Topic

Dropped items

This has probably been suggested before, but I'd like to just repeat it, in light of a recent party/incident that you all must be aware of by now. Would it be possible to include a sort of delay, doesn't have to be very long, of when a dropped item could be picked up by any other player? I realize that the ability to pick up anything is a great freedom of the game, as somebody else mentioned, but the burglary accusations have been a constant complaint that I've been hearing everywhere. Unwritten courtesy rules haven't been enough for some players to respect their fellow players, and new people have accidentally snatched up items before they learn about them. 15-30 seconds delay might be enough to decrease some of this?

Posted 15 months ago by Jia-pop Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • The game has no way of distinguishing bonus items from the game, and things that were just dropped.  There are places where there are free spices, or drinks, or other items as part of the game, but until you've been back to the same spot 2 or 3 times and seen the same bonus, you may not realize it.  Some people have in fact been dropping things intended for other people to take either as gifts or user-designed mini quests.  I tend not to pick up anything from the ground unless I'm the only person on the street, so I can presume someone didn't mean to take it back.  After launch this may become more problematic if the world generally gets more crowded.  I'd prefer to think that people will be polite, but it isn't any smarter to drop a bag on the ground in Glitch than it is to go off to the bathroom at a restaurant while leaving your purse/bag/briefcase at the table.
    Posted 15 months ago by KhaKhonsu Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yeah, a lot of people are posting anti-theft ideas now. Sounds to me like the best solution to theft is 1) don't drop things, 2) don't let strangers into your house and 3) don't be overly trusting. Seems to me like that party could have been held somewhere like plexus or the community machine room if you wanted a contained space, that theolayers could have made inventory room before attending, and that the cubimals could have been passed one by one down a conga line to the players instead of in a way that forced players to drop bags and accept few ones filled with cubimals.
    Posted 15 months ago by Shoehorn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Shoehorn wrote: the players should have made inventory room before attending
    Fixed.

    I like striatic's idea that if you drop something it's "locked" to your character and other people can't pick it up until you move off of it, or leave the street.
    Posted 15 months ago by Skwid Subscriber! | Permalink
  • yeah, I haven't planned ahead sometimes and emptied my pockets. And if I need Instant Space, have been known to drop something for a sec, do my magic - earn my badge, and grab it up again. I haven't been robbed or accosted, but I think I'd be pretty bummed...
    Posted 15 months ago by Chetmo Subscriber! | Permalink
  • when i first started playing i was still learning the controls of the game and accidentally dropped my watering can, within seconds another player came by and snatched it up, i think that would be a grea idea +1
    Posted 15 months ago by mizplaced Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think that when you're dealing with the internet, manners fly down to the bottom of the list. Part of this Glitchen community encourages almost a utopian society. Things freely given and shared.

    The rules for myself are 1) always make sure the item is unattended. (When you drop something, you're still standing on it) and 2) if anyone is nearby, always ask in local chat if I can have X item.  Since I do those things, I would assume most would follow suit.... but then we get back to the internet problem and the manners just go away for some reason. Placing a "lock" on the items that drop like Skwid re-suggested, would be a great way to keep other people's 'manners' in check.

    When I first started playing (with no home to call my own), I would go find the most secluded corner on a street and do my magic there. I felt like I was hoarding my stuff.... but that's the price you pay when you don't have a home to be able to drop stuff. So far, if I had dropped something, and someone else picked it up, simply requesting said item back was graciously returned.
    Posted 15 months ago by Kitwryn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Hmm, interesting.  I won't pick up anything that is under or very close to someone else, because I assume it is theirs or they've found it. 

    I have actually picked up an item that belonged to someone else before, then I realized that they must have used their pickle (there were two other items flung about), so I dropped the item. Which brings me to the point that the pickles ability to throw your items around is unfortunately an opportunity for other people to take them. I actually worry more about that than the teleporting :P

    So yes, I think a lock of a certain amount of time would be a great idea. I know when you need a specific number of items, like say to feed piggies (3), I have to drop some on the ground so I can easily click 3. I think someone mentioned that being able to type the amount you want (as well as the buttons?) would be nice. Or just having the option or a specific number staying when something needs that number of items.
    Posted 15 months ago by Serilyn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • With the game now public a lot of the respect earned from fellow beta-glitches is gone with the new wave of players, this would be a very good thing to implement, just a brief bind to user on items dropped, 30 seconds would be all thats necessary, say if your mining and you get a luminous moonstone and you have to make some space, maybe eat some potatoes or eggs, or toss away something else you dont need. As it stands now, the item will be gone, and you can ask for it in chat, but no one will say a word about it.  Many people agree this would be a good idea, especially as server pop rises.
    Posted 15 months ago by Lord John Subscriber! | Permalink