The idea will sound pretty drastic for some, but just bear with me. The general idea is to discuss what Three Rings can work with to provide promotions that add new content to the game without resorting to the usual player's cosmetics. What additions and updates can be made that will be as efficient and simple as (better yet, moreso than) making new costume and accessory pieces?
Let's assume a temporary ban is put on OOO from making new costumes/accessories.
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 09:08
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 10:18
#2
SCP-96
The much needed battle sprite promo/update.
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 11:10
#3
As somebody who spends money
As somebody who spends money on SK: I'm not sure it's a great idea to implement new mechanics as a pay incentive. It leaves a whole group of players out, and the good thing about cosmetics is that they don't affect gameplay at all, so people who can't spend money on the game aren't missing out of potentially critical items. (We already get how many people upset about the preview server and even that's non-critical. Could you imagine the backlash if a new sword type is made available only to paying players? Reminder of when Operation Crimson Hammer and subsequently, the Rocket Hammer, was Steam-only. *shudder*)
uhhh
I guess they could do something sort of like a Kickstarter-type setup, if they receive X amount of energy purchases in a certain period of time, things will be unlocked or a new feature will be unveiled that much sooner? There could even be donation tiers and special rewards, ideally cosmetics but it could vary or potentially be ANYTHING. Weapons, gear, etc.
If anybody else is familiar with Awesome Games Done Quick's donation incentives, they had "competing" donations for certain things to happen in a game they were running. ALL money went toward charity, but for one game, you could donate to the "save the animals" fund or "kill the animals." (Don't worry, they were virtual animals, no real animals were at risk!) The game was going to be played through anyway and all money went toward the same thing, but perhaps something like this could be implemented? I donated to Kill the Animals and got an exclusive t-shirt. :3
To bring this sort of thing to gameplay: think of a mini-event like.. Owlites and Black Kat ghosts rise and are fighting near Haven. You can choose which side to help, donating either energy or crowns for their ghostly supplies, and whichever side at the end of the event has raised the most money, a different effect will happen. Perhaps the people who donated to the winning side get a specific weapon/shield, losing side has to try again next time. (There's potential to have bigger/better rewards for donating even more crowns/energy but again, shuts out certain groups of players. It'd depend on what rewards were given out but something akin to the reskinned Leviathan line we got a while back might be sufficient?)
Granted, this is just one idea. There's dozens of ways this could be implemented, too.
Gremlins are attacking Haven, and the Spiral Order needs the knights to pull together and donate to help keep the Gremlins at bay! Pay crowns or energy to help build/repair walls and fend them off. If we can spend enough money to fortify the walls successfully, perhaps there'd be prizes in store for the contributing knights, etc. These events can be cyclical, happening every couple of months, so if you miss out on one, you can always come back for the next one and try again.
Seriously this could help build up lore in lacking areas, too, or even bring up MORE questions, depending on what is used/brought up. Almire Legions could escape the Firestorm Citadel and wreak havoc across Cradle, "swarms" of specific enemies could start cropping up all over, the Swarm itself could be involved, etc. Lots of potential.
The unfortunate part of this is that these aren't exactly "simple or efficient" as you mentioned in the OP, as coding brings upon a whole new set of issues, and OOO has been looking to hire a new coder for quite some time, so they're effectively down a body as it is. Redesigning items is frankly a much more efficient system for them to do and doesn't detract as much effort from the gunner updates/new T3 boss.
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 11:26
#4
I personally don't much like the nature of Kickstarter.
I never mentionned new mechanics, simply new content. Furnitures and basic, normal weapons and gears like the Deluxe Starter Pack ones (which come unbound) are good examples.
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 11:34
#5
I misread then I guess, I
I misread then I guess, I took new content as new GAME content, not new items. And especially since you don't want more reskins, new items.. a little tougher to do. ;w; (Especially because again, limiting new items to paying players brings a whole group of disgruntled free players forward. Even with unbound items, "oh my gawd this costs too much!!" etc. but, the Deluxe Starter Pack was at the very least a good compromise for all.)
New furniture would be cool, there's always something fancy we could have for guild halls. There was a suggestion recently for enemy statues, not just boss statues, which could be a fun addition.
Another pack like the now-defunct Explorer Pack would be nifty. Get a unique costume piece (or box with rando stuff inside perhaps), some keys, and energy for a set price. I liked having extra packs I could purchase if I was feeling spendy. ;w; Now that I bought my Deluxe Starter Pack there's no more extra packs I can buy, haha.
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 17:40
#6
Mineral Booster?
Why not a mineral booster? As far as I know there isn't one and they certainly would find use.
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 17:43
#7
I thought of the kickstarter thing once. I really wish they'd do that to complement energy purchases. Where like, you can put your money towards various goals they have set up. Arcade redux could be "sped up" if we put all our money towards it.
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 19:30
#8
@Trollingyou
Mineral booster
- Usable
- +1 mineral; 2 Crimsonites -> 3 Crimsonites
- Applies to everyone in the party
- Can stack with boosters from other party members
- Temporary; 1 day, 2-day, and 7-day boosters
Mon, 05/19/2014 - 20:08
#9
Unless you're planning to mass-craft pet snacks, i don't see this being very popular.
Tue, 05/20/2014 - 15:51
#10
You know, they could just, like, add new content to the game. But that's probably too a foreign concept.
Tue, 05/20/2014 - 16:13
#11
/cough
Lack of developers
/cough
Tue, 05/20/2014 - 20:23
#12
How well did the Elite Trinket Prize Boxes sell anyway?
@Sandwich-Potato Seeing how they manage to push so many cosmetics at such a frequent pace lately, I doubt that's much of an issue if they use that time and effort for different content or collectibles. In fact, I'm certain they have the time, ressources and wits to start regularly delivering different promotions and collectibles it within this sort of arbitrary limit while still working on major projects.
Collecting practical items such as furnitures and gears fills a greater replayability purpose in the long run, which gives more general incentive for purchasing them than cosmetics. I just want OOO to be give them a stronger focus around, since they offer and encourage a more interactive and functional experience the game sorely needs more of to provide for us, the players.
Re-implementing oRSS. Nerfing Acheron.