Jul 01 2014 7:03 pm
I realize the game is undergoing lots of changes and there are veterans here who have been playing a while. Nevertheless, just wanted to share some constructive feedback. Feel free to disregard whatever ideas you don't like. I am otherwise hoping a few of these ideas may be implemented.
Multis
1. If two players have excessive interactions, check for anomalies which may indicate multiple account usage.
2. If an account does not log in for 72 hours, suspend all "bonus" naq. No reason inactive players should get bonses.
3. If an account does not log in for 7 days, remove their ss. No reason to take a valuable resource away from active players.
4. If an account does not log in for 30 days, remove their planets.
Of course, exceptions can be made. If a player contacts a game mod and advises they will be out of the country for 30 days or taking a break from the game, the time can be extended to ?90 days. Right now there are ss in the galaxy which will otherwise sit there until the end of the game. They have a bunch of ships on them and the player screen offers a message stating the player has quit. You don't want the galaxy littered with that mess. Inactive players are a problem for this game. They hold space stations which are then "locked down" to where no one else can use them. They also hold planet space in desirable sectors.
Research Facility
Since they presently hold no value, allow those with them to obtain a Naq refund, that will allow players to either invest in another Advanced facility or spend the naq as they please. Presently, each player with a Research Facility has their NW inflated and gains no benefit at all. Alternatively, allow each player 10 Advanced Tech points per facility.
SS
Clicking on your own planet shows you the planet's stats. Clicking on your own space station takes you to the guide. Please adjust space stations to work like planets. With all the changes we want to see our observation time, turret def, space mine time, etc.
Also, if a player has a planet in the same sector as the SS, then perhaps give the planet's advantages (efficiency, etc) to the station as well? This field can be expanded 1 or 2 sectors as well. Some good game friction will occur when multiple players in the same ally want the ss.
Functionality
When at the main screen, allow the arrow keys to change sectors so we can scan the galaxy faster
Allow name changes to be purchased. Make the price high enough to where people rarely use it, but can do such if a need arises. For example, $20. Names can only be changed once every ?6 months and all name changes are posted in a thread on the forum or are otherwise made public.
Adjust bombers. Perhaps make them do triple damage vs SS and WS. (I see changes have been implemented since I first wrote this, please continue with adjustments)
A good job was done offering players building points and resets; however, we should have been allowed to reset Stances as well since changes were made there as well. Going forward, if any part of the game changes (race, stances, personality, etc) in a meaningful way, players should be given a reset opportunity immediately. Players are otherwise vulnerable in areas which could not have been foreseen.
Another point on stances, consider changing from the current stance to "none" as not being a 3-day lock down. Choosing any other stance would be a 3-day commitment, but not "none".
Consider creating an "alliance" as a group of six ?teams or whatever you want to call the current alliances. You can have both team chat and ally chat separately. You can have some form of team boost and another form of ally boost, both of which can be earned in game. Having an infinite number of "sister" alliances creates zergs and other issues. Having limited space in teams / allies leads to ingame friction (the good kind).
Some other adv tech or building possibility is Deep Space Radar or some equivalent which allows a boost to ss sort of like Adv tech? Possibly it can scan all activity of the targeted player
Protection - when a protected player's nw is too high, the Protection text can show in red as it does now. When a protected player's nw is too low, perhaps a different color such as ?blue/green could be used. Players should be able to quickly differentiate higher nw players from lower.
Chat window - if you can't stop the chat from auto-updating, either add a "pause chat" button which will pause it from updating all (except System) messages for 10 minutes. (if it is a toggle, ppl will forget). Otherwise, add a "download" button to download as a text file. Another option is a "view as webpage" button where the chat window would become a static webpage that people can read without updates.
Stop instant ship builds. Building a ship should take times...lots of time.
You already removed the instant buildings from the game. Set a time, such as 90 days, where it will be completely removed. They can otherwise be abused.
$$$
OK, this will get controversial but here goes....
1. Remove buying Naq from the game. Sell a dozen other items, but not naq. Some ideas:
a. Have an "engineer" who helps build ships faster, or an "architect" who helps build buildings faster.
b. Navigator. Provides a list of all planet ownership within ?3 grids of any planet or ss you own. List is searchable and filterable for nw, allies, status, etc.
c. Jump Drive (BSG!) - something to allow your fleet to jump from one planet you own to another planet or ss. Cannot be used to move ships to planets under attack. ?4 hour cool down.
Lots of other ideas along the lines of the above. These ideas give players an advantage that is more subtle than allowing players to buy endless supplies of Naq. In order for the game to prosper, there needs to be a balance between players who play free, spend a bit and spend a lot. Right now, anyone can spend money and beat players who possess a lot more playing skill and activity. I want to be clear I have spent $$ on the game, and do so gladly because it is a fun game and I want to support it. Even so, there should be a better way to support it and maintain game balance.
If you disagree, perhaps put a timer on it so a max of 1 naq buy every 24 hours.
I hope these ideas generate a healthy discussion. Please avoid political drama and "wallet lord" discussions as they are not productive.
Thank you
I hunt the sheep of war...
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