The thing is, in my most humble opinion, I don't agree that these aspects are mandatory purchases.
I never, not once, felt my other potions weren't adequate in all the time I spent testing.
I also don't see respecs being required. There are certain merits to the complaints but many experienced with Cryptic say those things get addressed. Most of the complaints will likely be solved in short order or are nothing more than fearing Cryptic won't continue long standing business practices. If they don't trust me I'll be backing you guys up.
Respecs shouldn't be free or common. They should only be used if you have to. I personally don't see me using a single respec unless Cryptic forces me to in which case they will likely be free.
Remember, we're playing a D&D Game here. It's also an MMO so concessions have to be made and I promise the hardcore D&D player base is making plenty.
The fact you can respec at all is, to many, a concession.
That's my best advice, understand it's not all about money.
It comes down to the fact this is both a D&D game and an MMO, too.
Things that should be in a cash shop are cosmetics and speed boosts.
Everything else should be atainable for free. if not, then it is paying to win.
Look at DOTA 2, they only sell cosmetics and make 1,000x what this game will ever make. League of legends same thing. Selling cosmetics is what makes the most money and keeps players happy and even, no paying to win BS.
They could sell mounts, pets that look cool as hell, but selling ones that are stronger for money , is pay to win. Selling things that help you fight from LVL1 that free players can't get til much later, also pay to win.
XP boost, gold boost, that is fine. It just makes it go faster, but instantly buying things that make you stronger = again pay to win.
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silvergryphMember, NW M9 PlaytestPosts: 740Arc User
Everything else should be atainable for free. if not, then it is paying to win.
Everything in Neverwinter is attainable for free. (Except of course for any "exclusive" items from Founder's packs or other sources.) Therefore it is not pay to win by your own definition. I suspect my definition varies from yours. But, Neverwinter is not P2W by my definition either.
Look at DOTA 2, they only sell cosmetics and make 1,000x what this game will ever make. League of legends same thing. Selling cosmetics is what makes the most money and keeps players happy and even, no paying to win BS.
They could sell mounts, pets that look cool as hell, but selling ones that are stronger for money , is pay to win. Selling things that help you fight from LVL1 that free players can't get til much later, also pay to win.
XP boost, gold boost, that is fine. It just makes it go faster, but instantly buying things that make you stronger = again pay to win.
I love when folks just make up numbers to support their own views. 1,000x what Neverwinter will make? Since you did not know DOTA 2's profit figures when you made the post, much less how much NO will make, your assumption is so ridiculous that it makes responding to you akin to arguing with a comatose individual. Still, it does pass the time.
An exp boost (making leveling faster, thus the content easier) is fine with you, but a companion at 1st level (making the content easier) is not? It is not like you can use the companions against other players. And since you can acquire a companion at 16th level (which only takes a handful of gameplay hours despite your claim of "much later"), you are hardly paying to win. If you can't get to 16th without a companion, then you should stick to playing tic-tac-toe.
Considering all the other games managed by perfectworld that Ive played, I dont expect this game to be any different. High price mounts/items and gambling boxes seem to be the norm. If people want to spend money on it Im fine with it, personally I dont enjoy grinding that much for cash shop and the main reason why I give up on their games and quit. Theres no way to keep up with others eventually that paid for their things in cash.
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johnny305Member, Neverwinter Beta UsersPosts: 0Arc User
I love when folks just make up numbers to support their own views. 1,000x what Neverwinter will make? Since you did not know DOTA 2's profit figures when you made the post, much less how much NO will make, your assumption is so ridiculous that it makes responding to you akin to arguing with a comatose individual. Still, it does pass the time.
An exp boost (making leveling faster, thus the content easier) is fine with you, but a companion at 1st level (making the content easier) is not? It is not like you can use the companions against other players. And since you can acquire a companion at 16th level (which only takes a handful of gameplay hours despite your claim of "much later"), you are hardly paying to win. If you can't get to 16th without a companion, then you should stick to playing tic-tac-toe.
XP boost means the player has to still work at the game but lvls up faster. A companion at lvl 1 is instant power without putting in any effort, just putting in money. Big difference. Makes the person a lot stronger than a free player.
Also, I do know the profits for DOTA 2, use google see how much valve is making off DOTA2 and TF2 items. This game will never come close to that as millions of players login to DOTA 2 per month(look on their front page for exact number).
"If you can't get to 16th without a companion, then you should stick to playing tic-tac-toe." -- Exactly my point. People that are gonna buy the companion at lvl 1 should have to play without one til 16 like everyone else, if not let them go play tic tac toe huh?
XP boost means the player has to still work at the game but lvls up faster. A companion at lvl 1 is instant power without putting in any effort, just putting in money. Big difference. Makes the person a lot stronger than a free player.
Also, I do know the profits for DOTA 2, use google see how much valve is making off DOTA2 and TF2 items. This game will never come close to that as millions of players login to DOTA 2 per month(look on their front page for exact number).
You can of course use Google to get figures. I'm pointing out that you did not before making the post. Those figures also assume the company is not fudging any numbers (ala WoW's long inflated sub numbers). In any case, that still gives you no idea of how much NO will make. You can make any assumption you like. That does not make it fact.
I agree that the XP boost still does require that you play the game. But you do not need a companion to level up to 16th. It isn't even like playing without the companion makes you risk death (I have not had one pre-16th in the beta weekends). The exp boost means that I'll be 20th when you hit 16th. Is that really less cool than the companion?
F2p is like when I got invited to a free dance, the dancing was free, but I had to buy the drinks!
The thing is these people are working to pay for rent and food and support family's like most of us here. We can all state what we think should included in the game for free, but the company that is offering the "free " service gets to make the choice of what they deem is appropriate. I know there is many mature responses on here and that's great. But understand that cryptic is not a non-profit orginzation and commend them for making a fun game, regardless of what you may feel your entitled too.
Actual research shows if you include things in the shop that actually give a marginal advantage, your ARPU goes up. Perfect World's total revenues are comparable to Valve's, and PW only has 12 games, all F2P. This despite Valve's customer base being much larger.
why not just make a respec token free with any purchase in the zen shop of every 10 dollars worth of zen spent in the store. This both encourages people to buy and spend zen but also makes respecs escentially freebees for dedication to the game itself. Everybody wins, Devs get paid, Customers get the items they want+ freebee essentials. + on top of this i doubt everyone will use the respect tokens meaning more will be bought and sold in the NW market meaning that even F2P only people can reasonably afford them just a few months after launch.
why not just make a respec token free with any purchase in the zen shop of every 10 dollars worth of zen spent in the store. This both encourages people to buy and spend zen but also makes respecs escentially freebees for dedication to the game itself. Everybody wins, Devs get paid, Customers get the items they want+ freebee essentials. + on top of this i doubt everyone will use the respect tokens meaning more will be bought and sold in the NW market meaning that even F2P only people can reasonably afford them just a few months after launch.
That's actually a really good idea. I presume you mean you get 1 token if 10+ $ is spent in a single transaction, and not 1 per 10$ spent in a single transaction.
How much do clothes cost in the Matrix?
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berserkerkitten8Member, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Hero Users, Neverwinter Guardian Users, Neverwinter Knight of the Feywild UsersPosts: 0Arc User
edited April 2013
Or hand out a free respec token every ten or so levels? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that's how STO did it.
Those of you that wish to believe that the current zen market is completely viable are delusional and it will drive a good amount of players away when they see x prices and y items sold and compare it to other F2P games only to ask themselves why should I even bother.
- $40 for a mount when WoW (market standard) is $25 for the same type of product.
- $30 for a companion which they justify as saving months of normal gameplay, which lets face it when you can hit 60 in a week why is there such a road block on a henchmen hardly worth using at later levels.
- $10 for a 24 slot bag when there are 11 runes/enchantments with 5+ tiers which is well over 50 inventory slots not including other consumbale kits, scrolls, potions, alters, etc. Also lets cover that their are character bound and tradeable versions of all these items taking up even more space.
- $5 respec limiting gameplay variations in build and character design which takes away from the whole D&D customization feel imo and then to note that GW2 has NO respec fee. Especially when the BW4 system will force atleast 1 respec on new players as they are wasting points to just unlock a skill to figure out how it works and if it works for them.
There is even a post in a zen market thread comparing items from the Neverwinter market to the STO market and in every case all items are 25-50% more expensive which only exemplifies GREED hands down!
The best solution I have seen posted (which I can't find currently) would be to lower prices so it opens up possible purchases from more players while simultaneously putting more of a certain type of item to purchase. IE: If there are 5 companions for $30 most players will completely ignore them when comparing that expenditure to something else but if you make 30 companions for $5 you open up the market for players who would not have spent anything while also getting the same amount of money from others whom purchase multiple companions and then also purchase other related items like companion slots.
Another idea I have had would be to work with wizards of the coast in gaining access to particular campaign missions that have been made through the years and implementing them in game through the foundry but charging $1 a mission (campaigns can be made up of 5+ missions).
That's actually a really good idea. I presume you mean you get 1 token if 10+ $ is spent in a single transaction, and not 1 per 10$ spent in a single transaction.
Exactly essentially 1 token per 1,000 zen spent in the store (1 dollar = 100 zen) spend another 1,000 zen get another token... Spend 5,000 get 5 very simple. could be accumulative over all purchases with zen over X time or only purchases of 1,000 zen and up. Doesn't really matter as their are companions, mounts, and other such vanity items that would fullfill this requirement.
Those of you that wish to believe that the current zen market is completely viable are delusional and it will drive a good amount of players away when they see x prices and y items sold and compare it to other F2P games only to ask themselves why should I even bother.
- $40 for a mount when WoW (market standard) is $25 for the same type of product.
- $30 for a companion which they justify as saving months of normal gameplay, which lets face it when you can hit 60 in a week why is there such a road block on a henchmen hardly worth using at later levels.
- $10 for a 24 slot bag when there are 11 runes/enchantments with 5+ tiers which is well over 50 inventory slots not including other consumbale kits, scrolls, potions, alters, etc. Also lets cover that their are character bound and tradeable versions of all these items taking up even more space.
- $5 respec limiting gameplay variations in build and character design which takes away from the whole D&D customization feel imo and then to note that GW2 has NO respec fee. Especially when the BW4 system will force atleast 1 respec on new players as they are wasting points to just unlock a skill to figure out how it works and if it works for them.
This point has been made before the arguement is always WoW isn't a F2P game the cost of game + expansions + sub cost+ the mount in WoW is significantly higher than the cost of Neverwinter (free) + $40 mount or $30 companions. So in theory they are below market standard.
Keep in mind both mounts and companions will be Free if you play the game some of which obtainable just by getting to X level and others available through quests and funds gained through again playing the game so both are also essentially free.
Gw2 again cost money so respects are free but if you again play the game earn Astral Diamonds you too can buy a respect tokens for... free.
Not enough Astral Diamonds... make another character only log on once an hour to collect the hourly amount and you've essentially doubled how many Astral diamonds you can make in a day. Buy a character slot rinse wash and repeat.
They could simply remove the option for people to respec by buying a reset from the store, and instead give people the chance to respec maybe once a month for free or something like that, so people wont be able to do it too often but on the other hand don't have to use money on it either.
That way they could balance it between how D&D people don't want it to be there at all, and MMO players who are used to get it for free.
Just a thought
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omnisandroMember, Neverwinter Beta Users, Neverwinter Guardian UsersPosts: 5Arc User
edited April 2013
Here is my problem with the respec tokens: I got it, it's D&D, people should not respec all the time.
BUT, as a business, they need to make money. And I believe they will be changing PVE content from patch to patch constantly, purposefully forcing players to respec.
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ambisinisterrMember, Neverwinter ModeratorPosts: 10,462Community Moderator
Here is my problem with the respec tokens: I got it, it's D&D, people should not respec all the time.
BUT, as a business, they need to make money. And I believe they will be changing PVE content from patch to patch constantly, purposefully forcing players to respec.
And again, Cryptic has a long standing history of giving free respecs if they alter the gameplay.
You'll hear that from anybody who has played Cryptic games in the past.
If they don't I would be unhappy like everybody else...
But fearing they won't follow their long standing business practices is a bit over the top.
Those of you that wish to believe that the current zen market is completely viable are delusional and it will drive a good amount of players away when they see x prices and y items sold and compare it to other F2P games only to ask themselves why should I even bother.
Do those other games have a way to earn game currency and convert it into cash shop $$? If so can a player earn up to $5-10 a week in cash shop currency by just playing the game?
- $30 for a companion which they justify as saving months of normal gameplay, which lets face it when you can hit 60 in a week why is there such a road block on a henchmen hardly worth using at later levels.
Great then no issue right, they are a completely vanity item and not necessary to game play.
- $10 for a 24 slot bag when there are 11 runes/enchantments with 5+ tiers which is well over 50 inventory slots not including other consumbale kits, scrolls, potions, alters, etc. Also lets cover that their are character bound and tradeable versions of all these items taking up even more space.
A bit annoying but totally not necessary to purchase. Clearly a quality of life, luxury item. Especially when you can make a separate free to play account with two characters that do nothing but fill their entire inventory and bank with runes and enchantments. I can see lowering the price point a bit, because why pay $10 when I can get a whole lot more than what that offers for 2 character slots or even for free. I don't mind them charging but the price for a bag should be something more like $2.50 or 250 Zen.
- $5 respec limiting gameplay variations in build and character design which takes away from the whole D&D customization feel imo and then to note that GW2 has NO respec fee. Especially when the BW4 system will force atleast 1 respec on new players as they are wasting points to just unlock a skill to figure out how it works and if it works for them.
So far the first big concern for most players right now. Free would be nice. Be it in game currency to respec or enough points in the system to get every power. At the very least the price does need lowered to around $1 or 100 Zen.
There is even a post in a zen market thread comparing items from the Neverwinter market to the STO market and in every case all items are 25-50% more expensive which only exemplifies GREED hands down!
Definitely not a way to endear yourself to your customer base. This one puzzles me as well. I would have to look at the items and know the mechanics of the game to be sure though. I am not sure that a Fleet Ship in STO = a Mount in NWO. Are Fleet Ships account bound or is it just for that character?
The best solution I have seen posted (which I can't find currently) would be to lower prices so it opens up possible purchases from more players while simultaneously putting more of a certain type of item to purchase. IE: If there are 5 companions for $30 most players will completely ignore them when comparing that expenditure to something else but if you make 30 companions for $5 you open up the market for players who would not have spent anything while also getting the same amount of money from others whom purchase multiple companions and then also purchase other related items like companion slots.
I am not in favor of the everyone has everything model. There need to be some special and elite items in the game and I am fine with some of them being in the cash shop. Because you can get many companions and rank them up to very rare quality all in game, I see nothing wrong with their prices. That would be if they were account wide like mounts. The fact that these are single character purchases makes me agree. They are way out of line. Something along the lines of 1/5th the price would be a lot more reasonable. $35 and $30 for the two best ones in the cash shop. Yeah I will never buy them, ever, at that price. And it most certainly does leave a bad taste in my mouth at this point. These things should be 700 and 600 Zen respectively not 3,500 and 3,000. Other companions need to be reduced to 20% of the price as well. Seeing stuff like this definitely makes me regret my founders contribution and stops me dead in my tracks from recommending the game to anyone. If I did not enjoy the rest of the game so much this definitely would be a deal breaker for me on the overall feel the cash shop gives me. Which is akin to being bent over and... spanked.
Another idea I have had would be to work with wizards of the coast in gaining access to particular campaign missions that have been made through the years and implementing them in game through the foundry but charging $1 a mission (campaigns can be made up of 5+ missions).
I am pretty sure the community will handle this. No need to pay anything for this. If they want to, go for it, but IMO they have bigger fish to fry first.
- $40 for a mount when WoW (market standard) is $25 for the same type of product.
Others have already touched on this, but just to highlight this a bit further:
I played and paid for WoW from the EU launch (Feb 2005) until September of the past year. That is 91 months in subscription fees, roughly €12 a month, or €1092 (that is about $1400). I also bought the original box and all expansions (including MoP) as collector's editions, paying an average of €80 ($104) for each of them. That is another $520. I also bought two of the pets and two of the mounts, adding another $100. Not to mention, I spent around $400 on name changes, server transfers and race changes. So, we are looking at a total of $2112.
I am not currently paying a subscription fee for WoW, and in spite of having given them over two grand, I am unable to even log on and use the stuff (like the mounts) I paid for at all. I cannot log on to say Hi to friends, I cannot log on for even an hour to look around and check on my stuff, unless I spent another $15.
Honestly, I'd rather pay $40 for a mount in Neverwinter and know that I can use it for as long as the game exists, even if I never spend another cent on the game. So, yes, $40 for a mount in Neverwinter is a better deal than $25 for a mount in WoW. Here, at least, you won't have to pay a monthly rental fee in order to use what you already paid for.
you get enough points to have every skill to at least upgrade 2 and 6-8 skills to level 3. Really is respeccing that big of an issue?
The reason this is an issue is because the previous system allowed all skills to be there at max level with the ability to change them around and still be viable. Cryptic then changed the system for BW4 due to player feedback. Which a step in the right direction was also a step back in terms of their own philosophy for the game. (see wtf is neverwinter video) If the current system allowed the same thing at endgame that the previous system offered nobody would be complaining about the respec.
Of coarse they're not expecting everything to be free but what is expected is fair conversion rate and/or prices and also respecs should be spent with in game currency not ZEN, other things like extra character slots is ok with ZEN but not respecs which is actually in game mechanics.
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ambisinisterrMember, Neverwinter ModeratorPosts: 10,462Community Moderator
The reason this is an issue is because the previous system allowed all skills to be there at max level with the ability to change them around and still be viable. Cryptic then changed the system for BW4 due to player feedback. Which a step in the right direction was also a step back in terms of their own philosophy for the game. (see wtf is neverwinter video) If the current system allowed the same thing at endgame that the previous system offered nobody would be complaining about the respec.
The correct terminology would be that players made it clear they wanted to be in control of their builds.
I don't think Cryptic ever intend to lock players into a build. I think they felt that relocating powers was enough to say you can build your class. That's not what basically anybody in the D&D Player Base feel, though. In order to build a class you need to be in control of what powers you gain and when.
In order to have a different build you need a different power pool. That's the bottom line.
So the argument became to change the builds to themes.
There's no arguing that free form classes is one of the most common desires for this game. If Free Form isn't ever possible I'll at least settle for building my own based on a theme. And that's what we got if the number of powers to select from increases.
The side effect, of course, is that players can make stronger or weaker characters depending on their build.
And despite this I have tried to make a gimp. I promise you it's very hard to do if possible at all.
Its getting ridiculous how these arguments against cash shop is people want everything for free. I really don't think thats how people are viewing this. Some of these complaints are very valid points and I don't see how its not wanting to give the developer money. Things like the highest tier potion only being available in the cash shop has people irked as it should. Thats something that should be available as a normal drop, the 200 stack of them should be what the cash shop is for to make sure you have them. The respec token is another hot issue. These items aren't something against supporting the developer. I want to support the developer by buying items in the cash shop. I want to buy awesome mounts and companions or even cool armor skins. I just don't want to pay for things that should be included with basic gameplay. I have spent hundreds on LotRO after it went f2p, subscribing sometimes for the bonus to new characters. I don't want this game to be looked at like TOR. Tor is currently the joke among quality mmos as they charge for such simple things. I am already loving this game. I just want it to have a solid reputation with quality entertainment. Theres nothing wrong with that.
I would have much rather have paid 60.00 for the game and subsequent add-ons and pay a monthly subscription than have a F2P game. But that isn't my decision that is Cryptic's. I've never been a fan of F2P games as they oft times get extremely expensive in the end.
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The correct terminology would be that players made it clear they wanted to be in control of their builds.
I don't think Cryptic ever intend to lock players into a build. I think they felt that relocating powers was enough to say you can build your class. That's not what basically anybody in the D&D Player Base feel, though. In order to build a class you need to be in control of what powers you gain and when.
In order to have a different build you need a different power pool. That's the bottom line.
So the argument became to change the builds to themes.
There's no arguing that free form classes is one of the most common desires for this game. If Free Form isn't ever possible I'll at least settle for building my own based on a theme. And that's what we got if the number of powers to select from increases.
The side effect, of course, is that players can make stronger or weaker characters depending on their build.
And despite this I have tried to make a gimp. I promise you it's very hard to do if possible at all.
As a DnD player, I like the possibility of an unbalanced character, usually an "unbalanced" character isnt as bad as people think, usually they can make it very interesting if your willing to give the time to learn to use it. Ive loved this in the Diablo games(not D3 though) and DnD itself. I love making some odd Cleric that can bash in the skulls of his enemies but cant heal. Inbalance is just another word to me for " I dont know how to use the character Im playing properly" Then again its my opinion. I like Inbalance, it makes you rely on your party. Then again this is from a DnD/RPGer perspective rather than a MMOer perspective.
Every character you make will have pros and cons, but you have to learn to use that to your advantage, not toss it in the trash and say lets reroll characters.
This is more supposed to be building on the un balanced thing Ambi said
Here is my problem with the respec tokens: I got it, it's D&D, people should not respec all the time.
BUT, as a business, they need to make money. And I believe they will be changing PVE content from patch to patch constantly, purposefully forcing players to respec.
Would become a problem to most people if they did that I think, but I doubt they will do it on purpose and very often.
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Comments
Things that should be in a cash shop are cosmetics and speed boosts.
Everything else should be atainable for free. if not, then it is paying to win.
Look at DOTA 2, they only sell cosmetics and make 1,000x what this game will ever make. League of legends same thing. Selling cosmetics is what makes the most money and keeps players happy and even, no paying to win BS.
They could sell mounts, pets that look cool as hell, but selling ones that are stronger for money , is pay to win. Selling things that help you fight from LVL1 that free players can't get til much later, also pay to win.
XP boost, gold boost, that is fine. It just makes it go faster, but instantly buying things that make you stronger = again pay to win.
Everything in Neverwinter is attainable for free. (Except of course for any "exclusive" items from Founder's packs or other sources.) Therefore it is not pay to win by your own definition. I suspect my definition varies from yours. But, Neverwinter is not P2W by my definition either.
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I love when folks just make up numbers to support their own views. 1,000x what Neverwinter will make? Since you did not know DOTA 2's profit figures when you made the post, much less how much NO will make, your assumption is so ridiculous that it makes responding to you akin to arguing with a comatose individual. Still, it does pass the time.
An exp boost (making leveling faster, thus the content easier) is fine with you, but a companion at 1st level (making the content easier) is not? It is not like you can use the companions against other players. And since you can acquire a companion at 16th level (which only takes a handful of gameplay hours despite your claim of "much later"), you are hardly paying to win. If you can't get to 16th without a companion, then you should stick to playing tic-tac-toe.
XP boost means the player has to still work at the game but lvls up faster. A companion at lvl 1 is instant power without putting in any effort, just putting in money. Big difference. Makes the person a lot stronger than a free player.
Also, I do know the profits for DOTA 2, use google see how much valve is making off DOTA2 and TF2 items. This game will never come close to that as millions of players login to DOTA 2 per month(look on their front page for exact number).
"If you can't get to 16th without a companion, then you should stick to playing tic-tac-toe." -- Exactly my point. People that are gonna buy the companion at lvl 1 should have to play without one til 16 like everyone else, if not let them go play tic tac toe huh?
You can of course use Google to get figures. I'm pointing out that you did not before making the post. Those figures also assume the company is not fudging any numbers (ala WoW's long inflated sub numbers). In any case, that still gives you no idea of how much NO will make. You can make any assumption you like. That does not make it fact.
I agree that the XP boost still does require that you play the game. But you do not need a companion to level up to 16th. It isn't even like playing without the companion makes you risk death (I have not had one pre-16th in the beta weekends). The exp boost means that I'll be 20th when you hit 16th. Is that really less cool than the companion?
The thing is these people are working to pay for rent and food and support family's like most of us here. We can all state what we think should included in the game for free, but the company that is offering the "free " service gets to make the choice of what they deem is appropriate. I know there is many mature responses on here and that's great. But understand that cryptic is not a non-profit orginzation and commend them for making a fun game, regardless of what you may feel your entitled too.
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That's actually a really good idea. I presume you mean you get 1 token if 10+ $ is spent in a single transaction, and not 1 per 10$ spent in a single transaction.
- $40 for a mount when WoW (market standard) is $25 for the same type of product.
- $30 for a companion which they justify as saving months of normal gameplay, which lets face it when you can hit 60 in a week why is there such a road block on a henchmen hardly worth using at later levels.
- $10 for a 24 slot bag when there are 11 runes/enchantments with 5+ tiers which is well over 50 inventory slots not including other consumbale kits, scrolls, potions, alters, etc. Also lets cover that their are character bound and tradeable versions of all these items taking up even more space.
- $5 respec limiting gameplay variations in build and character design which takes away from the whole D&D customization feel imo and then to note that GW2 has NO respec fee. Especially when the BW4 system will force atleast 1 respec on new players as they are wasting points to just unlock a skill to figure out how it works and if it works for them.
There is even a post in a zen market thread comparing items from the Neverwinter market to the STO market and in every case all items are 25-50% more expensive which only exemplifies GREED hands down!
The best solution I have seen posted (which I can't find currently) would be to lower prices so it opens up possible purchases from more players while simultaneously putting more of a certain type of item to purchase. IE: If there are 5 companions for $30 most players will completely ignore them when comparing that expenditure to something else but if you make 30 companions for $5 you open up the market for players who would not have spent anything while also getting the same amount of money from others whom purchase multiple companions and then also purchase other related items like companion slots.
Another idea I have had would be to work with wizards of the coast in gaining access to particular campaign missions that have been made through the years and implementing them in game through the foundry but charging $1 a mission (campaigns can be made up of 5+ missions).
Exactly essentially 1 token per 1,000 zen spent in the store (1 dollar = 100 zen) spend another 1,000 zen get another token... Spend 5,000 get 5 very simple. could be accumulative over all purchases with zen over X time or only purchases of 1,000 zen and up. Doesn't really matter as their are companions, mounts, and other such vanity items that would fullfill this requirement.
This point has been made before the arguement is always WoW isn't a F2P game the cost of game + expansions + sub cost+ the mount in WoW is significantly higher than the cost of Neverwinter (free) + $40 mount or $30 companions. So in theory they are below market standard.
Keep in mind both mounts and companions will be Free if you play the game some of which obtainable just by getting to X level and others available through quests and funds gained through again playing the game so both are also essentially free.
Gw2 again cost money so respects are free but if you again play the game earn Astral Diamonds you too can buy a respect tokens for... free.
Not enough Astral Diamonds... make another character only log on once an hour to collect the hourly amount and you've essentially doubled how many Astral diamonds you can make in a day. Buy a character slot rinse wash and repeat.
That way they could balance it between how D&D people don't want it to be there at all, and MMO players who are used to get it for free.
Just a thought
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BUT, as a business, they need to make money. And I believe they will be changing PVE content from patch to patch constantly, purposefully forcing players to respec.
And again, Cryptic has a long standing history of giving free respecs if they alter the gameplay.
You'll hear that from anybody who has played Cryptic games in the past.
If they don't I would be unhappy like everybody else...
But fearing they won't follow their long standing business practices is a bit over the top.
Only for subscribers.
+ $15 a month
Great then no issue right, they are a completely vanity item and not necessary to game play.
A bit annoying but totally not necessary to purchase. Clearly a quality of life, luxury item. Especially when you can make a separate free to play account with two characters that do nothing but fill their entire inventory and bank with runes and enchantments. I can see lowering the price point a bit, because why pay $10 when I can get a whole lot more than what that offers for 2 character slots or even for free. I don't mind them charging but the price for a bag should be something more like $2.50 or 250 Zen.
So far the first big concern for most players right now. Free would be nice. Be it in game currency to respec or enough points in the system to get every power. At the very least the price does need lowered to around $1 or 100 Zen.
Definitely not a way to endear yourself to your customer base. This one puzzles me as well. I would have to look at the items and know the mechanics of the game to be sure though. I am not sure that a Fleet Ship in STO = a Mount in NWO. Are Fleet Ships account bound or is it just for that character?
I am not in favor of the everyone has everything model. There need to be some special and elite items in the game and I am fine with some of them being in the cash shop. Because you can get many companions and rank them up to very rare quality all in game, I see nothing wrong with their prices. That would be if they were account wide like mounts. The fact that these are single character purchases makes me agree. They are way out of line. Something along the lines of 1/5th the price would be a lot more reasonable. $35 and $30 for the two best ones in the cash shop. Yeah I will never buy them, ever, at that price. And it most certainly does leave a bad taste in my mouth at this point. These things should be 700 and 600 Zen respectively not 3,500 and 3,000. Other companions need to be reduced to 20% of the price as well. Seeing stuff like this definitely makes me regret my founders contribution and stops me dead in my tracks from recommending the game to anyone. If I did not enjoy the rest of the game so much this definitely would be a deal breaker for me on the overall feel the cash shop gives me. Which is akin to being bent over and... spanked.
I am pretty sure the community will handle this. No need to pay anything for this. If they want to, go for it, but IMO they have bigger fish to fry first.
Others have already touched on this, but just to highlight this a bit further:
I played and paid for WoW from the EU launch (Feb 2005) until September of the past year. That is 91 months in subscription fees, roughly €12 a month, or €1092 (that is about $1400). I also bought the original box and all expansions (including MoP) as collector's editions, paying an average of €80 ($104) for each of them. That is another $520. I also bought two of the pets and two of the mounts, adding another $100. Not to mention, I spent around $400 on name changes, server transfers and race changes. So, we are looking at a total of $2112.
I am not currently paying a subscription fee for WoW, and in spite of having given them over two grand, I am unable to even log on and use the stuff (like the mounts) I paid for at all. I cannot log on to say Hi to friends, I cannot log on for even an hour to look around and check on my stuff, unless I spent another $15.
Honestly, I'd rather pay $40 for a mount in Neverwinter and know that I can use it for as long as the game exists, even if I never spend another cent on the game. So, yes, $40 for a mount in Neverwinter is a better deal than $25 for a mount in WoW. Here, at least, you won't have to pay a monthly rental fee in order to use what you already paid for.
The reason this is an issue is because the previous system allowed all skills to be there at max level with the ability to change them around and still be viable. Cryptic then changed the system for BW4 due to player feedback. Which a step in the right direction was also a step back in terms of their own philosophy for the game. (see wtf is neverwinter video) If the current system allowed the same thing at endgame that the previous system offered nobody would be complaining about the respec.
I don't think Cryptic ever intend to lock players into a build. I think they felt that relocating powers was enough to say you can build your class. That's not what basically anybody in the D&D Player Base feel, though. In order to build a class you need to be in control of what powers you gain and when.
In order to have a different build you need a different power pool. That's the bottom line.
So the argument became to change the builds to themes.
There's no arguing that free form classes is one of the most common desires for this game. If Free Form isn't ever possible I'll at least settle for building my own based on a theme. And that's what we got if the number of powers to select from increases.
The side effect, of course, is that players can make stronger or weaker characters depending on their build.
And despite this I have tried to make a gimp. I promise you it's very hard to do if possible at all.
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That's funny
Every character you make will have pros and cons, but you have to learn to use that to your advantage, not toss it in the trash and say lets reroll characters.
This is more supposed to be building on the un balanced thing Ambi said
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Would become a problem to most people if they did that I think, but I doubt they will do it on purpose and very often.
"A day without laughter is a day wasted" - Charlie Chaplin