2013-09-08 - September Release

[Hellen]

Thanks TJ and the spriters for the new release ^.^

 

Good (or better) catching luck for the others! Have fun, and eat some chocolate for the nerves! *Had her own already*

[Syphoneira]

Thanks.

 

I will say that it was kind of eye opening to read through the Gilded Bloodscale/Soul Peace release thread.  Even with the problems people were much more relaxed and having a lot more fun.

 

I've said for a while now that I think that there's merit in the new release format with frequent releases and eggs mixing in sooner, as I think it's a good way to extend game play by having it take longer to catch dragons.  But the thing is that the dragons actually have to be reasonably catchable for that to work.  And while I give props to TJ for addressing a very real problem for many players of increasing boredom in between releases, I think that doing so in the absence of fixing the biome blocking and the ratio adjustment period that makes some breeds almost non-existant is noticeably wearing on people and that's being magnified by how quickly we're repeating the cycle.

 

Maybe it's time to take a look at the migration suggestions for biome blocking.  Because I honestly believe that if people had a realistic belief that they could catch these eggs later, even if it took a lot of time and effort, this new release format wouldn't be the issue it is.

 

 

 

It's certainly not often that I venture to disagree with any portion of your comments, but in this instance, nothing ventured, nothing discussed, lol, because in this area, we have very different viewpoints, mine formed as one having only ever had two elderly computers, until they completely blew, accompanied by various issues for much of this time, up until VERY recently.

 

While mixing the dragons early on may be intended to potentially extend game play for the relative few speedy enough to catch anything in such fast-moving, mixed conditions, that's the group who, when present, normally catches their fill *before the mixing begins*, while it's the slower ones who fail to catch early on and are then typically deprived by the mixing in of older dragons of the 'hammer-click' method which may form their only hope of catching new eggs in high demand.

 

So, generally speaking, the faster people present at the beginning of Releases still get their fill early on and are still bored, while slower people - probably (I'd say certainly) forming the great bulk of users - with older puters/slow connections/physical disabilities, etc., rather than having game play 'extended', too often are simply shut out of the game.

 

Also, many people don't have time to spend all day and/or night for possibly weeks, months or years, trying to catch their personal quota of specific eggs, especially when, even within the game, they likely have multiple other goals, for which they may need hard-to-obtain dragons to even begin trying to attempt/continue - but people typically DO want to catch their own, not be shut out and reliant on the kindness of faster others.

 

 

The mixing doesn't handicap the fast people in the manner that it does those already handicapped because unable to afford fast systems and connections, or who have physical issues, are very old or very young, who have time/access limitations...

 

And the people claiming boredom are often those who want only a limited number of each dragon type, (perhaps a pair or two, and maybe a few Frozen hatchies,) who will anyway be bored between Releases, or the very fast, who at least have the option of downgrading their equipment and connections to enjoy the same 'challenge' as those who could never afford them in the first place.

 

 

What we have now is universal boredom with Blockers filling the Cave and spoiling hunting, and recent Releases where many people have had nothing but stress and disappointment in their recreational time.

 

Some of these people now only come back for Releases, and are not enjoying these either.

 

Some of them don't seem to coming in now at all, or not for very long periods of time...

 

 

The migration suggestion merely exchanges Blockers, because we have ratios that enforce the production of too many of certain types of dragons that people already generally have enough of, and even if it doesn't begin that way, any such over-abundance assures that it will end so.

 

 

The migration suggestion actually reduces variety among dragons Dropped/bred,

 

by reducing/removing certain species for certain periods

 

and presumably increasing the numbers of a smaller pool of other already super-common dragons to replace them during that period,

 

and makes life difficult for people who need whichever particular dragons are currently in abeyance, spoiling plans for some of the people, ALL of the time.

 

 

Also, as I understand it, it's not specifically the Blockers removed for migration, but groups which may or may not incidentally include some of the worst Blockers together with perennial favorites and relatively new/uncommon/rare dragons - but invariably involving dragons that many people will need and not be able to obtain for extended periods, and upon their return, the same occurs with other needed dragons, while Blocker types may shift, but still remain, only with less/no variety or hope of various necessary dragons being concealed behind the Blocker wall until whenever.

 

 

 

The migration idea, like so many other player-based solutions tried through the years, will, I believe, fail to substantially alleviate a long-running problem based on a lack of sufficient variety of dragons dropped at rates corresponding with what their environment can support.

 

Reducing the variety further by this, in fact, would logically indicate that this would exacerbate the situation, even if not considering the effects produced by, one assumes, increasing the numbers of a more limited pool of other super-common Blocker types, and would as well create a good deal of confusion as to what dragons were available where, when or at all.

 

 

The situation as it's long stood is unsustainable, and not something with which the player-base can - or wants to - cope.

 

The players are, after all, here to have fun and collect dragons they want/need in the time they have to play, not to refresh on or collect endless numbers of dragons they don't want and have no use for.

 

 

The frequency of Releases would be no problem if people could catch them in a reasonable period of time.

 

We need more variety and a constant influx of new dragons, predominately new commons, in all biomes, to prevent it being thought necessary to load us up with Blockers too-often preventing whatever variety would otherwise be currently available from ever even showing up in some biomes over extended periods of people's playing time, especially in certain time zones/biomes.

 

We should be hunting through an adequate mass of varied dragons, at rates making it likely that somebody can actually use the dragons showing up, not refreshing the same few types which almost everybody's hoping that somebody else can spare a spot for 5 long hours to take in order to dump it into the AP later, to turn up the next Blocker.

 

 

But the game is, oddly, set as a situation where long periods of boredom (refreshing on Blockers) are punctuated by moments of sheer terror, (the too-short Release Drops rapidly mixed and the fear of not being able to get the new dragons, maybe ever) and this is hardly fun or relaxing.

 

Slower people don't need more 'challenge' translating to boredom and fail, yet the 'fixes' proposed for/by those claiming that they do enjoy and even want MORE boredom and fail often add to their burden with sometimes little if any effect on those requesting the higher difficulty level, further preventing what certainly appears to be still the bulk of players (despite so many absences) from catching desirable dragons in any reasonable time period, if at all, while those who still can, gain higher trade prices from the few who can scrape up what's asked for them.

 

The people who ask for increased difficulty because of having faster systems that make things 'too easy for them' are incidentally knocking those already suffering difficulty literally out of play, and the facts of this seem to be lost in some form of a blind spot for those not having experienced the chronic 'challenges' with which so many routinely deal.

 

if a poll were to be conducted to see how many people were happy with their computers and connection speed, and how many are frustrated by not being able to obtain better, what are the odds that about 99% of players would fit into the latter category?

 

Even though many of these seem to be no longer generally showing up...

 

Does TJ really want to lose perhaps most of his site's players and restrict himself to a relative few high-speed people even more bored with the Cave Blockers there would be radically fewer people to help move into the AP?

 

Some think he quite possibly does, but it really doesn't seem very a practical direction... and yet more people seem to be losing interest and migrating away from DC all the time...

[Becka]

The desert one hatched, too. So lovely!

 

" It loves warmth, and sometimes you have to pull it away from fire to keep it from burning itself."

 

 

It took longer to hatch, so it might be uncommon.

[~Kat~]

They are both nice, but I can not wait to see what the one from the coast looks like.

[Syphoneira]

The hatchies are, indeed, adorable - considering the spriters, this might be expected, lol.

 

I'd be outright weeping right now if not able, for whatever reason, to have caught any, as seemed likely for a while... bet the adults will be stunning, as usual.

 

Thanks so very much to TJ, the spriters and Mods for the event and the wonderful dragons, which I hope everyone will be able to snag.

[Shajana]

The hatchies are beautiful and they are from two amazing Spriters! I can`t wait to see the adults.

[Masterdragon992]

Uhhhh I LOVE THEM!

The coastal seems like an amphiptere (amphitere? whatever ), hope it will be a good pairing with the Sunsong!

Edited September 8, 2013 by Masterdragon992

[aussieJJDude]

OK, now I wished a came to the drop later so i could miss-click on a few brines....

[Shizuku-chan]

The hatchies are adorbs :3

My eggs need to hatch soon... -pokes- Pity that I'm out of incubates...

[Dragon_cave]

OK, now I wished a came to the drop later so i could miss-click on a few brines....

LOL, right

[Arielen-chan]

Sigh, finally got 3 of the desert ones and 4 of the coastal breed, after 5 hours of hunting. But I was happy, that the amount of new eggs is still high and the mixing not so hard as last time.

 

Thank you TJ and the spriters for the nice eggs and dragons, which we will see in some days.

 

I wish everyone who hasn't caught his or her amount much luck. I know the stress and the frustration, you have in the moment.

 

I think I will now take a break and will come back later!

[aussieJJDude]

Also, the hatchies are super cute!

Good Job Earthgirl and JOTB!!

[TheAkatsuki]

Oh no, I'm too slow.. I only now found out about the release. Have the eggs stopped dropping in mass?

[webcowgirl]

Rah! A pair of the coastals and one of the desert eggs! Just one more and I'm set!

[IsmaielDeath]

Thanks for the release!

I got my two pairs^^

 

[Meruru]

Last months release was very stressful for me, this month i seemed to breeze through it O_O

i wish i had missclicked a brine i still need 2 more to complete my quota.

 

good luck to all who are still trying, and i'll gift to anyone who hasn't gotten any yet ^^

[cdvla313]

Ah, love the hatchies!! Happy I locked myself by accident w/coastal ones. lol.

[Windy]

Wow, the hatchlings are so cute!

[TheAkatsuki]

Ah.. Never mind, I managed to snag one of each. I'm scroll locked now (how annoying..) so I doubt I'll be able to get a pair of both.. Shame. ._.

 

However, thank you for the new release TJ! And thanks for making these wonderful sprites, Earthgirl and JOTB.

[PointOfOrigin]

Aw, little cutties And we really needed another Amphipter. Congrats to JOTB and Earthgirl!

[Imago]

I have a feeling that those Desert dragons will look asolutely awesome.

 

The Coast hatchies are cute, too. But these shiny blue and yellow colors...

 

Anyway, I have to get more eggs. And more egg slots. Argh. D:

[MIGOR]

Two new dragons is superb !! Three is too much. So: THANKS

[webcowgirl]

Two of each! And, er, a bonus misclicked spitfire egg (boo). Both pairs influenced! Now I'm scroll locked and I'm going to go enjoy the rest of my Sunday. :-)

 

(I got two eggs on top of hour drops and the others on 5 minute drops, by the way.)

[glass_kisses]

Managed to get 1 of the desert ones so far! I'm doing better than the last release c:

 

Missed a silver in the coast. Why do I never misclick the right things?

[Le0plurad0n]

Phew, finally managed to snag one of the Heatwaves. Still holding out for a tidal later, though. Being in a weird timezone really helps, the bad internet doesn't though.

 

Edit: Oh wow, turns out I got two. My Ctrl+Click spam really did pay off. ^^

Edited September 8, 2013 by Le0plurad0n