New In-Game Store Items

[sultryvoltron]

Has FC finally gone too far?

Or have they not gone too far enough?

[Xenotric]

Meh, they wont effect me so I have no real opinion (ok the pre leveled characters MIGHT when they get in but only if every single player starts buying em)

[Mastablasta]

Nothing that'll affect me in there... don't think most people will be affected by any of this in any negative way.

[Traderjill]

I think that putting keys in the item shop takes away from certain elements of the game. Key quests were a great way for people, new to the game, to actually learn their way around the different zones (one exception being inferno since that really requires more than 1 newbie to farm the patterns). I think making them available to people that haven't at least done the quest one time on a toon (on the account) is not a good thing.

I was also disappointed to see that the fixer grid item was added to the item shop. Like the Crat briefcase and Trader GMI tool.. I feel that some things should be kept profession specific. It is one of the 'perks' of rolling a toon of that profession and adding those things to the item shop.. I can't really verbalize it but it feels dirty to me.

[Bothead]

I think that putting keys in the item shop takes away from certain elements of the game. Key quests were a great way for people, new to the game, to actually learn their way around the different zones (one exception being inferno since that really requires more than 1 newbie to farm the patterns). I think making them available to people that haven't at least done the quest one time on a toon (on the account) is not a good thing.

I was also disappointed to see that the fixer grid item was added to the item shop. Like the Crat briefcase and Trader GMI tool.. I feel that some things should be kept profession specific. It is one of the 'perks' of rolling a toon of that profession and adding those things to the item shop.. I can't really verbalize it but it feels dirty to me.

I agree with your post. Like this game isn't easy enough already.

Besides this item shop pr0n, I like the other changes in this patch.

[Metafizis]

Nothing that'll affect me in there... don't think most people will be affected by any of this in any negative way.

..'cuz you don't play the game..
..at all..

..and you're trox already

[Kopecz]

Nothing that'll affect me in there... don't think most people will be affected by any of this in any negative way.

Thanks for that resounding post of brilliance Masta

[Dagget]

[Venice Academy] Vabutler: [AP] Chrisax: who wants Inner sanctum? It's interesting you know... not yet sold in the items store


.

[Unikorn]

I love the way you have to pay for the Breed Changes with IRL money. Oh and the 50% XP buff will make this game so much awesomer!

Yeah.

[Nanostratege]

..'cuz you don't play the game..
..at all..

..and you're trox already

I don't think I've ever seen a NT use Mongo Rage.



@50% xp buff - baton is 19% now and lasts 4 hours

[Borsky]

If you don't have a problem with this, then I assume you're the type of person who buys crap on itemstore then tries to sell it in-game for credits. So now I will have to deal with teaming with random 13 year olds who went on shopping spree's with their mommy's CC to buy a 220 toon and has absolutely no clue how to play it. Beyond that...FC is selling game content for real money, which is probably the most low-down, dirty thing you can do in the MMO world, IMO. It's a pretty solid statement that they are failing miserably as far as profits and that they don't even care what happens to Anarchy Online, as long as their bottom line isn't red when they finally shut down this game.

[Xenotric]

If you don't have a problem with this, then I assume you're the type of person who buys crap on itemstore then tries to sell it in-game for credits. So now I will have to deal with teaming with random 13 year olds who went on shopping spree's with their mommy's CC to buy a 220 toon and has absolutely no clue how to play it. Beyond that...FC is selling game content for real money, which is probably the most low-down, dirty thing you can do in the MMO world, IMO. It's a pretty solid statement that they are failing miserably as far as profits and that they don't even care what happens to Anarchy Online, as long as their bottom line isn't red when they finally shut down this game.

because were not already?

You will always end up playing with terrible players regardless of whether they bought there character from an item store or used hecklers to level up.

As it stands the only real effect any of the items might have is either more or less people to team with at certain levels and even then it really depends on how many people are willing to PAY to play the game less. New players most likely wont, old players might but they already just powerlevel alts themselves.

Until they start selling golden guns of power or ways for people to flag my character etc what's in the item store is going to have minimal at best effect on my gaming unless every other player then me turns out to be millionaires who don't mind spending hundreds on the store.

[Ophiuchus]

Everyone has different thresholds. FC already crossed that line for me with AO a long time ago. I simply grow more saddened with each round of 'just a little more' in the Item shop. This particular patch is a huge leap rather than a little bit, and has sealed the deal for at least 2 of my org never returning. It's the bitter pill counter to the more positive additions. The wedge that keeps driving me away when other things could so easily bring me back. But that's just me and my AO friends who've all moved on to pastures new.

But we're a minority of, I guess, old gaming farts.

[Solee]

Same here Ophiuchus. Even before the items store. It was the dailies for me, and the little things like upping the drop on pad quest. I didn’t mind the grind.
I just saw the patch notes and thought it was a bad joke. Got a sick felling in my stomach. I know they have to change with the times but everything that was unique about this game is going away, along with any sense of accomplishment.

[Gatester]

I think that putting keys in the item shop takes away from certain elements of the game. Key quests were a great way for people, new to the game, to actually learn their way around the different zones (one exception being inferno since that really requires more than 1 newbie to farm the patterns). I think making them available to people that haven't at least done the quest one time on a toon (on the account) is not a good thing.

I was also disappointed to see that the fixer grid item was added to the item shop. Like the Crat briefcase and Trader GMI tool.. I feel that some things should be kept profession specific. It is one of the 'perks' of rolling a toon of that profession and adding those things to the item shop.. I can't really verbalize it but it feels dirty to me.

I have serious doubts that in actual practice you would find many new players trying to buy all the things from the the item shop, primarily the convenience items.

Why would a new player spend actual cash to buy garden keys, bank access, grid access items, xp stims, token packs, VP packs, IP resets, etc? Honestly, if you really think about it, the only one's being "convenienced" by these items are typically people who have been there, done that, and simply do not want to do it again.


This is actual money we are talking about, and new players lack the knowledge and the boredom with AO's content to try to skip it as everyone uses as an argument.


To make an extremely valid exception, paying for levels IS something a new player would do, and that would be bad. If FC ever introduces "experience" skipping items then they need to be restricted to players who already have that level character or higher. Level 220 is not when someone should learn how to play AO.

[Traderjill]

I have serious doubts that in actual practice you would find many new players trying to buy all the things from the the item shop, primarily the convenience items.

Why would a new player spend actual cash to buy garden keys, bank access, grid access items, xp stims, token packs, VP packs, IP resets, etc? Honestly, if you really think about it, the only one's being "convenienced" by these items are typically people who have been there, done that, and simply do not want to do it again.

I don't recall quantifying how many new players I thought would buy keys versus doing the content in any post I've made. I also didn't suggest that they not be available for purchase via the item shop. What I stated (and you even quoted):

I think making them available to people that haven't at least done the quest one time on a toon (on the account) is not a good thing.

Not sure what your issue is with my statement, tbh unless you just felt like commenting on something today. My point was simply that I don't feel any new players (I don't care if its 1 new player or 1,000) should be able to skip the key quests if they haven't done them at least once. Funcom is sorta setting a precedent here with selling in-game content in the items shop with the key quests (in my opinion). I felt the need to point out that if they're going to do such things (allow us to purchase quest rewards in the item shop) that they need to make sure that they put in safeguards that prevent newbies from being able to do it AT ALL.

[Merit]

If FC ever introduces "experience" skipping items then they need to be restricted to players who already have that level character or higher. Level 220 is not when someone should learn how to play AO.

!items Heckler Juice

[drainbamage]

I'm not sure what's worse: the shamelessness of it all, the absurd prices ($25 for an inf key? $45 for a grid nano? ), or the potential implications it has for future changes.

It's become clear that FC's "target market" is shifting away from MMO players and towards the sort of deviants who spend thousands of dollars a year on those stupid Zynga games.

[Notcrattey]

I could care less about this, honestly. Doesn't affect me in game in the slightest, people just want to get up in arms about stuff very few will take advantage of.

[Gatester]

I don't recall quantifying how many new players I thought would buy keys versus doing the content in any post I've made. I also didn't suggest that they not be available for purchase via the item shop. What I stated (and you even quoted):



Not sure what your issue is with my statement, tbh unless you just felt like commenting on something today. My point was simply that I don't feel any new players (I don't care if its 1 new player or 1,000) should be able to skip the key quests if they haven't done them at least once. Funcom is sorta setting a precedent here with selling in-game content in the items shop with the key quests (in my opinion). I felt the need to point out that if they're going to do such things (allow us to purchase quest rewards in the item shop) that they need to make sure that they put in safeguards that prevent newbies from being able to do it AT ALL.

You said putting the keys in the shop would take something away from the game. This could only refer to players who have not done the quests before, which would, at this point, only apply to new players. I do not believe a player who has already done the key quests before gains anything particularly beneficial from doing the quests again on alts other than XP or SK gains.

I pointed out that new players would not purchase these items, and I also diverged from this by saying the majority of the items people complain about "taking away the experience of AO" would not actually do so as the primary purchasers would be people who have already experienced those things. This part was a more general comment to everyone.


If you feel that at least one character on an account should have done the key quests before then I see nothing particularly wrong with that, other than not everyone has all veteran linked accounts. I just dislike it when people make assumptions about things that seem lacking in foresight or at least considering whether it really would or would not happen. What people say about these things does sound bad, but inaccuracies from generalizations are sadly a pet peeve of mine.


In otherwords, you can usually ignore my comments, I just have an uncontrollable urge to play devil's advocate in a forum's situation because I am overly analytical