Lengthen Flood And/Or Increased Drop Volume for New Releases

[GalacticNovie]

Because all of my posts on the New Release thread were deleted...

I support. As I said before, I believe that DC really needs some updates to accommodate how big the game has grown, and I think this is a good first step. The floods are far too short and far more competitive than I hope were expected, and the inconsistent flood schedule means specific time zones are always getting the short end of the stick. Not to mention how rare many breeds become after the flood ends due to the sheer amount of unique breeds there are. This should make getting new dragons more reasonable, at least on their first day on the site.

[Brite]

Valid concerning posts being deleted, making room for "squee-only" replies is not surprising...

 

Anyway, I saw someone mentioning that their schedule is tight due to schooling and work. That's currently my life—multiple jobs, and soon school will be starting back up. I'll have absolutely no time to sit at my computer and wait for every drop "cycle".  And I'm sure many others are in the same boat. 

[Sketch]

Something really needs to be done about new releases. 
Far too many people are being stressed out, upset, and overwhelmed by what is supposed to be an exciting time for players and artists alike.
I'm not exactly a fan now of having to have multiple "New Release" groups that date back months because I still haven't managed to get every CB I need for my goals, and many people are struggling the very same as I am whether their goals are less than mine or greater. For reference, my goal for CBs is 4 Male, 4 Female. Not a crazy feat; but it certainly becomes a daunting one when multiple dragons are released at the same time and there's intense competition for the one day that they flood before being mixed into over 300 different breeds with varying rarities and ratios.
There have been many suggestions thrown about: Extend the time of floods, add more dragons into the flood, increase new dragon ratios after being mixed in, extend the caves to six egg slots instead of three, etc. 
I've been playing this game for ten years and it's been a wonderful source of inspiration and therapy. I hate being and hate seeing the community overwhelmed like this. I know that recoding and adding to a website is not easy and it's entirely done for free, but there are many people here that care deeply about it and the quality of life for players. I can't imagine joining into this game now and getting excited for a release - just for every single one to be gone from the biomes in seconds and that's how it is for the entire "flood".  There's 50+ players waiting when dragons first drop and for hours afterwards. And still half a day later, there's twice if not three times as many people that are usually there. Sitting in empty caves, waiting.
I get on to play for a little bit every day, but not everyone can afford that. Most players are too busy with their outside lives to sit and hunt for hours, trying to get something new or even to find a common or release from a few months ago.

Edited July 30, 2023 by Sketch

[Fuzzbucket]

21 minutes ago, Gluria said:

Definitely support.

As apparently in the release thread every single post that's not 100% praise gets deleted maybe our wishes will be heard here.

 

10 minutes ago, Throned said:

Valid concerning posts being deleted, making room for "squee-only" replies is not surprising...

 

Anyway, I saw someone mentioning that their schedule is tight due to schooling and work. That's currently my life—multiple jobs, and soon school will be starting back up. I'll have absolutely no time to sit at my computer and wait for every drop "cycle".  And I'm sure many others are in the same boat. 

 

I saw a good few that were not "concerning" but plain nasty. That is very hard om the creators of new dragons - suggestions is the place to vent, I think. Not the thread where or artists might like to see if we LIKE their work ?

[Gluria]

4 minutes ago, Fuzzbucket said:

 

 

I saw a good few that were not "concerning" but plain nasty. That is very hard om the creators of new dragons - suggestions is the place to vent, I think. Not the thread where or artists might like to see if we LIKE their work ?

I saw some too.

But my post was deleted too, and if THAT was considered "nasty" or bashy, then that's 100% not on me.

Edited July 30, 2023 by Gluria

[purpledragonclaw]

First off, now that the Release thread has been cleaned and re-opened, I'm going to mention in here that this discussion needs to remain civil as well. This is not the place to complain about posts being hidden/deleted, if you have issues with why your posts were hidden/deleted please take it up with me or Kaini, we'd be happy to discuss things with you.

 

Secondly, I'm going to reiterate here since it came up, but "squee-only" posts are NOT the only posts allowed in release threads. You are allowed to discuss the sprites using constructive criticism, anything else will be removed and/or the poster warned depending on the nature of the post. 

 

Thirdly, new release threads are NOT the place to discuss site mechanics. Those kinds of suggestions belong here, in Suggestions/Requests.

 

Now for the suggestion at hand, I would love this! Especially given we don't know the rarities of dragons when they release, it gives people all over the world a chance at these new drops. Yes, please, fully support!

 

 

Edited July 30, 2023 by purpledragonclaw

[reddof-f6]

agree on the 24 hour release. people got jobs and school. by the time they're off the release has basically ended and players who just started only have 4 slots. making huge releases seem like mount Everest to ever be collectable.

[Fuzzbucket]

And the international aspect of the player base is crucial. It is very hard on people in Europe and Asia, while all those of us on cave time (which I am at the moment) have a much easier ride, just having to stay up till midnight to see if they need to pay attention.

[Jazeki]

Support for one of these going into effect. I hunted on and off for hours before being able to catch just one of each in the biomes. I've also traded a 2nd gen prize for one. Luckily I'll have the trading power to get more in the future. But as we head into the months ahead, I worry that it will become harder and harder to get these and other new "big" releases. Not everyone is as lucky to have the time, space, or trading power. 

[D-wing]

Support at least 24H for different timezone.

[kiramaru7]

I support this. I think it would help with the frustration that some people are feeling and cut down on the venting of that frustration inn the new release thread.

[Ashlynnii]

1 hour ago, Throned said:

Full support. I had a feeling things would get heated as soon as this NR happened...

You and me both. As someone who's been on this site for (almost) a decade, I've noticed stress ramping up over the last... five, six-or-so releases? Seems like a mixture of stagnating core mechanics clashing with the site/fanbase's modern size and scope, along with a lack of behind-the-scenes transparency that, while not obliged to be revealed in any capacity because TJ is only one dude with a lot of responsibility that really deserves to keep his privacy, still has been leaving a lot of average people/players feeling more like they're talking at a brick wall than actually having their concerns about the site's health heard.

 

As for the thread's main topic: Support. Floods not being (at least) 24 hours has always confused me all the way from my first few days of being on DC all the way to now, and I'm only an hour ahead of DC time but still tend to have problems with new releases because I don't/can't pull all-nighters for the earliest midnight drops. I know that coding is a notorious nightmare (I mean, who knows what kind of spaghetti code nightmare has formed over the site's seventeen years of runtime and upkeep), but the idea of just letting things stagnate while more and more things/potential problems get piled on top of it and get endlessly magnified makes me feel unpleasant.  Vitriol will only grow as more (massive) releases that may or may not have drop gimmicks that can be annoying for some time zones come out and the cave drop pool gets more bloated while short floods immediately get snatched frame-one of the eggs appearing and the drop quickly being left empty for the rest of the five minutes before the next drop comes. Something needs to change at some point or another, these feelings have been ramping up as of late and I don't want the piled-on discontent to come crashing down (at least, not too hard).

[Sanguine-Roku]

Doesn't help that some of the site's users have grown as well, meaning people have work, school, kids, and other responsibilities which really compound with time zones to make it very disappointing to try and snag stuff when it comes out. I really don't need to catch new eggs the day of release, but it'd be nice to be able to grab them at all.

All in all, it's still a fantastic site, and I do adore it, especially with how gorgeous all the sprites are, but the frustration is real.

[TGL1983]

Support the 24 hour flood time 100%. I wasn't able to get on until now (5:30 PM my time) and the new eggs are just GONE. I'm so disappointed, I know it's not all that important to get new eggs on release day but it is much easier.

[Wolfs_Bane]

Full support from me! I wasn't able to get any of the white Vespine Drakes when they were released at all. (And they are not in the market either for some reason.) And I was only able to 4 of this release. If we keep having these massive new releases, please make them drop/flood for 24 hours or more. Thus giving everyone a chance to get as many as they can.

 

WB 

 

[animatedrose]

Support for 24 hour release floods. Everyone deserves a chance to try getting NRs, not just those of us able to be here during the allotted flood hours.  Personally, i'd rather like 48 hours but that's me, i've been spoiled by another collecting site that does something similar.

 

Also, Vespines in Market follow the rule of Dorsals/Ridgewings, @Wolfs_Bane ! It displays the common form but once purchased, you might actually get the alt form instead. You won't know until after purchase and the odds are really low, but you can get white Vespines (and red Dorsals and tan Ridgewings) from the Market. You just can't INTENTIONALLY and SPECIFICALLY get them there. You just might get lucky on purchase, just like when you grab one in the biomes. Same mechanic.

[heyninja]

Also support for 24 hour flood releases.  This might counterbalance the issue of number of eggs per 5 minute drop alone without needing an increase, and it accounts for things like time zones and people's varied schedules.

 

I think out of all the ideas I've seen it's the change a) most visible and b) least invasive to introduce.  I don't pretend to know the actual structure of the site itself, but I figure resetting the "mixing" timer is probably a lot simpler and faster.  And while I imagine any change is going to have the people who don't like it either, I think popping on an extra 8 hours won't get too much backlash compared to a major change like a new biome or something.  Not to say that I think major changes are bad or unnecessary, I just think this is probably the most elegant and least disruptive change to start with.

Edited July 31, 2023 by heyninja

[Wolfs_Bane]

3 hours ago, animatedrose said:

Support for 24 hour release floods. Everyone deserves a chance to try getting NRs, not just those of us able to be here during the allotted flood hours.  Personally, i'd rather like 48 hours but that's me, i've been spoiled by another collecting site that does something similar.

 

Also, Vespines in Market follow the rule of Dorsals/Ridgewings, @Wolfs_Bane ! It displays the common form but once purchased, you might actually get the alt form instead. You won't know until after purchase and the odds are really low, but you can get white Vespines (and red Dorsals and tan Ridgewings) from the Market. You just can't INTENTIONALLY and SPECIFICALLY get them there. You just might get lucky on purchase, just like when you grab one in the biomes. Same mechanic.

I didn't know that. Thank you!

WB

[Jennivieve]

A possible solution might be to have a special temporary NR biome, similar to how the holidays have their special biomes in order to get CBs. It could be a work around to get the 24 hr drop while not having to mess with the main Cave too much. Plus, since the temporary biome code already exists, it may be easier to implement. (Not a coder, so that's just speculation.)

[Omenwyrm]

support! i'm always asleep during most new releases and i only managed to grab 1 (during the starting flood) and then needed to put a few more hours battling with other users later in the day for the new ones that spawn with the normal cave flow. it's so crazy that 24 hour floods aren't a thing except for holidays (and even they sometimes get up to 3 days)

Edited July 31, 2023 by Omenwyrm

[Sketch]

3 hours ago, Jennivieve said:

A possible solution might be to have a special temporary NR biome, similar to how the holidays have their special biomes in order to get CBs. It could be a work around to get the 24 hr drop while not having to mess with the main Cave too much. Plus, since the temporary biome code already exists, it may be easier to implement. (Not a coder, so that's just speculation.)

 That might actually be interesting; it would make release day NRs a little more valuable in comparison to the others as their biome would be listed as "Cave" like new Holidays. I see a lot of players that make trade posts offering release date dragons.
It may also then open up more competition afterwards in the biomes though, for players to get ones from those specific regions should they want to collect that way. They would definitely need much heavier drops as well, and dragons with different variants would be harder to catch if they share the same description. Lots of tossing/trading would ensue I imagine.

Edited July 31, 2023 by Sketch

[demonicvampiregirl]

100% support. I'd honestly prefer having 24 hour releases again. If I miss a drop at midnight, it's insanely hard to get any of them on drop day or even after that.

[jedisunny]

Being in South Asia, the timing of the new release is almost always not conducive to daily life schedules. Also, most of the player base does not have unlimited amounts of time to spend on the game. The current scenario of huge releases and little time to find them is causing unnecessary frustration, if the mechanics cannot be changes, maybe the releases could be smaller or some months could go without release.

There has to be some possible way to sort the issue out. 

Like many players have said earlier, for me it becomes impossible to complete my scroll goals and since the trading system also is tilted in favor of people who have the rarities to trade, those of us with bad internet, or physical issues where a person is not fast enough with the clicking and a time zone which is 12 hours behind the site schedule are doomed to always be frustrated.

I love this game and I hope some solution is found for this.

[alyelle]

5 hours ago, Jennivieve said:

A possible solution might be to have a special temporary NR biome, similar to how the holidays have their special biomes in order to get CBs. It could be a work around to get the 24 hr drop while not having to mess with the main Cave too much. Plus, since the temporary biome code already exists, it may be easier to implement. (Not a coder, so that's just speculation.)

 

My only concern for a solution along this line is that the NR biome (like the holiday biome) would see a huge amount of users compared to the other biomes, and people who are already on slow connections would struggle even more to catch the NR's.

 

That said, I'm a big supporter of longer (24h) floods in general, and I saw someone else mention a temporary adjustment to ratios/drop frequency. I obviously don't know much about DC's codebase, but I am a coder by profession, and in itself, that solution doesn't seem like it would be super difficult to implement. The real difficulty seems (to me) that fiddling with ratios or drop frequency in the early stages could flow on to affect overall ratios once the flood had finished (ie. there might be temporary artificial scarcity in the days/weeks that follow the initial release day because so many have flooded so quickly; we don't see that with the long holiday floods because they're only here for a short time anyway).

 

I really do hope someone (or someones!) smarter than I is able to come up with a solution that works. Like so many others, I do love this game - I've played it basically daily since 2008 - and definitely appreciate how much work a single person is putting into it. It saddens me to see more and more people become frustrated and snappish with each release we have. And if it's making me as a player sad, I can only imagine how upsetting it is for spriters and mods.

[_Charky]

7 hours ago, Jennivieve said:

A possible solution might be to have a special temporary NR biome, similar to how the holidays have their special biomes in order to get CBs. It could be a work around to get the 24 hr drop while not having to mess with the main Cave too much. Plus, since the temporary biome code already exists, it may be easier to implement. (Not a coder, so that's just speculation.)

I like this idea, (and your re-use of code we know exists!) but I'm not sure how well it would work with biome-specific variations or whether it would help rather than harm availability.

 

It might be possible to add a "new release biome" as just a row of eggs to each biome page, though.