Wow, so much feedback already! Awesome, thanks everyone, keep it coming! Your feedback is and always will be invaluable!
We'd like to reply to each and every one of you individually, but that might be a bit too long a post. First we'd like to say that we are eager to improve the quest system in general. Constantly declining quests is certainly not intended (hence this change), but that doesn't mean that we will leave it at that. Our goal is to make all quests enjoyable, challenging and worth doing. If that is not the case already (and it clearly isn't or there would not be such massive numbers in declining quests), then we need to improve on
that. Limiting the amount of quests that can be declined is a patch for the effect of an issue that is hidden a bit more deeply: apparently not all quests are worth doing. This is the issue we are looking to improve, but we cannot do that without your feedback. So, once again: please keep it coming and tell us where you are getting stuck. Tell us which quests you decline and also why you do that. Why is the quest you decline not a quest worth doing for you? This is the question we need (want) to get an answer for, as that answer is the problem that needs solving most of all.
Having said that, we would like to reply individually to as many of you as possible, so this will be quite a long list of quotes. If we missed anything, please let us know by posting in this thread, and we will try to come back to you! We want to have this discussion with you and we will take the time to do it properly.
Here goes.
First of all, I don't see how far the quests "are rather meant to provide guidance through the game", this is really not the case.
Some quests do make no sense after you have developped your city. Instead of slowing down the game, you should think of introducing relevant quests, depending on the level reached in the game.
We currently have three quest types, two of which can be declined. The story quests (cannot be declined) are the main guide through the game. We then have quests that can be declined, but are not repeated, which are also used for guidance, but are optional for every player to follow or not. Then there is the third type, that is being massively used for quick gains: the repeatable quests. These quests are meant to provide the player with a small "bonus" on their city's income. Quests are not meant to be the main source of income in the game: your city is. In the starting phase, quests do provide you with most of the resources you need, but also teach you and guide you to a sustainable economy of your own, seperate from quests.
I have been enjoying the game for many months Muf-Muf...but only when I discovered the repeating quests. Until I discovered them, I was a new player who was ready to quit. And that was back when I was very very early in the tech tree. The game was insanely long and boring back then.
Once I found the repeating quests the game was playable and enjoyable. Sure, things still took days and days to accomplish, but at least I had something to do.
We are working on new content, which will also give you something to do during the day. We hope to be able to tell you more about this in the coming weeks!
Do you all REMEMBER the problem with all the dead cities? You are aware that a TON of players quit this game very fast because it is BORING. Now you want to slow the game more?
Elvenar is not a game to play through in a matter of weeks: we strive to give you an enjoyable gaming experience for many months, up to multiple years.
I have never ever declined a quest before and will not change my behaviour. My city is nearly on top and I am eager to see, how many quests I have fulfilled already (and can click away without more to do for me) ;-)
My tech-tree is ready and my goal at game is to have built every possible at least one time - great graphics was reason no1 to play this beta - this has not changed ;-)
We're happy to hear you're enjoying Elvenar! We're sure that you'll enjoy our upcoming features as well. Stay tuned for more information!
I've started a town of humans on the first US-Server, and in the beginning it is hard to get enough coins/supplies to improve houses and workshops and build the expensive culture buildings (butcher, monster fountain).
The buildings that you name (Delicatessen Butcher and Monster Fountain) are not "beginner" level buildings anymore. These are part of the second and third segments in the research tree, making them somewhat more advanced buildings. Once you have reached those buildings, you are already past the "starting phase", so to speak. It is therefore quite logical that these prove challenging to construct in your city.
So it won't be possible to improve a workshop for example, because your builders do anything else, or you don't have enough resources on this day. And what now? Waiting for tomorrow and hoping to get a realizable quest? It will be frustrating for new players, the will have the feeling of standstill and they will leave the game.
If there is a "feeling of standstill", then that is an issue we should address. Please provide more details on the point at which you may feel you are in this position, so that we can improve it.
The limited number of builders slows down enough, there shouldn't be more restrictions. Why did you implement declineable quests, if the players should not decline them???
It is allowed to decline them, certainly. We just want to put a stop to the endless declining, as that is not what Elvenar is about. Elvenar is a city builder game, not a "quest skipper game".
I can't research - I've finished techtree.
I can't fight - the knowledge points would be lost.
I can't improve my city - every building is on level 15 now.
And now I can't do declineable quests any longer - for what reason I should login at all?
We are working on more content for you to enjoy, which also includes new technologies. We are working on features that will take a while to completely play through, so stay tuned for that! We hope to be able to deliver more information on it in the coming weeks!
- upgrade boosted manufactory : can't do, everything is level 15 and do not need to produce more goods so far -> skip quest
- upgrade workshop : all my workshops are level 15 (see above) and I do not need more supplies -> skip quest
- upgrade residence : everything level 15, blah-blah-blah -> skip quest
- build an altar of the forefathers : you guys serious ? this quest made sense after the altar was researched, to force us to build one (and this is guidance !) but the repeatable quest makes no sense at all : it returns less coins and supplies than the cost of the altar in the first place -> skip quest
- produce armchair, fireworks, etc... : sorry, I do not produce goods on 24h cycles; do you want me to do so, and only spend 1 hour on the game daily ? (collect, launch collection again and help fellows and active neighbours ? I just stopped fighting after having conquered my 134th province so I would not need to be more active than this) -> skip quest
- gain relics, solve encounters, complete a province : see above, I stopped fighting until new content is available to avoid throwing KPs down the drain -> skip quest
- gain 100 culture : what for ? if I do not build nor upgrade anything, I do not need more culture ! -> skip quest
to sum it up : give us quests that make sense, and we will not skip them; preventing us from skipping quests that do not apply to our city is simply showing us no respect.
bring on new content instead
Thanks, Philplessis! This is very valueable feedback and we'll be sure to forward it. You make a valid point that it does not make much sense if you get "upgrade building X" quests, when there are no buildings left to upgrade.
--->Bring on new content instead! Make this a game with quality!
We believe that we already have quite some quality to offer, but we're going to be delivering more, we promise you that!
Yes, that is exactly what we're working on right now.
How about increasing the allotted space for our cities and maybe add great buildings, like we have in FOE, to do things like increase the power of our warriors.
Seriously developers, if you go down this path that you are planning, the quests need to be changed. Think about those quests that require upgrading a building and there are several of these in a row. Now consider that a good number of us have maxed out our building levels and the space that you have allotted for our cities. So, even if we wanted to, we wouldn't be able to do these quests. From what you say, we will be stuck in those quests for days; just waiting until we can press the button in 24 hours to move past just one of them. And then pops up the next one that we cannot do. See the problem?
We are working on new content, and the guest races (as mentioned in the latest episode of InnoGames TV) will be the first to arrive! You can be sure that these new guests will bring you some new challenges to overcome!
Dear
@Muf-Muf , we need new stuff quickly.
We're on it!
You, Elvenar Creators and Designers, have to vanish some of those 24 quests. And put some difficult quests with better rewards.
These who asks you to produce 3 times 1 day production:
Insted giving 200 silk and 20k coins, why not give us 200 crystal or 200 scrolls ?
And that:
Instead giving us coins and supplis, why not give us some Battle Units to explore more provinces ?
Making a lot of troops on Barracks, will vanish your supplies.
Those could certainly be interesting additions and/or changes to the quests. We'll be sure to forward the suggestions!