Topic

Follow-the-leader mining in Ajaya Bliss

I never liked mining throughout beta. I would spend the least amount of time doing it as possible--I hated it. It was boring. Stand in one place and whack on a rock over and over again. Oooh, fun <sarcasm>. 

After the co-op mining rewards were recently increased to the point of making group mining actually worthwhile, I tried out Ajaya Bliss and loved it! It was like a party in there with everyone having so much fun, and the mining was no longer repetitive and boring because a single rock would be finished off in one whack, and then I could go bouncing around, searching for the next rock, or chatting with the rest of the party-goers. 

A new style of mining has emerged today, because someone figured out the order in which the sparkly rocks regenerate. This means that everyone knows exactly which rock will spawn next, and there is no longer any reason to jump around and be on the look-out in between rocks. The place doesn't seem like a party any more--the "leader", who has the list on hand, tells everyone which rock to go to next. Everyone goes to that area. Then, they all stand there and wait, motionless, until the rock regenerates. They are then told which rock to move on to next, and off they go. If you go to a different rock, you are chastised. It seems alot less fun now--I liked it better when it was more chaotic. Now, it is once again just a bunch more of the same: stand in one spot mining for a little bit, then stand in another pre-ordained spot waiting. No thought involved--just go where the leader tells you to and stand there, and don't go out of line or you'll be yelled at.

I was disturbed by something someone said to me today, which is what prompted me to write this: I am a level 2 miner. I mine VERY slowly. I tried doing the follow-the-leader thing properly many times. I went where I was told. I waited... but it was hard to see exactly when the rock regenerated because a huge number of people were all standing right in front of where the rock appeared, blocking my view... The best sign that it was there was when others started to mine. So, I frantically try to hit the rock, succeeding towards the end when most everyone had already started. I got 1 to maybe 10 bonus chunks with around 30 people mining. This is pitiful. Even more pitiful is that my slow mining time meant that I was still mining that first rock after everyone else had finished it, moved on to the next rock, and finished that one off too. So, I get one whack in on the first rock, get a handful of bonus chunks out of it, and everyone else gets to finish off 2 rocks in the same time. I realized this was a waste of my time, so whenever 2 rocks spawned next to eachother I would move to the second one (which the group would be moving to in a few seconds), and start there so I could begin my excruciatingly slow mining in time to actually get some benefit from the other players when they arrived and helped me. Still, I only got one whack in while everyone else finished off two whole rocks, but at least I could get 50 bonus chunks instead of 1 to 10. 

I was yelled at for doing this (along with around 2 other people that were doing the same). When I explained why I was doing it, I was told that low level miners should go mine somewhere else! Unbelievable! As a history lesson to everyone: these new high co-op benefits were implemented specifically to benefit low level miners, because people were complaining that it was unfair for a high level miner to come by and finish off a whole rock that a lower level miner was slowly working on, only giving the low level miner 1 bonus chunk in the process, but depleting the whole rock before they could even get their second swing in. The bonuses are higher for low level miners: it makes sense for them to want to co-mine, and no one should tell them that they should mine by themselves if they can't keep up with the "big-boys". This is not the welcoming and inclusive atmosphere of Glitch that I'm used to.

I can't wait until I get through Better Learning V so I can learn the other mining skills and be able to mine a decent amount of rock by myself, without having to rely on the help of people with that attitude.

Tl;dr: Sheep following a leader around to specific regions where rocks are pre-known to respawn is less fun, and the draconian rule of "play my way or the highway" will turn off alot of players, especially low level ones that aren't benefiting unless they are one of the first to start a rock.

Posted 15 months ago by Shepherdmoon Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • I personally love this change because it means that EVERYONE can mine in Ajaya now be they players that are new or old, players who have high mining skills or low mining skills, players who enjoy coordinated co-op mining, chaotic co-op mining or solitary mining.

    Despite the changes players can still enjoy coordinated co-op mining in Ajaya. It will just take a little bit more effort but then isn't it worth it to enjoy that community spirit that drew you all to your favoured game play style? You guys n gals can organise yourselves mining events. Create a forum thread, a group, ask in global chat. You can even use it as a way to make friends, you can add these friends so that in time you might not even have to organise a specific event. I know some are going to respond with 'why should we have to' but you know other players do this with quests, block parties, street projetcs, livestock repopulation ect.                                                                                                             
    Posted 15 months ago by DramaticHamster Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I am happy to just not go there...all that chaotic co-op mining done my head in..Now I just go out on my own else where..If people pass and want to help mine..then that's an added bonus... or say hi, even better..if not...then so be it..!  But I will miss the small occasions I did spend relaxing and mixing with others down in Ajaya. 
    Posted 15 months ago by Cryztal Subscriber! | Permalink
  • No they can't Dramatic, knowing where the next spawn point is how we were able to co-op mine in the first place.  A bunch of people mining on one rock isn't cooperation, and it sucks that now people don't have an equal chance at the rock.  Before it was even more friendly to low level miners cause they knew where the rock would spawn and could get a hit on it and get a TON of bonus cause of their low level mining.

    I even purposely stopped leveling up my mining (which before this co-op mining started was gonna be my first skill tree) because it is more beneficial to be low level.  The way it is now is just as overcrowded, way more competitive, and the chances of you catching a rock when you run around are significantly less.  And if you have lag?  Forget about it you won't ever get the chance to even get to the rocks in time.  

    I feel like Christmas got cancelled cause I LOVED how mining was.  It also really allowed for Glitches to use their creativity and teamwork, and I don't like when someone steps in a puts a damper on how we create new ways to play
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "Patterned Ajaya" had two problems:

    1) It was overpowered. You could get 1,000 chunks in maybe 15 minutes. Way above the benefit from any other activity.
    2) It was exploitable. A player could go to the second-next rock and get the best bonuses (as Shepherdmoon inadvertently did, thus receiving the protests of everybody else).

    I think these two problems were facts, not opinion. So it had to be nerfed and changed, beyond the differing opinions of players.
    Posted 15 months ago by Ximenez Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I think Ajaya Bliss was evolving in a really interesting way. The cooperation was fun, and the bonuses were great! The cooperative feel led to interesting room chats and a general nice feeling that by benefiting the group we were benefiting ourselves as well. When AB got too crowded or when I was not in the mood for doing things according to the plan I just made my way to other places.

    I think it was stoot (or maybe Caterina) who said (about Flickr, years ago like in 2005) "listening to users can ruin your product." I am in product at a popular website and I love that quote.
    Posted 15 months ago by bugeye Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "I even purposely stopped leveling up my mining ... because it is more beneficial to be low level.  "

    That? That is almost certainly why it was changed.  It should never be better to learn less.
    Posted 15 months ago by Magic Monkey Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yes Magic Monkey but that is a different problem altogether.  See this thread if you want to address the issue of making it more beneficial to be a low level miner (which really doesn't apply to the current argument):
    http://www.glitch.com/forum/general/7084/

    Now back to the Ajaya Bliss argument.  If the problem is that people were getting too many chunks, why can't they just nerf the chunks we get?  I think that this is an example of a stopper being put on creativity and ingenuity, something that this game usually fosters.
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Laurali, there is also the "exploitability" issue. Have you read my post, three comments above yours?
    Posted 15 months ago by Ximenez Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yes I have Ximenez, but the number of people who went to the next rock was not a huge number, also from my observations majority of them waited til other people got there.  It really isn't a big enough deal that they should change the spawn timers so players can't work together.  People exploit many aspects of this game, some people stand in front of shrines and wait until someone accidentally gives them something they meant to donate and then run away, does that mean that we should not be allowed to donate to shrines anymore?
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'd just like to throw in my two cents - I've had a lot of fun group mining in Ajaya Bliss and have never experienced anyone being negative or 'mean', actually quite the opposite!  I noticed people helping others and explaining the mining mechanics to newer players that didn't understand how group mining benefits everyone.  I saw people who didn't understand the group mining mechanic suddenly realizing the benefits and fun and actually leading the group!  I think this is a great dynamic and encourages teamwork.  It also encourages finding creative new ways to have fun and play the game, which (as Laurali just recently stated) is what a game like Glitch is all about!

    If there is an issue with how high the bonuses are then I understand lowering the bonuses.  If some people are not 'team players' well that's an entirely different issue and I think you'll find no matter where you go or what you do in a multiplayer online game that not everyone is going to play nice together and it's unfortunate if some players have experienced this in Ajaya Bliss.  But please remember that as many times as people have had a bad experience somewhere in the game, dozens of players have had positive ones.  

    The key is balancing the game mechanics without taking the fun out of group activities!
    Posted 15 months ago by Dissonance Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The reason I'm angry isn't just because now we can't co-op mine together, I am more angry that this is how the situation is handled.  Now anytime I have a problem I'll create a thread with a few other people supporting me and then restrictions get put into the game.  The thing I loved most about Glitch is that its pretty much freedom to do what you want, and start taking the freedom away it will make people angry
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I actually am fine with the change in the rock spawning. In fact I think it could create more teamwork and creativity. Get everyone to work together and time the start of their mining at the same time instead of willy nilly. Encourage everyone to go to the same rock instead of splitting up. Tell people when you find a rock, instead of just mining it and hoping that other people find it too.

    I just wish that the rocks spawned a bit faster so that there weren't such long lulls in between. There was a bit of a rhythm before, and now it seems like you wait forever for something to show up.

    Another possibility is that last night a bunch of us tried group mining outside of Ajaya Bliss, and it worked up to a point. People kept dropping out or losing the group and we went in a bit of a circle instead of going to new places every time. But I think that with some practice, this method could work well.
    Posted 15 months ago by anonymoose Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Well I went mining this morning and had a great time. It was not over crowed for a start, maybe a dozen of us and some times less. We, I think all mined together and at times waited for people to catch up before we mined the next rock. If someone did mine on there own
     and one or two occasions I did, no one was shouting the odds at all. I guess what i'm trying to say is yes I love the changes but I also think you have to be just lucky and be in there with a nice group of people who you seem to instantly gel with. Whether you like to mine on your own or not.
    Because we did not know which rock would pop up next it brought back the fun for me anyway :)
    Posted 15 months ago by Misha Subscriber! | Permalink
  • In addition to Group Halls, maybe there can be Group Halls in Mines. While it could be considered exclusive, it would accommodate some group miners and their style of play. So people could like buy into a mining coop, if they desire and if they are motivated by efficiency in their play. Maybe they can invest their currants into expanding the mine and "buying" new rock-spawn sites. 
    Posted 15 months ago by Mac Rapalicious Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 Mac Rapalicious
    Posted 15 months ago by Melody Pond Subscriber! | Permalink
  • here's the deal, you should be able to mine solo or with a group.  group mining is now taking place outside of Ajaya, which is fine, except for a couple things.

    so here's what's happened to me just today REPEATEDLY, and this makes me mad.  i'm mining a rock by myself.  i've been mining a couple times, the rock is about gone, then a group of miners comes in and mines it to the ground, then moves on to the next rock.

    they got a huge bonus, i got nothing.

    so i go to move on to mine something else, but it's been strip mined.  only dullite left.  move to a different area, they were just there, so it's strip-mined too.

    i've had a couple groups that FOLLOWED ME WITHOUT PERMISSION and mined after me.  i got a small bonus for their leeching, but i prefer to mine alone.  if i wanted to mine with people, i'd try to form a group to do that.

    that being said, i don't have a problem with group mining.  it just pisses me off that there are people that FORCE me to join them.  it also pisses me off that because other people are deciding to do things this way that now i have to go out of my way to find places that they're not just to have ANY rocks to mine.
    Posted 15 months ago by audiomodder Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Ya my only current issue with ajaya bliss is the respawn time so now to long. The random generation of which to spawn is slightly too long. I'd say that every like minute there should be one spawning at least imo.
    Posted 15 months ago by Nirosu Subscriber! | Permalink
  • audiomodder: "that being said, i don't have a problem with group mining.  it just pisses me off that there are people that FORCE me to join them.  it also pisses me off that because other people are deciding to do things this way that now i have to go out of my way to find places that they're not just to have ANY rocks to mine."

    This has been my experience too, both before and after the reset.  When I expressed this I was called names, told to go to "beginner areas" (yeah, right!) and accused of wanting the whole rock to myself.  Based on comments I've seen in group chat, you and I are not in the minority.  But we will still be ridiculed for not wanting to join the group fracas.
    Posted 15 months ago by lovintnt Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I enjoyed the follow-the-leader type style mining. Everyone that was mining in this way got huge profits. It also allowed time to meditate and chat because it was so well organized.  It was a fun party.

    The randomness they added could be workable if they increased the spawn rate. Currently it is just so slow. I will miss the good old days :(
    Posted 15 months ago by Basium Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Is there a mining group for people who want to cooperative mine? I'd like to mine with a few people who are near my mining skill level (2) so we all get a chance for good bonuses and still have fun doing it. I went to Ajaya a few days ago and got out because I was way too slow.
    Posted 15 months ago by Violet Faulds Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm not a huge miner. But when I mine, I avoid AB like the plague. It's crowded, which seems to cause lag for me. And I feel a bit like the BORG. Resistance is futile.

    I don't go to much less populated areas to mine. Sometimes I'll go the the Caverns (not the deeps) and help out and sell stuff to a tool vendor, but I can't jump very well with lag, so once it starts up I have to leave.

    The differences in how things are mined and various bonuses don't affect me much. Mainly because I don't care. I've always found mining to be a bit boring and just do it when I'm low on currants or need some elements. There is never going to be an option that makes everyone happy. And there are always going to be people you don't care for. Just saying.
    Posted 15 months ago by Quirk Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I like the changes to AB, FWIW. Yes, it would be nice if the respawn times were a bit shorter, but I like the non-patterned, um, pattern better. (Pseudo-)randomness is good.
    Posted 15 months ago by Downburst Subscriber! | Permalink
  • i.imgur.com/u1DYt.png
    Posted 15 months ago by (╯‵Д′)╯彡┻━┻ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The funny thing is if you go to Ajaya Bliss, majority of people are complaining about the change.  It seems only the people who agree with this post take the time to come to the forums and comment, and it gives quite a skewed view on the matter
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Who knows how it's skewed, though. Maybe the people who felt uncomfortable in Bliss aren't there to complain. You can play this game all day--it's impossible to know what to people who aren't speaking up think.
    Posted 15 months ago by Downburst Subscriber! | Permalink
  • This is a fascinating thread. And the emergent behavior both before (crazy jumping locusts) and after (methodical efficient co-ordination) the discovery of the "pattern" was just as fascinating.

    We're not done making changes: the high end of the bonuses is likely to get nerfed a little, the timing will continue to be tweaked, a new mining hub is in development, and mining areas inside group halls are on the drawing board.

    What we did in this case was cause a slightly longer and randomized respawn time when the rock had give up over a certain threshold number of bonus chunks the last time it spawned. That means most rocks still have the standard respawn time, but those that exert themselves a bit too hard in their previous spawn take longer to recover.

    We're going to continue to tweak that threshold number to try to find the right balance in the aim of having it be more challenging to optimize the number of chunks produced (both because the last round of changes was too generous, even after the previous adjustment, and because it will be more interesting in the long run).

    I've read everything here and I definitely hear the concerns/complaints from people saying things like "this emergent group co-ordination was really fun and social and gave me a chance to hang out" — that is awesome, and it matters much more to us than just the number of chunks being produced.

    We are looking at a lot of new ways to make it so that group-level co-ordination and co-operation are properly incentivized/rewarded in the core game mechanics so that things which are more fun and ideally more social are at least as "profitable" as things which are boring (repeatedly singing to butterflies, for example; or overpowered buy-from-vendor-craft-and-sell-back-to-vendor loops).

    I know this last change made many people unhappy, but we felt like we needed to do something now because it was so crazy overpowered and concentrated on one optimal activity in one specific location: that won't work, long term. No matter what we change (in any aspect of the game) some people will be mad or disappointed, but we've still got to do what we think is right for the game in the long term. So, give it some time and give us a chance to put a few more of the pieces in place and we'll see what happens.
    Posted 15 months ago by stoot barfield Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks so much for taking the time to consider all of our opinions and balance them with what is best for the game in the long run!! And thank you for coming into the thread to give us such a detailed response explaining that everything is really still in transition with more to look for in the future.  I really appreciate it!!  :-D  I *love* this game!!  :-D
    Posted 15 months ago by Reba Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks Stoot!  That made my day.  Looking forward to the mining hub and group halls!
    Posted 15 months ago by (╯‵Д′)╯彡┻━┻ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I understand the part about the mining being overpowered, but I don't like the idea of putting more restrictions on the game to discourage creativity.  I like that there are more places like Ajaya in development but I understand that "the drawing board" has many things on it and that means not likely to happen anytime "soon".

    I really hope that more group coordination and cooperation are added to the game, but after changing how the rocks spawn in Ajaya, which discouraged the coordination and cooperation we had (I understand that the mining was overpowered, but there are certainly other ways to fix the problem without making it impossible to work together) I'm not sure this will end up happening
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks, stoot! That was a very reassuring post. :)

    Laurali: Please, don't take it so bad. It's not "making it impossible to work together", even if it took away what you liked the most.
    Posted 15 months ago by Ximenez Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Lauali - Have faith!  I don't think we can begin to guess how long it might take the development team to introduce new aspects of the game.  (We don't know how many new employees they've hired, where they already were in the coding process before this thread was created or what kinds of resources they now have available due to the launch that they didn't due to preparing for it before.)  *hugs!*
    Posted 15 months ago by Reba Subscriber! | Permalink
  • One thing that I find with the changes  is that it discourages group activity at a higher level (unless your'e just altruistic). It's tricky to get bonuses - whereas the low level miners can easily get massive bonuses in a large group.  Mining in a small group, the low level miners repeatedly get bonuses from the high level miners,  but the high level miners won't really get anything. 

    Perhaps that could be remedied by splitting bonuses when you've helped someone more than once per mining action,  or something. I don't know.

    I'm not dedicated enough to work out the ratio of energy/time/chunks mined is for the different levels,  but it feels like there's little advantage for the high level miner,  except for when mining solo.   Edit: Oh,  I forgot the gems...
    Posted 15 months ago by shhexy corin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks, Stoot. Looking forward to seeing where the changes take us. ^_^
    Posted 15 months ago by Gant Subscriber! | Permalink
  • off topic but in response to @stoot post

    Dang, I am super jealous of the problem-solving and brainstorming that you all do to thread through the competing wishes to fortify the path to the game you envision. Super-creative solutions mean super-creative team and super-fast response. Most amazing is the lack of missteps in crafting the direction. I say direction because you're building a "way" rather than a specific path. I think that's why I come back--less for the game and more to see what happens. :)
    Posted 15 months ago by Mac Rapalicious Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @shexycorin - that's an interesting point I hadn't considered.  What if everyone who helped split the "bonus" evenly... that way it wouldn't matter who was first or last, just that we helped and worked together.  (I'm mot sure this could be implemented, but I've thought of it before as the last person to mine due to error messages... and therefore received no bonus.)  
    Posted 15 months ago by Reba Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'll be putting in a suggestion to the staff (as soon as I find out how), to make changes in a more evolutionary way, or in smaller steps, spreading them out over a few days or a few weeks, avoiding sudden sharp discontinuities, to make it more like a real world. Or at least if there are discontinuities, provide some in-world explanation for it, again to make it more like a real world.

    I used to work in a tool shop. When we were setting up tools to cut a series of parts, we would position the tools approximately, then cut one piece, then measure, then adjust by two thirds of the difference rather than all the way.
    Posted 15 months ago by Ferond Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Ferond - you just did make the suggestion — this is how you do it ;)

    And that's definitely already the way we work: this is probably about the 50th adjustment to how mining works since mining was introduced (and it is about as small an adjustment as it is possible to make).
    Posted 15 months ago by stoot barfield Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 to making mining bonuses apply more equally to everyone who is helping, regardless of when they started. I realize this may not be possible to implement, as it can get quite complicated, but it would make things alot more fair for everyone if it could be worked out some how.
    Posted 15 months ago by Shepherdmoon Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm all for the bonuses being applied to all people equally regardless of time started. I think what could be done to help limit the amount of bonuses from spiraling out of control is to set a cap on the max number of bonuses that could be applied to a certain node. 
    For example : 1 extra person 3 ore, 2 people 4 ore ,15+ or whatever the current bonus amount is = extra 50-80 ore.(dont pay much attention to actual ore numbers, just using to show idea, not specific numbers)
    Anyway, the max cap could be easily tweaked so that if people are pulling more/less ore than the devs want, they can change it without doing a bunch of other tweaks in a lot of other areas that may have other effects on the game(like respawn times and what not)
    This still allows the big groups to get bonuses and work together as a team, but not allow game breaking amounts of ore to be let into the game.
    So yes, +1 to equal mining bonuses regardless of start/end time and max caps for bonuses for stability of economy
    Posted 15 months ago by Eryx Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks Stoot for that informative and insightful post. I think at the end of the day we all know that this is a learning process for us. We all want the best possible experience for everyone and I'm sure the team will get there. 
    Posted 15 months ago by HerbertSherbert Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Laurali: re: "putting more restrictions on the game to discourage creativity."

    You and I might have different definitions of "creativity", but to me exact, fixed patterns repeated endlessly according to specific instructions is not very creative :)

    Figuring out how to maximize rewards in the first place is certainly creative, but when any specific set of actions becomes rewarded all out of proportion to anything else in the game it is very likely to get nerfed.

    And, re: "there are certainly other ways to fix the problem without making it impossible to work together"

    I don't think this makes it "impossible to work" together: I think it makes it more challenging ;)

    (Also, FWIW, I didn't count responses, but I'm pretty sure there were more people in the thread who *didn't* want this change than who did, so it is not a matter of a small minority & squeaky wheel: there are plenty of small minorities — or even comfortable majorities — wanting X change which does not happen.)
    Posted 15 months ago by stoot barfield Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @stoot - Sorry about the squeaky wheel comment, apparently I was wrong when I assumed that the changes were made due to a squeaky wheel.  I'm really glad I was wrong too!  :-D  
    Posted 15 months ago by Reba Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I really want to second Reba's suggestion. People who start mining towards the end should get the same bonus as those who start, and if that means that the output needs to be nerfed a bit I am totally OK with that.
    Posted 15 months ago by Auspex Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I feel like creativity is getting 30+ Glitches to work together, and while we were working together we came up with games to play and silly things to do.  The creativity wasn't just in figuring out how to mine but also in what we did with all the free time we had that weren't spent running back and forth. We did the jumping achievement, we started a jumping conga, we talked about everything under the sun, and I'm really disappointed.  It's kinda like getting a Christmas present then having it taken away, cause I've never had so much fun mining and so much fun working as a group on something.

    Impossible was the wrong word, but it is near impossible.  Since Ajaya Bliss was first created I and others have tried to get all the Glitches in Bliss to work together, and I have not seen a single successful attempt.  So while it may not be impossible, it is pretty close.  Trying to get a player to resist the urge to mine a rock that spawns next to them while waiting for everyone else is probably not gonna happen.

    It does leave the door open for huge groups to mine outside Ajaya (which has already been done), but then there will be all the miners outside Ajaya complaining that a huge group came through and wiped out all the rocks.

    ETA:  "but when any specific set of actions becomes rewarded all out of proportion to anything else in the game it is very likely to get nerfed."

    Couldn't it be nerfed by limiting the number of chunks a player can get?  Or limiting the number of "helps" a player can get?  Or even make it so that there is a certain number of bonus chunks the rock has, and it divides those evenly between the players that have helped?
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm all for constant tweaking and randomizing respawn times.  

    I wonder what effect this  will have an effect on the price of earthshakers :p
    Posted 15 months ago by Treesa Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Part of the reason I have been spending my time in Glitch is that I am not forced (like other combat-oriented) MMO's to group to be successful at anything beyond level X.

    The whole idea of the entire room full of people being forced in any way to do something simply to progress is antithetical to what I consider fun.  Sometimes it might be interesting to group up to accomplish something, like the 20-mule-team borax, I mean Train Badge for a conga line...

    More often than not however I am in the game to de-stress at my own pace, complete my own temporary objectives, e.g mine enough sparkly and dullite and beryl to get enough green and sparkly to build several powder canisters.  I want to collect resources for my future projects while exploring new areas I haven't been to yet.

    The "our way or you're an ass" thing from anyone about anything in a sandbox game once again in my outlook is completely contrary to my vision of the game.  Of course mine is only one proverbial voice in the wilderness, and I am fully cognizant that there are as many different playstyles as there are gamers, but I thought that in Ur there was to be room for all voices to have fun in all ways.  I truly enjoy puttering around at my own speed, slipping an item or two into a player's inventory at random, helping a struggling player when I can, even making and using liberal amounts of Fecundity and Sparkly Dust. 

    I was on earlier today heading to a new area to explore.  Whenever I hit an area with a chunk on it even a single chunk - outside of Ajaya - the street was clogged with Glitchen.  I could barely see the map for the white bubbles on it.  It was like the proverbial Horde running from one resource chunk to another at top speed.  Like one of those timed chef shows my wife watches.  I stayed in the game for all of 15 minutes and logged.  That level of frenetic almost ant-colony like behaviour, is not where I want to be in order to chill after a day of rebuilding railroad track at a local museum.

    Turn off the competition part of the brain, tune in to some Carbon Based Lifeforms and trance out a little. Isn't  anyone here old enough to remember "Slow down, you move too fast, gotta make the moment last, just skipping down the cobblestones, life I love you, all is groovy..."

    May be showing my age there but why does everything have to be a competition?  There isn't any "endgame" here so what's the hurry to max out?  I just really don't understand.

    I'll be coming through Ajaya eventually, and since I paid for a Moly sub like many people on both sides of this discussion, I'll be taking a few swings at a rock or two as I move through.  I'm not mooching, or being an ass - I am playing the game I paid for my own way.  I have every bit as much of a right to do so as anyone else , as anyone on either side of the issue.

    I am really not trying to be a provacateur here, and I encourage those who enjoy their own playstyles to continue to do so.  However there is enough room and enough time for us all to "glitch all that we can glitch."  I've got a year before I have to think about hanging up my piggies, I don't need to be finished with anything tomorrow. 

    I really will sound like a hippie here, but Peace out folks, it is supposed to be fun for all of us.

    ~~TJ Fuzzybut
    Posted 15 months ago by Thaddeus J Fuzzybut Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Staff confirmation posts about changes are great. Though I do think all the changes that effect gameplay or the way in which something fundamentally functions should be posted to recent changes list or something on the site.
    The randomness imo is great in that working together is possible just a bit harder. The issue is the time efficiency drop with randomness vs set spawn is huge. While it's been said set spawn was too efficient I believe random is a bit too inefficient. So a slight increase to maybe how fast the bonus chunks scales up but lower the maximum along with decrease spawn times a little bit or other route increase spawn times and increase maximum bonus and scaling.
    Posted 15 months ago by Nirosu Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It would be nice to see some of the cooperation born of Ajaya Bliss be rewarded. For example, better bonuses for people in conga lines. Or randomly awarded bonus-increasing buffs for giving things like hugs, kisses, and Transcendental Radiation.
    Posted 15 months ago by Zombeki Subscriber! | Permalink
  • That's a really cool idea Zombeki,  I really like it!  That would definitely make it more beneficial for people to work together
    Posted 15 months ago by Laurali Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Fuzzybut:  hahaha  I play that song every time I'm on the freeway heading OUT of the big city. :)
    Posted 15 months ago by Treesa Subscriber! | Permalink