Topic

Someone stole my Oompa Loompas

I left a bigger bag stuffed with singing gnomes on my friend's doorstep as a gift to them. The bag was labelled "For [person's name]" and it was next to a note labelled "For [person's name]", but it never made it to the intended recipient and was instead replaced with an empty plain bag (the note was left there).

All that training, rehearsing, and botty-wiping wasted.

To people who take things clearly not intended for them: may a future Oompa Loompa troupe carry you to your just reward with a particularly cutting song.

To the individual who took this bag: I will give you another bigger bag if you return the gnomes unharmed. Just whatever you do, for Giants' sake, keep the gnomes away from water.

To my baby gnomes: I'm coming for you, Sigma Code Alpha. Prepare.

Posted 13 months ago by Mukha the Cuddly Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • I'd avoid leaving expensive things lying about in public -  both here and in real life
    Posted 13 months ago by shhexy corin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I mean, the bomb disposal unit might have thought it was a suspicious package
    Posted 13 months ago by shhexy corin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Well see that's the heart of the problem. The tutorial/first 20 levels of this game teaches that currants are king, and it seems like you'll never have anything and that having things is the goal. Then this game ends at level 20, you're suddenly drowning in an excess of stuff, and you have to find a different sort of fun than collecting loot. That sometimes means leaving gifts like this for friends where the only real expense is the time and thought to make it. It also means having that post-tutorial game harvested for its monetary value by those still struggling to survive.

    I haven't tried sending bags by mail, is that possible? In hindsight that's what I should have done. It's just getting annoying seeing public spaces becoming increasingly off limits to the way I like to play.
    Posted 13 months ago by Mukha the Cuddly Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The last time I tried to send a bag by mail - it was a no. Rather annoying. You have to deliver stuff in person or risk having it nicked.
    Posted 13 months ago by geekybird Subscriber! | Permalink
  • If you leave something on a street, anybody can take it, use the mail, it's much more safe, or get together with your friend and deliver the items personally. 
    Posted 13 months ago by Natalia Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Regardless of whether it was left in public space or not, it still kinda sucks that someone lifted the Oompas and left an empty bag as decoy.

    Not very Glitchen.
    Posted 13 months ago by Dahlia DreadNaught Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oompa Loompa, hear the gnomes' song
    Stealing a gift is totally wrong
    Now I will have to re-do all the work
    Whoever you are, you're sure a jerk

    Yet that's how it goes with things left in the street
    They're scooped up and made off as if they had feet
    Next time try sending a gift by the mail
    It's safe and secure and it ... won't ... fail.

    Trust the frog. Trust the frog. Trust the yoga froggie.

    Oompa Loompa, stand on Ur ground
    If something is valued, don't leave it lying around
    Oompa Loompa, spickity-spong
    Why can't we all just get along?
    Posted 13 months ago by TK-855 Subscriber! | Permalink
  • TK Awesome!
    Posted 13 months ago by Li'll Missy Brenda Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @TK-855...Official Bard of Ur....love!
    Posted 13 months ago by Dahlia DreadNaught Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @TK-855:LOL - Perfect!
    Posted 13 months ago by Warrender Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Wow, I've been OompaloompaRolled by an extremely creative song...Thanks for the Oompa Loompa song, that will be driving me insane today..
    PS. Sorry this evil thing happened to you Mukha, I learned my lesson way back in beta, you cannot leave anything even silly decorative things that aren't worth anything laying around as decorations or gifts... Some evil greedy glitch will walk off with anything that isn't bolted down..
    *sigh*
    Posted 13 months ago by Chicalet Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I never get this. if an item is on the ground it is fair game, you cant expect players to have a 
    conscience on a game. its not like taking it is an actual crime.
    Posted 13 months ago by Jehannum Subscriber! | Permalink
  • haha TK-855 very nice =D
    Posted 13 months ago by PANsy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It's just getting annoying seeing public spaces becoming increasingly off limits to the way I like to play.

    It's never been OK to leave high value things lying around, they have always been picked up by people... you might just have been lucky before?
    Posted 13 months ago by shhexy corin Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Even when people generously leave stuff out for people to share, someone will still come along and take every single item for themselves and leave nothing in return.
    Posted 13 months ago by Glitchard Subscriber! | Permalink
  • This was on someone's doorstep with a note indicating exactly who it was for.

    That is a long way from finding something just lying on a public street.

    Someone went hunting for things to swipe. Yes, it is within game play.

    But they were still a jerk.
    Posted 13 months ago by Kookaburra Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I suggested in the idea forum that one nice option to add to a home would be an 'item chute', sort of like a mail slot.   
    Posted 13 months ago by WalruZ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @ WalruZ  - great idea!  I'd love it if my neighbors had such item shoots.
    Posted 13 months ago by Leites Subscriber! | Permalink
  • the problem with the chute is people would fill someones chute with junk for a "joke"

    I knew guilds on warcraft that spammed peoples mailboxes until they bugged.
    Posted 13 months ago by Jehannum Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The current game mechanics would permit spamming of mailboxes, but such behavior would be counter to the TS community guidelines and easily traced by TS.  Same could hold for any other mechanisms TS may decide to provide to facilitate u2u gifting.
    Posted 13 months ago by Splendora Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Splendora: any idea if Tiny Speck stated the reason why we can't attach multiple items to a Mailed letter?
    Posted 13 months ago by Jehannum Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Jehannum - I've been told that one attachment per mailing is "for now" -- so it may change in the future.  

    Based on my own experience, allowing multiple attachments would require more complex UI design and coding to cover all use cases, such as user receives mail with multiple attachments and has room in pack for some but not all the items.
    Posted 13 months ago by Splendora Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The Ideas section of the forum has been begging for some kind of mail chute / welcome mat / "sticky" area in front of homes that could be used for dropping off notes and gifts that would be locked to the home owner and the person who dropped the item(s). 

    Failing that, some way to tag dropped items on residential streets as being "for" a specific person on your Friends List would be great. (I'd suggest not applying this tag system to public areas or you'll have a metric buttload (that's now an official measuring unit) of "locked" trash clotting every heavily-traveled byway.)
    Posted 13 months ago by ✰ Lorelei ✰ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Although this subject was a bit sad,  I am nearly off my chair in laughter!!!! OMG TK-855 that was the most creative, yet hilarious Oompa song! *tries to regain her composure*

    OP sorry about this situation but yeah I think there needs to be better ways to deliver a gift to someone without the Glitchy Grinch stealing it!
    Posted 13 months ago by Casombra Amberrose Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I agree with Kookaburra that the person who took the gnomes is a jerk. Players of this game are using real time and real effort. To disregard the intent of another player and appropriate the fruits of their time and effort for one's own gratification, when done knowingly, is to treat another person as a means rather than as an end.

    The designers of games such as Glitch cannot keep people from being jerks. However, the opportunities for such behaviour can be limited by design, and doing so will make Glitch a better game, in my opinion. Glitch has attracted many people who are intelligent and pro-social, and this has become part of the appeal of the game. Such users will work to keep Glitch a pro-social game -- up to a point. If a tipping point occurs, however, such that these players leave the game, Glitch could become a game that primarily attracts those with limited or dysfunctional social skills.

    Various methods have been suggested to facilitate pro-social sharing and gifting between neighbors, party attendees, etc. I hope TS acts on some of these suggestions, as the game currently does not provide many options for in-game interactions that are social vs. merely instrumental.

    In the paper that introduced the term "the tragedy of the commons," the author argued that reliance on conscience alone for policing the commons will not work. The asymmetry of the situation allows self-interested behaviour to overwhelm what's in everyone's best interest -- just as bad money drives out good.
    Posted 13 months ago by Splendora Subscriber! | Permalink