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Top changes for bringing in more players

2
AuthorMessage
Bosun
Apr 28, 2014
398
Thomas Sunhammer on Oct 22, 2015 wrote:
Little tweaks
Your right. Those little tweaks become a bit exhausting after a while. But making those tweaks cost realy money on top of the chore itself is the issue here.

Thank you for making this point. I didnt even hit on the fact that its exhausting to have to reset and click each talent and epic over and over again only to not get it "quite right" and have to do it AGAIN. And when new worlds, max level increases, and new strategies come out that entire process has to be repeated again for allf 32 companions. So making it cost 2000 crowns each on top of all that is way too much.

As for KI...wizard101 is thriving...pirate101 is only just staying afloat. I know KI is free do to as they please. But I cant believe that their methods are actually that effective if the game is barely hanging on. (After all no new world for 3 years isn't really succeeding.) As for their profits...well if they WERE making a lot on this game I would "assume" that would motivate them to do more with it. (These may be erroneous assumptions since I have no access to their records but the logic is sound at least)

The reason I made this thread was out of my love for the game! Its for people to make suggestions for how we can make THIS game thrive too! The 2 suggestions I made (cost of resetting companions and more trainers) are solutions that I THINK will help the game gain more traction. You could call them "feed back" on what I saw and how I felt as I talked to others and started playing on my own. I think if KI did them they would actually make more money then their current methods because I feel it would draw in and help them retain more repeat customers.
32 companions? I have 48, and that's not counting Aquila ones because I didnt get them yet.

Anyways, I'm pretty sure KI has records of how many players actually reset companions with crowns and such.

So if barely anyone use crown reset, I suppose they would lower prices already?

But they dont, so maybe that means many people do and they make enough profit as it is...

Not saying I'm against your idea, but from KI's point of view, they just might not need to reduce the price.

Besides, I think having price so high is a way to encourage buying memberships, those are probably more profitable.
Captain
Mar 24, 2013
732
There are some part I agree with frist of all, paying 2000 crowns seems to be high to reset a lot of companions.At least grant 1 free reset, for new characters created.

Second of all, they need " real " gold to maintain this game, like fixing bugs,crushes and other issues. Developing a storyline expansion do take a lot of time, dedication and "gold".

Lastly from what I heard from a youtuber was,this is my biggest fear and concern as a player.What if pirates may become like toontown ? Worst case scenario, leaving our pirate character(s) with this cliffhanger. This will be a sad ending too in real life.I will miss all the found memories i had with this game, and will also miss all my fellow message board friends. ( Kane took over the spiral. )

Until then happy sailing.
Gunner's Mate
Sep 30, 2009
240
Silver Angel on Oct 23, 2015 wrote:
32 companions? I have 48, and that's not counting Aquila ones because I didnt get them yet.

Anyways, I'm pretty sure KI has records of how many players actually reset companions with crowns and such.

So if barely anyone use crown reset, I suppose they would lower prices already?

But they dont, so maybe that means many people do and they make enough profit as it is...

Not saying I'm against your idea, but from KI's point of view, they just might not need to reduce the price.

Besides, I think having price so high is a way to encourage buying memberships, those are probably more profitable.
Scroll back up and re-read what I wrote.

Fact of the matter is they DID lower their prices already! So logic would dictate that it was already ineffective and now they are just trying a new price to see if it works better than the over high one. Basically we are in an experimental phase where they are seeing if 2000 crowns sticks or not.

I'M saying it doesn't but then that is just my own PERSONAL record and observations.

As for "encouraging" people to buy memberships...I have already addressed this. I have ALREADY paid for all the areas. Why on earth would i buy a membership? Only reason is to reset companions. Which I do...then cancel the membership. So idk if the extra 5-10 dollars is worth it when they could probably tempt me even more to spend crowns if the price was lower.
Gunner's Mate
Sep 30, 2009
240
Monkrinx2024 on Oct 25, 2015 wrote:
There are some part I agree with frist of all, paying 2000 crowns seems to be high to reset a lot of companions.At least grant 1 free reset, for new characters created.

Second of all, they need " real " gold to maintain this game, like fixing bugs,crushes and other issues. Developing a storyline expansion do take a lot of time, dedication and "gold".

Lastly from what I heard from a youtuber was,this is my biggest fear and concern as a player.What if pirates may become like toontown ? Worst case scenario, leaving our pirate character(s) with this cliffhanger. This will be a sad ending too in real life.I will miss all the found memories i had with this game, and will also miss all my fellow message board friends. ( Kane took over the spiral. )

Until then happy sailing.
I agree. That is my biggest fear too. Which is why I made this thread. These are my feelings and thoughts about how things are when I first started playing. KI needs this input and your guys' responses help. More trainers and stop pushing away free players.

I am telling you I have spent a ton of crowns on this game even though I dont have a membership. Free players still pay for pack, bundles, ship stuff, sticking, changing flags, transportulator, and accelerating pets. And these are just the MAIN crown suckers! Point is free players bring in a lot of money even if they dont pay a monthly fee.

But as it stands now...most of the free player penny pinchers see these obstacles and loose interest. Which means they dont stay and spend crowns. And even worse they dont make friends or tell other gamer friends about how fun this game is. Granted its not an easy balance. You dont want to give the free players everything...but you can't drive them away either or they will just leave for good.
Gunner's Mate
Sep 30, 2009
240
Silver Angel on Oct 23, 2015 wrote:
32 companions? I have 48, and that's not counting Aquila ones because I didnt get them yet.

Anyways, I'm pretty sure KI has records of how many players actually reset companions with crowns and such.

So if barely anyone use crown reset, I suppose they would lower prices already?

But they dont, so maybe that means many people do and they make enough profit as it is...

Not saying I'm against your idea, but from KI's point of view, they just might not need to reduce the price.

Besides, I think having price so high is a way to encourage buying memberships, those are probably more profitable.
Oh one more thing Silver Angel that I said already but I will summarize briefly...

Wizard101 doesn't have this "companion resetting expense" and look at how successful it is! This is ONE of the BIGGEST reasons I think making companions be free to reset permanently for all players is a good idea and won't hurt KI in the long run. If NOT having this expense (since they don't have crew's) doesn't hurt wizards why would it hurt pirates? And yet I have listed all the many reasons why HAVING the expense IS hurting pirates.

My hope is that KI did this as an experiment and that as time passes they hopefully realize that it has failed and is part of why pirates isn't doing as good as wizards is. That and they really do need more trainers. Gotta get the kids past the learning curve!
Lieutenant
Dec 15, 2012
135
Aaron FireEyes on Oct 22, 2015 wrote:
There are lots of places in Skull Island that are pay-to-access. So many, that I can't possibly list them all.

They (The ones that I know of) are:

Jonah Town, Port Regal Skyway+certain areas that you have to pay for separately, Isle of Doom, (Or parts of it, if not all. I forget...) Waponi Wu and Cutthroat Bay.
I meant on Skull Island itself, the actual island where we start, the one with the skull mountain on it. You get my point now I hope XD
Lieutenant
Dec 15, 2012
135
Thomas Sunhammer on Oct 22, 2015 wrote:
You all make valid points. And I am happy for the contributions.

Kiley. You are right that what I am "probably" trying to get across is we dont want to "pay to much". Or rather another way of phrasing it is I dont think we should have to pay "unnecessary EXTRA expenses."

Paying for each area... yes even "Cyclops Ally" or "Jonah town" even though they are technically in the starting areas...is an acceptable expense. They made the game to sell itself. And the fact is those costs are very effective tools for KI! By getting a pirate started and hooked then making them pay to find out what happens next is HIGHLY motivating to get a membership or buy the area. Yay for everyone! ^_^ But concerning what Annecorbie has said about "catering to free players" and what I have said about the cost of resetting companions I feel like KI is actually hurting themselves. Its a counter productive tool.

Unlike with the areas where a player is highly motivated to get something NEW and thus pay for it...resetting a companion IS NOT NEW...and thus the motivation is far lower. Also it sends a bad message when the excitement of getting to build up a crew is tainted by the fact you have to pay to fix them for every single mistake you make. Making mistakes is hard enough without making it cost more money too and I honestly think that buts a bad taste in peoples mouths. To put it into perspective to reset a pirate with ALL the zeke training points, it costs around 3000 crowns. To reset a max companion, it costs "close" to the same at 2000 crowns and we have a lot of companions. Like in wizard the cost to reset a pirate will continue to grow as they gain more points. But even if the 2000 for companions doesnt grow...combining the cost of resetting oneself with the cost of resetting your entire crew is too much.

KI doesn't need to cater to the free players. But they should try not to drive them away either. My suggestion is for KI's benefit as well as the players.
I "probably" meant about close to all of what you are suggesting too XD.
Captain
Sep 19, 2012
631
2k crowns each? why not just buy member then silly? XD like really ki needs to see numbers and when they see o pirate had a member explosion..hmm lets give pirate a bigger coding team to see if they can get these pesky bugs cleared up, get the release of book 15 completed sooner, give them larger gold carry, weapons on walls, newer house ships, melding why not toss in a few new packs too? numbers are what a business head reads..members buy more annually numbers are things the fansites see the bigger mmorpg.com etc.. bigger number more publicity more money for all more goodies for all, period. On the flip side KI is a great family-orientated company that prizes itself on attempting to make everybody happy..tough job yes? When they release new content they try hard to make sure its perfect from every angle first..when people push for book 15 like its a rant-chant then it only makes their job harder and when people sit back idlely waiting they run the risk of letting pirate101 go bankrupt which would be horrible.. a membership costs less than a lunch combo meal at McDs even when NOT on sale via crown shop, and it lasts a month whereas combo meal lasts what 30 minutes?
yes, i agree it'd be sweet of ki to lower reset fee to 500 crowns per companion...but is it really what prevents new players from wanting to play? I dont think so, I think what hurts new players most is lack of community connection, not understanding how to play efficiently, feeling shy about saying hello and making a new friend, because face it, sadly most parents nowadays dont play with their kids enough..and kids let loose on a new game start thinking they need people to buy them packs...nope imo i'd rather not support beggars that being said, i'm more likely to buy them a 1 month membership..why? they try it for real then..then try to enlist others they know irl..they learn to set goals and earn extra money to buy their own memberships..or they do contests and buy zones.
stormy jen silver
Gunner's Mate
Sep 30, 2009
240
stormyjensilverdra... on Oct 29, 2015 wrote:
2k crowns each? why not just buy member then silly? XD like really ki needs to see numbers and when they see o pirate had a member explosion..hmm lets give pirate a bigger coding team to see if they can get these pesky bugs cleared up, get the release of book 15 completed sooner, give them larger gold carry, weapons on walls, newer house ships, melding why not toss in a few new packs too? numbers are what a business head reads..members buy more annually numbers are things the fansites see the bigger mmorpg.com etc.. bigger number more publicity more money for all more goodies for all, period. On the flip side KI is a great family-orientated company that prizes itself on attempting to make everybody happy..tough job yes? When they release new content they try hard to make sure its perfect from every angle first..when people push for book 15 like its a rant-chant then it only makes their job harder and when people sit back idlely waiting they run the risk of letting pirate101 go bankrupt which would be horrible.. a membership costs less than a lunch combo meal at McDs even when NOT on sale via crown shop, and it lasts a month whereas combo meal lasts what 30 minutes?
yes, i agree it'd be sweet of ki to lower reset fee to 500 crowns per companion...but is it really what prevents new players from wanting to play? I dont think so, I think what hurts new players most is lack of community connection, not understanding how to play efficiently, feeling shy about saying hello and making a new friend, because face it, sadly most parents nowadays dont play with their kids enough..and kids let loose on a new game start thinking they need people to buy them packs...nope imo i'd rather not support beggars that being said, i'm more likely to buy them a 1 month membership..why? they try it for real then..then try to enlist others they know irl..they learn to set goals and earn extra money to buy their own memberships..or they do contests and buy zones.
stormy jen silver
Yes I know its about money. But that cuts both ways. Players wanna pay as little as possible and still have fun as well. So yes KI does have a VERY difficult job and they get major props for all their efforts.

As for a membership...I did explain that I did indeed buy a membership. But I also own all the areas which I had to fork over a TON of crowns to purchase. Am I supposed to buy a membership AND pay for every area? Does that seem fair? Sure in hindsight a membership might have been better. But now that just adds regret into what is supposed to be a game. Regret and fun don't really mix.

I made this suggestion as a possible compromise. Sharing my thoughts as feed back for KI to consider. I think it would work super well if reseting a companion cost as little as it does to stitch ones cloths. (100 crowns). Since neither are actually vital for game play, to me it just makes sense.

As for weather or not it "prevents" people from paying I dont know. All I said is it MIGHT prevent them BAISED on how I felt about when I started off. Everyone is different but pirates does have a lack of success.

All I did when I posted those suggestions was make comparisons to what wizard101 has and pirate101 does/doesn't have. Why is one succeeding and one failing? The two main differences were what I posted.
1) One was the cost of resetting companions. An expense that wizards dont have since they dont get companions like we do.
2) The lack of trainers. Which I see you agree with :) (kinda) so yay!

Comparatively does that make sense? Expenses-to-member-benefits that exist in wizard vs pirates? It makes sense to me.
Captain
Mar 24, 2013
732
Speaking of main storyline update, the update is why long over due.

It's unfortunate that players are fed up of waiting, based what I have been reading in this message board and other social medias lately. Most are just left with disappointment.

Some players are even questioning is this game going to close, because of the lack of storyline content.

This is my biggest fear, what if pirates is closing ? ( An early end to our adventure,before even finishing it ? ) I hope this is not true, I don't want to be left with a cliffhanger ( an unfinshed storyline ) as a player.
Gunner's Mate
Feb 26, 2013
245
Monkrinx2024 on Oct 30, 2015 wrote:
Speaking of main storyline update, the update is why long over due.

It's unfortunate that players are fed up of waiting, based what I have been reading in this message board and other social medias lately. Most are just left with disappointment.

Some players are even questioning is this game going to close, because of the lack of storyline content.

This is my biggest fear, what if pirates is closing ? ( An early end to our adventure,before even finishing it ? ) I hope this is not true, I don't want to be left with a cliffhanger ( an unfinshed storyline ) as a player.
I understand your frustration, friend. I won't throw my hat into the debate on the financials part of this thread, but I can understand your frustration about the story :p

I don't think KI will close the game, as it is so successful and brings happiness to many people. It is unfortunately blatantly obvious which game is KingIsle's more popular choice and the money-maker.

While Pirates is one of my favorite games of all time, it came out 4 years after Wizards, and did not have a finished major arc. Of course, we're almost three-quarters done with El Dorado. The anticipation to all that gold is killing me! Uh, wait. Kind of veered off topic there.

Oh! Yeah! I think KingIsle probably delivers more funding and bandwidth to whichever team makes more money, because that's how it works. The more money you make for a company, the more money you will get paid to make more money. So I don't think it's a matter of them losing passion. No, certainly not. I don't think Pirates is going anywhere. At least, I hope not. It's simply a matter of having less funding than Wizards. I think it's important to note that while both teams are KingIsle teams, they are two separate entities. Is entities the right word? Or did I just make a complete fool out of myself?

Eh, I don't know. I'm probably just rambling. Either way, don't give up hope! KingIsle has confirmed that they are nowhere near giving up on Pirates. It might take some time (they have admitted that they are still exploring story ideas) but I'm certain Book 15 is not far away.

Hope you all have a fantastic week!

Cpt. Cruel Owen Quarrel, Level 65 Captain of the U.S.S.I. Venture
Captain
Sep 19, 2012
631
Thomas Sunhammer on Oct 30, 2015 wrote:
Yes I know its about money. But that cuts both ways. Players wanna pay as little as possible and still have fun as well. So yes KI does have a VERY difficult job and they get major props for all their efforts.

As for a membership...I did explain that I did indeed buy a membership. But I also own all the areas which I had to fork over a TON of crowns to purchase. Am I supposed to buy a membership AND pay for every area? Does that seem fair? Sure in hindsight a membership might have been better. But now that just adds regret into what is supposed to be a game. Regret and fun don't really mix.

I made this suggestion as a possible compromise. Sharing my thoughts as feed back for KI to consider. I think it would work super well if reseting a companion cost as little as it does to stitch ones cloths. (100 crowns). Since neither are actually vital for game play, to me it just makes sense.

As for weather or not it "prevents" people from paying I dont know. All I said is it MIGHT prevent them BAISED on how I felt about when I started off. Everyone is different but pirates does have a lack of success.

All I did when I posted those suggestions was make comparisons to what wizard101 has and pirate101 does/doesn't have. Why is one succeeding and one failing? The two main differences were what I posted.
1) One was the cost of resetting companions. An expense that wizards dont have since they dont get companions like we do.
2) The lack of trainers. Which I see you agree with :) (kinda) so yay!

Comparatively does that make sense? Expenses-to-member-benefits that exist in wizard vs pirates? It makes sense to me.
only meant for a month for resetting companions and pvp lol
stormy jen silver
Captain
Sep 19, 2012
631
Monkrinx2024 on Oct 30, 2015 wrote:
Speaking of main storyline update, the update is why long over due.

It's unfortunate that players are fed up of waiting, based what I have been reading in this message board and other social medias lately. Most are just left with disappointment.

Some players are even questioning is this game going to close, because of the lack of storyline content.

This is my biggest fear, what if pirates is closing ? ( An early end to our adventure,before even finishing it ? ) I hope this is not true, I don't want to be left with a cliffhanger ( an unfinshed storyline ) as a player.
though i understand your fear..I say this.. ITS NOT GONNA HAPPEN..k? pirate101 is epic and it wont close it wont go bankrupt..dig in and bring friends.. family help them go through there storylines.. hatch pets keep playing.. test realm is coming.. dont listen to naysayers pirate will finish this..ki doesnt make games they havent finished they are epic company all we can do is to support them in all ways possible..and a lot of that is ideas..and an occasional membership..and bringing a friend or family member once a month..and reading forums even old posts finding things you like and signing in clicking yar...decorating houses..fixing bugs in areas like boss battles and posting them too..and staying positive and trying to keep this game fun and positive for others as well..be nice and if can helpful to noobs..they are helping us keep our game afloat(parden the bad pun XD he he) so chin up! try to make the best of it and do what we can to help noobs and returning members as well..lots has changed..dont let others make fun of these pirates they important too..
stormy jen silver
Lieutenant
Dec 15, 2012
135
Monkrinx2024 on Oct 30, 2015 wrote:
Speaking of main storyline update, the update is why long over due.

It's unfortunate that players are fed up of waiting, based what I have been reading in this message board and other social medias lately. Most are just left with disappointment.

Some players are even questioning is this game going to close, because of the lack of storyline content.

This is my biggest fear, what if pirates is closing ? ( An early end to our adventure,before even finishing it ? ) I hope this is not true, I don't want to be left with a cliffhanger ( an unfinshed storyline ) as a player.
I really wish that the KI team would at least say SOMETHING to these kind of posts. I mean, its not like they don't see them (the posts). I mean even if not many of the team see them, at least the moderators do and its not like they can't show the team the posts. I agree, though I love the game and hope that it is NOWHERE near over and done with, I'm afraid that if a book (BIG book based on how long we've had to wait) isn't out soon, that they may as well give the dreaded statement, "We regret to inform you, our most valued pirates, that due to a lack of revenue to work with, we have no choice but to shut the program down. We apologize because we hope this game means as much to you as it does...did...to us."

I want the KI team to know that I don't mean that you all should give up on making this "game" the best it can be. I just mean that you don't need to make it as progressed as Wizard in only three years (congrats on being three years old by the way! As I like to say when I accomplish something, booyakasha...I don't know what it means but it is fun to yell). We all understand it takes time so please don't try to make this next book be SO big that its the last one we need for the rest of this adventure (unless we really are that close). If you could make it that big in only a few months or even just a year, that'd be great, but we fans understand that it takes time...and yes money from us to make that happen. Let's make a deal, pirates love to make deals don't we? We as fans will try to promise to not "complain" about having to pay for what we have to pay for, IF you guys and gals promise to have the book be yes good, but come out soon so that maybe we can have enough new adventuring till the book AFTER this next one (if you guys and gals can do that, I don't want to put TOO much pressure on you all of course ).
Admiral
May 30, 2010
1221
Thomas Sunhammer on Oct 26, 2015 wrote:
Oh one more thing Silver Angel that I said already but I will summarize briefly...

Wizard101 doesn't have this "companion resetting expense" and look at how successful it is! This is ONE of the BIGGEST reasons I think making companions be free to reset permanently for all players is a good idea and won't hurt KI in the long run. If NOT having this expense (since they don't have crew's) doesn't hurt wizards why would it hurt pirates? And yet I have listed all the many reasons why HAVING the expense IS hurting pirates.

My hope is that KI did this as an experiment and that as time passes they hopefully realize that it has failed and is part of why pirates isn't doing as good as wizards is. That and they really do need more trainers. Gotta get the kids past the learning curve!
Of course wizard doesn't have the companion resetting price. Wizard doesn't have companions running about with you and helping you in battle. It's a different game. Claiming Wizard doesn't have this so Pirate shouldn't either is comparing apples to rutabagas.
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