Focused Feedback: Costume & Pet Reward Updates

[Ruin Mage]

Hard Mode giving low numbers? I'm pretty sure if they gave more per each star, everyone and their grandma could get T2 and T3 in a much easier time than currently.

Which, if I've read the posts and understood the system correctly, isn't the intent. You're not supposed to have everything at once. Instant or easy gratification doesn't work for every system possible.

A grind for cosmetics isn't a nightmare. It's pretty normal for games to have some sort of grind. Leveling is no longer much of a grind. The Incarnate system is not the horrible grind it was on live. Badges are an optional grind depending on what badge. So having a cosmetic grind that is easy to access (TFs, Market, mission completions) with tiers? Maybe I'm missing something, or maybe I'm built differently - but I don't see the issue in having to work for costumes that are...either Old School Models (i.e old CoT mages) or particle/model changing (i.e Shadow Form, Ghost Aura, Mini-me)

Which they explained one of the reasons for the prices is because of what they are. They don't want everyone to have them from Day 1. If the prices disuade you from getting them? That, I believe, is working as intended. If 250/500 is too steep for you, then its working. If the only issue people have is price, then it would seem all is in order.

Mind you, if they could feasibly give more Aethers for WSTs based on the TF? Fuck yeah dude. However, I don't believe that is possible. Maybe I'm wrong.
Though that would mean fast WSTs like Tinpex and Yin should give the least. Because they're over in a blink, versus longer ones like Synapse and Dr. Q.
 

Edited October 14, 2022 by Shadeknight

[Troo]

9 hours ago, Jawbreaker said:

I don't know if this was brought up elsewhere but the mini costume option would be a dream come true without the bobblehead. As it is I'll not be using it. I have character concepts for teeny characters, but not Funko versions 

 

but Jaw, that's the only one I want..

 

 

[ExeErdna]

3 hours ago, Shadeknight said:

Hard Mode giving low numbers? I'm pretty sure if they gave more per each star, everyone and their grandma could get T2 and T3 in a much easier time than currently.

Which, if I've read the posts and understood the system correctly, isn't the intent. You're not supposed to have everything at once. Instant or easy gratification doesn't work for every system possible.

A grind for cosmetics isn't a nightmare. It's pretty normal for games to have some sort of grind. Leveling is no longer much of a grind. The Incarnate system is not the horrible grind it was on live. Badges are an optional grind depending on what badge. So having a cosmetic grind that is easy to access (TFs, Market, mission completions) with tiers? Maybe I'm missing something, or maybe I'm built differently - but I don't see the issue in having to work for costumes that are...either Old School Models (i.e old CoT mages) or particle/model changing (i.e Shadow Form, Ghost Aura, Mini-me)

Which they explained one of the reasons for the prices is because of what they are. They don't want everyone to have them from Day 1. If the prices disuade you from getting them? That, I believe, is working as intended. If 250/500 is too steep for you, then its working. If the only issue people have is price, then it would seem all is in order.

Mind you, if they could feasibly give more Aethers for WSTs based on the TF? Fuck yeah dude. However, I don't believe that is possible. Maybe I'm wrong.
Though that would mean fast WSTs like Tinpex and Yin should give the least. Because they're over in a blink, versus longer ones like Synapse and Dr. Q.
 

 

It honestly doesn't matter if people gonna have them day one it's about the people that come along, want to play see something cool and are turned off by that climb. I was hardcore player until honestly this year. I don't want it instantly given I want it in a reasonable time frame by playing in sensible pace. If I just pop on for some WST or some trials. Maybe a Hami or Mothership raid. I'm not one posted in an AE for 16 hours that might be able to buy them outright, I'm not really on to play hard modes consistently. Yet if the goals are that high and they're giving single digits that isn't cutting it. Especially on something like Synapse and Q even Underground should pay out. 

[Coyotedancer]

It's been pretty much stated outright that the... let's say "non-obsessive" members of the player community... are not the target audience for the higher-tier rewards.

 

They're out there for the grind-a-rific types.

Not for those of us with lives. 😝 

[Mezmera]

46 minutes ago, Krimson said:

I can't even do a Task Force without getting called away from the computer for some reason. Definitely not using my two or three hours of playtime on this. 

 

Well then you're not affected much either way.  If you're not on much to play using these new toys you couldn't get before anyways what are you missing out from before that you are now?  

 

Since these PAPs can be attained through the auction any and every way of playing the game will earn you money to buy what you like.  Use your two to three hours of playtime to play the game and sell some stuff.  You can play at your leisure like normal and pool things to get what you like.  

 

All you need do is play the game in any manner you like as long as you play it from time to time you'll get what you like and if you don't have the time to play what are you really missing then?  Lots of excuses being tossed abouts.  

[Lazarillo]

2 hours ago, Coyotedancer said:

It's been pretty much stated outright that the... let's say "non-obsessive" members of the player community... are not the target audience for the higher-tier rewards.

The balance is whether it's so grindy it hurts demand.  If nobody wants to bother with the system because nothing's worth the cost in the first place, then also, that means there won't be a bunch of suckers "driven players" keeping the market price for Aethers nice and high.  And then they end up no good to the rest of us, either!

Edited October 14, 2022 by Lazarillo

[Mezmera]

1 hour ago, Krimson said:

So this thing is for players who CARE about THEIR OWN costumes. 

 

This is all pretty much costume overlays to me it seems more for people who care what npc game characters look like.  Some of the overlays are neat like that shadow one but even still it blanks out everything about your costume but those cool looking eyes.  

 

1 hour ago, Krimson said:

 

Now if I could trade Prisms for something useful... I have about a hundred million worth but I'm not going to bother to sell them. Maybe one day they will have a secondary use. 

 

Pretty much what I'm pooling mine for, which is the side benefit of playing these new neat tfs.  

Edited October 14, 2022 by Mezmera

[Dispari]

By the way, is there a way to move large stacks of prismatics around between characters like Hero Merits and Transcendent Merits? Or I guess I should ask, is that on the docket? Because it's going to be very time consuming to move prismatics one at a time through email if some of these costs are in the hundreds or over a thousand.

[Luminara]

32 minutes ago, Dispari said:

By the way, is there a way to move large stacks of prismatics around between characters like Hero Merits and Transcendent Merits? Or I guess I should ask, is that on the docket? Because it's going to be very time consuming to move prismatics one at a time through email if some of these costs are in the hundreds or over a thousand.

 

They can be placed in salvage storage in bases.

[Coyotedancer]

6 hours ago, Luminara said:

 

They can be placed in salvage storage in bases.

 

That doesn;t help when most of your characters getting the things are on one server and the intended recipient is on another. *eyes her crew on Ev and her cat-girl on Torch*

[Sovera]

4 hours ago, Coyotedancer said:

 

That doesn;t help when most of your characters getting the things are on one server and the intended recipient is on another. *eyes her crew on Ev and her cat-girl on Torch*

 

Server transfers are free. You can load a character up with the prismatics and then transfer to the other server and unload.

[Luminara]

1 hour ago, Sovera said:

 

Server transfers are free. You can load a character up with the prismatics and then transfer to the other server and unload.

 

And it doesn't even have to be one of your regular characters.  5 minutes in the character creator, name SPC43893Mule, empty the salvage bin, transfer, /altinvite SPC43893Mule, dump, delete.

[Coyotedancer]

1 hour ago, Sovera said:

 

Server transfers are free. You can load a character up with the prismatics and then transfer to the other server and unload.

 

It would be a whole lot simpler to have something like the Hero merits that we could just mail to ourselves. 

[stonehd]

On 10/12/2022 at 8:51 PM, Number Six said:

 

We've literally said multiple times that's not the case, and bent over backwards to make the Prismatic Aether system and hard-mode rewards purely cosmetic items to show off with and not affect gameplay at all

 

This right here is my biggest problem with how this is being implemented -- it's based on the idea that cosmetic items aren't important to players, they're only something to "show off."  And that might be true for many of the players who do the content that generate the most aether, but I think you underestimate how many folks are motivated by character creation, role-play, solo play and other things that don't involve grinding at all.  This feels like you've created a reward for one group of people and then built it into a system for a completely different group of people.  And yes, the aether are available at the market, but so far the prices on live are WELL beyond my ability to afford a T4.  

 

D

Edited October 16, 2022 by stonehd

[Giovanni Valia]

'Costume: Alpha Arachnoid'

'Costume: Arachnoid'

'Costume: Arachnos Arbiter'

'Costume: Arachnos Bane Spider'

'Costume: Arachnos Crab Spider'

'Costume: Arachnos Devoured'

'Costume: Arachnos Fateweaver'

'Costume: Arachnos Fortunata'

'Costume: Arachnos Night Widow'

 

 

Woohoo, more Arachnos NPC costumes! Today is a good day. Excited to use these in game.

[stonehd]

A few more thoughts:

 

I don't have a problem with the costs of T1 or T2.  I should have specified that.   For any T1 that I want, I'm pretty sure I'm able to earn or purchase.  I was pleasantly surprised that I've gotten 3-4 aether just from running standard content solo, and between that and some marketeering, I can easily afford those with a reasonable amount of effort.   The T2 & T3 don't interest me much, but those prices don't feel all that off for me, either.   

 

** see edit below   No, it's really the price of the T4 that hurts, specifically for the mini costume (which appears to not be included with this update, if I read correctly).   And it's because you've added the ability to make a frickin' chibi version of our characters (!!!), and then made them incredibly expensive, and it's feels pretty crappy. 

 

But... I remember feeling the same way back on live when butterfly wings were a pretty hard-to-get costume recipe (oh, memories).  Eventually, their costs on the market did come down, but it did take a while.  When I checked the aether price on live a week or two ago, they were going for 140,000,000 each.  Just now I checked and they were going for around 4,000,000, which is admittedly a pretty good drop already.  Honestly I've not once, neither here nor on live, come close to having a billion inf.  Base-building, costume-making, Pocket D-hanging, popmenu-building and such, they don't give any inf, and that's half my time in the game these day.  I prefer doing those things to grinding, so for now I'll remain hopeful that as more people get earn them, the market prices will drop more -- hopefully a lot more.

 

D

 

EDIT:  I posted this without catching the mini-costume was now in T3 (thanks @lemming for pointing that out).   T3 is a lot of coin, but I can see it as reachable even for me with some effort.  This definitely helps me feel like that particular costume is more affordable now.  

Edited October 16, 2022 by stonehd

[lemming]

1 hour ago, stonehd said:

A few more thoughts:

 

I don't have a problem with the costs of T1 or T2.  I should have specified that.   For any T1 that I want, I'm pretty sure I'm able to earn or purchase.  I was pleasantly surprised that I've gotten 3-4 aether just from running standard content solo, and between that and some marketeering, I can easily afford those with a reasonable amount of effort.   The T2 & T3 don't interest me much, but those prices don't feel all that off for me, either.   

 

No, it's really the price of the T4 that hurts, specifically for the mini costume (which appears to not be included with this update, if I read correctly).   And it's because you've added the ability to make a frickin' chibi version of our characters (!!!), and then made them incredibly expensive, and it's feels pretty crappy.

T3 has the mini version at 250.   (I'm already on record about the t4 1500 being a bit much)

[stonehd]

1 hour ago, lemming said:

T3 has the mini version at 250.   (I'm already on record about the t4 1500 being a bit much)

Thank you for pointing that out., I didn't see it was in T3.  Like you, I still think 1500 is too much for T4, but yeah, thanks!

 

D

[Black Zot]

1 hour ago, stonehd said:

Thank you for pointing that out., I didn't see it was in T3.  Like you, I still think 1500 is too much for T4, but yeah, thanks!

 

D

 

The devs have already said they know the T4 price is absurd and the don't care.  This was literally made for the sole purpose of giving elitists something to wave around over people's heads and say "I'm better than you".

[LQT]

Chicken meet egg.

> The Halloween Salvage vendors are also offering a new limited-time Fir Bolg Prestige Costume, which will be available for the entirety of the month of October each year!

This update includes two more Seasonal Prestige Costumes, the Ancient Vampire and Arisen Mummy, and if Page 5 follows normal Tuesday updates then unless Page 5 goes live in 9 days, if not sooner, nobody will be able to buy those two EB skins until next year because the following Tuesday is the 1st of November which is the end date for the Seasonal Event.

So either the update goes live regardless of the status of the other aspects are present in the patch or the SPCs need to go live before everything else.

[Spectre7878]

I would love if we could get the Cimerora Sybils costume. I really want that one so bad. Made three different ones with different hair styles. It would probably be one of the higher tiers. Please Please Please

[flakoff]

I think I like maybe 1 or 2 of them, but imagine if it was the t4. I'd be stuffed.

So if you a cheap one great, otherwise grind away. A game known for making your toon how you want it to look, if you can afford it or put many many hours in.

Thank god I hate the t4 one.

[Sovera]

9 minutes ago, Spectre7878 said:

I would love if we could get the Cimerora Sybils costume. I really want that one so bad. Made three different ones with different hair styles. It would probably be one of the higher tiers. Please Please Please

 

Everyone does. Devs keep trying to make it work but it's pretty difficult since it's not a costume that an NPC wears. The costume -is- the NPC. Think of the statues in a wax museum. They are not made and then dressed. The clothes are a part of the statue.

 

This is the same, and because of the technicalities involved and despite everyone (devs included) really liking the costume, it is a work in progress. Unfortunately the player's freedom in altering the character model making it shorter, taller, with short legs, or long legs, plays really badly with the 3D physics in the billowing fabric. It also clips pretty terribly since all that fabric is mostly meant to be looked at on an immobile character.

 

That said they -are- chipping at the problem and trying to make it work but they have been at it for a couple of pages so far.

[El D]

49 minutes ago, Sovera said:

 

Everyone does. Devs keep trying to make it work but it's pretty difficult since it's not a costume that an NPC wears. The costume -is- the NPC. Think of the statues in a wax museum. They are not made and then dressed. The clothes are a part of the statue.

 

This is the same, and because of the technicalities involved and despite everyone (devs included) really liking the costume, it is a work in progress. Unfortunately the player's freedom in altering the character model making it shorter, taller, with short legs, or long legs, plays really badly with the 3D physics in the billowing fabric. It also clips pretty terribly since all that fabric is mostly meant to be looked at on an immobile character.

 

That said they -are- chipping at the problem and trying to make it work but they have been at it for a couple of pages so far.

 

As a preface - these were taken using Titan Icon (which is severely out of date), so it's possible things may have changed by now.

 

As far as the Sybil's go, the robe actually is a functional costume item - the issue is that it's all tied into a singular Chest Piece that provides the torso robes, cape, and the skirt all in one, and is completely broken when you don't also use the Roman Sybil belt (leaves a massive gap because it wasn't designed to ever be used with anything else or with player use in-mind).

 

The neck and arm bands are all also tied to one single selection under Head -> Detail 2. These wouldn't require the same type of fixing as the robe, but would need to be broken down and reattached into different points on the model (Detail 2 for just the neck torc and Gloves for the forearm bands, since the Barbarian shoulder rings are already the upper arm bit) so there's still work required there too.

 

 

That's also not getting into the issue of possible proliferating any of these items to the Male and Huge models - if not the Sybil robes, than the neck/forearm bands at least, which is that much more extra work.

 

A lot of the NPC/Dev Only pieces are set up like this. Single category selections that cover multiple body parts/areas because they weren't made to be mixed and matched the way player costumes can be. Many of them are also only designed for Male or Female models, with limited overlap, and don't even exist at all for Huge. Plus only being made to work with the specific costume they were made for, so they clip massively or outright have missing geometry when used with other items.

 

Frankly, having a 'Sybil Outfit' hologram option that functions as a Mode costume would be the easiest route. Keeps the skintone, face, hair, etc. all the same and just slaps your character into the robes, belt, and arm bands. Could do variants of it, too - the normal Sybil blue, the Sister Solaris white/gold, and the Sister Airlia black. I'd definitely buy it.

Edited October 16, 2022 by El D

[kelika2]

I skimmed through this, can we use the toggle costumes on mastermind pets?  I can work with praetorian clockworks on a robotics