White Hot Flash

It's only gambling if there's a good chance you'll get nothing for your money. I'm sorry if you think that enhancement unslotters, super inspirations, etc., are nothing, but just because you don't like what you bought, it doesn't make it gambling. You still bought something useful, just not useful to you.

I bought baseball card packs as a kid, and though I got a bunch of players I didn't care one way or the other about, it wasn't gambling then, and it's not now.

Try using a less inflammatory, and more appropriate term to describe your displeasure with the superpack system. Don't like the way the system works, don't use it. Pretty easy when it's optional, even if you like the costume.

So, we're getting upset for being (Temporarily) penalized for not reading the helpful clues? Heaven forbid there should be consequences that are non-positive. Your incarnate level-shifted uber-selves won't notice.

I got the ritual wrong the first time (did the mumbling), got the debuff, got it right the second time, and didn't even notice the debuff (if it was still there) in the next mission.

It's not as big a deal as some folks make it sound, which is the way it is with just about everything in this game that folks take offense to.

If this penalizes folks for not reading, I say "Good job, Devs." Let's have some more.

Sam, I see your comments about wanting to avoid "playing the market" to, but you can still use it and not play the "market game." Just figure out what you want to purchase, put in a reasonable (to you) bid, and pick it up whenever it fills. You don't have to be on the market creeping up your bids, you don't have to research price vs level, or any of that.

I craft recipes that I can't use when they drop on me and sell them, no matter how much or little profit they might make. I don't try to mess with the bids, I don't flip, I don't do anything but sell what I don't want, and buy what I can slot right then. I make decent Inf, but I'm not a billionaire on every character.

The market is a useful tool. Treat it like a tool, and not a game, and it should appeal to your sensibilities just fine.

To me, what was important about Statesman was that he was, in this universe, the original hero. He was revered by the legions of heroes that would follow, or at least inspired them in some way to become a hero themselves. Yes, his powers were standard for the genre, but before he became jaded by decades of watching his friends and family die around him while he continued to live, he was the guy everyone looked to, and when the Rikti came, he became that again.

I think it's sad that what happened with a developer (using Statesman as an identifier) caused so much backlash on the character itself because people couldn't separate game from real life.

As far as the story arc goes, I think his death would have had more impact if we'd seen him in action in earlier installments, rather than just be told that he disappeared and was doing his own thing while his Phalanx was being attacked.

Have people lost sight of the optional nature of this whole thing, or is it because there is something desired within the packs that flips it to required?

Ask yourself this:

Can I play the game without this "required" item?

If yes, then it's not required. If no, how are you playing now without it?


This seems like a huge waste of angst for something that is entirely skippable without missing a beat.

In my experience, speed ITFs were only marginally faster than a kill-most or kill-all, and the potential rewards you'd get for defeating more enemies negates the time you might save.

I've never understood the fascination with trying to run something 5 or 10 minutes faster, especially the ITF.



Other TFs or trials might see a difference in speeding or not, but I think you should probably take each one as their own case. Some are worth speeding through and some aren't.

I gotta go with:

If rewards are what you're doing story arcs for, you will be disappointed every time you compare them to what you'd get doing something else in the same amount of time.

Do the First Ward arcs because you enjoy the story. Do them to make it easier to gain the defeat badges, if that's your thing. Do them because you want to challenge yourself against enemies that are a bit harder than the usual fare at those levels. Don't do any arc just for the merits.

The other things you've cited, OP, fall under the "some people like it, some don't, and nothing will make everyone happy at the same time" category.

I love how the thread "topic" was about DVRs, but it's masking yet another justification of piracy/bootlegging/using illegal sites to avoid paying for movies/TV.

If you didn't pay for it and if the person you're getting it from didn't pay for it, but should have under any sane understanding of copyright/distribution law, then it's illegal and wrong. There is no justification for it. Stop trying to make one. Trying to find the line so you can tiptoe just on the edge of it is no better than blatantly stepping over it.

On "topic", DVRs are just a digital version of a VCR, with better storage and control. Most people are renting the machine from the cable/satellite company, so they don't even own what's recorded on it.

Defeat them faster. They can't hit you if they're on the floor.

Does any game that NCSoft runs use an authenticator? If there isn't one, there's your answer.

Hey, Father Xmas, any updates to your parts lists? Also, if you didn't use NewEgg, what would be your preferred second choice to buy parts from?

I think it really depends on their environments while growing up. A lot of Diana's problems stem from coming to "Man's World" as an adult. Her son wouldn't necessarily have those issues if he grew up in Metropolis, for example.

It also depends on who their other parent is. Is it another metahuman, or a normal person?

Superman's daughter would also have to carry the secret that her dad is Clark Kent (or vice versa, I suppose). That would be a tough burden. Wonder Woman doesn't disguise herself.

Clark's daughter would also have to grow into her powers as she absorbs solar energy, while Diana's son would already have everything, but lack the warrior training. Call that a push, I think. Neither one would be ready to do much fighting as kids.

Superman is a bigger target for the super-baddies than WW is, so his daughter would be in more danger by proxy. I think that's the decider. It would be tougher being his daughter.

If someone needs special events or a "keep your account active during Period X and get a Shiny" incentive just to stick around, that person probably would jump ship anyway. If the regular content doesn't sway them, nothing temporary will.

I don't think Paragon is sweating about those people.

Perhaps to avoid hurt feelings and confusion, the people putting together specialized teams should emphasize in their broadcasts for League members that they're doing Master badge runs.

Simply stating that they just want +3s seems to point more just being exclusive, rather than putting together a team for a specific reason. Information smooths out a lot of the potential confusion for those that don't know what's going on.

Heh heh. Someone threw out "common sense" and "superhero" in the same sentence.

This is a problem that exists in comic writing as well, so why would it be any different in a game based on comic book genres?