A Hard Hitting Dateline Interview With Myself

INTERVIEWER: Today we are interviewing TGW, self proclaimed critic, cynic, and jack of various trades. Welcome, TGW.

TGW: Thank you for having me.

INERVIEWIER: Sure. So, first question TGW, the question we have been getting the most from our viewers… why do you keep playing this game if you hate it so much?

TGW: I don’t hate it at all.

INERVIEWIER: So then why are you constantly criticizing it?

TGW: I just think it should be more affordable, and less pay to win.

INERVIEWIER: So you think it should be free? How would the developers make any money that way?

TGW: No, no, I don’t think it should be free. They marketed it as a free game, and that’s fine, to get players started in it. But I also understand that they need to make money.

INERVIEWIER: Which is why they created the gacha model, to make money. But you have a problem with that model?

TGW: Yes, I do.

INERVIEWIER: Why?

TGW: Because it’s pay to win. It’s predatory on peoples’ proclivities towards developing gambling addictions. And it’s just ridiculously expensive.

INERVIEWIER: So… you’re saying it would be okay if it were less expensive?

TGW: That would be better at least, yes.

INERVIEWIER: But who are you to decide how much is too much?

TGW: I think when the average cost to summon one hero in one game is higher than the average cost to purchase an entire game, then it’s become excessive. Beyond excessive.

INERVIEWIER: And what gives you the right to determine what is excessive? Shouldn’t a company be able to set their own prices as they see fit?

TGW: Sure. But shouldn’t then a customer also have the right to complain about it when they see the cost as being excessive?

INERVIEWIER: Or, maybe, if you don’t like the price, maybe you just don’t play it?

TGW: Fair point, and believe me, if I knew how bad the prices were before I downloaded the game, I never would have downloaded it in the first place.

INERVIEWIER: So then whose fault is that?

TGW: Theirs.

INERVIEWIER: It’s their fault?

TGW: Absolutely. They don’t advertise their prices when you download the game, nor when you make purchases in the game.

INERVIEWIER: They tell you exactly how much the gems cost.

TGW: Yes, they tell you how much the gems cost. They don’t tell you how many gems you’ll have to spend in order to have a decent chance to pull good heroes.

INERVIEWIER: Some players pull good heroes for free.

TGW: And some people win the lottery after buying a single ticket. They are the exception, not the rule. And by holding those outliers up as examples, you are doing a disservice to every other player in the game.

INERVIEWIER: You think it’s deceptive advertising?

TGW: Absolutely. 100%.

INERVIEWIER: Okay. So say they were to increase the summoning odds like you want. Then everyone would have all the heroes.

TGW: Would they? The only players I know of who have all the heroes are those who have spent tens of thousands of dollars. And even those players admit that they don’t have enough materials to ascend all of those heroes.

INERVIEWIER: You’ve also mentioned that ascension materials should be easier to come by…

TGW: They should be.

INERVIEWIER: But then, isn’t that only going to benefit the… as you call them, “pay to win” players even more?

TGW: It would benefit everyone. Yes, including the pay to wins. But they’re already going to have the best teams no matter what anyway. They already have the best heroes and the most ascension mats, they already get the top scores and the best loot. Saying that we shouldn’t make a quality of life improvement because it might also benefit those at the top… I mean, if you look at something like tax refunds or stimulus checks. Do the wealthiest people need them? No, they don’t. Do the poor need them? Absolutely. If you give $1000 to a homeless person and another $1000 to a millionaire, which one is going to benefit most from it?

INERVIEWIER: They’ll both benefit.

TGW: Of course. But the millionaire doesn’t need it anyway. He’ll just stash it away in his inventory. Whereas the homeless person desperately needs that money, and it could literally change the game for him.

INERVIEWIER: Are we still talking about games here, or real life?

TGW: A bit of both, but… that brings up another point. People on here are always telling me, yes the wealthy players in this game get better stuff, that’s the same as real life. But why should a game mimic real life?

INERVIEWIER: Why shouldn’t a game mimic real life?

TGW: Because it’s a game. Who the hell would play a game that was exactly like life? Would you play a game where you went to work for 8 hours a day, then came home to run errands, clean the house, do yardwork, pay the bills? Of course not. Because that game would suck and you would hate it.

INERVIEWIER: I don’t know, I enjoy my life. I enjoy my job. I even enjoy mowing the lawn.

TGW: Then why even play games? Go play real life. The graphics are better there anyway. Video games are supposed to be an escape, a fun pastime to enjoy after you’ve finished doing other things that you don’t enjoy doing. In real life, I don’t get to fly, cast magic spells, drive Ferraris, or shoot people. All of those are things I can do in video games, without consequences, and usually without paying a fortune.

INERVIEWIER: You don’t have to pay a fortune to play E&P. You can play for free…

TGW: Yes, I can play for free. And summon a bunch of Banes and Dawas, and repeat the same map quests over and over again for the same leaf and a rock and a stick and a rope for loot. But where is the progression? It’s locked behind RNG. And you only get so many keys for free. Not nearly enough to ever have a reasonable chance to pull a shiny new hero, without buying a ton of keys.

INERVIEWIER: So you resent those people who buy the best heroes?

TGW: I wouldn’t say that. If anything, they mostly resent me. They’ve told me as much, flat out. What they do with their money is their own business.

INERVIEWIER: So you’re jealous of them?

TGW: In a way, yes. Though if I had more money to spend, I wouldn’t be spending it on one single game.

INERVIEWIER: How do you know that?

TGW: [laugh] Because I can easily think of a million other things I’d rather spend extra money on, if I had it. I wouldn’t spend tens of thousands of dollars on shiny new heroes.

INERVIEWIER: Getting back to that. You complain about the shiny new heroes. But then, you and several others in the F2P and C2P communities have bragged about being able to beat them…

TGW: Occasionally, yes. It’s getting harder and harder to do so, but if the boards cooperate, yes.

INERVIEWIER: So then what is the problem?

TGW: The problem is that I’m having to try twice as hard just to keep up with them, and to what end? I don’t get a fancy new hero when I beat them. I get a leaf and a rope, maybe another Dawa if I’m lucky. What kind of reward is that?

INERVIEWIER: So you only play games for rewards?

TGW: Not only, but that is a big part of it. There’s no point if there’s no reward. I wouldn’t go to work if they didn’t give me a paycheck at the end of the week.

INERVIEWIER: And what about SG? Don’t they also deserve a paycheck?

TGW: Of course they do. But this gacha model is not the right way… it’s not the only way to make a game profitable.

INERVIEWIER: So then what would you suggest they do instead? If all the heroes were available for free, how would SG ever make money?

TGW: Well first of all, through advertising. They already do that with their Mystic Visions. Second of all, I’m not suggesting they make everything free. I think there are plenty of ways to monetize a game like this without charging $100 for one hero.

INERVIEWIER: Such as?

TGW: I already mentioned advertising. But that’s obviously not enough for them, they want more than that, and that’s fine. Most of my ideas wouldn’t really work with the current game model being what it is… for example, if it were my game, I might give S1 away for free, then charge $5 for access to each season after that as like downloadable content. Or sell unfarmable mats directly in the gem store… not unlimited to the point that a big spender could ascend everything right away, but on a limited basis… say you can buy 1 of each mat every week. Or maybe I would charge a monthly fee to be able to have unlimited farming flags, but only for province farming. Not for competitive events. Stuff like that. Then make the heroes themselves unlockable through game play.

INERVIEWIER: That all sounds nice, but also what you’re suggesting, most of that would still heavily favor the spenders.

TGW: Right, but it would be less “pay to win”, and more “pay to win faster”.

INERVIEWIER: Isn’t that already how the game works? A free player can get all of the same heroes as a spender.

TGW: [laughs heartily] Sure, if they play for 100 years maybe.

INERVIEWIER: And as you yourself admitted, those changes would probably majorly upset the current game balance. You can’t tell free players they no longer have access to anything beyond Season Two, for example…

TGW: No, no, you’re right. Pandora’s Box has already been opened on a lot of this stuff. You probably can’t ungacha a gacha. But you can make it better going foward.

INERVIEWIER: How so?

TGW: By making older heroes more accessible. Removing junk Season One feeders from newer portals. Either lowering the prices or increasing the summoning odds on older portals. Or better yet, just putting the older heroes into Training Camps and regular summon portals. Little things like that.

INERVIEWIER: And that would make the game more fun for you?

TGW: I think it would make the game more fun for a lot of people. Not just me.

INERVIEWIER: Would it also make you willing to start spending on the game again?

TGW: Maybe. Depends on my budget at the time, but overall yeah, I would probably be more likely to spend again on this game if the odds weren’t so stingy. And I’m sure other people would be as well.

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So you’re saying there’s a chance!?

/Giggity!

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There is always a chance! A very lucky F2P can feasibly obtain a better roster than a really unlucky whale. It does happen! I have seen it.

But I still think the entire system is unfair and wrong. To both the whales and the F2P.

I’m not just saying that because I’ve been mostly unlucky myself. I’ve got an alliance mate who spent a lot more than I did, and has less than what I do to show for it. C’mon game, that’s just cruel. The guy gave you a bunch of money, give him something worth bragging about in return at least?

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In case you missed the (EXCELLENT) reference… :wink:

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well done for putting it in this format (with a not completely friendly interviewer either!)

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Late to respond here, but yes, I fully understood the reference.

I have always been one of the first people willing to make fun of myself. And I also welcome others making fun of me too, in the correct context. As in, we’re just having fun, I’m poking fun at meself, let’s everyone laugh at how ridiculous me and my roster are. Haha!

There are other however unfortunate circumstances where people are not poking fun at me for humorous purposes. And I’m able to read between the lines and pick up on their not-so-subtle subtexts, when they think they’re being clever and they think I’m too naive to realize that I’m being made a fool of.

I know exactly what they’re saying. And I know the mods won’t do anything about it. Because it’s all in good fun, ha ha. Right? Right.

There is a reason I stopped posting here. My love for this community started to die the day that the community decided to stop treating me with any modicum of respect. Snarky, sarcastic, condescending tones in every reply. Why, because I don’t like the idea of spending hundreds of dollars a month on a virtual sprite slot machine? So that automatically makes me an idiot? Or is it perhaps even remotely possible that the opposite is true?

Meh bleh :face_vomiting: sorry, I don’t even know why I’m still even reading stuff here, when I have come to associate this forum with everything that is wrong with the world. “Do not look back!” they cried. I knew I shouldn’t. I knew there was nothing left there for me to see. And what did my stupid donkey butt do? Turned right around, stared directly into the fires of hell again after I had nearly escaped, and melted my @#$%ing face off.

GG, TGW. Good game.

smacks self upside the head

That’ll teach you, you friggin idiot.

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@Dr-Zoidberg Meh, to me this forum were like a second home. It’s just that as most of my favourite fellow forum’s members left or choose to take a break the house started to look more and more like a tomb with me encased within.

For most of the new topics I see only the image button awaits, time ago I would have at least checked them.

The “old forum’s vibes”… I can only find them on my alliance’s chat.

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I can agree with this ten fold. In life itself we have had a massive change in the company i work for. Due to covid. People I had worked with for 10 years are gone. I now feel like I’m working at a daycare. The old jokes, fun times, all that is gone and all I’m left with is my job. The same applies to this game. The fun times, the great people, the awesome information that was shared about teams and what was used to complete events, all that is gone you guys are now left with the this “ton of new heroes every month” model that is nothing like the original. Just like my job, time to move on. The gacha gaming model has changed and many other games allow for communities to form and have fun In their spending g habits yet still be able to compete for great rewards. To see other companies learning from the original gacha models and making the necessary changes going forth is phenomenal. Companies are now doing collabs with other games instead of banning people for even speaking of “competition”.

My loggins have dropped to once a week to say what’s up but of course haf the people you want to talk to are not logged on either. If it’s not war or event time it’s a ghost own around these here parts.

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I wish we could mention other games, because I’d like to know where you’re finding these. The whole gaming industry seems to have caught on to the continuous-revenue-stream model of either micro-transactions or ads every 5 minutes. Or the game only has enough entertainment value for about 2 days.

Hey, I’m a devout capitalist, so I get it. Everyone needs to earn a living. They just won’t be luring me in to another gacha game. Even if they start out as fun for f2p or c2p they will not stay that way as they become more popular.

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Nice one, and I fully agree with you. There are people who’ll miss you, and I’m one of them. But I think you’re right: do yourself a service by walking away. This game has been doing you more harm than good. As for me, I’ll keep playing (for free as long as it’s fun. Still is, for the time being.
Have a good life.

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I’m glad you took it upon yourself to interview yourself. I’ve wanted to see more interviews with long-time players and forum users about their thoughts, since we no longer have interviews with the staff of Small Giant like before. I’ve enjoyed your posts since I agree with your point that successful companies will treat the customer as king. It was nice to see someone take on the mantle to defend this perspective in a way that showed you cared about the game and that you were not just posting to vent.

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Was for me as well, once upon a time. Until those I enjoyed conversing with decided to drop out.

Let’s be honest. This game (E&P) is just not all that much fun without a group or community. Match 3 tiles? Okay… oops. Ran out of world energy. Have to wait 30 minutes before doing another.

What to do in the meantime?

Um… chat, obviously.

But when there’s no one left to chat with, or the only conversations left are alliance recruitment, or arguments, basically nothing fun or entertaining…

I am actually not a devout capitalist.

That’s not to say I am against people making money…? Everyone has the right to make money. But this… model… the gacha thing…

So many people have the wrong ideas about what capitalism / socialism / communism / etc. mean. They think “oh socialists and communists just want everyone to get the same sized slice of the bread, even if only one person is making all of the bread; capitalism rewards the person baking the bread!”

No, no. That’s not how it works. Capitalism rewards the person who owns the building. The people making the bread barely earn enough to buy a slice of bread.

But I digress. I am not a communist either. I am something in between those two extremes.

People who develop fun and interesting games deserve to make money. But this game is not worth the price they are charging for it. Sure, call it a personal opinion. Tell me that it’s worth it because people are willing to pay the price, therefore the price justifies itself. Then go buy a million shares of Gamestop stocks and Dogecoins at $300 a pop because “whatever the market will bear, that means it’s worth it”, and keep on telling yourself that.

If nothing is worth anything, then everything is worth nothing.

I’m still playing on a limited basis. Somehow, just the mere mention that I will be taking a break and going more casual for a couple of weeks threw my entire alliance into chaos, forcing me to come back to try to play damage control. :roll_eyes:

Apparently I can’t leave this game even if I wanted to. But I can slowly back away from the forum.

I had an “official” interview on here before, but figured it was time for an update. Because there are still so many people on here who seem to believe that I only log on to tell them what a stupid game this is and list all the reasons why they should uninstall. Was never my intention at all. But if you want me to lie and say that “yes, you should totally take out a second mortgage to buy all the heroes in this game, 10/10 worth”? Nope. I won’t do that either.

Just came here to shoot the breeze, and occasionally complain about the flaws with the gacha model, and suggest some ways to improve upon it. Never realized that other players would find my opinions so offensive. Like “how DARE you suggest they lower the prices or increase the summoning odds! I LOVE giving SG as much money as possible! If anything, they should be charging us even MORE!!!”

Really? Okay. Sorry that you feel that way.

And sorry that I posted my opinion in the first place. I didn’t realize this was a Masochists Anonymous meeting.

:grin:

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I came to the new game I play right after the telluria debacle. We had our one year anniversary and im now a year and 2 months #nospend here. Trust me there is a way to make a gacha game fun and still allow for whales to have there area and ftp to have theirs. It’s almost better that way as two crowds of people who have no business being together are seperated in a manner that doesn’t take away anything from the experience. From collaborations to constant events to ensure multiple ways of getting a good roster, any gripe that is here has been addressed and then some.

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Ahhh and since this is my own thread, in the community content area, I believe I am technically allowed to veer into “off topic” a bit…? Seeing as how it is MY topic? Yes?

Okay then. Operating under that assumption. I would like to take a moment here to discuss the socialism / capitalism dichotomy.

Soooo many misunderstandings of what these terms actually mean.

Here in 'Murica, the terms are interpreted as:
Capitalism - hard work results in money and success!
Socialism / Communism interchangeable - everybody is equally poor and life is bad for all!

At risk of being branded as a communist, and tarred and feathered according to the McCarthy Doctrine, I feel compelled to make some corrections here by dispelling some very common myths.

COMMON MYTH: Capitalism rewards hard work

REALITY: Capitalism literally means a system where economics are controlled by the owners of capital. What is capital? Stocks, properties, factories, etc. There is literally nothing in the definition of capitalism related to work. In a purely capitalist system, the person who owns the factory sets all of the rules and makes all of the profits. The people who work in the factory are only entitled to the wages that the factory owner has offered them. Nothing more.

COMMON MYTH: North Korea and the USSR are/were communist.

REALITY: Communism is literally based on the term ‘commune’. Think less massive militarized force, more like a bunch of dirty hippies living in tents. One hippie grows carrots, one milks goats, one makes jewelry, one helps stitch tents. They all share their skills with each other (the carrot guy gives everyone carrots, the tent guy mends everyone’s tents, etc.), without any actual commerce system. That is pure communism. Maybe ideal for a small group of tie-dyed Deadheads living in the woods, but not really an ideal setup for an entire nation comprised of millions of people, right? Of course not. Which is why there has never been an actual communist nation ever. North Korea, USSR, Cuba etc. have been socialist (and largely authoritarian) republics.

COMMON MYTH: Socialism is always authoritarian; capitalism is always democratic and free!

REALITY: Socialism and capitalism are economic concepts. The other concepts have very little to do with economics. The U.S. for example is a capitalist republic, not a pure democracy. And furthermore, the amount of money that influences American politics almost makes it a plutocracy. Whereas most Western European nations are socialist democracies, and may actually allow more individual liberties than some capitalist nations do. Leading on to my next point:

COMMON MYTH: There’s no difference between democratic socialism vs. other forms of socialism.

REALITY: To understand the fundamental differences between capitalism vs. socialism, we must look at the roots of each term. As explained above, CAPITALISM means that the owners of capital are in control. Under SOCIALISM, the “people” control the means of production. That is, the people control the factories, the businesses, the properties, etc. Now… that doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone gets an equal slice of the pie. There are many different types of socialism. Under authoritarian socialist regimes, “the people” is basically the guy in charge, the one who was ‘elected’ or ‘chosen’ to represent ‘the people’. This person may or may not have “the people’s” best interests at heart (usually not). The fact that these types of authoritarian nations usually also prohibit stuff like certain religions is less about actual economics, and much more about control. Particularly when you are dealing with “leaders” who were not actually “democratically elected”, as they are supposed to be in “democratic republics”. However, the alternative to that are “socialist democracies”, where “THE PEOPLE” actually make the rules. Through voting. “THE PEOPLE” get to decide what is an appropriate wage, what is an appropriate tax rate, etc. THE PEOPLE get to vote on all of these things, because THE PEOPLE are in charge of their own economy.

That is democratic socialism, and it is the policy I most closely adhere to personally.

FINAL COMMON MYTH: The U.S. is a purely capitalist system, we don’t need no socialism!

REALITY: LOL okay military. Okay Social Security. Okay public education. Okay Medicare. Okay public transit. Okay U.S. agriculture. Okay U.S. utility companies. Okay U.S. banks and automakers and airlines who desperately pleaded for government funds to keep them alive. Keep on telling yourselves that you are strong, independent persons who don’t need no dang gubmint.

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“TGW is rambling again, the heck does any of that have to do with the game???”

Uhhhh it was mostly related to the comment about SG being entitled to make money. Yes of course they’re entitled to make money. But if their primary source of income is a gambling mechanic… which it is… society has the right to vote on whether or not we feel that is appropriate, and whether or not it should be regulated in some way.

Though many on here would say that is none of my business. If I don’t like it, just don’t buy it.

Using that logic. I should be allowed to sell illegal drugs on my street corner. If you don’t like it, don’t buy it. I’m not hurting anyone except for those who are stupid enough to buy them, right? Freedom! Capitalism. Etc. etc. etc.

Eagerly awaiting Nevarmoar’s response :grin:

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Well then,

You may not believe this but I agree with the lion’s share of what you wrote here. I consider myself a social democrat.

I fundametally believe that democracy and capitalism make extremely uneasy bedfellows. Democracy is based on equal representation, one person one vote. Capitalism is based on unequal wealth distribution. Democracy (in its pure form) wants higher taxes to redistribute the wealth, aiding the needy and the poor and supporting the disenfranchised. Capitalism wants no taxes and no redistribution of wealth because they like to think it’s distributed based on merit (hint, it isn’t).

I’m Canadian. We are in general more socialist than America, closer to the European model. I think that has a lot to do with the ways our two countries came to be. America was born in conflict, the result of a revolutionary war fought against a colonial overlord. Canada was born in compromise, out of a congress of lawyers and governmental types seeking a way to, among other things, withstand American expansionism. Canadians in general I think trust their government a little more than Americans do. Also our right-wing political party (the Conservatives) are pretty much the same as your less extreme Democrats. The extreme ones are the same as our Liberal party. Republicans? I don’t know and I hope I never find out.

FWIW I do not like the gacha model in the game. Because I do not like it I choose to not participate in it, and I do regularly encourage other players here to also not participate. I do like playing the game however.

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Nah. I work for a large one, and we get no sustenance. In fact… we get fined for outages and told how to generate…

I fight against socialized medicine. If I have to pay for a smokers lung transplant. Or pay for a by-pass of someone who is addicted to quarter pounders and E&P… I’m moving!

There is no personal accountability in socialized medicine…

I want out anyway… build my cabin and make like an apeman.

"In man’s evolution
He’s created the city
And the motor traffic rumble
But give me half a chance
And I’d be taking off my clothes
And living in the jungle
'Cause the only time that I feel at ease
Is swinging up and down in a coconut tree
Oh what a life of luxury
To be like an apeman"

Also also…
I prefer doctors that pursue excellence.
And get paid for it.
Over some government hack after I finally get through the waiting line

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I knew you were Canadian which is why I figured you might agree with me somewhat. Hence why I was eagerly awaiting your response! As I knew it was probably going to be something of higher quality than “you suck loser”. :grin:

As an American, I also understand your point of view also…

However… counterpoints!

Some people live perfectly healthy lives and end up getting sick at young ages.

And! You think you’re not paying for that smoker’s lung transplant or the bypass for that 600 pound overeater by not having socialized medicine? Guess what? You are. It’s not actually listed on your bill, but you’re paying for it. We all are.

There is no personal accountability in for-profit insurance either.

Doctors do not get paid based on how well they do.

You are paying insurance company hacks instead of government hacks for your place in those waiting lines.

And trust me when I say that those hacks care even less about you than the government does.

At least government has a vested interest in keeping you alive, so that you can keep working and paying taxes. Health insurance companies want you to die.

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If we had a moral foundation we would thrive. Capitalism would propel us to the stars. But our compass is broken.
So instead… pornography and drugs are thriving.

And children are making the decisions.
Spoiled ones at that

ADDITIONAL: RE: the utility company thing. What I meant there is that utilities are regulated by the government, vs. by pure capitalism. If they were regulated by pure capitalism, one company could buy up all the property and run lines everywhere and charge customers a thousand dollars per watt or whatever for their electricity, and very few people would be able to afford power.

Or you could open it up to free market? You’d have 10 different electrical lines running on top of each other and getting tangled up every time the wind blows, one company charging $1 per watt and another charging $0.99 per watt, then you’d have to change your price to $0.98 per watt because everyone would be switching over, then a new company would come in and install more power lines over your power lines and charge $0.97 per watt, you’d have a million different wires all getting tangled up in each other while you all fight over customers and nobody is winning, least of all the customers, then one tornado rips through the town and holy crap. You’ve got a dozen different utility companies trying to figure out whose wire is whose and trying to restore power to thousands of angry customers.

EDIT / ADDITIONAL: the basis of pure capitalism is based on the idea that people are fundamentally good. Which is a flawed notion in and of itself. People are inherently selfish. Which is precisely why capitalism thrives. Not because it benefits the majority of people, but because it benefits the selfish.

Counterpoint to that is, so does giving power to authority figures. Which is why “pure socialist” nations have also tended to fail. Because people like Kim Jong-Un eat like a king while his people starve.

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