Suggested *Simple* Solution to Balancing Issue

[pluck]

Originally posted by Donzo
If you can't see the number of players on the teams, how will you know what the path of least resistance is?
 

the one that is losing bases left and right and has no defenders?

[96Delta]

Originally posted by hubsonfire
...if you read the post that opens this thread, delta mentions assigning people (not offering them a choice)...

Hello hubs, thank you for expressing your interest in this idea.

May I draw your attention to the phrase "permanently auto-assign new players to countries ". [emphasis added]  Also, please take a minute to read a subsequent post of mine.  When you do, kindly take note of the term "open enrollment period".

Choice is retained.  The only choice you lose is the ability to go 'country shopping' to gain an advantage.  If that has been your practice then yes, you will be denied that option.

But to get back to my post, the 'assignment' clause you mention only concerns new subscribers.  They get assigned to countries as necessary to manitain some semblance of balance.  That way, new players won't get steamrolled out of the game by hordes of 'gamers' who only want to pad their scores with easy kills by jumping in with a horde.  I think that alot of new players have also been guilty of this practice since they perceive that they will be safer in large hordes.  Changing countnries is an option that has increasingly given itself to abuse.  

Remember guys, we want to help HTC maintain new subscribers beyond their 2-week trial.  My idea would insure that new players have a chance to learn within the country (family) that they are initially assigned (born into).  Couintries would detect new players, embrace them and help them learn the game and become more survivable and therefore, have fun.  Without a community dynamic like that the chance for this kind of ombudsman type relationship occuring is limited.

If you have any other questions please feel free to ask.  I will try my best to explain my idea to you in greater detail.  

God bless,

David

[96Delta]

Originally posted by Spatula
2. Once someone logs in, they can not swap sides for 1 hour minimum in that arena.

Hi spatula,

I don't think a time limit on switching would work and here's why.

Lets say that ROOKS appear to be winning the war.  Now lets assume that 20% of each of the other countries players decide to jump over to ROOKS for 'furballs', safety or cherry picking (you know who you are).  That would result in a significant imbalance being emparted to the ROOKS.  

Now consider the players who are left flying KNIGHT or BISHOP.  Invariably, one of these countries is going to be on the receiving end of a lot of heat as the newly swelled ROOK forces lock onto an adversay.  And, being a ROOK, I can almost guarantee that the targeted country would be BISHOP. .

Now as the BISHOPS get pounded, some of their players will want to get out from under the onslaught.  After all, its not fun getting slaughtered.  So what do they do?  They join the ROOKS, further imbalancing the game and contributing to the creation of a cascade effect that further increases the inbalance.

The effect on remaining players leads to a 'no fun' situation.  Many players log, new players who don't even know how to change countries get frustrated and log (and eventually cancel their accounts if the experience is repeated night after night)*.

In my view, a 1-hour time limit is not sufficient to stop this.  I don't think that any time limit would be an effective deterrent to this kind of abuse.

*I'm going to tell you what metric I think Hitech is looking at when he made this balancing change.  Its "Trial to Subscriber conversions and then how long that new subscriber is retained".  If he sees that he has gotten 3600 players to download the free trial and only 900 decide to subscrbe...and then 300 of them cancel their accounts within 3 months then something is very wrong, especially if he sees (and I'm betting he sees very acutely) that the trend is down.  This game is addictive (as we all know) and if people aren't sticking around then things are clearly awry somewhere in the game.

The game is essentially the same so it can't be that...so what has happened?  I think we can all agree that gameplay has changed dramatically over the years and not necessarily for the better.  

These remedies introduced by HTC are, IMHO, designed to address fundamental gameplay 'behavior' issues.  I could be wrong but I wouldn't bet my pension on it.  Any kind of time limit on country switching is unlikely to work.  Maybe if the limit were that you couldn't change countries more than once a month or every two weeks it might be effective.

Anyway, thats how my aging eyes see it...

God bless,

David

[96Delta]

Originally posted by pluck
the one that is losing bases left and right and has no defenders?

Pluck,
There's no spectate mode that I know of.
If there were, how long would you sit by and watch the campaign unfold before you decided which country to join?

David

[BaldEagl]

Originally posted by Krusty
First, the point about not being able to log into another arena for X period of time? No good. I'm the type of person that will see his own team has WAY too many pilots, and log out, go to another arena.

Krusty, that's the point.  You're automatically assigned to the arena that has the lowest number of your country members.

Originally posted by Krusty Or I'm the type of person that logs in, finds out from .SR later that his squaddies are in another arena and switch.

If you read my original post, all squad members are automatically assigned to the arena where the first one to log on was assigned.  Squads are always kept 100% intact.

[hubsonfire]

Bear with me a moment, but how would this dynamically maintain even numbers through out the day?

[Bronk]

I still say you all want MORE play limitations than HT has implemented.
Right now if my side has numbers I have a choice .
Swap sides or pick another arena.

You want to MAKE me go to another arena .

Now say i wanted LW blue but thats full click on Orange its not full but my side has numbers . Your system wants to plant me in the next unpopulated arena.
Real nice choice there. With the current system I can jump sides and fly the arena I want . Thats choice folks.

Karaya if you still think this is not about limiting choice , I have to disagree .



Bronk

[96Delta]

Originally posted by hubsonfire
Bear with me a moment, but how would this dynamically maintain even numbers through out the day?

Hi hubs, thanks for the question.

Gameplay during the day is most affected by the time zone and country of origin of subscribers.  There are some additional players from other time zones but for the most part that number isn't sufficient to cause significant imbalance.

The way to look at it is in terms of COMMUNITIES.
We have a US East Coast community, West Coast community, UK community, and so on.  We can reasonably expect that the majority of a community plays at the same time with some overlap.

The point of my suggestion is that it doesn't matter.  Subscribers from all communities would be balanced at the time of subscription, not at the time of log-on.  This assignment would be transparent to the subscriber.

Since all subscriber 'communities' are balanced "in vitro" it is reasonable to conclude that the active player base from each of those communities would also be balanced to within a reasonable range.  Even the overlapping communities would be balanced by virtue of the same effect.  So in the end, the number of active players on at any given time would essentially be in sufficient balance to prevent one side from gaining a large numerical advantage over another.

God bless,

david

[Laurie]

Originally posted by hitech
96Delta: The problem right now is not an overall imbalance  between sides, It is more of people choosing an arena where they have the numbers, or leaving one they do not.

But I do appreciate the thinking outside the box.

HiTech

hitech,

just a suggestion,

maybe trial out 1 LW, with old ENY (or none),

see if things get a bit fairer then, as there is  nowhere to bail out to apart from MW and EW, wich is not as 'welcoming as another LW to some users. this would also propell people into combat like you wish with the trial in LWOrange as there are more players, less empty space to 'hide' in.

[hubsonfire]

I'm not thinking this would really provide anything more than a few more restrictions, and imbalance would be enforced by the system, rather than prevented by it.

You seem to be assuming that everyone plays at the same hours, daily, without variation. Any who did not would contribute to the imbalance. The guys who don't play at set hours for set lengths of time would be variables, and enough of them on or off at once could setup imbalances just as great as we have had recently, with no way for those who will switch to the underdogs in an effort to lessen the problem to do so. In a situation where the numbers did get out of hand, the underdog side would likely lose more customers, magnifying the issue, which runs more off, ad nauseum.

[Laurie]

Originally posted by hubsonfire
I'm not thinking this would really provide anything more than a few more restrictions, and imbalance would be enforced by the system, rather than prevented by it.

You seem to be assuming that everyone plays at the same hours, daily, without variation. Any who did not would contribute to the imbalance. The guys who don't play at set hours for set lengths of time would be variables, and enough of them on or off at once could setup imbalances just as great as we have had recently, with no way for those who will switch to the underdogs in an effort to lessen the problem to do so. In a situation where the numbers did get out of hand, the underdog side would likely lose more customers, magnifying the issue, which runs more off, ad nauseum.

first i said TRIAL IT, not implement it,  straight away,


and time zone things usually iron themselves out

[hubsonfire]

After 5 years here, I can tell you that the assumption that numbers will eventually balance themselves is completely false.

[96Delta]

Originally posted by hubsonfire
After 5 years here, I can tell you that the assumption that numbers will eventually balance themselves is completely false.

I think everyone is in agreement on this.
Intervention is required to help create and maintain a balance.

The only question is where should that intervention take place: at log-on or at sign-up.  To my way of thinking establishing that balance at the time of subscribing (and prohibiting or severely restricting country changing) is less intrusive and better tolerated overall.

Wouldn't you agree?

David

[Bronk]

Originally posted by 96Delta
I think everyone is in agreement on this.
Intervention is required to help create and maintain a balance.

The only question is where should that intervention take place: at log-on or at sign-up.  To my way of thinking establishing that balance at the time of subscribing (and prohibiting or severely restricting country changing) is less intrusive and better tolerated overall.

Wouldn't you agree?

David

No.

Your statement.

prohibiting or severely restricting country changing

is less intrusive and better tolerated overall.


Holy contradiction Batman !!!!


Bronk

[96Delta]

Originally posted by Bronk
No.

Your statement.

prohibiting or severely restricting country changing

is less intrusive and better tolerated overall.


Holy contradiction Batman !!!!

Bronk

Its not a contradiction:  its a solution.

We have seen evidence that the ability to whimsically change countries in the game has led to abuse and undermined the solvency of the game.  This problem requires a solution.  There is one in place now and it has been met with an avalanche of protest.

I think that my solution would be better tolerated by existing players (especially those in squads or who have been flying for years with the same people/country).  It would also benefit newly subscribed players who would benefit from the level playing field and the chance to make new friends by flying with the same people in the same country.

My point is, knowing that when you log on you will be able to fly with your squad, on your country and with the same friends you have made while playing is more tolerable than logging on, being told that you can't fly with your preferred country or squad and that you have to fly with strangers.

I think people like predictability and this paradigm gives them just that.

And you disagree with this Bronk?

David