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Staff Topic

Test notes: 11 August- now with world map!!

Testers, it's that time! Time to test! Play the game!

IMPORTANT AND EXCITING UPDATE!

We now have a WORLD MAP! Yes! Go on, click the map icon, and notice you can now zoom out to see the world! Whoopie!

What changes or plans do we have? In addition to the new Status Updates improvements and fabulous new clothing choices (unicorns!), here are a few things you can expect in this test:

The Rook! Some of you (very few actually) saw a bit of what The Rook can do in the last test- and what sort of things you can do when you band together. Expect more of that!

We have some new music blocks for you to collect! Which ones are they? The new BB collection.  Collect ‘em all, and you get a nice trophy to put on the shelf.  

Helga's Liquor Store will no longer carry these beverages: Orange Juice, Lemon Juice, Fruity Juice, Cloud 11 Smoothie. Why? Well, these were key ingredients to several high-level drinks (Carrot Margarita, Cloudberry Daiquiri, Cosma-politan), and being able to purchase all the ingredients from Helga made crafting the high-level drinks too easy. When juices and smoothies can be made, who needs to buy them from a vendor? Self sufficiency will be your reward!

The world is going to get some re-balance.  There were a number of quick ways to generate lots and lots of XP pretty easily, and we want to even it out a tad. Remember one thing though: we are testing this game still, and changes like this will happen from time to time. Ok? Let's go through them:

• Sno Cones: eating over 3 in a game day will no longer give you the XP that was given before. It was pretty easy to go that route if you were flush with cash. If you do go over 3, you risk brain freeze which will not give you any XP and drop your mood down to zero. We know it's nice to eat one on a hot day when strolling through Groddle Forest, just don’t overdo it, as you won’t get the same rewards as before, and may find yourself in a bad mood.

• Emblems: Once you contemplate, caress or consider an emblem of a Giant, you won't be able to do so again for the Emblems of that particular Giant until the next game day. The Giants still love you, but …

• Mining gem drops: Once you get your first gem from mining in a game day, your chances of getting another gem will be reduced slightly. With each gem thereafter, the rate will continue to decrease (but will never reach 0).

And, there are one or two sekrit things we are still tinkering with, but they will probably be revealed as this long test progresses.

Questions? Post them here!

Posted 16 months ago by kevbob Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

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  • You're killing me with the emblem thing.  What am I going to do with eighty emblems now?
    Posted 16 months ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Thanks kevbob! Can't wait to try everything out, and oooooo sekrit things!
    Posted 16 months ago by welshcorgi Subscriber! | Permalink
  • w00t, sounds good to me! Loving the new music blocks.
    Posted 16 months ago by Harvey Dent Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Agreed, glum pudding! We now need a new use for emblems. Art project, anyone?
    Posted 16 months ago by Mina Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Love the idea of the brain freeze...don't do the emblems, so that's no skin off my nose...but the gem thing is going to be killing us...it seemed like even getting gems last test was already dropped...but will wait to see how bad it is...hopefully not as brutal as the gardening adjustments...

    And looking forward to the new blocks, though it's going to throw off my collection schemas in my cabinets and bags...sigh...
    Posted 16 months ago by ~Pink Flamingo~ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • these sound good.

    will be interesting to see how the gem thing impacts mining. looks like it will reward mining in short bursts every so often, as opposed to hours of orbiting the deeps for hours.

    that's a good thing.
    Posted 16 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Some new uses for Emblems are coming soon. Don't get rid of them yet ;)
    Posted 16 months ago by stoot barfield Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Brain freeze... I love that!
    Posted 16 months ago by Shepherdmoon Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Grrrrrr, not happy about the emblems thing.  I had to get 5 extra zille emblems just for a quest, and now they're all dead weight in my bags :/
    Posted 16 months ago by Cole Frehlen Subscriber! | Permalink
  • "• Emblems: Once you contemplate, caress or consider an emblem of a Giant, you won't be able to do so again for the Emblems of that particular Giant until the next game day. The Giants still love you, but …"

    So if I have two emblems of the same Giant then... OH NOEZ.

    And nooooooo my gems are my livelihooddddddddd. :o

    ETA: Wait, so if I get a Pleasing Amber as my first gem drop, then that means my chances of getting a Walloping Big Diamond (or whatever) are even more minimal after that?
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Ah well now you just keep nerfing things, nerf nerf nerf LOL. But yes makes SOME sense. There goes my sno cone desire, I guess.
    Posted 16 months ago by RM Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Emblems are also *by far* the most powerful thing to donate to a shrine when fighting The Rook.
    Posted 16 months ago by stoot barfield Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Well I hope to encounter a stupid bird this time around, then, lol. Thanks, Stoot. :D
    Posted 16 months ago by Cerulean Subscriber! | Permalink
  • regarding the increased practice of nerfology ::sigh:: 
    Posted 16 months ago by Mac Rapalicious Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Figured it was just a matter of time before the mining got hit but could have sworn they already started since last test I barely got any gems with Mining IV...oh, well...

    Like the brain freeze idea...in RL, I get one when I eat just one snocone...so three is a vast improvement over that...

    Ah, emblems...the other boat anchor...hmmm, if only we had boats...

    Looking forward to hearing the new music blocks!
    Posted 16 months ago by b3achy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • me no likey fewer shinies.
    Posted 16 months ago by emdot Subscriber! | Permalink
  • There are far better shinies coming :)
    Posted 16 months ago by stoot barfield Subscriber! | Permalink
  • But chances for gems were supposed to increase.  I just spent days learning Mining IV because of that.  Sigh.
    Posted 16 months ago by Brib Annie Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Rats!  I'm running out of things to donate to shrines to speed learning!  sigh
    Posted 16 months ago by Marla Subscriber! | Permalink
  • When does this test end?
    Posted 16 months ago by Plurp Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Far better shinies coming?!? I like the sound of that.

    ...but what could be better than Walloping Big Diamonds? Other than the post-playoffs crystalized tears of Sedin twins of course (I keed I keed) :)

    ETA: stoot is General Urko?
    Posted 16 months ago by malo Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Question: If we haven't gotten the badge for playing all the Music Blocks to the crab do we now have to get 5 MORE MB's in order to get it? Not a big deal (it will be fun when I am able to play again in a few days) but I would just like to know.
    Posted 16 months ago by Holly Waterfall Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Plurp, this test ends in 1 week.
    Posted 16 months ago by Little Miss Giggles Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Better shinies?  Now that sounds promising...
    Posted 16 months ago by b3achy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oh noes! They didn't put an end date in the OP. I had to scroll all the way down here to find out it will be a week long!
    Posted 16 months ago by Edward Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm sorry, but I really do not like the new 'friends on line' list on the home page,
    it is now much harder to see who is playing, as all those little pics blur into one blob
    and you now have to mouse over each and every pic to see who it is,whereas
    before you could just see your friends' name and know. =(

    But I like the changes made to finding gems when mining. =)
    Posted 16 months ago by ~Scilly~ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yes I agree with Scilly, the 'friends online' section on the homepage looked better before and much easier to see who was there! Other than that I just got on for the first time this test, it all sounds cool and exciting, and looking forward to some live events maybe :)
    Posted 16 months ago by Violet Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yep agree, don't like the little pics of friends online, my eyes arn't great and this way I have no clue unless I mouse, befor it was clear and nice on the eyes.
    Posted 16 months ago by ~Annie~ Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Just an idea for an annoyance remover:

    I get the flash error everytime I go in game. My text render properly anyway. Can you add an option to accept it prevent it from opening each time?
    Posted 16 months ago by Some_Random_Guy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Yuppers here also...Do Not Like the ":friends online" change! Besides not having the name readily and easily view-able...the worst is not having a full view...can't see what they are wearing!! Not good....PLEASE! change it back...PLEASE!!!
    Posted 16 months ago by SavannaBlueRose Subscriber! | Permalink
  • HOw can i get the music blocks?
    Posted 16 months ago by Allyta Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I hope the quoin limit will be increased by the time the game goes live - I really hate playing after I've reached it, when all I did extra was enter a locked door once (- not over and over). It takes the fun out of the locked areas that do have quoins to collect in them when you expect to play the rest of the gameday without being able to collect any more (the sound effects and so on). 
    Posted 16 months ago by gimmegames Subscriber! | Permalink
  • My main flash problem is trying to get the pop-up box to close if I accidentally right click and open it.
    Posted 16 months ago by gimmegames Subscriber! | Permalink
  • KILLING me on Mac Chrome. Have to reboot entirely, not just reload. Only have Chrome open and only game tabs (usually game, forum and achievements or locations). I have the add-ons for location checker and achievement checker (as well as learning, but I aint learning nuthin' cuz I aint got nuthin' left to learn). Had to reboot 3 times. Usually a reload would work when lag gets impossible, but this game it's reboot or nuthin'. (yes, I have the new flash, but having no font problems)
    Posted 16 months ago by Mac Rapalicious Subscriber! | Permalink
  • The Gem change is /way/ harsh. It's already hard enough to get Gems even on max mining, for me. Maybe my luck is terrible, but it's almost like I'm getting penalized for other people's good luck. (Not terribly upset, but still, ouch)

    Edit: Actually, as an idea, if you must reduce gem drop, why not make it that it only drops the rate of getting the dropped type of gem again? (IE: One diamond drop reduces the rate of getting diamonds, sapphires reduce rate of getting sapphires, etc. Eventually after getting one of each type, the entire gem rate drop would still be reduced, getting the same effect as now, just not as hard on us bad-luckers)
    Posted 16 months ago by Silver-Streak Subscriber! | Permalink
  • was the trophy piece algorithm changed?
    Posted 16 months ago by lucy jane Subscriber! | Permalink
  • @SavannaBlueRose
    Go to the friends page and it will tell you who is online and where they are. ;)
    Posted 16 months ago by daniel5457 Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm with Mac (3 posts up from this one) - the freeze, lag and everything is TERRIBLE during this test.  It has never been this bad.  Just yesterday, I had to reload so often, and then sometimes that wasn't enough and had to reboot entirely.  I emptied my cache, browsing history, etc, but SOMETHING is very different about the play that I am hoping beyond hope will be resolved and is just temporary.  I am using Chrome too - thinking of trying to play through IE or perhaps FF.  I'll see how it goes today.  Thought:  perhaps related to the dialog/font bug workaround?  Anyway...

    On a good note though, the projects have been amazing and fun - killed myself twice and spent every current I could get my hands on - twas a buh-laaast!  I think today I'll take it a little easier...  LOL

    AAAHHH!!!  The thing I REALLY meant to post was my amazement and feeling that it was like Christmas seeing all the new (and oh so fun - can you say Girilla!) things in wardrobe!  And to have something like FIFTY FREEBIES????!!!  OMG - BIG BIG THANK YOU!!!  And props to the wardrobe devs for having such amazing imaginations!!!  Oh how I wish you designed these clothes for my RL!!! 
    Posted 16 months ago by Hab Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Did everybody get their skills reset, or was it just me?
    Posted 16 months ago by Aeshna Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I'm loving the new music blocks! I'm also digging the new soundtracks in different areas (not sure if they're new to the game or just new to me), but have also noticed that, after I've participated in a race, once I go back into the regular game, I don't hear any soundtrack for a while. It seemed like it would start playing again after I got a super harvest...
    Posted 16 months ago by Cherry Galaxy Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I agree with others that emblems need an upgrade...

    And, for the amount of time it takes to get all mininning skills, I'm opposed to any reduction of gems. And in fact, for over 6 weeks I haven't seen a diamond, and when I had lessor mining skills I use to get diamonds more frequently.

    What's up with that?
    Posted 16 months ago by MeherMan Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I was going to say the lag is almost completely gone for me this test, but others seem to complain of it... 
    Posted 16 months ago by Cefeida Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Oh darn. I started giving my emblems away. Haha.
    Posted 16 months ago by Spellbound Subscriber! | Permalink
  • LOVE the email notification when you finish learning a skill. Love it. Only wish I'd had it yesterday, when I realized I'd let about 12 hours pass me by without having a skill set!
    Posted 16 months ago by Tally Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I really like the email notification thing, but I wish I could choose which notifications to receive :)
    Posted 16 months ago by Lexi Smart Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Lexi, you can. Go to accounts and then settings (it's there).
    Posted 16 months ago by Lord Bacon-o Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I LOVE the new subway-icons on the map. Thank you! <3
    Posted 16 months ago by Waffle Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Love the subway icons.  Love the Rook Museum and it looks like there will be other areas?  I've had lots of fun at the projects too.  Not too happy about the decreased gems with mining.  In the subway -- when you click on the in-train map you get a screen that says Seam Streets?  What does that mean?  LOVE some of the new clothing items!  the Gorilla suits are a total hoot!
    Posted 16 months ago by Marla Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Game of Crowns is AWESOME, even with bugs!
    Posted 16 months ago by glum pudding Subscriber! | Permalink
  • I would be much happier if I could get the chance to witness a rook attack and use my new skills.
    Posted 16 months ago by larky lion Subscriber! | Permalink
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