Kronprinz Schwarzhaus
Deus-ex Potato
55,475 Points
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05/14/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update
Boy, it's been a while since I've updated this thread, but nothing has really caught my attention worth noting until now. More Fafnir recolours? I'm all for that, but uh.. something seems rather wrong with this development. As much as I enjoy the idea of having more coloured dragons and wonderful claws that I can put on my tiny pixel body, the idea of this essentially being a RIG and not to mention expensive as all heck is really putting me off. Here is my feedback on why this update, while AWESOME, really really needs to be reworked. (This is just a requote of myself from the update thread that this came from. It would be suited here since feedback is still feedback.)
First point: We're talking things like the already rising issue of being unable to splice across evolutions, despite all of them being a part of the same line. Even if they're the same level. Considering how long this kin has been out (and also not in the shop so there's probably not a ton of new baby eggs lying around), most people probably don't have the baby fafnir evolution anymore. Couple this with the fact that you need two of the same evolution to splice, this is asking for someone to spend an extra 15 dollars + a LOAD of time (and/or gold on potions) to level another Fafnir back up to Tyrant Fafnir. Make this even worse that if you don't get the right radiance, you also have to get a radiance potion. Now, this stuff could all easily be bypassed by simply sharing kin. There are a lot of neat folks out there who'd willingly share their own opposite radiance kin with another for splicing purposes, thank goodness. But it still has to be taken into account that it's possible that someone may not be able to get hold of someone else's kin, which all falls back into either 1) a ton of extra cash spent, 2) a ton of extra gold spent, or 3) a combination of both.
Second point: Now, that's not even the biggest hindrance to this process. Because with the above, as long as there's a will, there's a way. Time is another completely different issue. And I'm not even done with the cash/gold thing yet. Sit tight, I'll come back around to it. Let's assume that there's not just the three colours in the announcement available. Let's assume that with the extra three silhouettes, there are six. This is all hypothetical, so go along with it. However long the splicing takes (along with the first point), how much time total would be spent trying to get the particular recolour you wanted? Let me be generous. Let's say the splicing takes 30 minutes. Kind of nice for a kin that's so huge, agreed? Now unless one is just ON THE BALL with splicing and sitting by the entire time to wait for the result, who really is going to be on the 30-minute-dot the entire time? Let us also take into account those who may splice when they're about to go run a quick hour long errand so they don't have to sit around and wait. Convenient, right? Now, let's say 30 minutes pass. Wrong recolour. Whoops, oh well! No big deal, right? Except... you've never taken 30 minutes to open a single recolour RIG, right? Take another 30 minutes to open another one. Wrong recolour. Another 30 minutes. Wrong recolour. Another 4-12 hours because you decide to head to bed while it splices. Wrong recolour. 30 minutes to get breakfast and wash up. Wrong recolour. There's only 6 different possible eggs you can, get right? How bad could it be?
Third point: 799GC is no joke. You could get a brand, spankin' new LQI for just about that price. But it's not going to take you 30 minutes to a few hours to slap that item right on your avatar either, right? Now, this would be no big deal if there were multiple shards included in the bundle. But there's only one. Plus a 100% potion, but that's not what people are after. Well, the obvious solution then is to use gold to get some more if you don't have the GC, right? Well considering the price of the shard in cash, what makes anyone think that those shards are going to be reasonably priced on the marketplace? Again, this would be easily fixed if there were multiple shards in the bundle. Then the supply would be at least a little better for those who don't have the GC to get one 799GC shard after another. As it stands, this is a recolour RIG that can take anywhere from 30 minutes to HOURS to open. Just a single. Assuming one isn't collecting all the recolours and is fine with any outcome, this 1 in hypothetical 6 chance is ridiculous. Not only is it atrociously time-consuming, but it is expensive. Let's assume that someone wants a recolour at the worst possible circumstances. No Fafnir kin, no friends to trade with, no gold, no time, etc etc.
15 bucks to get the kin. 30 if someone doesn't have either.
However many hours (assuming potions aren't used) to level that sucker up to 10. More hours and potions if they've got a Tyrant already.
Oops! Wrong Radiance! Get that 10 dollar bundle for those potions.
8 bucks for the shard. 30 minutes pass. Wrong recolour.
Another 8 bucks for another shard. 30 minutes pass. Still the wrong recolour.
Another 8 bucks for another shard. 30 minutes pass. Got a duplicate!
Another 8 bucks for another shard. 30 minutes pass. Wrong recolour again.
Before someone can even get to the splicing, the amount of money needed just to be able to splice. The amount of time expended. Imagine having to wait DAYS to open RIGs one by one by one. It's going to take days for people to even list those eggs, more or less find someone who's going to list them at a reasonable price. On top of that, the Fafnir egg hasn't been rereleased in other means so that's expensive, too. Who wants to spend another 15 bucks for more eggs, eh? And 6 potential prizes in the pool is just hypothetical. Could you imagine if all the recolour Fafnir colours were in it?
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02/24/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update
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01/28/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update
Yes! Thank you! This is precisely the type of thing we have been asking for. This will greatly break up the grind in order to level up kin, and it will especially help out in the later levels when the amount of experience gotten per level no longer equals but a paltry fraction of what is needed to read the maximum. The prices, however, are atrocious. I do believe that this was a missed opportunity for a fantastic constant gold sink. While Resurrection may just 2 billion gold, I believe allowing the other two potions to be bought also for gold will very much help counter inflation that exists now, and furthermore, makes these potions also accessible for free to play players. Rather than monetizing this option with Gaia Cash, if this were to be made available with gold, I do believe that players would feel more inclined to purchase kin with GC as well, as this would mean that Lake Kindred isn't simply becoming a feature that is Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash, which tends to make users angry and not wanting to spend because of a "cash grab" as opposed to enjoying the game and wanting it to last. This is a great start however! But I would heavily recommend making this feature available also with gold. As it is now, the GC prices for these potions seem incredibly stingy and rather expensive, matching the prices of brand new kin themselves and only lasting for a day or two.
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02/11/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update & List Cleanup
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01/28/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update
Yes! Thank you! This is precisely the type of thing we have been asking for. This will greatly break up the grind in order to level up kin, and it will especially help out in the later levels when the amount of experience gotten per level no longer equals but a paltry fraction of what is needed to read the maximum. The prices, however, are atrocious. I do believe that this was a missed opportunity for a fantastic constant gold sink. While Resurrection may just 2 billion gold, I believe allowing the other two potions to be bought also for gold will very much help counter inflation that exists now, and furthermore, makes these potions also accessible for free to play players. Rather than monetizing this option with Gaia Cash, if this were to be made available with gold, I do believe that players would feel more inclined to purchase kin with GC as well, as this would mean that Lake Kindred isn't simply becoming a feature that is Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash, which tends to make users angry and not wanting to spend because of a "cash grab" as opposed to enjoying the game and wanting it to last. This is a great start however! But I would heavily recommend making this feature available also with gold. As it is now, the GC prices for these potions seem incredibly stingy and rather expensive, matching the prices of brand new kin themselves and only lasting for a day or two.
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01/02/2016: Bitter Revival Event & Fafnir's Peak
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11/25/2015: In Regards to the Most Recent Proposed and Clarified Lake Kindred Update:
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11/05/2015: Original Post
I should make it clear that this pose will be a combination of two posts I have already written in the past. One regarding the ability to obtain kin and the other being a more general overview of concerns regarding Lake Kindred. While the latter was posted by someone else, the text was originally written by me, edited with the suggestions and additions of friends.
I will begin by saying that Lake Kindred started off as a very quaint, pleasing addition to the site. I personally enjoy it a lot with the cute equips that come with each kin and a Pokemon-esque type battling in general. With zOMG! being taken down within the past year or so, many had been waiting for a new game to be released that could possibly live up to the amount of fun (or at least amusement) that zOMG! had. Lake Kindred was the beginning of that. It had potential. It still has potential, and I want it to last; however, monetizing the game to the extent is being pushed right now is beginning to turn what started off as pleasing --- into what is now incredibly tedious, frustrating, and to some extent, unfair.
It is very frustrating in the state it is at right now. For the sake of simple reading, I will attempt to split each set of concerns into their own categories. Be forewarned that this will not be light reading.
The Kin
For precious words said on the topic of obtaining kin, look here. I likely will not reiterate these points unless I find time to do so. For now, I will focus on the simple idea of the kin themselves and how they work in-game.
When a new player begins the game, they are given an option to choose between the four available starters: Aerling, Echo, Cubdrop and Leafit. You can choose only one, and the rest can be found via their egg drops in the game. Simple and fair enough. This is a pleasant way for starters to choose their favourite kin of the four and still have an opportunity to collect or get their other favourite starts without having to resort to some more complicated function like trading in Pokemon. This was a nice start to Lake Kindred because damn, I wish we could find the starters in the wild without meeting some crazy requirements first. The obtaining of kin and the raising of these kin from this point on, however, becomes difficult.
Most who have played the game since the beginning know by now that the best place to level any kin from level 1 to 10 now are the first two maps we began with when Lake Kindred first came out: Lake Kindred and the Kindred Wilds. The kin here include more of the beginning kin the game started out with such as Pixicroak, Willocroak, Oppososaurus, etc.. Now, these kin are attuned to the power level of the beginning kin. Most people dedicated enough to spend time to level their beginning kin will likely stay in these areas from level 1 to 10. Beyond that? Hoo boy.
What starts off as multiple stages easing players into the game with single level rising jumps immediately to a level 10-20 area, and this area and the area afterward are home to the famous Sycamorte and Phantom Sycamorte that many Gaians have.... probably yet to succeed punching in the face. Consider that when one is forced to take their level 10 beginning kin into this area, they risk either running into one of the Sycamorte Breeds, which can easily 0HKO, or running into kin higher level than the one the player currently possesses. Assuming the beginning kin is the only and highest level kin a player has, they are forced to submit themselves to running into kin that they will either be knocked out by or have to run away from 9 out of 10 times or to procure a different kin, which is not quite as simple as it sounds when a free player is limited to such a small area. As such, it makes logical sense that training the kin in these areas are not the most time-efficient or stamina-efficient ways of levelling at a steady pace. It would then make logical sense that one should move onto the other newer maps we have been provided with with more equal level-distributed stages, correct? Incorrect.
The way it is now, unless one is willing to use copious amounts of potions (which drop at a fair rate in-game) in order to succeed in the encounter, many of the newer kin can easily knock out the beginning kin even if they are lower level. One may ask how this can be; the reason is because newer kin being added to the game right now are having their power levels increased. It was no uncommon complaint from the summer event that revolved around Lake Kindred that the Kokeshi Doll kin and their variants, having the ability to put opponents to sleep, were frustrating many players with their ability to Chain-Sleep their kin and easily KO the kin, despite being numerous levels higher than the encountered kin. This, however, is only the beginning of the power-raising woes of Lake Kindred. With the recent establishment of the Shadow Lab areas, new Halloween-inspired event kin have been added in these new areas to spark new interest in the game. It should be noted that while the kin of lower levels are easily knocking out starter kin within one or two moves, the starter kin are barely scratching the new kin.
The stats of the new kin compared to old kin can be found in this helpful guide by Sinfulcraft.
The starter kin or fairly older kin's stats compared to the stats of newer kin? There is a large chasm in between. Of course, this could easily be compromised by simply being patient and staying in the lower level areas and grinding to a higher level, correct? Again, incorrect.
Leveling is a nightmare.
Leveling Kin: The Reliance on Ally Potions
Though I do not currently have data on how many experience points it takes to gain another level as your kin grows stronger (though I will get this data later), many can vouch for the fact that as your kin's level goes up, the experience points (EXP) needed to level that kin goes up exponentially. The amount of EXP on earns from successfully defeating a wild kin, however, only matches that of the kin's level. A level 1 wild kin will grant 1 EXP. A level 10 wild kin will grant 10 EXP. While this slow leveling is not a problem at lower levels, once one goes beyond a certain threshold, leveling becomes a time-consuming chore. I have a level 38 Mytostrike right now. It takes 9845 EXP to level it to 39. Meanwhile, the highest level wild kin in the game currently is level 50. One can see how this becomes absolutely unbearable after a certain amount of time; I cannot imagine those players who are trying to level a kin from 49 to 50, which is the current cap on levels for all kin.
Note again how many of those who use their starter kin are somewhat forced to stay in the beginning areas of Lake Kindred in order to use their stamina, which is NOT infinite, efficiently. One would rather steadily grind than continue to be knocked out by the newer, stronger kin in new areas since being knocked out causes the kin to lose an extra few stamina points. Reminding, stamina is NOT infinite. If a kin continues to be KO'd, their stamina will deplete rapidly. Furthermore, in order to regain that stamina, one either has to consume stamina potions (which drop at a moderate rate) or wait a certain amount of time for kin to sleep and regain their stamina. The latter takes time, especially if one has to do it again and again and again and again.
Now, there is the fast route to levelling kin. Players can either find or buy Ally Potions that will either raise their kin's EXP by 50% or 100%. If one can save their Ally Potions, then leveling kin becomes much less tedious and painful than if one went the completely ftp (free-to-play) route, correct?
Sadly, you guessed it again. Incorrect.
Monetizing Lake Kindred (Gaia Gold)
Ally Potions are not common drops in the game. They were dropping at a fair rate when Lake Kindred was first introduced, but since then, the drop rates for them have been decreased. Personally, I have not earned an Ally Potion in the game since this dropped rate. Others claim that these potions do not even drop unless in the latter stages of the game, where the level 25+ kin are. Regardless of which is true, banking on finding a few Ally Potions in the game is not reliable or efficient.
But again, I did mention that they can be bought. Assuming one would like to play a hefty price. For 10 billion gold a bundle, players can buy 2 Ally Potion 50%s in the gold shop store Back Alley Bargains. For a player who tries to use Ally Potions sparingly, buying one or two of these bundles is no big deal (though this point is debatable. For anyone who wishes to go beyond just a few levels? For anyone tired of the incredibly slow and tedious grind of higher levels? Not an option. Because of the dropped rate of Ally Potions in the game, it has become a must for many players to resort to buying Potions to be able to progress, whether one simply wants a strong kin (also debatable) or simply wants to get some kin equips that are granted at higher levels. One level? 10 billion gold. Two levels? 20 billion gold. 5 levels? 50 billion gold. 10 levels? 100 billion gold. It adds up fast.
The debate between "poor" and "rich" on Gaia can go in either direction. Regardless of the interpretation, many could agree that 100 billion gold is no joke. This is often the price for a new released Limited Quantity Item being spent on a game that currently does not give much reward unless one can farm the rare and incredibly strong Sycamorte, which has potential to drop up to 1 billion (or an extremely rare 2 billion) gold per kill. Consider that perhaps there are people who wish to level more than just one kin. 100 billion. 200 billion. 300 billion. This addition of these numbers is easy, but being able to look at how much can be spent on Lake Kindred is rather unsettling. In order to even get to a stage in the game where one can begin to profit (somewhat) off of it or at least make back the gold spent, a lot of time, and usually, money (be it GC or Gold) must be invested, and even then, a lot of Lake Kindred also relies on luck with what drops a player gets or the incredibly fickle miss rate of attacks. Drop rates can include things like particular, helpful damage-dealing potions that can help a weaker kin take down a stronger kin, ally potions, and even other kin eggs. All of these things aside from the first, however, are so rare and luck-based that many people will often so long periods of time without even seeing an egg at all, further forcing a player to rely solely on what is made available to them.
So, what happens when one who first begins the game really does not have the option to stay a FTP player when many of the new additions to Lake Kindred require these hefty investments that some simply cannot give? This is how the GC monetization of Lake Kindred begins.
Monetizing Lake Kindred (Gaia Cash)
Every so often, Gaia has been releasing special Cash Shop kin in exchange for Gaia Cash, a form of currency that a user spends real money on in order to obtain to purchase special items in various shops. The first of its line was Cria, many of which know as the Death Llama or Death Alpaca as it turns into a very feisty looking creature as a maxed out Machia. More often than not, these kin are at least slightly stronger than the kin you can find in game, and are perfect additions for new players who do not want to be stuck in the beginning stages of the game forever. Cria and many of the other Cash Shop kin started off at 499 GC, which is not quite a big deal (debatable) to many users. One kin of this nature does not put a hole in the wallet.
But, of course, when the addition of Cash Shop kin becomes one of the only ways to obtain stronger kin... this begins to add up. Furthermore, not every Cash Shop kin is 499 GC. The high-tier, strongest kin, Ember the Spirited Fox and the Sakura Pegacorn Fluff made an appearance in the Cash Shop for a whopping 1499 GC. For those who do not know the value of this, it is 15 USD. Recently, the Bloody Stagony also made an appearance in the shop for the same price. Before that, Barkhest was featured for 999GC, or 10 USD. Though Ember and the Sakura top the selection of kin, many of these are still strong and are much easier to train compared to the starting kin for their higher power level and ability to withstand and keep up the rising power level of wild kin and new maps in the game. Of course, only for a certain amount of time.
Recall back to Cria, one of the first kin to be released via the Cash Shop for 499 GC... Cria cannot withstand the higher power levels of the Shadow Lab kin, the newest map in Lake Kindred. While Machia can hold its own to a certain extent, Hembria and Cria suffer, simply because while it is a Cash Shop kin, its early release as caused it to become outdated with time, crippling it now that it has been released for a certain amount of time. Inevitably, this is what is going to happen if the power level of kin and new stages continue to rise bit by bit, somewhat forcing players who want to keep up with the new levels and kin to invest more and more into this game which is, as shown above, not really giving back to its players equally. To make matters worse, I will link back to this post again to reiterate on various other non-FTP-player-friendly methods of release of new kin and how costly it becomes as Lake Kindred continues to weigh more and more on monetary input and very little output for the players.
This increased input includes the recent addition of the newest Lake Kindred feature, Splicing, which allows players to essentially "mate" two kin in order to create a new, special kin. This feature was released in our most recent Lake Kindred-centric event, the Shadow Lab.
Splicing
During the event, players were given the grace to splice their kin for free and gain the material needed to splice also for free (sort of). During the event, players needed: 2 level. 10+ kin of the same species and colour and of opposing radiants (sort of the equivalent of 'gender' in pokemon since you need the opposite radiant of the other kin), a splicing gem (the catalyst that allows the splice to occur), and a fee to splice.
The fee was waived during the event, and players were granted one free gem to splice with, leaving the players only having to procure two level 10+ kin of same species/colour and opposing radiants. Not an incredibly difficult task if someone wanted to splice just a few kin. However...
Players only got one free gem. Any other gems players wish to get, they can either spend 25 billion for in a bundle with an Ally Potion, or spend time gathering Kandy drops from the Shadow Lab area that allow players to craft a gem with 50. Supposedly, the Kandies no longer drop, though I have not confirmed this yet, but let us focus on the gold needed to simply buy a new gem. 25 billion. Per gem. Again, the multiplication of the gold needed to be spent on the gem adds up quickly if one wants to splice multiple kin. To make matters worse, your splicing endeavours CAN FAIL. There is a chance that your splicing will fail, and if that happens, the player loses the gem, forcing them to have to obtain another one in order to try again. Imagine a player having to obtain multiple gems for multiple failures. Yikes Have I mentioned that splicing takes time, too? While failed splices take a significantly shorter amount of time to complete, varying from several to 15 minutes, give or take, a successful kin splice can take from 15 minutes, to 6 hours to complete. Don't believe me? Try splicing a Lapinkin successfully and take a look for yourself. Multiple failures, multiple gems, and multiple endeavours to level kin are all time consuming and money (GC/GG) draining. All of these features simply for a player to obtain a few, or even one, kin that they can enjoy for the whole game, is incredibly frustrating.
In addition, gem splicing is beginning to be monetized as well. Players can spend GC, again, to buy special gems that grant players the ability to splice very special kin that cannot be obtained with gems found in game. While these GC gems cannot fail at splicing, did I mention that after the event ended, the level needed for both kin to splice became Level 25+? The splicing fee is also now 1 billion gold per splicing attempt.
Add all of this up, and Lake Kindred, what started off as a quaint, cute game with much potential, became a nightmare.
Very, very fast.
Gaia. This is not fun.
This game, as I said before, still has a lot of potential to grow into something that can be enjoyed by all players, but the suggestions the community is making need to be taken into account. I will compile a list here of suggestions others make, but the rest is up to reading and you to change before Lake Kindred ends up another feature that is left to be abandoned. (Mind that some of this is copy/pasted from the Ask the Staff question that was compiled by Nanzzy-Chan.)
- Gold purchasable kins (for reasonable prices)
- Make every kin available in-game, even if rarity must be adjusted to suit them
- Make splicing shards available through other means than just cash, such as other methods of crafting or in-game drop items
- Balance the power levels of older kin to at least be tolerable in later stages -- or power levels of newer kin to be at least tolerable for some older kin. Bigger and more powerful does not necessarily mean better if it just makes everything that comes before obsolete
- Integration of an overarching story line to garner interest
- A quest-like implementation that would ease up gaining particularly desirable items that users may need. Perhaps completing a set of criteria (KO this many kin of this kind/reach the final stage of this map/etc etc) in order to be granted shards, potions, or perhaps even special kin.
- Implementing Paw-base drops into all kin so all users of any base on the site can invest within the game
Boy, it's been a while since I've updated this thread, but nothing has really caught my attention worth noting until now. More Fafnir recolours? I'm all for that, but uh.. something seems rather wrong with this development. As much as I enjoy the idea of having more coloured dragons and wonderful claws that I can put on my tiny pixel body, the idea of this essentially being a RIG and not to mention expensive as all heck is really putting me off. Here is my feedback on why this update, while AWESOME, really really needs to be reworked. (This is just a requote of myself from the update thread that this came from. It would be suited here since feedback is still feedback.)
First point: We're talking things like the already rising issue of being unable to splice across evolutions, despite all of them being a part of the same line. Even if they're the same level. Considering how long this kin has been out (and also not in the shop so there's probably not a ton of new baby eggs lying around), most people probably don't have the baby fafnir evolution anymore. Couple this with the fact that you need two of the same evolution to splice, this is asking for someone to spend an extra 15 dollars + a LOAD of time (and/or gold on potions) to level another Fafnir back up to Tyrant Fafnir. Make this even worse that if you don't get the right radiance, you also have to get a radiance potion. Now, this stuff could all easily be bypassed by simply sharing kin. There are a lot of neat folks out there who'd willingly share their own opposite radiance kin with another for splicing purposes, thank goodness. But it still has to be taken into account that it's possible that someone may not be able to get hold of someone else's kin, which all falls back into either 1) a ton of extra cash spent, 2) a ton of extra gold spent, or 3) a combination of both.
Second point: Now, that's not even the biggest hindrance to this process. Because with the above, as long as there's a will, there's a way. Time is another completely different issue. And I'm not even done with the cash/gold thing yet. Sit tight, I'll come back around to it. Let's assume that there's not just the three colours in the announcement available. Let's assume that with the extra three silhouettes, there are six. This is all hypothetical, so go along with it. However long the splicing takes (along with the first point), how much time total would be spent trying to get the particular recolour you wanted? Let me be generous. Let's say the splicing takes 30 minutes. Kind of nice for a kin that's so huge, agreed? Now unless one is just ON THE BALL with splicing and sitting by the entire time to wait for the result, who really is going to be on the 30-minute-dot the entire time? Let us also take into account those who may splice when they're about to go run a quick hour long errand so they don't have to sit around and wait. Convenient, right? Now, let's say 30 minutes pass. Wrong recolour. Whoops, oh well! No big deal, right? Except... you've never taken 30 minutes to open a single recolour RIG, right? Take another 30 minutes to open another one. Wrong recolour. Another 30 minutes. Wrong recolour. Another 4-12 hours because you decide to head to bed while it splices. Wrong recolour. 30 minutes to get breakfast and wash up. Wrong recolour. There's only 6 different possible eggs you can, get right? How bad could it be?
Third point: 799GC is no joke. You could get a brand, spankin' new LQI for just about that price. But it's not going to take you 30 minutes to a few hours to slap that item right on your avatar either, right? Now, this would be no big deal if there were multiple shards included in the bundle. But there's only one. Plus a 100% potion, but that's not what people are after. Well, the obvious solution then is to use gold to get some more if you don't have the GC, right? Well considering the price of the shard in cash, what makes anyone think that those shards are going to be reasonably priced on the marketplace? Again, this would be easily fixed if there were multiple shards in the bundle. Then the supply would be at least a little better for those who don't have the GC to get one 799GC shard after another. As it stands, this is a recolour RIG that can take anywhere from 30 minutes to HOURS to open. Just a single. Assuming one isn't collecting all the recolours and is fine with any outcome, this 1 in hypothetical 6 chance is ridiculous. Not only is it atrociously time-consuming, but it is expensive. Let's assume that someone wants a recolour at the worst possible circumstances. No Fafnir kin, no friends to trade with, no gold, no time, etc etc.
15 bucks to get the kin. 30 if someone doesn't have either.
However many hours (assuming potions aren't used) to level that sucker up to 10. More hours and potions if they've got a Tyrant already.
Oops! Wrong Radiance! Get that 10 dollar bundle for those potions.
8 bucks for the shard. 30 minutes pass. Wrong recolour.
Another 8 bucks for another shard. 30 minutes pass. Still the wrong recolour.
Another 8 bucks for another shard. 30 minutes pass. Got a duplicate!
Another 8 bucks for another shard. 30 minutes pass. Wrong recolour again.
Before someone can even get to the splicing, the amount of money needed just to be able to splice. The amount of time expended. Imagine having to wait DAYS to open RIGs one by one by one. It's going to take days for people to even list those eggs, more or less find someone who's going to list them at a reasonable price. On top of that, the Fafnir egg hasn't been rereleased in other means so that's expensive, too. Who wants to spend another 15 bucks for more eggs, eh? And 6 potential prizes in the pool is just hypothetical. Could you imagine if all the recolour Fafnir colours were in it?
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02/24/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update
Two words: THANK. YOU.
Since the standard for getting most kin items is level 10, this is the level most people are going to be able to gun for feasibly and even willingly without having to cough up atrocious amounts of gold in order to buy potions when levelling simply starts to become unbearable. Or simply give up because of the difficulty of levelling into the higher end of the spectrum (because you know damn well I did and now my shards are just sitting there). This will also justify the prices of the double EXP potions so much more as only those who truly wish to level their kin to the highest of the highs will have the option to buy them instead of forcing absolutely everyone to have to cringe at them. The new splicing levels makes getting new kin so much more feasible and will greatly increase the number of people who can participate in this feature. It also makes the shards required for splicing so much more worth it instead of the grueling chore it was before. This means people are going to feel much better about using the shards they may possess instead of letting them sit there and rot because of the thought of having to level two kin to the ridiculous levels splicing was set at before.
Since the standard for getting most kin items is level 10, this is the level most people are going to be able to gun for feasibly and even willingly without having to cough up atrocious amounts of gold in order to buy potions when levelling simply starts to become unbearable. Or simply give up because of the difficulty of levelling into the higher end of the spectrum (because you know damn well I did and now my shards are just sitting there). This will also justify the prices of the double EXP potions so much more as only those who truly wish to level their kin to the highest of the highs will have the option to buy them instead of forcing absolutely everyone to have to cringe at them. The new splicing levels makes getting new kin so much more feasible and will greatly increase the number of people who can participate in this feature. It also makes the shards required for splicing so much more worth it instead of the grueling chore it was before. This means people are going to feel much better about using the shards they may possess instead of letting them sit there and rot because of the thought of having to level two kin to the ridiculous levels splicing was set at before.
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01/28/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update
Yes! Thank you! This is precisely the type of thing we have been asking for. This will greatly break up the grind in order to level up kin, and it will especially help out in the later levels when the amount of experience gotten per level no longer equals but a paltry fraction of what is needed to read the maximum. The prices, however, are atrocious. I do believe that this was a missed opportunity for a fantastic constant gold sink. While Resurrection may just 2 billion gold, I believe allowing the other two potions to be bought also for gold will very much help counter inflation that exists now, and furthermore, makes these potions also accessible for free to play players. Rather than monetizing this option with Gaia Cash, if this were to be made available with gold, I do believe that players would feel more inclined to purchase kin with GC as well, as this would mean that Lake Kindred isn't simply becoming a feature that is Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash, which tends to make users angry and not wanting to spend because of a "cash grab" as opposed to enjoying the game and wanting it to last. This is a great start however! But I would heavily recommend making this feature available also with gold. As it is now, the GC prices for these potions seem incredibly stingy and rather expensive, matching the prices of brand new kin themselves and only lasting for a day or two.
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02/11/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update & List Cleanup
Another step in the right direction, I feel, albeit I do believe that there isn't a point to making the kin exclusive to the in-game shop if these kin are still going to be sold for GC. Sure, they're much cheaper GC-wise compared to most new kin, which is awesome, but placing these knew kin into the in-game shop just means that one would have to travel to another page on the site to spend GC, which is not so much of an exclusive implementation as much as it is a simple difference. (Exclusive being something more like placing these kin into Club Verge so only certain people can access it, while in-game, everyone can still access these kin; it's just not in the cash shop instead. Catch my drift?) But I am very thrilled to see that these kin are cheaper than those normally released in the cash shop! I am also pleased to see that some of the potion prices have gone down in response to feedback about them being too expensive. Personally, I think still think the potions are too expensive for something that is only temporary (why would I buy this 799GC potion that fades after 2 days when I could buy a whole new items for the same price or less in the Cash Shop?), but it is getting better!
I do love the implementation of the chance boxes though! 250m to get some new kin for free-to-play players is great! Now I would still strongly encourage new kin for gold as well (are the new in-game kin in the gold box?), but that is a different story. I would like to know exactly how these boxes work. Are all of the kin available in every box and it's just the rate of drop for particular kin are increased per box? Or are there only a certain selection available in each different type of box? Because that last box is atrociously priced, and considering we have RIGs like Kindred Roulette that already give rare kin alongside x10 100% Ally Potions? Seems like a big of a rip-off. Not worth 20 bucks a pop when I can still get these same kin in a cheaper RIG with potions (or even less gold on the market). Which causes the price of all things inside Kindred Roulette to drop anyways. Otherwise, I am very happy to see these new changes!
Other issues from the past update response still persist since those were not touched in this update, but I won't waste time talking about them since everyone already knows it is still an on-going issue. Exclusive to this update by itself, still need to cheapen those potions, love the new kin, still encouraging gold-purchasable new kin, and well done! Great changes!
I do love the implementation of the chance boxes though! 250m to get some new kin for free-to-play players is great! Now I would still strongly encourage new kin for gold as well (are the new in-game kin in the gold box?), but that is a different story. I would like to know exactly how these boxes work. Are all of the kin available in every box and it's just the rate of drop for particular kin are increased per box? Or are there only a certain selection available in each different type of box? Because that last box is atrociously priced, and considering we have RIGs like Kindred Roulette that already give rare kin alongside x10 100% Ally Potions? Seems like a big of a rip-off. Not worth 20 bucks a pop when I can still get these same kin in a cheaper RIG with potions (or even less gold on the market). Which causes the price of all things inside Kindred Roulette to drop anyways. Otherwise, I am very happy to see these new changes!
Other issues from the past update response still persist since those were not touched in this update, but I won't waste time talking about them since everyone already knows it is still an on-going issue. Exclusive to this update by itself, still need to cheapen those potions, love the new kin, still encouraging gold-purchasable new kin, and well done! Great changes!
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01/28/2016: In Regards to the Most Recent Update
Yes! Thank you! This is precisely the type of thing we have been asking for. This will greatly break up the grind in order to level up kin, and it will especially help out in the later levels when the amount of experience gotten per level no longer equals but a paltry fraction of what is needed to read the maximum. The prices, however, are atrocious. I do believe that this was a missed opportunity for a fantastic constant gold sink. While Resurrection may just 2 billion gold, I believe allowing the other two potions to be bought also for gold will very much help counter inflation that exists now, and furthermore, makes these potions also accessible for free to play players. Rather than monetizing this option with Gaia Cash, if this were to be made available with gold, I do believe that players would feel more inclined to purchase kin with GC as well, as this would mean that Lake Kindred isn't simply becoming a feature that is Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash upon Gaia Cash, which tends to make users angry and not wanting to spend because of a "cash grab" as opposed to enjoying the game and wanting it to last. This is a great start however! But I would heavily recommend making this feature available also with gold. As it is now, the GC prices for these potions seem incredibly stingy and rather expensive, matching the prices of brand new kin themselves and only lasting for a day or two.
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01/02/2016: Bitter Revival Event & Fafnir's Peak
With the start of Gaia's winter event Bitter Revival, Fafnir's Peak in Lake Kindred was made a fun side-game to play while the main event was centered around forum-based battle. For firsts, thank you, for not making yet another Lake Kindred centered event in a row compared to the rest that have started since summer. This had provided a good break for those who might have been burned out from the constant emphasis on Lake Kindred for months in a row, while still providing fun prizes and new kin to be found.
The implementation of Fafnir's Peak into Lake Kindred, I consider to be a great success for these reasons:
For one, the kin that can be found in this area have much more generous drops compared to past areas, which has been a massive relief to those who have had trouble finding the kin in past events. Users don't have to spend weeks looking for a particular kin, and the fact that these are tradeable mean that after the event is over, there will be plenty in circulation for even new users to be able to enjoy. Well done! Secondly, the implementation of RIGs as prizes for this area is amazing. Not only does this seriously out deflate some very sought after items, but the selection of RIGs themselves makes this very fun for those who just enjoy opening RIGs in general. The chance for free-to-play users to get in on these valuable prizes and items via a RIG instead of a pay-to-win method, I believe is crucial to helping keep Lake Kindred alive; this ensures that even if many users remain free-to-play, they will still find reward in their time spent instead of simply grueling over grinding and being left out in the array of cash-shop kin. I would highly recommend continuing to add old and new RIGs alike into the game as prizes as a fun way to keep interest in Lake Kindred. Third, implementing the important Snowflake Charm into the game instead of a part of the timed Fafnir battle compared to last year was incredibly nice. This would make sure that those who simply cannot be online all hours of the day to watch over an HP bar in the forum can still get their event items when they do find the time to play while also rewarding those who are online all the time by giving more snowflake charms to them. While all of these are very good things that I would love to see continued in the future, there are a few things that could be further tweaked to help out the game even more:
Once more, we return to the subject of simply increasing the power of wild kin. Stronger does not always mean better, which also does not always mean perpetuating interest in Lake Kindred. Making the wild kin stronger and stronger with each new area will necessarily help the game out. Just like in Pokemon, not every new generation are there necessarily an entire array of new Pokemon stronger and better than the generation before. There is a balance that is needed to keep the game going. Stronger does not mean improving. Improving the game can be looking for balance, and balance can be achieved with consistency at times. I still would strongly recommend a rebalancing of the wild kin and the game in general (even though there has supposedly already been one) in order to bring up old kin to match the level of the newer kin coming out. Do make the first incredibly rare kins, the Stagony line, worth the time and effort for those who worked for it. Make them powerful again so that they are not simply sitting unused in the inventories of people who genuinely would like to use it for future Lake Kindred events. Do bring up the power of the rest of the older kin so that they are at least usable in newer areas. They don't have to be to be absolutely powerful, but at least make them able to challenge the new areas instead of being obsolete overall. This will rekindle interest in just training kin in general again and not having the population of those who wish to use their favourite kin die out being unable to enjoy the game.
Secondly, this is more of a small gripe that revolves around opinion as opposed to any real fix: Please do consider make new kin that come out cheaper. Not the hefty 15 dollar price many are fetching. I will, however, admit that the new coming Fafnir Hatchling and Sandman Rose's equips are fantastic and amazingly well done and well worth the price -- much better than the rinsed and repeated equips of Filligris and Carnelion -- but 15 dollars is still quite a chunk of change for kin that do not have stats that even match up to Pumperilla, who was 5 dollars and still one of the strongest kin in the game. Dasher was priced fairly at a 10 dollar range. While still expensive, it is not nearly as expensive as the other two mascots, and I find the 5-10 dollar range to be most reasonable for new kin unless something absolutely legendary is released.
Lastly, the implementation of developer notes should be very important. There have been several users who were unaware of the level of evolution for Sandman Rose, and therefore, missed evolutions of their own kin and were unable to be granted the lovely items that came with this kin. While part of the fun is finding out when your kin will evolve into something shiny and new, if this comes with a risk of missing the kin items that are granted and a major part of the kin's appeal, then suddenly having a new kin is more of a risk than anything fun. But there is nothing added to or taken away from Lake Kindred by simply revealing the information, such as stats and levels of evolution in the beginning with some developer notes; this would cause much less frustration and anger in the future.
The implementation of Fafnir's Peak into Lake Kindred, I consider to be a great success for these reasons:
For one, the kin that can be found in this area have much more generous drops compared to past areas, which has been a massive relief to those who have had trouble finding the kin in past events. Users don't have to spend weeks looking for a particular kin, and the fact that these are tradeable mean that after the event is over, there will be plenty in circulation for even new users to be able to enjoy. Well done! Secondly, the implementation of RIGs as prizes for this area is amazing. Not only does this seriously out deflate some very sought after items, but the selection of RIGs themselves makes this very fun for those who just enjoy opening RIGs in general. The chance for free-to-play users to get in on these valuable prizes and items via a RIG instead of a pay-to-win method, I believe is crucial to helping keep Lake Kindred alive; this ensures that even if many users remain free-to-play, they will still find reward in their time spent instead of simply grueling over grinding and being left out in the array of cash-shop kin. I would highly recommend continuing to add old and new RIGs alike into the game as prizes as a fun way to keep interest in Lake Kindred. Third, implementing the important Snowflake Charm into the game instead of a part of the timed Fafnir battle compared to last year was incredibly nice. This would make sure that those who simply cannot be online all hours of the day to watch over an HP bar in the forum can still get their event items when they do find the time to play while also rewarding those who are online all the time by giving more snowflake charms to them. While all of these are very good things that I would love to see continued in the future, there are a few things that could be further tweaked to help out the game even more:
Once more, we return to the subject of simply increasing the power of wild kin. Stronger does not always mean better, which also does not always mean perpetuating interest in Lake Kindred. Making the wild kin stronger and stronger with each new area will necessarily help the game out. Just like in Pokemon, not every new generation are there necessarily an entire array of new Pokemon stronger and better than the generation before. There is a balance that is needed to keep the game going. Stronger does not mean improving. Improving the game can be looking for balance, and balance can be achieved with consistency at times. I still would strongly recommend a rebalancing of the wild kin and the game in general (even though there has supposedly already been one) in order to bring up old kin to match the level of the newer kin coming out. Do make the first incredibly rare kins, the Stagony line, worth the time and effort for those who worked for it. Make them powerful again so that they are not simply sitting unused in the inventories of people who genuinely would like to use it for future Lake Kindred events. Do bring up the power of the rest of the older kin so that they are at least usable in newer areas. They don't have to be to be absolutely powerful, but at least make them able to challenge the new areas instead of being obsolete overall. This will rekindle interest in just training kin in general again and not having the population of those who wish to use their favourite kin die out being unable to enjoy the game.
Secondly, this is more of a small gripe that revolves around opinion as opposed to any real fix: Please do consider make new kin that come out cheaper. Not the hefty 15 dollar price many are fetching. I will, however, admit that the new coming Fafnir Hatchling and Sandman Rose's equips are fantastic and amazingly well done and well worth the price -- much better than the rinsed and repeated equips of Filligris and Carnelion -- but 15 dollars is still quite a chunk of change for kin that do not have stats that even match up to Pumperilla, who was 5 dollars and still one of the strongest kin in the game. Dasher was priced fairly at a 10 dollar range. While still expensive, it is not nearly as expensive as the other two mascots, and I find the 5-10 dollar range to be most reasonable for new kin unless something absolutely legendary is released.
Lastly, the implementation of developer notes should be very important. There have been several users who were unaware of the level of evolution for Sandman Rose, and therefore, missed evolutions of their own kin and were unable to be granted the lovely items that came with this kin. While part of the fun is finding out when your kin will evolve into something shiny and new, if this comes with a risk of missing the kin items that are granted and a major part of the kin's appeal, then suddenly having a new kin is more of a risk than anything fun. But there is nothing added to or taken away from Lake Kindred by simply revealing the information, such as stats and levels of evolution in the beginning with some developer notes; this would cause much less frustration and anger in the future.
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11/25/2015: In Regards to the Most Recent Proposed and Clarified Lake Kindred Update:
Kronprinz Schwarzhaus
In regards to the recently proposed, possibly temporary or permanent, nerf of Sycamorte/Phantom Sycamorte drops and the buff to Sycamorte/Phantom Sycamorte stats:
The lowering of gold payout and the chance of gold payout of Sycamorte and Phantom Sycamorte likely will only most affect those who were using these two strong wild kin as a means to farm and gain massive amounts of gold in short periods of time. While, yes, not everyone was exploiting and abusing these means to gather funds in a less-than-natural way, it can be understood that some measure had to be made in order to prevent this from happening in the future, even if many others who simply gathered some extra pocket change this way, would also be affected. Already so few people had the capability in order to stand a chance against the Sycamorte breeds that the change on drops and the buff to its stats would not affect many Lake Kindred players who are first starting out or perhaps did not wish to invest very much in Lake Kindred in the first place. As such, it seems that a matter of greed for gold that would be the reason why some might be repelled by the changes. However, I will acknowledge that instead of changing some of the drops to charge orbs or other alchemy ingredients, I believe the dropping of more desired Lake Kindred items such as Ally potions, Skill potions, Shards, and others being mixed into the drop pool with higher rates would still be just as good incentive to fight the Sycamorte breeds even after the gold drop nerf.
I also acknowledge that the change in drops are not the only reason why players are being repelled from the game as of this change -- due to the buffed stats (that as of me writing this post, has not been implemented yet) of the Sycamorte breeds, it is possible that the only (or even less) kin that would be able to take them on is the Sakura Pegacorn Fluff, which is already a rare kin and an expensive Cash Shop kin. As such, many people who have invested time into other previously acceptable kin such as Skulverine, Pumperilla, Cereus and others would naturally feel frustration after much time, gold, and/or effort has been expended. Because of this, I would like to propose some other possible alternatives to the recent proposed changes in the Sycamorte and Phantom Sycamorte:
1) Keep the buff of the Sycamorte breed stats, but not so much to the extent that only one or two kin can continue fighting it. Drop items/rate nerf optional.
If the reasons revolving around the decision to change Sycamorte is, indeed, because of exploitation and abuse (and possible marketplace inflation as a result), then of course the first plan of action is to put a stop to it before it gets any worse. Making Sycamorte near impossible to fight save for that of a few kin, however, seems like much too severe of a consequence. A possible fix for the abuse, while stopping it entirely is favoured, would be to simply slow down the abuse to the point that it doesn't adversely affected other features of the site so much. Do buff Sycamorte to make it more difficult for players to abuse the gold, but still make Sycamorte as viable opponent for players who already invested so much time into their kin that were supposed to be able to take on this grand boss of a kin. The drop rate and drop pool of the victory changing is optional here, though favourably, perhaps a small reduction to the gold prize is still necessary. This method would form something of a halfway compromise between the previous state of lake Kindred and the proposed change.
2) Do not buff Sycamorte, do not change drop rates, but heavily reduce the gold award able to be earned.
This method allows users who have invested their time and effort (and possibly gold) into their kin to not feel as if their work has been for naught. At the same time, it keeps the pool of kin able to fight Sycamorte very open and still diverse to those who eventually wish to be able to fight Sycamorte. This, however, does not stop the abuse and exploitation of farming Sycarmorte breeds at all. As such, a heavy reduction in gold would be needed in place here. Not even 1 billion, but even less as to severely cut down on the abuse. Though those who did not abuse this system but used Sycamorte as a way to get funds would be affected, it would still be one way to garner some extra pocket change for those who are willing to work extra hard in order to save. The gold prize and gain, however, should not be as effortless and exploitable as it was before.
3) Change nothing, but place a cap on how much gold one is able to earn over a certain period of time.
As much as I hate to propose the idea of micro-managing users so they cannot exploit for find loopholes around Lake Kindred, this might be necessary if a compromise can't be reached. Like in zOMG!, a cap on how much gold a player can earn each day (or over a different period of time) would simply erase the ability to abuse and endlessly farm the Sycamorte breeds for gold. However, because things would remain unchanged and gold would still be funneled out of Lake Kindred and into the economy rapidly, the cap might have to be rather low to fit the number of people who could hit this cap each day. I am unaware of the stats of how much gold is earned from Lake Kindred each day, so this option would have to be left up to the devs or staff who can see these statistics and determine a reasonable range to place as to reduce and/or stop the effect of inflation on the market.
Though the above methods are not the only ways to compromise the proposed change, these are the ones I could personally think of at the moment. If others have their own ideas or compromises to propose, please do vocalize them so any staff or devs reading can get a general idea or suggestions on how to go about future changes in Lake Kindred.
The lowering of gold payout and the chance of gold payout of Sycamorte and Phantom Sycamorte likely will only most affect those who were using these two strong wild kin as a means to farm and gain massive amounts of gold in short periods of time. While, yes, not everyone was exploiting and abusing these means to gather funds in a less-than-natural way, it can be understood that some measure had to be made in order to prevent this from happening in the future, even if many others who simply gathered some extra pocket change this way, would also be affected. Already so few people had the capability in order to stand a chance against the Sycamorte breeds that the change on drops and the buff to its stats would not affect many Lake Kindred players who are first starting out or perhaps did not wish to invest very much in Lake Kindred in the first place. As such, it seems that a matter of greed for gold that would be the reason why some might be repelled by the changes. However, I will acknowledge that instead of changing some of the drops to charge orbs or other alchemy ingredients, I believe the dropping of more desired Lake Kindred items such as Ally potions, Skill potions, Shards, and others being mixed into the drop pool with higher rates would still be just as good incentive to fight the Sycamorte breeds even after the gold drop nerf.
I also acknowledge that the change in drops are not the only reason why players are being repelled from the game as of this change -- due to the buffed stats (that as of me writing this post, has not been implemented yet) of the Sycamorte breeds, it is possible that the only (or even less) kin that would be able to take them on is the Sakura Pegacorn Fluff, which is already a rare kin and an expensive Cash Shop kin. As such, many people who have invested time into other previously acceptable kin such as Skulverine, Pumperilla, Cereus and others would naturally feel frustration after much time, gold, and/or effort has been expended. Because of this, I would like to propose some other possible alternatives to the recent proposed changes in the Sycamorte and Phantom Sycamorte:
1) Keep the buff of the Sycamorte breed stats, but not so much to the extent that only one or two kin can continue fighting it. Drop items/rate nerf optional.
If the reasons revolving around the decision to change Sycamorte is, indeed, because of exploitation and abuse (and possible marketplace inflation as a result), then of course the first plan of action is to put a stop to it before it gets any worse. Making Sycamorte near impossible to fight save for that of a few kin, however, seems like much too severe of a consequence. A possible fix for the abuse, while stopping it entirely is favoured, would be to simply slow down the abuse to the point that it doesn't adversely affected other features of the site so much. Do buff Sycamorte to make it more difficult for players to abuse the gold, but still make Sycamorte as viable opponent for players who already invested so much time into their kin that were supposed to be able to take on this grand boss of a kin. The drop rate and drop pool of the victory changing is optional here, though favourably, perhaps a small reduction to the gold prize is still necessary. This method would form something of a halfway compromise between the previous state of lake Kindred and the proposed change.
2) Do not buff Sycamorte, do not change drop rates, but heavily reduce the gold award able to be earned.
This method allows users who have invested their time and effort (and possibly gold) into their kin to not feel as if their work has been for naught. At the same time, it keeps the pool of kin able to fight Sycamorte very open and still diverse to those who eventually wish to be able to fight Sycamorte. This, however, does not stop the abuse and exploitation of farming Sycarmorte breeds at all. As such, a heavy reduction in gold would be needed in place here. Not even 1 billion, but even less as to severely cut down on the abuse. Though those who did not abuse this system but used Sycamorte as a way to get funds would be affected, it would still be one way to garner some extra pocket change for those who are willing to work extra hard in order to save. The gold prize and gain, however, should not be as effortless and exploitable as it was before.
3) Change nothing, but place a cap on how much gold one is able to earn over a certain period of time.
As much as I hate to propose the idea of micro-managing users so they cannot exploit for find loopholes around Lake Kindred, this might be necessary if a compromise can't be reached. Like in zOMG!, a cap on how much gold a player can earn each day (or over a different period of time) would simply erase the ability to abuse and endlessly farm the Sycamorte breeds for gold. However, because things would remain unchanged and gold would still be funneled out of Lake Kindred and into the economy rapidly, the cap might have to be rather low to fit the number of people who could hit this cap each day. I am unaware of the stats of how much gold is earned from Lake Kindred each day, so this option would have to be left up to the devs or staff who can see these statistics and determine a reasonable range to place as to reduce and/or stop the effect of inflation on the market.
Though the above methods are not the only ways to compromise the proposed change, these are the ones I could personally think of at the moment. If others have their own ideas or compromises to propose, please do vocalize them so any staff or devs reading can get a general idea or suggestions on how to go about future changes in Lake Kindred.
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11/05/2015: Original Post
I should make it clear that this pose will be a combination of two posts I have already written in the past. One regarding the ability to obtain kin and the other being a more general overview of concerns regarding Lake Kindred. While the latter was posted by someone else, the text was originally written by me, edited with the suggestions and additions of friends.
I will begin by saying that Lake Kindred started off as a very quaint, pleasing addition to the site. I personally enjoy it a lot with the cute equips that come with each kin and a Pokemon-esque type battling in general. With zOMG! being taken down within the past year or so, many had been waiting for a new game to be released that could possibly live up to the amount of fun (or at least amusement) that zOMG! had. Lake Kindred was the beginning of that. It had potential. It still has potential, and I want it to last; however, monetizing the game to the extent is being pushed right now is beginning to turn what started off as pleasing --- into what is now incredibly tedious, frustrating, and to some extent, unfair.
It is very frustrating in the state it is at right now. For the sake of simple reading, I will attempt to split each set of concerns into their own categories. Be forewarned that this will not be light reading.
The Kin
For precious words said on the topic of obtaining kin, look here. I likely will not reiterate these points unless I find time to do so. For now, I will focus on the simple idea of the kin themselves and how they work in-game.
When a new player begins the game, they are given an option to choose between the four available starters: Aerling, Echo, Cubdrop and Leafit. You can choose only one, and the rest can be found via their egg drops in the game. Simple and fair enough. This is a pleasant way for starters to choose their favourite kin of the four and still have an opportunity to collect or get their other favourite starts without having to resort to some more complicated function like trading in Pokemon. This was a nice start to Lake Kindred because damn, I wish we could find the starters in the wild without meeting some crazy requirements first. The obtaining of kin and the raising of these kin from this point on, however, becomes difficult.
Most who have played the game since the beginning know by now that the best place to level any kin from level 1 to 10 now are the first two maps we began with when Lake Kindred first came out: Lake Kindred and the Kindred Wilds. The kin here include more of the beginning kin the game started out with such as Pixicroak, Willocroak, Oppososaurus, etc.. Now, these kin are attuned to the power level of the beginning kin. Most people dedicated enough to spend time to level their beginning kin will likely stay in these areas from level 1 to 10. Beyond that? Hoo boy.
What starts off as multiple stages easing players into the game with single level rising jumps immediately to a level 10-20 area, and this area and the area afterward are home to the famous Sycamorte and Phantom Sycamorte that many Gaians have.... probably yet to succeed punching in the face. Consider that when one is forced to take their level 10 beginning kin into this area, they risk either running into one of the Sycamorte Breeds, which can easily 0HKO, or running into kin higher level than the one the player currently possesses. Assuming the beginning kin is the only and highest level kin a player has, they are forced to submit themselves to running into kin that they will either be knocked out by or have to run away from 9 out of 10 times or to procure a different kin, which is not quite as simple as it sounds when a free player is limited to such a small area. As such, it makes logical sense that training the kin in these areas are not the most time-efficient or stamina-efficient ways of levelling at a steady pace. It would then make logical sense that one should move onto the other newer maps we have been provided with with more equal level-distributed stages, correct? Incorrect.
The way it is now, unless one is willing to use copious amounts of potions (which drop at a fair rate in-game) in order to succeed in the encounter, many of the newer kin can easily knock out the beginning kin even if they are lower level. One may ask how this can be; the reason is because newer kin being added to the game right now are having their power levels increased. It was no uncommon complaint from the summer event that revolved around Lake Kindred that the Kokeshi Doll kin and their variants, having the ability to put opponents to sleep, were frustrating many players with their ability to Chain-Sleep their kin and easily KO the kin, despite being numerous levels higher than the encountered kin. This, however, is only the beginning of the power-raising woes of Lake Kindred. With the recent establishment of the Shadow Lab areas, new Halloween-inspired event kin have been added in these new areas to spark new interest in the game. It should be noted that while the kin of lower levels are easily knocking out starter kin within one or two moves, the starter kin are barely scratching the new kin.
The stats of the new kin compared to old kin can be found in this helpful guide by Sinfulcraft.
The starter kin or fairly older kin's stats compared to the stats of newer kin? There is a large chasm in between. Of course, this could easily be compromised by simply being patient and staying in the lower level areas and grinding to a higher level, correct? Again, incorrect.
Leveling is a nightmare.
Leveling Kin: The Reliance on Ally Potions
Though I do not currently have data on how many experience points it takes to gain another level as your kin grows stronger (though I will get this data later), many can vouch for the fact that as your kin's level goes up, the experience points (EXP) needed to level that kin goes up exponentially. The amount of EXP on earns from successfully defeating a wild kin, however, only matches that of the kin's level. A level 1 wild kin will grant 1 EXP. A level 10 wild kin will grant 10 EXP. While this slow leveling is not a problem at lower levels, once one goes beyond a certain threshold, leveling becomes a time-consuming chore. I have a level 38 Mytostrike right now. It takes 9845 EXP to level it to 39. Meanwhile, the highest level wild kin in the game currently is level 50. One can see how this becomes absolutely unbearable after a certain amount of time; I cannot imagine those players who are trying to level a kin from 49 to 50, which is the current cap on levels for all kin.
Note again how many of those who use their starter kin are somewhat forced to stay in the beginning areas of Lake Kindred in order to use their stamina, which is NOT infinite, efficiently. One would rather steadily grind than continue to be knocked out by the newer, stronger kin in new areas since being knocked out causes the kin to lose an extra few stamina points. Reminding, stamina is NOT infinite. If a kin continues to be KO'd, their stamina will deplete rapidly. Furthermore, in order to regain that stamina, one either has to consume stamina potions (which drop at a moderate rate) or wait a certain amount of time for kin to sleep and regain their stamina. The latter takes time, especially if one has to do it again and again and again and again.
Now, there is the fast route to levelling kin. Players can either find or buy Ally Potions that will either raise their kin's EXP by 50% or 100%. If one can save their Ally Potions, then leveling kin becomes much less tedious and painful than if one went the completely ftp (free-to-play) route, correct?
Sadly, you guessed it again. Incorrect.
Monetizing Lake Kindred (Gaia Gold)
Ally Potions are not common drops in the game. They were dropping at a fair rate when Lake Kindred was first introduced, but since then, the drop rates for them have been decreased. Personally, I have not earned an Ally Potion in the game since this dropped rate. Others claim that these potions do not even drop unless in the latter stages of the game, where the level 25+ kin are. Regardless of which is true, banking on finding a few Ally Potions in the game is not reliable or efficient.
But again, I did mention that they can be bought. Assuming one would like to play a hefty price. For 10 billion gold a bundle, players can buy 2 Ally Potion 50%s in the gold shop store Back Alley Bargains. For a player who tries to use Ally Potions sparingly, buying one or two of these bundles is no big deal (though this point is debatable. For anyone who wishes to go beyond just a few levels? For anyone tired of the incredibly slow and tedious grind of higher levels? Not an option. Because of the dropped rate of Ally Potions in the game, it has become a must for many players to resort to buying Potions to be able to progress, whether one simply wants a strong kin (also debatable) or simply wants to get some kin equips that are granted at higher levels. One level? 10 billion gold. Two levels? 20 billion gold. 5 levels? 50 billion gold. 10 levels? 100 billion gold. It adds up fast.
The debate between "poor" and "rich" on Gaia can go in either direction. Regardless of the interpretation, many could agree that 100 billion gold is no joke. This is often the price for a new released Limited Quantity Item being spent on a game that currently does not give much reward unless one can farm the rare and incredibly strong Sycamorte, which has potential to drop up to 1 billion (or an extremely rare 2 billion) gold per kill. Consider that perhaps there are people who wish to level more than just one kin. 100 billion. 200 billion. 300 billion. This addition of these numbers is easy, but being able to look at how much can be spent on Lake Kindred is rather unsettling. In order to even get to a stage in the game where one can begin to profit (somewhat) off of it or at least make back the gold spent, a lot of time, and usually, money (be it GC or Gold) must be invested, and even then, a lot of Lake Kindred also relies on luck with what drops a player gets or the incredibly fickle miss rate of attacks. Drop rates can include things like particular, helpful damage-dealing potions that can help a weaker kin take down a stronger kin, ally potions, and even other kin eggs. All of these things aside from the first, however, are so rare and luck-based that many people will often so long periods of time without even seeing an egg at all, further forcing a player to rely solely on what is made available to them.
So, what happens when one who first begins the game really does not have the option to stay a FTP player when many of the new additions to Lake Kindred require these hefty investments that some simply cannot give? This is how the GC monetization of Lake Kindred begins.
Monetizing Lake Kindred (Gaia Cash)
Every so often, Gaia has been releasing special Cash Shop kin in exchange for Gaia Cash, a form of currency that a user spends real money on in order to obtain to purchase special items in various shops. The first of its line was Cria, many of which know as the Death Llama or Death Alpaca as it turns into a very feisty looking creature as a maxed out Machia. More often than not, these kin are at least slightly stronger than the kin you can find in game, and are perfect additions for new players who do not want to be stuck in the beginning stages of the game forever. Cria and many of the other Cash Shop kin started off at 499 GC, which is not quite a big deal (debatable) to many users. One kin of this nature does not put a hole in the wallet.
But, of course, when the addition of Cash Shop kin becomes one of the only ways to obtain stronger kin... this begins to add up. Furthermore, not every Cash Shop kin is 499 GC. The high-tier, strongest kin, Ember the Spirited Fox and the Sakura Pegacorn Fluff made an appearance in the Cash Shop for a whopping 1499 GC. For those who do not know the value of this, it is 15 USD. Recently, the Bloody Stagony also made an appearance in the shop for the same price. Before that, Barkhest was featured for 999GC, or 10 USD. Though Ember and the Sakura top the selection of kin, many of these are still strong and are much easier to train compared to the starting kin for their higher power level and ability to withstand and keep up the rising power level of wild kin and new maps in the game. Of course, only for a certain amount of time.
Recall back to Cria, one of the first kin to be released via the Cash Shop for 499 GC... Cria cannot withstand the higher power levels of the Shadow Lab kin, the newest map in Lake Kindred. While Machia can hold its own to a certain extent, Hembria and Cria suffer, simply because while it is a Cash Shop kin, its early release as caused it to become outdated with time, crippling it now that it has been released for a certain amount of time. Inevitably, this is what is going to happen if the power level of kin and new stages continue to rise bit by bit, somewhat forcing players who want to keep up with the new levels and kin to invest more and more into this game which is, as shown above, not really giving back to its players equally. To make matters worse, I will link back to this post again to reiterate on various other non-FTP-player-friendly methods of release of new kin and how costly it becomes as Lake Kindred continues to weigh more and more on monetary input and very little output for the players.
This increased input includes the recent addition of the newest Lake Kindred feature, Splicing, which allows players to essentially "mate" two kin in order to create a new, special kin. This feature was released in our most recent Lake Kindred-centric event, the Shadow Lab.
Splicing
During the event, players were given the grace to splice their kin for free and gain the material needed to splice also for free (sort of). During the event, players needed: 2 level. 10+ kin of the same species and colour and of opposing radiants (sort of the equivalent of 'gender' in pokemon since you need the opposite radiant of the other kin), a splicing gem (the catalyst that allows the splice to occur), and a fee to splice.
The fee was waived during the event, and players were granted one free gem to splice with, leaving the players only having to procure two level 10+ kin of same species/colour and opposing radiants. Not an incredibly difficult task if someone wanted to splice just a few kin. However...
Players only got one free gem. Any other gems players wish to get, they can either spend 25 billion for in a bundle with an Ally Potion, or spend time gathering Kandy drops from the Shadow Lab area that allow players to craft a gem with 50. Supposedly, the Kandies no longer drop, though I have not confirmed this yet, but let us focus on the gold needed to simply buy a new gem. 25 billion. Per gem. Again, the multiplication of the gold needed to be spent on the gem adds up quickly if one wants to splice multiple kin. To make matters worse, your splicing endeavours CAN FAIL. There is a chance that your splicing will fail, and if that happens, the player loses the gem, forcing them to have to obtain another one in order to try again. Imagine a player having to obtain multiple gems for multiple failures. Yikes Have I mentioned that splicing takes time, too? While failed splices take a significantly shorter amount of time to complete, varying from several to 15 minutes, give or take, a successful kin splice can take from 15 minutes, to 6 hours to complete. Don't believe me? Try splicing a Lapinkin successfully and take a look for yourself. Multiple failures, multiple gems, and multiple endeavours to level kin are all time consuming and money (GC/GG) draining. All of these features simply for a player to obtain a few, or even one, kin that they can enjoy for the whole game, is incredibly frustrating.
In addition, gem splicing is beginning to be monetized as well. Players can spend GC, again, to buy special gems that grant players the ability to splice very special kin that cannot be obtained with gems found in game. While these GC gems cannot fail at splicing, did I mention that after the event ended, the level needed for both kin to splice became Level 25+? The splicing fee is also now 1 billion gold per splicing attempt.
Add all of this up, and Lake Kindred, what started off as a quaint, cute game with much potential, became a nightmare.
Very, very fast.
Gaia. This is not fun.
This game, as I said before, still has a lot of potential to grow into something that can be enjoyed by all players, but the suggestions the community is making need to be taken into account. I will compile a list here of suggestions others make, but the rest is up to reading and you to change before Lake Kindred ends up another feature that is left to be abandoned. (Mind that some of this is copy/pasted from the Ask the Staff question that was compiled by Nanzzy-Chan.)
- Gold purchasable kins (for reasonable prices)
- Make every kin available in-game, even if rarity must be adjusted to suit them
- Make splicing shards available through other means than just cash, such as other methods of crafting or in-game drop items
- Balance the power levels of older kin to at least be tolerable in later stages -- or power levels of newer kin to be at least tolerable for some older kin. Bigger and more powerful does not necessarily mean better if it just makes everything that comes before obsolete
- Integration of an overarching story line to garner interest
- A quest-like implementation that would ease up gaining particularly desirable items that users may need. Perhaps completing a set of criteria (KO this many kin of this kind/reach the final stage of this map/etc etc) in order to be granted shards, potions, or perhaps even special kin.
- Implementing Paw-base drops into all kin so all users of any base on the site can invest within the game
