Ever growing concerns, and desire for an open discussion

Let me 1st start by saying I love this game. Love it. The community (in general), the ever expanding content, the desire to grow, among other aspects make it a wonderful experience. There are however aspects that are indeed problematic. Let's get into those.

Game issues/glitches. Too many to count and list. Now, while it is expected that programs won't be perfect, their presence is ever growing in magnitude. Causing many to get frustrated while playing something that should in all reality be an escape from stress. While I would never expect anything to happen overnight, we need some hope that things will start to improve on this front. Certain glitches have been ever present, and that's problematic.

Now content in relation to reward output. We're getting another update to AQ. Awesome. In a relatively short time in comparison to other aspects of the game. If this is a sign of things to come, that's very uplifting! However, other aspects need love too. Specifically, monthly EQ rewards, AW rewards, and arena. All 3 need work and SOON. Now I'll breakdown each, as I see them. If I miss something, feel free to add on (in a positive mannner please).

1st the monthly EQ rewards. With all these new, and VERY interesting characters being released, it's increasing the demand to keep up. We need something to give. While we're seeing a gradual increase in t5bc availability, it's still not enough. There's CERTAINLY not nearly enough 6* shards available in the grand scheme. Also, the difficulty of each EQ has gradually increased since the inception of the Uncollected difficulty. Yet, we're going on a year and a half this coming EQ, and we're still getting the same old, same old. The sub-events in the EQs with RNG rewards are kind of getting tiresome too. The Fury Initiatives to gather Intel, and the Intel store... more of that please!

2nd, AW. This situation is particularly alarming in my eyes (and others from what I've gathered). We're about to get a new map. A map that to many screams higher difficulty. Yet, same old, same old payout. We've been given promise of a complete rework come Season 11 with the release of Defense Tactics. While that's nice, it's too little, and too long away. Simply put, DT is supposed to be for tiers 1-5, yet the rest are made to wait for new rewards for something they can't utilize? That's a bit strange, tactically speaking anyway.

If it were the other way around, I could kind of see why we were made to wait for the rework of rewards in AW. It would make more sense to release DT on a familiar map, and then introduce the new map after seeing how it interacted with the old nodes. The new ones are looking difficult by themselves. Yet, we're made to take on a new map, and then upping the demand with DT a season later. All the while lower tiers having to wait for something they can't use. It's just confusing. I can see many unintended interactions coming as well.

The rewards themselves are quite old. The War Victor Crystal is the prime example of such. Also the Loss Crystal. Both are just... old. So old. The shard output needs a boost, and expansion of the 6* shards into the lower tiers. T5 at minimum. 5* shards also need to be expanded to a couple more lower tiers. Loyalty output needs a bump. Map 7 isn't cheap. Increasing Loyalty will allow more to try it out when they feel they're ready without feeling like they'll go broke doing it.

3rd, and probably the one that's in DIRE need of a rework, arenas. The last new addition to arenas was the 4* Basic arena. How long ago was that again? Yeah, too long in short. Sure, they removed the 10k BC entry fee for the catalyst arenas. That was nice. They reduced the cost of singluar entry for each set of 3, also nice. However, essentially, nothing has changed in the grand scheme for 2 years now. Sunday arenas are so dated it's laughable. Crystal Cornucopia's rank rewards can be unlocked in 6 (maybe less dependent upon your roster) sets of matches. That's how old it is. It's so overdue that if it were a library book, they probably wouldn't take it back.

Yet, the demand to get champs is the same, and in some instances (5* Feature) so inflated it's absurd. We're grinding for a tier of champs that isn't even the highest there is now. In the 4* feature, we're grinding for champs that cannot even be utilized in Act 6. That's a problem. We're overdue for a 6* Feature Arena. We're overdue for a 5* Basic arena. We're WAY overdue for a new Sunday arena that players can utilize their 6* champs in.

All in all, things are confusing, and troublesome in their current state. We NEED something to give. I implore those at Kabam that read this, please... listen. The players are growing restless. The friction between Kabam and the playerbase is ever growing. The 1st, and EASIEST fix is increasing incentive vis the reward output. Sooner than later. Increasing incentive to play will also increase desire to spend. Without spending, this game will undoubtedly end. Something I do not wish to see happen.

I do appreciate and applaud the continued evolution of the champs. The storyline is fun. The connections I've made with other players via the Alliance aspect, and going out to find new players when needed are amazing. I hope we can get some legitimate back and forths between the mods that rep Kabam and the players to get things moving forward sooner. While I know the content creator program gives some player perspective to Kabam, it's not enough in my opinion.

In closing, if you do not have anything useful, helpful, or cannot be bothered to be objective in adding to this, please refrain from replying. This forum is loaded with great people. Just the same, there's also some really jaded, arrogant, and intolerant individuals here as well. Keep it civil and positive here. Give them (Kabam) a proper picture of its playerbase. Treat eachother and the mods with respect. We're all humans and no one is perfect. I do not expect the mods to wave a wand and all will be well. I only hope we can band together to invoke the changes needed to increase the fun factor of this game. Chasing your tail for what at times feels like scraps starts to deteriorate your desire to continue. I think we all can agree on this in general.

Comments

Sman74

Well said @SiriusBreak. I love the game as well and hate to see the community as frustrated as it seems to be right now. It seems as though much of the feedback given is not incorporated or the game goes in the opposite direction to what the community wants. I understand progression needs to be metered but for me it seems to have stalled (and it has felt that way for long while). Takes FOREVER to get enough of the high end catalysts needed for maxing 5* and ranking a 6* (if you can manage to get a decent one). My other biggest concern seems to be this new trend to render the most desired champions ineffective (through hard counters, unavoidable damage, frustrating nodes, etc). Seems like the pace needed the catch the carrot is ever increasing and the punches to the gut are challenging my will to even try to catch it.

SiriusBreak

Thanks @Sman74 . Strangely enough, I used that same analogy (chasing the carrot on the stick) before in the main discussion thread about the new AW. People will only chase it for so long before they decide to go elsewhere to grab low hanging fruit. That's EXACTLY what's happening in game right now in regards to AQ over AW. AQ is FAR less frustrating (as it currently stands anyway) than AW, and the rewards for rank up junk are increasing yet again. Further pushing focus to AQ. Eventually, low hanging fruit may come in the form of different entertainment.

However, the need for Loyalty to run AQ's higher Maps kind of forces players into AW. Abstaining isn't exactly an option. Losing results in a lower Loyalty influx, and a lower amount of hero shards allocated. So in turn, the symbiotic nature between AQ and AW is what's preventing players from REALLY showing their true disdain for it. Which is problematic unto itself. If Alliances were to abstain from both, it would likely in turn lead to people saying 'well what's the point of even playing anymore?'

This is the case for many from what I've seen as of late. Alliances are disbanding. Those that want to continue are left in a state of uncertainty. "Will I find an Alliance that functioned as well as my previous? Am I just banging my head into wall playing this? I've put X amount of time, and money into this account. Quitting seems like a waste, but continuing is also causing me frustration." These are all legitimate questions players are left with. Which is very sad to say the least.

I've had the pleasure of playing alongside some great heads (you included Sman

). Some of which moved on out of frustration. Others due to life obligations that prevented them from playing at a competitive level. Both situations are understandable, but the former is the one I'm most concerned about. That situation is avoidable. Hopefully this, and the MANY other threads that touch base upon the aforementioned situations will be considered. Ultimately, improvement in the game should be the end result. That's all most here want. Improvement so we can better enjoy one of our favorite pastimes. Marvel Contest of Champions.

Carnage313

Well said guys. Thank you for typyall that out so I didn’t have to lol. Cheers

Reference

Well said post. Frankly the rewards for EQ/Arena/daily milestones are all pretty outdated and unproportional versus the increased difficulty / resources requirement of the game. Those XP boost/L1 Alliance HP/Duel Chip/2* Awakening Gems are basically worthless for those over Level 60. The only usage is to sell them or exhaust them during Item Use task. Regarding the source of gold, the supply from completing first 4 milestones of basic 4*/featured 4*/featured 5* arenas are quite insufficient versus the 5*/6* rank up requirement. Funny through, I pull more gold from 5 basic arena crystals than 1 uncollected arena crystal most of the time.

SiriusBreak

Well said post. Frankly the rewards for EQ/Arena/daily milestones are all pretty outdated and unproportional versus the increased difficulty / resources requirement of the game. Those XP boost/L1 Alliance HP/Duel Chip/2* Awakening Gems are basically worthless for those over Level 60. The only usage is to sell them or exhaust them during Item Use task. Regarding the source of gold, the supply from completing first 4 milestones of basic 4*/featured 4*/featured 5* arenas are quite insufficient versus the 5*/6* rank up requirement. Funny through, I pull more gold from 5 basic arena crystals than 1 uncollected arena crystal most of the time.

That's what I'm talking about. Yes, indeed. Also, the Solo Events need an overhaul at this point. With other reward content being tiered out by progression titles (Contender, Conqueror, Uncollected, Cavalier) why not extend this to the Solo Events?

It could also be used to create a multifaceted Sunday Arena for all. Once at Uncollected, it unlocks your ability to use 6* champs, and increases rewards to match. Could even go further to include Cavalier. Then, once the final 3 progression titles get released, it would just be a matter of creating rewards that match them progression wise that unlock in said Sunday Arena.

Maybe even do this with the Calendar as well. I know the login Calendar is free stuff. So it wouldn't have to be extreme changes. Instead of basic Gold Crystals, maybe change them too UC Gold Crystals. Add some t5bc frags (a negligible amount, but something is better than nothing). A small amount of 6* shards, and increased 5* shard amounts at the end of the month (i.e. 31 day months, last 2 days, 5* shards, last day 6* shards). The login crystal for UC increases the chance at a 4* and gives a rare chance at a 5*. The Cavalier login, guaranteed 4*, with an increased chance at a 5*, and rare chance at a 6*. All of this would increase desire to move up that much more.

The progression titles are a fantastic thing in this game as they'd be the perfect means of creating new reward templates. So much potential for progress in MCoC and hopefully Kabam is taking notes while reading this. We just want to keep enjoying this game. As I said initially, increasing incentive to play will in many cases increase desire to spend. The more we spend, the better the company does. Some aspects are just so dated that getting the rewards isn't as fulfilling as it could be.

Also, those Duel Credits that were mentioned above. Perhaps they COULD be useful if the Duel system were overhauled. Allowing players to choose extra buffs to add to their duel fight would better allow us to simulate a battle in AW, or Solo Quest for practice. Could even go 1 step further and make a weekly Duel Challenge! Complete X duels with Y buffs to get whatever rewards. Again, progression titles could help dictate what the level of the challenge could be.

Mods, I implore you, chime in!! I for one would LOVE some feedback on this. Ideas presented could be templates for things to come. As said, so much potential for progress. Let's get that ball rolling and bring some extra joy to the game!

XHans_GruberX

We're losing people in our alliance due the insane amount of bad luck on 5* pulls...It's really hard to continue putting in all the effort month in month out to pull champs that won't help you in anything outside arena score...wish they'd break the 5* crystal up like they do with Dungeons so at least your pool is smaller and you have a shot a champ you truly want/need... Personally I'm trying to hold off till Xmas to see if anything new is actually introduced or if it's the same stuff with a different face

SiriusBreak

@XHans_GruberX yeah... I've had that happen in our Alliance over 6* pulls. Which is TWICE as frustrating due to the extremely limited availability of those. Not to say that it's raining 5* shards either, but they're certainly more plentiful than 6* shards.

While RNG will likely never be removed, I do agree that allowing us say Class based crystals would be a tremendous help. At least it would narrow down who you could get. Also would help players create balance in their roster class wise. I have 43× 5* champs (9 of which I've duped, and 2 of those duped twice) and of those 43, only 4 of them are Cosmic champs. None of the Cosmics have been duped. So out of vaguely 54× 5* Crystals, I pulled 4 Cosmic champs.

I would pay extra shards to at least guarantee the class. 12.5k sounds pretty fair to narrow it down by class. Some will get extremely lucky and get great champ, after great champ. Some will get lucky and get that ideal Feature champ from the 15k shard Feature 5* crystal. For those of us that don't have all that luck, it would be nice to have some options to assist us in balancing our rosters out.

Knucklez

I completely agree with the OP and all of the posts here. I really hope Kabam is listening to these ideas because they are coming from genuine concern for the future of the game.

I have always felt like things in the game were focused far too much on slowing down players’ progression instead of providing more events (i.e. pvp) in which players could compete against each other.

SiriusBreak

Thanks @Knucklez . You're absolutely right. All of this comes from a very genuine concern about the state of the game. People have been saying stuff to this effect for sometime now. The more people who engage this conversation, the more we make it clear the issues stated are of a deep concern to the majority. Even if you don't fully agree with this, a simple reply as to why wouldn't hurt. If you do, again a simple reply also wouldn't hurt. Just keep it civil either way.

The only way we MAY get the changes desired is if we stay the course as a group. A handful of heads is rarely enough to invoke changes. Players, if you do support what's been said, show it with a reply. If you have more to add, please do! All I ask is that people treat eachother with respect and dignity here. Plenty of other threads to troll for those who can't. My concerns come from a place of genuine care. Just want everyone who plays MCoC to enjoy the game as much as possible at the end of the day.

Potatolegion

I also think kabam should listen to the player base more. Every point made here is absolutely authentic and I dont want this game I have been playing for four years to die out. There is also my concern of f2p players suffering, the lag on android and terrible offers.

SiriusBreak

@Potatolegion certain aspects of lag I kind of understand. As the game progresses, older devices will undoubtedly have greater, and greater trouble running the game efficiently. I'm an Android user myself. The difference between my S7 and my new (well, bought in November 2018) S9+ is night and day performance wise. However, 2 months ago when the Human Torch and Annhilus were added, I CERTAINLY experienced the myriad of bugs and glitches everyone else did. That was indeed excessive. Some bugs and glitches are just par for the course with apps. So a few is always excusable. Just the same, as I previously stated, there's been some that are ever present. Namely the extreme lag that occurs after playing Arena for extended periods of time is one example. Quite. Frustrating. So yes, agreed that lag is troublesome, even with newer devices.

As to the deals, the value of them is often in the eyes of the beholder. Some are CLEARLY worse than others. Some are relatively doable and fair. The F2P players like myself occasionally are kind of left to fend for ourselves in certain respects (well F2P for the most part anyway, lol). The unit based deals aren't nearly as present, or valuable as the paid for deals. That I do agree with you on. I'd be lying if I said otherwise. Not to say I haven't grabbed a few unit packs along the way over the last 2.5 years I've been involved in this game. I have. I certainly don't mind contributing to Kabam as they have given me a bunch of great experiences along the way. Also some rather frustrating moments too, lol. I hold no ill will though.

I will say that there's certain things that will likely never change. True grinders can allocate units quite effectively and essentially pay their way without cash. However, without the spenders, the game wouldn't survive so naturally I expect their deals to be superior to the unit based deals that are essentially obtainable for free (well... costs time and effort but I think everyone gets the picture). That does stem back to another thing I mentioned in my 1st post... more incentive to play would likely inspire more people to buy deals too. If I'm not mistaken, when people are happy, they're more inclinded to spend on a product, or support a company vs when they're unhappy. Many are unhappy. I'm about to lose another player come the end of this current AQ cycle due to the fact they're just extremely frustrated with the game. As it's been so eloquently put 'another one bites the dust.'

synergy247

@SiriusBreak I couldn’t agree more!

I loved Fury intel and also the bounty missions. More of those definitely needed.

Would like to see the 2* arena back again to grind for a 5* champion. And yeah class crystals to narrow down the pool.

Since we now have collected and uncollected champions greyed out in our roster what about arenas or events that either reward you with champs from say FF, or you need to have an FF champ even a 3* will suffice to get through a gate... i know a lot of rage quits happen over continual bad pulls

Let’s see if some mods take note of this thread...

SiriusBreak

Thanks @synergy247 . I would love to hear from the mods. I know for a fact they've at least seen the initial post as this was moved from General Discussion to the Suggestions. Which I don't fully agree with. While there ARE suggestions in here, the original purpose was to start a discussion about the points made. Moreover, to get their input on them, and maybe even hear what they'd personally like to see happen, or if anything mentioned is on the current agenda.

A discussion, even one that ends in no, not yet, or not ever would help in general. I know certain things they technically cannot comment on as it could lead too expectations that may not be able to be met. Which isn't right for either side involved. However, just some hypotheticals would be nice. Criticism of anything I said would also be nice. Hearing their POV on these points would be enlightening to be perfectly honest. I am happy to see that the lower difficulties of the EQ got a reward buff. That gives hope for the future. It really doesn't answer the need for more t5bcs or 6* shards, but it's a step in the right direction.

At the same time, I know certain things need to run their natural course here. For example look at how long it took to get 5* champs/shards to be as common as they currently are. Also the t4bcs and t4ccs. That took awhile. So perhaps, while we want the pace to increase, it's just not time yet. They are appearing (6* shards and t5bc frags) to increase slowly in availability. I'm not expecting a huge influx either. Just more opportunities to play for them.

The Atlantian Rifts having Stable and Unstable versions is a neat concept. We shall see how nice the Stable is when it comes to reliability. The troublesome aspect is still RNG. I think that's why players gravitate towards things like the Negative Zone missions, and the Fury Intel store. It allows us more control. Guarantees are comforting and people are willing to work harder in those situations instead of being left to pray to RNGesus in the hopes you get what you're after (although I was just blessed today with a 5* Nick Fury from the 5* Feature Crystal so YAYYYY!!! 😂).

So, hopefully one of them decides to chime in. It would be very welcomed. I will restate I do not expect any of them to have absolute control over any of this. I know they're not in control. At the same time, we the players like getting information, even hypothetical in nature. As long as it's made clear that it's not set in stone, that we shouldn't expect it, but perhaps could look forward too... or even what they'd like to see happen.... it would hopefully lead to some stimulating conversation. That's how ideas/concepts are formed.

One extra idea that I believe has been stated a few times that I would LOVE to see implemented, shards to build AG crystals. Perhaps if they rework the Solo events to cater to the progression titles, they could include small amounts of those to slowly build your way to a 4, 5, or even 6* AG crystal (for Cavalier title owners). So many ideas, so many possibilities. Keep them coming. Keep them positive. If you disagree, please keep it civil and respectful. If the Mods chime in, again, be respectful and cordial to them too.

SiriusBreak

Seems like my concerns about AW have further been realized. Many said the preview lead them to believe it would be much more difficult. Apparently, it is. As the Off Season is coming to a close after this current war, we shall see how this all plays out. We lost a few, but also won a few. So overall, for us, not too bad. The biggest issue I see is the need for 9 players to be in at the same time.

In some cases, leadership will be able to organize by regions/timezones (as many already do). Trouble is, in some cases this is thwarted by skill level. Sure you could have it perfectly organized by region, but what if that forces you to put your Boss killers in 1 or 2 BGs leaving 1 or 2 without? I like the idea of Challenge. Some of the nodes proved to be VERY difficult for many. This will help players learn skills they wouldn't have otherwise. On the flipside, when you don't have the ideal counter champ... it's not exactly fun to lose over and over again. It's also not fun being that guy or girl who's holding up the parade. The layout as of right now, can make you that guy/girl if your timing is off, let alone skill.

The Atlantian Rifts are interesting. Some have reported GREAT LUCK. Others, not so much. The nature of RNG at work, lol. We can only hope we'll see more store based content allowing us to collect an EQ based currency for rewards like that of the Fury Intel Store. I would also LOVE to see something like Rocket's Scrap Yard happen again (I know, whoa throwback). The increase in EQ rewards for the lower difficulties was nice. Hopefully we see a bump to the UC difficulty, or even the inception of a Cavalier difficulty as some have suggested. More 6* shards and t5bc frags in short!!!

All in all, things are moving along. For some, not as well as others. Some of this is not a situation that can be overcame by 'getting good.' RNG favors no one. Some seem to posses a wicked horseshoe! Some get lucky occasionally. Others seem to constantly be up schitt's creek without a paddle when it comes to RNG luck. I do feel for those people. I've seen many in my Alliance struggle due to this. I've also seen others KILL IT thanks to their horseshoe (worse part is, they never let me borrow it!! 😂).

I guess certain aspects of my desires here will never be realized (i.e. some mod input). I know they're busy, and I get they can't say certain things. Perhaps they want too. I cannot say either way. So the best we can do is put our input out there and hope they take it into consideration. As always, be good to eachother. At the end of the day, no matter what your progression level is, we're all players of MCoC. Most of my POV comes from being a mid to upper tier player. I'm not full on end game yet. Getting there. All in due time I guess. Best of luck this Season everyone (those that decide to participate anyway) and may your crystals yield some God Tier champs!