Topic

Easy Money

Making currants is way too easy. OK, it can be a bit tricky in the very early stages of the game, but it doesn't take very long to get to the point where currants become pretty much irrelevant.

For example, I finished the test yesterday with a total of 168,735 currants - I would have had even more if I hadn't bought a ridiculous amount of potato patties off Cupcake right at the end. There's no point in having that much money - there's really very little to do with it. I already own a 50K house in Alakol, and there's pretty much nothing else to buy that would even scratch the surface.

The thing is, I started this test with just under 100,000 currants, and a few days later am well on my way towards doubling that, and I wasn't even trying very hard. I was even working (in real life) all weekend, so I didn't really get that many gameplay hours in. Everyone says mining is the easy route to vast riches, but I didn't go down that road, I just did a little gardening and cooking, selling stuff to vendors and at auction. If I'd spent the time between crops going down the mines too, I can't imagine how much I would have made. At this rate, it should be trivial to break a million before the reset. 

It seems to me that there's still a bit of tuning needs doing here. Once you've got all of the gardening skills, for example, it's very easy to churn out vast quantities of vegetables - especially in the large Alakol gardens, and each time you harvest or plant, you get a ridiculous amount of music blocks and game show tickets. Just selling the music blocks alone generates a sizeable pile of cash. Making money was fun for a little while, but it's getting a bit boring now. There's no challenge there. It's just Farmville, but without the tractor and annoying gifts...

I'd like to see either making currants get substantially harder as you progress, or have living costs get significantly more expensive. It should be a balancing act to make enough money to do the things you want in game, not just a case of shovelling currants into the vault. 

Posted 18 months ago by dopiaza Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • stoot has said that there will be rent/taxes on housing in the future.  That might be a way to soak up some of the excess. 

    But I still need every one of my music boxes as donations toward faster learning.  I don't have any excess currants at all, cause my vegetable profits go toward buying gnomes.
    Posted 18 months ago by WindBorn Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I don't sell to vendors, I rarely sell things at auction. I give away bigger bags and cash all the time - not to mention diamonds, stacks of cooked food, etc.
    I started this test with 2k at Level 51. I get ~20k each time I level. I ended the test with 115k at Level 57. Point is... get a little further down the road, and you don't even need to work or use the auctions to raise large sums of money.
    Posted 18 months ago by Travinara Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm amazed that you have so much money! Between buying two houses (and not even an Alakol mansion), and all of the equipment for quests and skills, I haven't made it past 10,000 currants yet! Like WindBorn, I don't sell much of my stuff - I tend to donate almost all of it. 
    Posted 18 months ago by Folderol Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It's only been in this last test that I've been able to hoard currants, mostly because of the way I play.  Money is the means to my ends, so I'll waste it on things that further whatever goals I have at the time, be that projects, favor to get learning times down or going after an achievement.  But money is also a means of helping other players, and because currants do nothing but accumulate, I've helped buy other people homes or given away product that someone else needs. Money is trivial here.

    If it were more difficult to earn currants, the game would become more of a grind than it is already, so I'd prefer to see more ways to spend currants than making it more difficult to obtain them.

    But regardless of the glut of currants, the game is a repetitive grind, which stoot said in another topic would be addressed as the things to do at higher levels is fleshed out.  I think that being fleshed out might make the easy money thing moot as there would be other interesting things to do to occupy our time.

    But you know, it's not like there is a gold standard at work here.  As far as economics goes, with an endless supply of coined money having no backing value, regardless of how the game is tweaked, there can be an endless accumulation of currants for players.  With prices set by vendors, there won't be any inflation.  To make the game have less easy money, you might have to mimic real life more closely, which kinda puts me off since I have enough banks, debt, bills and savings concerns IRL.

    A side note, music blocks are getting to be as annoying as emblems. I am flooded with them & sell them to vendors as fast as I get them (since the Make a Crab Happy badge seems more based on luck than skill to get, so I've written it off).  They are a great way to accumulate wealth, but here I'll concede that maybe how often they show up needs to be tweaked.  Or perhaps ask for musicblocks in the projects as another choice as to what to do with them. ;-)
    Posted 18 months ago by zeeberk Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Wow, I never am able to keep currants. That's amazing. I buy things a lot as a shortcut, like zeeberk: things for favor, projects, food when I'm being too lazy to cook. 
    Posted 18 months ago by RM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I find myself mining like mad. The higher my level has been, the more I've been able to mine because the less energy it takes and the more money I've been able to earn from it. I now have 10 Bigger Bags and just over 100K currants, too, though I started the test with about 60K, I think. But I do feel like I put a significant amount of effort into it and I don't believe it really is all that easy unless you REALLY know what you're doing and have a great strategy developed, like the one you've described. Most players will probably never really develop anything like that.
    Posted 18 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Cerulean... try earthshakers (and buy them anywhere but the vendors in the mines). You'll save a ton of cash on food. Combine with Humbabas for the grinding. Point is, a big part of it is figuring out what does what, then combining for the best effect.
    Posted 18 months ago by Travinara Subscriber! | Permalink
  • It may be easy for some not so easy for others.  I played a long time (several game days, 3 or 4 tests) before I could afford the cheapest housing.  It is harder for new players to get currants.  For example, it took me a while to learn mining.  Until then I could not use a fancy pick and could do little with the regular one.  I also could not afford a shovel for a while.  As soon as I made 10 currants, there was something I needed that cost 15 currants.  Every time I got close to having enough currants for a home, there was something that cost me money.  I had to buy a watering can and when it broke I had to get another because I didn't know Tinkering.  I had to buy papers and a permit to get papers (that made me lose the ability to buy a home until I got more currants).  It was hard.  I began to think I would never get a home.  Now, I do have plenty of currants but it took a while to get there.  My move to Alakol cost almost all I had but I made it up very fast.  I'd hate for this to get harder but I will not be surprised if taxes and rent, etc. are added to the game.  Sometimes I feel this game is becoming too much like the RL that I game here to get away from.
    Posted 18 months ago by Brib Annie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • But regardless of the glut of currants, the game is a repetitive grind, which stoot said in another topic would be addressed as the things to do at higher levels is fleshed out.  I think that being fleshed out might make the easy money thing moot as there would be other interesting things to do to occupy our time.

    Having more things to buy/do that required non-trivial amounts of currants would work. The problem now is that beyond a certain level, currants are easy to accumulate, but serve no real purpose (just like Musicblocks and Emblems, I guess).

    I don't believe it really is all that easy unless you REALLY know what you're doing and have a great strategy developed, like the one you've described. Most players will probably never really develop anything like that.

    But that's just the point. I'm not a big strategiser when it comes to gameplay. I'm much more of a pootler and just bumble around doing whatever I'm in the mood for. The past couple of tests, I've done lots of cooking, simply because I quite like the cooking stuff. I did some gardening too, but only because I needed raw materials to cook. My "great strategy" largely amounted to this:

    1) Make a load of stuff
    2) Auction it
    3) Notice that those Earthshakers sold really quickly, so make more of those.

    (Top tip #1: Awesome stews sell really well too, but you need a tonne of beans to make those)
    (Top tip #2: Hardly anyone buys the gurly drinks. I don't know why not, they're really useful)
    Posted 18 months ago by dopiaza Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Somehow I feel my real-life financial conservancy is partially to blame here... but it only took me a few hours to buy my first house after the last reset. Instead of buying a Focusing Orb for 999 and a Fancy Pick for 1000, and a Bigger Bag for 2000... I let the Quests sit in my log and focused on my priority - a house. Those 4 objects alone will buy you two houses! After a house, storage gets easier and you can delay purchasing expensive bags in favor of the tools to complete the Quests. That is all a tactic and play style... the choice to rapidly spend money is not in direct relation to the ability to make money - ask anyone with a debt load.
    Posted 18 months ago by Travinara Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "The problem now is that beyond a certain level, currants are easy to accumulate, but serve no real purpose"

    Well, actually, the problem now is that beyond a certain level, every strategy results in serving no purpose and is a tedious grind.  If my plan is to reduce skill learning time, I run around getting things of high value and making EHSP and stuffing shrines full of it.  If my plan is to just make blocks for projects, I run around getting the materials (or buying from others) and selling them on auction.  If my plan is to get all the achievements, I mash and grind my way through them.  With the advent of specialization becoming the be-all of the game, I'm worried about boredom, since I won't just be able to switch to something else for a while when I'm sick of making drinks or food or powders.

    So, having things to do that requires spending wads of cash may alter gameplay toward profiteering.  But restricting the ability to get currants may make the game frustrating, because you'd spend more time grinding to do anything.  

    At any rate, this is why I'm wondering if (for me anyway) asking about easy money vs hard money is a false dichotomy, when the bigger issue may be just getting higher level fun fleshed out more.  If I know that at level 25, something magical awaits me, I may not be content to just make drinks and sell them, collecting currants.  I might strive to experience more out of the world.  I think we're after the same thing (the answer to 'what now?'), just with different perspectives. ;-)
    Posted 18 months ago by zeeberk Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Agree with Brib...It was really really tough to get started and just when you even thought of buying a home, bingo, needed to buy a bigger bag to hold more stuff cause you didn't have a home to put stuff.  I think I was level 15 before I bought a home simply cause I wanted to go to a certain area in GM and I didn't want to move again.  I'm finally at Level 37 and have gotten the hang of things pretty much.  Think I'll just go with the flow and see what comes.  They certainly keep surprising me with new things.  Agree, gave up on figuring out which music block the little devil might need to get the badge but I can assure you, since there will be a reset, I'll figure that one out for real.  I like the Gurly Drinks too, maybe they just haven't caught on as to what they're about??
    Posted 18 months ago by AlmostSilver Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Certain low value things auction really really well and provide you with lots of bonus items. 

    If you're looking for something to do with the music blocks, store them in your house until you get enough of a given one to max out shrine favor under EHSP. Much the same as you would with gems. 

    As for what to do with cash - it really helps when you're doing a project and buying off auctions. Or else buying fancy picks to donate. 

    My main problem is that with the game day donation limits it's hard to use things. Though with only 4 skills left I'll soon just be accumulating absurd numbers of emblems. 
    Posted 18 months ago by Catari Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @dopiaza,   spending money is arbitrary. Just because you find you have too much do not ask the game to change.....

    Glitch fits all sizes.. I am delighted with the current money system.. Don't change a  hair on its little Glitch head.
    Posted 18 months ago by napabeth Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @napabeth: My personal belief is that money isn't exactly arbitrary. Every multiplayer game has an economy and if higher level players are generating handfuls of the stuff without having anything to spend it on (I wouldn't know.. I'm only lvl 18) then it may cause issues down the road.
    Posted 18 months ago by magic panda Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Devs have stated that the game is getting pretty tuned for players up to level 20 or so. And so much after that.  There probably are NOT enough money sinks yet and will probably be more.

    Spending is all in the beholder. I pretty casually spend money at auctions for projects so my account usually hovers in the 15,000 to 40,000 range. That is will me never looking for money. For my game play, it is "balance"... except that since I never have to worry about currants, they are pretty much removed from game play. Which is not good.
    Posted 18 months ago by Lord Bacon-o Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "Having more things to buy/do that required non-trivial amounts of currants would work. The problem now is that beyond a certain level, currants are easy to accumulate, but serve no real purpose."

    i used to go through 100s of thousands of currants each day, accomplishing stuff in-game.

    buy a ton of produce and hand it out at projects to help speed things up.

    buy houses for other players.

    offer players 10k currants in order to do some in-game labour for you.

    stuff like that.

    i agree that there is little to do with that kind of cash but there are real purposes you can put it to.
    Posted 18 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • you can also convert currants into favor by buying items to donate and either speed learning immensely or sky-rocket your XP if you are into competing on the leaderboard.
    Posted 18 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'll probably feel the same way about excess currants--when I finally get to the point where I have 'em! For now, I don't want it to be harder to get them. Having just reached level 21 this last test, I find that my currants balance hovers in the 10K-plus range and I still have things to save for: upgrading to the big bags, have moved from my first grotty little apartment to a nice little house (and hope to move on up again before the wipe), and I still have skills to acquire so I can buy feeders, etc.
    Posted 18 months ago by ElleD Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @Travinara -- Yeah, I've been too lazy to go buy the Earthshakers, lol. That, and I have been training myself to not play the game endlessly right now, because I have so many other things to do, so I tell myself that when I run out of energy, that's it, it's time to move on for the next 4 hours, ahaha.

    And I agree with you that a lot of it involves figuring out what does what. I'm still working on that. Argh. But when the game opens up 24/7 and I have free time, I don't doubt I'll be Earthshaking and Humbabaing and Mining 'til I die, ahaha.
    Posted 18 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'd love to be able to donate Currents to help gain Favor with Giants.
    Posted 18 months ago by Bashere Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @stri: yup, that's where my currants go: buying things for favor and leveling. A lot of the time, anyway. Often for projects. @Travinara: Good point, LOL. Interesting that I'm not good at saving either in Glitch or real life, though actually better in Glitch...because money IS easier to make here. Hmm. :)
    Posted 18 months ago by RM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @  dopiaza at least the awesome stews take fewer beans than the chilly busting chili (which needs 30 beans and gives almost 60 less energy). 


    I'm only level 22, but can see what they mean about needing to tighten up the game for levels over 20.  I'm still finding it interesting, and probably will until 30-40, but can imagine it's going to be a grind after that until they add some more player quests/achievements.  I think the higher levels leveling and all the currants at level change might be cumbersome until they add more things to buy...hopefully the decorating of homes will help with this, and I'm still hopeful for transportation modes to purchase - bikes, scooters, skates, skateboards, horses, etc.  


    I can't say it's too easy to get currants yet, and I do appreciate the graduated system for acquiring currants, energy, etc. I think it's pretty well balanced thus far - and I want to offer many kudos to the devs for making it just as fun at level 22 as it was at level 5. 


    Maybe it does need to be tweaked at the higher levels. I'm sure they will get around to it...but I also suspect they don't really anticipate how quickly we'll level up once the game goes live. Here's hoping they don't underestimate our OCD abilities to level up and play for hours and hours and hours those first few days with just caffeine injections and lots of sugar.  Think it's a valid issue to bring up to remind them to get on it to tighten it down...once the game goes live, they might have a week before some Alphas and Betas hit the upper limits of the current game... 
    Posted 18 months ago by b3achy Subscriber! | Permalink