I often get criticized for mine “go off meta” encouragement which often leads to lots of misunderstandments or – more often – me shortcutting my thoughts which is even worse as it leads to taking my posts as offensive and/or offending. Which is not a true intention of mine.
So I decided to sit down and write a longer post – to which I can link in further discussions – what I mean by “go off meta” and what I call “lower expectation strategy” which made it a success.
For a long time I “always” loved Marvel Comics. One day I had to give up them: I just couldn’t catch and I had to choose some hobbies out of many. But still some love for Marvel was within me. I tired few games but it was MPQ with which I stayed for longer, just to feed my love (and sentiments)
After playing for long time, when I reached a certain moment, I saw that MPQ, if done “the correct way”, is self-eating snake. A never ending circle when if you want go get better rewards you literally have to go meta and “the correct way” (i.e. all those little things that gives as better results like 4+3 clears as fast as possible, PVP hopping, 2* farm etc., getting 4* R&G, farming Deadpool Whales etc.). I call it “Chasing White Rabbit”.
Nothing wrong with that per se but this stick has the other end: the further you dive/immerse into the game, the bigger it becomes a problem. You keep using same characters, to get better rewards/placement to have more characters who you will never/rarely use. And more new characters became “meh” even though Elsa or Misty are awesome to use and watch (I love Elsa’s tea cup and Misty’s punch animations).
Of course its just generalization but I hope you all get the point. You know the drill perfectly.
Anyway, back then I felt no enjoyment while playing MPQ. I felt the pressure “I have to do it the correct way. Chase the Rabbit”.
Now, let me give you example what I did back then free myself from this… let’s call it “not-nice-thingy”. If you will play SCL 9 and finish top 200 then you will get 125 shards followed in next event with 275 (16 wins/600 pts) which is almost one cover. There was many other things like that. I did some thinking, some checking and some calculations and decided: JUST if I go and do some less optimal things (6 clears right away instead of 4+3 pattern) and carefully plan my short & long time objectives (like who to sharget , which PVP to focus) I will start getting more rewards total with less time spend! Sounds crazy? Well… It worked for me. Basically: micromanagement.
In 3 months since I started doing those little things:
-I went from 7M into 3M+dept – that fast my progress skyrocketed
-got 30 more 4* champions
-doubled rostered 5*
-managed to do PVP simulator with little to none health packs used: I had 10 PVP teams which I rotated.
-spend twice less time on PVE clears early on but later expanded the time spend (because I started to watching films and tv dramas during pve clears and needed extra minutes to finish “daily dose”)
-I doubled coverage on new 4* releases.
-enjoyed using 50 different characters per week
-started enjoying the game even more than before
-and so on.
All because I went off the road and lowered my expectation of how high I wanna be and how much I wanna to play. I call this trategy “lower expectation strategy”. The name comes from statement that If you do not expect to be high or all the new releases to be “usefull” then whenever you get higher or new releases is “awesome” you feel better. I managed to get some “random” top 50 PVP or top 100 PVE and it always was nice surprise. When I was chasing Wasp I discovered that I essential 4* ready to be champed for an event which granted Wasp shards. Awesome, go for it. You know, enjoy little elements.
It was also back then when I changed alliance. My new Mates were and are awesome but the longer I was in more “competitive” alliance made to gain again that pressure. When I briefly left the game last year and then, after miletones, came back and joined “casual alliance” I felt that this is it. Yes, sure, Alliance Event are much less rewarding but I fell more joy from playing. And zero pressure. I totally skipped one season and for 2 weeks played nothing more that DDQ because I could allow myself to do it when needed. Because I do not expect to be able to play always.
Going off meta was part of that. Instead of, let’s say, sharget Rocket I shargeted whoever I wanted for whatever reasons. I found a way to squeeze longer fight here and there allowing myself to enjoy characters like Wolsfbane, X-23, Hulkbuster or Spider-Woman which arent that fast. And lately, 5* Wasp who is stronger that many people thinks.
But there is something more to say here, to be fully honest: what is truly “going off meta” be like? Many of players do not want or do not need to use lowered expectation strategy as they are perfectly fine with Chasing The Rabbit and the “correct way”, as I call it. Fine. Its their choice, and playing YOUR own way is best option to enjoy MPQ. But still Chasing the Rabbit means facing and using same teams every time and, probably. It’s still same, self-sustaining machinery, which, btw, as some of You said is needed to keep the game alive from devs perspective (selling a product to make a money). So just once in a while, take a break. Use some fun team. Take a longer fight. Enjoy nerfed Bishop. Blast with Mockinbirds bombs. Do a long evening with 3 hour PVE clears with just 4*/3* teams used. Take one or two events with lesser SCL. Try to beat meta team with non meta combinations. Or whatever. And then go back to usual thingy. All just for fun.
And just MAYBE, jusy MAYBE you will find that not every new release has to meta. You will create crazy, niche combo against enemies YOU just keep facing too often. Or whatever.
You know, we have so many characters who needs some love. Go give them some once in a while!
So why did I encourage so much going off meta from time to time? Because, we, players, need that. And because devs need that too - just to tell them indirectly "hey, good work on that Misty Knight! She is fun to play!".