• M2S
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Topic: Plex Disadvantages

So thinking about trading unused timecodes for NIC, I come up with several advantages it would have.

-If it sold any extra subscriptions, then these are purely extra money for the game and cannot take away from it.
-There appears to be a big market for people who would want to subscribe this way.
-It would spread money around, those people would most likely use it to buy on the market.

But perhaps I'm biased and I'm just gloating over some of the horrible disadvantages, thus I ask:

What are the disadvantages, if any, to selling timecodes for NIC?

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Re: Plex Disadvantages

  • Encourage NIC farming bots (Low risk of happening)

  • People will play too much and their families might die from lack of seeing them (High risk of happening)

  • M2S
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

The Devs would have to create a system to manage such transaction safely, and at the moment I do not think that should be their top priority.

Besides that, it's clearly the fact some people or corporations will be buying themselves in-game power with their real money (very similar to the argument against RMT in my opinion).

Personally I'm a bit split, for the above I think it can potentially skew the power in an 'unfair' way, but at the same time, it's really nice to just spend NIC to buy timecodes.

  • NeX
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

I can't see how the amount of NIC I have can buy me any real power. There is a limit to what I can do with my available EP. The risk seems rather to be one of too much NIC, and not being able to spend it.

  • RG
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Pros and cons both ways...

Pros

Encourages other players with more time but less RL cash, this can help the game


Cons

  • If it isnt done right in a safe and secure manner, the game gets opened up to RL fraud etc.

  • As above, powerbloks can solidify their position through funding many alt accounts and bringing new players into their fold with promises of paid gaming, this detracts from the smaller corps

  • It can diminish the sense of attachment to the game, things given away for free generally don't hold much value to the holder of that asset/char etc

  • Encourages botting/powermining/grinding etc which can burn people out

  • Non PvP activities become primary to those using NIC for game time.... Lost a H.Mech?? OMG that was 0.5 of a timecode!!

Given the small dev team, i would err on the side of caution at this point in the game and concentrate on building more tools to keep players playing and interacting rather than looking for more ways to quickly garner cash.

"like Kalsius, a shameless carebear and jitalover" - Syndic
http://www.perpetuum-intelligence.com
http://www.perpetuum-intelligence.com/killboard/
  • M2S
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Kalsius Dakalsai wrote:

Given the small dev team, i would err on the side of caution at this point in the game and concentrate on building more tools to keep players playing and interacting rather than looking for more ways to quickly garner cash.

Completely agree.

  • ICS-DD
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Kalsius Dakalsai wrote:

Cons

  • Encourages botting/powermining/grinding etc which can burn people out

Too true!

What we are dealing with here is a total lack of respect for the law
  • NeX
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Can we stop trying to turn this game into EVE please? We all know how that ended up.

  • CIR
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Way too many threads on this...

The small player base with free NIC limits the demand for codes atm, which also limits the supply of NIC that would be gained by this.

Advantage:

Moves NIC out of personal and Corporate wallets and back into the Economy - at a level where independant producers can benefit. -That is, makes the market stronger.

Disadvantage:

Small corps or solo players feel compelled to sell codes to compete.

10 Reply by Shaedys (edited by Shaedys 2011-06-27 18:01:05)

  • M2S
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Development time would be okay, if they gave a tool to verify that time codes are real that would be all that was needed.

Also, do corps in Eve feel compelled to sell codes to compete?
I havn't played it too much so that's not sarcastic.

  • ICS-DD
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

The only real disadvantage is it allows somebody to gain NIC quickly without any risk.  In a game that has a relatively large player base this isn't a problem, but I'm not sure if Perpetuum is ready for a PLEX type system just yet.

  • PIE
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Kalsius Dakalsai wrote:

Pros and cons both ways...

Pros

Encourages other players with more time but less RL cash, this can help the game


Cons

  • If it isnt done right in a safe and secure manner, the game gets opened up to RL fraud etc.

  • As above, powerbloks can solidify their position through funding many alt accounts and bringing new players into their fold with promises of paid gaming, this detracts from the smaller corps

  • It can diminish the sense of attachment to the game, things given away for free generally don't hold much value to the holder of that asset/char etc

  • Encourages botting/powermining/grinding etc which can burn people out

  • Non PvP activities become primary to those using NIC for game time.... Lost a H.Mech?? OMG that was 0.5 of a timecode!!

Given the small dev team, i would err on the side of caution at this point in the game and concentrate on building more tools to keep players playing and interacting rather than looking for more ways to quickly garner cash.

I agree with this. At the end of the day the ones who benefit most are the developers, as they have money making players grinding away in game, that's why there are so many bots in eve.

On another note we cannot escape the true value of nic as you still pay a sub for time and time in game is still real money. So a really true sandbox is the one that you play for free,  with no micro transactions of course. but who pays the bills?

aka celebro
  • CIR
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

Orbelea wrote:
Kalsius Dakalsai wrote:

Pros and cons both ways...

Pros

Encourages other players with more time but less RL cash, this can help the game


Cons

  • If it isnt done right in a safe and secure manner, the game gets opened up to RL fraud etc.

  • As above, powerbloks can solidify their position through funding many alt accounts and bringing new players into their fold with promises of paid gaming, this detracts from the smaller corps

  • It can diminish the sense of attachment to the game, things given away for free generally don't hold much value to the holder of that asset/char etc

  • Encourages botting/powermining/grinding etc which can burn people out

  • Non PvP activities become primary to those using NIC for game time.... Lost a H.Mech?? OMG that was 0.5 of a timecode!!

Given the small dev team, i would err on the side of caution at this point in the game and concentrate on building more tools to keep players playing and interacting rather than looking for more ways to quickly garner cash.

I agree with this. At the end of the day the ones who benefit most are the developers, as they have money making players grinding away in game, that's why there are so many bots in eve.

On another note we cannot escape the true value of nic as you still pay a sub for time and time in game is still real money. So a really true sandbox is the one that you play for free,  with no micro transactions of course. but who pays the bills?

A secret group keen on studying this simulated 'sandbox' world and using it as a test-bed for economic takeover strategies to seize control and/or topple the larger real world governments.

GLiMPSE™'s CoolPoints™ Leaderboard
  • NeX
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

EVE's PLEX were brought in mostly to counter goldfarmers. If you can counter those without timecodes for NIC, you have no need of them. The NIC system only caused problems for EVE (on balance) and eventually was referred to constantly in pro cash-for-virtuals arguments. It also creates an entire segment of the player base that is used to paying cash to avoid in-game effort. That's where the rot sets in.

Timecodes-for-NIC is the edge of the plateau, and the top of a steep slope. Be ridiculously careful about this stuff!

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Re: Plex Disadvantages

GLiMPSE wrote:
Orbelea wrote:
Kalsius Dakalsai wrote:

Pros and cons both ways...

Pros

Encourages other players with more time but less RL cash, this can help the game


Cons

  • If it isnt done right in a safe and secure manner, the game gets opened up to RL fraud etc.

  • As above, powerbloks can solidify their position through funding many alt accounts and bringing new players into their fold with promises of paid gaming, this detracts from the smaller corps

  • It can diminish the sense of attachment to the game, things given away for free generally don't hold much value to the holder of that asset/char etc

  • Encourages botting/powermining/grinding etc which can burn people out

  • Non PvP activities become primary to those using NIC for game time.... Lost a H.Mech?? OMG that was 0.5 of a timecode!!

Given the small dev team, i would err on the side of caution at this point in the game and concentrate on building more tools to keep players playing and interacting rather than looking for more ways to quickly garner cash.

I agree with this. At the end of the day the ones who benefit most are the developers, as they have money making players grinding away in game, that's why there are so many bots in eve.

On another note we cannot escape the true value of nic as you still pay a sub for time and time in game is still real money. So a really true sandbox is the one that you play for free,  with no micro transactions of course. but who pays the bills?

A secret group keen on studying this simulated 'sandbox' world and using it as a test-bed for economic takeover strategies to seize control and/or topple the larger real world governments.

So Siddy and friends?

Edit: Troll removed - DEV Calvin
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Re: Plex Disadvantages

My vote is to keep PLEX out.

I PLEX'd in Eve - but here it's different folks.