Soliciting Feedback: Promotions Currency

Eoghan

Soliciting feedback: I'm considering creating a "promotions" currency that can be earned by completing your daily credits for the day. This promotions currency can be spent on whatever the current monthly promotion is, or saved up for the future. Think of it similar to doubloons, but for promotions only.

In the past, we've allowed the purchase of promotions (specifically, giftbags and stockings) with Doubloons. This would be replacing the use of Doubloons for that purpose, introducing instead a new, separate currency with a separate cap (and earned each day by completing your daily credits tasks).

In addition, I'm considering allowing the purchase of additional Promotions currency using Iron Elite credits - this would be an optional way to spend them rather than turning them into bound credits. Purchasing Promotions currency this way would NOT allow you to go beyond the cap that can be earned by doing the dailies, but would let you squeeze a few more out if you particularly like a month's promotion.

Ryse

I like both ideas. 

I usually stop grinding credits at around 15, so this would incentivize more active play.

Also, additional use for membership perks is always appreciated. 

Aeterna Silphium

I think that this is a great idea overall. Imperian is free to play, and having a promotion currency for full daily credits would bring that to the forefront. Given credit proliferation, having the ability to spend membership credits on promotion currency if one is feeling like hitting the daily credit cap is too much seems like a good way to give membership credits a boost without being burdensome.

Having this separated out from doubloons is nice as one can then rent artifacts regularly without worrying about future promotions and saving up for an uncertain future for those.

Sumie

I'm actually somewhat against this. The way I see this is if promotions are buy able with in game currency, then a lot less people will spend money on the promotions. This in my interpretation very likely means we will never have worthwhile or interesting promotions again because there will just be not as much incentive to add new ones. 

Eoghan

As it already stands, no Imperian development time is spent on new promotions. This was a tradeoff made when we moved to our current free model, and was announced at the time. If any time is put in to bring over new promotions created IRE-wide, then the work is done by someone outside of the Imperian team (usually @Jeremy Saunders)

Valence

Thoughts:

• A method for people to "freely" earn promo items (if in a limited context) would be great as it allows people on a budget access to the goods and a way to "try" them out before actually spending money, if they wish.
• Uncertain regarding saving up to splurge on future promotions. Would personally prefer the promotion currency be only applicable for the current promo, but that's just my take.
• Perhaps Iron Elite members can receive a package of the current promo when they receive their monthly goods (like, for instance, the first tier purchase of the promo), to provide incentive to subscribe. Not sure how this will apply for people who opted to sub for 3, 6, or 12-month subscriptions. Add them all at once with the goods, or given monthly, or something else?

Eoghan

Valence said:

Thoughts:

• Perhaps Iron Elite members can receive a package of the current promo when they receive their monthly goods (like, for instance, the first tier purchase of the promo), to provide incentive to subscribe. Not sure how this will apply for people who opted to sub for 3, 6, or 12-month subscriptions. Add them all at once with the goods, or given monthly, or something else?
  

I had considered this, but the issue is that different promotions have vastly different values. By giving a specifically-valued Promotion Currency instead, we can still give access to the promo to members without having to adjust for each promotion's individual value.

Katorina

I don't like this for the same reason I liked the removal of Tokens.  This is just Tokens under another name really.  I prefer less currencies, not more.

Lachlan

I'm assuming this will work somewhat similar to the currency you receive for completing milestones on Aetolia, where there is a limited amount of the currency you can earn per day/week/month?

If it is primarily for the promo items that are cosmetic, or don't apply for pvp, I don't see it being harmful and if promotions like ironbeard and logindays are also changed to utilise the currency, you'll likely see a more consistent login time over those promotions as well, instead of people being logged on for 24 hours a day for ironbeard, or only for the hour to get login credit.

Eoghan

Katorina said:

I don't like this for the same reason I liked the removal of Tokens.  This is just Tokens under another name really.  I prefer less currencies, not more.

Yeah, I definitely understand this perspective. A difference between this currency and Tokens is that no artifacts would be available for this currency - it would only be used to buy into whatever promotion was running, and never guarantee a specific reward.

Katorina

Eoghan said:

Katorina said:

I don't like this for the same reason I liked the removal of Tokens.  This is just Tokens under another name really.  I prefer less currencies, not more.

Yeah, I definitely understand this perspective. A difference between this currency and Tokens is that no artifacts would be available for this currency - it would only be used to buy into whatever promotion was running, and never guarantee a specific reward.

So .. uh ... worse?

Eoghan

They serve different purposes. Tokens gated specific items, which were only available for tokens. The Promotions currency would be a way for players to access monthly promotions, in a limited capacity, without having to spend real world currency - trying to close the gap between free and paid players a small amount.

Tokens became an issue primarily because of the limited access to them, which the Promotions currency won't have - they would always be obtainable by completing daily credit tasks.

Katorina

True enough, but if I can only get the stuff on a monthly promotion, that seems less flexible, not more.

Just my 2c anyways

Kamaylie

Anything that brings "free" access to something people have to pay for, I am in favour. Now I'm not sure if a new currency is the solution but I do appreciate the idea of being able to save them to use on another promotion. If I participated plenty in one promotion in the past, I'd rather save them. This month I probably would have shot arrows at a bunch of people if it had been possible for my char to get them.

Plus as mentioned by @Ryse, the incentive to keep going when you get around 15 would be a nice addition.

Eochaid

Why not just let promos be bought with bound credits?

Like 1 arrow package costs 20 bound credits. Job done then you can buy the promos in game nice and easy.

Naruj

Eochaid said:

Why not just let promos be bought with bound credits?

Like 1 arrow package costs 20 bound credits. Job done then you can buy the promos in game nice and easy.

Or maybe just offer the ability to transfer/sell promo currency in game, so people can sell it to each other for credits. The original source could be elite/daily credits or whatever, and still be okay.