Poll - What would you like to be included in a subscription?

atomzed

I posted this suggestion in another thread, and thought that it may be worth it to get everyone's opinions.

The original post is here:

atomzed wrote:

I have been mulling over the subscription model for a while and I think it will work for Mpq.

The challenge is to have a model that provides value to the subscribers.

Besides Iso and tokens, there are also other stuff that provide value. Some of the things I can think of:-

1) Free 3x 3hr shield per week (roughly correspond to 1shield per pvp)
2) free health packs
3) increased health packs limit (ie when you subscribe 1 week, that week your health pack limit increase by 1; when subscription ceased you go back to 5)
4) Free 3x All boosts per week
5) increased chance of 3* tokens (maybe double the chance)

The last but most important suggestion is this:
6) subscription allows you to have no limit on your roster size. Once you cease subscription, your roster goes back to normal. This encourage whales to keep spending as they can now try collect-em-all. While it may cannibalize initial sales, I think they will break even with just 2 weeks of subscription.

The subscription need not be a flat sum but customisable. You can have 1 package for pvp and 1 package for pve centric players.

Finally, the UI do not need to change much. Instead of a true subscription model (which needs to be charged to a credit card and may be messy), they can create a store which they purchased this benefits. Once purchase, the benefits last you for a week. If you buy it every week, then the benefits will last you for every week that you purchased.

For the sake of discussion, lets assume a relatively cheap subscription of $0.99 per week. Which are the top 3 items that you would like to see included in a subscription model?

Feel free to give other suggestions too.

Twysta

I don't see any of those things being in a subscription.
It would be my expectation that it would mean free entry to all ELITE events and access to perhaps cosmetic changes, like new backgrounds or themes - possibly character skins and animations.
An argument could be made for reductions in skip tax and ISO-8 drop boosts.

Although I don't see them making a premium feature as they seem to make the strangest decisions that affect gameplay and a subscription service is probably too much work for them considering the timespan it takes for them to implement the smallest changes.
With that said, they don't like to make "small" changes either, no slight nerfs, buffs of tweaks... no instant introduction of a delete button or a single change to a malfunctioning ability of countdown tile... instead always making things harder for themselves by trying to do too much at once. I don't know if it's because they're trying to be clever or think that's a better policy to change multiple things instead of one at a time????

However my expectations don't match what I would like.
If I were to subscribe I'd -

a) a lapdance
b) a coupon for a comic or 6
c) instant customer support

all of which I'm never going to get

Twysta

...and maybe some fries and a shake.

atomzed

Added some suggestions from twysta

IamTheDanger

How about a $0.99 weekly subscription that gives you double or triple daily rewards. So instead of getting 25 Hp today, I would get 50 or 75. Instead of getting 1 X Force cover, I get 2 or 3.

Also, instead of $0.99 it could cost Hp. And the infinite roster size is a great idea. That's something I'd subscribe for.

mjh

the token has to guarantee a 3* cover, period.

MojoWild

Why are we even entertaining the notion of paying for a subscription?! When has anything related to a profit increase benefited players? You THINK they will make it worthwhile, but until they fix so many other things, you're just going to be paying more for the same aggravation...

darthmental

Why are we even talking about this?

This is a terrible idea. Even if there was a subscription or free option, the devs would assuredly skew the game so that to be competitive you would need to have an ongoing subscription.

Please don't give them any more bright ideas.

Beast1970

I'd pay for the lapdance option...

Unknown

Why is there no lapdance option on the poll? (pole?)

GothicKratos

Realistically, it depends on the price point/time interval. A week seems like a really small time span for a subscription and as a lot of people have pointed out, subscriptions are generally automated memberships.

That being said, I don't think this idea is without merit. I feel like little 'combo packs' for like $5 that gave you say 100 Hero Points, 2000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, and 1 Heroic Token are something that would be a worthwhile investment. Scale them up as the price point increases; $10 could net you say 250 Hero Points, 5000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, 1 Damage Boost, and a token that would give a 3* or better. $25 could give you 750 Hero Points, 100000 ISO-8, 6 Rainbow Boosts, 3 Damage Boosts, and a 4* cover. (These are just random metrics, I'm not claiming these are necessarily worth the price point.)

If they wanted to go with an actual subscription model though, it would have to be something reasonable. I'll use a game I used to play a lot as an example. The game was called Triple Triad Extreme (Dark Winds in earlier iterations) and we had four "Memberships"; Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Power User. We also had two forms of currency (GP/Gold, AP/Silver) and "Tokens" (which were exchangeable for cards). The way it worked was each membership gave you; /x/ amounts of Tokens, /x/ amount of AP, /x/ amount of Gold, %/x/ increase in Gold income, %/x/ amount of EXP income. They cost $5, $10, $15, and $20 dollars respectively.

Spoiler is a break down of the rewards.

A card pack cost about 1200 Gold on average, so even with five dollars, you got at least two packs right from the get go. That felt good. Tokens could effectively get you any card in the game - and yes, you could cherry pick. 1 Token could get you any card from Level 1 to Level 7 (which were the "average" cards"), 2 Tokens could get you any Level 8 or Level 9 ("above average"), 3 Tokens could get you any Level Ten ("best"), and then 4 tokens could get you special Token-only cards that were a small cut above normal level tens (but not game breaking). So if you really wanted a card or you only needed specific cards to finish a deck, you could just give the RNG the finger and grab it or opt to get a neat SE/EC like Triforce that was a cut above the rest of the card collection. It felt not only rewarding instantly, but it felt like it was worth the money. Everything about it was notable (except AP, but that was because AP itself wasn't notable). You noticed the increased gold and exp gains. Some of us even charted it at one point and were flabbergasted. Keeping in mine Triple Triad is a game placed on a 3x3 board. A match takes a couple minutes, so that percentile added up ridiculously fast.

Just some food for thought.

atomzed

GothicKratos wrote:

That being said, I don't think this idea is without merit. I feel like little 'combo packs' for like $5 that gave you say 100 Hero Points, 2000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, and 1 Heroic Token are something that would be a worthwhile investment. Scale them up as the price point increases; $10 could net you say 250 Hero Points, 5000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, 1 Damage Boost, and a token that would give a 3* or better. $25 could give you 750 Hero Points, 100000 ISO-8, 6 Rainbow Boosts, 3 Damage Boosts, and a 4* cover. (These are just random metrics, I'm not claiming these are necessarily worth the price point.)

Yeah kratos, this is exactly what I have in mind. Maybe subscription may not even be the right choice of words. A humble bundle may be good enough.

The subscription description probably apply to those benefits that have a duration, say the increased roster spot suggestion.

Really, at the end of it, my suggestion is meant to be win win for D3 and customers. D3 get a new way of monetization whereas the customers get more.value.for.money.

MojoWild

atomzed wrote:

GothicKratos wrote:

That being said, I don't think this idea is without merit. I feel like little 'combo packs' for like $5 that gave you say 100 Hero Points, 2000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, and 1 Heroic Token are something that would be a worthwhile investment. Scale them up as the price point increases; $10 could net you say 250 Hero Points, 5000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, 1 Damage Boost, and a token that would give a 3* or better. $25 could give you 750 Hero Points, 100000 ISO-8, 6 Rainbow Boosts, 3 Damage Boosts, and a 4* cover. (These are just random metrics, I'm not claiming these are necessarily worth the price point.)

Yeah kratos, this is exactly what I have in mind. Maybe subscription may not even be the right choice of words. A humble bundle may be good enough.

The subscription description probably apply to those benefits that have a duration, say the increased roster spot suggestion.

Really, at the end of it, my suggestion is meant to be win win for D3 and customers. D3 get a new way of monetization whereas the customers get more.value.for.money.

But I don't want to spend money.

Unknown

I realize this is a what-if, but why would anyone give this company money or trust anything they say?

atomzed

MojoWild wrote:

atomzed wrote:

GothicKratos wrote:

That being said, I don't think this idea is without merit. I feel like little 'combo packs' for like $5 that gave you say 100 Hero Points, 2000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, and 1 Heroic Token are something that would be a worthwhile investment. Scale them up as the price point increases; $10 could net you say 250 Hero Points, 5000 ISO-8, 3 Rainbow Boosts, 1 Damage Boost, and a token that would give a 3* or better. $25 could give you 750 Hero Points, 100000 ISO-8, 6 Rainbow Boosts, 3 Damage Boosts, and a 4* cover. (These are just random metrics, I'm not claiming these are necessarily worth the price point.)

Yeah kratos, this is exactly what I have in mind. Maybe subscription may not even be the right choice of words. A humble bundle may be good enough.

The subscription description probably apply to those benefits that have a duration, say the increased roster spot suggestion.

Really, at the end of it, my suggestion is meant to be win win for D3 and customers. D3 get a new way of monetization whereas the customers get more.value.for.money.

But I don't want to spend money.

And it seems like the majority who responded to this thread and other thread fall into this category.

Duly noted.

*shrug*

Now I understand the rationale of some of D3 decisions.

Unknown

I would quit if this happened. To keep the game from becoming not only p2w but pay to enjoy, they would have to eliminate in app purchases with this addition. I'd rather just pay when I want/need hp or other stuff, not when I'm told to. But of course, d3 would keep IAP with this, so only whales would be able to enjoy the game. It's just a bad idea

Unknown

Unlimited roster isn't going to work because after the subscription ends, what happens to those covers? inb4 they go to the recruit hero queue. It would just introduce a lot of unnecessary problems and setup disaster. Additional health pack slots would be cool, but I think the community would only be on board if the slots were permanent. 3x all boosts are pretty plentiful and an unlimited supply could make things look too P2W for some people. 3 hour shields are already cheap, so I don't really see how a combo or subscription would make any sense. An increased drop/pull rate as a "subscription" just isn't going to work. I'll save up all of my tokens to dump during one subscription. ISO and tokens? Maybe, but they'd have to be offering a pretty hefty discount. An endless and/or time attack mode would be a nice addition, don't see why it would need to be subscription based though. I don't know how new character skins would work since the in-game art is based on the hero's cover art, but maybe some different attack animations or something (same length only). A one time fee would probably be better for that though. If there were more frequent buy-in events, I guess it could work, but the rewards would have to be upped quite a bit for me to invest in a subscription since I'd be going in blind.

I think it would be best if any "subscriptions" were on-demand and based on the timer system, so the game didn't look any more P2P or P2W. IMO, the 2 color boosts that cost ISO would be the best choice for a subscription. Make them unlimited for a week's time at $x.xx or x HP. Personally, I wouldn't go anywhere near a subscription unless it was purchasable by Hero Points.

What they need to do is introduce a purchasable 3 star only token at a cost of ~750HP. Then give a free token for every x amount of gold covers bought (the 1250/2500 HP upgrades). I would hope it would be 1:1 for 3 stars and 2:1 for 4 stars but double that might work too. That's what it would take for me to buy my first cover. 1250 for a single cover? Nah. 1250 for a useful cover and a chance at another? Maybe.

I understand there would be no reason for them to do it, but a pass for PvE subs would be nice too. Maybe you are feeling lazy, don't have time, or aren't able to play a sub. A pass would give you the same score as the rank 50th guy in your bracket at the end of a sub. It would not change your actual position inside of the sub for others' reward purposes. It would only add to your alliance and main bracket score. I don't think it could be considered P2W because a consistent rank 50 wouldn't be enough to net you the highest main bracket rewards. The mirrored position # could be adjusted but you get the idea.

GothicKratos

Typhon13 wrote:

I would quit if this happened. To keep the game from becoming not only p2w but pay to enjoy, they would have to eliminate in app purchases with this addition. I'd rather just pay when I want/need hp or other stuff, not when I'm told to. But of course, d3 would keep IAP with this, so only whales would be able to enjoy the game. It's just a bad idea

I don't think anyone here is talking about a mandatory subscription.

Nonce Equitaur 2

With great purchasing comes great reciprocity.

I wouldn't pay for a subscription for any of the reasons listed here. There is one thing most players want.

Keeping the game alive

If Demiurge decided the Marvel license renewal cost too much in October 2014 and decided to pull the plug, this online-only game would cease to exist.

First business quarter, Oct 2013 - Dec 2013. A ton of new content and lots of forum openness from the devs.
Second business quarter, Jan 2014 - Mar 2014. A lot of new content and lots of forum openness from the devs.
Third business quarter, Apr 2014 - Jun 2014. One new event (Prodigal Sun, May 16). Added She-Hulk, Human Torch, Nick Fury, Sentry. Forum discussion drops sharply
Fourth business quarter, Jul 2014 - Sep 2014. One new event (Deadpool vs MPQ, Aug 1). Added Captain Marvel, Deadpool. Forum discussions a couple days each month.

The decline of creativity, effort, and discussion doesn't bode well for a subscription model.

I'm looking for signs that the game will still be around after Season V. If D3 was serious about keeping the game around, they would do the various balancing that they've long promised to do. They would stay engaged on the forum. If they intended to kill it in October, they would stop spending time on the forum and not bother with any sort of game balancing. They would churn gears with programming experiments useful for other games, but they wouldn't bother much with testing or corrections for this one.

Go look at the change in tone of developer messages from quarter to quarter. They barely even make official announcements now.

What would I subscribe to?

Developer enthusiasm and engagement.

atomzed

turbo wrote:

Unlimited roster isn't going to work because after the subscription ends, what happens to those covers? inb4 they go to the recruit hero queue. It would just introduce a lot of unnecessary problems and setup disaster.

My idea was that if the subscription ends, you have 3 days to decide which heroes you want to delete. If you don't delete any within the 3 days, then it will delete the a) least levelled characters or b) the least covered characters. Kinda like the tokens that sit inside your stash, with an expiry limit, but in a reverse order.

Technical issues aside, this is meant to be a discussion of ideas. So barring any technical interface issues, would you support such a benefit for the 'subscription'?

turbo wrote:

3x all boosts are pretty plentiful and an unlimited supply could make things look too P2W for some people.

The 3x all boosts are NOT supposed to be unlimited. In the proposal, you only get 3x all boosts per pvp. Hardly meta changing.

turbo wrote:

3 hour shields are already cheap, so I don't really see how a combo or subscription would make any sense.

Why would it make sense? It make sense to buy it when the 'bundle' is value for money.

For example, i usually use 1 to 2 shields per pvp. That translates to a 150 HP expenditure per pvp.

If a 'bundle' (i think this is a better word) that gives 1 shield, 3x all boost at a cost of 80 HP, i would buy it. Reason being that a shield cost 75 and each all boost cost 30 HP, so buying this 'bundle' gives me a cost savings of 25HP. For D3, they made an additional income of 5 HP because i probably would not have buy the all boosts.

BUT! If majority of people just want more stuff without paying a single cent, then its up to D3 to find a balance to monetize the game and allowing F2P players to compete. Thus far, i think they are doing a decent job.

atomzed

turbo wrote:

Unlimited roster isn't going to work because after the subscription ends, what happens to those covers? inb4 they go to the recruit hero queue. It would just introduce a lot of unnecessary problems and setup disaster.

My idea was that if the subscription ends, you have 3 days to decide which heroes you want to delete. If you don't delete any within the 3 days, then it will delete the a) least levelled characters or b) the least covered characters. Kinda like the tokens that sit inside your stash, with an expiry limit, but in a reverse order.

Technical issues aside, this is meant to be a discussion of ideas. So barring any technical interface issues, would you support such a benefit for the 'subscription'?

turbo wrote:

3x all boosts are pretty plentiful and an unlimited supply could make things look too P2W for some people.

The 3x all boosts are NOT supposed to be unlimited. In the proposal, you only get 3x all boosts per pvp. Hardly meta changing.

turbo wrote:

3 hour shields are already cheap, so I don't really see how a combo or subscription would make any sense.

Why would it make sense? It make sense to buy it when the 'bundle' is value for money.

For example, i usually use 1 to 2 shields per pvp. That translates to a 150 HP expenditure per pvp.

If a 'bundle' (i think this is a better word) that gives 1 shield, 3x all boost at a cost of 80 HP, i would buy it. Reason being that a shield cost 75 and each all boost cost 30 HP, so buying this 'bundle' gives me a cost savings of 25HP. For D3, they made an additional income of 5 HP because i probably would not have buy the all boosts.

BUT! If majority of people just want more stuff without paying a single cent, then its up to D3 to find a balance to monetize the game and allowing F2P players to compete. Thus far, i think they are doing a decent job.