Topic

Grow a tree to full health needs to be rewritten.

"Nurture a tree's health level to its highest, healthiest state. You'll need a Watering Can to do this. And your firmest Petting hand."

This is confusing, and if a player is confused (even 1) then that's a fault in the game not a means of discovery.

I was told to pet and water multiple trees so, the statement "Nature a tree's health" should be changed to "Nature trees to their fullest health" 

I didn't spend $38,000 in a Game Design Program for nothing.

Posted 15 months ago by Walla Walla Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

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  • Does that mean we can end the thread, Blanky? It got a bit fractious, but I can see this one turning into a Thing.
    Posted 15 months ago by wurzel Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm going to keep this open so that (and so long as) people with comments relevant to the quest wording can have their say. 
    Posted 15 months ago by Blanky Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Personally I also found this quest frustratingly unclear. Eventually I decided I'd have to wait until I could afford to buy a house and plant a tree that no-one else would be able to nurture.

    That worked - I acheived the quest although I never understood the exact mechanics of it. In the meantime I watered and petted an awful lot of trees but it never happened accidentally...
    Posted 15 months ago by geekybird Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Before the reset and after, I achieved this quest by petting as many trees as possible as I meandered through the streets.

    Actually, before this quest I didn't even understand that there were several levels of health a tree could be!  So, because of this quest I learned more about the world I spend so much time in.  

    Thanks!!  
    Posted 15 months ago by Reba Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I had trouble with this quest too. It is confusing. I ran around petting and watering trees for two days till I bought my house and planted a tree and that worked.
    Posted 15 months ago by Niri Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The problem is that it seems like it can be done instantly. Just a simple change of wording hinting it will take a while/be fairly unconscious would probably help alleviate issues.
    Posted 15 months ago by Kai Subscriber! | Permalink
  • 1) looks like 70-80% of people get confused with this quest...

    2) I only "Flash" my diploma around to justify my reasoning. I'm not trying to show off, im just trying to show i have some "credit" to my statements/what i say. If that makes sense...
    Posted 15 months ago by Walla Walla Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Maybe this will help (or be at all worth looking at)*:

    The biggest problem, according to OP, seems to be "too many words." OP's suggested rewrite just takes out the awkward wording.** That makes sense enough, but it doesn't solve the underlying problem.

    The biggest problem, as far as I can see, is that there aren't enough words; players don't know what to do. Since it's a quest, they assume that there's something specific to look for, but in this case there's nothing specific they can look for. I think it would help to add a line that explains that there's no good way to tell a mostly healthy tree from a completely healthy tree, and to keep nurturing trees until you find the right one.

    Maybe something like, "The bigger the tree, the healthier it probably is, but (O, no!) there's really no good way to tell a mostly healthy tree from a completely healthy tree! Just keep nurturing trees until you stumble across one that needed just one more pet (or sprinkle!)."

    In other words, clearly state the devs' intended purpose of the quest (spreading the love) in addition to the quest-goal, and implicitly give the player permission to back-burner the quest if she/he wants.
    ____________________________
    * I'm addicted to parentheses.  Allow me to apologize up front. (Or rather, at the end, since this is a footnote.)
    ** The original wording is awkward because traditionally we don't nurture something's health, we nurture the thing itself (although often "back to health" by attaching the prep. phrase).
    Posted 15 months ago by Feldman Harbinger Subscriber! | Permalink
  • (I forgot to flash my degree around to support my credentials. But you might could guess what it is, nonetheless.)
    Posted 15 months ago by Feldman Harbinger Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I have to say I kind of agree with the OP. This quest has been lingering in my queue for quite a while. I've collected bunches of badges that say I'm a pretty good petter. If I didn't have a lot of experience from the beta I would be wondering what I was doing wrong. This is kind of the same as the 'last egg' quest but with that one you can SEE the last egg. I know I will complete this eventually just by being in the right place/time. Perhaps a few more words in the description would make it clear you need just the right circumstance to complete.
    Posted 15 months ago by Meezley Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Quirk, I got that. I'm what you might call a smart-ass. ;)
    Posted 15 months ago by jumpuphigh Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Blanky, I can only speak for myself but I think the problem with the quest is not the wording- it's that when we try to execute it, we don't have enough information from the world itself. Aka, no health levels or clearly identifiable growth stages for trees.

    But if that's a purposely added difficulty that isn't supposed to be changed, then Feldman's rewording suggestion sounds like a good one...
    Posted 15 months ago by Cefeida Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Blanky -- this is an incredibly frustrating quest this time around. I don't remember it being an issue in the pre-reset world but now I've got 4 trees in my back yard that are all, as best I can tell, to full health. Multiple doses of fertilidust, multiple pettings & waterings. They all look totally grown, i.e. my wood tree is 2 stalks tall w/ 4 limbs & my gas tree has all the spaces filled with gas beakers, but I've still been unable to finish this quest. 
    Posted 15 months ago by MrMatt Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I totally agree with Feldman, you're basically talking about a quest that doesn't give you enough information to act on. Stripping it back isn't necessarily the answer: better data might be what players need.

    Underneath it all, what's the quest meant to achieve? More watering/petting? Is there a better way to get that message across? Is there a better way to make people happier to let quests roll on for a long time? I understand questing is really important for some people, I think it was the 2nd or 3rd quest I had, and I just hit level 12 but I've not completed it yet. Doesn't bother me, to be honest, but I know some people feel a compulsion.

    WallaWalla - I think the point is that you don't need credentials to back up your arguments, you just need to make good arguments. Your credentials are only useful there because they allow you to make your arguments better: flashing them to to say you have them simply makes you look like a know-it-all or (worse) a know-nothing... especially since you have no idea who the other players of the game are, or what their experiences are, remember. 

    Your original point was valid, the tone rubbed people up the wrong way.
    Posted 15 months ago by wurzel Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Walla Walla, "credit" is earned by the wisdom you demonstrate, not by what credentials you have.  If your education taught you anything, then your ideas will demonstrate that. 

    If your ideas don't demonstrate that you are better informed than your audience (and this is one tough audience), then talking about your credentials will make those credentials look like a sham. 

    In either case, it is your ideas that will make or break your credit with your audience, not your credentials. 

    Wisdom is often the result of education plus experience.  Usually either one of those alone is not going to give your ideas the same power as a bit of both will. 
    Posted 15 months ago by WindBorn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yeah thanks "Oh wise Gandhi..."
    Why don't you go lecture some crackheads, they need it more.
    Posted 15 months ago by Walla Walla Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I personally enjoy the slightly 'obscure' quests. The non-linear way in which quests progress is so refreshing compared to other games and if I don't immediately know what to do I can choose to just leave it there for a while without impeding my gaming experience, or try to work it out. Which in this specific case I did manage to do by simply observing trees more that I did before, by doing some experimenting and trial and error. It was fun and was very rewarding because I figured it out. 
    I don't like games that babysit me.
    Posted 15 months ago by Zira Subscriber! | Permalink
  • *sigh*
    Posted 15 months ago by wurzel Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Wurzel Okay, so maybe he's not just trolling, but really, the OP and the several confrontational comments that have followed seemed more than just "a bit rude." They seemed to me to be specifically (and actually somewhat artfully) calculated to provoke an angry response, which is what I thought the definition of trolling was. 

    Anyway Walla Walla, not trying to hurt your feelings or lecture you, but if what you want is for people to respect and give credence to your ideas, you might want to give some attention to the tone of your posts. I'm sure every single player on here has accidentally pissed off plenty of people via email/text/post. It's the nature of the beast yes? :)

    My 2cents on the gameplay part of this thread:

    I thought this quest was not only clear, but that it gave me information about the world. "So that's why sometimes trees look funny!" 

    Both in beta and after reset I finished the quest without really trying, just by putting to use my newly learnt skill.

    I would actually like it if the quests were more ambiguous. Maybe they could implement harder quests and add a "hint" button feature. That way, those who prefer to be spoon fed won't fret, while those of us who like a bit of a challenge will also be happy.

    Cheers all!
    Posted 15 months ago by La_La Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I spammed a young tree with the fertilidust powder and it was nice and fully grown and yet I never got the bonus, ever. 
    So.. I'm at a loss for when or how I will accomplish this quest, myself. 
    o_O
    Posted 15 months ago by DracoLeonis Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Edited to remove gratuitous snarky comment about the original post.
    Posted 15 months ago by WindBorn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks everyone for all your feedback! We're reviewing this quest's wording, along with reviews of many other things (soooo many things) - we'll keep all this in mind. I'd like to see fewer personal attacks in the comments though, and will be locking this thread. 
    Posted 15 months ago by Blanky Subscriber! | Permalink
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