SSG: Please confirm if there will be Rare Loot Mechanic for "The Chill of Ravenloft"

[Smokewolf]

How well do most mass protest movements work when they require carefully coordinated, disciplined responses that are in conflict with normal human impulses... combined with no way of actually broadcasting those strategies to the population as a whole?

I'm not suggesting that anyone coordinate as that could breach the ToS in some way.

What I am saying is that its not what you type in forums that matters, but how you respond to things that are in game. In other words, its a personal choice to accept the monetization or not, by acting accordingly in game. IF enough people did that, then yes, I think SSG would finally get the hint that the changes to the loot mechanics are not welcome, nor conducive to the games long term viability.

 

[Elminster]

All of the above is correct.

Games companies run on stats, for every shard reroll, for every ransack reset purchase, you may think, “what’s the harm? No one is watching.”

Well, I’m afraid they are watching, and it’s louder and more vibrant than a million forum whine posts or memes.

 

[Bobbryan2]

All of the above is correct.

Games companies run on stats, for every shard reroll, for every ransack reset purchase, you may think, “what’s the harm? No one is watching.”

Well, I’m afraid they are watching, and it’s louder and more vibrant than a million forum whine posts or memes.

You underestimate the power of a million whiny forum posts.
Casters still can't kill anything on R10, atm.

 

[Vua]

I am for rare loot. In fact, I was a large proponent of its implementation and rarity before Myth Drannor was released. (puts flame retardant suit on)

From a heartless, non emotional, pure metric perspective, EVERY mention of the rare loot is a positive reinforcement of its success. If it was unremarkable, it would not be remarked upon. If it was not (as) rare, its absence would not be lamented. It is rare enough, and it causes great longing. It is special and it rewards the player emotionally when it is found.

I am happy with the rare loot currently in the game. It is an almost perfect roll out of the idea. And, as you've seen by now, there is/are/will be more ways to acquire or at least reduce the time required to acquire it.

Rare loot works. You like it, you really do. Every post is from a part of you that just wants it and wants it now. Working as intended.

Too bad they fixed your account issue.

 

[Jack Jarvis Esquire]

I'm no sure why they felt the need to change from protocols that had worked pretty well without complaints previously, and what I really don't get is them doubling down in persisting with this nonsense when it's clearly not welcomed by many. Experimentation is fine, but you should call it a day when the experiment fails.

Even for folks who seem to like it, I doubt they would have massive issues if SSG reverted to the older protocols. After all I don't recall any clamour for change in this regard.

At this point, persisting with the nonsense just seems to me like an exercise in trying to piss people off. And it's working!

 

[Guntango]

amazing. its like you said this already

You should start a new thread.

 

[Hobgoblin]

You should start a new thread.

im told we arnt supposed to

 

[Bobbryan2]

I am for rare loot. In fact, I was a large proponent of its implementation and rarity before Myth Drannor was released. (puts flame retardant suit on)

From a heartless, non emotional, pure metric perspective, EVERY mention of the rare loot is a positive reinforcement of its success. If it was unremarkable, it would not be remarked upon. If it was not (as) rare, its absence would not be lamented. It is rare enough, and it causes great longing. It is special and it rewards the player emotionally when it is found.

I am happy with the rare loot currently in the game. It is an almost perfect roll out of the idea. And, as you've seen by now, there is/are/will be more ways to acquire or at least reduce the time required to acquire it.

Rare loot works. You like it, you really do. Every post is from a part of you that just wants it and wants it now. Working as intended.

And here we have the perfect illustration of why it's so important to pick the correct metrics for measuring success.

Mindos, here, makes the appropriate connection that many of the forum posts are bred from desire. In this case, desire of the rare item. Mindos also makes the cursory observation that desire as a motivation is a great thing in video games.

But then, we attribute success of that marketing strategy with the existence of forum posts lambasting the system. Now we have, what some in the business would call, a perverse incentive structure. Because we've decided that angry customers are the metric by which success is measured, our best outcomes are achieved by angering customers enough to post rants, but not to quit.

And, as most posts of this ilk, finishes the logical argument with the, "You know I'm right. You really do." Telling people that they don't actually feel the way they do, but they're pretending to and merely need to be pressured into agreeing with you is the hallmark of the most persuasive arguments.

Thanks for such an illustrative post!

 

[Guntango]

without complaints previously

I don’t think DDO devs have ever been free from complaints going back to 2006.

 

[norriskwondo]

You can't buy cheeseburgers at Pizza Hut, so companies can't always give customers everything they want. But the point of a business is that customers give you money, and you give them what they want and paid for. This is essentially the overall problem with the rare loot mechanic, the rare loot should be rare yes, but unobtainable is something else. No one is asking that you give us something you can't give us, we are all however, asking that you give us what we paid for. Like previously stated by someone already, it's the bottom line that matters in order stay in business. Lack of transparency with the product so many paid for and a refusal to break said product WILL drive customers to not give you their money.

 

[Griglok]

I wish we had less thread on this topic.

 

[GrizzlyOso]

I wish we had less thread on this topic.

Ssg could easily make that a reality !

 

[Oliphant]

I'm no sure why they felt the need to change from protocols that had worked pretty well without complaints previously, and what I really don't get is them doubling down in persisting with this nonsense when it's clearly not welcomed by many. Experimentation is fine, but you should call it a day when the experiment fails.

Even for folks who seem to like it, I doubt they would have massive issues if SSG reverted to the older protocols. After all I don't recall any clamour for change in this regard.

At this point, persisting with the nonsense just seems to me like an exercise in trying to piss people off. And it's working!

Investors should see this as a sign they are spiraling down the revenue drain and are desperate. Sell!

 

[Weaponalpha]

Not "1 million whiny forum posters" 10. 10 whiny forum posters. No, let's say 12 and make a song out of it! "The 12 days of Whining!"

I'll go first:

"On the first day of Whining DDO gave to me,
a rare loot system evil as can be!"

 

[Oliphant]

There's money to be made in a warzone, but not every business is Popeye's material.

 

[Sylvado]

You originally started by saying, "What loot storage problem," and then quickly (1 post) segued into your particular method for dealing with the problem you claim you can't even see... in this case, a robust 30 alternate character spaces used to do nothing more than hold the inventory, carefully curated away on bank characters with names that indicate what treasures they hold.

Yeah, dude... it sounds like everything working great. This is why most games have you create 35 additional characters when your main character doesn't want to sell a neat sword they found but don't want to use.

So in your opinion we should be able to store 2000 items on a single character for no charge?

 

[Bobbryan2]

So in your opinion we should be able to store 2000 items on a single character for no charge?

Where, in god's green earth, did you get that nonsense?

 

[Vua]

Where, in god's green earth, did you get that nonsense?

Just say yes. We should be able to store what we want at no charge to VIPs and a way to do it as free to play player that has paid for stuff. Damn you and your alcohol Troll, I can't think of the word. Now non VIPs should have to pay for it, but not in bite sized pieces attached to the most expensive items in the game. You should be able to buy THE expanded bank space.

 

[Wizard]

So in your opinion we should be able to store 2000 items on a single character for no charge?

Genshin, Honkai Star Rail etc. do it. In the latter you have 3000 slots for equipment and 1500 for weapons. They are also very f2p friendly.

MMO wise WoW, FFXIV, SWTOR etc. offer more than enough storage if you are subscriber.

DDO is the only MMO I know of where you need to deal with dozens of mules (or become a minimalist and pay a lot for shared storage).

 

[Solarpower]

So in your opinion we should be able to store 2000 items on a single character for no charge?

If the game requires players to have 2000 items, then yes, we should be able to store them all.