I started playing Splinterlands about a month ago, and fell in love with the game real fast (being an ex hearthstone fanatic.) I love the design and art and battle system to keep it going in a timely manner, but something is just bothering me. . .
As a new player, let me give you my unbiased opinion. I have bought about $500 worth of untamed packs (300ish from the site itself and the rest trading on hive.) The first thing I noticed when playing was to get into diamond or higher I needed some decent cards (mostly alpha or beta. Obviously renting filled this gap and I have sense put 3 accounts into diamond on a very low budget like a few dollars. The idea being my diamond reward chests (40 per account X 3 Accounts = 120 chests,) would get me some "decent" cards. Then over time, I would build my deck out to be able to carry my own weight. However, once I read online about the devs take on the game and new direction changing season rewards to reward much less and the biggest blow is, "Alpha and Beta cards were meant to be inherently better." Basically untamed to start, has a huge issue, due to less competitive ability. This will hurt your growth and player base wanting to stay in the game that feels almost rigged against them if they don't shell out a hefty sum of cash and that may not even allow them to obtain the top spots in champion, or even top of leagues. Meaning the alpha and beta cards fully leveled are not cheap at all. You can't just rent every season forever... but I digress lets break it down piece by piece.
My take on how the devs are going to kill this game or make it strictly only pay to play with a HUGE ENTRY PRICE:
In their words they said once again you can get to higher tiers with untamed cards, but you will not able to compete at the highest level without alpha and beta cards." This will be mostly because the battle requirements had some cards essentially built for a particular battle restriction (example would be dragons for flying from alpha and beta and summoners in general are more powerful.) The conclusion, the cards are not balanced and the later you start the game the worse off you will be for it, or the bigger wallet you will need (pay to play.)
When a new summoner joins he is immediately greeted by the "MANY" bots of the system (which I really don't care about to much that they exist until THE REWARD CHANGE. . . What I do care about is how nerfed "MOST" of rewards cards are. Plus a question to the Devs. DO you guys bot this game and play themselves or maybe a party botting on their behalf, I mean they have a coder...
It has been stated/rumoured many times that their is a bot net of 2,000 accounts playing at any giving time. I find that cringe worthy because it does effect the system good and bad. The bad far out weighing the good, you see due to the card imbalance from (alpha to beta) to the lesser dwarfed untamed cards, it gives less incentive to hold or collect those cards for a early adopters (pre-untamed players) because he probably has most of the alpha beta cards that out trump untamed. Therefore he will be more likely to sell the untamed packs (or cards from opening,) opposed to keeping them overtime because it's profitable now to sell them until the circulation catches up and then market will then be over saturated (until years down the road, where they become scarce again,) On the other hand, the bots could just be stocking up on them until they are worth more to dump later, I could come up with negatives about this for days so lets move on. . . One more time this system benefits the bot, whom will just probably sell everything that doesn't matter to the rank play scenario. Once agin his cards being alpha and beta far superior and also gets awesome DEC bonus. I wonder why that was put in. . . Oh to help the bots of course profit more, then they got guild discounts. Once again I could go on. . .
Basically the bots probably took so much value from this game that they had to redo the season rewards and daily quest drops, so they could keep this profitable in the long run. . . but for whom??? Mostly themselves I'm guessing.
It can't be to benefit the new player "the little guy."
Other examples or thoughts that punish the new players and non-rich:
I WILL NOT SUGGEST ANYONE TO PLAY THIS GAME, because even after they pay the stupid $10 for the summoners spell book that gives 0 PACKS. IT SHOULD COME WITH SOMETHING (rather than a dam reward card.) Otherwise I have to tell my friend next that he's gonna have to buy/rent a lot of cards just to get into a decent bracket that the reward cards won't really improve his game that much at all. Do you understand the learning curve for players to learn to do all this. I mean people are just getting into crypto its exposure to the world is only like 3-6% it was "guessed." My point being many people will be turned off by the complexity it takes just to be able to play the game. MOST DON'T KNOW CRAP ABOUT CRYPTO. Most meaning the average non crypto joe, it's a commitment to get into this game. Most don't have the attention or money to do this.
As soon as you join and you see all the bots you think well this is a dead game. . . Or you think man they must be the ones making the good deal while I get chicken sh**. Then you nerf the rewards for them so now when noobs come to the game they are even at bigger disadvantage, because the reward cards, "most of reward cards are less powerful and worthless in the market due to the bots." Little incentive to stay and ranked. I had 3 accounts in DIAMOND and got 150 chests and only got 3 rares and 1 untamed pack, and some measly DEC pay outs.
As a noob you definitely will not be competitive in "MOST" tournaments due to your lack of alpha beta cards.
Seems like DEVS sold the player out in the name of preserving the "SYSTEM."
The game has become pay to win for sure.
You guys are trying to market people to come play this game during the beginning of a bull run where most sane people will want to put their money in cryptos that can 10x - 100x.
Noobs get less rewards for being low bracket catering once again to the rich, early adopters, and bots.
Im leaving land out of this because I don't know what to think about this yet, but would like to know if any of the region buyers were bots, if so I think we need to draw the line somewhere. I don't mind if they are played or used but, "THE REWARDS NEED TO INCLUDE MORE PACKS AND RANDOM CARDS FROM THE UNTAMED SERIES and not these dummy reward cards that provide little value vs their alpha and beta counter parts."
To stop us from having decent rewards funnels (NO ALMOST FORCES US) to buy packs to stay semi competitive in high brackets. I am also talking about getting cards packs from leagues "mostly" dominated by bots / alpha beta pros as well as bots whom can play sophisticatedly about hundreds of games a day easily (with no need for breaks,) that the regular user can barely keep up. Also don't even think you can get their without alpha and beta cards of high level either, its very hard. Referring to winning that sweet league 20-30 packs.
The last part is now these bots have even more benefits to sell DEC in large amounts than they could get before. Since no new or NOOB players can cut into their now almost FREE DEC PRINTERS (bots.) They will just keep selling into the bull run making loads of money and buying the good cards left on the market to resell later. They could even buy up the rest of the alpha and beta market and probably become renters that will pray off noobs playing for chicken sh** rewards in a system that doesn't seem to help anyone except the bots and the DEVS wallet.
LAST / WHAT COULD BE DONE :
- Besides better card drop percentage math and rewards. Meaning EVERY PLAYER should get quest rewards from the reward dec pool and reward cards that can stay unchanged. However season rewards need to have a "CHANCE" to have EITHER, MORE untamed cards or packs (maybe just selected powerful cards to mid powerful ones.) SOMETHING THAT WILL GIVE LONG TERM VALUE TO MY ACCOUNT AND MY PROGRESS!!!
Barking spiders and other penny drops that flood the current markets don't help anyone. Devs all continue to claim they want new players (WE WIL JUST CALL THEM NEW BLOOD AT THIS POINT.) You guys have a net in the water that rakes in cash and gives out even less value than the cards before. REMINDS ME OF A CASINO "ALMOST." Making this game very frustrating, honestly I hope it changes soon. IF it doesn't than I see this as you guys selling out long term for the bucks and it kills me because you guys had/still have something special possibly going on here.
Please DEVs I would like an answer, just something that tells me that everything will be ok. That our future is not just to live off the new people whom will see through this game faster than a hot knife through butter. I did and I have only played for 20 or so days, while reading many posts and agreeing with the reward issue now.
IF YOU DON'T FIX THIS IT WILL KILL YOU GAME / IF IT KEEPS GOING. . . I will just think you guys are making a buck off the crypto space at user's expense and it's wrong and I won't stand for it. Other than that someone will come along and do it better. What if hearthstone enabled a token. Anyone could just copy what your doing and do it better or right.
I love this game and want it to be fun for all not just the investors. Also don't use the cop out and say this is fun and value takes second in the standings. Meaning you tell people or either you play for fun or you are an investor, you can't have both thats for sure. . .
I am calling out to other players to please show support or discuss the issues I stated the above, as they effect us all and our future is looking very grim.
Developers could you please chime in?!?!