RWTscape

First topic message reminder :

To be honest, I'm surprised there isn't a thread about this already, so I made one.

Today, April 2nd 2012, JaGex introduced a system which allows you to purchase spins on the Squeal of Fortune for real life money.

So I'm interested in your opinions on this. The forums are, unsurprisingly, full of rants and flame, and I want some smarter discussion.

Is it real world trading? Is it illegal gambling? If so, what's caused JaGex to break their own rules and do this? Is this the end for RuneScape?

Discuss...

I've gotten a lot of 50 gp along with rune stuff like a platebody, pick, and a few lamps. Quite frankly, I really don't care about it because I don't like gambling in general.

Sorry Morb, but it depends if the game likes you or not. Maybe over time you'll get that bandos godsword, but don't get your hopes up. This is like playing a slot machine or wheel of fortune; it rarely ever works and has a devastating and alluring false award potential.

It's textbook addiction inducing content. Matches up perfectly with so many addiction experiments I've read about. Don't go in expecting anything other than 50gp or some XP lamps, because the other things are in there almost entirely to snare you.

Some people say you can ONLY get the rares if you buy spins. Is that true?

I can't speak personally, but it seems unlikely to me. I'm pretty sure people got rares before they released buying spins, which would imply the rumors are untrue.

So this isn't RWT in all its 'glory,' just a marketing ploy to prey off the weak. Doesn't roll off the tongue as well.

makes it sound worse even though it is true that Jagex wants that extra bit of profit

Does discarding the common rewards cause the computer to rethink it's strategy?

Problem is Morb, it's probability and it's very difficult to get a sample size big enough to determine much for certain.

And Dragon, I think it IS worse. It's unethical, getting people addicted is a strategy relied on by drug dealers...

And every retailer everywhere to some degree...

I mean hell, all videogames work on a principle of addiction, especially if subscription based

I am not in support of the proposed black out on April 30th. As a writer for the Suggestion Team, I prefer to be neutral in the whole matter, and it will hopefully be something Jagex can sort out themselves.

In fairness, it SHOULD state, if anything, that care should be taken when purchasing spins under specific gambling laws (meaning only 16+ can do it, or 18+. Past that point, there would be very few people interested in the game to wish to purchase spins) and that there is NO guarantee of winning better prizes from purchased spins.

Jagex would probably making it worse if they don't realize how much this update sucks. I mean after constant diversions, they gave up and put the wildy back in.

It will have to take a while because Jagex wants to wait for the storm to die down and respond later. (They don't want to appear weak, I guess.)

If I want to make a stand against Squeal of Fortune, I'll just discard the goods I get until I get a decent prize.

As someone who is from the Suggestion Team, I have to remain neutral on the matters with the Squeal of Fortune, but that doesn't mean I can't suggest some ideas. Here is what I came up with to hopefully lay to rest some of the controversy of Squeal of Fortune;

A. A cap on how many spins a player can purchase. The cap means that once a player has bought a certain amount of spins, they cannot buy any more for a 28 day period, slowing down the advantage players can have. As spins are not transferable, players with a lot of money cannot get their hands on too great an advantage.

B. Hand out more spins in game. In this scenario, more spins can be awarded from all kinds of things, such as meeting realistic targets, such as getting all skills to 50, winning a PvP game (obviously once a day) or perhaps completing a Slayer Assignment. Spins tend to be thought of as a reward before they were introduced as purchasable.

C. Exchanging loyalty points for spins. Members can either exchange accumulated loyalty points for a handful of spins or pay a one-off sum to increase their daily amount of free spins.

D. Make the process of purchasing longer. Some people noted how easy it was to buy spins; 3 clicks and you're done. This is just common sense, because by making the process force you to leave game, re-enter specific details and also apply a specific age restriction, this should make it both safer and more slower to buying an in-game advantage.

E. Make lucky prizes degradable. Does what is says on the tin. Lucky prizes are just that, lucky. Like corrupt weaponry and armour, which gave free players a try out of member's weapons, lucky weapons should be more of a taster of the real thing. Of course, to balance it out, the chances of winning one should be greater and they'd have to last longer, but they'd still be a prize worth playing for.

These are just some ideas I came up with. Please tell me how I am doing.

You're doing awfully, Morb. The solution is to remove this godforsaken wheel.

Oh, and if anyone hasn't noticed, JaGex are mistreating their loyal players again. No extra spins for anyone already with the quest cape. The chance for 320 spins (real world value £50) down the drain because you've already played all the quests. Cheers JaGex, I feel so appreciated.

Oh...

Ragequit then.

My love for RuneScape is seriously, seriously waning. Probably a good thing, seeing as I can't afford to play it too much.

I dunno what's gonna happen when I do want to play it though. It's such a love/hate thing right now. I love the lore and want to experience it all first hand, but I hate the gimmicks, the grinding and the general direction RuneScape is going in.

One or two more kicks in the teeth like this might be what tips me over the edge and I may actually ragequit.

I'm trying to come up with some practical solutions without removing the wheel.

If the only solution IS to remove purchasable spins, then I don't support, because it's a no-brainer.

It's not the only solution, but it's by a million, billion miles the best.

Next best is removing everything non-cosmetic from the SOF. I'll settle for that, but JaGex won't do that either.

The thing is, the entire concept is fundamentally flawed. You and I both know that. And fixing it without changing the fundamental flaw - the buyable spins - is virtually impossible.

I personally would like to start by making the wheel less in-your-face and less tacky. I mean seriously, that annoying, whiny goblin is less classy than the people on the Jeremy Kyle Show. And daily pop ups reminding you about it? Its own tab on the interface? Ramming it down players throats will only piss them off more. The whole thing needs a redesign to be more elegant and toned down if it's gonna stay.

Your solution about flooding RuneScape with spins to devalue buyable ones is interesting. I personally think that would severely worsen the already bad effect that the whole thing has had on the economy, and it's debatable whether it's worth it.

XP lamps need to go, or at least be reduced in their effectiveness. They're the main problem really, since useful items are rather rare. But these useful items, too, should either go or be made degradable.
Problem is, JaGex won't do this either. They WANT the squeal to be unbalanced so that as many people as possible will buy it.

I personally think JaGex could, if they tried hard enough, get some decent cosmetic items that players would be willing to buy and run a wheel with that only...
Most cosmetic items currently aren't worth the effort because they can't be used in a lot of situations due to their lack of stats. However, looking at the cosmetic upgrades to Rune and Dragon armours (and more specifically their price) tells us that cosmetics can be high demand, if they're useful too. So, make cosmetic upgrades to existing items and have them on the Squeal. That's the other solution I can think of.

Looks like RuneSpan came out the day everyone was going to be offline.

And on this day, I won two double spin tickets.

so there are roughtly 97k players online, is this a failure?

Not a coincidence, Morb. Jagex never bring their updates out on Mondays anymore - it's always Tuesday. They're biting back, and it looks like we've failed.

Still, I will not log in today. Even if it is now just a case of sticking to my morals.

Damn Jagex, we should do a blackout, but for a whole week

Haha. Like most RuneScape players are capable of going cold turkey for a week...

then plan B, we take machineguns, kill Jagex and we take over RS

*Loads Ak47*

Lol.