Topic

Change in Quests

So I mentioned this the other day in global, but wanted to start a forum to get more feedback. I think it would be smart to have multiple quests per skill as you get to the higher level skills. This could be done by triggering quests when the skills reach a certain point.

An example would be say Mining. Mining I would have two associated quests; one at 50% and the other at 100%. Then Mining II would have three quests; one at 33%, another at 66%, and the third at 100%. Mining III would have four associated quests; one at 25%, one at 50%, one at 75%, and the last at 100%. Mining IV would have five quests; one at 20%, next at 40%, then 60%, then 80%, and finally 100%.

This could help with several things.
1) It would really help scale quests to higher levels that have week long skills
2) There is more opportunity for players to learn about the game through questing. For example once mining quest to teach how to mine and the tools, another to teach about how the rock regenerates (must mine the full thing), another that teaches about co-op mining, on and on.
3) The quests can scale with the players as they move up in the skill tree. The quests can become more complicated and keep higher levels interested
4) Those of us that love to quest will have more opportunity to do so

I know there are also some problems with this idea though.
1) Not everyone likes to quest, maybe there could be a way to temporarily disable quests for those who prefer not to.
2) As more skills are added, it could be difficult to keep a certain % at which quests should be triggered, so at some point quests won't be coming every 1% of the skill

Thoughts?

Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • +1

    Hello, my name is BarryW and I am a questaholic. Anything you can do to add more quests would keep me more interested in Glitch and make it more fun.
    Posted 16 months ago by BarryW Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm the same way Barry. The first step is acceptance, so you are well on your way
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm not interested in having more quest of the same skill. I would prefer to have more variety in the quests, for example participating in a project could be a quest.
    Posted 16 months ago by Natalia Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Natalia, I do not mean this list to be exclusively the only type of new skill added, and I agree with you, this is just a way to get more
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Love this idea!
    Posted 16 months ago by Koala Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1

    ETA I think this is a great idea, and I'd also like to have some more quests that had a storyline to them, if you know what I mean...had more to do with fighting the rooks, for instance, and needed more stratemagizing...
    Posted 16 months ago by chilirlw Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i'm in favor of more quests. even goofy ones give me an idea for "what shall i do in glitch today?"

    gives me some direction and maybe sends me out to glitchy parts of the world farther than i would go just to keep my household running.
    Posted 16 months ago by flask Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I agree chili!  I loved the rook museum, huge step in the right direction!  I just think this will allow players more opportunity to explore and learn!
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Love this idea and I'm also with Laurali and chili about the quests with storylines!
    I would also love more group quests. As a beginner, I met a lot of cool people looking for company for peat and loam quests!
    Posted 16 months ago by Lexi Smart Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I specifically like the idea of quests that highlight the re-spawn traits of different resources.  It's actually confusing that you *should* mine a rock all the way, you *can't* mine a peat bog all the way, and I actually haven't figured out what's up with dirt piles.  There should be something similar for feeding pigs and batterflys.
    Posted 16 months ago by KhaKhonsu Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yes I have to agree that when we get to the higher level skills there should be a few more quests. When you are on the same skill for a number of days it gets rather tedious as you wait for the time to pass, so yes more to do or interact would be great. The rook museum was wonderful, I liked the idea of the 'tour'.
    Posted 16 months ago by Saba Moon Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I love quests!  That's one thing that made me love World of Warcraft so much ... so many quests!  I wish there was a way the quests here said what level optimal, and what areas optimal ... maybe that's a far fetched wish lol ...
    Posted 16 months ago by Brekkana Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Omg that is what I loved about World of Warcraft too!  I would mass produce characters, level them up, then make more!
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Brekkana: It doesn't seem to me that knowing the optimal level for a quest would be nearly as useful in Glitch since its not your level that limits what you can do as much as your skill.
    Posted 16 months ago by BarryW Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +100000 for more quests. When I'm learning a skill that takes a few days, I feel so aimless. I know that's the sort of thing some Glitchizens enjoy, but I'd much rather have a goal then wander around Ur massaging butterflies for three days.
    Posted 16 months ago by theodorenott Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm the same way Theodore, I have tried working on achievements recently but its just not the same.  I miss having quests, and although there are other things I can do that is what I really love to do the most!
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I agree 100% 
    +1
    Posted 16 months ago by LSDCoatedBrain Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Group quests should be either or, perhaps even both.  I love quests but for some reason still can't finish off Rainbow Run and killing a Rook's egg.  Have to laugh at myself for not completing this quests yet.
    Posted 16 months ago by xoxJulie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • LSDCoatedBrain.  What an interesting name!
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I too am a lover of quests.

    Quests that teach - Quests that expand the storyline - Quests that challenge newly learned skills - Quests that encourage cooperation -  Quests that are humor based - I just love quests!

    The one thing i have noticed about the quests so far is that they are just too easy to accomplish.  Perhaps that will change as I level up but there is nothing wrong with a good challenge :D
    Posted 16 months ago by Sweetness Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oh, I agree, Eve!  Too many of the quests are just "get these ingredients and mix them together"...that's ok for the cooking stuff, but I like a quest where I have to do some thinking to solve the problem! 

    Most of the quests so far have been about introducing you to the world and the various things you can do, which is good for the early levels.  But in the upper levels, we need something meatier!
    Posted 16 months ago by chilirlw Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Me too! I would love more quests!!
    Posted 16 months ago by Innie✿, Obviously Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I agree about the level of difficulty of the quests too, I was hoping they would get more complicated as you get further into the skill tree
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I would love this.
    Posted 16 months ago by emdot Subscriber! | Permalink
  • There are far too many quests given out in the beginning of the game (namely bc you're learning skills so fast), so by the end-game, where skills are taking days upon days... it seems there is a lack of quests.

    Quests should not just be given out when a skill is complete, but there should also be quests given out randomly from "quest animals" perhaps in various locations around the world. 

    The rock could give us a bread-crumb quest "go talk to X in Y", then we go to Y and talk to X and he tells us to do Z somewhere else. It gets people exploring, which is always a good thing.
    Posted 16 months ago by Bashere Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Agree that there needs to be more quests. A lot more quests, I think.

    1. Quests for skills started and completed
    2. Quests for action mechanics and etiquette, ie. mining chunks to completion
    3. Quests that require players to go to other zones
    4. Quests for activities within newly entered zones, ie. scrape barnacles in Shimla Mirch, collect jelly in Chakra Phool
    5. Quest for how to buy a house
    6. Quest for how to use the subway
    7. Quests for hitting level milestones
    8. Quest for participating in projects
    9. Quest for putting animal(s) in new streets
    10. More group quests
    11. Epic, multi-step, multi-zone quests
    12. Quest for buying something from auction
    13. Quest for selling something on auction
    14. Quest for changing a piece of wardrobe and a piece of vanity

    Go on?
    Posted 16 months ago by SleepyAce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Ooooooooo, +1million to SleepyAce.
    Posted 16 months ago by Innie✿, Obviously Subscriber! | Permalink
  • If you have more ideas, SleepyAce, please do toss 'em out! The ones you've outlined look great.
    Posted 16 months ago by Clumdalglitch Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 Sleepy Ace, especially the "putting animals in new streets" quest. I hadn't realized until quite recently that devs didn't just warp in more pork periodically to counteract my hogtying.
    Posted 16 months ago by Capablanca Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 for Sleepy Ace. I guess quests are a great way for introducing recently learnt skills.
    Posted 16 months ago by Lexi Smart Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Bashere and @Sleepy

    I agree with both of you, and think most of the ideas you suggested could be accomplished by providing multiple quests per skill.
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I like the idea of going from one place to another to find and finish quests, be funny to actually want to talk to a rock you are mining for a quest and have the rock make you go talk to a chicken who has a crush on a piggy and so on.  To make it harder not tell you which particular pig, chicken except by name, and hope someone hasn't changed their name.  LOL Sorry I have a very sick sense of humor.
    Posted 16 months ago by xoxJulie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1,000 for more quests
    Posted 16 months ago by gimmegames Subscriber! | Permalink
  • For some reason when I don't have any quests lined up I have a tendency to get bored and start looking through the achievement list (like I've done tonight, so I have something to do once this week's test starts). At this point all I'm doing is making food/drinks, mining, selling stuff and saving money so I can buy a sweet mansion.

    I would really love to have an endless list of quests.
    Posted 16 months ago by Saraphim Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yup... I'm just hoping that they've been saving some quests for when this goes live... All I've been doing is feeding the shrines to learn stuff faster.
    Posted 16 months ago by gimmegames Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @gimmegames Pretty good guess.

    I am sure there will be a lot more quests as the game matures. The problem with creating quests right now is that they are tedious to do (Involving writers, Storyboard/Graphics artists, Project Developers and programmers to create dependency code... it all takes a lot of collaboration to get right), not to mention quests are something that can be done AFTER launch with minimal impact to players.

    Making quests after launch is more efficient than can be done during beta because the "world" is more settled, which allows for the grand picture of the game to be seen, making quests just come naturally.  By that time, the devs are a bit more calmed down too and can better handle the work cycles to work together to make them happen. Just hold tight, I'm pretty sure there's plenty more badges and quests... I'm willing to bet on it. ;)
    Posted 16 months ago by c0mad0r Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Not to be a douche, but I respectfully disagree.  I was tempted to wish for more quests in the beginning.  I have a powergaming streak in me and wondered, what, is that all? around level 15.  But now, everytime I see someone asking for more quests, I just think... why? It only forestalls (ever so slightly) the inevitable. Sure, some people see all MMOs this way, but I honestly hope Glitch continues to become something different.  Focus more on cool little things to do, improve Chat performance, and just leave Quests as the noob tutorial, I think.  I like some of the quest ideas in here, though.  Auctioning seems like a particularly good tute item for much earlier.  I just got an auction quest with Croppery II or whatever, but now I'm at the point where I think mwahaha noooo all produce is MINE.  Would've been great to be less frightened by the auction system at around level 3.  All that running around harvesting stuff yourself is for fools, especially with level 1 skills (joke -- i know it's both necessary and even fun in the beginning).
    Posted 16 months ago by FlirtyvonSexenhaven Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Flirty, the game should really appeal to different types of players and adding more quests won't hurt those that don't want to do them, it can only help those who enjoy questing. But also this isn't a "gimme more quests thread", it is an idea I have about how to incorporate more quests naturally into the current setup so that it would be quite easy to keep upper levels actively participating so that as long as there are skills being added to the game, there will be something for players to work towards.

    But I don't think Glitch would be considered just another MMO if it did have more quests, because the game is unique enough.

    Also, there are a good number of skills that players don't understand because the quests didn't fully explain or there were no quests for certain skills. Even higher level skills and players need tutorials
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I certainly agree, there's little harm in quests. I particularly like the ones that point out how the ecosystem works. Just sayin, personally, if i had to choose I'd pick more music and skills over quests. Just my two cents, hope you guys also get whatcha want.
    Posted 16 months ago by FlirtyvonSexenhaven Subscriber! | Permalink
  • More skills = more quests, so I hope we both get what we want ;)!
    Posted 16 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It would be cool if players at higher levels could start doing more complicated quests, maybe get a quest from a giant at a shrine and get some kind of trophy or trinket for completing it.
    Posted 16 months ago by Niqster Subscriber! | Permalink
  • is this idea too good for the ideas forum or something?
    Posted 16 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i agree with an earlier point, that quests only forestall the inevitable. or at least mostly forestall.

    if you enjoy mechanically repeating actions over and over again, which is all that "questing" currently is, then you have achievements.

    the game could use a few more tutorial type quests, but if the idea is "let people do more of what they enjoy doing now", then this is all about converting achievements into quest format.
    Posted 16 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • also, the idea that more quests doesn't do anything other than give people who like quests more of what they want is simplistic.

    quests are instructive. the rock leaps out at you to give you them. the more quests there are, the more the game signals to the player that they're "playing incorrectly" if they don't do them. that's why the game has achievements, which are exactly like the current crop of quests in terms of play style and outcome, just that the magic rock doesn't pester you into doing them.

    if you want more solo play, great, but leaping to "more quests" isn't a particularly imaginative solution, and puts a wall of magic rock in front of other types of potential gameplay. The Tower pseudo-quest is a good example of geographically triggered solo play. Firefly Whistle acquisition is less elaborate but very cool. The Nostalgia Lands are a similar. the game should be littered with tons of interesting 'playable geography' like that that triggers as you explore, but is instead is filled with a lot of repetition and landscape sprawl.
    Posted 16 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @striatic:

    As Bashere mentioned above, quests come so thick and fast at the start of the game that a player can feel lost once they start drying up as the skills take longer to learn. So as it is, Glitch is demanding that a player get used to a style of on-rails gameplay and then get abandoned to their own devices without any warning. An experienced Glitcher from the testing period, or a Glitcher already inclined to experiment and explore without being told, might be able to get past this hurdle. But when Glitch launches, it's unlikely that Tiny Speck would want to hang its hopes entirely on this audience at the expense of everyone else.

    Plus, as you noted, mechanical repetition is all that questing "currently is". (Although you're giving it short shrift, because it's about asking the player to do something NEW that they've just learnt, to the point where they've done it enough to have gotten the hang of it.) But it doesn't necessarily mean that those asking for more quests just want more of the same; quests don't have to be pegged to skills. (In fact, it's the pegging of quests to skills that causes the "mechanical repetition" of which you gripe.) The idea, contrary to being "let people do more of what they enjoy doing now", is to give them a nudge towards what they might not know they would enjoy. A quest to explore, for instance, would in turn trigger a "playable-geography" quest that an exploration-disinclined player might not otherwise even know about.

    Plus, I find your objection about the obtrusiveness of quests to have a very simple fix: just have a checkbox for players less inclined to quests to opt out of getting the full-blown Rock dialogue box (they might instead get a "new quest" alert, perhaps similar to the "crop fully grown" alert, and check the quest log to activate the quest if interested).
    Posted 16 months ago by Otterlicious Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "2) There is more opportunity for players to learn about the game through questing. For example once mining quest to teach how to mine and the tools, another to teach about how the rock regenerates (must mine the full thing), another that teaches about co-op mining, on and on.
    3) The quests can scale with the players as they move up in the skill tree. The quests can become more complicated and keep higher levels interested"


    Striatic, I am proposing quests to teach players how to use the skill at a lower level, but becoming more complicated as the player gets higher into the skill tree.  For example, cooking quests could start by having the player cook a few foods to learn how to do so.  But as the player gets more and more cooking skills, they move from making predetermined foods to creating their own foods.  Maybe there could be a simple setup, each new recipe must have a protein (eggs, meat, beans) and a fruit or vegetable, and a sauce.  The total energy would be difficult to calculate though, maybe just add up the energy of each individual food part and then combine them?

    Or say mining, there could be a quest that teachers players about co-mining, about mining a rock to the stub, etc.  Once the player gets high enough in the mining tree to learn the basics of how mining works, there could be a quest "treasure hunt" to find a hidden rock that needs to be mined.

    For gardening the lower level quests would teach the basics of gardening and teaching about community gardens and how piggy plop works as well.  Then as you get further into the skill tree there could be quests that have you working with other players to grow as many crops as possible in a certain time frame or something.

    Obviously these are just ideas off the top of my head, and I know Tiny Speck is capable of coming up with way more creative/interactive quests.

    "But also this isn't a "gimme more quests thread", it is an idea I have about how to incorporate more quests naturally into the current setup so that it would be quite easy to keep upper levels actively participating so that as long as there are skills being added to the game, there will be something for players to work towards."

    and

    "1) Not everyone likes to quest, maybe there could be a way to temporarily disable quests for those who prefer not to."

    Striatic I already addressed several of your concerns above.  Please read through the comments 
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think there should be user created quests.  Post a bounty, completion trigger and multiple.  Someone goes to a quest board to collect quests and turn in bounties.  House can take a cut as in AH.
    Posted 15 months ago by ᶘ ᵒᴥᵒᶅ Subscriber! | Permalink