As a casual player, after I log in, It takes hours to do the daily dungeons/skirmishes/campaigns. After that I simply don't have the time or energy to do anything else, and more often than not I log out. And that's only on one character!
The big culprit is making enough AD to improve your character, and the only alternative is spending more money on zen. Now this may be a welcome thing to hear by the game company, but please think about this.
If a player simply doesn't have the time it takes to make AD, doesn't have the means buy loads of zen, the game might as well be pay to win, and you're going to lose players. I recently came back after a years hiatus or so. I've played for several weeks now, enjoying the (for me new) loadouts, but again I'm already feeling a burnout coming.
It doesn't have to be like this. There are so many ways to make money from games without implementing drastic measures.
- Lower the prices and players will buy more. 50$ for a cool mount? No! It's too expensive! 1$ for a key? No! Not with the impossible chances to win something useful.
- Don't let "customers" feel forced to spend money. They will leave.
- Move the heal/buff potions to the cash shop, and make them cheap. 999 pots for 1$. I know I would buy some.
These are just some options, but the most important thing is to make the cash shop accessible for even the poor players. And by doing so, you may very well eliminate the gold sellers as well. Anyone has a few bucks to spare monthly, and I'm speaking from experience. I'm not rich, I don't even have a savings account, but at the end of the month I do have something left for fun things. But with the current shop prices in Neverwinter I simply can't afford to buy anything. It's not rocket science. Games don't last forever, and spending loads of money on a game that may be canceled on a whim is kinda stupid. But spending around 10 bucks per month to increase your experience is okay, and with a big player base this should be more than enough.
Neverwinter has many good things, and this is the main reason I even came back, but there's also much room for improvement.
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I do understand where OP is coming from, though. I recently just came back from module 6. I'm doing what... 5? 6 campaigns at the same time? I burnout after my dailies are finished and either do one dungeon or nothing at all, then log off.
said already.
Second, I personally never feel I was forced to spend money. Not now and not when I started to play in the very beginning. You just need to plan out how to do so.
Third, $1 means 100 Zen. 100 Zen means 50000 AD. 50000 AD / 10 = 5000 AD. I don't think it takes 5000 AD to buy 99 pot in AH. I have been selling "regular" heal/buff potions and I could not sell them anywhere close to that price.
You'll reach rank 12 ViP at some point, and then just keep enough ZEN banked to get another full year ViP when it's on sale again.
Not to mention seasonal events, like the Winter Festival, that can deliver you a ton of AD through a few decents drops, just don't try to sell your loot during the event, rather wait a few months and then sell the stuff for a good price.
Most people who claim "bahh nobody is selling Zen because I don't see any listings" are just ignorant of how the exchange works.
Neverwinter Census 2017
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"That car? Yeah, she's a real beauty. Nope. Can't sell it to ya, belongs to someone. Might can get ya one like it. Might take a few months, tho."
It's more like buying a sandwich than a car. You're just waiting for your turn.
Neverwinter Census 2017
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Born of Black Wind: SW Level 80
If you get caught up in the endgame chase you will not enjoy the ride. Its that simple. I started Neverwinter way back during beta and only now I have 1 character that can be considered bis with several alts at different stages (because I have been spilling my resources over many characters over the years). The one thing I'm not happy with, besides lag, is the alt unfriendliness which forced to me to play only 1 toon IF I want to have it developed to the max.
Bottom line your game experience, see if something is fun for you and do that..or leave in search of better venues. Best advice I can give atm.
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I for one, would not burn out as quickly as I usually do when new content is released, if this was reality.
Also: maybe you should try focusing on just one or two campaigns, instead of all of them?
I mean, it's not like all the campaigns have awesome boons. I'd say that for character progression, the AD and weapon grind are the two most important things to focus on, and since you've already fallen so far behind, just go for TCA weapons instead of those from SKT, since they are more than good enough for all of the current content, also iirc, SKT OH isn't granted 2xRP from your old OH, ever. Aboleth for DPS class, Fey for support class, Mirage if you want to HAMSTER people off in PvP, with the added chance of getting turned in to a chicken if you're low on HP. I guess tanky tactician GF could do well with Fireforged. These are my opinions though. Others might disagree.
Yes, MMO is synonymous to grind, I know that too But there's no harm in pleading for better times right?
And yes, the expensive mounts are account wide. I overlooked that feature.
The price suggestion of pots for zen was just an example, not thought through. But I really do think cash shops can make good money by selling cheap. Unless the game company is going for a quick cash grab, and only care about the big spenders.
Get 1 each of Fey, Dragon Hoard... some like Quartermaster but I don't use them...
and above all Wanderer's.