Market Wards, enough is enough

[Kam]

lol that was the most dumbest reads ever..... Who ever wrote it must have forgoten that AH are still PLAYER RAN and still have PLAYER MADE PRICING.
Make up your own pricing and judge what is fair. That how stuff works.
Watch how thirf stores are run or pawn shops. There is no blue book in ffxiv. Just make what you feel is a fair price.
A think on chronical/ inside eddition (i forget which) had a few stores like this. one person said
"it is better to buy the item and to find it at a lower price, then to miss out on an item completely"

So MMO economies need basing on small market trading?

In conclusion, there are a number of valuable lessons all MMORPG designers should take into consideration when developing their virtual economy. First and foremost, give players the tools they need to be an active participant in the game economy without undue burden or stress.

Secondly, ensure that all types of players ("market players", casual players, and everything in between) feel like the market works for them.

Thirdly, make sure to balance all your opportunity costs: don't let the MIMO trickle cause too much inflation. Continual money-out outlets like Player Housing are a fantastic way to keep your economy in check. Finally, remember that you're making a game. It should be fun to play. Empower your players, not just with sword and powerful magic, but with the chance to make dreams of riches on the market a reality too!

Kilta. Please come back with a decent.. or semi-decent, relevant arguement. If you can.

I'm all up for debate, but almost everything you state is ignorant. (you haven't played or participated in the economy enough)

[Rentahamster]

I'm just gonna leave this here again:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/featur...os_.php?page=5

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...earch-counter?

*whistles*

[Amineri]

I'm just gonna leave this here again:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/featur...os_.php?page=5

http://forum.square-enix.com/ffxiv/t...earch-counter?

Renta, you make a lot of good posts, but quoting an article about the markets written last November doesn't really have much bearing on the market system as it is now.

As to why not buy direct from the search counter? I don't know 100% But I can imagine it would make automated botting programs that snatch everything from the economy and control commodities a heck of a lot easier. To my mind it's a trade of "spend 30 seconds to go to the ward" vs "there are no items and RMT and other botters own all the materials".

[Rentahamster]

Renta, you make a lot of good posts, but quoting an article about the markets written last November doesn't really have much bearing on the market system as it is now.

Much of the article still applies. The only significant things that have been implemented since then are the ward renaming and the item search. Everything I've bolded is still badly needed.

So what should Square Enix have done? It should have set up a comprehensive market system that allowed players to set both buy and sell orders, just like EVE Online. Moreover, this should be a single, unified market accessible from all three major cities. In FFXIV, players can instantly teleport from one city to another, meaning that setting up three isolated markets accomplishes nothing beneficial at all and merely inconveniences players by forcing them to ask someone in another city to check the prices there and teleport if market conditions are more favorable.
Players should be able to list more than 10 items, and the market system should allow players to simultaneously place orders for equivalent items (for example: you can set an order that buys all items, including the +1, +2, and +3 versions, either for the same price, or for four prices). Finally, this market system should show historical transactions, ideally dating back for a full year (as in EVE Online) but even the last few transactions (as in FFXI) would be acceptable for players to make an informed decision based on both current market brackets and past market performance.
In conclusion, there are a number of valuable lessons all MMORPG designers should take into consideration when developing their virtual economy. First and foremost, give players the tools they need to be an active participant in the game economy without undue burden or stress.
Secondly, ensure that all types of players ("market players", casual players, and everything in between) feel like the market works for them.
Thirdly, make sure to balance all your opportunity costs: don't let the MIMO trickle cause too much inflation. Continual money-out outlets like Player Housing are a fantastic way to keep your economy in check. Finally, remember that you're making a game. It should be fun to play. Empower your players, not just with sword and powerful magic, but with the chance to make dreams of riches on the market a reality too!

As to why not buy direct from the search counter? I don't know 100% But I can imagine it would make automated botting programs that snatch everything from the economy and control commodities a heck of a lot easier. To my mind it's a trade of "spend 30 seconds to go to the ward" vs "there are no items and RMT and other botters own all the materials".

That's a valid point, but I doubt it would get that bad. Nearly all the anti-RMT measures put into place in this game don't even work and do more to frustrate legitimate players.

There are better ways to deal with bots then to screw with the enjoyment of legitimate players.

[WinnipegJet]

For the love of the Twelve, please just give us an AH already.

[Verecund]

Here's the problem I have with market wards: they have no limitations. The retainer system would actually achieve it's original and creative purpose if everyone was not allowed to congregate in the exact same area. SE needs to place caps on how many retainers can sit at a certain hub, so that the economy can be spread out into the rest of the world.

In addition, I also think that SE needs to have an automated system in place that gradually increases this cap as more players will up a given server. That way, people won't be forced to spread out to the most inconvenient spots.

[Kam]

Here's the problem I have with market wards: they have no limitations. The retainer system would actually achieve it's original and creative purpose if everyone was not allowed to congregate in the exact same area. SE needs to place caps on how many retainers can sit at a certain hub, so that the economy can be spread out into the rest of the world.

In addition, I also think that SE needs to have an automated system in place that gradually increases this cap as more players will up a given server. That way, people won't be forced to spread out to the most inconvenient spots.

Acutally, there needs to be a global economy - the separation between the cities wards is what kills limsa and grid - And its why Jeuno and Uldah are/were the main gathering points.

MMOS NEED EITHER A CENTRALIZED OR GLOBALIZED ECONOMY

Every MMO does. Its another thing they forgot from XI - As we currently have neither.

Hence the uldah "gold rush" (an attempt by the playerbase at centralizing things.. lol..)

Fucked game is fucked.

[Poipori]

I concur, enough is enough, why waste time, effort and manpower in fixing the buggy market wards, when there is already a proven workable method of auction house?

Market Wards is not interesting, people will not see it as a special feature of FFXIV, it is not something that will attract more players.

Seriously, all it does is provide unnecessary hassle and limitations for the player, it should be gone and replaced by AH.

[Amineri]

I concur, enough is enough, why waste time, effort and manpower in fixing the buggy market wards, when there is already a proven workable method of auction house?

Let's take the example of the auction house in Aion. Was that really a proven, workable method? Did not the RMT machine come in and completely and utterly destroy that game?

I fail to see how an auction house (that doesn't actually have auctions, but functions primarily as a buying and selling marketplace) is going to fix all the issues in the game?

[polyhedral]

market wards are too much work, not enough reward for spending time looking for items.