Suggestion: Transmutation Charges

Suggestion: Transmutation Charges

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Posted by: Pip Squeak.3418

Pip Squeak.3418

I don’t know about everyone, but I play GW2 a bit different than some. This game to me is Fashion Wars 2. I love every aspect of tweaking appearances and dyes for that perfect look. With this said I believe the system could be made far more enjoyable if item appearances could be swapped at any time, and transmutation charges used to buy new looks rather than switch to ones already unlocked.

Transmutation charges could be used to unlock in game armor skins, rare skins, maybe even gem store appearances. The amount needed for expensive items would obviously be very high but it would make poor college students and other non-money-endowed individuals far more dapper and beautiful. I believe a system like this could really encourage people to get as many cosmetic options as possible and in the end possibly even increase transmutation charge sales!

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Posted by: Hexinx.1872

Hexinx.1872

So swapping skins already unlocked would be free then? Because I’m supportive if that’s the case.

Otherwise I’d rather keep it the way it is.

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Posted by: Pip Squeak.3418

Pip Squeak.3418

That’s what I would like, swap unlocked skins at any time. I think it could be a really good profitable system.

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Posted by: Hexinx.1872

Hexinx.1872

It’s a good idea… a new avenue to unlock the wardrobe for the fashionista’s

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Posted by: OriOri.8724

OriOri.8724

I never really saw the point in requiring transmutation charges to change your appearance since they are given out like candy. But if you could use them to buy skins I think it should only be a subset of skins, ideally the old soubound/accountbound event skins that are no longer available. Would be nice to get a few of those for transmutation charges. But nothing that I need to enjoy the game

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Posted by: Pip Squeak.3418

Pip Squeak.3418

I think it would also be cool if they would let you get cash shop items like glider skins and such with them, you can acquire them with normal gameplay. I understand the amount needed should be very high at that point, say 50+ for a gem store item. I just hate having to slam my face on content I don’t want to do at the moment just to switch the skin on one piece of gear that I have had unlocked for 3 years… :<

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Posted by: Valkr.2648

Valkr.2648

Really good idea. Almost as good as the idea of being able to use pieces of outfits instead of having to use the whole thing or none at all.

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Posted by: Jahroots.6791

Jahroots.6791

I never really saw the point in requiring transmutation charges to change your appearance since they are given out like candy.

I dunno man, they used to give the transmutation stones (good for level 1-79 items) out like candy, but since the wardrobe change you have to go out of your way to play the content that awards ’em. Some people just find a look they like and stick to it, but the real Fashion Wars elite have at least one of each profession and are constantly tweaking and updating character looks. I know I never have enough charges, ever.

The system could be a little friendlier, I think. Right now you have to really be sure about a look before transmuting it. I often go through at least two ‘drafts’ and a bunch of wasted charges before I am completely satisfied with an armour combination. I would suggest:

(a) All gem store skins are free to apply for the entire account.

(b) Any skin you transmute onto gear with a particular character then becomes free to apply for that character

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Posted by: Menadena.7482

Menadena.7482

I like the OP idea as it would make people change their looks more, especially us altoholics. I generally figure I have 10 charges per character per year …. which basically means I have to pick a look and stay with it. If I want to wear something that only makes sense part of the year (a seasonal thing maybe) it does not wind up on my normal stuff because then I will need another charge to make it something more normal. Make them more like minis where once it is unlocked I can just select it.

(edited by Menadena.7482)

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Posted by: OriOri.8724

OriOri.8724

I never really saw the point in requiring transmutation charges to change your appearance since they are given out like candy.

I dunno man, they used to give the transmutation stones (good for level 1-79 items) out like candy, but since the wardrobe change you have to go out of your way to play the content that awards ’em. Some people just find a look they like and stick to it, but the real Fashion Wars elite have at least one of each profession and are constantly tweaking and updating character looks. I know I never have enough charges, ever.

The system could be a little friendlier, I think. Right now you have to really be sure about a look before transmuting it. I often go through at least two ‘drafts’ and a bunch of wasted charges before I am completely satisfied with an armour combination. I would suggest:

(a) All gem store skins are free to apply for the entire account.

(b) Any skin you transmute onto gear with a particular character then becomes free to apply for that character

Why don’t you use the preview window to see how much you like an outfit before transmuting all of it? Personally between just the charges I get in the login gifts and from the reward tracks I have more than I could use. They drop pretty often truthfully, most if not all reward tracks give you 4 charges and its not that hard to finish an entire track, especially with boosters going and if you do the dailies to get the track exp potions

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Posted by: Jahroots.6791

Jahroots.6791

Why don’t you use the preview window to see how much you like an outfit before transmuting all of it? Personally between just the charges I get in the login gifts and from the reward tracks I have more than I could use. They drop pretty often truthfully, most if not all reward tracks give you 4 charges and its not that hard to finish an entire track, especially with boosters going and if you do the dailies to get the track exp potions

The preview gives a decent idea, but there can be unexpected clipping issues, or different textures in a mix and match set make the colour schemes a bit ‘off’ in different lighting. It’s nitpicky for sure, but something I consider important. Mostly though, I just put an outfit together and it’s solid, but then after a while come up with an idea to make it even better, and absolutely have to change.

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Posted by: Illconceived Was Na.9781

Illconceived Was Na.9781

I don’t know about everyone, but I play GW2 a bit different than some. This game to me is Fashion Wars 2. I love every aspect of tweaking appearances and dyes for that perfect look. With this said I believe the system could be made far more enjoyable if item appearances could be swapped at any time, and transmutation charges used to buy new looks rather than switch to ones already unlocked.

Transmutation charges could be used to unlock in game armor skins, rare skins, maybe even gem store appearances. The amount needed for expensive items would obviously be very high but it would make poor college students and other non-money-endowed individuals far more dapper and beautiful. I believe a system like this could really encourage people to get as many cosmetic options as possible and in the end possibly even increase transmutation charge sales!

How would you ensure that ANet has an equivalent revenue stream? How would you move from the current system (in which some people have thousands of unlocked skins) to one in which unlocks are more expensive?

For a lot of veterans, transmuting is “free”, with limitations. Those willing to pay a premium (in time or money) are able to acquire more transmutation charges.

In other words, it looks like you are asking to get something for nothing, in order to solve an issue which doesn’t really exist.

John Smith: “you should kill monsters, because killing monsters is awesome.”

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Posted by: Jahroots.6791

Jahroots.6791

In other words, it looks like you are asking to get something for nothing, in order to solve an issue which doesn’t really exist.

No, there is definitely an issue. A lot of the endgame involves cosmetics, and the cost involved is a bit prohibitive for some players. Doesn’t help that they nerfed one of the main sources by 50% on HoT’s release. That really wasn’t cool.

I honestly don’t think transmutation should have been monetized to this extent. By all means, make skins to sell in the gem store.. but we really should be able to just, you know, use them whenever.

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Posted by: Sartharina.3542

Sartharina.3542

Please don’t necro a three-year-old.. .wait, what? This one’s actually new?! Is it 2012 again!? We had this exact same suggestion when the wardrobe system was introduced. The biggest problem the Wardrobe system had at the time (And still persists) is the loss of appearance while leveling.

That said – I do wish the game did have a few situations where we could get ‘Freebie’ transmutations, such as being able to have a specific item ‘remember’ skins it’s had transmuted onto it (So, for example, I could freely swap my current character’s appearance between “Golden Winged Champion” and “Iron Legion Soldier” on same set of gear), and allow a skin on a low-level item to be freely transferred onto a higher-level item.

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Posted by: Ashen.2907

Ashen.2907

I would rather not see this system changed for a couple of reasons:

1) Anet spends too much time/resources revising existing systems repeatedly. It costs the game new to redo old over and over again.

2) the proposed change seems likely to lead to a loss in revenue that Anet might feel compelled to make up by increasing monetization elsewhere. I am fine with seeing more new stuff to buy, but such would be expected with or without the OP’s suggestion.

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Posted by: AliamRationem.5172

AliamRationem.5172

Players may be more likely to purchase both skins and transmutation charges if instead of allowing you to select a different skin, the transmutation charge unlocked the skin in the wardrobe. In other words, the system works more or less the same as it does now, but once you use a transmutation charge on a skin, you can swap back to that skin at will (on that character).

My line of thought is that this would encourage players to purchase more skins as they are able to freely swap between them. However, as a result they would require more transmutation charges to unlock more skins.

The question is whether these factors would balance out and result in equal or greater revenue. I can only guess at the nature of the transmutation charge market.

If the lion’s share consists of casual (once every now and then) purchases based on the perception of a poor value to cost ratio (e.g. players kittenpond to the cost of transmutation charges by engaging in the market only rarely), then I would expect such players to purchase more skins and more transmutation charges.

However, if the transmutation charge market is driven primarily by a smaller group of players who use and purchase transmutation charges frequently, then it may result in a loss of revenue as these players would be less likely to purchase more skins than they already do and would purchase fewer transmutation charges.

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Posted by: Pip Squeak.3418

Pip Squeak.3418

If people are really against this idea, what about a system where the transmutation goes over an individual character’s armor SLOT rather than the piece itself? This way you could customize different classes that share ascended armor without ruining the other’s theme every time you transfer your items. ALSO this could alleviate the racial armor limitation, my Asura Engineer likes Asura cultural armor… My sylvari druid does not.

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Posted by: Astra Lux.2846

Astra Lux.2846

The only major change that I would really like is an option to revert a transmuted item to its original state without cost.

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Posted by: Astralporing.1957

Astralporing.1957

That was basically the original idea for Wardrobe as proposed by players. Of course Anet, as always, decided to do it their way.
Yes, i believe that using transmutation charges to unlock skins, and Wardrobe to switch already unlocked skins would have been better. I’m afraid that ship has sailed long ago, though.
I must admit, however, that most of my initial worries about the Wardrobe system turned out to be unfounded, and getting enough charges for transmutations is relatively easy as long as you don’t change your looks too often. Even if you have a lot of alts.

Actions, not words.
Remember, remember, 15th of November

(edited by Astralporing.1957)

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Posted by: Pip Squeak.3418

Pip Squeak.3418

getting enough charges for transmutations is relatively easy as long as you don’t change your looks too often.

It’s unfortunate that while not in PvP or WvW, my favorite passtime is actually just sitting around and playing with new looks. I LOVE changing my look, I just wish I could do it more often. :<

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Posted by: OriOri.8724

OriOri.8724

Why don’t you use the preview window to see how much you like an outfit before transmuting all of it? Personally between just the charges I get in the login gifts and from the reward tracks I have more than I could use. They drop pretty often truthfully, most if not all reward tracks give you 4 charges and its not that hard to finish an entire track, especially with boosters going and if you do the dailies to get the track exp potions

The preview gives a decent idea, but there can be unexpected clipping issues, or different textures in a mix and match set make the colour schemes a bit ‘off’ in different lighting. It’s nitpicky for sure, but something I consider important. Mostly though, I just put an outfit together and it’s solid, but then after a while come up with an idea to make it even better, and absolutely have to change.

Well thats fair.

The only major change that I would really like is an option to revert a transmuted item to its original state without cost.

This would be nice to have as well, but again not something that the game needs for me to enjoy it.

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Posted by: Illconceived Was Na.9781

Illconceived Was Na.9781

In other words, it looks like you are asking to get something for nothing, in order to solve an issue which doesn’t really exist.

No, there is definitely an issue. A lot of the endgame involves cosmetics, and the cost involved is a bit prohibitive for some players.

How does any of the game’s end require cosmetics? It’s always a player choice to play dress up on their Barbie & Ken dolls. Like anything in the game or IRL, it takes more resources to have more flexibility. One can also put in time or money or budget within the charges the game delivers for free through various reward systems.

Doesn’t help that they nerfed one of the main sources by 50% on HoT’s release. That really wasn’t cool.

They adjusted a lot of rewards, not just free transmutation charges. I can’t defend ANet’s decision, but neither can I criticize it — games make adjustments all the time. There are different sources now.

I honestly don’t think transmutation should have been monetized to this extent. By all means, make skins to sell in the gem store.. but we really should be able to just, you know, use them whenever.

You’re still asking for more without wanting to pay more. What’s your alternative revenue stream that would allow ANet to make this choice?

You’re also still asking for a change to the convenience of using the wardrobe, which isn’t required to play the game. It’s a frustration for many, to be sure; that doesn’t make it a “problem” that requires a resolution by ANet — there are already lots of free ways to increase the number of transmutation charges you can use.

tl;dr it looks like you are asking to get something for nothing, in order to make it easier to change looks often, which isn’t a gameplay issue.

John Smith: “you should kill monsters, because killing monsters is awesome.”

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Posted by: coso.9173

coso.9173

First we wold have to know if Arenanet actually gets important revenue by selling transmutation charges on the gemstore, most people I know just create a new character and travel around a few capitals and done…

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Posted by: Khisanth.2948

Khisanth.2948

Charges were always easy to get in PvP and now also easy to get in WvW so basically it is just PvE exclusive players(and do not do the PvP dailies) that are left out …

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Posted by: Eidolonemesis.5640

Eidolonemesis.5640

Here is a very simple solution for the current Transmutation Charge System…

Keep the Transmutation Charge System exactly the way it is, except after players use Transmutation Charges on any Armor piece for the first time, they can/should be able to change to those Armor pieces for free at any time.

Why? Because players have already been charged a Transmutation fee the first time to change their look to those Armor pieces, so what sense does it make to charge players a second Transmutation fee to change to Armor pieces they already used Transmutation Charges on? It makes no sense at all…

The above stated is a viable solution, Anet, but will you implement it?

That is the question.

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Posted by: Rasimir.6239

Rasimir.6239

Charges were always easy to get in PvP and now also easy to get in WvW so basically it is just PvE exclusive players(and do not do the PvP dailies) that are left out …

PvE exclusive players have access to charges via map completing. While it may not be as quick as a reward track, it does lead to a good many charges, and offers options to farm them relatively quickly (via city completion).

The above stated is a viable solution, Anet, but will you implement it?

I doubt it, simply because allowing an unknown number of skins unlocked per equipment piece would create a huge data overhead. While it sounds like a nice qol feature, I suspect that the purely technical limitations of data storage would make it expensive to the point of being not worth it.

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Posted by: Khisanth.2948

Khisanth.2948

Charges were always easy to get in PvP and now also easy to get in WvW so basically it is just PvE exclusive players(and do not do the PvP dailies) that are left out …

PvE exclusive players have access to charges via map completing. While it may not be as quick as a reward track, it does lead to a good many charges, and offers options to farm them relatively quickly (via city completion).

That is either not repeatable or requires a spare character slot.

The above stated is a viable solution, Anet, but will you implement it?

I doubt it, simply because allowing an unknown number of skins unlocked per equipment piece would create a huge data overhead. While it sounds like a nice qol feature, I suspect that the purely technical limitations of data storage would make it expensive to the point of being not worth it.

Maybe a few hundred bytes per piece of equipment. Most smart phones will probably have enough storage for that bit of extra space.

(edited by Khisanth.2948)

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Posted by: OriOri.8724

OriOri.8724

Charges were always easy to get in PvP and now also easy to get in WvW so basically it is just PvE exclusive players(and do not do the PvP dailies) that are left out …

PvE exclusive players have access to charges via map completing. While it may not be as quick as a reward track, it does lead to a good many charges, and offers options to farm them relatively quickly (via city completion).

The above stated is a viable solution, Anet, but will you implement it?

I doubt it, simply because allowing an unknown number of skins unlocked per equipment piece would create a huge data overhead. While it sounds like a nice qol feature, I suspect that the purely technical limitations of data storage would make it expensive to the point of being not worth it.

Depending on how their wardrobe is programmed it could actually be trivial to keep track of what skins you have already “unlocked” with a transmutation charge for each slot. Really it could be done with a single extra bit on every skin in the game if their wardrobe is set up to handle inputs like that, a single bit for YES a transmutation charge has been used for this item already, or NO a transmutation charge has notbeen used for this item yet.

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Posted by: Asclepios.4295

Asclepios.4295

Why not something in between?
You’d still need to find/buy the skin you want. Then they appear in your wardrobe with a lock. Use transmutation charges to unlock it for all characters. Boom.

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Posted by: Pip Squeak.3418

Pip Squeak.3418

Why not something in between?
You’d still need to find/buy the skin you want. Then they appear in your wardrobe with a lock. Use transmutation charges to unlock it for all characters. Boom.

Anything is better imo, than the current system. It’s not that the charges are super hard to come by, it’s the fact that I have to use them every time I want to change ANYTHING and I don’t want the exact same theme for each class that shares armor.

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Posted by: Freakshow.1809

Freakshow.1809

I really like this idea. I despise the current system because it’s discouraging not being able to customize my characters below level 80 because I don’t want to waste charges, and even when you hit 80 your still saving and looking for better gear and stats and it sucks swapping out a transmuted armor piece for something that clashes with everything else I wear because of the better stats.

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Posted by: RandomWolf.3986

RandomWolf.3986

I just wish there were more ways to get charge than completing maps or farming gold.. I’m always running out of them.

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Posted by: Khisanth.2948

Khisanth.2948

I just wish there were more ways to get charge than completing maps or farming gold.. I’m always running out of them.

There is sPvP and WvW …

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Posted by: Meehael.8240

Meehael.8240

OP, I don’t get it. What you’re saying is that you want to unlock unlocked skins?
That seems too cumbersome.

Intel i7-3770, MSI GTX1070 8GB, Asus P8H61 Pro, 16GB DDR3 @1600 MHz,
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Posted by: Pip Squeak.3418

Pip Squeak.3418

OP, I don’t get it. What you’re saying is that you want to unlock unlocked skins?
That seems too cumbersome.

I would rather spend transmutation charges as a one time thing, maybe make it an option in addition to the current system. It would make it so you didn’t have to spend them every time you wanted to swap your look, you could unlock an item and swap to it’s appearance at any point for free.

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Posted by: Kyvrn.4209

Kyvrn.4209

Is what you are saying that say I buy x item from TP that is an exotic piece of armor. Currently I would be able to unlock that skin by binding it to my account via salvaging, equipping, or just unlocking skin which would bind the item. With the new system in order to unlock that skin you would need a transmutation charge to do so? It would then be consumed and the skin would be unlocked permanently. You could then change the skins free of charge whenever you desire. Is this correct?

Kyvrn | Dom Chrono | Leader of Twinrovas [ROVA]