The notion that lower c-bill earnings will bind players more to the game
[since they have a longer time with each Mech, hence more bonding; ed. add for explanation] is nonsense. In an other thread, someone mentioned it was ok when rookies are not able to buy everything so early. But we are not talking about 4 weeks until someone has earned 40 mechs, but we are talking half a year of hard core gaming for beginners until someone has the 7 Mech sets (3 pieces each) currently en vogue - and that is without the modules. Additionally, you would need MC worth about 50 US dollar for mechbays and maybe premium time.
But what can a player do during this time apart from endless grinding?
Granted, he can try to improve grinding along with a team. But what is in for him after half a year? Farm for the next 21 mechs? Maybe there are even enough teams that are ok with it - that is ok really. But many do simply want more conent: tournaments, eventy, role playing, dropping for planets, rankings or leagues. Many do crave for more diversity instead of the so called full meta.
However, that is limited by MWO itself: It does not not offer that kind of content via CW, tournaments or rankings - which is offered outside of MWO. Who in NA will want to play CW when NBT comes on line again? But planetary leagues and ladders need and want diversity, even when played with a low temporal investment. No one only wants to see only TBR and DWRs - or drive them exclusively.
The kind of content mentioned above is what keeps people attracted to the game mid to long term. The game needs people that do invest a thousand dollars or more, that do leave their wifes sitting in the living room watching TV. The game cannot survive with players that after six months' grind get the boot from their drop leader or from an (automatically?) enforced rule, telling them sorry, you cannot come along, you do not have the right mech any more (due to changing meta).
There are quite a lot of talented players with low or no money who would love to play competitively but who are turned down by low diversity, or who lack the time an/or money to grind-chase the ever changing quirks or meta.
And please do not try and tell us that people play games just out of boredom - every game only thrives from exictement and small success stories, be it soccer, pc games, chess or elementary school sack race.
So scaling down C-Bill income is just the wrong turn!
Edited by grayson marik, 23 August 2015 - 05:32 AM.