Does Player Base Want the Return of Old Items to Istaria?
Several weeks ago a guildmate who has played since launch canceled her account and went to another online game. She had become disinterested in crafting, and hunting had lost it's appeal as well. Her husband still has an account but now he only logs in about once a week or so for short period's of time. Last week he logged in and went out to hunt high tier named mobs. He killed several and looted ... a backpack pouch, a tech form and a trophy. He was upset, but he talked to me for a few minutes before he logged out. He felt named mobs should drop better loot, after all they are harder to kill. He said there are no weapon pieces, no armour pieces, nothing like the old days worth hunting for anymore. He was becoming disenchanted with the game too. So when his subscription runs out we will probably lose him as well. And why? Because there is no excitement in hunting. There's no reward beyond forms, techs, comps, trophies and trash. I suggested he make a new toon and start over with all the revamped areas. He told me he has no interest in making a new toon because they can't have the things his current toon has.
There are many old items, forms, techs, crystals, etc. that are no longer obtainable in Istaria. Many of these things are gone forever as old players that had them have left, never to return. Many of these things have become attuned on equip and so are no longer tradeable to alts or other players. And why are these things gone forever?? Rare I can understand. Attuned I can understand. No longer obtainable, I feel, has become a detriment to the game. Because some of these things make a difference in gameplay. Not a huge difference, but a difference none the less. Being able to use a Boar's Hide Mask is an advantage when hunting. Being able to use Thundercloud and xGenerate Health is an obvious advantage to not having either spell - only one player that I know of on Order can still make these spells. Having a Regal Weapon is an advantage - I don't even know anyone that has one anymore. Making ambrosia is something very few players can do because the quest for the spirit oil formula was removed. Having a scale teched with Primal Vengeance is an advantage - no active player on Order has the tech. Having stat boosts from the Wishgiver is a definite advantage too, but the Wishgiver was removed. Even things like the silver whistle are gone forever from Order because no one is left that can make them. And when new players find out about these things and ask how to get them we have to say "sorry they are not available anymore, you can't have them".
Unfortunately I am seeing this game become a world of the "haves and the have nots" and the have nots are now the majority. In my opinion, one of the reasons new players don't stay in the game is they find out that the veteran players can make things they will NEVER be able to make or have items that they will NEVER be able to have. There are many veteran players who don't have all these things either, or have pieces/parts stashed in their vaults that are now useless. They have no incentive to play because all they get from loot drops is the same old stuff they already have thousands of. Sure, new players will never get to experience the excitement of the "old days" when the events happened that brought these items into the game, but they should at least feel like they can become on a par with veteran players. And many veteran players need something to do, a reason to hunt, a resurgence of the old excitement.
Please, bring these things back to the game, not as the old events obviously, but as quested items or rare loot drops. It's the hope for rare things and the excitement of hunting for them that makes folks look forward to logging into a game every day. Bringing these old items back and keeping them extremely rare but still attainable would breathe new life into a stale loot table, would give us a reason to hunt or quest for weeks/months on end, and would stimulate the economy. It would give new players a feeling of equality and hopefully would bring back some of the old disenchanted players too.
Some things need to be rare and precious and even very difficult to obtain. I can understand that completely. But gimping new players and losing old players because things are now beyond rare and precious I cannot understand.
Thaalia of Order
Originally Posted by Nayuaka
. (at least It hink that's what it is...I've not looked at it in awhile...). I may not be interested in some of the old stuff, simply because that's not what I'm into - but I've always thought it a bit off that they simple just weren't available at all anymore, and that it was intended for them all to just fade into nonexistance.
Frith-Rae BridgeSol
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