The Invisible Discrimination
Posted: Fri Sep 30, 2016 6:22 pm
The topic of this post is to deal with the gaps between beta and future players. How? Please read on to find out what I really mean!
To all SG Males, how does it feel to serve for 2 years (excluding reservists) when you know someone who got exempted for something else and skipping that 2 years (including future reservists) worth of NS? While the 2 years of enlistment they got exempted and carried on with their lives, those that serve are overworked and underpaid.
Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Valiant Force and not trying to stir trouble here in this community. I'm not a beta player, strictly speaking from a view of a gamer in other apps.
The above is a comparison between the current Beta pool and the future new players. The new players (those that serve 2 years) vs the beta players (who got exempted). The beta period (which is the 2 years of NS), the beta players are dawned with equipment, variants and crowning the arenas (while hoarding the lavish rewards which is confirm some summoning currencies) and when the new players come in, what can they do to be given a fair ground to compete, or rather, stand on?
There doesn't seem to be another new server coming up which I am quite happy about it because splitting server is the same as splitting the player base. If one server ever goes isolated, it will be bad for the remaining players. But beside creating a new server for new players or introducing a starter/booster packs for the new players to catch up with Beta players, I think it is important to address the beta players' concerns and new players' plights.
For beta players, they spend a substantial amount of time committed and definitely won't want a server wipe and lose all the progress. It's like Pokemon, your file get corrupted and you'll be pissed.
For new players, they don't have the rewards that beta players get to have, don't have the power to fight back in PVP and will always be at the losing side. Losing is frustrating. But of which where the beta players are standing, the new players don't want to spend $ to reach where they are just because they started earlier. This itself is already a handicap. In the view of new players, the top in arena are seemingly tyrants (started earlier but didn't have to spend money) which they can only suffer in silence.
So I was thinking how to let both parties co-exist in a way that both parties can actually slowly accept each others.
1. The Variant Starter Pack for new players and a Guarantee Variant Summon for beta players.
The Variant Starter Pack is of course a small contribution to the Developers and the company for their effort in a way, and also help the new players to get a smooth experience such as energies and misc enhancement etc to help them with achievements and challenges for the growth. For the beta players' concern, that would be, for example they spend 3 months to reach a certain milestone, they also believe that the new players should also commit the same amount of time to reach where they are. They also don't want to expect the new players to be pulling so many variants just because of a pack they purchased but they themselves received nothing, worst, some didn't even have many variants to begin with. But during this buffer period, they will continue to get stronger while the new players are learning basics which is widening the power gap.
The pack itself will allow new players to do at least a 2 ~ 3 bundle summons while pulling variants which itself might seem unfair for beta players. Which is why, on the other hand, beta players will be enjoying a Guarantee Variant Summon during the New Players Ceremony (depending on how long the beta last). A Guarantee Variant Summon means they will get a variant after a certain no. of summoning which will be reset if they draw one in the process. There's a limit to how many variants they can get during this period for this specific summoning because it's pointless if they get a lot of variants from this summoning but the new players didn't get even 1. This is to balance the treatment between the new players and beta players which we don't want the beta players to lose out too much but they can still progress. For new players, they would probably think why they have to pay to get to where the beta players are just because they get chosen to play beta, so for this, one variant starter pack is free while the other variant pack which I called it, The Aggressor Beginning Series, for those who are aiming for PVP satisfaction but have to pay for it which of course comes with better incentives compared to the free introductory starter pack.
2. Two Arenas. One for the New Players (Mock Arena) and another for the Beta Players (Beta's Arena)
We should give the new players an opportunity to understand and try out the combos and tactics that they have been missing out ever since the soft launch by letting themselves pit against each other on fair grounds. For new players, they can choose to fight in the Mock Arena or Beta's Arena if they want to judge how good the Beta Players' standards currently are. For Beta Players, they will only be able to dominate their own Beta's Arena. The reward in Mock Arena will be better to aid the new players and for those new players who tried both arenas, they will only be able to obtain rewards from the one they are better at. This is to prevent them from getting over-rewarded. There's a need to encourage new players to fight in the Beta's Arena so to judge the difference between the two parties is through compensating their losses by rewarding them with better reward if they are fighting in Beta's Arena and emerging at certain ranks.
HOWEVER, the Mock Arena and Beta's Arena are temporary. Its the develeopers' job to monitor and observe for themselves how the new players are currently fairing against the beta players in the Beta's Arena. If the frequencies of new players getting sweep or wiped by beta players is lesser or they can fight on a fairer ground (both parties have losses instead of a full team wipe etc), they will then combine the arena and revert it back to the normal arena.
3. Buddy Fights.
To be honest, I don't know how I come up with this but it's similar to a Primary 5 student pairing with a Primary 1 newbie. The catch is to create a chemistry and bond between new and beta players so they do not get over intoxicated or salty. So for this Buddy Fight, a beta player should make friends with new players. However, each Beta Player can only find 2 new players as buddy and their growth and achievements will affect the Beta Player's reward until they graduate or fly away or inactive. What's in it for the Beta Player? You get lucrative summoning rates for better heroes or whatever money etc everytime your buddies (the 2 new players) did a summon or level up or something. And this Buddies Fight actually allows a new kind of arena for new players to pit among themselves while bringing their beta buddies. So every match you'll have a new player and a beta buddy vs a new player and his beta buddy! For new players, you will be able to learn from your beta buddies the things you've missed out in beta and your story quest can proceed smoother with a reliable beta buddy's hero. In the "Buddy Fights", you and your buddy will share the rewards you reap for every season (similar to arena) except this will help you depending on how strong you yourself and your buddy are. To prevent dummy new players, beta buddies will have 2 new buddies and if one of them graduated, there's a period of time which he won't be able to have another new buddy (maybe 2 months?).
I do hope these are some ideas the developers might look into and I hope to hear from the views of the current beta players.
To all SG Males, how does it feel to serve for 2 years (excluding reservists) when you know someone who got exempted for something else and skipping that 2 years (including future reservists) worth of NS? While the 2 years of enlistment they got exempted and carried on with their lives, those that serve are overworked and underpaid.
Don't get me wrong, I'm a fan of Valiant Force and not trying to stir trouble here in this community. I'm not a beta player, strictly speaking from a view of a gamer in other apps.
The above is a comparison between the current Beta pool and the future new players. The new players (those that serve 2 years) vs the beta players (who got exempted). The beta period (which is the 2 years of NS), the beta players are dawned with equipment, variants and crowning the arenas (while hoarding the lavish rewards which is confirm some summoning currencies) and when the new players come in, what can they do to be given a fair ground to compete, or rather, stand on?
There doesn't seem to be another new server coming up which I am quite happy about it because splitting server is the same as splitting the player base. If one server ever goes isolated, it will be bad for the remaining players. But beside creating a new server for new players or introducing a starter/booster packs for the new players to catch up with Beta players, I think it is important to address the beta players' concerns and new players' plights.
For beta players, they spend a substantial amount of time committed and definitely won't want a server wipe and lose all the progress. It's like Pokemon, your file get corrupted and you'll be pissed.
For new players, they don't have the rewards that beta players get to have, don't have the power to fight back in PVP and will always be at the losing side. Losing is frustrating. But of which where the beta players are standing, the new players don't want to spend $ to reach where they are just because they started earlier. This itself is already a handicap. In the view of new players, the top in arena are seemingly tyrants (started earlier but didn't have to spend money) which they can only suffer in silence.
So I was thinking how to let both parties co-exist in a way that both parties can actually slowly accept each others.
1. The Variant Starter Pack for new players and a Guarantee Variant Summon for beta players.
The Variant Starter Pack is of course a small contribution to the Developers and the company for their effort in a way, and also help the new players to get a smooth experience such as energies and misc enhancement etc to help them with achievements and challenges for the growth. For the beta players' concern, that would be, for example they spend 3 months to reach a certain milestone, they also believe that the new players should also commit the same amount of time to reach where they are. They also don't want to expect the new players to be pulling so many variants just because of a pack they purchased but they themselves received nothing, worst, some didn't even have many variants to begin with. But during this buffer period, they will continue to get stronger while the new players are learning basics which is widening the power gap.
The pack itself will allow new players to do at least a 2 ~ 3 bundle summons while pulling variants which itself might seem unfair for beta players. Which is why, on the other hand, beta players will be enjoying a Guarantee Variant Summon during the New Players Ceremony (depending on how long the beta last). A Guarantee Variant Summon means they will get a variant after a certain no. of summoning which will be reset if they draw one in the process. There's a limit to how many variants they can get during this period for this specific summoning because it's pointless if they get a lot of variants from this summoning but the new players didn't get even 1. This is to balance the treatment between the new players and beta players which we don't want the beta players to lose out too much but they can still progress. For new players, they would probably think why they have to pay to get to where the beta players are just because they get chosen to play beta, so for this, one variant starter pack is free while the other variant pack which I called it, The Aggressor Beginning Series, for those who are aiming for PVP satisfaction but have to pay for it which of course comes with better incentives compared to the free introductory starter pack.
2. Two Arenas. One for the New Players (Mock Arena) and another for the Beta Players (Beta's Arena)
We should give the new players an opportunity to understand and try out the combos and tactics that they have been missing out ever since the soft launch by letting themselves pit against each other on fair grounds. For new players, they can choose to fight in the Mock Arena or Beta's Arena if they want to judge how good the Beta Players' standards currently are. For Beta Players, they will only be able to dominate their own Beta's Arena. The reward in Mock Arena will be better to aid the new players and for those new players who tried both arenas, they will only be able to obtain rewards from the one they are better at. This is to prevent them from getting over-rewarded. There's a need to encourage new players to fight in the Beta's Arena so to judge the difference between the two parties is through compensating their losses by rewarding them with better reward if they are fighting in Beta's Arena and emerging at certain ranks.
HOWEVER, the Mock Arena and Beta's Arena are temporary. Its the develeopers' job to monitor and observe for themselves how the new players are currently fairing against the beta players in the Beta's Arena. If the frequencies of new players getting sweep or wiped by beta players is lesser or they can fight on a fairer ground (both parties have losses instead of a full team wipe etc), they will then combine the arena and revert it back to the normal arena.
3. Buddy Fights.
To be honest, I don't know how I come up with this but it's similar to a Primary 5 student pairing with a Primary 1 newbie. The catch is to create a chemistry and bond between new and beta players so they do not get over intoxicated or salty. So for this Buddy Fight, a beta player should make friends with new players. However, each Beta Player can only find 2 new players as buddy and their growth and achievements will affect the Beta Player's reward until they graduate or fly away or inactive. What's in it for the Beta Player? You get lucrative summoning rates for better heroes or whatever money etc everytime your buddies (the 2 new players) did a summon or level up or something. And this Buddies Fight actually allows a new kind of arena for new players to pit among themselves while bringing their beta buddies. So every match you'll have a new player and a beta buddy vs a new player and his beta buddy! For new players, you will be able to learn from your beta buddies the things you've missed out in beta and your story quest can proceed smoother with a reliable beta buddy's hero. In the "Buddy Fights", you and your buddy will share the rewards you reap for every season (similar to arena) except this will help you depending on how strong you yourself and your buddy are. To prevent dummy new players, beta buddies will have 2 new buddies and if one of them graduated, there's a period of time which he won't be able to have another new buddy (maybe 2 months?).
I do hope these are some ideas the developers might look into and I hope to hear from the views of the current beta players.