Regarding the changes to our subscription plans

Discussion in 'Official News and Announcements' started by Luperza, Jan 6, 2014.

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  1. Vanuisavastevil

    Are they trying to procure more " newb" players into their system ? This will lose more money than what you wish, a lot of players, such as ones that are going on tour in another country AKA our MILITARY, enjoys being able to support their game and gather SC so when they get back with their friends they can pick up a quick 3-5 items and smile before they have to leave again. So tell me how having and not spending SC is a bad thing for players such as I stated, 6x500=3000( or more if stationed for more than a year) more than what you offer in a month... plus this covers multiple items. Logic says and what It says it " We need money cause we have to pay our over paid development teams involved." Just admit you've got money problems, if not continue to provide 500sc per month. I don't want to deal with more bull **** added to the membership, this goes against a lot of players that got it per say 7-8 months ago, you basically are slapping them in the face because they likely have every item and gun they just might want playerstudio items... and 500SC saved up can buy such, but if you are in what I consider " milk the pigs until they die " phase, you will lose me, and I'm sure plenty have already unsubscribed. }

    Continue on this path of self destruction, you'll end up just like many other shining games,quickly burning out.
  2. Amarsir

    3 and 4 are weird to me.

    I understand that PS3 players always complained that they didn't get Station Cash deals, so it's understandable if you want to seek something more standard. However, I don't understand why you'd do that and then immediately dangle a new PC-only offer. (Although it's not really new, is it? Station All-Access has been around, just at $20 instead of $15.
  3. Bindlestiff

    I'm really, really not sure that all of the feedback that people have generously provided (and you guys have trawled through all weekend) has actually got us to a point where we, the customer, are no worse off come February than we are now.

    I understand there is much more to debate, wrangle and communicate on this. Much more. As a few have stated however, it appears right now the one purchase / month is going ahead regardless despite the lack of value items in PS2 (other games may and do vary) and strong criticism from the playerbase. Have I read this wrong?

    The cross game membership I'm sure will be an absolute boon for some, but again, you will be catering for a percentage rather than the whole. I know you will never be able to please everyone all of the time but the 50 pages of feedback detailed how the value of being a paying member of Planetside 2 had diminished with the announcement; being able to 'buy' items in other games in the SOE portfolio, both released and unreleased does NOT improve the benefits of being a member within Planetside 2. There is added value, sure, but for a number of players (and I really wouldn't like to guess the figure) who only play Planetside 2, only have time for Planetside 2, and only want to support and grow Planetside 2, this added value is going to be considered more worthless than the current queue priority perk.

    Don't want to come across as a wet lettuce, or pee on the parade as it were. I just am a little underwhelmed, again.
    • Up x 1
  4. Tatwi

    Access to other games is not a benefit to a person who has no interest in those games. I have coffee in the house at all times, but my wife has yet to make herself a cup after nine years. She simply doesn't like coffee, ya know.

    OK Smed, sure I bought over $100 worth of Station Cash since SWG shut down and I didn't use all of it until the other day. So what, buddy. I spent $60 on Guild Wars 2 and $10 on Torchlight 2 and I can play those every day for the next 10,000 years without spending another dime on them. Don't blame the end user for making use of the system you designed, especially considering SC lasts forever and nothing says a person needs to spend X amount of per X amount of time.

    I clearly stated in beta what I expected from a subscription to Planetside 2. Those expectations weren't met, so I didn't bother subscribing. I did buy Alpha Squad and SC though.

    However, had PS2 been a subscription-only game, I would have purchased a sub to be able to play the game.

    The current subscription benefits aren't worth it, because I can just buy some SC to get the "stuff" I'd like (and I don't care about the other things in the sub offer). If that's not good enough for SOE, then that's SOE's problem, not mine. Either make the subscription worth the money or close the Free2Play model and make the game subscription-only. Until then, I'm content to be one of those evil people who buy SC and sit on it until I feel like using some of it.

    I subscribed to Star Wars Galaxies for years, with three accounts at times. I can't help but wonder if that was up to your unwritten personal standards of how a customer should be...

    Smed, you need to make a recurring membership for PS2 genuinely worthwhile, by providing valuable services to your customers, such as 24/7 admins, fast/accurate customer service, "free" character services (name/server/gender changes), access to SOE created SC/Cert items while subscribed, and member-only servers (one per region). This is stuff people who want to be members would actually pay for, because these services would substantially improve their quality of life.

    People don't mind paying for services that are worth their money (such as cell phones with data plans, cable/satellite TV, Internet, insurance, Interac fees, shipping). People will pay for "stuff" a la carte in a free2play model and they (rightly) expect extra services (be that exclusive content or services like what I described above) when they purchase a membership. What is offered in the PS2 membership matters less the longer a person plays and really isn't overly compelling in the first place, Station Cash item/amount included. That's broken. You can fix it.

    That's my feedback. Take it or leave it.

    Ps. Thought I should mention that all of the weapons I have unlocked on my two characters were purchased with SC rather than certs. I did triple $20 for 6,000 SC once, but I used it on all xpacs for EQII and DCUO (games I haven't played in almost two years) years ago. Other than that I've paid full price, if memory serves me correctly. Furthermore, I certainly did not always wait for items in PS2 to come on sale. Just a week ago I bought a camo at full price when I knew full well it would be on sale a few days later. Keeping SC around isn't about being cheap, it's about "free to play, your way", which I had previously assumed was a genuine sentiment from SOE.
  5. GalaxyKillers


    My Suggestion is:

    For Members who will renew their 1 Year membership let them including me have the 500 SC per month and carried forward if not used.

    Or if you are stuck-up on the 2000 SC make it more than 1 items or give us bundles free in exchange for example Galaxy pro bundle,that is each month we get a full bundle per player or what if you made all items in PS2 free for players who are paying upfront for 1 year.

    If not happy I will cancel my membership before February.

    Thanks.
  6. romeoecho

    What if perhaps another option was pitched?

    1 Item up to 2000 SC -- OR -- 3 Items with up to a 1050 SC Combined total

    This way you could get your cheaper items, say Camos, Armor, Horns, ETC, but not feel immediate buyers remorse for not using the 1500 SC.

    Not sure how you'd work this with bundles though...
    • Up x 1
  7. Luperza Community Manager

    Many people have expressed this concern and I have sent it on up the chain. :)

    I'll add this to our player feedback report. :)

    This has been suggested a few times. It's in our player feedback report.

    Many others feel the same way, so this is in our player feedback report. :)

    You took my sentence out of context, but yes, many players are saying some of the same things. I am letting them know what details I can and when many others have expressed x or y and that we have sent it on up on the chain. We are taking your feedback, so please continue to express that in a constructive manner.

    This is something I've already added to my player feedback report.

    I'll forward along your suggestion.

    I'm confused by what you're talking about at the end though. Class Specific Weapons are still a thing. In my example, I was just saying if you had an alt character that was also VS, even if you purchased the Lancer on another VS character with your free monthly item, you could use that Lancer on the other VS character. Obviously, if the weapon is only used on a specific class those rules still apply.


    The above is false. If you have a recurring SOE All Access Pass, you will receive the free item up to 2000SC in EACH applicable game.
  8. XLander

    While I can respect what your attempt was it just came off wrong if you opened up all items to this I am sure that would change some hearts and minds. I ask this though what happens when items such as bundles are more than that... We may want to save for those things but now will not be able to.

    So I put this to you. Rather than polarize your player base on a very obviously hot topic. Why not make a one time choice for those in game now. ... a grandfather clause if you will. Allow each play that has had a subscription base to maintain the current method, or move to the new method.

    Since this is a hot topic. Start hunting hackers again or maybe consider giving a random player the right to be a (guided) admin to hunt them for you... would be a fun boon to run along with a dev and have them give us the admin powers and say go get em killer... Might be a fun and plausible deterrent. Of course the reason I suggest guidance is because there are clowns out there that would abuse rather than stick to the organized hacker hunt. Me personally I would love to hunt them and make the game a better place for my fellow players.
  9. SirFalc0n

    When? Where?
    We have been asking for this all season and y'all have not produced anything of the sort.
  10. Nahwel


    Luperza, why aren't you answering these two questions/posts? I find that they point exactly right at the problem.
    • Up x 1
  11. BeanSidhe

    Ahhh...I hadn't thought about the console side of it. That makes a lot more sense. I also didn't know you were planning on allowing the purchase in other games, not that it mattered too much to me now, though I am looking forward to EQN. I never really had a problem as a 2000SC item a month is more than a 500SC item a month, and there just isn't any 2000SC items. I like the change allowing for purchase of Studio items.
  12. HadesR


    Also be nice to know why DCUO is getting a loyalty system ( with rewards that stack ) that would solve all these issues members are having and PS2 isn't
    • Up x 1
  13. Luperza Community Manager




    Quoting this from Smed on Reddit here: http://www.reddit.com/r/Planetside/...the_changes_to_our_subscription_plans/cej3dgb

    "I agree with you :) sadly accountants around the world have decided (starting with the IRS) that the accounting for virtual items is done not even when we sell you the item (in most cases). If a person tops up $100 in their wallet.... and then promptly spend $50 of it... we can't even recognize that $50 in the month we sell the items. we have to spread it over the expected lifetime of the player (yes we still have the cash). That's actually how the accounting for these things works. And that extra $50 if it's never spent sits on our books.
    For those of you that think this method of accounting seems backwards... it is. I agree with you. The irony here is more and more states are starting to charge sales tax on virtual items.
    Imagine this scenario - we don't have to imagine btw.. we live it.
    Same guy as above spends $100 to top up SC in Texas (one of the states that implemented this early).
    He waits a year before he spends it because maybe he's overseas on duty or something. We have to remit the sales tax on that $100 but we are unable to recognize any of that revenue until it's spent.
    I don't want to make this sound melodramatic. I just want people to recognize we aren't making these decisions inside of a bubble where we aren't aware that these decisions can have meaningful impact on players spending and their desire to play. I just want you all to better understand the "why" even if you disagree it.
    Smed"



    I believe Smed addresses this in the first post on Reddit: "Third - we have a problem with a disparity between our console titles (which can't use Station Cash) and our PC Games. We can't do the same kind of promotions as easily on the PS3 and PS4. We're a lot more limited because we can't use Station Cash on there. So when we have a 3x sale on SC we have to do something different for our console titles. It's a pain in the neck to deal with this."

    I do not want to derail too much, but basically DCUO is a completely different system because of PS4. This is definitely something we're talking about internally, especially as we get closer to launching PlanetSide 2 on PS4.

    Let's try to cease anymore discussion regarding DCUO though. If you want to discuss DCUO, please go to their forums. :) If you have anymore feedback regarding, PlanetSide 2's Premium Membership, please provide it within this thread.
    • Up x 2
  14. shadowplasma44

    Will this "coupon" be liable to purchase items like the golden NS-PDW? Or the Golden commissioner? I think that wouldn't be...fair...to the players that spent 20.00 on a gun, only to find out that other players are getting it with membership for five dollars less. Just a question.
  15. Luperza Community Manager

    You will be able to use your free item up to 2000SC on the gold weapons in PlanetSide 2's Marketplace Depot.
  16. HadesR


    Only brought it up since it's a system that is being implemented in an SOE game .. A system that obviously is ok by SOE and one that would solve every single issue Planetside members have ...

    Just seems weird and kinda fishy that you have a system that would suit everyone,s needs but are not going to use it .. So yes it's entirely relevant to the conversation at hand :)

    Edit: Also would have thought it made sense to change to a system that could be used when PS2 launches on the Playstation ... Rather than implement something now and maybe change it again later ..

    Not trying to be argumentative btw :p
    • Up x 1
  17. sebo

    why does it matter to you if people do not spend their 500 sc per month right way? as i said in previous thread, i was considering renewing my membership, but honestly now i don't plan to renew my membership which i've had for a year, paid a year in advanced, plus bought a bunch of SC cards. you work right? every week do you go spend your entire check for the hell of it even if you don't have anything useful to buy?

    there was times where i didn't spend ANY of the SC i receive a month.. why? because there was nothing that really interested me. why is it a problem if people do not spend all of their SC right away and let it accumulate so they can either buy something that cost more than 500sc or buy something they like when it's available?

    I think i know why you are doing this.. is it because you don't want people to buy boost or other similar perks with their SC? i'm assuming SOE would rather people buy a bunch of camos than buy boosts or other perks with THEIR station cash.. it's mind blowing that it's such a big deal that some players don't spend it right away. THEY PAID their dues for membership therefor it should be them to decide IF AND WHEN they spend it. not you, SOE.

    so what if members like me prefer SAVING some of their SC to buy something a bit more useful later on like a bundle or a Boost when they're on sale, i paid you $120+ for a year subscription with my money, so it should be up to me if and when i spend the SC. your problem SOE, is you've gotten a bit greedy and now want people to only buy things you "APPROVE" of. just like you did with 1 time camo use. you removed why? greed and wanting people to spend 700 rather than 50sc for a 1 time use camo.

    i will keep playing this great game, but my part in supporting you guys is done.
  18. RogueVindicare

    Just want to point out there's a huge thing about this that some people are overlooking or don't know about.

    While there are very few items worth around 2k station cash in the PS2 store that aren't bundles (almost none), OTHER SOE GAMES have items that fit this description. Apparently, EQ2 has flying mounts or something that are 2k SC.

    Because this change is being made across their entire library of games, the number was not necessarily chosen specifically with PS2 in mind. In fact, I would guess that it very much wasn't.

    So people whining that this is going to herald the coming of more 1500-2000 SC items are not necessarily correct (but also not necessarily wrong). I obviously can't predict whether or not SOE will do that in the future (#DegradingCashGrab), but I don't think the 2k SC number was chosen purposely with the idea of releasing more expensive items in the future.
  19. CazadorDeLaBruja

    I dont understand how SOE couldn't be more clear on this change. it is a "Win Win" for both Premium subscribers and SOE by cleaning up a couple loose ends in their marketing that would allow greater flexibility with sales and controlling those sales so that SC given to the premiums as a gift isnt confused with CS purchased with actual cash. i assume at the end of each sales period some of those Premium SC purchases would cause confusion and extra man hours and paperwork trying to track down to be sure weather or not the SC had any monetary value. which is the real genuine issue. the 500 sc that comes as a gratuity gift with the purchase of premium actually has no economic value and would cause a mess with taxes and other accounting issues. SOE wants to reward thier subscribers in a fare way but in no way are you Owed that 500sc. they could say with your premium purchase you get a free sticker that says you have premium and cut out SC all together. its jsut an additional perk added into the bundle... and when some players stock up on it and then many months later use it to clean house by either buying a whole bunch of stuff like 3rd party created items from the player studio *which SOE has said those talented people deserve to get a share of the purchases* SOE is finding that they are taking losses... if SOE takes losses... they have to fire employees or cut back on new content or maintenance of the very expensive game titles that they host. I am a avid support of subscription based games and have been ever sense i began playing MMO content from many titles... you get what you pay for... if SOE cant maintain the costs of their games then those games die and the players as well as SOE are out of that wonderful experience. I Love Planetside2. It is understandable that mistakes have been made and will be made in the future but SOE is doing a good job at making Planetside 2 wonderful...

    Im all in for PS2... years ago when WoW came out as my first gateway drug into MMO games i paid faithfully for my subscription there and had a blast till a couple changes just happened without my voice on those changes ever being considered valuable. Your Subscription Matters. And SOE is doing amazing things to make it valuable. Now they have given an amazing gift. You can have any one item for Free once a month... but you cant stockpile your SC and deflate the value of the game by one day jumping in and buying out a 3rd of the world's market with monopoly money. Money in the bank is useless... if it isnt out there building revenue its costing more just to keep it where its sitting... lazy and fat. this new subscription system grants loyal members access to stuff they couldn't have before... and does so in a way that doesn't hurt SOE income. Yes you cant buy 3 camo patterns for your character weapon and vehicals... but that is what bundles are for and i love them! not the camo in PS2 actualy helps you... at least at a distance its usless because all infantry and vehicals look black aganst a tan or white background when viewed at range which annoys me a bit sense targets should actualy be harder to spot at a distance. But i digress, this change is a Win Win...

    All in All, There is a lot of stuff that should be added fixed or taken out of the game that the player base should be voicing objective responses to. This right here... isnt one of those things that people should complain about or rant on. This is a wonderful change for both SOE and the Planetside 2 Community as a whole. I hope to see new players and exciting growth in this amazing title... I want my home server Helios to return... and i want the Darker Nights that used to exist in the Beta... and i want naval combat and a continuous world that isn't instanced... and maybe an ATV that can climb a hill... and maybe that ATV could have a mana shield on the front or be able to be customized to have tracks or what ever crazy additions that SOE and the Player Studio can come up with, and so on so forth. But none of those things will happen without a revamp of the system that pays for and supports the game we love and enjoy. I half expected to see a Night Elf Mohawk pop onto the screen when i first saw pics of Hossen and those freakishly gigantic trees. Be objective and supportive... dont read into things with contempt and conspiracy on your lips. SOE's best interest is in keeping the people that pay for and support their games happy... so try and be happy when a good thing comes around SOE loves you very much.
  20. RailFury

    I understand the reasoning a little better. The more I think of it the part of the change that I dislike is that there is no reward for being a smart shopper, for waiting for sales or buying a cheaper items(Get the Flare instead of the Ursa for example). I like to try and get a good value sometimes. Spending a 2000 credit on a 300Sc item would frankly making me feel like I'm wasting my membership.

    Isn't there anything a little better that could be done to allow for this? Maybe special membership bundles that could be chosen like : Camo + gun or some kind of special camo set: Amerish green vehicle camo + green infantry camo + green gun camo. Stuff like that ;)
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