If you really want to keep any new players...

... Then you MUST do something about animals and resources.

Any new players that you drum up with the advertising you are going to do, will ultimately just leave feeling a bit ripped off when they spend 40 bucks, and cant even get started because of all the 150-270 HP marmots and coons constantly killing them.

It is beyond silly, it is bad game design.

If you had a lot of folks playing right now this would not be much of a problem. folks would band together and group up to keep an area clear so that players could build and have fun together.

BUT... as it is now, animals, even ones that are supposed to be small, have HP and damage abilities much better than most vets. ( "Marmots hits you with 26.3 damage from 12.6 meters away" )

How do you expect any new solo players to feel anything but frustration from this?

I really hope that you fix this before you advertise. If you don't, you will lose most of those that you draw in. When an animal can hit you for 3 times the damage you can dish out and also has twice the HP it seems apparent that you want grouping. Alas you don't have enough players for that.

Why don't you drop them back down to where they were before, then advertise and get new players then later slowly raise them back up as folks level.

I am not chattering here. I am alerting you to a real problem that has been mentioned many times by almost all your active players.

Please fix this asap.

I agree with you, been saying it.

However, side note. If animals are hitting you from 12.6 meters away, you should report it as a bug.

About them hitting for 3x players can do. I think you mean 3x new players can do. Anyways point is that small animals near the starting areas need to be non aggressive and lower HP, and do less damage, they already have little reward for killing them.
Larger animals are fine (sorta) but they need more reward and be further away from starting area.
Also add mutants to the game again, give them a better reward, and make them near the mist.

I have been hit personally from over 10 meters away and have had coons hit me for 26+ damage and the best I can get against that same coon was about 9 with a pre-order weapon.

My stats are str 99, fort 98, agil 97, spr 94, was wearing a full set of supreme bone armor with bonuses that put me at 130 hp.

I have a number of 100's but nothing in the combat range and no craft classes at 100.

If I fair this badly against just a simple coon or marmot, how does Jordi expect to keep new players that join due to the advertizing and not feel a bit ripped off?

You too say they are out of balance, but but please don't over state what an average player can actually do. It very well could be Jordi is getting conflicting feedback ... from YOU.

Good points made here. Small critters should not be feared. Starting spawn points around the lake need not be so dangerous. And, yes, please bring back mutants that wander in and out of the mist but only if killing them with a group yeilds an equally valuable reward. Also all animals dont travel in ferocious packs, tone down the pack mentality. I run as fast as i can when i see the rat pack in 1060.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mactavendish

I have been hit personally from over 10 meters away and have had coons hit me for 26+ damage and the best I can get against that same coon was about 9 with a pre-order weapon.

My stats are str 99, fort 98, agil 97, spr 94, was wearing a full set of supreme bone armor with bonuses that put me at 130 hp.

I have a number of 100's but nothing in the combat range and no craft classes at 100.

If I fair this badly against just a simple coon or marmot, how does Jordi expect to keep new players that join due to the advertizing and not feel a bit ripped off?

You too say they are out of balance, but but please don't over state what an average player can actually do. It very well could be Jordi is getting conflicting feedback ... from YOU.

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I think you dont understand English or something. I agreed with you.

Also IF (which you say you are) are getting hit from 10+ meters away REPORT IT. How much easier can I make it for you to understand? So not sure where the conflicting report is, when I was agreeing with you.

I do want to say just because you are bad at the game doesnt mean it should be balanced to you. It needs to be balanced so that new players or bad players have a place to play, it also needs to be balanced so that good players have a place to play.
Problem is that all the types of monsters are mixed in ALL areas. So the new players have to play with the same monsters that the good players have to play with, which is causing a major issue.

As a new player (1 week in) I must admit that it's definately been a challenge, but I've enjoyed the rush that comes from danger around every corner. Being killed by revenants, having your starting gear stolen, ending up on an island and then being hunted by a murderous gang of hamsters within the first 10 minutes is a harsh welcome to any new hobby, but it certainly taught me to watch my energy, keep an eye on my surroundings, and run like hell at the first sign of movement in the bushes. I would hate to see the game nerfed so much that the element of danger completely disappears because challenge is something that most games sadly lack.

However, from a new player's point of view, the following could be integrated in order to keep the frustration levels down for those not as stubborn as me (most likely mentioned by others I'm sure). I'm not a programmer, so these might be a hell of a lot of work to integrate. Apologies in advance for any programming assumptions I make.

* Noob Zones - a number of zones which border onto the lake are considered noob zones. Say 2-3.
* New players have the option of starting in a noob area, or one of the other existing starting points.
* Each of the noob starting areas has a default tutorial tribe that players are assigned to.
* The tutorial tribe boundary encompasses the whole zone.
* There is a tutorial channel for questions which helpful veterans can assist with.
* Noobs are only able to place 3 baskets/pouches in the tribal area to assist with gathering, but these are automatically deleted / destroyed when the player offically leaves the noob tribe to strike out on their own or to join another tribe.
* Tutorial tribe totems give quests that are designed to teach the basics.
* PVP in the starting areas is turned off.
* There are only enough resources (ie wood, critters, junk) in order to skill up the basics.
* You can't drop totems, terraform or build in the noob zones (helps keep it clear and encourages people to move on eventually).
* Critters in the noob zones are a challenge, but solo-able by a relatively new player. You can still be killed if you don't kite / block / dodge and at least try (this isnt WoW, people.)
* There are a few dangerous animals which require team work, and are aggressive to teach people to be aware of their surroundings.
* Critters only supply the basic bones and leather to skill up basics.
* There are no revenants in the noob zones (no abandoned tribes).
* Skill ups are limited to 50 while a member of the noob tribe. Stops people grinding all their skills up too high before leaving.

Once you get outside the noob zones, all bets are off. At least by the time you leave, you have had a few days, weeks, months (up to the individual) where you have learned the basics in relative safety. That way we still get to see revenants, 500+ hp bears the size of Volkswagons and mutants aplenty on our journeys.

I think coming into a game like Xsyon and expecting to be able to kill everything on day 1 is a mistake. Xsyon should not be a game that fulfills the instant gratification needs of the newer generations. I hope the creators don't make the same mistake that so many other games make and pander to the 'I want it now' mentality. But yes, the experience for noobs needs to be slightly less hair-raising if Xsyon hopes to increase and retain more than a handful of new players.

Great game, more fun than I've had in ages. But I've played games for many years and I'm willing to persevere with challenges. A lot of people sadly aren't.

Cheers,

V

Hello ,


In fact there is a plan to balance the animal distribution ingame in the near future.

Also the starting area will be only Founders Island.Which is already a safe zone with no PVP. Founders have some small animals like chickens,hamsters, rabbits to train hunting skil for a while. You have also trees to log, and if you go outside by the lake side you can see some areas with granite,basalt,limestone to gather. We already thought about starting quest in founders, but we also are going to tweak the quest xp gain so that making a quest is more worth it than now.

Thanks everyone for the comments.