Item Alchemy Feedback

[Veag]

To paraphrase what other people have said - this alchemy is like turning gold into lead. It takes a huge investment to even start to participate, and isn't at any point fun or rewarding. In fact, it's hard to participate at any price, because some of the items required are just that rare. And the results from the alchemy are more or less disappointing as well. The only items anyone would be interested in happen at the highest levels. The low levels seem to consist of turning large numbers of valueable items into a single less valuable item. And that has to be repeated at least a hundred times to level up...

It just won't work. I'm sure that sooner or later it will start to work, but right now it's pretty sad.

[Lady Kayura]

I think the system has great potential but the current way it is executed is horrid. The use of so many fail RIG items is going to empty the market of said items and it'll be impossible for anyone to make recipes.

What I hoped would happen with this system.. First, make the formulas purchasable with cash and only cash. Then allow the formulas to be sold on the market for gold. This will ensure that Gaia makes some money off of this feature.

Compenents:

Gold shop items: using multiple gold shop items would serve as a fantastic gold sink.
zOMG drops/loot: This would encourage users to play zOMG to get materials. And more users playing zOMG would make the loyal community very happy. It's good to keep people happy.
Trash: a new purpose for an outdated set of items is something the community has been asking for for quite a while
Bugs/Ink: Again, users have been asking for more ways to use ink and bugs. Users have been asking to be able to use these in recolors for quite some time. This would be another way to please the communities
Tickets: this would encourage people to play the games that deal out tickets and more attention to lesser played games means more people spending time on Gaia which is good for the site
Credits (from Word Bump): Users have also been asking for an update with credits. Three caps and three gowns.. it really doesn't take much to get those items. Another purpose for the credits would breathe some life back into the game.
Fish (from Fishing): again, another purpose would get more people playing the game which is a good thing.
Aquarium Fish Drops: The use of aquarium drops is win win since some of the fish are sold for cash so they'd need the cash to buy the fish (or use the market, yay goldsink) so either way, Gaia is earning money.

Continue to utilize the daily chance to make components available but perhaps increase the drop rate. And lets not forget about dumpseter dive. Use this system to release components and the occasional rarer item.

What you can do to fix alchemy:

Stop using limited quantity items.
Stop using so many RIG items as components.
Start focusing more on items that are replacable and obtainable.

As I've posted in my feedback thread, I feel that the use of RIG items and so many to make an item is to encourage us to spend money on the site. Now, I'm a supporter of spending cash on the site. I want to see Gaia do well. But this system, the way it is now feels like Gaia's trying too hard to get my money. It has alienated me and makes me want to support the site less.

Then there is the backwings.. that Lanzer promised so long ago to be something everyone could get. Seriously, do you think everyone will be able to utilize alchemy to get them? I cringe to see what that recipe will look like. One of each rare pet and a few million gold? That's not accessible to all.

[Alex Nightwalker]

Sinivar

And now you're giving us completely mixed signals.

Lanzer

Shadow Coon II

Good evening, guys! I hope you're all doing well. ^^

Just a couple of questions this week:

1.) Regarding the Alchemy feature: is there any chance that Formulas will be released in such a way that you can craft the basic old RIG items necessary for higher-level/rarer item Formulas just by using regular gold shop items and Alchemy components?

2.) Is there any chance you guys could put more Lanzer SDPlus Dolls into circulation? ninja

We put more of our efforts in many brand new items. As for the older RIG items, needless for me to say they are already in the marketplace, so we're careful not to temper too much with them.

ninja maybe we should an alchemy for SD dolls.

Soooo...you don't want to allow us to have a way to get the very components needed to use in alchemy because it would supposedly effect the MP prices.

But stuff like this totally doesn't effect the MP?


*formula image obtained by Winter Hue

It's detrimental for items to be affordable or at least EXIST in a quantity that can help supply the demand, but a-okay to destroy multiples of an already expensive rare item for the sake of one uber-rare and expensive item item that only a select few can have?

I get that you want the system to be hard. But it's absolutely asinine to expect that people can put hard work into a system that is so broken that the items they would work hard to get -can't even be obtained- just because you can't be arsed to think of better ways to make a profit off of this system without making it a cashsink for RIGs and don't want to damage those RIG sales in any way by making their needed drops available more freely.

Oh, great! It'll already take me an eternity to get the original four kitten stars, and now there's a chance of them going extinct because of this feature?!
If anything, MAKE A FORMULA FOR EACH KITTEN STAR, NOT THE RIGS! There are people who buy items because they WANT them! - . - This just pisses me off. Are the Kitten Star prices going to skyrocket past their already inflated prices now?!

[MistressMinako]

I am highly disappointed with the Aurora Kitten Star formula. When I first saw the preview, I was hopeful that Alchemy would produce at least one Kitten Star everyone could get their hands on with relative ease. Instead you have made already expensive items skyrocket.

I hope you're proud of yourselves, I am disgusted.

[AntiqueChainsaws]

*Sigh*
I agree with most of the people posting, so I won't go on sounding like a broken record player.
The thing that just sets me over the edge of not liking this feature is the fact you guys are like, trying to justify it by releasing recipes that make R.I.G.s themselves.
Which in itself just raised prices in the market further.
I don't even care that they're 1 cash, it makes me sick.


I was exited to craft one of the R.I.G. recipes ,then I realized the prices on the item shot up from last time I saw them. And the recipe required ten of them. Ten.
Which would result in 410,000, a whole 60,000 above the fortune egg level one's current market price.
And I'm SURE that's not even the worst one.

I was aware of what was going to happen before I even opened the link to get my freebies and craft it. But I didn't expect it to be this bad, I really didn't.
Thus, which is why my experience is at 1xp. It's staying there.
And my highest recipe completion? 25%. Pie hard event too.
All this is doing, is helping the richer gaians say to everyone else:
"Look at this. You see this item? You want one? Too bad, spend over a million gold, fail at it's recipe, buy a new one, repeat a little maybe, and THEN you get one."

I wasn't happy with the cigs removal *which they were of course brought back*, I'm still not quite over/used to the site design, but this. . .
This doesn't just take the cake. It takes it and eats it in front of Marie Antoinette before her decapitation.
:

[Wally_West]

I was super excited to dive in and try out this feature.



30 'free' starter packs later, I'm a level 3 Alchemist.....which is awesome except without MILLIONS OF GOLD, I can't go any further. I can't even craft level 2 items that should be relatively simple like the Tsunami KO shirts, because the alchemy component needed (Shark's Blood) is impossibly rare. For a level 2 formula.

I'm very disappointed in the half-assed way this was rolled out. I'd have no problem with being patient and grinding my alchemy levels up to be able to do the really nice formulas, but making it impossible to even do the lower level stuff was a terrible and underhanded way to start this feature off.

[Dark-Velvet-Revolver]

I agree with what others have said. But I would also like to add the fact that maybe you should allow a preview of the possible item that they could get. Because Idk about other people but I'm not going to jump at a "Chance item" That ends up going with nothing i own... I like to know what im getting before i try to make it.

And i agree that some of those items are so unobtainable that I don't see many people using these alchemy potions much if at all.

[puella in somnio]

Lady Kayura

As I've posted in my feedback thread, I feel that the use of RIG items and so many to make an item is to encourage us to spend money on the site. Now, I'm a supporter of spending cash on the site. I want to see Gaia do well. But this system, the way it is now feels like Gaia's trying too hard to get my money. It has alienated me and makes me want to support the site less.

This, this, this.

I used to get excited when I had a little bit of extra cash somewhere. Putting money into Gaia was a way to reward myself and to support a site that I really loved. I've been a cash supporter from the start.

This? This is ridiculous. I can think of WAY better ways for them to make money, but they won't listen to any of it, because they're obsessed with making "rare" items. I don't understand this. They're shooting themselves in the foot.

[Lady Kayura]

laughing pixie

This, this, this.

I used to get excited when I had a little bit of extra cash somewhere. Putting money into Gaia was a way to reward myself and to support a site that I really loved. I've been a cash supporter from the start.

This? This is ridiculous. I can think of WAY better ways for them to make money, but they won't listen to any of it, because they're obsessed with making "rare" items. I don't understand this. They're shooting themselves in the foot.

You make a great point. I support some rare items.. but you're right, it seems like they're pumping out rare items entirely too much. And I even enjoy questing for challenging items.. but this is just too much.

[Melomar]

Quote:

We want to know what you think! We have been working hard on this feature, so we want to know what makes it good and what could be better. So tell us here!

Well I'm not going to restate everything I hate about "alchemy" but the main thing here is:

Where's the equivalent exchange?

Bullshit! It's just another feature half-assed by Gaia that really doesn't benefit anybody. And it's just another feature that I'm not going to waste my frustration on. I'm sure the staff "worked hard" on it, but until you actually release a feature that's complete, bug free (are there bugs in this one? I don't know), fair, and doesn't break our pocketbooks... you won't get much positive feedback.

[Nissa chan]

...Are you even listening to your users? It's been almost a week since this fail of an idea has continued to decompose on your user's brains... With every new revealed recipe laying more bitter on our tongues. Quit telling us just to be patient and wait out your idea. This doesn't work, it's ridiculous the type and amount of items that are required in these recipes. FIX IT. I was hoping, in a week, more would be said, released, fixed, SOMETHING. So far... Next to nothing.. I haven't even gotten any ad drops, never. Maybe I'm just missing them... But even still, this whole thing is ridiculous... Fix it, fix it soon, or I will stop the payments. And soon after payments stop, I will stop coming here altogether. Communicate with us. Quit keeping us in the dark.

[p-s-y-c-h-o]

I WAS excited for this... A reason to come and spend time on the site, heck yeah, but...
Right now, with 2m gold, I don't think I could even get through a few
recipes, let alone level once. Not to mention the complete lack of availability
of some ingredients... This is kind of a useless feature until you actually make
it usable for those who don't have countless billions at their disposal...

[ticket]

On top of causing most users to get upset at the process (the components situation/MP prices/ ingredients not being accessible), Alchemy seems to be disrupting everything it can possibly touch. Honestly, I wanted to like this feature. I was excited when the announcement came out and did the first recipe. I knew that Alchemy would be a challenge. I got a few 2nd level recipes and was shocked at how radically different they were compared to the starter one. Talk about challenge [read: near impossible].

Then this happened:

I was saving a blue gift box from about 6 months ago. I just found a brown trunk a few days ago. I opened the blue box because I had the trunk to save for later. To my disappointment there was a recipe in it. So I opened the trunk, hoping for an item, when I get.... another recipe....

I think that's a bit much. scream

These were meant to release uncommon/rare-ish items and such right? I started here in 2004 so these boxes hold a special meaning to me. I've looked forward to the neat items that have emerged in the past for me. What with the heavy promo for Alchemy, I can understand incorporating Alchemy in everything that grants items (like common Daily Chance items), but not in all gift boxes and trunks. Reserve that for ingredients, maybe? Recipes are already available in shops, they don't need more release mediums. I've got tons of recipes and hardly any of the items that are used in them. sweatdrop

Basically, I'm unhappy with how it was released, with the lack of communication, with the components requirements and with how this feature seems to be shoved down my throat. I don't like it how it is right now so stop forcing me to incorporate it into my playing style. (Personally, I did just fine without it and if this is to remain then players should be able to opt out of receiving Alchemy related items. I don't want it to waste away in my inventory. I'd rather have a hasty normal item then do Alchemy at this point.)

I have to admit that using the Pie Hard event to get us used to Alchemy better could have been a smart move. Compared to the regular shop recipes, the event isn't very hard. But I am frustrated that I am forced to use a process I'm against right now. By releasing Alchemy beforehand, and therefore knowing this fiasco is very much unresolved, it makes me feel like the issue is just getting the silent treatment.


It's Alchemy overkill, in my opinion.

[Idolatrine]

Okay, back after actually learning a thing or two about this (because the instructions given are a tiny bit confusing).

Seriously, why the extremely limited ingredients that might not even be released ever again?

Making ingredients that aren't so easy to get, fine, okay, whatever. Totally acceptable for mid- to high-level recipes. Even cool for events.

But here low-level recipes involve very limited items like Starmony or the Complete Double Rainbow. Those were free grant items, and those grants were limited to one per account for whatever amount of time. And now some are bound to be destroyed because some people want their Cirque du Junkfood or Gelato Supremo.

Also odd: Higher-level recipes seem to use more common items. That's pretty much the most a**-backward thing I've seen. And I practically live in the land of a**-backward.

[Karu Black]

I don't get why you are using ingredients that are limited and super rare? I mean this has greatly affected the marketplace already and it's not a good feature to begin with. I mean if it used paper, or ink, or bugs, or whatever then I would totally use it. But I'm not going to waste my time and gold trying to quest for a freakin kitten star or jet kitten star just for me to possibly get one freakin formula right. Not going to use this feature at all since it's a waste of time and effort. Gaia should be slapped for this one.