Topic

Lack of High Tier Housing

Let me preface this by saying I have my 50k house.  I got one early enough that I could pick one out based on proximity to the quarters sign and not just take whatever was available.  However, a good friend I brought into the game had not reached that point until this morning.  Perhaps it was shortsighted of her to gather her things and sell her house without checking the available real estate, but she now finds herself homeless, not wanting to go back to the house she has outgrown, and not able to upgrade as there are no high tier 30k+ houses available at all.  Anywhere.  

I think there's a good possibility this will chase my friend out of the game.  I think there's a good possibility it will chase a number of people out of the game who did not start right at launch.  

But I also think, to give the benefit of the doubt, that it's possible things tiny speck is working on might free up more housing, create more housing, or make buying a more expensive home less compelling.  Of course, I have no way to know that for sure, since this company seems to have adopted the "Oh noes we can't tell you what were working on because you'll rage if we don't deliver" approach -- the last entry in the glitch blog is from Oct. 1 informing me about clothing I don't care about, and the blog contains not a single state of the game article or future of the game article.  

Maybe a few players will rage if promises are made and not kept, but players are going to start raging about housing soon, if not already.  What gives, tiny speck?  Do I tell my friend to hold on?  Or do I tell her to give up?

Posted 14 months ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • Yeah, I have to say I'm sort of in the same boat.  When I first found out about housing, I saw there was housing available at about 30k that I wanted.  Today I finally saved up that money, and when I checked the market, there are none left.  I am a bit disappointed, as when I'd first checked, it looked like there was plenty, so I didn't really rush as hard as I might have had I known it would vanish like that.

    I do hope they open up some new houses at that level soon!
    Posted 14 months ago by Straylight Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I agree. It's doesn't make me angry, but I sure would like the option of even getting a cottage They're so cute). I didn't even bother saving that much because there was nothing available but treehouses, caves, apts, and swamphomes. Kind of a bummer.
    Posted 14 months ago by River Bell Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I would say hold on, as 30k/50k housing is released on occasion. Just the other day a batch was released in Alakol though it was quickly sold.
    Posted 14 months ago by Myuki Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The thing is, currants are so easy to generate in this game within very short periods of time that pretty much everyone will have the 50k house if the supply is unlimited and that would be pretty boring. On the other hand, artificially limiting them makes it a lottery that favours early adopters and makes the newer players feel left out. It would be more fun if there was a bigger range of high end houses, for example I love the cottage style and the Shimla Mirch style ones and I'd love to have a bigger/more useful version of those. Piling EVERYONE into Alakol is so boring and I'm so tired of people going on about how they want the "50k house" without there being any variation or interest in making the decision.

    I think the point about the devs not relating much about the state of the game is a lot more important. People are always talking in Global about various things they have heard from various staff members that they have talked to, which is actually more annoying than anything, if information is going to be shared it should be shared with everyone, not just the select few who happen to know members of staff to be filtered through to the general population via hearsay and speculation. I would really love to see the blog being used more often. I understand the risk of telling people about a planned feature and then having to disappoint them, but at the same time by saying nothing it makes it feel like people aren't being listened to and the game isn't improving. It's possible for TS to talk more about the future of the game without being forced to commit to specific features.

    Just my two cents!
    Posted 14 months ago by victoriah Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The Glitch Change Log (on the left ot the first forums page) has MANY updates since Oct 1. They are only posted by staff. I don't know why you have missed them. They may not be on the subject you care most about, but they certainly are communicating.

    RE shortages happen in RL too and choices have to be made. Suck it up and get on with your life (or game).
    Posted 14 months ago by Kookaburra Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I wish I could at least have one 10k house on Groddle Meadow. But seems impossible.
    Posted 14 months ago by Sykozen Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Regarding housing customization specifically:

    "This is the most important (and largest) feature we are adding to the game. We originally planned to have it in during beta, but it is very complex! (Whole new UIs, hundreds of items, wallpapers, decorations, new kinds of projects for upgrades, different flexible house "frames" which can be extended in different ways ... all do-able, just a lot of work to get right.) Don't expect it before 2012 and you will not be disappointed!" -stoot barfield

    A more detailed post on the direction they're going with Glitch and what features they're working on getting out next:

    "I agree — good thread!

    To the original question, the current crop of major projects for us are: (1) group-owned locations (AKA group halls, but it is more about the locations than the halls) which will include the ability to choose resources and upgrades, build new locations, and a bunch more; this is what we are most likely to launch first, (2) the revised tutorial/early game experience (won't matter much to most people reading this, but still important to us), (3) customizable/upgradable houses/buildings: probably the most important overall, but huge and longer term — it might happen before the end of the year :), (4) mobile games & apps (we have done a lot of work on developer tools and the APIs and are starting to see some traction), (5) more physics play, games & races, (6) reworking player-to-player trading, the return of market spaces and overhauling the vendors (7) a bunch of new skills and items, closing off the current skill and crafting trees dead ends and adding a lot more functionality, mostly to support group-owned locations and building upgrading/customization.

    The transition from beta and episodic testing to launch and 24/7 availability contained many challenges but we're pretty close to adjusted now. Work on the larger projects is full steam ahead now (though we've still launched several medium-sized features —like Updates in the client, Camera mode/Eyeballery, Party Spaces, Icons, Emblem spending, etc . — fixed many bugs and done a done of polish/tweaking in the 3+ weeks since launch day).

    Over the next few weeks, we'll be posting more information about upcoming releases. In some cases it's just to help you plan for the changes and in others we'll be gathering feedback. And, in a month (or possibly two!) we should have the voting mechanism for subscribers in place to open some of the decision making up." -stoot barfield

    Plus someone mentioned the feed on the left of the forums that tells what new things they've done and fixed and whatnot... which generally has updates from within the last 24-48 hours.

    I don't see how, according to OP, they "have adopted the "Oh noes we can't tell you what were working on because you'll rage if we don't deliver" approach".

    They've also been fairly steady about opening up new housing areas of all types over the past few weeks.
    Posted 14 months ago by Little Miss Giggles Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i have been waiting for a bigger house, but i don't want to jump on the first one that comes up and then regret it later.  Moving sucks  :)  So I have my bags packed and ready to go when the time comes.  Right now, it's a bit like real life - you don't just go out and find the house of your dreams on your first day out.  It takes a while. 

    There are plenty of people who buy the bigger houses and then realize that they're not the style they like, so they end up moving back to the smaller places that are a different style.  And there are bigger houses in other areas of Ur, so you are not limited to only Alakol if you are looking for one of the 50k mansions.  Myself, I have my eye on a nice, roomy place in Andra
    Posted 14 months ago by Super Jeebs Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I was one of the lucky ones that got a 50K house when they opened the new batch the other day. I don't say that to be mean, I just want to have you tell your friend that I'm sure more housing will open up they just need to periodically check the realty page.
    Posted 14 months ago by Gizmospooky Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oh wow can NOT wait for housing customization!!

    On topic, having learned from CB I quickly saved the money for a big house without buying a smaller house first then upgrading. I really feel for those of you not able to get the house of your dreams, keep your hopes up!
    Posted 14 months ago by TimeLord Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The glitch change log, which I check every day but is only useful for past changes not future plans, is not the glitch blog.  You will find that here: http://www.glitch.com/blog/

    Thank you for posting that information, Little Miss Giggles, but while that does give some idea of some directions they are going, posting it to the forums where it is quickly buried hardly counts as a commendable effort at communication.  And while they have been opening new housing, it seems demand has hugely outstripped supply, and her odds of getting one are only good if she hovers over the realty page every waking minute.  I'll tell her to keep checking, but I won't tell her to have a lot of hope.  

    And to whomever said it, I agree, it does kind of suck if everyone ends up with the same 50k house.  But they only provided one option, and clearly gave it more resource nodes, so to speak, than any of the other housing in the game.  Unless you place aesthetics above the practical or are dead set on having an herb garden, there is absolutely no reason not to go for a 50k home.  Not having one puts players at a disadvantage.  

    I feel like the 1%
    Posted 14 months ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oh and wow, just clicked through on that thread -- it's not even a staff topic.  It's great that staff replied but having to be prompted to give such information and then not even posting it to the forums but having it be a reply tucked in to a player's post is even less commendable than if they posted their own topic.  

    They have a blog.  It was even a featured blog on Wordpress once upon a time.  It would be nice for Stoot or someone to post up a few paragraphs every so many weeks.  There is no way any of us should have to scour every single forum post to find where someone in authority might have replied.
    Posted 14 months ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i agree with Kookaburra. there are a new batch of 50k and 30k houses available every couple of days, in fact there were some last night. high tier houses are in extreme demand and not many people will re-sell them to downgrade. you snooze, you lose, deal with it. until then you can always settle for smaller, lower priced home.

    i do hope they implement some sort of very, very small land/lease fee like in real life so those who miss their payments for let's say, 3 months lose their home. oh i've got an idea: you have to feed/play with your gnome once a month or it gets progressively more angry, ruining your crops/trees/animals, stealing your stuff, until after 3 months of neglect it goes insane and sells your home >:)
    Posted 14 months ago by Fur Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I like your second paragraph Taco -- that's a very glitchy idea.  

    But "you snooze you lose" won't do much to keep the newer players from feeling resentment and irritation, not sure that's what I should pass on to my friend.  
    Posted 14 months ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I do understand what you mean about the posts being buried, Saucelah, and I do agree, it shouldn't be expected to scour the forums. I'm simply saying they are being open about stuff, even if they don't post something specifically detailing things they're going to do in a sticky thread.

    I feel like the cottages have more practical use than the 50k, so really, practicality depends on what a person's needs are. I can't imagine veggie plots are practical for herb growers.

    I am certainly at no disadvantage in my cottage; it has plenty of crop plots, an extra tree and charm. The only things extra resource-wise that a 50k has that my cottage doesn't, are an extra 12 crop plots, a pen and a few more levels. If I were in one of the other 15k models, I'd even have equal cabinet space to a 50k home (curse my favorite model to be the only one with only 24 slots).

    I have more veggies than I could ever sell or make into something in a RL week. I don't need a pen because my animals don't get in my way when I garden. My house is nice and neat, despite the fact that I have a ton of stuff. So certainly, the cottage is more practical for me (I lived in a 50k for a while before reset; loved some stuff, not enough to stay), though it may not be for others.

    ETA: It would be kinda cool if there were a thing like BlueTracker (for WoW). BlueTracker gathers up all developer/moderator commentary in the forums and such and posts them where all can see them.
    Posted 14 months ago by Little Miss Giggles Subscriber! | Permalink
  • well... we cant always have what we want, when we want it. 

    there are some nice caves and treehouses your friend can purchase until they can pounce on a 15k/30k/50k. i suggest one in Jethimadh since theres a wormhole to Ix.

    thanks, im going to put that in the suggestions forum. can't have inactive players holding on to prime real estate indefinitely.
    Posted 14 months ago by Fur Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Saucelah, new residences are indeed added to the world periodically. As another player already mentioned, just yesterday over 140 homes were added to two Alakol locations, and another 10 quarter streets are slotted to arrive today - this should help to a degree. We'll continue to provide housing of all styles, but the reality is there will always be a degree of scarcity in one type or another, and particularly in those that are the most popular with other players. Anyone who's dead-set on a certain house or location might want to check the real estate page religiously while they're looking, because when they do arrive, they get snatched up fast.  

    As to your point about communicating updates to the game: it isn't at all for lack of wanting to share with players what's in the works - you'll see previews from staff about upcoming features sprinkled across the forums where it's relevant, and of course every change to the game is chronicled in the Change Log that same day. However, you *can* expect the blog to be updated more frequently in the near future as the post-launch whirlwind dies down, giving us more time to write and more clarity on what's coming up next. 
    Posted 14 months ago by Blanky Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Sidenote:

    Pink Taco... what if you don't own a Gnome? Though I agree, very Glitchy idea.

    I don't like the idea of people losing their homes, but I can see the possible need for it- though 3 months is far too short of a time. Maybe a year is more palatable.

    And the idea of clearing out inactive housing has been brought up somewhere, in similar form, though I don't remember if it was ever put in Ideas or not.
    Posted 14 months ago by Little Miss Giggles Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks for the response -- my friend did actually just write me to say she managed to snatch up a 30k -- not sure if those quarters were already released or if she just caught one at the right moment.  

    Very happy to hear that the blog will be more informative in the future, and I can imagine that the launch of this game, with the unanticipated response, has been hectic.  May I suggest unpaid interns that work for credit?  You can usually get away with chaining them to their desks and cracking whips over their head every half hour or so, and they will work like monkeys on amphetamines.  

    I'm not sure it's ethical, however.  
    Posted 14 months ago by Red Sauce Subscriber! | Permalink
  • no, someone just sold their house in alakol.  i was contemplating buying it myself
    Posted 14 months ago by Super Jeebs Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I waited for days for the housing I wanted (at one point moving into temporary quarters so I could organize my bags more easily).  If it's that important for making the game worth playing, just haunt the realty pages until something opens up, which happens all the time.  Several neighborhoods have been added this week alone. 

    There are several 50K houses available at the moment, actually.  
    Posted 14 months ago by oscarette Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "Unless you place aesthetics above the practical or are dead set on having an herb garden, there is absolutely no reason not to go for a 50k home.  Not having one puts players at a disadvantage."

    I respectfully, but totally, disagree with this statement. Personally, I don't like the 30K and 50K homes. I don't live in one and I doubt I ever will. I like my home in the firebogs. I have plenty of space, I am close to resources I use regularly, and I earn plenty of currants without ever doing a speck of mining unless I find a nubbin someone has left behind as I wander Ur. I am enjoying my time in Glitch, so you cannot convince me I am at any kind of disadvantage. In fact, owning a house I dislike would put me at a disadvantage, because then I would not enjoy my time playing nearly as much... and isn't having enjoyable play time a big part of what Glitch is all about?
    Posted 14 months ago by Zany Serendipity Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I had a 50k home before reset.  I considered buying it again immediately after reset.  But I decided that the game was more fun for me without it.

    How on earth you can then conclude that I am somehow "disadvantaged" by not having it is unfathomable. 
    Posted 14 months ago by WindBorn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • There are more 50k/30k homes available in Alakol and Andra now. :)
    Posted 14 months ago by VorpalCheese Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Not everyone wants or needs a 50k home. Some people might want a home that can provide 5 tree patches or a home that is capable of growing an egg plant. Some people don't need a lot of crop patches or an animal pen. Some people are barely home at all, so there's no point in owning an expensive house.

    In what way is not having a 50k home a disadvantage? Personally, I find the 3 floors serving more of an aesthetic purpose than anything functional. Yes, I own a 50k home, but my friend is just as happy in his tree house. I actually kind of wish I had bought a 30k home instead, if only so my crops and trees were all on one level.
    Posted 14 months ago by Myuki Subscriber! | Permalink
  • More were just released this morning in Alakol and Andra.  =)
    Posted 14 months ago by ♪♥~ Auren ~♥♪ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • If we can build new streets to expand the game as more people populate the game why cant we build houses and buy and sell partially completed houses on a more scalable plan? I want to eventually live in a 1,000,000C penthouse with a fridge/wetbar/stove/crystal closet/powder room etc. bought with saleable tokens for sets of what used to be maximum production in smaller houses.
    Posted 14 months ago by Broad Ripple Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Broad Ripple I wonder if that might one day be a possibility what with housing customization in the works.  I wouldn't be surprised.
    Posted 14 months ago by VorpalCheese Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 for the penthouse!
    Posted 14 months ago by TimeLord Subscriber! | Permalink
  • and Kajuu and Bortola! this time i think theyll last atleast 3 days before being all sold :)

    @Little Miss Giggles: i changed it to elves lol. a year?! thats a really long time for turnover! i think 3 months is the perfect amount tbh. here's the thread
    Posted 14 months ago by Fur Subscriber! | Permalink
  • they just released tons
    Posted 14 months ago by Super Jeebs Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Awww, no love for Salatu?

    Edit: Ha! Spoke too soon. :D
    Posted 14 months ago by VorpalCheese Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Loads more in Jadraan Fix
    Posted 14 months ago by Chimpydoodles Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Hah. Elves.

    The least I'd think that would be right would be 6 months. Three is just way too short. And I'd never want any idea of the sort implemented without some sort of escrow for players' belongings to be stored in. But I guess this is all talk for the other thread. lol
    Posted 14 months ago by Little Miss Giggles Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I have owned both 30 and 50K homes.  Right now I am in a 30K.  I prefer them strongly over the 50K homes.  I don't want my crops up on some senseless third floor where I won't notice them.  Actually, I wish my 30K house only had one floor.

    And new houses have come out since this thread was started.  I guess put that 'raging' on hold.
    Posted 14 months ago by Parrow Gnolle Subscriber! | Permalink
  • true the garden on a different floor than animals and trees is annoying but the 50k has much more room to grow in than 30k, especially with the customisable house thing coming in 2012. plus, we have super jumps now and there's always eyeballery.

    @Little Miss Giggles: 6 months is still a little long in my opinion... but someone made a good suggestion about subscribers in that thread.
    Posted 14 months ago by Fur Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I just entered the Glitch real estate market and it's been very interesting thus far.  The evening I'd finally saved up enough to buy a house (a whole 6k) I asked the people I know in RL who play where I should look.  The 2 areas they told me didn't have anything for sale...bummer.  So, as the evening went on I'd periodically check the real estate page and watched several places come up for sale and get snatched up within minutes.

    That's also how I got the house I bought, I just happened to refresh the page and saw one of the areas my friends had suggested wasn't grayed out anymore...clicked on it and bought my cute little place for 5k.  :)

    I figure the game is growing, constantly changing, and a bit of "but but but! I want one!" is good for keeping things interesting and helping to generate a sense of accomplishment when you do finally get the one you wanted for so long.
    Posted 14 months ago by Belasco Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I just skimmed, but I saw somebody else mention things I would want. I'd LOVE to see a high end house with not only a ton of patches for trees, room for animals and a decent garden, but a basement as well so that I could also have an eggplant and herb garden with the darker room. Oh and put it in Besara as well please :) I love my little cheap place in Yuca Litt, the area is so nice
    Posted 14 months ago by phoenixwaller Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm perfectly happy in my Leth Lift cave house. I'm waiting to see if there's something even bigger and better out there, because the style of the uber-modern housing isn't my thing. The space seems nice, as well as the animal pen, but I don't *love* it. I'd love to live in Uralia, for example, even if it was the same size as my current place, simply because I love the art style down there. It's not always the price tag that will convince me to move. And I like having a egg plant. :)
    Posted 14 months ago by Laerwen Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Doon Way was good enough for me in alpha; it was good enough for me in beta too! It's damn well good enough for me now! 

    *shakes can and/or walker in the air*
    Posted 14 months ago by Ernest Subscriber! | Permalink