25 replies to this topic

[My Chemical Zord]

Even after several years, the playerbase of this game has remained pitifully small. Everyone pretty much knows each other, and the same active players we see today are the same ones who have been around from the start. Sure, there are occasionally new players, but the vast majority of people are not among them. This can, at times, make the MMO feel too stagnant, with no new faces to be seen.

 

The first few shooting games did a great job at paving the way for the MMO. In fact, I don't think I'd be here right now if it weren't for the flash prequels. The Last Stand has a great deal of brand recognition among the flash gaming community due to the fact that these games were a hit. This publicity is what brought a lot of players to the MMO. 

 

I propose that CAG makes more of these games to advertise the MMO and to bring in more new players. CAG has proven time and time again that it is more than capable of making some of the best flash games out there. In fact, if CAG does decide to make more games, they don't have to be of the shooting genre, they could even be text-based like some of the Dead Frontier games. 

 

While this will expend a significant amount of financial resources, I believe that this endeavor will more than pay for itself in the long run. 

 

It could even add to the lore of the TLS universe, increasing the immersion of the MMO. 

Edited by My Chemical Zord, 16 January 2018 - 09:35 AM.

[Luisssboom]

I feel like what you are saying is correct and that there are sometimes very few new faces in the dead zone. But one thing that I noticed is that you do see many, but not many stay. I feel like it's not just about attracting more players but also keeping them.

 

I'm not saying that your idea is wrong because it is a very good way to advertise the game (and in some ways, the best way). But there needs to be a way to keep players in game as well and keep them playing.

 

But I guess, in some ways, it is up to the older players - such as ourselves - to make the game a better experience for the new people. 

 

Either, this is a good idea. Expanding the game base a bit more will help.

[RainbowDash_Love]

From my knowledge most players i see this days are new faces, well i guess thats because im an older player like if i talk about vyking most players these day dont know him

[Luisssboom]

From my knowledge most players i see this days are new faces, well i guess thats because im an older player like if i talk about vyking most players these day dont know him

I do notice a lot of new faces, but rarely do you see them for a very long time. I think that's one issue.

[My Chemical Zord]

I feel like what you are saying is correct and that there are sometimes very few new faces in the dead zone. But one thing that I noticed is that you do see many, but not many stay. I feel like it's not just about attracting more players but also keeping them.

 

I'm not saying that your idea is wrong because it is a very good way to advertise the game (and in some ways, the best way). But there needs to be a way to keep players in game as well and keep them playing.

 

But I guess, in some ways, it is up to the older players - such as ourselves - to make the game a better experience for the new people. 

 

Either, this is a good idea. Expanding the game base a bit more will help.

 

Yeah, that too. I do notice that the new players don't tend to stay as well. How do you think CAG can improve the retention?

[RainbowDash_Love]

Yeah, that too. I do notice that the new players don't tend to stay as well. How do you think CAG can improve the retention?

Frequent updates, more bug fixes, player mods, considering hiring more staff to devide tasks i dont know i would love to talk to Con for a bit and share some ideas with him but he seems very busy with ongoing affairs and considering Tom left (he did alot of level designs) according to the initial release of the expansion.

 

It just feels sad that one of my most played games ever is going down hill i mean if you look at public/trade chats you see alot of the same faces over and over again. I cant wish for the old days because thats simply not going to happen anymore. But i can tell you this if the cap on the crafting cost was not added (this sounds kinda inrellevant) there would be a much more lively trade, in the past most uniques you had you could up for like several for a key there were massive amounts of people did it back then like the most shitty uniques even got upgraded, these days its not worth it anymore to up lower level stuff, also the increase in cost of premium weapons/gear is off the charts i can remember it was dirt cheap to upgrade your premium stuff back then. Tokens are nice but meh the old system was much better if you ask me. Also the Decrease of the fuel in herc boxes is responsible for alot of leavers you had like 750 fuel boxes that was so great. I mean i know Con has to make a living on this game. I totally understand that and people are still opening them boxes, i really hope con will add the 750 fuel boxes again trust me alot of sales from level 3s he will get from that.

 

I mean i can type all day about things that changed which is a pity but i can't change anything I just hope Con will keep updating the game and maybe sometime the game will flurrish once again.

 

I mean it got me busy for 5 years and im still not done yet ! So Con thank you for this game keep up the great work !

[Luisssboom]

Yeah, that too. I do notice that the new players don't tend to stay as well. How do you think CAG can improve the retention?

 

I personally don't know. But as I mentioned earlier, some of that is up to all of us to make the newbies feel welcome and want to stay. But content wise, I have no idea. Con already adds special events and things are constantly changing giving the game some great "pizzazz." Missing out on an event is always a big problem for me XD.

[tehswordninja]

I think the main issue is that you must stay completely committed to this game in order to actually go anywhere with it. I'd like to not think about how much time I put into reaching level 50, then 55, and now level 60 (where all of my guns and survivors are completely underleveled). I also think the lack of information we've been getting from the devs (bunkers, anyone?), very few updates patching or improving lower level gameplay, etc.

 

Plus the play time sessions for the average player are low. I mean, what, I spend about 5 minutes on this game if I'm doing autos? Maybe less? And only around 30 if I do normal missions, and maybe an hour if I do the Island (which I don't anymore, tired of getting level 51 smgs).

 

I think it's just become the time where the game falls off. There's not much hype for anything anymore that I can see, sadly enough.

 

It's been certainly good times, but I wouldn't give too much hope for a sudden increase in player count. The only time that'll happen is with a new game. 

[My Chemical Zord]

I was thinking, maybe new players can have an optional but very entertaining series of missions that give them rewards and really immerse them into the game, like, not just going own and scavenging to get resources, but an actual plot line, which would give nice rewards and prepare them for advancing further in the game. I can't help but notice the huge lack of lore related content in this game.

[Luisssboom]

I was thinking, maybe new players can have an optional but very entertaining series of missions that give them rewards and really immerse them into the game, like, not just going own and scavenging to get resources, but an actual plot line, which would give nice rewards and prepare them for advancing further in the game. I can't help but notice the huge lack of lore related content in this game.

 

That does sound quite nice, and I guess as you level up, there will be less of a campaign. But obviously, it would have to be very separate from the actual game. Also, the opening tasks do somewhat work like this.

[My Chemical Zord]

Simply assigning us a shopping list of stuff to scavenge doesn't give nearly as much immersion as a real story driven campaign. I get that we're supposed to carve out our own path, but scavenging, finding better gear, then scavenging again can get old very quickly. 

[Luisssboom]

Simply assigning us a shopping list of stuff to scavenge doesn't give nearly as much immersion as a real story driven campaign. I get that we're supposed to carve out our own path, but scavenging, finding better gear, then scavenging again can get old very quickly. 

 

What could be added is a mini campaign similar to the island where you progress through numerous stages. Maybe this could be focused around XP gain instead of concrete loot and completing the campaign gives a reward of some sort (maybe fuel XD).

[Theddy]

Players come. In small numbers but they sign up.

 

Instead of looking for a way to attract more players, the game should focus on a way to Keep Them There.

 

Fuel is very accesable the higher the level but all a newbie is left with at the start is

 

 

- "I find about 2 fuel every blue moon and anything costs more than a hundred."

 

- "I get attacked by 5-unique-sportshot-rifle-not-at-all-an-alt teams daily."

 

- "There are 2-4 different layouts for any given mission location. It's fun at first but I basically do the same thing every time. Why invest my time in this?"

 

- "I can make about 15 missions per day while a DMU user can do 500. How is this not pay-to-win?"

 

 

Disclaimer: I don't think the game is pay-to-win myself, I more rather see it as a guy with a sandvich and a guy with a 6-hectare-big bread factory.

[My Chemical Zord]

Theddy, you make some really good points. What ideas do you have in mind?

[Theddy]

I suggest Con just gives the game (Give, not sell, because at this point the game is worth minus) to somebody that knows how to manage a game and to a person that can even code. Like, at all.

[My Chemical Zord]

I suggest Con just gives the game (Give, not sell, because at this point the game is worth minus) to somebody that knows how to manage a game and to a person that can even code. Like, at all.

 

You deserve a million upvotes. It's ridiculous how many coding errors this game has, and that is probably one of the main things that turns new players away. I wouldn't say this game is worthless as a financial asset, it's kept CAG running even when Warfare Online failed, which is quite a feat, financially speaking. 

 

What company do you think could manage this game? My money is with Jagex. If this game was run as well as Runescape, it would be a huge step up. 

[Luisssboom]

You deserve a million upvotes. It's ridiculous how many coding errors this game has, and that is probably one of the main things that turns new players away. I wouldn't say this game is worthless as a financial asset, it's kept CAG running even when Warfare Online failed, which is quite a feat, financially speaking. 

 

What company do you think could manage this game? My money is with Jagex. If this game was run as well as Runescape, it would be a huge step up. 

 

On the topic of errors, I noticed a big difference between high levels and low levels. Basically, low levels have more bugs, more problems, and less stuff in general. In a single day, I have had problems on my alt account where zombies didn't spawn during SEVEN out of TEN missions. That is a pretty hefty percentage and makes it difficult to level up and less likely for people to invest in the game if it's constantly slowing their progress.

 

On top of that, bounties (a main way to get fuel and unusual unlootable items) are sometimes impossible. When leveling, there is a stage where there are more runners than walkers in maps. This transition stage (lvl 23-32) is designed to get players to be more on their feet as they encounter faster zombies. HOWEVER, there is a problem. When it comes to finding walkers for bounties............you get none, and I genuinely mean NONE. I have run nearly 20 missions in 1 area and (excluding the ones that were glitched from the no spawn bug) I have found a grand total of SEVEN walkers out of a required SIXTY FIVE. Talk about slow progress. In comparison with much higher levels, the number of zombie finds is quite balanced. It usually takes 2-5 missions in one area to get everything required (even when they ask for 200 walkers/runners). 

 

And although some people may say "Buy DMU" against these problems, that isn't a valid reason. If the game is heavily bugged, why would people spend money and time on it? A lot needs to be fixed to make the game more appealing. There are simply too many problems and with each update, more is added and more is forgotten. It's like creating thousands of little houses but never finishing a single one. The "houses" are unstable and can sometimes cause problems.

 

I used to mainly play on my lvl 60 account. But I decided to start leveling my lvl 30 account. For the very first time, I have been incredibly frustrated with the game in a single day. Now imagine the problem when it comes to new players getting stuck because of the bugs (especially since the return times increase seriously quickly as you level up). The game no longer becomes fun until you hit the really high levels (50+) which a lot of updates and fixes are geared towards.

 

I think the first step before advertising the game (come to think of it) would be to solve a few internal problems first. I didn't realize they were that bad, and advertising a glitchy game will definitely REDUCE the player database as more and more people leave. 

 

NB: The numbers stated are exact. They are not exaggerations, even though I sort of make them sound like exaggerations.

[My Chemical Zord]

I use VPNs when I have to, and for the most part, bugs are manageable. The biggest bug in the game is for it to not load at all, or for your computer to fail to connect to the server. Most bugs can be solved my refreshing the page, but even with all this being said, this game definitely has the most bugs of any MMO I know of. 

 

But bugs are only part of the equation. We need the game to be marketed to more people on the internet, and a greater variety of things to do in the game to keep it from getting old quickly. CAG needs to make new players feel welcome in some way. 

 

I highly urge CAG to take part in this thread. It's an issue they absolutely need to address. 

[bossfighter7]

Two words: paid promotion

[My Chemical Zord]

I think releasing more flash games would have an even greater impact than paid advertising. CAG has ben shown to make some of the best games out there, and it's actually one of the main ways developers use to advertise MMOs.