In short, the concept of crown crates is OK, but you get WAY too many crown consumable items and the gem conversion is abysmal. I'm all for having tons of cosmetic items in the crown store, don't get me wrong. The possibility of spending 400 crowns on a crate and rolling the dice and wing a 5000 crown mount is appealing, BUT, none of the crown crate items should be exclusively available via dumb luck and RNG. I would rather spend 3000 crowns and buy the mount I want then spent 12000 crowns and just have people tell me "you're just unlucky... BS!"
I get that you want revenue for your game- no one blames you for that, but making crate items exclusive will frost many people and even make some walk. This does not help you. Get rid of gems. Make unwanted items from crates refundable in crowns. No one needs 2 tiers of real money currency, one is plenty- simplify. Create 2 paths to crown store items: direct purchase with crowns OR crate gambling. Why do this you ask? This gives everyone the option to skip frustration or roll the dice as THEY see fit, everyone can make sure they get what they want (happy customer base keeps people playing and paying), people who enjoy gambling still get the thrill of "being lucky" and get to brag they got the same 3000 crown mount for 400 crowns.... Which might convince a non-member to try your crate system.
If you want to succeed in generating revenue, listen to your customers. Your game survives not on our short term investment, but our long term commitment and how we praise/bash your products to our friends. Just something to think on, since you asked for feedback.
I think they're a terrible idea and I was extremely disappointed to hear they would be added to the game.
Items like these prey on gullible individuals, forcing them to spend far more than they would for a straight-forward sale because they hear rumors that a friend of a friend's sisters boyfriends cousin got an amazing item on the first try. Or more likely because there is simply no other way to obtain items they want. Typically the drop rates on anything which is worth having are extremely poor which results in some people spending hundreds of dollars (or equivalent in other currencies) and being left with nothing of use.
I'm going to test the drop rates as soon as my game has updated and will report back on them to make other players aware.
Once they're off the PTS and onto the live game I will not buy them. I accept this means I will miss out on many special items, likely all of the best mounts and skins, but I'd rather not waste my money or encourage this kind of item which takes advantage of players instead of offering a fair sale.
So I spent 5k crowns yesterday on crates and find it to be a total ripoff.
It's just TOO DAMNED EXPENSIVE. We're talking roughly $3-$4 per play (400 Crowns). I don't mind the gambling aspect of it, but chrissakes, give the kids a break! $4 of RL money is too damned high!
I did win a mount (Palomino), which was the high point of the experience. Plus several cosmetic features and a boatload of consumables, all of which would amount to maybe 30 gems if I converted them, which amounts to squat. That means if I were weak willed, and REALLY had to have the mount I could potentially blow hundreds of dollars trying to get one. That is wrong on so many levels.
The concept of a mini game where you gamble with a Khajit is pretty cool, and I enjoy the animation and commentary.
Make it an option to use in-game gold to gamble with a Khajit for in-game items and you have my full support, as there is role-play value, and no potential for abusing people who don't know any better.
I just feel like the current pricing takes advantage of people with poor impulse control, or addiction/ gambling issues. Not to lecture, but If you feel that it's worth $300 to ride around on a flashy mount in a video game, you may want to reconsider your priorities. I guess my point is, you should not have to pay big RL dollars to gamble for in-game items.
Whoever determines the cost of Crown Store items is taking advantage of people. Plain and simple.
I'm a premium member, so I get crowns along with my subscription. I chose to gamble those crowns as an experiment, and lost... fine. I'm an adult and I made the decision to gamble. What grinds my gears is the thought of some kids getting hooked on the Crown Crates because they want an Atronach mount, and blowing hundreds of dollars. Dangerous territory.
If ZOS has to resort to shady practices in order to generate revenue, then I will have to re-think whether or not I want to continue to support them.
It's an effing game... make it fun and of value!
SydneyGrey wrote: »Since someone else bumped this thread, I thought I'd add my two cents.
I bought several crates (I didn't count how many). I hate that only the consumables can be traded for gems. There were a few things in there I thought were ugly and that I hated, but I couldn't trade them for gems, and now they're stuck in my game permanently. (This was not on the PTS.) PLEASE let us trade anything we want for gems, not just the consumables. I hate that those ugly things are cluttering up my Collections folder.
It would also encourage more people to buy Crates, because they'd be getting a better deal. Thanks.
Yeah, that's been suggested multiple times. The problem for ZOS is that it reduces the worst-case scenario for someone going after a specific item to "only" about 8-9k crowns. That defeats the whole point of the crates, which is to nab those occasional rich folks that will sink hundreds of dollars into the crates to get the one thing they want.MornaBaine wrote: »SydneyGrey wrote: »Since someone else bumped this thread, I thought I'd add my two cents.
I bought several crates (I didn't count how many). I hate that only the consumables can be traded for gems. There were a few things in there I thought were ugly and that I hated, but I couldn't trade them for gems, and now they're stuck in my game permanently. (This was not on the PTS.) PLEASE let us trade anything we want for gems, not just the consumables. I hate that those ugly things are cluttering up my Collections folder.
It would also encourage more people to buy Crates, because they'd be getting a better deal. Thanks.
The ONLY thing that could do to make the gamble boxes "worth it" in my opinion is exactly this.
MornaBaine wrote: »SydneyGrey wrote: »Since someone else bumped this thread, I thought I'd add my two cents.
I bought several crates (I didn't count how many). I hate that only the consumables can be traded for gems. There were a few things in there I thought were ugly and that I hated, but I couldn't trade them for gems, and now they're stuck in my game permanently. (This was not on the PTS.) PLEASE let us trade anything we want for gems, not just the consumables. I hate that those ugly things are cluttering up my Collections folder.
It would also encourage more people to buy Crates, because they'd be getting a better deal. Thanks.
The ONLY thing that could do to make the gamble boxes "worth it" in my opinion is exactly this.
lordrichter wrote: »MornaBaine wrote: »SydneyGrey wrote: »Since someone else bumped this thread, I thought I'd add my two cents.
I bought several crates (I didn't count how many). I hate that only the consumables can be traded for gems. There were a few things in there I thought were ugly and that I hated, but I couldn't trade them for gems, and now they're stuck in my game permanently. (This was not on the PTS.) PLEASE let us trade anything we want for gems, not just the consumables. I hate that those ugly things are cluttering up my Collections folder.
It would also encourage more people to buy Crates, because they'd be getting a better deal. Thanks.
The ONLY thing that could do to make the gamble boxes "worth it" in my opinion is exactly this.
To me, the downside of just having them in the game, no matter what they contain or how many Gems we can get, completely eclipses everything else.
Hi All, new PC player here. Bought the game in the recent 50% off sale. Generally really enjoying the game and bought a 3-month ESO+ sub off the bat.
- So not happy with this I decided I wanted another shot.
lordrichter wrote: »Hey! Welcome to the game!
For the record, this is where you made your mistake:
lordrichter wrote: »The Gems were added in because early impressions from players (before the Crates were released) indicated a distinct lack of excitement, which differed from the warm fuzzies shared by the development team and marketing. After what I am sure were several days of intense internal meetings, consultations, and meditation to understand what went wrong, they came up with Gems. These are really the most valuable thing in the Crates because they offer the freedom to buy what you want
lordrichter wrote: »Hey! Welcome to the game!
For the record, this is where you made your mistake:
Thank you, and yep I know...a sucker for punishmentlordrichter wrote: »The Gems were added in because early impressions from players (before the Crates were released) indicated a distinct lack of excitement, which differed from the warm fuzzies shared by the development team and marketing. After what I am sure were several days of intense internal meetings, consultations, and meditation to understand what went wrong, they came up with Gems. These are really the most valuable thing in the Crates because they offer the freedom to buy what you want
Tbf the system isn't different to other games with the same systems. Overwatch has the same system with credits for dupes from their loot boxes.
The difference is the boxes in overwatch can be earned by playing. I liked how everything in the crown store was obtainable for a set price. If there is something I want, I know the price and can determine if it's worth it. These gamble boxes suck but are here to stay regardless.
lordrichter wrote: »Hey! Welcome to the game!
For the record, this is where you made your mistake:
Thank you, and yep I know...a sucker for punishmentlordrichter wrote: »The Gems were added in because early impressions from players (before the Crates were released) indicated a distinct lack of excitement, which differed from the warm fuzzies shared by the development team and marketing. After what I am sure were several days of intense internal meetings, consultations, and meditation to understand what went wrong, they came up with Gems. These are really the most valuable thing in the Crates because they offer the freedom to buy what you want
Tbf the system isn't different to other games with the same systems. Overwatch has the same system with credits for dupes from their loot boxes.
The difference is the boxes in overwatch can be earned by playing. I liked how everything in the crown store was obtainable for a set price. If there is something I want, I know the price and can determine if it's worth it. These gamble boxes suck but are here to stay regardless.
bluemanjoe_ESO wrote: »lordrichter wrote: »Hey! Welcome to the game!
For the record, this is where you made your mistake:
Thank you, and yep I know...a sucker for punishmentlordrichter wrote: »The Gems were added in because early impressions from players (before the Crates were released) indicated a distinct lack of excitement, which differed from the warm fuzzies shared by the development team and marketing. After what I am sure were several days of intense internal meetings, consultations, and meditation to understand what went wrong, they came up with Gems. These are really the most valuable thing in the Crates because they offer the freedom to buy what you want
Tbf the system isn't different to other games with the same systems. Overwatch has the same system with credits for dupes from their loot boxes.
The difference is the boxes in overwatch can be earned by playing. I liked how everything in the crown store was obtainable for a set price. If there is something I want, I know the price and can determine if it's worth it. These gamble boxes suck but are here to stay regardless.
would you buy an apex mount for 10-15k? because that's how much it would have to be priced at or more compared to how much people are spending on them now. People would complain it's a rip off. Why would they put a set price for people to complain even more about, when they can do crates and make a ton more money.
Ouch, sorry! That's some really rough luck.BertMoTron wrote: »Opened 30-40 crates... No Mounts... Guess who's never buying another crate ever.
I opened over a hundred crates. The only mount I got was the plain guar mount (not the Wild Hunt one), and I got him twice. No apex mounts at all, for all that money. That doesn't make me want to buy crates any more, either. I ended up spending gems for one apex mount (the horse), and a couple of the non-apex mounts. I wasn't too happy. That does not make me a fan of the crown crates.BertMoTron wrote: »Opened 30-40 crates... No Mounts... Guess who's never buying another crate ever.
SydneyGrey wrote: »I opened over a hundred crates. The only mount I got was the plain guar mount (not the Wild Hunt one), and I got him twice. No apex mounts at all, for all that money. That doesn't make me want to buy crates any more, either. I ended up spending gems for one apex mount (the horse), and a couple of the non-apex mounts. I wasn't too happy. That does not make me a fan of the crown crates.BertMoTron wrote: »Opened 30-40 crates... No Mounts... Guess who's never buying another crate ever.
I've seen many other people who have had better luck, so I really can't imagine why my luck was THAT bad. Argh. I'm not complaining, but I'm just saying the low chances makes me not want to buy any more. The only reason I even spent that much was because 1) I had crowns from my subscription, and 2) I'd had good luck with the storm atronach crates, which made me want to buy the wild hunt ones.
Yeah, when they make the chances of getting an apex super low, it just frustrates people into not wanting to buy any more.
I really hope that talking about this doesn't open me up to being bullied. Bullies, please take your trolling elsewhere.