Rework the housing system

[Barwara]

It seems like the core issue is servers. Not enough server space for more housing, more storage, more inventory, etc. I'm a bit surprised tbh. It seems like SE should just expand their servers to introduce more of everything and we wouldn't need to have conservations about the faulty system. If the player base is so huge and the game so popular (and seeing how they make us pay extra for so many things), I'd expect of them to improve their capacity for storing player data.

The game is already quite generous when it comes to making items in game accessible. Gill and free gear is thrown at you constantly (almost too often). Everyone has a shot at winning items when raiding and dungeoneering. There seems to be no preferential treatment, so except for event items, every player has an equal chance of amassing all of the cool gear and what not. Why then does housing need to be "exclusive"?

I personally do not like the concept of exclusivity in games. Not everyone has the time and money to dedicate 100% of their time and life to a... game... It's disrespectful to ask people to do certain things (take a day off from work!), sometimes within a limited period, to obtain 'exclusive' items. A bit of grinding doesn't hurt; working for what you want is good and it's satisfying. But the stuff that's going on for housing is just plain silly.

I expect the person who can only play 1 hour a day, or maybe few hours a week, to still have the same chance at amassing everything in the game as the player who plays daily for many hours. It will take the casual player longer for sure, but he isn't in any way at a disadvantage.

Side note:

I appreciate the idea of neighbourhoods, and of certain plots being dedicated to "cafes" and other such public services to further accentuate the experience. That being said, so far I have never ever seen anyone else strolling in any neighbourhood I visited, so I'm curious to know if anyone has had the experience of living in a neighbourhood that's actually lively, and where things are happening? XD

[Jojoya]

I appreciate the idea of neighbourhoods, and of certain plots being dedicated to "cafes" and other such public services to further accentuate the experience. That being said, so far I have never ever seen anyone else strolling in any neighbourhood I visited, so I'm curious to know if anyone has had the experience of living in a neighbourhood that's actually lively, and where things are happening? XD

If you're lucky enough to get into a ward that has a couple of very large and active FCs that have members that like to chase each other around the ward, it can be lively. The ward my personal house is in had bursts of activity for a few months thanks to a very large FC that also had a house there but that FC is no longer as active so I rarely see anyone now outside of one of my neighbors when we occasionally meet at the MB. Since the start of the expansion, I'd had maybe 5 players randomly show up at my house when I was there (no real way of knowing how many might have been by when I wasn't there though I do see the like count in my message book increase along with getting the occasional message).

Our FC house can be active with members coming and going at times, or we're gathering for map parties/mount farming, but that's at the FC house. The members aren't roaming around the ward so if you're on the far side of the ward you'd never know we were there.

I think people forget what makes their own real life neighborhoods feel active. People outside for an hour or two doing their yard work, children playing, general traffic as people are out on errands or going to/from work.

We lack those things in game. Gardening only takes about 5 minutes tops and most house owners don't bother with it. There are no children for our characters. We don't need to travel through the ward - we port to our houses, and port away from them unless we're going to a MB, Summoning Bell or merchant in the merchant area. If we're at our house, we're far more likely to be in it where we can't be seen instead wandering around outside.

If my house plot was instanced, I doubt I'd notice the difference.

SE feels like they're trying to address the emptiness with the Firmament. We see NPCs scattered all over and when we get close, we can see small snatches of dialog in the floating speech bubbles. But in a way, I think that just emphasize the emptiness even more because we can't interact with those NPCs. They're decorative elements that start being mentally blanked out after a while.

[Barwara]

If my house plot was instanced, I doubt I'd notice the difference.

Thanks for the insight. If SE refuses to improve the system, then instanced housing should AT LEAST be an option, with the potential to transfer your house to a neighbourhood in the future...

[Jojoya]

Thanks for the insight. If SE refuses to improve the system, then instanced housing should AT LEAST be an option, with the potential to transfer your house to a neighbourhood in the future...

It already is an option, just not one that players like because apartments are so small.

As for transferring an instanced house plot (assuming they ever became available) to a ward plot, I don't see that happening especially since an instanced system would allow every player to have a house without stressing out server resources. Instanced housing also doesn't require a demolition system to free up space for other players to be able to get a house. It should be possible for a player to have both a ward plot plus multiple instanced plots if they wanted.

Those who wanted a house in a ward could still compete for them but the demand would be greatly lower because ward houses would always be subject to demolition due to their limited quantities, which would be a deterrent to those who just want a bigger space for their character's home.

[Barwara]

Agreed. Possibility of multiple instanced housing + possibility of one house in ward subject to demolition. Why not. Sounds right by me.

[Vahlnir]

Thanks for the insight. If SE refuses to improve the system, then instanced housing should AT LEAST be an option, with the potential to transfer your house to a neighbourhood in the future...

If they allowed me to switch my house to its own instance I'd drop my neighborhood plot asap provided I got to keep my instanced house indefinitely.