Other than keeping stuff that we all have access to NOW (housing, bank storage, etc), will there be any new stuff that paid accounts get access too?
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Endless Journey & Benefits for Paid Accounts
- Thread starter Eric Ravenwind
- Start date
- Watchers 12
Doubt it will be any different for subbed players.
Subscribers should get some stuff special other than what is already accessible content. Maybe Free Monthly Sovereigns (500 or so) ??
Why? You get access to everything. All they get is a glorified trial.
Basara
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Wanting additional benefits for being paid over and above existing benefits, just because a crippled free version of the game in being added (that would require purchases to be viable),
would be like EZ-Pass toll customers suddenly thinking the state should buy them a new car every year because they are paying tolls in bulk, because the state expanded toll plazas and hired more manual toll takers to handle an influx of non-EZ-Pass customers.
However, I do think that it would be nice for paid accounts to get a different bonus - say 50-100 special sovereigns a month, that are lost if the account switches to EJ. 500 would be like lowering the monthly rate by $5. OR, have Sovereign bonuses for being on payment plans (3-months get 500, 6-months get 1200, yearly get 2500), only for subscribers (code-users wouldn't get it, or get a lesser amount, as it would be likely that the ancient coding of UO's billing system would require separate codes for accounts and sovereigns, and the code-resellers would almost certainly keep the sovereign codes for themselves or separate sale).
would be like EZ-Pass toll customers suddenly thinking the state should buy them a new car every year because they are paying tolls in bulk, because the state expanded toll plazas and hired more manual toll takers to handle an influx of non-EZ-Pass customers.
However, I do think that it would be nice for paid accounts to get a different bonus - say 50-100 special sovereigns a month, that are lost if the account switches to EJ. 500 would be like lowering the monthly rate by $5. OR, have Sovereign bonuses for being on payment plans (3-months get 500, 6-months get 1200, yearly get 2500), only for subscribers (code-users wouldn't get it, or get a lesser amount, as it would be likely that the ancient coding of UO's billing system would require separate codes for accounts and sovereigns, and the code-resellers would almost certainly keep the sovereign codes for themselves or separate sale).
The business model for EJ is just purely to be aimed at micro transactions and then hopefully leading them to "purchase" the rest once chars are trained.
No extra benefits for current player are needed, because you will have everything.
No extra benefits for current player are needed, because you will have everything.
UO should also sell gold - it just make sense
Only the gold that they would take from the multiboxing/scripters/cheaters. The economy is inflated enough, creating more gold out of thin air would only make things worse
If the EJ storage is really shared between all chars per shard (still need official confirmation for this, but in other threads party attendants used the word "shared"), then this is an advantage over paid accounts, since those can just have "shared space" on one single shard (aka housing).
I'm pretty sure they'll post something official on uo.com this coming week to spread the info from the party. Until then everything else is just speculation & rumor...
I'm pretty sure they'll post something official on uo.com this coming week to spread the info from the party. Until then everything else is just speculation & rumor...
You are right , but then again a lot of players profit massively off this game.
Double edge sword i guess
I would guess/hope subscribers will eventually get a token amount of free cash shop currency/month once the F2P launches. Like 100 units or something. They should already be doing it tbh; it'd bring BS more money if they " taught" people to use the shop in this manner.
I hope this doesn't turn into another STO. $35 a micro transaction instead of starships they will sale pets.
Current subscribers already have to pay for access for game content. I have a second account that doesn't have access to Edeon or High Seas or the theme packs.
Current subscribers already have to pay for access for game content. I have a second account that doesn't have access to Edeon or High Seas or the theme packs.
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It's not supposed to benefit paid accounts, EJ is to attract new players and bring back old players so the servers will have people on them, and won't look so dead. Then some of EJ players will subscribe for stuff like houses.
That's the impression I get at least.
I was going to say the exact same thing. They need a proper tutorial or introduction at least. Then account management really needs looking at.
This is why a better new player experience/tutorial is so fundamentally important. How many players will sign up, walk around New Haven wondering what they hell they are supposed to do and then never come back! On Atlantic they might be lucky enough to bump into some players but on most of the other shards they only real person at New Haven is that gold selling spammer who just stands at the start location spamming help chat. The current "tutorial" is a total joke for todays UO. It doesn't even show you how to use a Moongate to leave the area!
dont think the EJ folks need buy gold.... latest invasions u could scoop 50-100k a round easy....just looting corpses...left by Vets that dont pick piles of gold up anymore
Idcos can make them instant millionares....
and if they get lucky and hit one or two EM Event drops... bingo...billionaire...in weeks...
Idcos can make them instant millionares....
and if they get lucky and hit one or two EM Event drops... bingo...billionaire...in weeks...
Yea right. Just have a look at this two new players trying to get the hang of UO:
That's more like what gameplay of new players (not old vets) would look like. No EMs, no IDOCs, no PvP, etc. Simply the most basic things of all.
I'm still not sure where the call for FTP came from, but I feel it came from EA and Bonnie had no choice but to suck it up. Thus it will be another mediocre thing that is not half thought through. I would be happy to be proven wrong, but faith is rare.
Most sub + free games do give subbed people something extra (usually in game currency) on top of access to all content, so I assume that's where the question is coming from.
In UO houses are probably going to be the thing that gets people to sub.
Outside of dyes, the two robes, and mounts... everything in the store is aimed at subbed players, actually, since like 90% of the store items are house deco or other things EJ accounts can't use.
The call probably came from the years of success other games have had with it, and the ever dropping subscriber numbers + the lack of new players. They were going to do it like 10 years ago (they did KR instead), many players have supported the idea over the years as the population began to wane. *shrug*
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It won't be any different for subbed people. EJ is just a trial account, it won't effect you if you are subbed.
To clear that up: I'm wondering whether the call came from EA reps, BS management or really from the UO dev team itself. I can see this having an impact on how dedicated they are to make this really work. If they just sucked up a decision made by EA, with which they privately don't even agree, I can't see them make it work. I would be way more optimistic if this idea actually came from the team itself. But that's something I'll probably never get to know for sure
I just wonder who makes the final calls on the UO roadmap. I might remember wrong, but wasn't Bonnie saying all the years they don't want to go FTP? If it's EA making the calls here based on their numbers, I wonder how much the "no shard merges" promise is worth in the end too.
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I really doubt that anyone at EA cares. In the EA picture UO is not even a drop in the bucket, so I highly doubt the minutia of changes like this go beyond BS. As for saying they weren't going to go f2p (if she did, I don't know if that happened or not, or in what words)...it could be that they didn't want to worry people, or frankly that there was just some poor communication or essential misunderstanding going on about what was being talked about because that seems to happen a lot.To clear that up: I'm wondering whether the call came from EA reps, BS management or really from the UO dev team itself. I can see this having an impact on how dedicated they are to make this really work. If they just sucked up a decision made by EA, with which they privately don't even agree, I can't see them make it work. I would be way more optimistic if this idea actually came from the team itself. But that's something I'll probably never get to know for sure
I just wonder who makes the final calls on the UO roadmap. I might remember wrong, but wasn't Bonnie saying all the years they don't want to go FTP? If it's EA making the calls here based on their numbers, I wonder how much the "no shard merges" promise is worth in the end too.
Like I said, I'm sure the main reason for the change is that steam fell through, subs are dwindling and there is no appreciable influx of new players.
As for making it work, I don't really think there's much to make work from what I've heard. It's just taking the time limit off of an already existing account type, and adding a switch between account types, and an expanded banking system. It all seems pretty straightforward to me. I'm sure they will tweak a thing of two with trial accounts limitations, but for subbed players I don't think this will have any effect. In terms of bringing in new players (let alone new subs), well, they would have to spread the word that free accounts were available, and if I were them, I would hire some counselors because there is no real new player experience the UI is old and unintuitive to modern gamers, and not much in terms of documentation for people who haven't been playing for over a decade.
Yea, right. I mean, who knows for sure anyway?I really doubt that anyone at EA cares. In the EA picture UO is not even a drop in the bucket, so I highly doubt the minutia of changes like this go beyond BS. As for saying they weren't going to go f2p (if she did, I don't know if that happened or not, or in what words)...it could be that they didn't want to worry people, or frankly that there was just some poor communication or essential misunderstanding going on about what was being talked about because that seems to happen a lot.
Like I said, I'm sure the main reason for the change is that steam fell through, subs are dwindling and there is no appreciable influx of new players.
As for making it work, I don't really think there's much to make work from what I've heard. It's just taking the time limit off of an already existing account type, and adding a switch between account types, and an expanded banking system. It all seems pretty straightforward to me. I'm sure they will tweak a thing of two with trial accounts limitations, but for subbed players I don't think this will have any effect. In terms of bringing in new players (let alone new subs), well, they would have to spread the word that free accounts were available, and if I were them, I would hire some counselors because there is no real new player experience the UI is old and unintuitive to modern gamers, and not much in terms of documentation for people who haven't been playing for over a decade.
But I'm sure Bonnie has to send reports up the chain. At some point they will land on the desk of some lowly EA rep, who checks the numbers and eventually says "Uhm your subs are going downhill, lets try FTP like we did with other games and maybe we can milk you some more dollars for the our next AAA title".
In reading this I need a clarification
This Endless Journey is on new trial accounts only... not established older accounts. Right?
I ask this as I got confused on a few statements above on someone flipping their account to EJ...
From what I read this is just them taking off the 14 day part of a trial account, with limited bank, and no access to in game perks we now get as paying customers.
This if so makes sense.
Many new players say that 14 days is not enough to get a feel for the game and build up a base from which to work from that will warrant paying for a sub.
Also I am not understanding this other bit on expanded banking
or how this will be handled if they lapse in .... see I don't get it .....
Need more info...
As for account upgrades...
Everyone is up to ToL.. unless account was started after the free period all active accounts got.
Key word was active.
This did not include the packs...and wont even if all accounts were upgraded to last major publish.
This Endless Journey is on new trial accounts only... not established older accounts. Right?
I ask this as I got confused on a few statements above on someone flipping their account to EJ...
From what I read this is just them taking off the 14 day part of a trial account, with limited bank, and no access to in game perks we now get as paying customers.
This if so makes sense.
Many new players say that 14 days is not enough to get a feel for the game and build up a base from which to work from that will warrant paying for a sub.
Also I am not understanding this other bit on expanded banking
or how this will be handled if they lapse in .... see I don't get it .....
Need more info...
As for account upgrades...
Everyone is up to ToL.. unless account was started after the free period all active accounts got.
Key word was active.
This did not include the packs...and wont even if all accounts were upgraded to last major publish.
Nope, wrong.
A trial account will become an EJ account, once the trial is over.
Any other unpaid account (includes any old account with no active sub), which doesn't have a house placed, will become an EJ account.
Any unpaid account with a house placed will stay under the current model. To go into EJ you either have to sub & remove the house or wait until the house falls, at which point the acc will become EJ.
An EJ acc cannot access our current/ordinary bank boxes. No information has been given, if you can maybe just have a look insode, but can't remove items from there.
EJ accs will have their own storage. According to some posts, this storage will be accessible from all chars on that shard.
Apparently items from EJ storage will be auctioned off at some point. No information has been given, when such an auction is going to happen.
We also do not know, if the supposedly shared EJ storage will be accessible from paid accounts (i.e. safe item transfer between chars on your secondary shard, where you don't own a house).
I'm not buying into the auction thing. Sounds like a pain to implement. Who's gonna wanna bid on newbie stuff. Why would a free account go inactive? What a year without logging in or something? Sounds like an awkward goofy idea.
It's a ridiculous idea. And one which if a player returned after said length of time to find his storage empty, would most likely result in them walking away immediately never to return.
That's what people posted here on the forums, who attended the party.
Yes, I also find it somewhat wierd.
But as long there is no official word, the rumor & speculation mill is in full swing...
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Why are so many people going on KNOWN FALSE information and taking it to extremes?
EJ Storage was STATED not to effect banks. (though it was inferred that EJ characters might be able to remove stuff from their existing banks, but not replace items there)
EJ accounts are MORE aimed to returning vets than new accounts. Yet people keep acting as if they are new accounts only?
I was there, and half the stuff in this thread have been like watching a classroom playing Telephone with a bogus message that was based on someone's speculation (not what was said at the Q&A) that was baseless when it was originally said.
Probably because there is no written official declaration or any official responses to any of our questions.
Why are so many people going on KNOWN FALSE information and taking it to extremes?
You may have seen it /heard it but most of us have not. and taking it to extremes is good it will flesh out potential issues.
Why do you think I asked for a reliable party attendee to clear up if any real information was given....
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Yet, when people say something they said earlier was the result of a misunderstanding, and correct it later, people keep dwelling on the retracted misunderstanding as if it was set in stone until there is official written word?
Well, here's RG & SL's talk - hopefully I can find a link to the Q&A later....
Video of UO 20th
Well, here's RG & SL's talk - hopefully I can find a link to the Q&A later....
Video of UO 20th
I intended this thread to be about possible benefits for subscribed players. Not this goof stuff ...
Is there any reasonable argument of why they should get more? They will be getting already everything else, what's in the game, the EJ-player can't access...
Or is it just the ordinary "I just want more more more"?
Or they could just lower the subscription charge.
Not bloody likely..... get a grip we talking of touching EAs precious pocket money.
Basara is quite right.
Till something is in writing and then in the next publish there after that printing we all should take it with a grain of salt.
Too many things have been in the offering and pulled back for one reason or another and some of it was not in the Developers hands.
We tend to forget EA still has a all be it loathsome hand in the running of the game..
They are the biggest obstacle in any forward progress we get.
Basara is quite right.
Till something is in writing and then in the next publish there after that printing we all should take it with a grain of salt.
Too many things have been in the offering and pulled back for one reason or another and some of it was not in the Developers hands.
We tend to forget EA still has a all be it loathsome hand in the running of the game..
They are the biggest obstacle in any forward progress we get.
If former subscribers were to consider using the Endless Journey option... and if they read some of the posts here first.... they might wonder if they would even be welcome by some of the long-time paying customers. Just saying...
Just wondering I read that house and boats are out of EJ what if they pay for the upgrade to high seas do they get use boats ?
If they can well storage problem solved there will be boats lining all the docks again lol.
If they can well storage problem solved there will be boats lining all the docks again lol.