. This event limits how players play the game while making it difficult to maximize skill points. It is a bad event design. Reasons and alternatives in the rest of the post.
CCP Cmdr Wang wrote:...
The primary goal of this event is to first test the new script and ensure it does not interfere with the game mechanics.
It is also interesting to note that while many are complaining about this event being a grind, they are also worried about hitting cap too soon, which means it will actually be less grindy if they average more than the mean 3000 SP per match.
I also don't see how AFKing will help players maximize their SP gain, yes you will earn more than you usually do, but it is unlikely that you get more than 3000 SP per match by doing nothing....
CCP Cmdr Wang wrote:...
TL;DR
Play as you normally do and get extra SP! For free! Pretty clear.
I can understand your frustration in the face of the tsunami of complaints about the event.
If I understand your position correctly you are saying "We are trying to put a new system in place and giving you extra skill points if you just play like you usually do. Why are you complaining about a free thing?"
With respect, I believe you misunderstand some of the motivation of your customers.
The players responding to this thread are folks who play the game. They are not the ones bad-mouthing the game or ranting about the death of DUST 514. They are loyal and invested in the game. They are the good guys.
The responses have several themes...
- "I don't understand the event."
- "The event disadvantages week-day players."
- "The game drives players to limit the skill points earned through game-play if they want to get the most skill points from the event."
So here's the point.
Players quickly learn the gun-game is, at this point, only adequate. What keeps them going is their investment in the game and the hope it will continue to improve.
In multi-player on-line games players compete among themselves. When they exhaust one form of competition -- say killing people by shooting them in the face -- they search the game for other ways -- say running people over in LAVs, or sniping them from hard-to-get-at places.
Whatever game they play, players want a game that provides a level playing field for their image of the game.
In DUST 514 skill points are a high-visibility mechanism for giving players an advantage and new ways to play.
There is no such thing as "Just play the game as you would normally and you will get some extra skill points from the event." Why? Because many players in DUST 514 feel that maximizing skill points is critical to staying competitive and keeping the game fresh.
Players want to play the game AND earn the maximum skill points possible during the event. This event limits how players play the game while making it difficult to maximize skill points. It is a bad event design.
What's worse the motivations for the event are not transparent.
I can understand if the mechanisms for rewarding some kinds of play are not in place. But I can't understand why CCP doesn't just come out and say what they want to accomplish and the problems with getting it done right now.
Lets say you want to try out match-making in ambush but there isn't any way to reward players for playing ambush -- like a SP bonus for every ambush game. Just say "We really want to test ambush games during the first week of the new build." And see if the community steps up. If they don't, let them know and keep working on a mechanism for specific, clear cut, rewards.
Lets say you want to give a skill point advantage to new players but you don't have a way to give a bonus to low SP players. Build that mechanism, or do what you are doing in this event but say it's job is to advantage new players who mostly play ambush on the week-end. The community might agree to it. Most of them want the player base to grow. If they don't you at least have a reason they can understand.
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S Park Finner
Guardian Solutions
DARKSTAR ARMY
240
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Posted - 2013.09.03 19:27:00 -
[5] - Quote
Absolute Idiom II wrote:Great post Finner Many thanks -- but I don't believe I've ever had a CCP response to this series of posts. Perhaps there are things going on behind the scenes at CCP that lead the posts to be irrelevant. I think this will be the last one.
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