ganf
06-22-2011, 12:54 PM
If you've already seen the post on the officials, return to your daily routine.
No? Go here. (http://forums.play.net/forums/GemStone%20IV/Game%20Design%20Discussions/Developer's%20Corner%20-%20Game%20Design/view)
Just trying to drum up some support for something I believe could be very beneficial to the game. Feel free to add constructive criticism.
EDIT: I'll heed the advice of Fallen also.
I think that there has been a general consensus on how player shops have impacted GS(availability of needed items in exchange for player interaction) so this won't be a discussion on that. I also think there is a crippling dearth of player interaction with no person-to-person sales. Too many people enjoy player shops to suggest removing them, but I think they could be replaced with an alternative that would improve the roleplaying environment and make merchanting a lively experience, instead of a matter of shelving junk and waiting for someone to pay an exorbitant price, or find it in the first place.
To be more clear, buying and selling in my memory used to be a big part of the interaction in GS, and between player shops and message boards, it's almost non-existent, meaning interaction is way down, taking the RP out of MMORPG. And I think there is a happy medium to be had.
An auction house in every major town could be a strong focal point for players to meet, talk and interact on a regular basis, and with a little ingenuity could be entirely automated with no GM supervision after creation beyond the occasional bug.
Ideas on functionality:
Depending on popularity from town to town, each house would have certain times and dates that they would be active. People could choose to put items up for sale for a fee or a percentage, which would allow both the sale of more expensive items and lower end items without complaints about the cost. High end items can be entered for the fee without taking a huge chunk if it sells well, lower end items can go on percentage so that 2 or 3 fees don't completely wipe out the profit of the sale, if it doesn't sell immediately.
Players could choose to have their item put up for sale repeatedly until it sells if they so choose; lets just say they can enter for a maximum of 3 back to back auctions before having to relist the item, as an example.First time sales could be held first, with "Second calls" - items that the owner chose to put up for sale again if it didn't move the first time - and "Third calls" coming after this. This would allow players to view the new inventory without having to stick around for stuff they've already seen and have no interest in, while those who really are interested in something they saw up for sale before but didn't have the funds for only have to practice a little patience.
Items could be separated into tiers or categories or price range. I think this would take a little testing to see which is preferable, but price range would probably work the best. We've all told ourselves we were saving up for this runestaff or that breastplate only to have a piece of fluff come by that we couldn't live without that wiped out our bank account. Regardless, an example of tiers would be 1-4x, 5-7x, 8-10x weapons an armor, low end, mid-range and high end enhancives, etc... Categories is obviously weapons, armor, enhancives, fluff etc... Or something of that nature. You could even cross these organization methods if the auction houses got popular enough to warrant it. 1-4x enhancives, for example.
There would also be an option for silent auctions, if you'd like. Where a player can put something up for sale for a week or a month that is put on display, where people can come and look at it and place a bid. This would be especially desirable for high end items that we often see in the 10 million silver+ range. If you'd like, you could also include the option of having the auction stop after the item goes for a certain length of time without receiving any new bids. This could help keep things moving while also giving the option to allow items of high interest get their full price.
Honesty forthcoming: Some people have no clue where to set their minimum bid. Myself included. When the basics show they are working and players show they are enjoying the system, options could be added like allowing them to set a price reduction that automatically occurs every time the item doesn't sell. Moreover, sometimes people just want to clean out their lockers, but don't want to throw stuff in the trash barrel. You could give the players the option of defaulting by choosing not to pay the fee for putting the item up for sale. (For people who chose the percentage option, this could be a percentage of the minimum bid they set.) By defaulting the item becomes the property of the auction house, who then puts it up for sale again at a lower price. This could be either in the main auction, or in a secondary defaults-only auction. Not sure which would be best. If it still doesn't sell, it could be reduced in price further and put in a pawnshop-style store, or listed at it's default mechanical value in said store. I would vote for the first, since an item's mechanical value doesn't always reflect it's player-base value.
I think this could be very opportunistic. It would allow a lot of opportunity for interaction, motivate some lazy people to move their merchandise at a reasonable price instead of letting it sit in the shops til doomsday, and has a lot of room for improvement to keep it interesting. Such as allowing people to purchase the option to make anonymous bids in the open auctions, private auctions for a fee, etc... Social events could be held around the auctioning of higher end items, much like the houses do raffles but with a reason to stick around and talk. It also gives the GM's a great opportunity to introduce certain items to the game. I don't doubt that people enjoy their hunt for history items, but think that if they were brought into the game in this type of medium instead of droughtmans where everyone crossed their fingers in hopes of a coraesine this or zelnorn that, they would have had much more fanfare and praise, and would have a much higher value placed on them.
I'll express this opinion at the risk of shooting myself in the foot. Player shops were desired and can be convenient. I've bought from them several times. However, they've also taken a lot away from the atmosphere of GS. Auctions over the amulet weren't necessarily great. It often got hectic to keep track of and allowed a lot of opportunity for scamming. I think that if done correctly, auction houses could be a good combination of the positive aspects of both while eliminating most, if not all, of the negative aspects.
A lot of work? Most likely. Worth the work? Absolutely.
No? Go here. (http://forums.play.net/forums/GemStone%20IV/Game%20Design%20Discussions/Developer's%20Corner%20-%20Game%20Design/view)
Just trying to drum up some support for something I believe could be very beneficial to the game. Feel free to add constructive criticism.
EDIT: I'll heed the advice of Fallen also.
I think that there has been a general consensus on how player shops have impacted GS(availability of needed items in exchange for player interaction) so this won't be a discussion on that. I also think there is a crippling dearth of player interaction with no person-to-person sales. Too many people enjoy player shops to suggest removing them, but I think they could be replaced with an alternative that would improve the roleplaying environment and make merchanting a lively experience, instead of a matter of shelving junk and waiting for someone to pay an exorbitant price, or find it in the first place.
To be more clear, buying and selling in my memory used to be a big part of the interaction in GS, and between player shops and message boards, it's almost non-existent, meaning interaction is way down, taking the RP out of MMORPG. And I think there is a happy medium to be had.
An auction house in every major town could be a strong focal point for players to meet, talk and interact on a regular basis, and with a little ingenuity could be entirely automated with no GM supervision after creation beyond the occasional bug.
Ideas on functionality:
Depending on popularity from town to town, each house would have certain times and dates that they would be active. People could choose to put items up for sale for a fee or a percentage, which would allow both the sale of more expensive items and lower end items without complaints about the cost. High end items can be entered for the fee without taking a huge chunk if it sells well, lower end items can go on percentage so that 2 or 3 fees don't completely wipe out the profit of the sale, if it doesn't sell immediately.
Players could choose to have their item put up for sale repeatedly until it sells if they so choose; lets just say they can enter for a maximum of 3 back to back auctions before having to relist the item, as an example.First time sales could be held first, with "Second calls" - items that the owner chose to put up for sale again if it didn't move the first time - and "Third calls" coming after this. This would allow players to view the new inventory without having to stick around for stuff they've already seen and have no interest in, while those who really are interested in something they saw up for sale before but didn't have the funds for only have to practice a little patience.
Items could be separated into tiers or categories or price range. I think this would take a little testing to see which is preferable, but price range would probably work the best. We've all told ourselves we were saving up for this runestaff or that breastplate only to have a piece of fluff come by that we couldn't live without that wiped out our bank account. Regardless, an example of tiers would be 1-4x, 5-7x, 8-10x weapons an armor, low end, mid-range and high end enhancives, etc... Categories is obviously weapons, armor, enhancives, fluff etc... Or something of that nature. You could even cross these organization methods if the auction houses got popular enough to warrant it. 1-4x enhancives, for example.
There would also be an option for silent auctions, if you'd like. Where a player can put something up for sale for a week or a month that is put on display, where people can come and look at it and place a bid. This would be especially desirable for high end items that we often see in the 10 million silver+ range. If you'd like, you could also include the option of having the auction stop after the item goes for a certain length of time without receiving any new bids. This could help keep things moving while also giving the option to allow items of high interest get their full price.
Honesty forthcoming: Some people have no clue where to set their minimum bid. Myself included. When the basics show they are working and players show they are enjoying the system, options could be added like allowing them to set a price reduction that automatically occurs every time the item doesn't sell. Moreover, sometimes people just want to clean out their lockers, but don't want to throw stuff in the trash barrel. You could give the players the option of defaulting by choosing not to pay the fee for putting the item up for sale. (For people who chose the percentage option, this could be a percentage of the minimum bid they set.) By defaulting the item becomes the property of the auction house, who then puts it up for sale again at a lower price. This could be either in the main auction, or in a secondary defaults-only auction. Not sure which would be best. If it still doesn't sell, it could be reduced in price further and put in a pawnshop-style store, or listed at it's default mechanical value in said store. I would vote for the first, since an item's mechanical value doesn't always reflect it's player-base value.
I think this could be very opportunistic. It would allow a lot of opportunity for interaction, motivate some lazy people to move their merchandise at a reasonable price instead of letting it sit in the shops til doomsday, and has a lot of room for improvement to keep it interesting. Such as allowing people to purchase the option to make anonymous bids in the open auctions, private auctions for a fee, etc... Social events could be held around the auctioning of higher end items, much like the houses do raffles but with a reason to stick around and talk. It also gives the GM's a great opportunity to introduce certain items to the game. I don't doubt that people enjoy their hunt for history items, but think that if they were brought into the game in this type of medium instead of droughtmans where everyone crossed their fingers in hopes of a coraesine this or zelnorn that, they would have had much more fanfare and praise, and would have a much higher value placed on them.
I'll express this opinion at the risk of shooting myself in the foot. Player shops were desired and can be convenient. I've bought from them several times. However, they've also taken a lot away from the atmosphere of GS. Auctions over the amulet weren't necessarily great. It often got hectic to keep track of and allowed a lot of opportunity for scamming. I think that if done correctly, auction houses could be a good combination of the positive aspects of both while eliminating most, if not all, of the negative aspects.
A lot of work? Most likely. Worth the work? Absolutely.