marshmallowcreampie
(?)Community Member
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- Posted: Sat, 25 Jul 2015 08:22:20 +0000
So if this game was event-only, I wouldn't really have much to say. But since it's intended to be a permanent feature, well, I've got some criticisms and suggestions for changes that would keep me interested in the long-term.
Pros: The artwork of the game is nice and the animation for the Kindreds are cute. The Kins also have cool designs. I do appreciate that more free features are being added to the site, and so long as updates are frequent enough, I do think this game has potential to give people more to do and get them more involved on the site, again, without requiring cash. I could see users playing to earn items and gold.
Cons: Okay... Due to gameplay similarities, I'll be using Pokemon as an example as how to do things right. I'm not saying the game should be changed to be more like Pokemon in every aspect, I'm just using it as an example.
The game lacks strategy. You just hit the attack or magic buttons, and there's not much difference between Kin. When given multiple Kin of the same level, there's not really much reason to pick one over the other. When it came time to pick out my starter, I first went onto the forums to see if there was a list of pros and cons for each one. But the topic was never brought up, so I just picked the one I thought was cutest. I played the game and realized it didn't really matter anyway. The egg drop rate in the game is low, so my Leafkit was level 4 or 5 by the time I got my first one. Since there's little difference between Kin, I haven't had much reason to train my Willocroak much, and it's not like you can switch to another Kin when the one you chose loses a battle. Since stamina replenishes quickly (not to mention the potions have a decent drop rate) there's little motivation, outside of items, to have a team of multiple Kin.
Now, compare to Pokemon. That game has a type system, moves affect the opponent differently depending on types. You're encouraged to have a team of multiple Pokemon because any single 'mon is going to be at a disadvantage against others. Even if the only Pokemon available to catch are at a much lower level and don't have many good attacks, it's worth it to capture them and train them because it's going to help you later on. If nothing else, when your Pokemon faints in battle, you can switch to another one.
So, more strategy in this game. Maybe Kindreds could all have exclusive moves and abilities that would give them an advantage over its teammates and opponents. I know that all Kindreds do have exclusive skills, but the differences aren't really big enough to justify all the grinding needed to get my Lucky or my Aerling caught up to my Leafkit.
Another complaint I have is the whole egg system. For one, it seems a bit pointless to have us wait to get to use them. Second, this is going back to an earlier point, they all hatch at level one. Because eggs have such a low drop rate, by the time most people get their first one, their starter will already be leveled up a little bit. Outside of going for the items, why would I want to spend so much time training up a level 1 Kin? It would be preferable if there was some way to obtain higher level Kin, like if eggs hatched at whatever level you beat the Kin at. It would also help deal with the team and training issue. If I obtained a Kin that was a similar level to my Leafkit, I would be more inclined to alternate. But as it stands, training one to level 13 would take way too much time to be worth it.
Speaking of eggs, can we have some way to get rid of Kin that we don't want? I have like, three extra Oppososaurs. It would be nice if we could sell the eggs, or at least release them back into the wild. I'm not really sure why we can't sell them, at first I figured it was so people can't buy their way through the game, but we can still sell potions, and those Ally level up ones give a much bigger advantage so it's not that.
Finally, status effects are a bit overpowered. Unless the opponent is FAR weaker, paralysis and sleep are usually a death sentence. Even if we can't attack, it would be nice if we could still use potions.
Pros: The artwork of the game is nice and the animation for the Kindreds are cute. The Kins also have cool designs. I do appreciate that more free features are being added to the site, and so long as updates are frequent enough, I do think this game has potential to give people more to do and get them more involved on the site, again, without requiring cash. I could see users playing to earn items and gold.
Cons: Okay... Due to gameplay similarities, I'll be using Pokemon as an example as how to do things right. I'm not saying the game should be changed to be more like Pokemon in every aspect, I'm just using it as an example.
The game lacks strategy. You just hit the attack or magic buttons, and there's not much difference between Kin. When given multiple Kin of the same level, there's not really much reason to pick one over the other. When it came time to pick out my starter, I first went onto the forums to see if there was a list of pros and cons for each one. But the topic was never brought up, so I just picked the one I thought was cutest. I played the game and realized it didn't really matter anyway. The egg drop rate in the game is low, so my Leafkit was level 4 or 5 by the time I got my first one. Since there's little difference between Kin, I haven't had much reason to train my Willocroak much, and it's not like you can switch to another Kin when the one you chose loses a battle. Since stamina replenishes quickly (not to mention the potions have a decent drop rate) there's little motivation, outside of items, to have a team of multiple Kin.
Now, compare to Pokemon. That game has a type system, moves affect the opponent differently depending on types. You're encouraged to have a team of multiple Pokemon because any single 'mon is going to be at a disadvantage against others. Even if the only Pokemon available to catch are at a much lower level and don't have many good attacks, it's worth it to capture them and train them because it's going to help you later on. If nothing else, when your Pokemon faints in battle, you can switch to another one.
So, more strategy in this game. Maybe Kindreds could all have exclusive moves and abilities that would give them an advantage over its teammates and opponents. I know that all Kindreds do have exclusive skills, but the differences aren't really big enough to justify all the grinding needed to get my Lucky or my Aerling caught up to my Leafkit.
Another complaint I have is the whole egg system. For one, it seems a bit pointless to have us wait to get to use them. Second, this is going back to an earlier point, they all hatch at level one. Because eggs have such a low drop rate, by the time most people get their first one, their starter will already be leveled up a little bit. Outside of going for the items, why would I want to spend so much time training up a level 1 Kin? It would be preferable if there was some way to obtain higher level Kin, like if eggs hatched at whatever level you beat the Kin at. It would also help deal with the team and training issue. If I obtained a Kin that was a similar level to my Leafkit, I would be more inclined to alternate. But as it stands, training one to level 13 would take way too much time to be worth it.
Speaking of eggs, can we have some way to get rid of Kin that we don't want? I have like, three extra Oppososaurs. It would be nice if we could sell the eggs, or at least release them back into the wild. I'm not really sure why we can't sell them, at first I figured it was so people can't buy their way through the game, but we can still sell potions, and those Ally level up ones give a much bigger advantage so it's not that.
Finally, status effects are a bit overpowered. Unless the opponent is FAR weaker, paralysis and sleep are usually a death sentence. Even if we can't attack, it would be nice if we could still use potions.