Fixing the Time capsules.

There's two ways to resolve this whole thing in my view:-

1. A rare style vendor.

From every capsule you are awarded a minimum amount of capsule dollars set within a range of say 1-10.*

It would also be possible to get dollars instead of other items for example when you open a provision capsule so for example there is a chance instead a blue collection it simply awards 100 coins.

In the vendor you then have all the rare capsule styles except those found within the most recent two capsules.

By doing this you keep people opening the relevent capsules and still allow people to make money off them.

The items in the vendor can be priced accordingly based on the expected amounts of opening.

So if you want say materials it could be priced at 100, theoretically you could get lucky and get it in 10 capsules or it might take you 100 capsules.

What this does though is makes an RNG bypass ceiling and gives people hope they can finish a capsule despite bad luck.

*the figures are obviously just a placeholder.

2. In conjunction with that styles could be put direct on the market for a limited time for an appropriate price.

E.g one material could go on the market once a quarter for say $25usd for one week. People then get in quick and buy it up making more money as well.

This could also be a material from a pack as far as say three capsules back for example.

This may raise concern that you're buying a feat but I think the reality is. Is that we're past that point now so what we should focus on is a system that respects the developers desire to make money by leaving their capsules in place but also provides the consumer with a fair system as an alternative when RNG doesn't go their way.

This method would also preserve the whales who will always spam the most recent one or two capsules because by their very nature they want to have the stuff as quickly as possible.

Just an idea

That will just cost Daybreak money. They monetize the crappy RNG in those things. Just look at your ratio: 25$ for a material people spend easily 100$ or more on to get.

As long as people sink insane amounts of their money or credit limit in those TCs, Daybreak will not "fix" them. For business, the crappy RNG is making more money, even enough to handle the losses created by all the players leaving in disgust. Mark your thread and bring it back up around October, when all those super-sale-year-long-subscriptions run out. That's the point when Daybreak may notice the leaving players for the first time in a way that could hurt their wallet. They will not act before....

....of course, that could only be my "perception"

They don't make any money off capsules no longer in rotation this allows them a way to continue to do so while never having to actually repeat a previous one.

Well actually to correct that they make less money.

Also at what point do you take a small short term hit to play the longer game.

A happy community spends more long term

Nope, compulsive buyers actually spent more than happy people. That's why sales-psychology is working in exactly that direction (in most branches of business, not just video games). The time of the companies trying to sell quality goods and aim for good customer satisfaction ended sometimes in between the 1990ies and the early 21st century.

You, me, lots of other players in DCUO are oldtimers remembering "better" business models because we felt like getting more value in return for the money we spended. That is the past, and if you look at business now, companies that actually cheat their customers (that VW thing as an example for the automobile branch) or use them as paying testers (new smartphones, Microsoft operating systems etc.) are able to stay in top positions on the market. That is reality. Not the one we'd like to have or the one we think we'd deserve, but the one we've been dealt.

I expect something like this to be in full effect for the next capsule. They have had enough time based on how they start working on the next one.

I like this idea.

I think we're going off track here a little bit anyway.

What do you actually think of the idea itself instead of whether its economically viable for daybreak.

The math and pricing can always be tweaked what about the idea itself.

If they can work the math where they're coming out near or at even, they should go for it. Happy customers are paying customers. And besides I want that damn Void Material.

Not to burst your bubble, but:

If Daybreak picks up on adding another currency to the TCs, then in the way the Jackster did in other games: to allow players buying other stuff with that, exclusively available for that currency, to further boost sales of stabilizers.

Of course your idea would help players to get along with TCs better, since it offers a mathematical end to the grind (worst case you get 1 of those TC dollars per opened TC and just exobytes as "goodies", you could still calculate how many TCs to open worst case til being done). Exactly that approach kills the attraction that crappy RNG thing has on compulsive gamblers etc. Someone linked an article on IGN about the psychology behind that pay-2-loot mechanism in a thread last week or something, seemingly can't find it right now.

So, from that oldtimer-players' perspective, it would be a good move - which is exactly why Daybreak won't pick it up the way you described.

Yea I think what needs to be established is an economic ceiling.

What is the phoenix material worth for example 30usd? 40usd what would you pay?

The key here is we shouldn't underestimate the extent to which whales open capsules.

Even With thIs alternative I think they'll still do so. If we make an example of it like this.

If every capsule is 8 weeks that's 6 capsules a year.

If You're releasing a material on the market for example every quarter that's 4 materials a year.

So what you can see is that strategy would leave a player significantly behind the game in terms of when they get the material if they're not getting the material from the capsule.

They could also make the material a one off so its account bound but can only be claimed once.

If people want it on alts then they buy more.

I don't know. I actually respectfully disagree.

Gamblers aren't just buying capsules for that gambling buzz they're buying because they're striving to have that shiny item first to show it off.

That incentive wouldn't be removed.

People will still buy the capsules because that's what they desire and they won't wait 6 months to a year for the grind end.

That will still drive sales.

If we use overwatch as an example you're statistically going to get a yellow legendary cosmetic every $10 that is certainly not the case with dc capsules.

They also award coins for duplicates and you use coins to get what you want.

The reason that doesn't work in dcuo is because duplicates are sold in the broker so scrapping duplicates for coins in dcuo affects other aspects of the economy.

However a pure coin system allows both to thrive.

To ask you the obvious question gamblers, economics aside do you like the idea? Yes or No?

Best and propably only way to change time capsules is not to use any real world money to them.
I have done my part to that, but as long as they sell. They will stay as they are.

To Be fair, I don't gamble at all in the game, I think the idea to get the stuff in those crapsules other than the capsules and the broker will never happened unless there is a Huge drop in population due to that, or people get tired and stop buying them altogheter, don't see they doing and if they do so it will cost an insane amount of the currency that people would see it as impossible to get as it is right now.

The damage is done in the game big time, lots of people at least in my league are just waiting the sub run out to stop playing, out league is a death camp now hardly 5 people on at the same time, mostly one or two, and I am talking of one of the top 30 leagues.

Sure, I just hope people realize this and stop buying stuff, all the economy in the game is
way off, and wealhtness is on just a few people now, most can't afford any of the rare collection from those capsules
And is sad to have one main characteristics of custumatization like materials behinds a huge paywall, how many people can't afford to get at least one of those? I will say most of them, and in the other hand I know two people that have more than 10 Phoenix feather among other stuff sitting on their banks isn't that great;( the devs knows all this, and they know we know so that is why people is jumping out the ship

Do people spend on rng gimmics? sure
do people leave the game over RNG gimmics?
PROBABLY THE BIGGEST POPULATION KILLER IN DCUO
%100 CERTAINLY THE BIGGESST UNNEEDED POPULATION KILLER

i use to spend $360 a year just in sub fees. i spent hundreds more on power changes and whatever. that is a customer from year one who would never of quit unless dcuo did something very drastic. i am still here i am still passonate for the game yet i cant support this

when something done is successful we dont lose players in the amounts we have. its largely due to decisions made. RNG is a game killer and fools gold.

here's my thing, why exclude the new capsule and the last capsule from said vendor?

Are they not just as bad on drops as the others? I do believe they are. Why wait til a new 1 comes out so ppl can flood the brokers with grossly over priced collections and what have you from these TC' preventing other ppl from ever getting them. No they need to either include all capsules or none. But if its the newest capsule then the prices should be adjusted to show for it.

Older the capsule the lower the prices on said vendor. But all capsules should be included.

I agree, I havent spent a dime on this game outside of membership since DCr/e DLC, and come next month I wont even be buying a membership or future DLC' til the game gets better. 2 DLC's + a bunch of stat clamped BS isnt worth $120 of my $$ on top of replay cost and everything else it takes to attempt to keep up CR / SP wise.

I agree with the idea, but my perception tells me I don't see it being implemented.

Proxy u know my feelings on TCs. I dont see them ever changing. As long as im playing ill just buy the items off the broker and my wallet will remain closed. Your idea is a good one tho. The other games out there that have these boxes already do this. Kinda strange that daybreak hasnt implemented the same thing.

ha they dont care about making us happy, everything they do is to get us to spend more $$. Time to wake up. They wont be changing that plan unless ppl talk with their wallets. Which from where I sit ppl making video's and posting them on this forums, nothing will change any time soon

I support something along these lines. TCs as they stand now, have put a really bad taste in my mouth. I have not let my membership lapse for more than a day (accidentally) in the past 5 years or so, but my current membership is up in August and I am contemplating walking away. I don't want to, but we are straying from the path of being a good super hero mmo, and becoming a candy crush/FarmVille/slot machine piece of useless fluff.

Not a fan