91 replies to this topic

[TheArisen]

You're the one making a claim, the burden of proof lies with you PJ. Unsolved issues could just as easily be caused by a smaller company trying to bite off more than they can chew and then getting backlogged. If you want to call them lazy, you also have to prove they had enough time/people to get those goals done. You could at least explain why it can't be caused by a small company going for to much.

BTW, a bunch of assertions doesn't equal evidence.

[Pjwned]

TheArisen, on 04 May 2015 - 01:31 AM, said:

You're the one making a claim, the burden of proof lies with you PJ. Unsolved issues could just as easily be caused by a smaller company trying to bite off more than they can chew and then getting backlogged. If you want to call them lazy, you also have to prove they had enough time/people to get those goals done. You could at least explain why it can't be caused by a small company going for to much.

BTW, a bunch of assertions doesn't equal evidence.

ECM was supposedly going to be changed but then nothing happened.

LB cannon ammo switching was going to be a feature for clans but it turns out PGI's incompetence made it difficult and they're too lazy to fix it.

PGI openly admits that the current penalty for destroying 20% of a clan XL engine is not enough, too lazy to adjust it properly.

NARC was supposed to have an indicator on the victim's screen that they have a NARC attached to them, nowhere to be seen still despite being such a simple addition.

EDIT: Russ confirmed that NARC will finally have a HUD indicator in the next patch, so that's 1 simple issue solved that could've easily been implemented months ago but better than never.

Maps have been overdue for revisions for a long time and PGI said quite a while ago they wanted to do it, but their only progress is fixing 1 crappy map and who knows when it will be done.

The skill tree was supposed to be redone a long time ago and even still there's a completely useless Elite skill in there (Pinpoint) and no details whatsoever about redoing it other than in a Town Hall where Russ basically said "maybe we'll work on it at some point" i.e never.

Proper tutorials and a mech lab UI that aren't a steaming pile of garbage have been LONG overdue to be fixed and are only just now starting to be worked on a bit, and it's still not known when those will be fully released.

Show me how not fixing all of these things, which is not even a full list of issues by any means, isn't laziness when they've had months and months (in some cases, years) to fix them and didn't.

As far as biting off more than they can chew, I suppose that's possible but if that doesn't indicate laziness then it highlights their incompetence even further than I've already claimed, and either way you don't have any examples to back up your claim.

Edited by Pjwned, 04 May 2015 - 01:14 PM.

[StraferX]

I will not deny that the beginner experience is awful and that the skill tree has long been left to waste and the cleaning up of the maps is long long over due but that is not the point of this thread. The idea here is to generate some things that can help PGI to make funds. I gave a short list of some that I liked with others that i do not like like $$$ DLC. The thread for bashing PGI in the teeth is --------> that way, this one is for constructive ideas thanks.

That is not to say that fixing many of the long time issues would open up some wallets but here we want new fresh ideas.

[Pjwned]

StraferX, on 04 May 2015 - 03:16 AM, said:

I will not deny that the beginner experience is awful and that the skill tree has long been left to waste and the cleaning up of the maps is long long over due but that is not the point of this thread. The idea here is to generate some things that can help PGI to make funds. I gave a short list of some that I liked with others that i do not like like $$$ DLC. The thread for bashing PGI in the teeth is --------> that way, this one is for constructive ideas thanks.

That is not to say that fixing many of the long time issues would open up some wallets but here we want new fresh ideas.

Let's talk more about ideas that have largely been shot down already then.

PGI is not licensed to sell merchandise so that's out the window, and even if they could what would they sell and how good would it be and how much demand would there be etc.

DLC content is a bad idea, splitting up the playerbase is stupid and the cash shop is already loaded out the ass with things to buy so it doesn't need more other than more cosmetic stuff maybe.

In-game ads are an even worse idea and would result in a tasteless, weak advertising effort from barely any companies (if any at all) while making a huge chunk of the playerbase furious.

There was a tournament when MWO "launched" some time ago and it went terribly, there's no reason to suspect another tournament wouldn't turn out the same way; I'd also like to mention that there have been accusations of cheating in a player run tournament (with a prize pool) that's been going on lately, though I don't know how true that is.

Pay to win ammo packs for MC? Give me a break...

A monthly sub fee? Sure, let's completely change the entire foundation of the business model for a game that's extremely lacking in content and where features such as community warfare are years late and still in beta...I'm sure that will turn out well.

The one idea I sort of like is team sponsored advertisements or whatever, which may be coming in the form of decals at some point and could be expanded on further maybe; this is not a bad way to go if PGI really does need more revenue streams, though I think their priorities are better suited in other areas.

I guess there's some other ideas that were discussed too like custom geometry but I don't have too much insight on those ideas at the moment.

Edited by Pjwned, 04 May 2015 - 12:38 PM.

[Molossian Dog]

Pjwned, on 04 May 2015 - 04:03 AM, said:

...DLC content is a bad idea, splitting up the playerbase is stupid and the cash shop is already loaded out the ass with things to buy so it doesn't need more...

DLCs do not neccessarily split up the playerbase.

If Paradox Interactive can make different versions compatible and basic gameplay features accessible to those who haven´t bought the DLC, why can´t PGI?

Oh wait.

PGI...

My bad, carry on.

[Scyther]

The same way every other successful game makes money: EXPAND THE PLAYERBASE.

You can produce all the mech packs you want but if your playerbase isn't growing steadily you are in a dead-end street. If your playerbase isn't growing steadily it means your game has some fundamental shortfalls that must be addressed, or you can start preparing your resume for your next project.

PGI has to take their eyes off the "what is our next income injection pack gonna be?" goals and really focus on the things that make an MMO sustainable:

- New player experience (the first 7-60 days, which is when most players decide if they will spend money)
- Better 'incremental progress' - at the moment, the chunks of C-Bills and XP and GXP needed to advance anything significant are too large to give much 'instant gratification' input (and the 'progress rewards' - skill trees etc - are not tangible enough).
- Some sort of PvE experience added to/alongside the whole Community Warfare/Faction Map thing would be huge.
- A 'smaller team' objective (possibly tied to the PvE mode) so that people can group up 2-6 chosen teammates and go do something fun together other than "be a small part of a larger battle".
- Better 'battle history/log'. Most heavy combat/shooter players are very stat/performance focused, yet unless you stick in a battle to the end you have no idea how an earlier match turned out.
- Community building tools: mostly in-game chat function. People stay in games because of the *people they know and talk to* in it. As it stands, for the most part, in MWO you have to go OUTSIDE THE GAME to even communicate with another player or ask a question or say "Hello I am new here". This is just tossing one of the largest game draws right out the window.

If they can't address some of these issues, then they might as well start projecting their closing date right now. A limited playerbase is only going to buy 'new mech packs' for so long.

(More in spirit of the OP's direct request, they should sell an item that allows player to reset or start a new set of statistics for a mech or possibly even a weapon type, so they can see what their 'current' stats in it are as opposed to all the early/stock/prior build stats that they have moved beyond.)

[AlexEss]

Molossian Dog, on 04 May 2015 - 04:28 AM, said:

DLCs do not neccessarily split up the playerbase.

If Paradox Interactive can make different versions compatible and basic gameplay features accessible to those who haven´t bought the DLC, why can´t PGI?

Oh wait.

PGI...

My bad, carry on.

Well the initial suggestion was DLC Maps.. And anyone who has played Battlefield knows why that is a god awful idea.

Now a cosmetic DLC pack otoh could work... A custom model of a existing mech (not moving any hardpoints or anything.. just how it looks) some nice paint tones and a set of cockpit items. Question is how you make it sell well enough to not only match the cost of making it but also make a pretty penny.

[Molossian Dog]

Closed Beta Graphics DLC, 20 $, here you go.

You don´t even have to pay me any royalities for the idea, PGI.

Edited by Molossian Dog, 04 May 2015 - 06:24 AM.

[Scratx]

StraferX, on 01 May 2015 - 07:27 AM, said:

With the frequency of the mech packs that are being released and the extremely high cost we all know that PGI needs a lot of money to maintain quality operations. My question, what are some other ideas that could be implemented to generate cash that would reduce the cost of ingame merchandise?

1. A real life merchandise store that sold coffee mugs, t-shirts, hats, hoodies, posters and miniature mechs etc.

2. DLC content like new game mode to include 20 maps

3. In game advertisement. The citadel could become Intel Citadel, HGP Manifold could become ASUS HGP Manifold. Mining collective becomes Thermaltake Cooling Solutions etc.

4. Team sponsored advertisement. $500 team donation to randomly generate team logo or just tag as graffiti on buildings, on the lic plates of the cars in river city, a sleeping pod in HGP, a holding tank in Caustic? OR just $5 to have my team logo on my mech or $20 for custom team paint scheme that I could put on any mech I wanted.

5. MWO sponsored pay tournament. $20 per team to join, winners win in game consumables announcer gets small cash the rest to PGI.

Feel free to add your ideas or tell me why I am wrong. I want PGI to succeed and I want much more content and I want all the mechs however it is becoming increasingly difficult to fork out the $80 for mechs when we lack quality content, gameplay and graphics.

1 - Not happening, they only have the DIGITAL rights.

2 - ... I should've just stopped reading here, but... Look, this one is a particularly horrible idea. Pay to BE STUCK IN QUEUE or have INFERIOR MATCHMAKING BALANCE? Most people will not buy those maps, you know, which drastically shrinks the player pop eligible to play on them. Ignoring the technical issue that this would possibly require adding more matchmaking buckets (hint, NOT HAPPENING)...

3 - At this point I'm not sure if you're trolling.

4 - Hmm, not 100% sure what you're suggesting here, but decals on mechs are already back-end supported, it's just UI work that remains. I'm sure there will be MC decal options and possibly a decal submission system for those of us who want unique decals. Such an option will certainly be MC or even outright $$$ based, though, because PGI will have to look at the decal to verify it's not an immature joke, if you get the drift, and that means paying someone to do the job... which means it costs them money. As for some of the other suggestions, I'm not going to spend time telling you why they're not a good idea. License plate advertisement? lol. Good luck seeing it.

5 - On the surface seems a good idea but without a lawyer looking at it I wouldn't even think of touching it. And not sure it's worth the hassle, either. It will need either manual involvement from PGI (thus needing man-hours to manage) or the development of tools to support it (thus needing development man-hours) or worse, both. There's indication that at least some work is being done or planned for helping support tournament-based play, though, so can't be ruled out.


Honestly, I want the game to succeed too. Mechpack system seems to work, but it probably is going to need a sustained influx of new players. The more packs I buy the less reason I have to buy the next... so many mechs already in my little Castle Brian (where else am I going to keep them? ) and not enough time to play them all. Le sigh.

[Jetfire]

Tahribator, on 01 May 2015 - 07:40 AM, said:

• Allow people to make their 'Mechs semi-heroes with increased C-Bill gain for MC (not much, maybe 10%). I'd buy it for several of my chassis.

Bingo, you add a module slot to every mech for a CB and EXP boost. They are purchasable for MC and permanently lock into the slot once equipped. I would actually make them equal to the Hero or Champ mech gains. Hero's would still be special.

[lol lol lol lol lol lol lol lol]

TheArisen, on 04 May 2015 - 12:02 AM, said:

Do you have actual evidence of pgi being lazy? Or Is it just your assumption/supposition?

http://www.mwomercs.com/theplan

QED?

*note* My evidence is only at 15%, however it is currently in production and in consideration for further review. I'm looking at hopefully having something completed around the time of the end of fall.

Edited by 00ohDstruct, 04 May 2015 - 06:46 PM.