Are you overwhelmed by the rapid character releases?

ViralCore

It's great that the devs care so much about the game that they continually release new features and characters. It certainly helps keep the game fresh but I feel characters are being released too quickly. It's making the game somewhat overwhelming and unenjoyable. We're not given a chance to level or discover the intricacies of each new character before we set them aside for the "next best thing."

Please consider scaling back the character releases to every 3-4 weeks instead of every 2. This still gives us something to look forward to while allowing us to delve deeper into the richness of each character.

To the community, please vote on this post if you agree.

woopie

I wouldn't say overwhelmed, but I've definitely stopped trying as hard since the HP for covers change. Before, I could grind for T10 if I liked a character and spend some money if I felt like they were worth maxing out. Spending money for a chance to get covers? Yeah I'll pass on that.

metallion

To be honest, these two months has already felt pretty slow by their standards, though that is maybe the result of them releasing a 5* between venom and nova, which does not register as a new release for me since i don't need to fight for him in pve.

If taking only 4* releases into account 2 characters in 2 months so far sounds great, especially considering they used to do 1 every 2 weeks. Though i don't do new releases super competitively (t100 for 1 cover is good enough for me), so i guess i have more energy to spare than the competitive guys

SnowcaTT

They come out so fast, and then give you so few chances to get the (specific) covers you need to cover them, or the resources you need to level them.

There are characters I've used once - in their introductory event - and never again. Often they are newer ones, so most folks don't have them covered...and if they aren't the "good" ones, most people don't run them so I don't see them.

I have a 3/3/5 Falcap, 3/3/4 X-23, 3/2/2 Ghost Rider, 5/4/0 Cho, lesser Venom, Miles, Nova. I literally have -NO IDEA- what their abilities are. I mean, I have a vague recollection...but none of those are "good enough" for me to use, and anyone who has them maxed usually has better characters to use and I don't see them.

Daily 4* DDQ might solve that issue. Having more 4*'s buffed each week won't.

simonsez

Yes, but that's nothing new...

Vhailorx

The every two week release rate has always been a bit too fast. But demiurge/d3 clearly thinks that the constant pressure of new characters drives their bottom line. So I don't expect it to change any time soon.

Snowcatt identifies another persistent problem (that might be solved) which is that the release rate combined with the vast difference in value between a good and bad character in any given tier means that weaker characters essentially lie fallow forever after release. The obvious example is CHulk; he will never see use outside essential nodes. With championing, even the 4* ddq isn't enough incentive to be worth the iso cost of leveling him up past 130 or so, and missing 1/20+ ddq nodes is trivial. What is the point of having a character like that in the game at all?

Cousin Simpson

I'm so overwhelmed that I'm tempted to buy these characters.

The Bob The

SnowcaTT wrote:

They come out so fast, and then give you so few chances to get the (specific) covers you need to cover them, or the resources you need to level them.

There are characters I've used once - in their introductory event - and never again. Often they are newer ones, so most folks don't have them covered...and if they aren't the "good" ones, most people don't run them so I don't see them.

I have a 3/3/5 Falcap, 3/3/4 X-23, 3/2/2 Ghost Rider, 5/4/0 Cho, lesser Venom, Miles, Nova. I literally have -NO IDEA- what their abilities are. I mean, I have a vague recollection...but none of those are "good enough" for me to use, and anyone who has them maxed usually has better characters to use and I don't see them.

Daily 4* DDQ might solve that issue. Having more 4*'s buffed each week won't.

I think there's an indicator here. Most new characters see this dip - used during the intro week, then vanish for months - due to the long time it takes to make them viable. That's true for decent AND **** characters. The exception, though (and what I'm suggesting is an indicator of good quality) is when you DO see them show up sooner. Ghost Rider is a great example. It's not like he's everywhere in PVP, but I come up against him a surprising amount already; although Venom doesn't pop up nearly as much, he's still far more visible than the older chars you name like Flaptain and Cho, and I think it's because these characters are better, so people go for them.

To that end, I think you'll be seeing Nova soon in the occasional PVP with greater frequency than Miles; Miles is fine, but the buzz around Nova suggests that people see some real potential in him. Probably not at Ghost Rider levels - dat Penance Stare - but more than the typical release.

tl;dr: Not seeing a character often after its initial debut isn't a mark of poor quality, but if you DO, it's a likely indicator of good quality.

slidecage

Dont see a problem with every 2 weeks and most should not have a problem getting enough coins to cover them very easy to get 2000 HP a month

like to see them add more tokens though

How about a heroes or villian pack

firethorne

I too feel like less like I'm overwhelmed and more I simply don't care anymore. I don't play this game like a full time job. I've been told supposed to lose. Message received. The rewards aren't worth sacrificing my life.

simonsez

slidecage wrote:

Dont see a problem with every 2 weeks and most should not have a problem getting enough coins to cover them very easy to get 2000 HP a month

The problem is getting the ISO to make them usable. I've got 12 or 13 covers on four 4*s that haven't gotten any ISO, and I haven't put any ISO into any 5*s yet. It'd be nice to be able to use these outside of BoP once a month.

SnowcaTT

simonsez wrote:

slidecage wrote:

Dont see a problem with every 2 weeks and most should not have a problem getting enough coins to cover them very easy to get 2000 HP a month

The problem is getting the ISO to make them usable. I've got 12 or 13 covers on four 4*s that haven't gotten any ISO, and I haven't put any ISO into any 5*s yet. It'd be nice to be able to use these outside of BoP once a month.

Totally agree with you here simonsez. I have plenty of 4*'s with 13 covers that would be interesting to use once in awhile (like Carnage, KP, Fury) - but aren't in the "top" tier, so they sit there and wait forever, never used. [Also haven't bothered dropping one ISO into any 5*.]

It was always in the realm of possibility to get all of your 3*'s covered/maxed/used. But right now there really doesn't seem to be any "free to play" way to even get half of your 4*'s maxed. I've been thinking of a suggestion for that...I'll go post it over in suggestions. Done:
viewtopic.php?f=8&t=39911

carrion_pigeons

It honestly doesn't impact me at all. I don't see a new character and go "I must have this!" Instead, I see a new character and go "hey, yet another roster slot I'll eventually have to get."

I expect that I'll pick up my first Spider-Gwen cover in 6 months or so, and I anticipate literally never getting her to max covers. 4* characters are for players who play a whole lot more than I do (although I feel like I play a lot, this game is in no way my life, so I don't get to participate in stuff like that).

Eddiemon

It's a free to play game. If everyone had plenty of time to leisurely acquire the covers and resources for roster slots then where does their revenue come from?

And I've never felt overwhelmed by their release schedule. If it is affecting you emotionally then I think there is a deeper underlying issue. Maybe take a break from the game entirely to regain perspective?

ViralCore

SnowcaTT wrote:

I have a 3/3/5 Falcap, 3/3/4 X-23, 3/2/2 Ghost Rider, 5/4/0 Cho, lesser Venom, Miles, Nova. I literally have -NO IDEA- what their abilities are. I mean, I have a vague recollection...but none of those are "good enough" for me to use, and anyone who has them maxed usually has better characters to use and I don't see them.

Here's a good example of the problem, FalCap and x23 are amazing character but you haven't had the opportunity to fully discover how great they truly are. They are so amazing that they were a high priority for many of my alliance mates to champ right away. Also, had they taken an extra week or two they could have tested Miles and Nova more instead of releasing them full of bugs (and now banished towards the bottom of the heap of unplayable characters).

Eddiemon wrote:

It's a free to play game. If everyone had plenty of time to leisurely acquire the covers and resources for roster slots then where does their revenue come from?

My bad, I should have indicated that this post is directed towards people who financially support the game.

Unknown

The character release rate wouldn't be so bad if I ever had hope of getting the ISO together to level them. The cost of leveling 4* characters is WAY out of line. It is almost triple the cost of a 3*, and there is no way they are 3x as powerful, even the best of the best. The cost to max a 4* should be in the 200-225k range, and no more.

Look at it this way --

There are currently 27 4* characters.
I have 12/13 or 13/13 covers for 24 of them.
I have level maxed 5, with a 6th on the way in a couple of days.
It takes me roughly 3-4 weeks play to level a single 4*.

The only reason I keep the rest around is for PvE essentials. Basically, I would rather burn 80% of the covers they release than level them because of the high cost vs. benefit gained. How does that help anyone, them or us?

TxMoose

simonsez wrote:

slidecage wrote:

Dont see a problem with every 2 weeks and most should not have a problem getting enough coins to cover them very easy to get 2000 HP a month

The problem is getting the ISO to make them usable. I've got 12 or 13 covers on four 4*s that haven't gotten any ISO, and I haven't put any ISO into any 5*s yet. It'd be nice to be able to use these outside of BoP once a month.

completely agree here. this can't be sustainable for much longer. the coming months will be interesting as the number of 4*s pushes into the 30s. how many are they going to push at 2/month? we have 40 3*s. how many 4*s do they envision us ending up with? then will they push 5*s like the 4*s now? and keep us at averaging 2 covers/month (assuming 5 LTs/week). how the heck is that going to work? there has to be some changes coming in 4*/5* availability or the whole thing just stalls in a few months.

they did slow down the 3*s towards the end iirc and we all caught up some. here there is so much catch-up to do with iso, they could take months off and I still wouldn't have everything leveled that I WANT to level. not including rags, IW, and psylocke, but characters I actively would love to have maxed.

MPQ_Daywalker

TxMoose wrote:

simonsez wrote:

slidecage wrote:

Dont see a problem with every 2 weeks and most should not have a problem getting enough coins to cover them very easy to get 2000 HP a month

The problem is getting the ISO to make them usable. I've got 12 or 13 covers on four 4*s that haven't gotten any ISO, and I haven't put any ISO into any 5*s yet. It'd be nice to be able to use these outside of BoP once a month.

completely agree here. this can't be sustainable for much longer. the coming months will be interesting as the number of 4*s pushes into the 30s. how many are they going to push at 2/month? we have 40 3*s. how many 4*s do they envision us ending up with? then will they push 5*s like the 4*s now? and keep us at averaging 2 covers/month (assuming 5 LTs/week). how the heck is that going to work? there has to be some changes coming in 4*/5* availability or the whole thing just stalls in a few months.

they did slow down the 3*s towards the end iirc and we all caught up some. here there is so much catch-up to do with iso, they could take months off and I still wouldn't have everything leveled that I WANT to level. not including rags, IW, and psylocke, but characters I actively would love to have maxed.

I wonder if at some point they will give a 4* ISO leveling decrease, like they did for 3*s back in R75 in May of last year. That played a huge part in 2*->3* transitioning players being able to level up their 3*s to a usable level. A similar change for 4*s would have the same effect for 3*->4* transitioners (as well as any well into the 4* tier who don't have the ISO to level up the characters they have collected covers for). IMHO, this is more likely to happen than Demiurge suddenly giving us more ISO-8.

TxMoose

_Daywalker_ wrote:

I wonder if at some point they will give a 4* ISO leveling decrease, like they did for 3*s back in R75 in May of last year. That played a huge part in 2*->3* transitioning players being able to level up their 3*s to a usable level. A similar change for 4*s would have the same effect for 3*->4* transitioners (as well as any well into the 4* tier who don't have the ISO to level up the characters they have collected covers for). IMHO, this is more likely to happen than Demiurge suddenly giving us more ISO-8.

to match the equivalent level of 120 for 4*s, it would be right at level 200. and that would be huge if they slashed the 70-200 levels like they did for 40-120. if that happens, it can't happen soon enough.

Vhailorx

Sadly, demiurge did cut the price of leveling 4*s up to about 166 in R75, so it may be a while before they do so again.

But it is increasingly obvious that the rate of iso distribution in no way matches the rate of cover accrual for even modest play (this has actually be something that was abvious since the 4* rate picked up in June 2015, but it's finally starting to frustrate large numbers of players because championing substantially increased the value of maxing everyone).

Calnexin

Vhailorx wrote:

The obvious example is CHulk; he will never see use outside essential nodes.

Not true. I will use him ironically.