Ebania
(?)Community Member
Sarcastic Prophet
Offline
- Posted: Tue, 25 Feb 2014 05:28:16 +0000
The rampant inflation in Marketplace prices over the past several months has been detrimental to the community, even the wealthiest among us. No corner of Gaia has been left unaffected by this. Those who haven't purchased any gold generators are left behind in the dust in their quests for special items or art. Artists have had to raise their prices to keep up with the trends in the Marketplace. Members who have invested in Aquariums, and those who are responsible for their income by playing Booty Grab, cannot keep up with the trends in the Marketplace. Many other Gaians, well-versed in the areas of the site that they frequent, have made the fruits of inflation apparent to those who have read their posts. I'm here today to talk to you about the effects of inflation on charities.
For about three years now, I have been the Captain of the Newbie Supporting and Training Guild, or NSTG. We run a tight ship in the NSTG, with carefully-calculated budgets for seasonal events, contests, Towns parties, quest donation programs, charity sponsorships, etc. We are a non-profit organization, so our Crew are all volunteers who simply love to help others, and every donation to our treasury goes directly to our community. Aside from the friendships, assistance, and other resources that we offer for our members, money is an integral piece of that equation. Newbies need help getting started on Gaia, and experienced members need help in getting that expensive item, or in running their charity.
A year ago, a donation of 25,000g to a person on a quest was decent. If their desired item was worth, say, 500,000g, then that single donation covered 5% of their quest. That doesn't sound like a lot, but it was well-appreciated and helpful, especially if others helped and the quester was dedicated to saving up for that item. Now? 25,000g is almost laughable as a donation. Hell, 50,000g is almost laughable. Desirable items are priced in the millions at their initial release. We don't know how we're going to keep up with the economy when our yearly budget of approximately 15 million is no longer as helpful or as generous as it would have been just months ago. And I'm sure that smaller charities with smaller budgets are struggling even more at the present time.
It cannot be said that those against Flynnflation have purely selfish motives; that is simply false and a cheap oversimplification of the frustration that we all feel when looking at that special item, regretting not having purchased it months earlier. It is an oversimplification of the degree to which the current state of the economy has produced this terrible ripple effect on all of us, no matter what we do on this site: games, Guilds, seasonal events, houses, cars, the Arenas. The overall morale of this site is suffering grievously and believe me, your new members have noticed.
Even those who continuously purchase gold generators in order to be able to afford what's on the Marketplace will eventually become the victims of their own choices. It will cost too much real money to keep up with the soaring item prices, and nothing will be affordable. You say, Gaia, that you continue to release gold generators because there are people who continue to buy them, and that makes sense; but neither you nor them have considered, perhaps, that this will even negatively impact them when all is said and done.
Gaia, all I want to bring to your attention is this: The inflation that has come about as a result of the release of Flynn's Booty/Chest is not just affecting those who are questing. It is not only hurting the progress of those who want items for themselves. It is not only scaring newbies away from the Marketplace, the Cash Shop, and Gaia as a whole. It is also negatively impacting those who want to help others acquire desired items; it impacts those who want to help new Gaians acquire some degree of financial independence. Please -- help us help others.
Edit: Please check out this amazing TED Talk by Amanda Palmer on the art of asking for, rather than making people spend, money.
For about three years now, I have been the Captain of the Newbie Supporting and Training Guild, or NSTG. We run a tight ship in the NSTG, with carefully-calculated budgets for seasonal events, contests, Towns parties, quest donation programs, charity sponsorships, etc. We are a non-profit organization, so our Crew are all volunteers who simply love to help others, and every donation to our treasury goes directly to our community. Aside from the friendships, assistance, and other resources that we offer for our members, money is an integral piece of that equation. Newbies need help getting started on Gaia, and experienced members need help in getting that expensive item, or in running their charity.
A year ago, a donation of 25,000g to a person on a quest was decent. If their desired item was worth, say, 500,000g, then that single donation covered 5% of their quest. That doesn't sound like a lot, but it was well-appreciated and helpful, especially if others helped and the quester was dedicated to saving up for that item. Now? 25,000g is almost laughable as a donation. Hell, 50,000g is almost laughable. Desirable items are priced in the millions at their initial release. We don't know how we're going to keep up with the economy when our yearly budget of approximately 15 million is no longer as helpful or as generous as it would have been just months ago. And I'm sure that smaller charities with smaller budgets are struggling even more at the present time.
It cannot be said that those against Flynnflation have purely selfish motives; that is simply false and a cheap oversimplification of the frustration that we all feel when looking at that special item, regretting not having purchased it months earlier. It is an oversimplification of the degree to which the current state of the economy has produced this terrible ripple effect on all of us, no matter what we do on this site: games, Guilds, seasonal events, houses, cars, the Arenas. The overall morale of this site is suffering grievously and believe me, your new members have noticed.
Even those who continuously purchase gold generators in order to be able to afford what's on the Marketplace will eventually become the victims of their own choices. It will cost too much real money to keep up with the soaring item prices, and nothing will be affordable. You say, Gaia, that you continue to release gold generators because there are people who continue to buy them, and that makes sense; but neither you nor them have considered, perhaps, that this will even negatively impact them when all is said and done.
Gaia, all I want to bring to your attention is this: The inflation that has come about as a result of the release of Flynn's Booty/Chest is not just affecting those who are questing. It is not only hurting the progress of those who want items for themselves. It is not only scaring newbies away from the Marketplace, the Cash Shop, and Gaia as a whole. It is also negatively impacting those who want to help others acquire desired items; it impacts those who want to help new Gaians acquire some degree of financial independence. Please -- help us help others.
Edit: Please check out this amazing TED Talk by Amanda Palmer on the art of asking for, rather than making people spend, money.
