Re-hashing the crown crate items. Right or wrong ?

Fightin_Irish_Johnny · January 2023

The game does have allot of cosmetics for the gear, outfits, mounts, weapon enhancement effects, player skins etc. etc. LOVE IT. However time after time when we log in and see re-hashed crate series show up I cringe. All the rarity of obtaining the items that many of us paid gobs and gobs of cash for all the sudden become less rare because your allowing players access to these over and over again.

I really took a likening to collecting the Radiant Mounts and all the crate cosmetics. I have managed to collect 60 of the 69 Radiant Mounts. I am not going to disclose the exact amount of money I invested to do this but it is pretty substantial. Truthfully I only need to justify making the investment to myself since after all I earned and chose to spend the money. I do not have any regrets. It has provided allot of fun putting together the collection and there are far worse things people do with their money. Either way I will never make everyone happy and will either get hate from some or compliments from others or some who don't care either way. I guess my point to even mentioning it is after putting in such effort and investment some of the cool factor goes away when the items you are given a timer on to go after then become available 1-2 or even 3 times again and who knows maybe more. Each time the definition of rare and hard to achieve lessens each time. Some will like, some will hate. To each his or her own. Best of Luck out there.

DMuehlhausen · January 2023

I'd like to buy a paragraph my dude.

Syldras · January 2023

I think it's okay to bring old items back. They never said they were limited editions.

kargen27 · January 2023

We knew very early that crates were cyclic. Personally I think it is good that new players have a chance at some of these mounts as they come back around. Would be a bit disheartening to see a really cool mount and find out because you started the game later than others you will never have a chance to get that mount.

Amottica · January 2023

Syldras wrote: »

I think it's okay to bring old items back. They never said they were limited editions.

This is it right here. I do not get into the crown store but I have never seen anything there that said it was limited edition or exclusive to that sale period or even suggested.

Fightin_Irish_Johnny wrote: »

I do not have any regrets.

This is important. Enjoy your game.

thorwyn · January 2023

DMuehlhausen wrote: »

I'd like to buy a paragraph my dude.

500 crowns! Special offer for ESO+ subscribers.

Snamyap · January 2023

It's completely your prerogrative to spend the money you earn the way you want. But I do find it a tad sad that the characteristic of items you apparently value most is that other people can't have it.

Danikat · January 2023

I think it's good that more players get an opportunity to get the skins and items they want.

No one else is going to care what mount you're using, the only important consideration is whether you like it, so it's far better for everyone to be able to get ones they want and which fit their characters than for it to be restricted to ones that happen to be sold when they can get them.

Also it's not like retuning cosmetics are given away free, anyone else who has those mounts either has to get them the same way you did or earn them by collecting seals of endeavour in the game. Why should it matter exactly when they did that?

rpa · January 2023

If slightly annoyed counts as caring, I do care (a bit) of people who drive the loudly exploding mounts which leave residues. Have to admit I do not remember looking at any of such mount long enough to know how the mount (mounts?) actually looks like. I guess the look-at-me effect fails in my case. Unless the intention of fireworks and coloured smoke is slightly-annoy-other-players of course.

Syldras · January 2023

Snamyap wrote: »

It's completely your prerogrative to spend the money you earn the way you want. But I do find it a tad sad that the characteristic of items you apparently value most is that other people can't have it.

It's a riddle to me (but none of my business anyway), to be honest, how people define themselves so much over some strangers' opinions. I use items (mounts, costumes,...) because I like the way they look and because I think they fit the character I'm playing. I don't care at all what other players think about them or how rare they are (let alone most people don't care at all what other player character's wear or what mounts they use), because that changes exactly nothing about the items - either I like their design or I don't.

Fightin_Irish_Johnny wrote: »

I do not have any regrets. It has provided allot of fun putting together the collection

Then everything's fine, I see. But why opening a thread then if there's nothing that bothers you?

ApoAlaia · January 2023

If anything I begrudge the heavy reliance on FOMO.

I'm sure is a profitable business practice, otherwise they would not engage on it, but if it was up to me all the crown store items would be available all the time.

The system as it is seems almost predatory, exploiting known weaknesses of the human condition for profit.

Syldras · January 2023

ApoAlaia wrote: »

If anything I begrudge the heavy reliance on FOMO.
I'm sure is a profitable business practice, otherwise they would not engage on it, but if it was up to me all the crown store items would be available all the time.
The system as it is seems almost predatory, exploiting known weaknesses of the human condition for profit.

While I agree that this is a problem, knowing that the items will return some day alleviates it a bit, no?

bmnoble · January 2023

I could somewhat understand the argument for event/achievement exclusive stuff that you earnt in game but not cash shop items, that you acquired with money with the only challenge being overcoming the RNG to get your desired items.

As far as I am concerned every item that has ever been up in the crown store should be there permanently for anyone to buy direct for crowns all year round, get rid of the fear of missing out marketing, have sales by all means but none of this stuff no longer being available after X number of days.

ApoAlaia · January 2023

Syldras wrote: »

ApoAlaia wrote: »

If anything I begrudge the heavy reliance on FOMO.
I'm sure is a profitable business practice, otherwise they would not engage on it, but if it was up to me all the crown store items would be available all the time.
The system as it is seems almost predatory, exploiting known weaknesses of the human condition for profit.

While I agree that this is a problem, knowing that the items will return some day alleviates it a bit, no?

It does to a degree but personally I would rather see this FOMO 'mechanics' removed altogether.

For one reason or another we have accepted cash shops in MMOs/GaaS games (I know that some publishers try the same on single player games which... yeah, let's not go there) but this whole 'limited time availability' irks me very much.

Syldras · January 2023

ApoAlaia wrote: »

It does to a degree but personally I would rather see this FOMO 'mechanics' removed altogether.
For one reason or another we have accepted cash shops in MMOs/GaaS games (I know that some publishers try the same on single player games which... yeah, let's not go there) but this whole 'limited time availability' irks me very much.

I see it's manipulative and from an ethic perspective questionable (like many things that are common in marketing, not even nowadays, but always have been, I think). I too can remember the times when "microtransactions" wasn't even a common word, but unfortunately, I don't think this will ever change anymore, as long as enough people play along with it.

Danikat · January 2023

Syldras wrote: »

ApoAlaia wrote: »

If anything I begrudge the heavy reliance on FOMO.
I'm sure is a profitable business practice, otherwise they would not engage on it, but if it was up to me all the crown store items would be available all the time.
The system as it is seems almost predatory, exploiting known weaknesses of the human condition for profit.

While I agree that this is a problem, knowing that the items will return some day alleviates it a bit, no?

It would if that was guaranteed, but some items which weren't marked as limited edition or otherwise unique never come back and others can take years to be available again, so skipping an item the first time around is always a gamble.

I've been waiting years for the Dapple Grey Palfrey to return. It was only available for 3 months in 2015 (when the crown store first started). It wasn't labelled as a limited time mount or anything special (it was displayed and priced exactly like the White Mane Horse which has been available pretty much constantly) but it's never been available since, either in the store or in crates.

There's many other examples like the True Ghost Horse which was only available for 5 days in 2018 and 8 days in 2021 or the Hakoshae Festival Attire which was sold for 5 days in 2019 and 10 days in 2021. They'll probably be available again but it could be a year or more before they are and it's never guaranteed.

JellySunset · January 2023

I don't mind that they bring back items and crates, I remember missing out on the Adorable Assassin hair when it was first in the store, so when it come back after that I snapped it up lol. And now it's back again which I think is completely fine the same goes for crates, on a personal level I really like housing and decorating so sometimes there are house items in the crates I wish I had got the first time but knowing they bring back crates occasionally is nice as I would have another chance to get a specific item I wanted.

What I don't like about them is I've seen them take items in the store away then they appear in crates, that is a big no no imo. new crate seasons should be filled with NEW and interesting items not items taken from the store and popped into a crate season.
The same for the Meridian Sunburst Tattoos that are currently in the store, they come from the Dragonscale Crates originally but are now randomly available to purchase for a time.

ElvenOverlord · January 2023

The issue is kind of moot since these items were never promoted as rare or limited time only. Plus its great, people who didn't get it before have a chance to get it in the future. Plus many of this stuff is just cosmetics, so it's not a big deal.

Somebody else making the choice to spend large amounts of money to quickly buy something cause they think it will be limited time only should not affect other players and is not a legitimate reason to not bring things back in the future. I'm happy someone in the future who's not yet playing will be able to purchase and enjoy the things I got now. Personally, for me I don't see an issue.

Diminish · January 2023

Mounts and cosmetics should all be earn-able in game, or have a single price tag associated with them. End. of. Story. The fact that you easily spent up to hundreds if not thousands of dollars for a chance at getting what you were after each time is quite troubling in my opinion. I could sit here all day and express my sheer disdain for crown crates, but I wont.

What I will say is that when you say "Each time the definition of rare and hard to achieve lessens each time", well that is not true. Crown items are in no way hard to achieve; with enough money spent, anyone can get one. If anything, players should only be given the opportunity to buy up to 15 crates each month. You get what you get. Then they wouldn't be as predatory, FOMO would not encourage impulse buying, and crown crate items would hold some rarity value. How it currently sits, nothing in crates are really anything "special", and should not be locked behind FOMO for anyone willing to live in poverty while they drain their savings account trying to get one.

Enemy-of-Coldharbour · January 2023

After reading the massive OP paragraph, I can't actually tell if they are complaining or bragging.

amapola76 · January 2023

Fightin_Irish_Johnny wrote: »

The game does have allot of cosmetics for the gear, outfits, mounts, weapon enhancement effects, player skins etc. etc. LOVE IT. However time after time when we log in and see re-hashed crate series show up I cringe. All the rarity of obtaining the items that many of us paid gobs and gobs of cash for all the sudden become less rare because your allowing players access to these over and over again. I really took a likening to collecting the Radiant Mounts and all the crate cosmetics. I have managed to collect 60 of the 69 Radiant Mounts. I am not going to disclose the exact amount of money I invested to do this but it is pretty substantial. Truthfully I only need to justify making the investment to myself since after all I earned and chose to spend the money. I do not have any regrets. It has provided allot of fun putting together the collection and there are far worse things people do with their money. Either way I will never make everyone happy and will either get hate from some or compliments from others or some who don't care either way. I guess my point to even mentioning it is after putting in such effort and investment some of the cool factor goes away when the items you are given a timer on to go after then become available 1-2 or even 3 times again and who knows maybe more. Each time the definition of rare and hard to achieve lessens each time. Some will like, some will hate. To each his or her own. Best of Luck out there.

No. Paying a lot of money for something is not my definition of "rare and hard to achieve," nor do I consider that there is any "cool factor" or "effort" to paying a lot of money for something.

You paid a lot of money when you bought these items in the past, people who buy them now will also pay a lot of money. Neither one is anything particularly special. People either have the disposable income for that or they don't.

I have to say, in general, I think it's pretty silly to get more enjoyment out of something just because someone else doesn't have it. Whether it's a mount, a furnishing, a costume, or whatever, making other people jealous doesn't make me feel better about myself or the item; either I like it or I don't, it fits my gameplay or it doesn't, end of story. However, to the extent that I can even imagine anything special about exclusivity, it would be tied to some sort of actual skill or talent or achievement, like finishing a trial (assuming carries weren't a thing), not RL cash.

Beilin_Balreis_Colcan · January 2023

I just spent several months saving up enough endeavour seals to buy the azure blight spriggan polymorph, and I'm very happy with it. If it had been made available only for a short period, and then never offered again, as the OP is proposing, I would have missed out.

Syldras · January 2023

amapola76 wrote: »

I have to say, in general, I think it's pretty silly to get more enjoyment out of something just because someone else doesn't have it. Whether it's a mount, a furnishing, a costume, or whatever, making other people jealous doesn't make me feel better about myself or the item; either I like it or I don't, it fits my gameplay or it doesn't, end of story.

Actually I'm regularly baffled by the assumption that people would be jealous or impressed by a shiny crown crate mount (or any cosmetic at all). I don't mean your post specifically, I read something like that on the forums regularly. And it always seems like a misjudgement of the situation for me.

I mean, many people don't care at all what user players use or don't know what the mount running past them is exactly. If I see some cosmetic I like the design of, I might ask what it is, and if I see it's some rare thing, I think something like "Oh, they've been lucky", but why would I feel jealosy or even admiration for that player? And most of the time not even that happens, because I find most rare things extremely ugly in they design, just too flashy and over the top. If someone then even tells me they spent bigger amounts of real money for that, I'm sorry, but to be honest, my first sentiment is pity. Just to remind myself then, that it's not my business what other people do with their money, so if they think a tacky flashy noisy game item is worth hundreds of dollars, it's their right to do so. Not wanting to be rude, just an outside perspective from someone who seems to be expected to be impressed or something.

Quackery · January 2023

I don't mind the rehash of crown crates because I'm STILL waiting for the Daedroth and Bone Goliath illusion gems to make a return.

Fightin_Irish_Johnny · January 2023

Well hey thank you for all the comments back. I actually gained some better insight that I had not previously even thought about. I guess I am trying to look at it from a different perspective after reading some of the feedback.

I thought Ok so if I was someone who really didn't have quite the means financially to even go for the mounts and cosmetics from the crates then yes for sure having them return with more time to try is a good thing. And yes truthfully they are still fairly hard to get.

On another note the fact that the Radiant Mounts are now achievable using gems to purchase is something I actually put a ton of effort into communicating with the Devs.

For months and months I sent tickets in and submitted suggestions that they at least make them purchasable with the gems that build up from getting repeat items in the crates. I finally received a response back that they had put it on the table for consideration.

That is one of the greatest things about the ESO team. They will listen and consider when they can on some things.

Again best of luck out there !

boi_anachronism_ · January 2023

I mean I was pretty stoked new moon came back. I wanted the howler mount and wasn't around when it first came out. I can't afford crates so I did gold grinding and got em from guildmates until I had enough gems. 4mil later I finally had enough but that takes time. Took me 3 weeks to save enough cause I was 500 endeavors short or would be by the time it leaves.