Many of our friends have decided to leave the game lately. They leave the game for different reasons: real life burden, moving to other game, feeling bored and "leaving because they feel the game is too grindy".
The first 3 reasons are considered normal in online game. So I would like to provide feedback about the last reason. I took me sometimes until I decide to write this thread cause I'm fully aware that the grindy part is also something every game has to keep/pin players with the game the longest. Still, now I have a feeling that the grindy part starts becoming a bigger problem due to recent additional features in the game. One of my long time member quit and his last word is that while he is building existing heroes, the new heroes obsolete them. And he is very casual player and also spender (prestige 14).
I would like to address the affected contents as follows:
1) The hero content has expanded from maxing level (max lb) 5* hero to bring out the best of such hero -to- maxing level and maxing talents (max tp) to bring out the best of such hero;
2) The equipment content has expanded from rerolling equipment suffix, enhancing equipment to 6* and restoring equipment bonus -to- rerolling equipment, enhancing equipment to 6*, restoring equipment bonus and maxing insignia;
3) The new hero introduction is averagely 2-4 heroes per month, being 1-2 event heroes during 2 weeks event and 1 dark disciple during abyssal gate 1 week break (sometimes 1 new 5* monster). The new hero introduction rate will be lower in the month of lost map break.
4) Job keys available in game for non-prestige players are 10 job keys per day + 2 more job keys if you build academy, with an option to buy 5 or more job keys at incremental gem costs from supply or buy job key from marketplace.
I think many people already make the threads about job keys issued mentioned in 4) and that we can only be able to promote 4-5 3* heroes to 5* heroes per month if not buying from supply or marketplace (plus the help from event bazaar). The hero promotion rate has never been improved since the game was officially released.
With reference to 1), maxing talent that is added by the devs to keep more work to players to grind so they continue to play the game. This grindy part has become the biggest risk to players (spending or not spending). We are all risking investing resources and times only to find out that our max lb and max tp hero may become obsoleted by new release hero.
With reference to 2), usually equipment can be moved around so the investment in equipment is not easily become the loss investment. But the need to max insignia (which can also be moved around), on the other hand, creates another need to build 5* hero which worsens the problem mentioned in 1), while there exists the risk that the max lv insignia may soon become obsoleted by new insignia that is being introduced at the same speed as the new hero introduction mentioned in 3).
Feedback:
I think all 4 contents are strongly connected to the grindy issue VF is causing. While I fully understand that this type of game has to slowly force us to switch heroes and equipment so they can continue to do business, I think the burdens you put on players directly or indirectly in a form of recent new features/contents: the new hero introduction, the new insignia and the need to max talents is very unfair and only create heavier force spending environment. I would like to propose that the devs re-consider balancing the pace of releasing new hero, the new insignia and the job keys restriction before we lose more players.
P.S. As a guild master, I can only provide the real fact that the rate of veteran quitting is higher and the rate of lv 70-80 players to continue playing the game is very low. Not sure if other guild masters are having similar experiences. In Everglades, hardly any guild in top 50 of raid 1 & 2 ladders are full for many months.
P.S.2 While we are slowly losing players base, the devs only think of creating new server to make another spending field for top 100 on event ladder, thus indirectly and unnecessarily spreading thin the players base in too many servers.