Event Ticket timer balancing Q&A

Thanks devs for taking user input into consideration.

1. Star based rewards
Thank you for returning to star based rewards! This is fantastic as I am no longer depending on teammates. I got a 2-star loss this morning, so at least I have a fair shot at getting the reward this weekend.

PLEASE look at how stars are awarded to fixers!!! I don't play fixer, but looking at some of these results screens shows how the star system is just plain insulting to them.
See post:

2. Time based ticket distribution
I'm still not on board with the time-gated tickets. The past two events have been difficult for me due to time constraints. The first weekend I spent 1400 pearls in a blow-out Sunday to get the reward. I didn't even bother to try for legendary last weekend because of win based scoring (despite being able to purchase tickets). Once again, I'll have difficulty this weekend so I plan to call in sick to work tomorrow. My asinine guildmate just says LOL play at work. Right, that'll fly.

When I do have time to play, I like to play hard. With that in mind, I have a couple of suggestions:
A) Give everyone a set number of tickets up front or
B) Let tickets be acquired through normal infamy based games where number of stars earned = number of tickets earned
C) Let ticket bank climb higher than 5

If people suck at infamy games, or are in a hurry to get tickets, they can still purchase through pearl system.

To gate players from getting too many legendary perks, make it cost pearls to unlock the second reward board. Ratchet up the number of pearls to open the third board, etc...

Anyway, thanks again for listening to us.

 

Lol, same idea on lump sum ticket. But I was faster.

 

We should get 1 tickets every win we get, but then raise the timer to 60 minutes. This encourages people to play to win, use teamwork better, and not just go for highest damage.

 

Charge board reset to pearl purchase. 1.4k pearls to reset the first time. 2.2k to reset the second board. 3k pearls to reset the third board...

 

Excellent idea!

 

An idea like this would work too

 

I like the new timer system. Also thanks for the stars, even if you lose because of team mates you still gaining your reward of your efforts. This is way more fair.

 

I doubt Rovio would agree. They likely want to trigger impulse buys from people who can’t be bothered to wait, so making people wait small amounts of time, often, is more likely to get the desired response at some point.

 

Will I get the same type of perk again in 1 circle?

 

Actually, the longer the wait time, the more favorable it is for people like you. More wait time means fewer chunks of play required to get the rewards (because the reward requirements are adjusted for it).

 

8 kills, 24k damage... win... 2 stars.

 

Maybe in some ideal mathematical scenario where you play for exactly 35 minutes every session, exactly 2.5 hours between each session without sleep, this new method would help, but unfortunately life doesn't work that way. Many people's schedules for the most part allow for limited play during the day and long sessions of play in the evenings.

Lets say an ACTIVE battlebay player who is completely F2P(I am not F2P) can maintain this type of schedule on a weekend between work, wife, kids:
*play time showed below doesn't mean NON-stop play, it means time in which you are able to play off and on while tickets are regenerating*
Morning: Play for 1hr 35 minutes > 15 min timer: 11 battles > 30 min timer: 8 battles
Afternoon: Play for 1hr 35 minutes > 15 min timer: 11 battles > 30 min timer: 8 battles
Night Session: 6hr 5minutes > 15 min timer: 29 battles > 30 min timer: 17 battles
Day 1: 15 min timer: 51 battles > 30 min timer: 33 battles
Day 2: Same
Day 3: Same
3 Day event total: 15 min timer: 153 battles > 30 min timer: 99 battles
At the battle bay average of 1.16 stars per battle:
15 min timer = 178 stars
30 min timer = 115 pearls
--------------------------------------
Week 1 requirement w/15 minute timer: 175 stars to reach legendary
Week 3 requirement w/30 minute timer: 125 stars to reach legendary
--------------------------------------
So to be completely F2P a 30 minute timer is of no benefit if you want to reach a legendary perk(unless you are willing to sacrifice sleep OR spend money(PEARLS).

For people that want to play 35 minutes at a time, 3 or 4 times a day. Well, they will never reach a legendary perk under either clock. But possibly the 30 minute timer might help them reach an epic perk slightly faster but only if they maintain 35 minute play blocks(after every 2-1/2 hour ticket regeneration).

If you like to spend pearls, then the new timer and lower STAR requirements will definitely save you $$, effectively giving you more incentive to spend money on the game. But at the same time, the new timer has made it more difficult to reach a legendary perk for a F2P player(I am not F2P, but I won't be spending pearls on an event to get a perk I might not even use).

 

@BattleRascal You're missing the point and making things too complicated. The fewer different moments during the day you can play, the more the longer wait time is beneficial to you, because you miss out on less.

The fact that it's harder to get a legendary in this event than in the first one is a seperate point, it is true for everyone and intentional design by the devs.

 

If a player can only play a fixed amount of time during a day (say 3 hours a day, one hour each session), how is the longer wait time beneficial to the player?

 

You start with a full storage of 5 tickets, and the less tickets you gain per day, the more those 5 tickets are worth. This means you can use a larger % of the daily ticket potential, and thus get a larger % of the reward track done in your limited time.

 

But I get less number of tickets in 30 min timer than in 15 min timer, how a longer wait time can help me?

 

Well, the devs said they have been listening to the community. How about set the maximum tickets to 7 for F2P and 9 for VIP with everyone start at 5 tickets. The timer starts when the first ticket is used. This allow less sessions for TDM. The number of tickets given is still the same for the 3 days.

Pros:
- Less time constrain for the adults
- More time for guild quests
- Buying tickets mean more for those looking for 2+ legendary perks
- Those with VIPs will likely buying more tickets because more progresses

Cons:
- Less people available for TDM matchmaking. So is the current 5 tickets cap.
- Less chances for players to do damages for item achievements.

If you're only playing 3 hours a day, why even worry about perk when you can't get anything above rare anyway. Comparing the current star count 125 to 175, 2 tickets now = 3 tickets then. The first batch equals 8 old tickets. Then you less likely to lose tickets during the 3 hours you play.

 

What is the point of using a larger daily potential? You still need to regenerate tickets in order to get a reward perk and unless you are playing in exactly 35 minute blocks at 2-1/2 hours intervals, the daily potential is pointless. The 15 minute timer is far better to use for the average player who wants to sit and play for 2 hours at night. This extremely casual player is being HURT by the new timer because they at most might get a rare perk after 3 days. And the STAR requirement for Uncommon and Rare are the SAME as week 1, so the player must now player longer to get the same reward as week 1.

Like I said, in some grand statistical equation, you are correct as long as you conform to the rule of 35 minute blocks at 2-1/2hr intervals. Any deviation from that schedule and the 30 minute timer is reducing the enjoyment of the game.
Personally I couldn't care less about the legendary perks. I reached epic in week one and week 2 got to rare, and took Sunday off because epic was unobtainable. For me, playing is the fun of the game. This week 3 mode is great. I love the 20% better ship attributes and cooldown. I want to play more and the fact is the 30 minute timer means I will have to play LESS. Playing less means I get less enjoyment out of the game. And when people get less enjoyment out of a game they are likely to find another outlet for their free time which gives them enjoyment.

 

I agree that the legendary prize should be hard to get. You forgot that it's just a perk that you're asking people to spend most of the weekend to get. The worse part of that is that you might get a perk you don't need - like I got an epic grenade perk last week. For the higher end players, this is extreme grinding just for a single perk, legendary or not.