Housing Transfers Should Be On Timers

[Rangar]

I would /love/ a personal zone and I think once people tried a Wildstar like system many would like it more too (where you can customize more than you can with our current system, and there are less limitations because you don't share visual space) but..... there are people who would NOT like losing their neighborhood. I think therefore it would be important to keep the wards, but allow people to transfer their house into the instanced zone if they wish (relinquishing their lot in the ward). If enough people transfer over to collapse down the system into fewer wards then that can be done, but I'd like to see the housing system leave the salt era not trade types of salt XD.

Unless by end you mean end adding wards or at least take a break from that and add/expand another system (add airships, personal zone, greatly expanded apartment system, something), in which case full agree with every ounce of desire I can muster. I am not impressed with the ward system, am impressed with the decoration items though (which is why I want to see a system that has more power to the player).

I'm not asking to end the wards, just make them ONLY available to FCs; which would solve a number of issues in the game. It won't solve all, and players will find a work around, but it would solve a few of the demand issues.

[Shougun]

I'm not asking to end the wards, just make them ONLY available to FCs; which would solve a number of issues in the game. It won't solve all, and players will find a work around, but it would solve a few of the demand issues.

I think that would be a dangerous path, unless you meant something else . Like I said I sincerely believe majority people would be impressed if SE was able to make something like Wild Star (every player can have an instanced house + zone for personal use but can share and visit other people just like people do now), but... some people will certainly not be impressed being kicked off a system.

I think you might be able to suggest that only FC can buy ward housing at the introduction of the instanced system (so people who have a house previously can maintain it if they so wish). Still.. I believe it would be better to just leave it as is (wards) and let players choose to migrate to an instanced area on their on volition, even allow FC to have their own zone. If the wards get smaller as I assume they will they can choose to do something with them as they get smaller, like collapsing them down or if truly abandoned then creating a Dark Cloud / WoW garrison system for NPC that a player or FC set up (could be cool if FC own an entire "instanced" ward, with the main area being customize-able guild hall and the rest being a sort of Dark Cloud / WoW garrison).

Is that what you meant, like future forward they're only for FC (but current owners will be grandfathered)? I think that would lessen the salt but generally I still think the instanced system should be offered as an alternative for player and FC and the wards continue as they are (at least until the wards become unused, if that ever happens). The FC instance can be different than the player one, like I think a FC being able to purchase a ward (instanced for themselves) could lead to a lot of growth feeling.

[Alpha087]

Something definitely needs to be done. At the bare minimum the timers need to be displayed, even if given a vague description such as "Purchasable in ~12 hours". The current system encourages behavior that is physically unhealthy for players and probably the least fun thing you can do in a video game.

Preferably, they need to address the overall problem which is the lack of housing. Housing Wards are typically dead, even on densely populated RP servers such as Balmung and I think it's safe to say that the concept is pretty much a total failure in terms of being a community hub.

We need instanced housing for everyone. You can keep the wards and apartments for those that are interested, but allow everyone else who would be fine with instanced housing to have their bit of fun too. And don't give me that "the servers can't handle it!" nonsense. WoW could support giving everyone a garrison with a much larger sustained population at the time, SWG could manage to fill practically the entire game world with player cities and housing (and that was over 10 years ago!) and Elder Scrolls Online, being a free to play game, manages to give every single player a house with the potential for multiple houses. SE could make it happen if they actually gave a damn.

[Penthea]

I'm not asking to end the wards, just make them ONLY available to FCs; which would solve a number of issues in the game.

And bring new issues, such as encouraging players to have one-man fcs if they want to experience the joy of decorating their own house.

It's not fair to let only fc masters have all the furnishing fun.

[Rangar]

And bring new issues, such as encouraging players to have one-man fcs if they want to experience the joy of decorating their own house.

It's not fair to let only fc masters have all the furnishing fun.

And you completely missed the caveat of people having access to personal, instanced housing with the limiting of wards to only FCs. But yes, like I said, people will still find a way to exploit the system under these circumstances too.

[Bright-Flower]

One system a poster suggested in another thread once was a lottery system. When a plot is empty, there's a timer, however long doesn't matter much. Everyone interested in the plot puts in the money for it. At the end of the timer, winner is selected at random. Everyone else is refunded their gil via mail. You cannot bid on the same plot more than once on a service account. This way people can't directly sell plots but you also don't have people using auto clickers that can afk and get an advantage etc. Give it say a 24 hour window, or shorter. You can bid on multiple plots, but not the same plot more than once until it's sold, and if you win a plot your bids on any other open plots are refunded.

I suppose to completely get rid of resellers you would have to get rid of transfers having an advantage here, but I would be willing to forgoe that I guess.

[Sanctify]

If anything the timer needs to apply to those relocating too... was in competition with one other guy until a group a 3 showed up and took the plot for their house right away. Its like.. the richer get richer concept. Its virtually impossible for first time buyers to get a plot.

[disturbedcobra]

Elder Scrolls Online, one of only a few mmos I have played, personally has one of the better housing systems in place and I think it is the best method housing should be. Specific style houses placed all across Eorzea that is instanced and can be purchased by all.

[Barraind]

Elder Scrolls Online, one of only a few mmos I have played, personally has one of the better housing systems in place

Everquest arguably has better housing systems. Everyone can own 3 houses, use any of the games currencies to pay rent for up to hundreds of years (real time) in advance (basically a day worth of currency pays rent for 6-12 months of 3 houses), have more decorating space than 14 houses,, it lets guilds buy a full ward (with 60? houses for members) and provides two guildhalls, one for free just for having a guild with vendors, buffs and a teleporter, and one that can be upgraded to a CASTLE and fully decorated.

14 housing is a very low bar.

[disturbedcobra]

Everquest arguably has better housing systems. Everyone can own 3 houses, use any of the games currencies tonpaybrent for up to hundreds of years (real time) in advance, have more decorating space than 14 houses,, it lets guilds buy a full ward (with 60? houses for members) and provides two guildhalls, one for free just for having a guild with vendors, buffs and a teleporter, and one that can be upgraded to a CASTLE.

14 housing is a very low bar.

Difference being that ESO has a closer arcitecture and gameplay that plays much closer to FFXIV then others.