Remember that survey?

[Alexandria]

I just spotted a link to my old posts regarding the survey FC put put back in '21. FC's response to the survey

At the time lots of people told me, there and privately, that I was silly to say this was not targeted at improving our gaming experience but to figure out the best way to get us to accept microtransactions.

Hello cash shop and battlepass. And while I’m “happy” that, thus far, we don’t have gamble crates or “pay to win” items and it’s all “just cosmetics” (my personal weakness dammit!) I’m just going to smugly drink my coffee now.

But my other purpose in writing is to ask you how you all feel about the changes to the game since that survey. I, for one, will admit that there are some I’ve really liked, particularly some of the new content brought in both Age of Sorcery (the spells, for the most part, are pretty great from an immersion standpoint and fun to do) and Age of War’s revamped Purge system. Other things, I really DON’T love. Like the damn golems that actually look like Transformers designed by drunk six year olds. Could we not have had actual stone or clay statues that come to life like the actual folklore surrounding golems? Some badass gargoyles perhaps? But no, what we got was so bad I’ve literally banned them on the server I admin on.

So, let me know what you do and don’t like and, if you look back at the survey thread, let me know if you feel at all listened to by Funcom and if you feel they are, indeed, engaging in the very psychological manipulation I was concerned about.

Cheers!
Alex

[GenGen-Art]

It is what they do, it’s dishonest marketing philosophy, not only with that survey and the change to money milking bazaar items (10 bucks for a ■■■■■■ camp fire? O_o), but also with, for example, the “art contest” they had this year. When you do not want to pay hard working artists but have all the rights to their content for free, and pay them nothing but with made up currency and reward them by using their content to sell to yet other players, you just call it a contest and profit.

The survey did not really help us, I haven’t bought a thing from Funcom since they stopped bringing out DLCs (except for trying the battlepass once), I simply cannot afford their bazaar items and the battlepass is never worth it, it’s tedious labor for crap as a reward.

I agree that the age of sorcery was interesting, thought it only gives magic in return for corruption and that doesn’t really help RP, if that is what one is interested in. I am all for balancing and everything has a price, but what Funcom is the worst at it just that: balancing. They are totally out of touch with their own game and its design. Age of War brought horrible balancing with it, the game is underwhelming and the stamina regen is so quick, it turns PvP and PvE into a no brainer even for someone like me who is horrible at it. Access to server settings and mods to set up something more challenging to fight be blessed, and that tells you once more that without mods, this game would be nonsense.

I also really do agree with your commentary on the golems. For very few RP scenarios they’d work, but they do not really fit into actual Conan imo. Plus they do crash servers, so our team has them entirely banned, too. °-° We tried having them used Season 1 and the crash sure as hecc came, I do remember the logs as if it was yesterday. Very sadge.

[Khaletohep]

First of all: Alexandra, you were correct in your interpretation of the survey’s intent in 2021.

About the changes… some good, some bad.

Sorcery
Good overall. Personally, I use spells only very rarely, but I like to have the option. The illusion system, the teleportary stone and the new dungeon are great, though. Things that could/should be improved:

• Demon followers should not count against the follower limit, as it was in the beginning. They’re not very powerful, only temporary and switch sides after a while. As a temporary reinforcement, they were fun. In their currenct form, I just don’t see the use case.
• Not all attributes can be corrupted. Don’t understand why. Looked liked unfinished work due to time contraints, but by now, that should have been done.
• The heavy corruption needed for using the higher tier sorcery stuff cripples your character too much. The recent stamina changes have made that even worse.

Purges
I really like the direction. The system seems to give us the NPC siege mechanic that was planned for Age of Conan, which attracted me to the Funcomverse in the first place (among other things, not least the Conan lore).
The currect form is okayish. A bit buggy, a bit weird, but hell, it’s Funcom, what would be expect them to do with such small a team and budget?

What could/should be improved:

• Will have to wait until the system is finished.

Combat changes
Not convinced. Combat was great at the end of Age of Sorcery. Changed stamina costs in my game to revert the stamina change, frustrated about the hyber armor nerf.

Store
Not a fan, but overall okayish. Some of the items and building sets are good, spent some money on it, didn’t regret it (except for the Vanir set). No pay to win items, no loot boxes, no annoying advertisement - so great in comparison to other games.

Battlepass
Okay overall. Would introduce something to make the daily challenges relevant after completing the Battlepass, e. g. temporary buffs such as +20% stone gathering rate after getting completing the stone gathering task.

Events
Complete no-show in my game. Would like to have them back.

Telith’s Ghost
Hasn’t returned yet.

Verdict
So, in total… positive. Do they try to earn extra money? Yes. Is it done in an honest fashion? Also yes. Assuming one isn’t against capitalism per se, that’s what we want things to be.

Okay, one piece of criticism regarding the marketing: The “discounts” in the shop seem a bit, uhm, unrealistic and would probably be seen as illegal in the jurisdiction I live in. There’s no discounted price without a regular price. But hell, the game is for adults, and I think we can assume a certain amount of experience with marketing tactics. After all, if you feel ready to slaughter the population of a complete town, establish a slave-based economy and sacrifice hearts to heathen gods, one should know how to deal with a “discount” in an online shop.

[Oduda]

@GenGen-Art

but also with, for example, the “art contest” they had this year. When you do not want to pay hard working artists but have all the rights to their content for free, and pay them nothing but with made up currency and reward them by using their content to sell to yet other players, you just call it a contest and profit.

Where did it say anyone was going to have to pay for those? I mean, there is literally art in the game from a previous “art contest” that is FREE FOR ALL USERS. I mean, sure I could have missed the part where they stated that they were going to make people pay for the items, so if so please point to it.

@GenGen-Art

agree that the age of sorcery was interesting, thought it only gives magic in return for corruption and that doesn’t really help RP, if that is what one is interested in.

Have you never read any of the source material? That is quite literally HOW people gained their magical abilities, by corrupting their souls and making pacts with demons (who might, and likely will, betray them) or worse. So yea, that very much is exactly how one SHOULD be RP’ing it.

@GenGen-Art

I am all for balancing and everything has a price, but what Funcom is the worst at it just that: balancing.

Can’t argue there.

@GenGen-Art

and that tells you once more that without mods, this game would be nonsense.

Not true at all. The game does not require mods. Tweeks to the server settings, sure. Mods? Not required. Useful? Sure. Fun? Sure. Required? Nope. And as an RPer I most assuredly do not need mods to do so, so yeah, they are not needed. That is simply false.

@GenGen-Art

I also really do agree with your commentary on the golems.

Yeah I hate them as well and I never use them.

@GenGen-Art

I haven’t bought a thing from Funcom since they stopped bringing out DLCs (except for trying the battlepass once), I simply cannot afford their bazaar items

Yeah I definitely agree that the BLB prices are just… not worth it. I on the other hand bought the first battlepass and always finish it WAY before the season is over so I just use those coins to buy the next one. Most of the rewards are…whatever… but some of them are pretty nice! And considering I’m on my 5th one now it’s well more than paid for itself.

[LostBrythunian]

“Pain point” is also a marketing term.

That said, this one has found the game since the survey to be a rollercoaster.
Some good, some bad.
Most mixed

For example…
Having Sorcery, good!
The way it was implemented, okish
The variety of spells, not so okish
The side dishes (illusions and teleporters), magnificent but easily abused.
The current prospects, not so okish, seems it will be left as is in perpetuity.

Age of “War”, laughably bad.
New Purge, okish but deeply flawed
Legendary gear revamp, okish but deeply flawed
Loot revamp, excellent
Combat overhaul, what the cluck?
Thralls set to guard doors, chef’s kiss

Battle Pass (this one is biased, this one absolutely loathes Battle Passes): almost the best of what it is. Shiniest of turds. Least evil of fiends. It would be good if it were not an elemental composed of abhorrence. It’s doing it’s best despite being a manifestation of Mammon.

Bazaar: oh this is bad, so bad. Not just the absurd pricing, but also the consistency with which items sold are bug infested. Then there are the painfully incomplete sets.

Golems: what is this? Why is this here? How did this get priority in creation and implementation? They passively harvest? Neat, ish, ok, but why and why can’t the humanoids do so?

Overall, this one feels that since the survey (but also with other factors) reach has vastly exceeded grasp, and priority of features/development has grown increasingly divorced from those playing the game.