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Well, I see and understand how you feel. But...
For the $17.50 I pay for 2 characters I can be in game 24/7 365 days a year for much less than going to a movie or out to dinner once a month. A great bargain to me.
Now I do have an F2P I rolled up to easily transfer items between the 2 mains. The restrictions imposed on F2P characters makes it much too hard to seriously play and level up, which I am in complete agreement with.
Anyway, just my 2 cents.
ARMSTRONGR1
KRAKII
Re: Returning player suggestions for the F2P system
07/26/2017 08:35 PM CDT
The "why" of subscribing versus being F2P is the laundry list of things that gets unlocked without having to go through individual SimuCoin transactions for each of them, every time.
On the other hand, if all you want to pay for is electricity to run the computer + ISP, you can still play...
...just "with restrictions".
On the other hand, if all you want to pay for is electricity to run the computer + ISP, you can still play...
...just "with restrictions".
KPARENT1
Re: Returning player suggestions for the F2P system
07/27/2017 05:47 AM CDT
Oh that's a comparison I've never heard before. Apples and Oranges dearie. I don't know anyone who goes to see movies or goes out to dinner once a month. I would certainly never spend $15 on a meal for myself.
No, when we say that $15 is too much, we are talking about its intrinsic value. Ever gone to a store, left if after a purchase and felt ripped off? That's how I would feel if I paid the $15 a month for Dragonrealms or Gemstone. It's an ancient game, I wouldn't even pay $15 a month for WOW, a game that is also more than 10 years old at this point. Yes both games are still being supported by devs (and how often are their updates to this game?) but both games initial development has long since been paid off.
Maybe you would find it worth it. You make the point of 24/7 and 365 days a year. How much are you playing? Jeez I don't even sit down for more than 20 minutes. Even if I was given a paid sub, I wouldn't sit down and play it for more than 2 hours a day and that's pushing it.
Okay and instead of comparing it to restaurants and movies (the last time I went to a movie was 2003), instead let's compare it to online services. I pay less for Hulu with no ads. I pay less for Netflix. All 5 people in my family benefit from these subscriptions. Only I benefit from such an account.
If I buy 6 months of a graphical MMO, I pay less. If I buy 6 months or a year of GS4 or DR, do I pay less? Nope! Therein lies one of the major ripoffs. According to Simu, their product is worth more than the newest upcoming MMO or Amazon Prime.
Here's the thing, they made the game F2P with the hopes of drawing more players in (I assume from Achaea mostly), but then players see the extremely punitive price and they are immediately turned off. Would you pay the equivalent of $180 to have access to Zork for just a year? Okay, its no where near as complicated so would you pay $30? Hell no! You know you wouldn't and neither would a new player. They'd move on to the next best thing.
KRAKII
Re: Returning player suggestions for the F2P system
07/27/2017 09:00 AM CDT
For paid subscription accounts: I would not be averse to having a prepay bundle ("6 months for the price of 5, 12 months for the price of 9" sort of thing) but I have to question whether Simutronics would benefit enough (by getting a stack of money up front but losing out on 25%). Anything significantly less discounted may be insufficiently enticing. (On the other hand, they're willing to sell SimuCoins in big 30-40% discount chunks, so why not here?)
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For F2P accounts: actually, you are pre-paying, and you are getting a discount for bulk-purchases. The more SimuCoins you buy, the less they are per unit. It's just that your actual play is already, you know, free. Eventual usage of the SimuCoins is at your discretion, on demand, so if it turns out that you do not play (broke a wrist on the football field, or whatever) for two or three months, they sit unused. When you get back, you again make use of some SimuCoins and gain whichever benefit it was you wanted.
Compare & contrast to the above bundle, where I as a Premium player would have pre-paid for a year but then break a wrist on the football field and cannot login for three months. I am just flat done out of the money.
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Your example of Netflix was almost right. A more accurate comparison of how the costs work would be the monthly subscriber (cable package) versus the broadcast TV watcher (F2P) with a VCR (SimuCoins store). Continuous flow of money for more options, versus no cash flow at all for limited options BUT with the ability to pay a small amount for a short-term upgrade.
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For F2P accounts: actually, you are pre-paying, and you are getting a discount for bulk-purchases. The more SimuCoins you buy, the less they are per unit. It's just that your actual play is already, you know, free. Eventual usage of the SimuCoins is at your discretion, on demand, so if it turns out that you do not play (broke a wrist on the football field, or whatever) for two or three months, they sit unused. When you get back, you again make use of some SimuCoins and gain whichever benefit it was you wanted.
Compare & contrast to the above bundle, where I as a Premium player would have pre-paid for a year but then break a wrist on the football field and cannot login for three months. I am just flat done out of the money.
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Your example of Netflix was almost right. A more accurate comparison of how the costs work would be the monthly subscriber (cable package) versus the broadcast TV watcher (F2P) with a VCR (SimuCoins store). Continuous flow of money for more options, versus no cash flow at all for limited options BUT with the ability to pay a small amount for a short-term upgrade.
ALANDAIN
Re: Returning player suggestions for the F2P system
07/27/2017 03:42 PM CDT
The value of $15 a month is obviously going to vary from person to person. I've been gone from Gemstone for a while, but I'm returning now and happily paying $15 a month to play. It's a hell of a lot cheaper than what folks are paying for other games out there.
The cost may be punitive to you, but don't assume it is for others. That's not to say there can't be improvements in the cost structure though. I agree it's silly that you can't go from f2p to p2p back to f2p. And the option to prepay for a discount, while maybe not suitable for all, might suit some folks.
The cost may be punitive to you, but don't assume it is for others. That's not to say there can't be improvements in the cost structure though. I agree it's silly that you can't go from f2p to p2p back to f2p. And the option to prepay for a discount, while maybe not suitable for all, might suit some folks.
