Cascade of frustration

Jorit

The thing I am starting to realize with this game is they have a built in cascade of frustration.

So with the recent example. You don't complete the entire gauntlet with all the essentials so you can't get a Loki Cover (assuming you have the HP and don't already have him).

Now the next event it will be even harder/next to impossible to get that reward because he is essential to that event.

It just puts you in a cascade of failure with no "catch up point".

Most games give you a point where you can catch up through some means, even if that is HP, or doing a special adventure just to get one cover that is EASY to get. They don't seem to want to do that. Surprised they don't have something for events like this where you can spend X HP and buy just 1 cover of the hero of note (with the slot) so you can do the essential part. Wonder how many people they would get that would impulse buy just to continue on at that point.

Unknown

I completely agree. Two weeks ago, Loki wasn't worth a spot on any roster except for collectors. Now he's required to actually be able to place to get Elektra. So, it was either complete the gauntlet, which very few non-maxed rosters are able to do or get stupid lucky on token packs to get him. And i'm sure it will be the same stupid situation with DD in the near future.

To add to the frustration, Elektra will definitely be a required in the next pve essentials, again screwing you over in a domino effect. It doesn't encourage you to play.

Even if there was something like, buy a specific required cover for X hps. It would at least let you complete.

h4n1s

You are mistaken, sir. You can catch up by few means and one of them is the higher odds of drawing this character from featured token. You just have to buy it and hope the luck will be with you. Call it twisted marketing strategy, but the options are there...

Unknown

lol, yea, 4.4% max chance on minimum 10 tokens for around $30. Sigh.

nimvin

It would be awesome for these situations if they reinstituted the "guaranteed" feature char in the 10 and 42 packs like they used to do. And the 42 should guarantee one of each cover.

And for clarification I am a "collector" like the OP described. Only char I have no covers of is T4or.

Jorit

A 4% shot is not really a catch up plan no matter how you look at it.

h4n1s

Jorit wrote:

A 4% shot is not really a catch up plan no matter how you look at it.

Mwuhaha, I can't say I disagree But thats how it is designed

GrumpySmurf1002

Jorit wrote:

It just puts you in a cascade of failure with no "catch up point".

Most games give you a point where you can catch up through some means, even if that is HP, or doing a special adventure just to get one cover that is EASY to get. They don't seem to want to do that. Surprised they don't have something for events like this where you can spend X HP and buy just 1 cover of the hero of note (with the slot) so you can do the essential part. Wonder how many people they would get that would impulse buy just to continue on at that point.

You have two options in game, buy tokens until you pull her (suboptimal answer) and win a cover in the PvP following. I would all but guarantee Sentry's PvP will have Loki rewards. I can't immediately think of a PvE where the featured essential wasn't available by PvP during the event at some point.

In this case, that would mean you get Loki on the 19th, which gives you three days to play the PvE following. At that stage you'd have to look to join a fresh bracket, which may or may not be possible now with time slices.

So while it's not a pretty answer, there are options to get the cover if you really need to catch up. And FWIW, the above holds for Elektra too. Since she'll be featured in the PvE after Sentry's, you can bet there will be a PvP with her rewards coming in the next week or so as well.

Quebbster

I think that's why they feature the Essential character in PvP while the PvE is going on, so people will have another chance to get him. I was a little surprised Loki wasn't the prize in Trial by Combat, but I guess he'll be the prize in Starfall instead and the weekend tournament will be God of Lies.
I do miss the old cover packs with a guaranteed featured character though.

GuntherBlobel

Addiction best describes what is actually going on. "Keeping up" is just forumite code for "compulsive engagement in rewarding stimuli, despite adverse consequences." (Thank you, Wikipedia)

The game has multiple tiers of play so that everyone --- whatever their spending limit is --- eventually arrives at their limit and experiences the frustration of wanting more, but unable to spend more.

You can witness the frustration boiling now for even the biggest whales as they realize that the 4* game cannot be simply purchased for what they were previously willing to spend. They are going through withdrawal and its not pretty.

Tharos

From my experience of missing a lot of rewards, I can tell you that it is now so hard to catch up.

Of course, if you miss top 150 during a pve reward, you have little to no change to win the next 3* cover at top 150. But it is not so frustrating (of course, if you usually max every single character in the month following the release, I understand it is frustrating, but as you do not have Loki, I do not think you are this kind of player). Several reasons:

- They usually use the pattern: "1 PVE for a new char, followed by 1 PVE for an old character" (the exceptions being these days, with a lot of 4* releases. I do not know if it will be the rule, or the exception). This means that if you miss a brand new cool character, you will most likely miss the following old character, but should be able to compete for the one after.

- If you only need this character, but do not care about the following PVE top 150 reward, you have a second chance to win a cover in the PVP starting only a few days later.

- 1 or 2 weeks after a new character release, this character will be of no use for a long time, no matter if you have him or not.

- You will win the missing 3* characters from the occasional lucky tokens. Yes, I had some characters weeks/months after their release, but I rarely miss them.

- If you have time, it is possible to win the following PVE without the required character (not possible for all events, it depends on the "required-dependency of this kind of pve"). I finished #1 of the second Rocket & Groot event without the required 4* Thor, and with Blade (required for 1/3 of special nodes) only after a few days, due to a lucky pull. I only have some times, so I can play more nodes than I usually do. So it was really doable to reach top 150 without a single required character.



tl;dr: Do not worry. What is happening now is mainly due to all the 4* releases (which are here for end game players, not for people like us). This games takes ages to have a nice roster if you are not able to play several hours on each events, but the frustration is not so huge once you accept that a new cover is usefull only during one week.

Unknown

What's even more frustrating?

A 4* Elektra is going to be the essential character for the next event.

Developers seems be be doing their best to drive us away.

Jorit

"What's even more frustrating?

A 4* Elektra is going to be the essential character for the next event."

Exactly. I am not even asking for a full cover or a lot of covers. But even a token 1 cover of them is nice just so you aren't totally left out of what is "new content" or at least the essential part of it.

FaustianDeal

I was having a debate with some other forum members when someone finally hit me with the 'freemium-bat' hard enough for me to see the truth.

I think their preferred revenue model is to be making money on tokens and outright card buys. The revenue streams that don't actually require the game to be playable, or played at all. Their 2nd choice revenue stream is health packs and shields. These sources are legitimate, but don't have the same pay-off as the direct purchase options above.

If a player can make it to the 1300 progression in a PVP by 'only buying' 6x 3-hour shields then the return for them is substantially lower... 6x75= 450... well below the 2,500HP required to buy an individual cover (and let's not try to benchmark it against the potentially limitless HP cost of trying to get a cover buying tokens). I say 'only' because I know it can be done with fewer than 6; that was a lot of missed opportunity for them.

I am coming to acknowledge the following things:
* - the design strategy is to make attaining 2-star status as easy as possible (this hopefully hooks players with feelings of success)
* - once in 2* territory - they want to entrench players in the 2-3* transition as long as possible.. and preferably make exiting 2* land require the direct application of money. terrible drop rates in tokens, eliminating guaranteed covers, and even vaulting characters are all attempts to delay the transition to 3* land.
* - The new, much more rapid release of 4*s is a new attempt to replicate the 2-3* transition in 3-4* transition land. The announced shield-nerf is an attempt to cap the number of 4* cards released into the wild - right now they are too easy to win. (it might not seem like it to everyone, but trust me - they are - and they aren't going to be easier to win this time next week.)
* - If they can get the starting 3 cards for a 4* character into a 2* player's hands and get that player to spend to complete a 4* to short-cut the transition by skipping 3* altogether, so much the better.. those cards are twice as expensive.

Unknown

FaustianDeal wrote:

I am coming to acknowledge the following things:
* - the design strategy is to make attaining 2-star status as easy as possible (this hopefully hooks players with feelings of success)
* - once in 2* territory - they want to entrench players in the 2-3* transition as long as possible.. and preferably make exiting 2* land require the direct application of money. terrible drop rates in tokens, eliminating guaranteed covers, and even vaulting characters are all attempts to delay the transition to 3* land.
* - The new, much more rapid release of 4*s is a new attempt to replicate the 2-3* transition in 3-4* transition land. The announced shield-nerf is an attempt to cap the number of 4* cards released into the wild - right now they are too easy to win. (it might not seem like it to everyone, but trust me - they are - and they aren't going to be easier to win this time next week.)
* - If they can get the starting 3 cards for a 4* character into a 2* player's hands and get that player to spend to complete a 4* to short-cut the transition by skipping 3* altogether, so much the better.. those cards are twice as expensive.

Dude, this is 100% withoutadboutinmymindwtfppwbbq accruate. You sir, deserve a gold star.

EstherC

this is chance if you dont want to spend HP opening roster slots for all the 3-4* characters. i dumped at least 6 loki covers in the past before he was revamped, and didnt complete the gauntlet to get him.

so when the current pve started, in prder to place, i paid for the 10 pack (with higher % for Loki). 1 out of the 10 pack was a gold cover and it was a loki purple. Lousy cover but at least i have him for the essentials. Expensive, zero ROI but this is the price.

Wonko33

EstherC wrote:

this is chance if you dont want to spend HP opening roster slots for all the 3-4* characters. i dumped at least 6 loki covers in the past before he was revamped, and didnt complete the gauntlet to get him.

so when the current pve started, in prder to place, i paid for the 10 pack (with higher % for Loki). 1 out of the 10 pack was a gold cover and it was a loki purple. Lousy cover but at least i have him for the essentials. Expensive, zero ROI but this is the price.

I'm not sure that's a good strategy, 10 pack cost you the same as getting 6-8 roster spots, for a chance at getting a cover you need. IMO hp is better spent expanding roster keeping Heros you already had.

Omega Blacc

4* cards are much too easy to win. Not for me personally, but for the high level players? Definitely.

There is nothing more disheartening than running into 270 Furies, Goddesses, and Devil Dinosaurs mere DAYS after they receive wide release. Yeah, a healthy diet of Stunlock + Hate Matching / AP denial can even keep X Force at bay, but one false move or cascade?

Your whole squad is lunchmeat.

I swear, when I can't stop Fury from casting Demolition I almost want to retreat right then. I feel like Charged Tiles are Goddess' weakness as well as her strength though. I avoid high level Furies and X Forces most of the time.

It's hard because everyone has them. Not so rare huh?

EstherC

Wonko33 wrote:

I'm not sure that's a good strategy, 10 pack cost you the same as getting 6-8 roster spots, for a chance at getting a cover you need. IMO hp is better spent expanding roster keeping Heros you already had.

yes, but i meant in the case where earlier decision NOT to open roster slot for that 3* , which results in more cost later on trying to pull that 3* which somehow became an essential. That's what happened to me and my rosters are now 550-600HP a slot

EstherC

Omega Blacc wrote:

4* cards are much too easy to win. Not for me personally, but for the high level players? Definitely.

There is nothing more disheartening than running into 270 Furies, Goddesses, and Devil Dinosaurs mere DAYS after they receive wide release. Yeah, a healthy diet of Stunlock + Hate Matching / AP denial can even keep X Force at bay, but one false move or cascade?

Your whole squad is lunchmeat.

I swear, when I can't stop Fury from casting Demolition I almost want to retreat right then. I feel like Charged Tiles are Goddess' weakness as well as her strength though. I avoid high level Furies and X Forces most of the time.

It's hard because everyone has them. Not so rare huh?

Whales. Whales. Whales. They get one cover of each and then buy the HP and ISO needed to fully cover AND level them up all the way. Rinse and repeat for next new character released.