Market Wards vs AH

[Xzen]

Actually it works very well both in MMORPGs and real life sites. Take a look at the billions of RL dollars that pass through online store fronts & auction sites. The system works and it keeps customers happy.

So do malls and other stores.... So I guess that means both are viable options?

[Abriael]

So do malls and other stores....

ZING.

10chars.

[kukurumei]

So do malls and other stores.... So I guess that means both are viable options?

If I could get my product in about an hour after I press buy, malls would die too.

The problem is market wards are slower then AH by order of times it takes to microwave your dinner.

[Abriael]

If I could get my product in about an hour after I press buy, malls would die too.

The problem is market wards are slower then AH by order of times it takes to microwave your dinner.

More exaggeration

[Xzen]

If I could get my product in about an hour after I press buy, malls would die too.

The problem is market wards are slower then AH by order of times it takes to microwave your dinner.

While I would be right there with you if that could be archived there is one good reason why Malls and Stores would keep on going. Women.

[Verecund]

So do malls and other stores.... So I guess that means both are viable options?

Yeah... other stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble. Do they happen to sell newspapers? Because that would make me "lol" "irl"...

Having a 'sandbox'-type economy is a good idea on paper, but after it is implemented people will then start to gather towards a central economic hub (i.e. the zone with the best things going for it... in this case, Uld'ah). This usually happens anyway later down the road due to new content and zones. But, the problem with the Retainer system is that you can't access the game economy if people are not selling in your city, which inevitably leads to the evacuation of pretty much everything that isn't the 'Economic Hub'. Did I mention all this content just got figuratively thrown away?

Also, imagine what this would be like for new players now coming into the game... if their town (i.e. Gridania) has no one playing in it, they wouldn't have an economy to buy from, and they also might think that not so many players play the game. Etc.

[Abriael]

Also, imagine what this would be like for new players now coming into the game... if their town (i.e. Gridania) has no one playing in it, they wouldn't have an economy to buy from, and they also might think that not so many players play the game. Etc.

If a town lacks people, the problem isn't the market wards, the problem is that the town lacks traffic, and that needs to be fixed. A travel route between Gridania and Limsa is long overdue.

[kukurumei]

Yeah... other stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble. Do they happen to sell newspapers? Because that would make me "lol" "irl"...

Having a 'sandbox'-type economy is a good idea on paper, but after it is implemented people will then start to gather towards a central economic hub (i.e. the zone with the best things going for it... in this case, Uld'ah). This usually happens anyway later down the road due to new content and zones. But, the problem with the Retainer system is that you can't access the game economy if people are not selling in your city, which inevitably leads to the evacuation of pretty much everything that isn't the 'Economic Hub'. Did I mention all this content just got figuratively thrown away?

Also, imagine what this would be like for new players now coming into the game... if their town (i.e. Gridania) has no one playing in it, they wouldn't have an economy to buy from, and they also might think that not so many players play the game. Etc.

Well FF11 has that problem too, but the wards presents a problem that retainers can't be in two places at once. If FF14 ever gets successful enough to have that situation, then yes. But it's a doom idea Market Wards, because if a population of 2000-3000, need 8-12 retainers to cover the zones, then you would have over tens of thousands of retainers burdening the system.

I don't even want to think about a MMO to where I have to managed my equipment and items in that mess.

Not to mention you would have retainers names called Puppiesaresupercute1123 due to the unique name problem

[Abriael]

Well FF11 has that problem too, but the wards presents a problem that retainers can't be in two places at once. If FF14 ever gets successful enough to have that situation, then yes.

Not needed. All we need is a centralized search system. As I said many times, there's not even one function of an AH that cannot be implemented in the market wards.

[kukurumei]

Not needed. All we need is a centralized search system. As I said many times, there's not even one function of an AH that cannot be implemented in the market wards.

Centralized search system doesn't make retainers disappear(then it would be called an AH). You would still need to find a way to that retainer.

Not to mention a centralized search system would be even more problematic in the fact that why do you even have market ward zones in the first place. Why not have a "teleport market wards" function on your menu...

Oh great... it's the same problem all over complicated imitation of an AH with 20x the complexity.