To Plato/Plato’ya açık mektup
Gnilraps
Champagne
Day 1,299 of the New World
"Champagne for my real friends and real pain for my sham friends."
— Tom Waits
An open letter to Plato.
Most formerly esteemed Plato,
(Except for the infamous {and often obvious – to us anyway} multi/bot,) behind every busty/violent/anime/luzly/cute avatar is a real human being.
This letter is from us.
You have made us feel foolish.
We like to take a certain amount of our time each day, log onto an online game, and compete. We found your game and started playing it because it offered unique interplay of dynamic systems.
There are TONS of other online games that have a MUCH better war engine, games with more intricate economies, games that engage our creative energy better… in short we have choices. But you know this.
The game you advertised to us – the game most of us at one time or another fell in love with did a great job of blending mathematical, social, creative, and strategic elements. This is what we chose, because it was so damn good. You probably know this too.
At one time you had a game that felt very much like real life: competitive, bewildering, cruel but forgiving, promising, delightful, violent, rewarding, expensive – or free, lawful, exciting, relentless… But you don’t seem to know this.
The change has happened slowly. You have reduced the variables one at a time, so it has been a very slow suffocation of what was alive. It may yet breathe, but it would take a Level 27 Mage to sniff it out. (That’s what makes having levels cool; they are worth playing for. But you don’t seem to know this either.) But the change has been steady.
The loss of Worker Skill was akin to having our legs chopped off. We're still human. We just can’t move anymore and We're bleeding something fierce. And you chopped them off.
And it makes us feel foolish.
As if you expect we should have known better than to have invested our 2 years of gameplay in something so petty as a silly Worker Skill. Pushah.
No. You have made us feel foolish for playing a game (within a game) that can be taken away from us like a cruel parent grabbing at her baby’s favorite doll because mommy wants it now. Silly Rabbit, Trix are for kids.
We are using emotional language to describe your business decision because we genuinely care(d) about this product. When we stop caring we will likely stop playing.
In the language of counseling we usually tell those who get repeatedly wounded by the same partner to get out. Healthy people know how to leave unhealthy circumstances. I won’t tell you what Level Counselor I am because worker skill isn’t interesting to you.
And I have very much gotten out.
So let’s talk business. Don’t teach your customers to feel foolish. They’ll leave.
We’re getting bored because you routinely take away interesting things. Many of us have decided not to let you do that again. More will follow. If your forum were up you’d be hearing about it.
So please accept our deepest regret about your product. It was once very good.
Sincerely,
http://www.erepublik.com/en/citizen/profile/ fill_in_the_blank
Turkish Translation by Cruinne
Plato’ya açık mektup.
Sayın ahı gitmiş vahı kalmış Plato,
(Her titretici/korkutucu//animeli/gomikli/şirin avatarın arkasında bir insan var.)
Bu mektup bizden sana.
Bize kendimizi aptal gibi hissettiriyorsun oç.
Her gün, günümüzün belli bir miktarını bu oyuna girmek ve mücadele etmekle harcıyoruz. Oyununu bulup oynamaya başladık çünkü dinamik sistemlerde eşsiz bir oynanış sunuyordu.
Yaratıcı enerjimizi değerlendiren, daha düzgün ekonomilere sahip, çok daha iyi savaş modüllerine sahip yığınla oyun var piyasada, özet geçmek gerekirse...seçim şansımız var amk. Bunu biliyorsun.
Bize reklamını yaptığın oyun – ki birçoğumuz hastası oldu – matematiksel, sosyal, yaratıcı ve stratejik anlamda çok iyi iş çıkardı. Seçtiğimiz de buydu, çünkü çok çok iyiydi. Bunu da biliyorsun.
Bazı bazı reel hayata da aşırı benzer hale geldi: rekabetçi, zalim ama affedici, umut vaadeden, keyif verici, şiddetli, ödüllendiren, pahalı ya da beleş, heyecanlı, durmak bilmeyen... Ancak sen bunları bilmezsin.
Değişim yavaşça gerçekleşti. Tüm değişkenleri bir anda azalttın ve canlı kalanların boğulması da haliyle çok yavaş oldu. Hala nefes alıyor olabilir ancak durumu kurtarmak için 27 lvl bi Mage lazım olur herhalde. (Level kasmayı da anlamlı kılan bu; oynamaya değiyor, ancak sen bunu da bilmiyorsundur) Değişiklikler ardı ardına geldi.
Work Skillin kaldırılması bacaklarımızın koparılmasına eşdeğer oldu. Bizler hala insanız ancak hiçbir yere kımıldayamıyoruz, ve deli gibi kan kaybediyoruz.
İşte bu kendimizi aptal gibi hissettiriyor.
Sanki bizim, 2 yıllık oyun süremizde Work Skill’e yatırım yapmanın gereksiz olacağını tahmin etmemizi beklermiş gibisin, yuh artık amk.
Hayır. Bizi, bizler bu oyunu oynarken, sırf annesi öyle istiyor diye bir çocuğun en sevdiği oyuncağının zalim ebeveynleri tarafından elinden alınmışçasına aptal yerine koydun.
Senin işinde verdiğin kararı duygusal ifadelerle tanımlıyoruz çünkü harbiden bu ürünü önemsemiştik. Zaten önemsemeyi bırakınca da büyük ihtimalle oynamayı da bırakacağız.
________________________________________
Danışmanlık aleminde aynı ortak tarafından defalarca kazık yiyenlere o işten ayrılmalarını söyleriz. Sağlıklı insanlar sağlıksız durumlardan nasıl çıkacaklarını bilirler. Sana hangi düzeyde Danışman olduğumu söylemeyeceğim çünkü nasılsa Work Skill senin umrunda değil.
Ve ben de büyük ihtimalle ayrılıyorum.
________________________________________
Şimdi işimize bakalım. Müşterilerine aptal gibi hissetmelerini öğretme, oyunu bırakırlar.
Canımız sıkılıyor çünkü ilginç olan şeyleri rutin bi şekilde kaldırıyorsun. Birçoğumuzun sana bir kez daha izin vermeye niyeti yok. Daha çok insan karşı çıkacaktır. Eğer forumun açık olsaydı haberin olurdu.
Bu yüzden lütfen, ürünün hakkındaki derin pişmanlığımızı kabul et. Bir zamanlar güzeldi.
Öperler,
http://www.erepublik.com/en/citizen/profile/ adını_sen_koy
Comments
2019174
[removed]
somebody give me the names of these other games he speaks of :/
[removed]
Very very well written article.
Well Said
Votado, 1380134
1312338
They dont care about us or this game, just how much they can make goldwhores buy to stroke their epeens.
2862292
[removed]
I agree.
The best part used to be the outside resources like forums, irc, stock market, and all of the user-created content. eRep's former open nature that allowed us to think for ourselves, create our own tools, express our opinions, and build our own characters and societies is gone.
Now, all that's left is... a weird version of farmville. If I spend 15 minutes a day on eRep anymore, that's a lot. I am done buying gold, investing time and effort here. When my gold supply that I spent 2 years building is gone, so am I.
YES!!
Lather, Rinse and repeat, what Fargus said, "If I spend 15 minutes a day on eRep anymore, that's a lot. I am done buying gold, investing time and effort here. When my gold supply that I spent 2 years building is gone, so am I."
If anyone actually reads this, perhaps a good place to start the repairwork: Admin needs to do several economic tasks; start by creating a currency exchange, at about 100:1 Local Currency:Gold. This realigns gold related fixed prices. Ultimately, Admin needs to decide if they want a FREE MARKET; giving incentive to own e-businesses, of a fixed price closed market. They cannot have both, it does not work irl or here, not even for their own pockets. Currently, average players do not want to buy gold and the mass exodus is plain to see.
PS: I actually have a cute little farm going, now that I do not play eRep very much! OMG; did I actually admit that? Concurrent playing of Farmtown is probably a violation of TOS! Hey, wait, aren't those Multi Armies also a TOS violation? Oh, yeah, they maintain some form of e-world population. It feels like only about 5,000 people actually play this Game, Romper and about 25 guys like him, and the other 4,475 regular players from around the world, at most.
Voted. Good read as usual.
I'm not interested in just a war game to fuel the need for gold. That may seem financially sound logic on a very basic level, but you only sell gold/make money if you have something customers want. Customers who are continually alienated and made to feel every change is simply aimed at extorting money, not improving gameplay to draw in more customers and make those customers happy. The game should be expanding the growth of characters over time, not narrowing it. Otherwise, who cares?
1313825
voted 2959961. I am slowly getting numb to the disgusting changes made every few weeks. We all have a limit, I hope the admins realize this before we're all gone.
Exactly what dark said. I find myself losing motivation daily.
Voted, 2797324. They just need to roll it back to V1 and all will be good. It was great back in the good ol days when hospitals were something, you could make money by hiring workers, and fortress states.
Another ranting article - http://www.erepublik.com/en/article/just-another-ing-changes-article-1796364/1/20
Voted
Voted
Voted
3556999
1538752
o/
4427615
signed, 4260948
This wont change shit....when will we ever learn.
I've learned.
3525615
I don't think anyone's really saying it will Rise. People are just pissed and venting. Some leaving.
1728556
2042042
Voted and agreed, 1255934.
http://www.erepublik.com/en/citizen/profile/2155351
en/citizen/profile/2155351
citizen/profile/2155351
profile/2155351
2155351
All listed above agree with the author.
Voted 2376948.
If you don't like it, don't buy gold. It's really that simple. Nowadays, I'm basically a two-clicker, occasionally clicking on an article I see in a shout.
I think that we should, as a community, make the in-game gold prices plunge. This way, newbs won't have to buy gold and admin will stop making money off of them. Maybe then plato will listen. I don't know, maybe this is a bad idea, but i think it'll work.
"Tons of other games"? Can you name just a half ton of those other games?
You like to play with meaningless words while admins laughing about and you still stay here. So, be quite and accept the changes. Otherwise, just leave. But I bet you won't.
They try to do their best. Isn't easy to run a game with many players, involving economic/strategy mechanics. Certainly they want to make it interesting as much as possible.
WITH EVERY CHANGE we see the random guys coming up with the same articles, crying... Why don't try to run your own game and feel the sweetness? The situation will settle with time. Sure they have better thoughts, according to plans. But we've to wait to see where this thing will drive us.
"They just need to roll it back to V1 and all will be good. It was great back in the good ol days when hospitals were something, you could make money by hiring workers, and fortress states."
3256630
1736482
Voted.
3489195
lets boycott and see how it goes? 🙂
Voted
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