I wouldn’t have mind paying $7 dollars worth of nex for exceptional friendship! Since exceptional friendship is not available using nex, I feel that there is less of a need to buy nex anymore since I usually purchase in bulk for the discount.
edited by Score on 5/2/2015
[quote=Sara Hysaro]This is what Hannah said about that.
[quote=Hannah Flynn][quote=Kylestien]All I want to say is this: As someone who keeps getting Exceptional Friendship by fate currently, I’d like the option to just pay once per month at my leisure with fate as it is now. I find it easier for me to just spend a bit of fate which I can get from the super rewards mobile option when I top it up, and doubtless with a subscription i would need to go though all the hassle of credit cards and the like.
edited by Kylestien on 4/21/2015[/quote]
[color=#0066ff]Unfortunately it’s too complex to support both - but we’re planning to have Paypal support in the near future as another option.[/color][/quote][/quote]
Well that is weird, since they are actaully using two payment methods and the second payment method, was only put in place for the Exceptional Friendship membership. It would have been just as easy to say that from now on, EF is going to be automatically renewed using your Nex, unless you uncheck the subscription box. It appears to be nothing more that an attempt to take advantage of automatically renewing subscriptions, and it de-values Nex in the process.
[quote=hunk]
Well that is weird, since they are actaully using two payment methods and the second payment method, was only put in place for the Exceptional Friendship membership. It would have been just as easy to say that from now on, EF is going to be automatically renewed using your Nex, unless you uncheck the subscription box. It appears to be nothing more that an attempt to take advantage of automatically renewing subscriptions, and it de-values Nex in the process.[/quote]
[color=#009900]We looked at that option… and it was really complicated. One of the reasons we nade at the switch was the constant flow of support requests from people confused by a subscription for virtual currency, not real currency. If we supported a Nex-based subscription and a cash-based subscription, we’d have to deal with things like[/color][color=rgb(0, 153, 0)] what happens when you run out of Nex in mid subscription, or how we deal with people who want to switch between the two. There were answers to this, but no good, easily communicated, technologically simple ones.[/color]
[color=rgb(0, 153, 0)]
[/color]
[color=rgb(0, 153, 0)]‘Take advantage of automatically renewing subscriptions…’ It was always weird that we weren’t auto-renewing subscriptions for cash, unlike practically every other company on the Web, and the reason that we didn’t was simply down to limited tech resource back in the day. Of course we’d switch over when we could. Asking for money for premium content is not a weird, shady cash-grab. We’re very clear about what we’re offering, and we try our damnedest to offer good value.[/color]
I was initially excited to hear about the addition of stories for Exceptional Friends, especially since I’ve stopped purchasing access now that I’m close to the stat and content cap. However, I’m disappointed with the change as well. I really wish this had been announced somewhere other than the forums, since I have been busy at work and haven’t checked the forums recently. I would happily use Nex to purchase EF, but I’m wary of subscribing and frustrated that the old method of becoming an Exceptional Friend has been eliminated without sufficient warning.
Aside from this, the idea that the stories will disappear is not very appealing, for many of the reasons mentioned above. For one thing, if the stories are so discardable, it suggests to me that the stories aren’t worth it. It is saying "if you don’t pay now, you’ll miss it forever!" and that suggests that it’s written more for profit than to enhance the game. I’m certainly not opposed to giving you guys money - I gladly purchased Nex for access to several stories, EF membership, special companions at the feast, etc. - but this rubs me the wrong way. It is probably wholly irrational, but nonetheless makes me less willing to subscribe.
Finally, I like the suggestions other made that the stories be progressive. It would eliminate my worry that I’m purchasing content for content’s sake, as I would be assured that the writing was part of something larger. Also, it could work similarly to an ambition, where beginning stories do not require high stats, but things become more difficult as you progress. That would allow players of all levels to feel excited.
Overall, I love this change in theory but I’m not happy with the execution. Maybe if I hear great things…
edited by MissCrumpet on 5/2/2015
I actually think this is a great direction for Failbetter to take business-wise. From what I’ve seen from the past (or read, more like it), FB always struggled to make much profit from Fallen London, and as such the content updates were infrequent. With this change FB will now receive a steady stream of monthly cash from loyal friends, and we will receive new beautiful content every month. The sudden change may not suit everyone, but I think Fallen London (and all of us players) will only profit from it in the long term.
I have to say I’m also glad that now that the Sunless Sea is released FB can switch more of its attention towards Fallen London - as much as I’ve found Sunless Sea beautiful and captivating, Fallen London is the game to play for years to come, any time, any place, and I for this I love it.
[quote=MissCrumpet] I’m wary of subscribing…
Aside from this, the idea that the stories will disappear is not very appealing[/quote]
[color=#009900]The happy answers to this probably got lost in the thread:[/color]
[color=#009900]
[/color]
[color=#009900]- you can subscribe and immediately unsubscribe (some people are already doing that), then purchase subscription again next month;[/color]
[color=#009900]- the stories will be available again, for a higher price, as back issue orders three months or so further on.[/color]
[color=#009900]
[/color]
[color=#009900]Thanks! You’re right - Fallen London has never paid all of our bills. We want to be able to devote writing resource to it permanently, and this is the most reliable way to do it.[/color]
[quote=Alexis Kennedy][quote=MissCrumpet] I’m wary of subscribing…
Aside from this, the idea that the stories will disappear is not very appealing[/quote]
[color=#009900]The happy answers to this probably got lost in the thread:[/color]
[color=#009900]
[/color]
[color=#009900]- you can subscribe and immediately unsubscribe (some people are already doing that), then purchase subscription again next month;[/color]
[color=#009900]- the stories will be available again, for a higher price, as back issue orders three months or so further on.[/color][/quote]
Sorry, I did miss the subscribe/unsubscribe option. I’m happy to hear that!
I still wish that the stories were more long-term (and connected), but I understand that might not be your goal.
I apologize if my post sounded too harsh. I love this game and have spent more money on it than I probably should, but I’m not a fan of the unannounced changes. I wouldn’t bother commenting if I didn’t care about it! I’ll continue to play (and pay) regardless. :)
I have noticed that unannounced changes tend to go over very poorly with users, even if they are functional/useful. (see tumblr’s many, many changes that have been heralded with dislike and reformats by its userbase.) Are there any more changes like this scheduled for the future? Is sending out emails beforehand a possibility, or putting the announcement on the Fallen London page proper (as others have suggested)?
[color=#009900]We’re generally very careful about announcements, as you know. But we wanted to soft-launch this change because there were so many moving parts on the technical side, and we were worried we might have to roll back or make an unexpected change… You may have noticed we do something similar with some content changes - we tell the forums, check everything’s OK, and then tell the world. We hadn’t realised this would disgruntle anyone, and we always listen to feedback. I’m not going to commit to us telling everyone everything up front every time, but it is something we’ll listen to and think about.[/color]
I honestly have not been playing that long - maybe consistently for about…wow, seven to eight months now. It did seem like the unexpected change was what made people the most unhappy here, though - that and the fact that it was about money and new story. :/ The Plans addition didn’t have nearly the same amount of backlash, but it was more of an addition than a change to a structure already present and established in the game (although it seems they were equally needed). I think that’s what might have made the difference in reaction.
I know that you guys are pretty hardcore awesome, though, and I know that you wouldn’t be making changes that weren’t actually needed, and I really appreciate the dialogues that you’re willing to have with your fanbase. thank you for handling all this so well!
edited by Marianne Anders on 5/2/2015
I guess it is mostly because of money involved, especially when it involves price going up (even if it is better value).
Kind of like if a restaurant added a dish to their set meal and charges more, and stopped taking gift certificates for that. You’d have people arriving just to discover they suddenly can’t pay for it.
[quote=Estelle Knoht]I guess it is mostly because of money involved, especially when it involves price going up (even if it is better value).
Kind of like if a restaurant added a dish to their set meal and charges more, and stopped taking gift certificates for that. You’d have people arriving just to discover they suddenly can’t pay for it.[/quote]
Oh, for me it is basically still about payment methods involved.
The restaurant suddenly decided you can buy that one dish only with credit card from now on. Unlike with the rest, they won’t accept cash on this one any more.
Well, they have announced they would be looking into possible cooperation with that one piece of corp trash I’ve been boycotting for over ten years now (eBay’s Bastard Daughter, starts with P…)
Nah, I’m not that happy.
I’d like to do this, but I can’t accept the idea of paying $24 in fees because of the new laws and taxation.
If I could pay once and buy an entire year, these new features are enough to make it worthwhile to me.
[quote=Alexis Kennedy]
[color=rgb(0, 153, 0)]‘Take advantage of automatically renewing subscriptions…’ It was always weird that we weren’t auto-renewing subscriptions for cash, unlike practically every other company on the Web, and the reason that we didn’t was simply down to limited tech resource back in the day. Of course we’d switch over when we could. Asking for money for premium content is not a weird, shady cash-grab. We’re very clear about what we’re offering, and we try our damnedest to offer good value.[/color][/quote]
My comment was not meant as an insult of some sort, and I apologize if it was construed as one. I’m simply wary of automatically renewing subscriptions, simply because it is a PITA to keep track of all of them. As you said the option to unsubscribe is there, and one can do that immediately after subscribing, so I guess that takes care of my worries.
To take it one step further, wouldn’t those people also be confused by the need to use a virtual currency, instead of a real one, to unlock content?
Might that mean you are thinking of retiring Nex altogether, and use real currency values instead? I know I would prefer that, instead of having to buy Nex in an arbitrary amount, and have leftovers.
[color=#009900]I hear what you’re saying, and I wouldn’t rule it out, but probably not. There are lots of little purchases in choices in stories that make sense as virtual currency purchases, and would be a pain as individual microtransactions; same with action refreshes. It would also mean we couldn’t give away Fate in-game. The test for me is what feels weird from expectations in other games. It always felt weird to sell a subscription with virtual currency, but it would also feel weird to sell the smaller nuggets of content for cash.[/color]
Will it be possible to buy a subscription for someone else without needing to give them your credit card info?
As it was, the option of giving a Box of A Hundred Wonders was a great way of giving a hand up to a friend who’s met with hard times–or to receive such a hand oneself.
[quote=Bellisbroke]Will it be possible to buy a subscription for someone else without needing to give them your credit card info?
[/quote]
[color=#0066ff]In the medium to long term: yes. We’re looking at adding gift subscriptions. :)[/color]
I bought 280 Nex in bulk because I loved this game and intended to play it for a long time. However, I bought it exclusively for the Exceptional Friends subscription; I very rarely use fate locked content. Please provide a means to convert Nex to a subscription, or provide a refund option so I can buy subscriptions.
I don’t want to leave the game over something like this, but I basically lost $40 in remaining Nex. I can’t justify staying if I’m prevented from using my Nex in the way I had intended.
Depending on when you purchased that Nex you might be able to contact Failbetter and turn it into Exceptional Friendship.
[quote=Alexis Kennedy]Candidly, we didn’t think there was that much stockpiling of Nex! And there are always plenty of other things to spend Nex on; and there will be more. But we always prefer to do the right thing, so:
If you had purchased Nex in bulk before the end of April, mail us (support@failbettergames.com) and we’ll purchase up to 12 months of EF with it, at a 35 Nex a month.
We’ll keep doing this until end May, and we’ll let existing EFs know in an email update.
[/quote]
edited by Sara Hysaro on 5/19/2015