Snow Globe
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Quote:I did. They are still based "the fall of humanity". I seriously don't care if that is the starting point for the greatest comedy of all time, it is still based on ****.Originally Posted by Tenzhi
And such worlds can be comedic rather than depressing, or didn't you read the entry you linked to?
Edit:
And the comedy "derived" from such worlds is usually in the form of Comedic Sociopathy. Most such "comedy" is watching someone or something getting hurt. That, to me, is never funny. -
May 1-7 is the 2nd respecs.
I'm guessing that it will be followed by Sutter/Kal, Apex, Khan/Cuda, STF/RSF. -
Quote:You are suggesting that the Post-Apocalyptic genre is not depressing, yet the site you send me to is black, dark, and full of dingy scenery with gas-masked fully covered "people" that would make the 5th column seem nice at first glance? Not to mention that you can make that "outfit" right now in the character creator if you so desired?Originally Posted by Nos482
You might want to take a look at Romantically Apocalyptic. This webcomic is everything, but not depressing
Give me a break.
First game named:Quote:Originally Posted by Tenzhi
When I think "post apocalyptic", the first two things that come to mind are Fallout and Gamma World, both of which have a humorous bent.
As for the other, it is still a ****sack world.Quote:is a crappy post-apocalyptic wasteland, where 200 years after nuclear holocaust the civilization is still fighting for survival. Attractions include, but are not limited to: Chaos and anarchy, bandits, mutated animals (and not only animals), killer robots, radiation, crazy religious cults, outdated technology that will most likely fail you and plenty of deadly diseases. Also, the only food that you will find are either 200 year old frozen dishes or meat of unknown origin. Either way, the best option is cannibalism.
And not one of these examples are coming from an overly-troped future that has humanity that is just barely above the primitive stage of development. Not to mention that THIS GAME already has not one, but two oppressive sets of zones (Rogue Isles and Praetoria, especially 1st ward).Quote:Originally Posted by Tenzhi
And John McClane was just a dude with a gun and no shoes having a really bad day. More than once.
Dr. Henry Jones, Jr was just a dude with a whip fetish and a penchant for running afoul of Nazis.
Alex Murphy was just a good cop who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
And let's not get into the depressing life of Martin Riggs.
Many action heroes have (or have had) tough lives.
http://www.google.com/search?um=1&tb...st+apocalypticQuote:Originally Posted by Tenzhi
My point is that I've only rarely run across a post-apocalyptic setting that manages to *be* depressing, regardless of what may or may not be implied. -
Quote:tvtrope's City of Heroes listing.Originally Posted by Saint Valencrime
I have been reading through the TV Tropes list of stereotypes for heros and villains.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.ph...n.CityOfHeroes -
Quote:You do realize that you could have suggested ballet costumes and still would have come out ahead, right? I'm positive that who was presenting the ideas actually factored into the audience approval of the suggestions.Originally Posted by Equation
On a more serious note, I wanted to thank everyone who liked my proposal for the Post-Apoc set. I am honestly shocked it made it to the final 3, considering some amazing concepts were put up there. In all honesty, I thought Aztec / Mayan was going to get it. I felt it would have fit thematically as a follow-up to Imperial Dynasty.
And has been done to death. No, wait... It was done to death, buried, left to rot for the last 5 years, then forcibly dug out of the earth and assembled with spit and paper.Quote:Originally Posted by Golden Girl
Actually, it combined a pretty wide scope of visually distinctive peices combined with pretty flexible uses - which is something that the other 2 sets didn't offer.
I'm actually shocked and dismayed that Fabulous had put forth such a tired and cliched trope. Especially since it is almost always portrayed with drab and muted earth/dirt tones.
Edit:
If there is one genre that I despise, it has to be "post apocalyptic". It is almost uniformly depressing. The whole artistic movement has people with no imagination other than to see how much blood can be splattered or how much the human race has been "wrong" about whatever the artist has a beef over. -
Quote:It was as much a "social space" as a guys urinal at a stadium. It has always been a place to go, get your business done, then leave.Originally Posted by Nethergoat
I'm not sure where y'all are getting the notion that the market isn't supposed to be a social space when that's *exactly* what it's been since the invention system was introduced.
Before the /ah command, people had to deal with constant noise (from people leaving toggles on) and other annoyances. I can't remember any point where Triumph's markets were considered a "social space" so it isn't smaller servers.Quote:Originally Posted by Tidbit Jr.
Maybe this is just a thing that happens on smaller population servers, but the markets on Pinnacle and Liberty appear to be the exact opposite of a "social space." The most chatter you'll see is from the NPCs that pass by.
Yeah, that has always been my impression.Quote:Originally Posted by Aggelakis
On no server is WW, or has WW ever been, a place to stand around chatting with random passersby. -
Quote:They keep their mod status, yes, but they can't actually mod the channel. All channel mod commands are VIP-Only.Originally Posted by Aggelakis
In fact, I think Exalted server, Incarnates, creating/modding global channels, and the SG registrar are the only things in-game that are restricted to subs (and folks who are mods as a VIP and drop to preemie keep their mod status!).
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Quote:As the person that posted that guide, I'd like to thank you for moving your rant out of the guide. You also seem to have completely missed the point of that guide. It was for what PREMIUMS get at various tiers, not what VIPs get at various tiers.Originally Posted by SortaKinda
I found a great post describing what a Premium member gets at the various Tiers, if they decide they never want to spend any more money, either in the store, or on a subscription.
Considering their focus is on a steady income stream from subscribers, your reasoning is completely faulty.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
I felt myself thinking that eventually a person should be able to achieve Incarnate status as a Premium member, and honestly, that nothing should be encouraging a person to spend money at a certain point except on items from the store.
I doubt that you are interested though. You want more for players that aren't customers. They aren't subscribers, they do not have to pay to play 95% of the game.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
Okay, so devs, ask yourself: Is this model maybe a bit TOO greedy? I'm going to suggest the answer is yes, and explain why. Feel free to offer your counterpoints, if you have any. I'm sure many would be interested in what you have to say.
The same premiums that don't care to spend money on a subscription? If the Premium account isn't willing to spend money on a subscription, why should they receive the benefits?Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
It's come to my attention that your Premium customers are not getting anything close to a full value for their investment, whether they are starting today, or have been subscribing for years. Here's why:
That is why they have the Tier 9 VIP rewards and the repeatable Tier 9 choices. They are an incentive (something that you seem to have discounted) to staying subscribed.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
Let's say for a minute that you've been playing since day 1, never let your subscription lapse, have everything you can possibly think of in terms of game items, and still continue to pay for whatever new doodad they come up with in the Store. This person is your cash cow. They aren't going anywhere, and many might feel they have had good reason to leave over the years, but still they remain loyal. Then you tell them that, even though they have what, 40 tokens leftover (I have no idea how many would be left after you fill Tier 9), they still cannot play their Incarnates unless they subscribe, which is a minimum of $12 or so a month, if they pay a year at a time, and $16ish for the "common man" who pays month to month because he/she wants to keep the lights on.
I'm confused... Who exactly are you saying is getting short changed? Premiums or VIPs?Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
I guess what I'm saying is that nothing that you're offering to VIPs is all that special, apart from being an Incarnate, and the rest adds up to far less value than whatever they are paying a month.
It is kind of hard to take you seriously when it seems that you don't seem to know exactly what you are ranting about.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
I doubt you'll take me seriously when I tell you this, and that's fine.
Given comments from the developers, their subscriber base isn't slipping that much.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
There's an organic, cooperative way to do business, then there's the wrong way. If you feel like your subscriber base is suddenly slipping
In other words you want something for nothing.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
Symptoms such as these often distract from the core problem, which I think in this case is not realizing that people have already spent quite a bit of time and money on this game, and should, at some magical dollar amount, be able to play their Incarnates at full power.
Free access to Signature Story Arcs is a perk to keep you subscribing. Each one added increases value to my subscription dollar.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
I don't argue that Signature Story Arcs are fine to place in the store, and as I write this, they are on sale (all seven) for 1200 points. This is EXACTLY the way to go about it. $5 is maybe a little high for some, but eventually if a person is patient, they can get it for less than half that.
How about losing their core customer base?Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
There absolutely no reason not to implement this strategy, preferably at Tier8, and lump that lame Large Inspiration bonus in at some lower Tier.
They value customers that remain customers. Any account that isn't buying something (ie. getting access to incentives like the Incarnate System, Signature Story Arcs, or other bonuses) is a drain on resources. With your suggestion, you remove incentives to be a VIP while not suggesting anything that would bring in money for lost revenue from players maintaining their subscriptions.Quote:Originally Posted by SortaKinda
PS: Content was slightly edited from my original post, but the core message is the same. Again, I invite someone in a position to debate these arguments to show me why this model would not net you as much or more money than you could ever expect to get with your existing one. Every company, including this one, says they value their long-standing customers, but they never quite implement a model that backs it up. Talk is cheap. Let's see some action. -
Quote:I think you missed the extended shoulders, but others have posted versions of those (asymmetrical left OR right shoulders even).Originally Posted by VKhaun
K I think that's the last of them.
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Quote:Each account can only buy 1 of any specific costume, 1 of any specific power set, and hundreds of packs. If a player had to buy the costume for each character or the power set for only a specific character, you'd still not equal the number of units moved potential of super packs (even without the trickery of "cards sold" vs "packs sold"). When some players have opened 500 packs (2,500 cards to use Paragon Studios' claim) on live, there is no way possible to compare sales of any account wide purchases with the consumable items. Only consumable items with dismal performance records should be lower than the account wide item sales.Originally Posted by Golden Girl
I think that a more important question would be how a group that's claimed to be only subset of the player base managed to force the Superpacks to the top of the sales chart above every single power set and costume bundle, when those apparently generate far more hype and anticipation, and require quite a few less units to be sold to make the same amount as the Superpacks have made - they need to sell 8 Superpacks just to match the amount they make from the sale of one power set.
The fact that things like enhancement boosters, store bought inspirations, and store bought enhancements aren't performing as well as costume parts or power sets should be red flags shouting to the marketing and business groups that the items are far too overpriced for their performance in the players view.
Also, partly this:
Exactly. Then again, I don't expect some players to exercise any measure of critical thinking. Especially the "shut up and take my money crowd".Quote:Originally Posted by Agent White
That's simple. Super packs are cheap and designed to be purchased in bulk. If 10 players buy the same power set, that's only 10 units sold. If only 5 players buy 5 super packs, that's 25 units sold. So it's extremely easy for superpacks to outstrip everything in terms of quantity sold.
Only that it is still "under discussion".Quote:Originally Posted by TheJazMan
Hey thanks for the info. I guess he didn't provide any sort of timetable.
Not exactly free, but I wouldn't be adverse to a graduated release of the packs (Tier 9 VIP for a time, VIP only for a time, available to all).Quote:Originally Posted by TheJazMan
I am all for tier 9 rewards etc but when it's some of the best stuff they've made then it really is a piss off. I'll likely never get there and I am a subscriber/VIP. So odd. I think these packs would make a killing at the store. Also, tier 9s shouldn't be too annoyed at having these costumes in the store since they're getting them for FREE and before the rest of us (non-tier 9s)!
Nope. I expected that they would (a) sell a lot of them to a percentage of the players and (b) have to inflate numbers ("cards" vs "packs") to justify more. Basically they sold 1 card for every character created 5 years ago (actually in 2007 they had 3.6 million characters created).Quote:Originally Posted by EarthWyrm
I hope nobody was actually surprised that the best selling item in a store whose model is kind optimized for micro-transactions was the most generally useful micro-priced item they've put in it. -
Quote:Yeah, that is what I was getting at:Originally Posted by Shadow Wail
Not I, what I want to know more is how many accounts have bought multiple, how many accounts owned by the same person/family bought them to see if they are wide sellers or by small group?
How many master accounts buying how many Super Packs broken into Paragon Points vs Paragon Rewards would paint a true picture of the Super Packs health. By saying 3,000,000 cards (not packs, but cards) they are going out of their way to portray the packs in the best possible light. What, exactly are they trying to hide? That only a subset of players/accounts are bothering with these?
They already said on Wednesday's Ustream that they wouldn't be releasing those details. I know, I specifically asked Zwillinger that and that was his reply.Quote:Originally Posted by TheJazMan
I can't believe they didn't mention of non-tier 9 VIPs will be able to buy the mech and celestial costume sets. These have to be some of their best work ever and beats stuff like retro sci-fi and other recent costume packs.
I don't think anyone could do that.Quote:Originally Posted by TwoHeadedBoy
Oh, and a bonus 200 million inf. if you can keep your thread devoid of "
" faces, Golden Girl posts, and generally people sniping at and arguing with each other for pages on end about disagreements they had about stuff/things that I don't care about. -
Quote:Faulty premise. People got the /ah command specifically to avoid the situation that you want, so /unsigned.Originally Posted by Nethergoat
I really love /ah and wouldn't trade it for anything.
But I miss being able to pop in to Wentworths and find a bunch of folk hanging out doing their thing. IMHO the game needs *more* public gathering places where your character can feel like part of an actual CITY of Heroes.
Not a problem, so /unsigned.Quote:Originally Posted by Nethergoat
So, how to incentivize players actually using the actual market locations?
It isn't a good Inf Sink, so /unsigned.Quote:Originally Posted by Nethergoat
Well, I'm glad you asked...
A convenience fee on remote transactions!
In a world were banks happily charge you $2 to pull $20 out of their ATM, surely the Market deserves to gouge for the unparalleled utility of the remote AH screen!
A small, flat fee would make the physical market more attractive without putting a serious dent in the utility of /ah. Also, INF SINK!
Say, 5 or 10 inf per transaction?
This has got to be one of the worst suggestions I've seen on these forums. -
Quote:Still need to see how many unique accounts. They also could tell us the average number of packs needed to get the full costume set (it isn't the first 15 packs) or the black wolf pet.Originally Posted by Golden Girl
I thought it was quite interesting that Superpacks are the number 1 seller in the market, ahead of any power set or costume pack.
They have access to that information.
The reason why I'm asking that is that if players are getting the full costume and then buying more packs, that means that they shouldn't have a problem releasing the costumes after a period of time.
They could do this:- 0-6 Months exclusive to Super Packs.
- Next 3-6 months on the market for VIPs only.
- Next 3-6 months on the market for everyone.
I know a few players that spent over $200 on the packs. However that isn't a lot of players. A lot of people I've talked to haven't bought any. A few players have bought a couple packs, one or two with Paragon Reward Tokens (not with points).Quote:Originally Posted by NuclearToast
This was a huge surprise to me too, although I don't like them and am probably biased. -
3,000,000 Cards from super packs... So they sold 600,000 packs. However they should be looking at the number of unique accounts buying the packs. Now, for those that haven't bought the packs, what plans are they going to put in place for players to get the costumes/etc from the packs?
Quote:BIO armor, not "Bile".Originally Posted by Psychoti
-Zwill asks us to try to be surprised when Posi announces the new upcoming powersets Water Blast, Nature Affinity, Bio Armor. -
Quote:Originally Posted by Hube02
Is there a badge associated with this event?Actual badge name highlighted. Yes, it is a meme, but that is the actual badge name.Quote:Originally Posted by Blondeshell
Yes, but it's A Nemesis Plot.
Blondeshell has said the badge name...Quote:Originally Posted by Mr_Morbid
There is if there are lots of Fake Nemeses in it. And that they're the kind that count. -
Quote:'Tis a Nemesis Plot that has gone uncaught.Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Last I checked, that wasn't "fixed." Not sure the devs think its broken either.
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Quote:What yacht was the despot's subplot? Nemesis mascot "Garrote" was within earshot. Distraught, the big-shot wrought a plot for naught. The upshot of the handwrought plot by the crackpot was an ascot with an inkblot that was brought to Foxtrot. The robot remains uncaught.Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Nemesis Yacht.
Nemesis Bought.
Nemesis Overwrought.
Nemesis Blind Spot.
Nemesis Distraught.
Nemesis Train of Thought.
Nemesis Trot.
Nemesis forgot?
Nemesis Long shot.
Nemesis Plot!
Nemesis Haught. -
Quote:I only bought the 1 extra Enhancement Tray too... with saved points. Other priorities came into play so I hope the other stuff goes on sale again later.Originally Posted by Kheldarn
Welp. It's only 25% off, but it's on sale. I bought ONE extra Enhancement Tray thingy for each account.
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Quote:I prefer Blaster Master:Originally Posted by Zwillinger
You cannot defeat Master Blaster!
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Quote:Not so odd when you consider what I was making a homage of:Originally Posted by OmnipotentMerlin
Is it me or does this remind me of a anime where you have to get in the suits naked. Sorry that one picture with skin makes it look like she isn't wearing anything under the suit, which isn't that odd with some of the animes out there.
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Quote:Sadly, at this point, the answer is "no".Originally Posted by Leo_G
I wonder if those head details are available for half-helms.
However, you can mix sets still.
The chest & legs for the top left is, of course "tights sleek". -
Solution: don't use the web-based ustream chat.
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Quote:My setup for UStream:Originally Posted by Kheprera
Normally I watch the Ustream on my phone while on lunch at work. Not today. Last week I spent the whole time fighting Ustream to get chat, voice, OR some sort of video... I could manage one, but not two and all three was Ustream laughing in my face as it kept logging me out.
Firefox 3.5.8 with Adblock Plus. I don't see video ads at all.
I use a free separate chat client, Icechat. Icechat is a generic IRC client. I only have to log in once, and I see the chat that gets disrupted by the UStream web chat client forgetting the login.
See the above. I don't ever see live stream ads with the coffee talk.Quote:Originally Posted by Kheprera
Generally it takes me 30 minutes to get going merely because of how the Ustream ads work and show up on the screen.
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How to set up an IRC client with Ustream.
IRC clients are not officially supported by Ustream, but you can configure them to sign in.
The benefits are many:
Once you've got it set up, you don't have to mess with Ustream's web chat client logging you out randomly.
You don't have to worry about not being seen by the Ustream chat.
Able to have the IRC client sit on a top window while surfing the forums.
Able to customize your chat stream preferences (ie. colors).
Able to go buffer more of the chat stream.
Able to save the chat stream for later.
There are a few downsides though:
No fancy Ustream icons unless you get an IRC client that also does emotes. *
A bit complicated to set up.
* I use IceChat7, which does allow you to use emotes, and add custom emotes so you can get similar emotes with what Ustream has. However that is even more complicated than just setting up the client.
What you need to know:
Your Ustream Nickname and Password. Sign up to ustream first if you haven't got a ustream account.
IRC Server: chat1.ustream.tv
Chat Server Port: 6667
Channel name: #paragon-studios
Your nickname: Your Ustream Nickname
Server Password: Your Ustream Password -
Quote:Zwillinger said they wont likely be in Super Packs as they cease being incentives to buy the packs if the suck... erm... paying customer already has the incentive item.Originally Posted by Nericus
Super Packs? Contest for a code that unlocks the costume set on your account? Anniversary rewards?
I suspect it would be one of the above. -
Quote:2, 4, and 5.Originally Posted by Yogi_Bare
For sure, pics 2, 3 and 4 all have 'cupholders'. Picture #3, the pilot fits in the chest, and there is an opening in the neck to look out.
Reference for scale:
The reason I included this one was that the main character (female) was literally in love with her mech.
I love the series for the near future portrayal of mecha. Though I wonder why they have a revolver or shotgun for main weapons.
Assault = Assault Rifle powers. Any AT that can use the Assault Rifle can use this.Quote:Originally Posted by M_I_Abrahms
This is probably a minor point, but after the dust up about Robots Master Minds not getting the new Beam Rifle skins I feel it's important to note that the Assault Rifle *is* available for Robots and Mercs and the Pistols are available for Thugs.
Beam = Beam Rifle.
Pulse = Pulse Rifle (aka Bots Master Minds).
Pistols are pistols, so it doesn't matter if the power set is Dual Pistols or Thugs MMs.