Please Remove Housing Timers During the Covid-19 Epidemic

[Iscah]

This isn't just about fatality. Just because this is a recent outbreak it doesn't make it less worse than the flu.

You're replying to me, but I didn't say that.

I pointed to the WHO website because they are going to have more reliable information about it. I'm not trying to back up my prior posts (which are, as I said at the time, not sufficiently researched), I'm providing something else.

For a lot of people this means finances are going to be tight and it's not something they can really control because they're not the ones deciding that they cannot go to work and earn money. And we all know you need money to fund your place in the game.

I really think this is too much of a stretch to expect them to halt the timer because of speculation that some fraction of the playerbase might not be able to afford a subscription. Or certainly too much of a stretch to start asking them to halt it now because it might happen to some hypothetical people sometime in the future.

Again, it's not a population-wide impact that will stop everyone from being able to access the game.

The requests to halt the timer every time there's a disaster are clearly not having an effect. They evidently have their criteria, or maybe they've even decided they're not doing it again. Let them do it when they decide it's worthwhile, instead of asking every time (especially when the answer has repeatedly been no).

[Bravely_Default]

One thing to take note of is that many internet/internet data providers are not pulling peoples services that cannot pay their bills due to the national emergency. (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint and Comcast, with charter and comcast even offering free internet for 60 days.) in addition to this there are quite a few areas (san francisco for example...) banning the eviction of tenants due to coronavirus. if you still cannot pay a $15 subscription in these areas with this taken into account I don't know what to tell you, it's hard enough trying to obtain mediums and larges as is...if they cancelled timers for anything else barring major earthquakes/hurricanes we would never have plots getting relinquished and the market would be even more horrifying than it already is.

[QT_Melon]

You're replying to me, but I didn't say that.

I'm not trying to back up my prior posts (which are, as I said at the time, not sufficiently researched), I'm providing something else.

Yes, I'm replying more in general to your prior posts which more more ill researched and honestly felt like hand waving and trivializing the impact this issue has

I really think this is too much of a stretch to expect them to halt the timer because of speculation that some fraction of the playerbase might not be able to afford a subscription. Or certainly too much of a stretch to start asking them to halt it now because it might happen to some hypothetical people sometime in the future.


Again, it's not a population-wide impact that will stop everyone from being able to access the game.

In the next few days/next week we'll see. The reason I was on the fence is because it was just too hard to tell how big the impact was, but just a few hours ago a lot of places declared states of emergency. Schools are going to be shut down anywhere from 1-3 weeks depending on the area.

Found out not only was the US slow in starting tested, kits are in limited supply as the strain is new, the kits to develop detection take time to make, it's not some instant thing.

Being able to properly house those that are ill are a problem.
People being able to GET food - at this time I cannot get groceries because of the panic buying.

Our workplace may shut down because of the school issue it's impacted a large percentage of employees with kids, and that means we may not be able to work.

The fear is again not being able to work and afford subs in my case this isn't a big issue as I have pre-paid the sub and internet - but I can see some of the argument of being financially impacted where it affects game play.

There is only one state in the US that hasn't tested positive for a case at this time.

I think the fact it's really a global issue and the fact it's spread very quickly - it's not unreasonable for SE to pause the housing demolition at this time. The game can play - and people who do not have to worry about impacting financial issues have something to do in the meantime.

However, this is more widely impacting areas than an earthquake or natural disaster at this point. They can switch the demolition timer on and off when appropriate.

Thinking about it, what's the real con in pausing a timer at this time? - than those who feel opportunistic in grabbing a house in game because someone is in quarantine due to COVID 19. That seems pretty tasteless.

I do not think we should get refunded for subs - that's also tasteless and opportunistic.

[RezPls]

snip

You used examples of taxpayer subsidized public utilities. SE is a privately owned video game company, not a public electric/gas/water/isp provider.

[StriderShinryu]

It would be a nice gesture to do this and/or to re-open the free log-in for lapsed subscriptions campaign. Will they do it? I don't know, but it would be nice of them to.

[Penthea]

I really think this is too much of a stretch to expect them to halt the timer because of speculation that some fraction of the playerbase might not be able to afford a subscription. Or certainly too much of a stretch to start asking them to halt it now because it might happen to some hypothetical people sometime in the future.

I didn't say to halt it now but I do think it is something SE should consider as the virus situation progresses.

[Yshtola]

You people sure are willing to use any possible excuse to keep something you don't even use. It's so sad.

[Taebok]

I'm not sure which is worse.
The FFXIV "Stuff is going on, stop the housing timer" threads,
or the WoW "Stuff is going on, make us a pet/mount we can buy so you can donate the money" threads.

[Iscah]

This article has put a finger on something:

Most importantly, there needs to be some clearer guidance on the conflicting signals we all get about how most of us will just have a mild form of the disease, or that it only hits old people, on the one hand, and the clear alarm of health authorities about its high rate of contagion, and possibly overwhelming demands on our hospital system, on the other.

Those signals have led to a strange mix of complacency and alarm which is hard to now untangle.

Most of what I had seen so far was relaying the "don't panic" version of events. It seems like in the last day or two, as they've formally declared a pandemic, they are shifting to more reports about how the system will struggle to cope.

[EaMett]

This article has put a finger on something:



Most of what I had seen so far was relaying the "don't panic" version of events. It seems like in the last day or two, as they've formally declared a pandemic, they are shifting to more reports about how the system will struggle to cope.

The issue has mostly been with the way the american government has been handling it. They've been super complacent when the rest of the world was either getting prepped or already managing to contain the spread. Without getting too political, this has been a case of "wanting to look good" over doing the actual correct thing.
There's also some obfuscation happening around the numbers. Currently the numbers thrown around regarding the death rate of the virus is of the order of 3.4-3.6% but that's when comparing deaths to the current active cases + resolved cases. In reality a more important number would be how many people survived it (fully recovered) vs how many died. And if you look at it that way it's closer to 7% mortality rate. Which is huge, any more and it would be 1 in 10.
In america so far we're closer to 50% death rate but that is only because america isn't testing properly yet so you already need to be a serious case to have been tested, and the testing is so recent that we have very few people considered to have recovered. Most cases are still active. Everyone else has just been sent home without a test and the suggestion they self quarantine.

Furthermore, around mid-feb it seemed like the world spread of the virus was plateauing but it has since then regained it's exponential growth. It's relatively serious business.

For the curious: https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/