29 replies to this topic

[Rochu]

The way I see trophies is, they have a huge impact on the game and upset the balance greatly right now Doesn't really seem like a hard task to tune them down and make them less meaningful.

 

While reading through this again I was thinking, maybe the maximum amount of trophies for a studio should scale up with the fans studio has made Fans is pretty much the only statics we can compete in while trophies break the balance of glory.

 

Also really like the idea of "training trophies" which could be implemented for studios under certain amounts of fans, though then, would they stop making movies to abuse this system xD? Better not make these trophies too game-breaking as well

[AngelicaSynn]

maybe link the amount of training a trophy provides directly to the number of fans a studio has, until a certain number of fans is reached, then level it off...

Edited by AngelicaSynn, 24 September 2016 - 20:01 PM.

[CaptC]

A good game design works to prevent 'snowballing' - the tendency of the powerful to get more powerful. That is exactly what trophies do right now. You can't get away from taking them if you are in the top levels - and they hurt you in studio fights while giving some advantages long term.

 

Whereas I think the game does not go far enough: Once a studio gets too powerful to be challenged, nothing can change that situation until members of the top studio get bored and move on. Even then, rich studios don't care - they simply buy doubles forever. (I personally think each day without a login should penalize a character's stats with a small but cumulative penalty. Anything to make studios recruit to replace flatliners.)  (And yes, more than just that would be needed to deal with the situation on UK1.)

 

No offense, Rochu... But removing or weakening one of the few balancing mechanisms in the game simply is the wrong way to address the issue of stagnation at the top. The penalties from trophies need to get progressively WORSE to address that issue. My suggestion is that the more successful a studio is at taking and holding trophies, the more they can have. Perhaps sheer number of days holding a trophy... after so many, you get another slot. There may also need to be a mechanism for increasing the number of trophies in the game, in that case. You can still choose for your studio to avoid a studio slot by not upgrading fully... but eventually, that will be swamped by the other trophy slots opening up.

 

(I am not in favor of tying actual competitive parts of the game to fan count. Again, that is simply a longevity thing... making more powerful studios stay more powerful.)

[CaptC]

The more I think about the idea of increasing trophy slots based upon holding trophies, the more i like it.

 

More thoughts:

 

- The number of days a studio holds the most trophies they are allowed should determine if a new trophy slot is opened up. If StudioH only has four slots, but they hold four trophies for cumulatively (pick a number, say 30 days), they get a new trophy slot. This allows studios that do not want the slots to actively dump trophies to avoid it - and studios that want to give you a slot, to dump on YOU. Could be some interesting game play.

 

- Max trophy slots 9. Five from studio upgrades, four from being too successful.  

 

- When a studio gets a new trophy slot for being to successful, it opens up with a brand new trophy already in it.

 

- Created trophies have types. The current Courage and Energy trophies, of course... But I am thinking two new types as well. The two new types basically add one more studio upgrade for notes, and for experience. 

 

- A 'notes' trophy gives the studio an additional motivation studio upgrade, while the trophy is held. An 'experience' trophy gives the studio an additional popularity studio upgrade, while the trophy is held.

 

- The prize is that the created trophies have the name of the studio permanently inscribed. 'Studio H Courage', 'Studio H Motivation', 'Studio H Energy', 'Studio H Popularity'.

[scurrvy]

hmm, such a system may make trophies and slots irrelevant to studio expansion,

as long as the studio is strong enough to hold X trophies, it is limited to X trophies by its collective strength, while needing to dump and recover trophies.

 

but on studios with more trophies fighting studios with less trophies.....

maybe a scaling for penalties for different trophy types are in order, with highly contested trophies giving highest penalties.

 

normal fights where fewer vs many trophies would then just be based on who has the more active stronger deserving group

 

also, i think a decent measure to 'classify' studios in training who need trophy help would be, not the fans, but the average of the average SP stats of the studio. much harder to 'game the system' with 1 OP guy in the 'lightweight' studio 'class'

Edited by scurrvy, 04 October 2016 - 15:46 PM.

[AngelicaSynn]

To make Studio fights more fair, since many think the trophies seem to cause 'snowballing', how about a Studio can only attack another studio if they have nearly the same number of trophies... like within 1 trophy of the same number...

 

The big guys wouldn't be able to go after small fry studios just to swoop up a trophy they just got... they'd have to go after someone nearly as powerful as they are themselves...

 

Small fry wouldn't set fights with the big guys, hoping to get a trophy on the off-chance that they win...

 

I'm sure that this isn't the best idea out there, but it would slow down the 'snowball effect'...

[Rochu]

I'm not saying it needs weakening Chrissy, but needs to be addressed somehow. I wouldn't mind it being harsher but it needs to be fair, not a system like "Leave studio expansion at 99% to have ridiculous power over fair playing studios in studio fights" system.

Right now it is very game breaking, it does not balance anything at all it only promotes snowballing. 

 

And Angelicasynn that is even worse suggestion cause that'd leave those fair playing studios having to attack these studios with 99% expansion, if they lose, they won't even lose a trophy to make next round fair, they'll be stuck with those 5 trophies x)

Edited by Rochu, 18 November 2016 - 16:27 PM.

[scurrvy]

how about instead of penalizing, the devs should incentivize 100% expansions.

the more expanded studio gets to pick what trophies they win, and when on par (equal expansions) its left up to chance

[Annika]

Why not to make a fifth trophy slot something like bonus slot,which will hold a trophy that will not affect skills in the studio fights but it will give some bonuses like more xp,notes or maybe a lucky trophy    to give better chances to get epic items,or diamonds or skills as reawards for missions.

 

And we really have to get more then just two types of the trophies.Energy and courage trophies is simple not enough.

Edited by Annika, 19 November 2016 - 17:10 PM.

[CaptC]

The simplest answer is probably the best... Energy trophies are greatly more prized than courage trophies.  Use the approach from Hero Zero and give them different penalties.  i would suggest 15% for energy, 7% for courage.

 

As far as the 'understanding the mechanics of the game so they avoid a fifth trophy slot' giving one studio an unfair advantage over another... surely you jest. That's not the problem, the problem is that a studio which makes the decision to open up a fifth trophy slot, cannot change their mind.

 

And finally, Rochu - no offense at all intended with this comment.  Congratulations on building a very strong studio!  ...But the real problem on the UK1 server is that the bottleneck at the top is incredibly static - and there, your studio is a big part of the logjam. Whether Striped Pantsu is #1 or #2 is pretty much irrelevant to everyone else on the server... either is just as boring.

I don't know how to break the logjam.  I merely suggest to the developers that letting dominant studios monopolize energy trophies is not conducive to dynamic play.  And if it's a GAME, dynamic play should be the goal.