Topic: Multiple Accounts - Let's discuss!
tldr as quoted by Rage Rex: (slightly edited)
... "Devs, create an option for [...] Purchase of "Special" character slot on one account whereby EP generates independently for two character slots, but cannot be shared."
-------------------------------------Longer explanation below-------------------------------------------------------------
For everyone who was on general chat today contributing to discussion, thank you. For those that were bothered by the walls of text that soon followed I do apologize, but I think overall it was a positive moment.
So let's talk about multiple accounts, and what we can do. I'm going to bring up a few points here.
1. Time based EP growth gives players a sense of progression, meaning veteran players or those who have a lot of time invested will have an actual and skill-based advantage over new players. It's a cool system.
2. EP is spent to make you proficient at doing something, since EP growth is based per account, having multiple characters on one account is near useless if you want to progress in a manner that feels natural to the game.
3. This means to succeed in a timely manner and keep pace with those around you, you will focus on one role. It might be industrial, mining, military, or whatever.
4. I'm on the road to being a dedicated miner. It's a neat job, but let's face it-once you actually find the field, scan the tiles, you just sit there and mine. It's boring, and it takes time. I do it because I like the idea of an economy, I want to be a player in that economy, but mining is boring. Whether this fact can be changed in MMO's, I don't know, that's not my topic for discussion. So you mine, and it's boring, but yeah you can make some decent NIC. So you need money to make money, and with your money you do what-okay you upgrade your mining equipment. EXCELLENT, I'm better at a boring activity that makes me money so I can be better at that boring activity. As someone who is heading into mining, I have a huge fear of getting bored with the game. I like industry, I'm committed to it, but if all my NIC goes into just faster mining, it's going to suck.
5. I COULD start branching into combat, but now I detract from my advancement as a miner, as covered in points 2&3. I'm becoming a valuable mining asset, thats what my corp wants me for, and 90% of the time that's what I like to do. I can be a not-as-good miner and a sort-of-okay combat bot, but it doesn't feel right for a single character.
So, when I bring up these feelings and concerns, what do people say to me over and over again?
Just get another account like everyone else.
Valid answer, sure. I hate it though, I really do. Zoom himself said multiple accounts are NOT intended. Not intended, what does that mean? It means the original design philosophy for the game was not hitched on the premise that players would need multiple accounts to feel fulfilled. However, the big *** elephant in the room is that YES, multiple accounts are currently required to remain competitive and feel fulfilled in comparison with the existing player base.
This is why I don't want another account. I don't want to "suck it up because everyone does it". It's not intended. At the same time, I don't care if people have multiple accounts and control 5 bots at once. On that note, let's talk about two main points as to why people have multiple accounts.
1. To do things effectively as a one man team (I.E I have four accounts, 2 miners, a hauler, and a defender) to run a one man mining operation (or something, I'm not an expert). This is fine, with a small (but growing!) player base I think multiple accounts are necessary to really push things along.
2. To be able to break the monotony of being good at the "one thing you chose".
I don't really like the idea of the first one, that one person with a lot of money could manage 2-3 combat bots providing a significant edge, but whatever, it is what it is. I want to talk about the second one, because to me this is what I am currently struggling with as I play perpetuum.
I want to be able to use my mining income for something that's not mining.
"Buy another account then you jackass!" NO SHUT UP. I don't think the goal should be to make multiple accounts unattractive, but rather single accounts more attractive. "That means the same thing dummy", well kind of, but I'd like to think there is a subtle difference.
So, if multiple accounts are NOT intended, but they are REALLY widespread (like really friggin widespread) then how can we change the game in a way to make it more enjoyable? How can we make sure we do not disrupt the gentle nature of EP balance?"
Here's what I suggest
For the same price as an EP booster (or as an alternative use of the EP booster), you can unlock an "UPGRADED CHARACTER SLOT" that will allow for INDEPENDENT, UNBOOSTED, EP GROWTH ON THAT CHARACTER SLOT.
"You scummy scrub noob you just want the EP of another character without paying for another account fgt"
Yes, yes I do because I believe that the way the game has evolved and developed calls for this sort of thing. Again, I'm working on the premise that having a second account is NOT the way the game is MEANT to be played for the average joe. And I am an average casual player
Look, you already can pay for an ingame advantage with the EP booster. You get EP quicker and can therefore skill up and advance faster as well. "Why not just EP boost and then spread out your extensions if you want to be good at different things assmouth" because it's not as efficient as remaining in one area, and it makes you feel like you are progressing "slowly" anytime you choose between two occupations, which leads to not having fun with the game. And besides, EP boosting for three months is just as expensive as guess what, a new account.
"god ur so whiney u just said it yourself, get a new account and l2p u btch". No, I don't want a new account, see the above discussion. I want to be able to have a second character that could be at the same skill level as the time I have been a player allows for. I don't need to play both at once, I simply want to break the monotony of mining.
The best way I can show you guys what I mean is as follows. Say I play for 5 months. I have 5 months worth of EP. I chose to be a miner, and I want to be a good miner, so I dump my EP into there. That's it, I'm a good miner but that's all I do. Sure, I could choose to go for 3 months of my EP into mining and 2 months of my EP into fighting, but now I'm not good at either, and it feels like for the time I've invested I haven't progressed as either. What I'm proposing is that I can buy a second character slot with it's own EP pool that will progress as normal. So let's start our example over again. I play for 5 months, except at the start of those 5 months I purchase an upgraded character slot.
I now have two characters with five months of EP each. It means I can have two characters that are at 5-month quality. I have a 5 month miner and a 5 rat-killer or whatever. I will never be better then a 10 month player with only one character that has invested 10 months into a miner or rat-killer.
The whole point of this is to provide incentive to remain on a single account. It will let players who feel the need (like me) to be able to do another occupation without detracting from their progression in another. This also maintains the EP balance of veterans. The two separate pools of EP do not at all stack, so veteran players in their chosen field will always be better.
Thanks for reading and I look forward to any discussion.