Devs need help! Lets beef up the usership & give some ideas!

[Meri Mint]

Patrick Jiuliani

darkrainbow23

I understand about the need to make money, and I would hate to lose the game - I'm really enjoying it. But I have to tell you, I am poor. Really. Don't tell me it wouldn't be very much of an expense - I've been unemployed for a year and am 3 months behind on my rent. I'm lucky to be able to get online at all. I can't afford to spend any money on nonessentials like anything at Gaia. So I'm really opposed to making any features ONLY available through paying cash. I think that would be unfair to the extreme.

We all understand how that is I think and most of the features we have talked about are not ones that would make playing the game exclusive to people with money. They are luxury ideas such as getting to new areas early or rings that wouldnt be necessary to have but not bad either. Other things like power ups and recolors are again not needed at all for game play just make it a little easier/profitable or are for looks

The thing about having GC luxury items for zOMG! is that it won't matter if no one is playing the game. Attracting and keeping players is very important, and shoving cash items down people's throats is NOT the way to do that. It's unfortunate that Gaia is so shortsighted as to give up on this game so soon. They've barely given it a chance. It's a fact that you have to spend money to make money and you have to put forth an effort if you want to make something good.

It maddens me when companies basically sabotage their own projects by saying "it's not making enough money, cut the staff and funding" because that is a totally backwards way to do things. When something has potential, you don't dump it when it doesn't quite reach that potential. You figure out what's wrong and fix it so it CAN reach and even surpass everyone's expectations. Especially something like this where it's been in planning since the site began.

Honestly, though, I'd bet that simply adding PVP would bring an instant influx of new players. Even just basic arena combat. Add some item/gold rewards for beating other players and voila, you have a recipe for success. Then you just have to balance the rings so people won't just use one build. That's the hard part and probably the reason why they haven't added that feature yet. But even without balance, people WILL play. Just look at WoW. There's hardly any PvP balance there from what I've heard (I don't actually play it) and people love that game.

[Petit Marionette]

150 GC? I'd pay more than that for a headstart ticket. Double or triple that, even. But that's just me, and you're right - that may not be enough revenue either way to make up for the coding. Still, brainstorming without too many limits is a good thing, I think. The dev team can worry about the practicalities. 3nodding

Ooh, exclusive quest tomes would be really fun! I'd go for that depending on what the reward items were, for sure!

All right, I have to be off to do homework. I've subscribed to this thread though, and I'll check in again tomorrow! See you all then~!

[Sensual Soul]

Patrick Jiuliani

Again thats a lot of hassle (coding) for something that probably wouldnt be sold for a buck fifty or so. I like the idea of drawing more people in but not that way. I think even doing small things like announcing events and developments of the game would help draw in more people from around the site.

And I think there may be animated considering that they have them in the area that you have to go through to get to it

Head start ticket.
1. You get an item that is a one of a kind
2. you have to "punch" the ticket to get the item, so you have to play/visit to get it
3. Ticket gives you a temporary cl hike to the proper cl (6?)
4. Ticket takes you to the area, bypassing all the other areas (Using Airship!)
5. Ticket has a time limit of....one week? Three days? Idk something like that.
If they do this they could sell it for 1000GC on up!
Now could they do it for the Boardwalk without it being to hard to do/ costing to many resources? Have no clue, a dev would know.

[Red Kutai]

Petit Marionette

Patrick Jiuliani

The one problem I see with making people go to the boardwalk to actually have the item poses is how will you be able to tell who has come to use the item not to mention if they dont generally play the game getting from the greens to the boardwalk is not the easiest thing to do especially if you have no idea where said boardwalk is. That would probably turn people off to the idea of buying the ticket

This occurred to me too. I'm not sure how they would track it... Maybe instead of the actual ticket turning into the item, they could grant you a separate item the first time a player entered the boardwalk during the headstart period using a ticket. Kind of like the golden egg. And the item would hatch/transform after the headstart period was over. Maybe they could do a treasure chest that opens or something in keeping with the pirate theme?

As for how they'd get there... There would have to be some way to teleport from either the greens or Barton to the Boardwalk entrance, so as to make it available to new players.

Hmm. I had simply assumed that you could "trade-in" your headstart ticket to an NPC at the Boardwalk for a (or one-of-many; I don't like multi-pose items, generally, and that sounds like the idea) pirate-themed item. Or, perhaps you trade it for a "Buccaneer Trunk" that contains a random unique item...

EDIT: Perhaps this NPC would not be active until the Boardwalk goes live; that way people don't lose head-start access...

[Redforest]

Kats Kokeshi Doll

How about an Animated EI? Each stage would have different Animated companion and I am poses that corresponded to the area. For instance, evolution number one would have Barton Animated like Mr. Fluff and the Pumpkin Fluffs. Second one would have Gnomes, Flamingos, Sandtrap Fluffs, and Mushroom Cannons. Third would have Garlics, Air Fluffs, etc. You get the point. The last evo would have companion poses for all the bosses and mini-event animated, like Lawnsharks, She Wolf, Papa Saw, and more.

I'd tone that down to area specific EIs, nothing wrong with the idea, but there are tons of animated and we don't need to let them all run free with one EI... real them in and specialize. A few I Am poses of the lesser monsters and we have some win.

[Patrick Jiuliani]

Meri Mint

The thing about having GC luxury items for zOMG! is that it won't matter if no one is playing the game. Attracting and keeping players is very important, and shoving cash items down people's throats is NOT the way to do that. It's unfortunate that Gaia is so shortsighted as to give up on this game so soon. They've barely given it a chance. It's a fact that you have to spend money to make money and you have to put forth an effort if you want to make something good.

It maddens me when companies basically sabotage their own projects by saying "it's not making enough money, cut the staff and funding" because that is a totally backwards way to do things. When something has potential, you don't dump it when it doesn't quite reach that potential. You figure out what's wrong and fix it so it CAN reach and even surpass everyone's expectations. Especially something like this where it's been in planning since the site began.

Honestly, though, I'd bet that simply adding PVP would bring an instant influx of new players. Even just basic arena combat. Add some item/gold rewards for beating other players and voila, you have a recipe for success. Then you just have to balance the rings so people won't just use one build. That's the hard part and probably the reason why they haven't added that feature yet. But even without balance, people WILL play. Just look at WoW. There's hardly any PvP balance there from what I've heard (I don't actually play it) and people love that game.

I am not arguing with you in the least. We need more players and the devs are looking for ways to bring those in. Unfortunately they are limited by the small staff that they have because Gaia pulled the rug out from under them. In order for them to have a bigger staff to make more features (or even keep from being cut entirely) they have to find ways to bring in money and thats what this thread is about. None of us want gaia to cut this game because of the lack of revenue. What I am hoping is if they were able to get more money gaia would perhaps add a few more people back to the dev team in order to bring more into the game to attract more players.

[Sensual Soul]

Red Kutai

Petit Marionette

Patrick Jiuliani

The one problem I see with making people go to the boardwalk to actually have the item poses is how will you be able to tell who has come to use the item not to mention if they dont generally play the game getting from the greens to the boardwalk is not the easiest thing to do especially if you have no idea where said boardwalk is. That would probably turn people off to the idea of buying the ticket

This occurred to me too. I'm not sure how they would track it... Maybe instead of the actual ticket turning into the item, they could grant you a separate item the first time a player entered the boardwalk during the headstart period using a ticket. Kind of like the golden egg. And the item would hatch/transform after the headstart period was over. Maybe they could do a treasure chest that opens or something in keeping with the pirate theme?

As for how they'd get there... There would have to be some way to teleport from either the greens or Barton to the Boardwalk entrance, so as to make it available to new players.

Hmm. I had simply assumed that you could "trade-in" your headstart ticket to an NPC at the Boardwalk for a (or one-of-many; I don't like multi-pose items, generally, and that sounds like the idea) pirate-themed item. Or, perhaps you trade it for a "Buccaneer Trunk" that contains a random unique item...

Sounds reasonable. ^^

[Red Kutai]

Sensual Soul

Red Kutai

Petit Marionette

Patrick Jiuliani

The one problem I see with making people go to the boardwalk to actually have the item poses is how will you be able to tell who has come to use the item not to mention if they dont generally play the game getting from the greens to the boardwalk is not the easiest thing to do especially if you have no idea where said boardwalk is. That would probably turn people off to the idea of buying the ticket

This occurred to me too. I'm not sure how they would track it... Maybe instead of the actual ticket turning into the item, they could grant you a separate item the first time a player entered the boardwalk during the headstart period using a ticket. Kind of like the golden egg. And the item would hatch/transform after the headstart period was over. Maybe they could do a treasure chest that opens or something in keeping with the pirate theme?

As for how they'd get there... There would have to be some way to teleport from either the greens or Barton to the Boardwalk entrance, so as to make it available to new players.

Hmm. I had simply assumed that you could "trade-in" your headstart ticket to an NPC at the Boardwalk for a (or one-of-many; I don't like multi-pose items, generally, and that sounds like the idea) pirate-themed item. Or, perhaps you trade it for a "Buccaneer Trunk" that contains a random unique item...

Sounds reasonable. ^^

Thank you, I try... 3nodding

I think the Trunk idea would be a real winner; RIGs are some of the highest-selling Cash Shop items around, so making one only available in-game would draw a lot of interest...

[Patrick Jiuliani]

Sensual Soul

Patrick Jiuliani

Again thats a lot of hassle (coding) for something that probably wouldnt be sold for a buck fifty or so. I like the idea of drawing more people in but not that way. I think even doing small things like announcing events and developments of the game would help draw in more people from around the site.

And I think there may be animated considering that they have them in the area that you have to go through to get to it

Head start ticket.
1. You get an item that is a one of a kind
2. you have to "punch" the ticket to get the item, so you have to play/visit to get it
3. Ticket gives you a temporary cl hike to the proper cl (6?)
4. Ticket takes you to the area, bypassing all the other areas (Using Airship!)
5. Ticket has a time limit of....one week? Three days? Idk something like that.
If they do this they could sell it for 1000GC on up!
Now could they do it for the Boardwalk without it being to hard to do/ costing to many resources? Have no clue, a dev would know.

They could sell it for that much but for that price its going to slash how many people would actually buy it. You can either sale for high prices or bulk. Bulk generally is the best way to do it and although many of those reasons would be great for the person who doesnt want to have to deal with zomg it really punishes those cl tens who have no problem getting to the area and just want to get ahead of the crowd.

[Meri Mint]

Patrick Jiuliani

Meri Mint

The thing about having GC luxury items for zOMG! is that it won't matter if no one is playing the game. Attracting and keeping players is very important, and shoving cash items down people's throats is NOT the way to do that. It's unfortunate that Gaia is so shortsighted as to give up on this game so soon. They've barely given it a chance. It's a fact that you have to spend money to make money and you have to put forth an effort if you want to make something good.

It maddens me when companies basically sabotage their own projects by saying "it's not making enough money, cut the staff and funding" because that is a totally backwards way to do things. When something has potential, you don't dump it when it doesn't quite reach that potential. You figure out what's wrong and fix it so it CAN reach and even surpass everyone's expectations. Especially something like this where it's been in planning since the site began.

Honestly, though, I'd bet that simply adding PVP would bring an instant influx of new players. Even just basic arena combat. Add some item/gold rewards for beating other players and voila, you have a recipe for success. Then you just have to balance the rings so people won't just use one build. That's the hard part and probably the reason why they haven't added that feature yet. But even without balance, people WILL play. Just look at WoW. There's hardly any PvP balance there from what I've heard (I don't actually play it) and people love that game.

I am not arguing with you in the least. We need more players and the devs are looking for ways to bring those in. Unfortunately they are limited by the small staff that they have because Gaia pulled the rug out from under them. In order for them to have a bigger staff to make more features (or even keep from being cut entirely) they have to find ways to bring in money and thats what this thread is about. None of us want gaia to cut this game because of the lack of revenue. What I am hoping is if they were able to get more money gaia would perhaps add a few more people back to the dev team in order to bring more into the game to attract more players.

It is definitely a "rock and a hard place" type of situation... Very frustrating for the devs as well, I'm sure. I just can't see all these cash items doing anything but turning more people off of the game. Perhaps this is because I spend way too much time in the GCD. It seems like a simple PvP system wouldn't be terribly hard to make. We already are able to both give and take damage, just not to each other. If it were confined to a basic arena type place (one screen would be enough, maybe two for the entrance area and the actual arena) where the rules were changed so that you could attack, but not heal/buff other players (as opposed to how it works in the rest of the world) is seems pretty simple... but then, I'm not a programmer, so what do I know?

[Sensual Soul]

Patrick Jiuliani

Sensual Soul

Patrick Jiuliani

Again thats a lot of hassle (coding) for something that probably wouldnt be sold for a buck fifty or so. I like the idea of drawing more people in but not that way. I think even doing small things like announcing events and developments of the game would help draw in more people from around the site.

And I think there may be animated considering that they have them in the area that you have to go through to get to it

Head start ticket.
1. You get an item that is a one of a kind
2. you have to "punch" the ticket to get the item, so you have to play/visit to get it
3. Ticket gives you a temporary cl hike to the proper cl (6?)
4. Ticket takes you to the area, bypassing all the other areas (Using Airship!)
5. Ticket has a time limit of....one week? Three days? Idk something like that.
If they do this they could sell it for 1000GC on up!
Now could they do it for the Boardwalk without it being to hard to do/ costing to many resources? Have no clue, a dev would know.

They could sell it for that much but for that price its going to slash how many people would actually buy it. You can either sale for high prices or bulk. Bulk generally is the best way to do it and although many of those reasons would be great for the person who doesnt want to have to deal with zomg it really punishes those cl tens who have no problem getting to the area and just want to get ahead of the crowd.

Hmm,..okay then have different levels of headstart tickets. Like you do when you buy seating at the theater. Basic...just gets you in, no item, no quick trip to the area. Just a pass in. Super...you get in and get a ride there bypassing the other areas. So you get in and a ride on the Airship there. Deluxe you get all that plus an item. So from cheap to not so cheap? Does that work?

[Emyre]

Another thing to draw in users would be to stop keeping the stories of zOMG and Mainstream Gaia separate.
Incorporate them, so the GCDers have a reason to play.
As new manga come out, make corresponding areas, and limited-time quests.
When the next manga comes out, the quests change to reflect the new story, but the areas, and non-story quests, remain open.

[Patrick Jiuliani]

Meri Mint

It is definitely a "rock and a hard place" type of situation... Very frustrating for the devs as well, I'm sure. I just can't see all these cash items doing anything but turning more people off of the game. Perhaps this is because I spend way too much time in the GCD. It seems like a simple PvP system wouldn't be terribly hard to make. We already are able to both give and take damage, just not to each other. If it were confined to a basic arena type place (one screen would be enough, maybe two for the entrance area and the actual arena) where the rules were changed so that you could attack, but not heal/buff other players (as opposed to how it works in the rest of the world) is seems pretty simple... but then, I'm not a programmer, so what do I know?

I am only hoping it is not a sinking ship sort of situation myself. Yes people do get turned off at the idea of cash shop items but for the most part it is when they are being shoved down ones throat. There is still so much that can be done without cash on the game. Ideas like a head start ticket though is beneficial to every one though. Gaia gets their money, gaians get to the area before the huge crowds to hence get to try out the mini games and kill the new animated, and the devs? Well there are bound to be bugs. Headstarters will serve as great beta testers to the new features. If the item is beneficial and not just a quick way to earn a buck gaians tend to be more apt to accept it.

As for pvp they are working on it and eventually the barton arena in the game will be used for that but from the sound of it the programing is a bit harder then one would expect. They already have run into issues with it so far.

[Nurannoniel]

Sorry to be jumping in randomly here, but I've been out all day. My apologies if someone has mentioned this already, but if they are looking to promote themselves, why aren't they advertising through things like their facebook page more? I don't think I've seen mention of it on Gaia and only just went hunting for it after seeing the fuss around here, and now I see the page hasn't even really been updated in a year!

Stuff can go viral fast on FB/Twitter with a little bit of love and attention... Showing off their new shiny projects on their FB page might be one way of attracting back fans...

[Red Kutai]

Meri Mint

Patrick Jiuliani

Meri Mint

The thing about having GC luxury items for zOMG! is that it won't matter if no one is playing the game. Attracting and keeping players is very important, and shoving cash items down people's throats is NOT the way to do that. It's unfortunate that Gaia is so shortsighted as to give up on this game so soon. They've barely given it a chance. It's a fact that you have to spend money to make money and you have to put forth an effort if you want to make something good.

It maddens me when companies basically sabotage their own projects by saying "it's not making enough money, cut the staff and funding" because that is a totally backwards way to do things. When something has potential, you don't dump it when it doesn't quite reach that potential. You figure out what's wrong and fix it so it CAN reach and even surpass everyone's expectations. Especially something like this where it's been in planning since the site began.

Honestly, though, I'd bet that simply adding PVP would bring an instant influx of new players. Even just basic arena combat. Add some item/gold rewards for beating other players and voila, you have a recipe for success. Then you just have to balance the rings so people won't just use one build. That's the hard part and probably the reason why they haven't added that feature yet. But even without balance, people WILL play. Just look at WoW. There's hardly any PvP balance there from what I've heard (I don't actually play it) and people love that game.

I am not arguing with you in the least. We need more players and the devs are looking for ways to bring those in. Unfortunately they are limited by the small staff that they have because Gaia pulled the rug out from under them. In order for them to have a bigger staff to make more features (or even keep from being cut entirely) they have to find ways to bring in money and thats what this thread is about. None of us want gaia to cut this game because of the lack of revenue. What I am hoping is if they were able to get more money gaia would perhaps add a few more people back to the dev team in order to bring more into the game to attract more players.

It is definitely a "rock and a hard place" type of situation... Very frustrating for the devs as well, I'm sure. I just can't see all these cash items doing anything but turning more people off of the game. Perhaps this is because I spend way too much time in the GCD. It seems like a simple PvP system wouldn't be terribly hard to make. We already are able to both give and take damage, just not to each other. If it were confined to a basic arena type place (one screen would be enough, maybe two for the entrance area and the actual arena) where the rules were changed so that you could attack, but not heal/buff other players (as opposed to how it works in the rest of the world) is seems pretty simple... but then, I'm not a programmer, so what do I know?

I was thinking about how it would work recently. My idea, I believe, is needlessly complicated, but it goes something like this:
When two players enter the Coliseum (or wherever PVP will take place), they actually enter two separate maps; each map has an enemy version (in that it can be attacked, can't be buffed, etc.) of the opponent. Then, each of these enemy-users constantly updates its stats to match the real version, and reacts similarly to commands. I think it works in theory, but there may be lag issues or something... sweatdrop