Suggestions to improve Super Packs

Another possibility is sell the "exclusive" items by Super Packs to Free and Premium payers, but make the individual components available individually at fixed, competitive price to VIPs.

I think simply making the "exculsives" only exclusive to the packs for a specific amount of time, and then available as regular-purchase items afterwards, is the most reasonable 'middle ground'...

That not only allows those of us who are adverse to rando-boxes a way to eventually access those items (and I do think it should include ALL of the exclusives - both the costume pieces and the ATIOs), it also allows the devs to cycle and refresh what they include in the packs, which will help sustain sales.

Rando-Box Set 1 might include the Particle Man costume set, the Striga temp powers and the Tank and Brute ATIOs as its exclusives, say. A few months later, they could release Rando-Box Set 2, with the Triangle Man armor, the Blaster and Corruptor ATIOs and the Preatorian gun temps... shifting the Set 1 exclusives to the regular shop.

Both they, and we, could have our cake and eat it too with that sort of set-up. Sure, Marketing would worry over losing potential rando sales because of people who had the patience to wait and eventually buy the exclusives normally... But I think it's important to stop and ask, realisitcly, how many of those people would have actually ponied up for the x-dozen packs it would have taken them to assemble the complete set in the first place (And lets be honest here, it WILL take dozens of the things to get a full set. No one should try to kid themselves about that. It's just the nature of the beast.) and how much is that potential loss off-set by their purchase of the set when it goes into the normal shop, plus additional sales from people who would never even have considered the random method?

No doubt they're better stacked, it's just that I think a lot of people would see the marginal value of the purchased boosters as being too small in comparison with the major value of just being on a steamroll or with a farm team.

I think the idea of 1 or 2 hour boosts is a good consumable.

1 or 2 hours lets the player do a solid TF or even a couple of TFs, or if they are a VIP incarnate trials.

In particular, boosts that can help bring an SO build (think free and premium players) and allow that SO build to attain some of the benefits of an IO build (better rech, damage bonuses, better defense, better recovery/endurance consumption).

I think the XP boosters could be a better value anyhow. Why are they only 25%? The booster lasts for one hour and costs 120 points, which seems a poor value to me -- it's only half the effect of patrol XP. It'd feel a lot more purchase worthy if it cost ... say, four times less, or did four times as much, or did the same for four times as long.

My opinion on how it should be.....

Super Pack's contain things like re-slotters, exp booster, Archtype Enhancements, all (booster/set) costume pieces.

Inspirations, even the super team ones, they should never be part of this, unless as an 'also' (You get five random things and the random inspiration is a stick of bubblegum)

But nothing in them should be exclusive, at least not to V.I.Ps.

Put the costume stuff in the market, if we want to just buy the elemental stuff let us.

For V.I.P have the Archytpe enhacements drop while still subscribed (heck make them purple rarity if you want, same with the salvage to supe them up.)

Freeb's and Preems, can't get the Archtype enhacements anyother way than buying the Superpack or market access.

This way you get the temptation to purchase these packs for Freebs/preems, maybe even tempt them into being v.i.p so they can get the enhancements through drops.

V.i.p, the people who you are supposed to be treating as very important, to thank them for their monthly payment, they don't feel like they have to 'pay extra to win' as they can get the stuff through normal play.

Heck you might even tempt a V.I.P or two to try their luck ina few random packs.

simple, remove the exclusivity of the parts. super packs should allow you to get the parts cheaper if gambling is your thing, but make sure players who dont gamble can buy the parts as well in a normal fashion. one way to maybe do some added value for vips is set the price high for the exclusives and give vip's a discount that would push them back to what regular price would be for comparable items. that way vips get the bonus, the gamblers still can take their shot, and non vips see one more value of being a vip. exclusivity is my stopping point, kill that and im fine with them.

one thing, i have seen people suggest paying slightly more for exclusive items relative to their non exclusive counterparts, I think that is a bad idea because it would give the appearance(if not the absolute reality) of an arbitrary price hike. at the very least vips should not have to pay more for items that are superpack exclusive than non-exclusive items of comparable value. note that i'm unsure of what an atio would be considered comparable so that allows some wiggle room, but costume sets that are exclusive to the gamble packs should not be more for vips than comparable costume packs, around 400 pts, depending on mount of parts.

Take the Magic: The Gathering 'What Color Are You?' Quiz.

Well, I posted a lot in the other thread but I might as well combine them here too.


1. Put out different series of packs specifically covering single or paired themes, where the "themed" items are the only special items that exist in that series. Examples:

* CoH: Fire and Ice (Fire and Ice costume pieces, if Tier 9 to be made available)
* CoH: Elementals (elemental costume pieces)
* CoH: Gentlemen and Gunslingers (just as an example, I know these are being released standard)
* CoH: Shamans and Sorcerers
* CoH: Attuned Scrappers and Stalkers
* CoH: Attuned Controllers and Dominators

Attuned sets are always "current." Themed costume sets may be considered "exclusive" (see point 2) until the next new set of packs comes around.

These groupings are helpful because a) players will have a better chance at rolling specifically what they want (scrappers don't have to worry about rolling MM ATIO), and b) marketing can trumpet new arrivals, bringing the packs back to the forefront every few months or so.

Oh, and in buying these packs, you are GUARANTEED to get at least one themed item per pack.

2. NONE of the special costume items or ATIO will be exclusive to these packs for VIP players. Either they will be immediately available to them in the store, or they will be added to the store after a set time (say, when one theme series is replaced as the "new" series by something else).

3. ALL of these special costume items or ATIO will be exclusive to these packs for non-VIP players. These will NOT appear in the store if you are not VIP, ever. If you are F2P/Premium and you want these, you will either buy the packs or upgrade to VIP so you can buy them.

4. F2P/Premium versions of the packs should contain goodies that may induce them into wanting to become VIP. Items could include:

* Invention licenses
* AE licenses
* SSA arcs (let them play part one, maybe they purchase more)
* Base Empowerment buff equivalents (as discussed, these may be good for *everyone*)

Wow Gec..have to say...honestly can't disagree with anything you said there, well thought out, well explained...damn.

So yeah...erm...what Gec said..

If there is nothing exclusive to Super Packs, I can deal with their presence. That is about as much support as I will ever be able to muster for this idea, because I do not spend my money on anything that has indeterminate returns.

I24 Proc Chance = (Enhanced Recharge + Activation Time) * (Current PPM * 1.25) / 60*(1 + .75*(.15*Radius - 0.011*Radius*(360-Arc)/30))
Single Target Radius = 0. AoE Non-Cone Arc = 360.

I really like some of the ideas for how Super Packs can become a welcome contribution to City Of Heroes.

You have gotten me thinking about a potential solution that would be win-win for everyone (well, except for RMTers) ...

Here's what came of yesterday's reading and pondering every forum post I could find related to Super Packs.

If I am wrong understanding factors involved, please correct me.



Purpose

Super Packs are intended by Paragon Studios to increase income via consumable items and offer exclusive content while introducing a new element into the market.

These three objectives are not bad. In fact, they could be a great way to expand interest in the game. The only major problem I see is that attempting all three at once is too much too soon.

Here's my idea on how to introduce Super Packs so that they can be welcomed by the community and be a success for The Powers That Be.



Phase 1

The prerequisite is to update the market using the good ideas for consumable market items in the UNofficial: Repeat Purchase Store Items thread. Have the average price of items to be 25 Paragon Points. By having such low prices the items become pocket change, encouraging impulse buying. Prevent exploits by modifying the in-game stats on the individual items such as cooldown and recharges as needed, plus make the items non-tradable and non-sellable. Also, descriptions need to be expanded so that the players can know what an item is without resorting to out-of-game references.

Introduce the first Pack into the Paragon Market using only existing consumable items plus small set of merits (uncommon), no guarantees as to what is included. In tribute to the consumable nature of the items included by random roll, call it the Snack Pack. Price the Snack Pack at 20 Paragon Points. Allow unwanted cards to be returned for 2 Paragon Points.

Yes, this is 5 random items for less than the cost of an average regular item. The point is to make the Snack Pack a very enticing option. Let it introduce random rolls into the Paragon Market to players who would otherwise stick to predetermined purchases. Something that players will want to grab while logging into the game.

To promote the launch of this new element, for the first week it goes live have a market item redeemable for a free Snack Pack. VIP, Premium, and Free players can "purchase" this free Snack Pack once per Account.

For further ongoing exposure, when a player checking out of the Paragon Market has items totally 400 Paragon Points or more, include an opt-in gift on the confirmation screen for a free Snack Pack. Let VIPs have a toggle option to hide the gift, while Premium players are offered the gift every time.



Phase 2

Once the Snack Pack and random rolls are an accepted part of the game after 3-4 months, introduce the Super Pack.

This Super Pack contains new costume sets (no duplicate drops), ATOs, consumable items, larger set of merits (rare), guarantee at least one rare item, and pretty much everything as currently planned for the Super Pack. Include a streak-breaker for a drop to occur each for costume sets, ATOs, and other rare/very rare items after 4 purchases without those drops; meaning that in the first 5 Super Packs a player purchases there is a guarantee for at least 1 costume piece, 1 ATO, 1 larger set of merits, etc. All items are Account locked, still non-tradable and non-sellable.

Price the Super Pack at 80 Paragon Points. Allow unwanted ATOs and other rare/very rare items to be returned for 10 Paragon Points; unwanted common/uncommon cards are still returnable for 2 Paragon Points.

Costume sets, ATOs, and other rare/very rare items are exclusive for limited durations. After a few months, add new costume sets as Super Pack items and re-release the old costume sets for direct purchase in the Paragon Market. Some players have also suggested that VIPs can purchase the rare/very rare items as direct purchases in the Paragon Market while Premium players can only purchase them through the Super Pack. Release the ATOs and other rare/very rare items (except merits) as VIP-only direct purchases for three weeks every three months -or- one week every month.

For ongoing exposure, when a player checking out of the Paragon Market has items equal to or more than 1200 Paragon Points, include an opt-in gift on the confirmation screen for a free Super Pack. Still enforce the VIPs toggle option to hide the gift, while Premium players continue to be offered the gift every time.



Prevention

There is a very real concern of valued players that their addictions would be uncontrollable with desirable content obtained via unrestricted random drops. To prevent involuntary overspending, have a maximum purchase limit of 12 Packs per day applied per Account.

As an additional safety measure, allow players to set an option for a voluntary max-purchase limit of 5 Packs per day per Master Account. Each purchase allowance is on a 20-hour cooldown timer, similar to Tip Fame points.



Solution

The keys to the success of this strategy are promotions, low cost, and limited access.

The #1 selling strategy is free samples. That's why during the busiest retail hours already crowded store aisles are further clogged by tables where sales people offer free handouts which vary from a mouthful of pizza bites to a squirt from lotion testers.

By having the Pack prices so low, those who enjoy expendable items will get to spend plentifully and become a second form of advertisement as other players in game ask, "Whoa! What was that you just did?" Those who would not normally buy temporary items will feel freer to experiment on the pocket-change items. And those who would not buy consumable items at that price would certainly never be tempted by a higher price, so they are not lost revenue. Additionally, because the consumable items are electronic their strength is in quantity sold rather than a higher-priced few.

Finally, by having limited access to the rare/very rare items outside of the Super Pack, it encourages participation without making the highly-sought favorites be prohibitively exclusive.



TL;DR Goals

Those who would never buy a random Pack for any price will be able to directly purchase what they want in bundles and a-la-carte.

Those who would enjoy the option of random Packs can enjoy the plentiful variety and lucky chances.

Paragon Studios will get paid for their content either way.

And with items being Account restricted, there is no threat of RMT exploiters.

Did I miss anyone?