Guild Wars 2

Labjax.2465:

Oh and for the record, I don’t care whether it is 90g or 1500g. I just think the system should promote moderately consistent costs. Which would probably mean a way to get precursors that is more akin to the ascended item track.

I’m certain you’ll be in for a shock once Precursor crafting comes out. If Anet does what I’m sure they’ll do, prices will remain as they are. If, by chance, Anet fails, and makes it too easy to craft, you’ll see a crash in the Precursor market. That’ll send shockwaves throughout the economy.

Ayrilana.1396:

So what you really want is a socialistic economy where precursors are allocated to players based on their needs. I’m sorry but this game was not designed around that concept.

Marx once argued that the goal of the proletariat was to replace the capitalist system.

Obtena.7952:

Ohoni.6057:

Why not? This is a game, the goal is to make as many players happy as possible.

I think your problem is that you put the cart before the horse. The GOAL of the game is to make money. That’s not necessarily done by making as many players as happy as possible in a game with no sub. I honestly don’t think that happiness motivates players to spend money on gems. Making them feel they need something does.

The other thing that sinks that “make more players happy = gimme legendary” is the fact that the game already experiences some level of success. There is no way for you establish the need to do what you are suggesting, other than the general sense that it will make everything better to make it more successful. That’s a baseless claim.

To add, a Legendary can be the end goal for players. So making the end goal easier means they’ll have less to do until a new goal emerges.

Ohoni.6057:

Obviously that was not my intent, I’ve corrected my post to reflect that I intended those prices to be in gold, not USD. You are now free to take a crack at addressing the substance of my posts, or just continue to dance around them when they hit too close, as you usually do.

What’s there to dance around? The current prices of certain Precursors are working perfectly fine. High demands = high price. There’s no need for Anet to increase supply of certain items just because more players want them. This isn’t fair to those who spend the time and money MFing Longbows over Greatswords. Each Precursor has an equal drop rate. Asking that the most popular ones have their rates buffed borders on Entitlement.

I think I should start a thread called “Precursor prices are perfectly fine.”

John Smith.4610:

I’ve read the thread, it’s not actually about inflation, but a misunderstanding of what indicators of inflation are, it’s about precursor prices.

I don’t understand what point you’re making here? You’re saying veteran players are upset about the economy, because you’ve heard that from people. It seems your primary concern is that TP flipping is the only way to make money and that’s upsetting people? We’ve discussed in great depth why that isn’t true.

John, I think it’s a losing battle trying to explain things like this to certain players. We’ve done our best to try and explain to these players that their misunderstandings about the economy lead to misapplied “solutions” to problems that don’t exist.

Septemptus.7164:

I personally think that half of people who rush to trash the idea didn’t read fist post to the end or just didn’t understood it and didn’t bothered to read it again…
Well, they fail.

I think that you completely failed to realize that different stat combos require different T6 mats. Zerker, Valk, Magi, whatever combo floats your boat, each require a different recipe and T6. So it’s safe to say that your idea will never come to pass.

Just get a Legendary if you want to switch stats on the fly. It’s one of the perks we get for investing so much time into making the Legendaries we have.

Labjax.2465:

~~~ snip ~~~

Part of the point of this thread that many seem to have missed, is that the common complaint about “precursors being too expensive” is a fallacy. Precursors costing around 100 Gold are available. Just because no one wants them doesn’t change the fact that you can still get them far cheaper than Dusk.

I fully understand why certain Precursors cost so much. Why do you think so many traders are able to profit as much as they do? People are willing to pay the current prices. And I can almost guarantee that prices will still be high even after the Precursor crafting comes out.

Ohoni.6057:

So Dawn would sell for $350, Rage would sell for $21, everyone wins.

I think the loonies would be screaming “P2W!” as soon as Anet puts Precursors in the Gem Store. Can you imagine seeing “Dawn – 28,000 Gems or Dusk – 32,000 Gems”? The forums would be full of misdirected rage.

Sorry, but this idea is already reserved for Legendary Weapons and Armors.

But that idea would make Precursors common. And most BLTC forum regulars would agree that removing the rarity is a very bad idea for the economy.

In fact, your idea would punish players who would be forced to buy a Rage or Venom for 3x the current prices.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

You assume that the game needs a “Free Market” to be successful and you assume that the current implmentation of the TP serves all that purposes well.

It serves this game extremely well. The TP allows players to trade goods between each other securely, and acts as a Gold Sink to keep currency values stable.

And the TP gives you the ability to get a Precursor for a very reasonable price, rather than playing with Zommoros’ RNG.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

Smooth Penguin.5294:

…

Wow…
You have a serious problem, but it boils down to the fact that you compare the real life with the game. You are doing huge mistakes by comparing those who want precursors but don’t have the gold with poor fellows and those who have the gold with the high society.
I think it should be clear by now that there is no “high society” in GW2. just some players who have decided that they want to flip the traiding post because it offers way more gold than anybody else.
That shouldn’t be in the game, it creates a disparity that doesn’t has to be so big, it ruins the fun. And that’s what this game all about: Fun. Grinding gold over and over while seeing players making much more gold in the same time isn’t fun. Grinding gold in general isn’t fun. The entire endgame resolves around grinding gold to get stuff.

And you are one of the few that are happy with the current system becasue you are not on the receiving end. That’s what you have to learn once for all: Just becuase you have fun with the game doesn’t mean others have too. That doesn’t mean that the whole community agrees with you. That doesn’t mean that the ones disagree with you are astray and have to be brought into line.

From all your posts, it’s clear that you don’t understand the mechanics of a free market. We players decide on prices. We players decide if we pay those prices. You’ve been upset for many months now that certain players are able to take advantage of sales opportunities. If I sold my Dusk for 2,500 Gold, that means the buyer felt it was worth that much. If I sold my Venom for 1,000 Gold, same thing applies. There’s nothing broken about it.

Right now, there are cheap items on the TP that anyone can purchase. Precursors are rare. Their drops rates are equal, yet their individual demand is not. Highly demanded ones are more expensive, because way more people want them. Simple market principles.

The only reason why someone would want 100 “runes” or anything else is so they can attempt to flip it for a profit. Because your motive is to make money, you thereby give up all rights to complain when competition in the same market heats up. You walked into the kitchen knowing it was hot, so to speak.

Rising Dusk.2408:

~~~ snip ~~~

I, too, am waiting for the Precursor crafting. I’ve been prepared for months upon months, gathering items that I’m speculating will be necessary for each step. But even with the Precursor scavenger hunt, that only give an additional option, not pure alternative. I say this because I’m highly confident that the requirements will be so high, that it’ll be easier/cheaper just to buy one from the TP. I’ll go as far to say that there’ll be some players who’ll be unable to do the crafting, simply because it may require something like a hard JP, or even FotM 50. The usual complaints will pour into the forums about being “physically unable to do JPs” to being “force to do content he/she doesn’t like”.

Nathrax.3980:

ZOMG guys! Dawn/Dusk are only expensive because people don’t know the other precursors exist! That is obviously why some of the others are so cheap!

Thank you for providing this invaluable public service.

My pleasure mate!

I think the complaints will intensify once someone gets a Precursor drop from Mawdrey.

lordkrall.7241:

Smooth Penguin.5294:

I think Anet should consider putting in a VIP system, much like how China has. I’m more than willing to pay extra money for extra benefits. People willing to spend X amount each month helps NCSoft/Anet’s bottom line, and would be completely optional. Players who don’t want to participate can still play the game as normal. It’s a win/win situation for all.

Did you see the reaction on these forums when the VIP-data was data-mined before they announced it for China?

I know. Perhaps we should give it a chance? Maybe a private test run for a few selected players?

The vendor is near the lion statue if I remember correctly

Apokriphos.7042:

What do you guys think?

I read this as another way to punish Black Gate. Because they’re the #1 server, you want Anet to “balance” them out so that they’re not so powerful anymore. By forcing auto team balances, you effectively punish players by ruining their game mode. If a server doesn’t have the man power to cover WvW BLs, that’s not Anet’s fault. Servers’ players decide to WvW, SPvP, or PvE.

As you can see, it’s a self inflicted problem. Everyone wants the same item (i.e. Dusk), that’s also very limited. Add in the fact that we have a free market where players can determine prices, and you have yourself a rare and expensive commodity. The problem is not Anet’s “lack of Precursors”. It’s the player’s lack of understanding that other Precursors exist, but the hyper focus on two or three force prices up.

The solution is not to increase drop rates just to satisfy these players. The solution is to educate people that there are other options for Legendaries, thus the purpose of this thread.

I think Anet should consider putting in a VIP system, much like how China has. I’m more than willing to pay extra money for extra benefits. People willing to spend X amount each month helps NCSoft/Anet’s bottom line, and would be completely optional. Players who don’t want to participate can still play the game as normal. It’s a win/win situation for all.

When you think about it, it’s your fault for putting in a Buy Order for too low. If you don’t want to compete with me other players for cheap items, then bid higher, or just buy whatever’s on the lowest Sell list.

People keep saying increase Precursor drop rates for the stuff everyone wants…. because happiness. Let’s replace the item in question, Dusk, with something else that’s rare.

• Anet should increase the drop rates of Giant Eyes because we want more of them.
• Anet should increase the drop rates of Charged Lodestones because we want more of them.
• Anet should increase the drop rate of Black Lion Claim Tickets because we want more of them.

Are you can see, the narrative is the same. People want more of something, because they are hard to get and highly desirable. That means everything is working as intended in the greater scheme of things.

As for Rage or Venom, these items have the same drop rates of Dusk, but aren’t as expensive. This is because there’s less demand for these items. This is also an opportunity for a player to be able to start their Legendary crafting 1,500 to 2,000 Gold cheaper.

Last point on this, to increase the supply of Precursors is a self defeating problem. People want them because they make epic looking Legendaries, and aren’t so common that everyone is wielding one. The more people walking around with a Twilight, the less desirable it becomes. Then the complaint moves to “where are the new greatsword Legendaries?”

Mad Queen Malafide.7512:

~~ snip ~~~

The one major issue you’re leaving out here is Entitlement. Players who complain about the Gem Store, tend to be the ones who want the Gem Store items the most. Their desire to have these items are countered by their inability to obtain them. Much like how people complain about certain Precursors being expensive, or Louis Vuitton purses being overpriced. Some people feel that they deserve to have said item, and aren’t happy that others can have something they can’t.

In the psychological nature of human desire, it’s a common underlying problem where as people always want the best things. There is no inherent problem with just wanting the best. In fact, businesses utilize people’s desires to have the best as a way to make sales. Want the latest model Mustang? The 2015 model is on sale if you come into a dealership in the next 30 days! However, the problem is when there’s a huge discrepancy between wanting an item, and the ability to purchase the item. If you cannot obtain what you desire, the human emotion jealously becomes the driving force.

The best way to resolve these issues has already been recommended in this thread. You can:

• 1) Understand that all items in the Gem Store are optional.
• 2) Realize that without microtransactions to sustain game development, GW2 could end up like City of Heroes – shut down and forgotten.
• 3) Understand that Gems don’t require a creditcard to purchase. You can trade in-game Gold for Gems for free.
• 3a) Gem Exchange ratios get more expensive as players continue to use Gold to get Gems. This is working as intended.
• 4) Reevaluate your priorities in the game. If you’re not having fun because you can’t purchase Gem Store items, removing the Gem Store isn’t the solution.

Aberrant.6749:

Title misleading. Please re-title it as precursors that you’ll never see because underwater weapons selling for 90g. Thanks.

Seriously though, if you had made the argument/point about Rodgort’s Flame or something you would have been better off.

I posted a pic of Rodgort’s in my OP, and made mention about it’s price as well. The main thing here is that people complained that Precursors were too expensive or hard to get. I disproved that by showing people that there are Precursors that are affordable.

I saw you in game earlier. You seem to be DCing a lot. Might want to check with your ISP to see if anything is up. Or upgrade to a new gaming PC.

There are players right now who feel Entitled to a Precursor. They want easier access to it, simply because they desire it. Much like a government that controls the output of all goods, these players are demanding that this luxury item be shared with the masses, so as to have no class divisions between the lucky or rich players from the Casual ones.

Right now, in our current state, Casual gamers are liken to the Proletariat, while TP players are much like Bourgeoisie. Arguments between these classes are lop sided, since rich players are few, and the Casual or non-rich are the majority. But just because the majority would demand a certain thing from the government to make them happy, the government currently knows better than to give into the demands.

Human nature is to want. There is no problem with wanting to own a Dusk. There is no problem asking for a Dusk. But you need to take a step back, and look at the situation from a perspective that’s beyond just yourself. You would satisfy your own desires if you got what you wanted, but where would that lead the GW2 community as a whole if everyone suddenly had something that was ultra rare?

If you want a Precursor just so you can make a Legendary, you have cheap options to pick from on the TP. If you want Dusk because Twilight is cool looking, or is a status symbol since it’s pretty, or whatever, that’s your choice. Having made that choice, you join the thousands of others with the same desire, competing for the same item on the TP. If someone is willing to spend more Gold than you can afford to spend, then your options become limited. And because you made that choice, you agree to live with the consequences.

Duke Nukem.6783:

get on your anet mod account and tell me that

Let me help you out on this one.

Josh Foreman.8250:

I’m not surprised that the Wurm is not liked by as many people. We were making that specifically for the hard core groups that are all about the organization and figuring out the strategy and tactics. It’s really cool watching the community grapple with this puzzle and innovate as they get closer and closer to finding a winning strategy.

Duke Nukem.6783:

~~~ snipping ~~~

Just to clear things up for you.

1) TTS started off as an idea from one person. This person got other like-minded people together, and formed the basis of what is now a community with 5,000+ players. You are free to start your own community if you don’t wish to run with TTS.

2) TTS has an open door policy. Anyone is able to log into our TS servers, and participate in events. Teq, Karka, Wurms, FotM, Dungeons, and even other games.

3) GM Chris, Anet’s Head of Security used to run with us daily. As did dozens of other Anet GMs.

4) As others have said, TTS is only one of many communities that does large scale events. When the Great Wurm first came out, our leaders would collaborate with other guilds and communities, and share ideas and strategies. Mind you, we were not the first to beat the Wurm, but we were the first to get to the 2nd stage.

Ohoni.6057:

Because it will make players happy, and they are in the business of making players happy. If the economy is running flawlessly but the players are not happy with it then they have seriously screwed up. If the economy is in complete shambles but the players are cool with that, then they’ve done all right. This is an adventure game, not an economic simulator, maintaining the economy is a means, not an end.

Maintaining the economy is just as important as making players happy. What you want may not be in line with what Anet intends. If you had a majority of the player base all calling for a free deposit of 1,000 Gold to make them happy, should Anet comply?

Nightshade.5924:

At least that’s what you’ve been saying. Or am I mistaken?

You’re mistaken. Don’t worry about it.

Nightshade.5924:

John Smith has said it is so, and thus it MUST be true. It MUST be correct.

Very circular of you. So if I was JS, you’d just give me all of your gold? After all, he MUST have a good reason to ask you for it, right?

John doesn’t ask for my Gold. I freely give it to him, along with my wallet. This is because I understand how the game economy works, and have no problems dropping hundreds of Gold on useless skins just to get my Fashion Collector title. And when he brings out more epic items in the Gem Store, I’ll be buying more Gems with my creditcard. It’s an endless cycle of happiness for both me and Anet.

It’s not a game problem, but rather a self created player one. Because GW2 has an open market where players determine prices of items, key economic theories of Supply and Demand kick in. The more players get larger amounts of Gold, the more of them will be able to afford Legendary crafting. With more of them wanting the same items, the large Demand gets to a very limited Supply. This increases the price of the item naturally. If Player A is willing to buy Item X for 500 Gold, and Player B is willing to pay 700 Gold, I’m selling to the higher offer. But if more competition comes in, and Player C offers 1,000 Gold, I’m selling to him. As people buy and sell items, prices begin to stabilize around an average. This is how markets work.

As most who understand this know, there is no problems with players determining values of goods. Why should Anet come in and say “Hmmmm, that Dusk is too expensive, let’s increase the drop rates for that item, since it’ll make players happy!” Anet has to also consider the health of the economy. John is probably sympathetic to those who long for their very own Dusk. But as the Guardian of the TP, his first love will always be his mistresses, Data and Facts, not his ex-girlfriends Pity and Compassion.

Making a Legendary is the same as it was from day 1. The only difference now is that more players are gaining wealth, so more are now wanting to start their Legendary Weapon quest. Due to this, Demand for all mats required to make Legendary components increased in value.

Think back to the beginning. Anet intended for Legendary Weapons to take almost a year to complete. At the most Casual gamer rate of maybe 1 hour of playing per day, that 300 hours would equal close to a year.

Nightshade.5924:

Yet the same JS quote that I’ve seen before. So that would mean that the system is designed to continually reduce the exchange power of Gold to Gems, which means that at some point in the future we will be paying 100 gold for 100 gems.

And this is as intended? Are you even paying attention? If the gold increase rate continues as it has for the last 18 months, then by the end of December we will be seeing 21 gold for 100 gems. It will be interesting to see if I’m right in that projection.

And that, according to you and JS, is the plan. Funny, I was under the impression that the GW staff didn’t want us to “grind”. Looks like we’re not going to have much of a choice.

Unless you’re willing to open ye old pocketbook, as some have suggested. Not going to happen.

The system works because:

John Smith.4610:

It’s working as intended.

Nightshade.5924:

See, again, flawed. Gems SHOW the relative value of gold in the exchange. Values ARE changing, usually on a daily basis. Don’t believe me, check the market for yourself.
Granted that the change isn’t usually all that much, but a month ago 100 gems was about 15 gold. This whole thing that I keep reading about “fixed amounts of gold in the exchange” is garbage on the face of it. Fixed amounts of Gems, that makes sense given the INFLATIONARY trend.

And my argument is to add more sinks. Because obviously the ones we have are NOT doing the job.

Ahem

John Smith.4610:

It’s working as intended.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

Do you know who is really ruining your game experience? TP flippers. Do you know why? Because they make everything on the TP more expensive and are the richest players in the game, although they don’t even play the game. They’re just flipping items. Go deal with those first before you start complaining about key farmers.

And we come full circle with this. As we’ve explained to you many times, because you don’t understand how the economies work, you assume TP players are a problem. They are the richest players because they put in effort to understanding the mechanics of selling. Just like why some people end up working for McDonald’s all their life, and some people create companies like MicroSoft or Ebay.

Ohoni.6057:

No one is forcing people to compete for a particular Precursor. They do so on their own free will, which in turn creates such a high Demand, that prices spike to levels they are now.

A fair point. I want a Dawn, so all that needs to change is all you jerks need to stop wanting a Dawn so that I can have one for vendor prices. Problem solved, right Pengy? Come to think of it, I’d like a few thousand gold. it seems like you probably have a few thousand gold lying around Pengy, well now we’ve decided that you shouldn’t want to own gold anymore, so it;s just taking up space for you. You can just send it my way.

This is a lot simpler than I thought it would be.

If you can’t afford Dusk, and really want a Legendary, buy Venom instead.

But that’s my point, most players DO NOT “really want a legendary.” They want A legendary, as in there are specif weapons they want, and plenty that they do not. The only way that Venom would make a suitable substitute for Dusk would be if you could use it to craft a greatsword that streams a star field behind it. Until that’s something in the game, you’re not making any sort of point at all.

People can want what they want, all they want. But they also have to understand that they can’t get all they want all the time either. I would love to drive a Tesla Model S, but can’t afford it, so I’ll buy a Hyundai Sonata instead.

And living within your means is all well and good, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t petition to make things more affordable. The Tesla S costs more than the Sonata because it has a lot of expensive parts. If they sold for the same low price then Tesla would lose money on each sold.

Dusk, on the other hand, contains the exact same quantity of data as Naegling, which sells for much less. It’s only more expensive because ANet CHOSE to give it the “ingredient in Twilight” property and set a drop rate for it well bellow the demand rate. They could always CHOOSE to change either of those things, altering the price to whatever level they saw fit. Obviously until they do, those that cannot afford it will have to do without, but there’s no reaosn why we can’t argue in favor of that sort of change.

There’s a difference between arguing for change that betters the game overall, and arguing for change that benefits the few who feel Entitled to a fancy Greatsword.

On a personal level, I didn’t like that Anet would nerf farms. But taking a step back and seeing the impact on the economy if they don’t, I understand why they do. Not all change is for the satisfaction of the players. Some designs are made on purpose, and the rarity of Precursors are one of them. As John once stated, before you come up with solutions, you must first come up with a problem. Not being able to afford Dusk isn’t really a high priority problem to solve.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

BrotherBelial.3094:

But you don’t just get skins do you? And LS is optional. I hate the skin I’ve binned the items already. Also I don’t think the majority of people play PvP to get skins. It’s far quicker to get the skins by doing the dungon that completing a PvP track. So if skins are your main motivation. I don’t think many people do it in PvP alone.

You say you don’t play for skins, so I would like to know, why do you play?
Playing with friends doesn’t count, you can do that in any other online game too.

And you can get rare/unique skins in other games too. What’s your point? Fun is what you make of the game. Like we’ve said previously, if you’re unhappy with the game, simply quit or take a break. Some of us love this game, broken pieces and all.

With more skill, you’ll find yourself dying left often. This in turn leads to less armor repairs.

Nightshade.5924:

~ long snip ~

I have a business degree, and economics was a requirement. I’m sure John has a degree as well. So please enlighten me where you come off on trying to insult us, when your whole problem is that you don’t understand the subject you’re trying to make an argument on.

John Smith.4610:

Short and sweet:
If you think inflation is a major issue in Guild Wars 2, you should do more research on MMO economies and general economics.

John Smith.4610:

2) When you consider game inflation, do you primarily look at the prices of farmable material and blues/greens or do you take into account super-rare items acquired from drops, rewards or gems? Is the reason you say inflation isn’t a problem simply that the items with crazy high prices are the only things with a price rising so rapidly?

Regarding the Gold → Gem exchange rates:

John Smith.4610:

It’s working as intended.

Regarding the TP:

John Smith.4610:

I don’t agree. The best result for the game and therefor the best result for ArenaNet is for the markets to work as efficiently as possible (usually). Fortunately, the nature of the trading post provides a lot of natural force for markets to work efficiently. While nothing is 100% perfect, the large majority of every part of the game’s economy runs incredibly efficiently and we put a lot of effort into making sure that they remain that way.

And finally:

John Smith.4610:

Tears are the source of my evil powers, but not a source of data…………yet.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

Ok, how to build a game 101, just for you.
If you want people to buy your game, you have to present what you can do in the game: “Hey folks, if you play my game, you can hunt for epic skins and you don’t have to heavily grind for them”.
You want the player to be engage for a long time, so you have to implement time gates, so people don’t simply rush your content and you have to create enough goals.
ANet has declared skins as their main goal. You hunt for them all the time. Precursors are just skins, yet they are the most coveted items.
Skin hunting creates fun. That’s the main assumption of this game.

Here’s the “How to have fun 201 – Advanced theories”

• Living Story updates = fun
• Precursor farming = fun
• Buying BL Keys to open BL Chests = fun
• WvWing with friends = fun
• Teq and Great Wurm runs = fun
• Making money on the TP = fun
• Collecting unique skins = fun

If you decided that collecting skins is the only way you can have fun in this game, and aren’t successful at completing your collections, then it’s your choice if you want to continue playing this game. As for me, I still find this game to be fun for many reasons, which is why I buy Gems. In fact, I’m planning on buying another 4k Gems very shortly.

Ohoni.6057:

But that’s complete and total nonsense. That’s like saying “if you discovered that you enjoyed bread and water more than steak and lobster, your food bills would go way down!” People are not robots, they want what they want. Positing that the issue would be resolved if players just rewired their brains makes no sense whatsoever.

It’s called “living within your means”. If you can’t afford to eat steak and lobster, eat tuna sandwiches instead. If you can’t afford Dusk, and really want a Legendary, buy Venom instead.

People can want what they want, all they want. But they also have to understand that they can’t get all they want all the time either. I would love to drive a Tesla Model S, but can’t afford it, so I’ll buy a Hyundai Sonata instead.

No one is forcing people to compete for a particular Precursor. They do so on their own free will, which in turn creates such a high Demand, that prices spike to levels they are now.

Anet will most likely continue to make new end-game goals. New LS, new expansions, new items, etc.

Nightshade.5924:

~~~ snip ~~~

It costs me the same amount to buy a Salvage kit or a Mining pick from a merchant. It also costs me the same amount of money to buy 4,000 Gems.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

As I already said, skins are the main goal in this game.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

Having fun is the goal of every game ever created…

Let me know when you decide which argument you want to make. Is GW2 supposed to be fun or about skins.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

Maybe, just maybe, I’m on the forums to improve the game, so I can enjoy the game for the next year. I’m not on the forums to be told that I have to leave the game to make a change.

And since I have a background in business, I’m here on the forums to educate people that the more profitable and successful NCSoft/Anet is, the more us players will benefit in the long run. If I have to spend thousands of $ over the life of the game to support a company that I like, I have no issues.

How is making a rare item more available a real solution? Where is the fairness if Anet decides to make Precursor A drop 50% more than Precursor B, just because people desire Precursor A more?

The real solution is a self adjustment among players. If everyone is so kitten-bent on getting a Dusk, and the drop rates are extremely low, prices will naturally be high. If you stopped caring so much, and discovered that you just want to own a Legendary, there are very cheap Precursors that you can buy right now that won’t break the bank.

A revolution needs to take place to open everyone’s minds. What’s important is that you play this game to have fun! Run around Queensdale and look at the scenery. /sleep in a nice pile of flowers in the field, away from the centaur attacks. /sit by the river and listen to the water flow. You don’t need Precursors/Legendaries to enjoy this game.

Maybe they’ll introduce a system where you can pay a set amount of Gems to have your item listed in a priority queue. So if Item A has a low price of 1 Gold, but you pay Gems to list yours for 1.5 Gold, the 1 Gold priced item can’t sell until yours does!

Fenar.4025:

It’s something lawyers could argue about. There have been lots of business practices that were considered “legal” that ultimately ended up in court. In the insurance industry carriers will pay hidden bonuses to brokers for passing more business their way. This went on for years and years and years until major lawsuits were filed against carriers. The carriers lost.

The law has clearly defined points on what constitutes “illegal gambling”. RNG is not one of them, thus the federal government won’t act.

HHR LostProphet.4801:

Locking almost all new skins behind a paywall in a game where the look is everything is the very definition of P2W.

P2W means Paying to Win. Having a cool look in game doesn’t win you anything except a costume contest, or perhaps some pride in your virtual avatar. Locking exclusive bonus stat items behind a paywall is P2W, because it gives you an advantage over other players. In any case, I’d still spend a lot of money on GW2 if it really were P2W.

Fenar.4025:

Ohoni.6057:

Hopefully they will just remove Black Lion Keys from the game entirely. It’s a horrible gambling system that is corrosive to the game they’ve made. Just sell Black Lion weapons on the TP for a fair price and don’t force people to gamble for them.

I’m surprised there haven’t been class action lawsuits against gaming companies for some of the RNG stuff they put in cash shops. Why? Because it is essentially gambling that somehow escapes from any local, state, or national laws that would normally regulate that sort of thing. Maybe they need to move their servers to Indian Lands or put them on boats in international waters or something.

Before you start going off on legal tangents, perhaps you should first understand laws and our legal system? You can’t file and win a lawsuit if what’s being done isn’t illegal. If you need further help, I can try to quote myself on a post I made on the subject of “lottery laws”.

When you look at consumer behaviors, there are multiple reasons why people want certain things. An item can be desirable because:

• It’s rare – Some want it just because it’s hard to get.
• It’s cool looking – Self explanatory.
• It’s expensive – Some want an item simply because it’s worth a lot of money. Valuable items = status.
• It’s profitable – Some want an item because others want it too, and know those people are willing to pay a high price for it. They seek to buy low and sell high.

All the above affect prices because of competition in the market. Prices goes down when Supply outpaces Demand. Prices go up (as we’ve seen) when Demand outpaces Supply.

Back to the issue at hand. People complain not because Precursors are hard to get. Currently, they’re quite easy to get, and very affordable. I could go out and buy dozens of Precursors from the TP right now. So what’s going on here? People complain because they feel Entitled to getting a certain item they really want.

The solution isn’t to make Dusk or Zap easier to get, just to satisfy the Entitled masses. The real solution is to change mindsets of people. Lots of players want an item that’s very rare, so that item will be very valuable. The less these players desire said item, the more affordable it will become.

Nightshade.5924:

~~~ snip ~~~

I can’t believe this thread is still alive. To assist you, here’s a nice quote from John.

John Smith.4610:

Short and sweet:
If you think inflation is a major issue in Guild Wars 2, you should do more research on MMO economies and general economics.