All I did was mention a big company that is no longer that people would be familiar with. Joining them in history type comment.
I did not compare anything else. I even specified in my last sentence, 'WotC is the victim of share holder pressure...'
WotC is under pressure to make more money. The changes they've implemented, if participation is any indicator, have done the opposite. So they're trying new things. That's all.
Yup currently in print is the key, set printings aren't done all at once. Nexus WILL have fewer numbers than any core 19 mythic by the time they stop printing them. The BS is getting way too thick from these guys. Not only is Nexus insult to injury for standard players but playing against it feels worse.
Time to take a break is right.
I'm with koreandog on this too, go back to the way it way and make it a cool value card that is in the set.
Stores can just mark a preorder and take those boxes for themselves and pure profit off the BaB. BS.
TRUs and KayBee went down because Romney's firm used leverage buyout shenanigans and stripped the companies of cash. Look it up if you want. The only reference was that the company failed, not how it went down.
No one's saying they're shuttering tomorrow, but they're not on a path to riches right now either. New CEO was hired to make online $$, we will see how that goes.
Then comes to real deal - awarding the whales - giving them the power to punish the ones trying to play for free or for as low a cost as possible. B-A-B cards being good are a facet of that aspect, something MTG has been more or less successfully avoiding on the primary front, until perhaps the Secondary Market showed how much profits there is to be made just from the sheer price-hiking the game has gone through...
This is what the result right now is whether that's what they intended or not. Thus the 'I got mine, suck it'.
Yatsufusa has it right, the corporate is really what has screwed us, I suppose I had been hoping these last few years that WotC might see the error of their ways and convince HASBRO that the right way to cash is the way it's always been. But corporate greed only leads to downgrades in product and increase in profit or death. Toys R Us and KayBee were the victims of wall street buy and burn. WotC is the victim of share holder pressure but they're on the road to join TRU from their own failed efforts to please the masters and 'innovate'.
Arena could have been SO much more than skinnerware.
If they're trying to print the right power level... ugh. Kaladesh.
Arena is being set up to rob some people of money. Straight up, not much else to see there. Instead of fixing things that are broken, they break it more by manipulating matchmaking (which is a fantastic failure so far). The predatory gem system is a big red flag for skinnerware and they just ignore users trying to tell them... fix the game, make it the best, and the $$ and glory will come.
As far as the core design and brand strategy, they keep saying they've learned their lessons but evidence shows they don't like learning. Like in another thread about BaB one guy said 'Maro uses positive spin' and too many mistake that for 'he has so much more info than us'. Common sense defying stuff.
Is it really so hard to understand that there might be other people the're also listening to?
Maro was replying to all the angry and wary people and oh look... we were right. It's getting worse.
This is not 'just a group of players' that are disenfranchised by BaB exclusivity combined with being legal for play. It hurts everyone and it hurts the game.
How many times can they shoot themselves in the foot and still survive is what they need to start asking themselves.
Standard is not enjoying a heyday of populated LGS events. This BaB thing is bad for the game because how many people will show up, get eaten by Nexus decks, try to make their own, and find they either can't get the card or smartly will refuse to pay for it?
How many players do they lose (which really they can't afford to keep bleeding) because now you have to hunt down cards that you can't find in packs?
You can take Maro's side but things like Kaladesh are his responsibility. Set design and constructed play are HIS to create and nurture. Not much nurture for 3 years but plenty of bans and stagnant metas.
You bet I don't give them my money anymore. I don't buy boxes. Hell the only reason I play is because I have a large credit built up from FNMs and card trades to the store so I don't spend cash. If that runs out and we're still in the Standard nuclear winter I'll just quit too, like so many others have already.
Positive spin is not positive environment or the result of good decisions. It's damage control.
When the game is good sales happen and market share increases. You don't make money for very long tricking people and handing out feel bad all the time.
I snipped all but the punchline... however I agree fully with the whole post.
Paper players should be incensed that they made more copies of Nexus available in MTGO but paper gets the shaft. I think they forget that a great many of the digital come from the paper. You're completely right though they're totally banking on Arena and I have to tell you right now that's not going to pan out for them like they hope as it's currently going. Same poor decision making different medium.
I find the total lack of interest in the community and making a great game of Arena somehow classic WotC right now.
Arena devs have their idea of what it's going to be and seems to be a waste of time to try to explain to them how they're wrong. Oh and predatory gems system... so awesome. I can think about the waste of money while my opponent's animations are bogged down and my timer is ticking away removing MY timeouts.
People got pissed off about the last BaB (Buy a Box) promo and Maro gave us a 'heard you loud and clear'. So then they release a BETTER promo the next set. Whuuuuut?
It's like oops we made a 2 card infinite combo in standard... lets not ban that before release or anything sensical...
When you serve spaghetti, it should have protection, even though we removed that from the game, and dammit you should be able to cheat it in.
We SHOULD have banned CoCo...
Sorry we'll give you back the promos for FNM but we won't like it...
Goblin feceswhirler will be fine... later... we think...
We're going to make you buy cards more often by rotating faster! Holy crap everyone moved to Modern...
Spikes should play on weekends! FNM is for newbies! Because... uh... we say so!
We don't like fixing bugs for Arena so let's make people play only decks that we think rate against theirs and not tell them what the details of that system is. Random matching based on rank? That's just stupid. It's soooooo much fun to play against the same decks again and again and especially mirror matches!! Everyone will love it!
I think there's too much influence in too few hands and everyone over their head (Hasbro) knows nothing about the product or the community. They only want to see better numbers. Shocking really that they can't possibly be showing better numbers just based off participation for the last 3 years yet only the CEO was replaced and that was only to push Arena and cash from that direction. Just look at the predatory price practices they're going to employ there!
Not sure I can be optimistic since the only good decisions they seem to be making are the ones where they walk back stupid ones.
Another thing that produces poor results is bad data. Maro's questionnaires are freaking horrible. They skew data towards what he wants and don't ask enough hard questions about what they've been doing wrong. Giving people what you THINK they want based on totally random people choosing to do a flawed bank of questions has ended badly for everyone.
Another thing that bodes ill for the future is one person with too much influence who keeps making catastrophic mistakes.
The word catastrophic is totally appropriate if you consider how many people play standard right now as compared to 3 years ago... think just before Rally and CoCo days. "Should have banned it" and 'learned from mistakes' aren't cutting it anymore.
It is pretty stupid to target one person to blame for everything. So lets target blame where it belongs.
MaRo came up with the 'make more money and give people what they want' strategy which was nerf removal and counters and create midrange slam fest mtg. Look how that went. Even if he wasn't the originator of the idea he is the LEAD designer and that buck stops with him.
Kaladesh. Sure fine limited set... constructed? Dumpster fire.
Forsythe is supposed to force balance onto sets that are being produced. Look at the last 3 years of standard plus the bans. Nuff said.
Marketing might be responsible for trying to force players to change the days and times when they play, for changing the rotation cycle, for getting rid of FNM promos, and for lots of other smaller insults that were very poorly timed. I'm unconvinced that there isn't a more 'group effort' going on at WotC's MTG team where many of these things came as team decisions or dictated decisions from design. Ultimately though, marketing should push back against stupid ideas. How many of the above have been walked back or are still screwing things up?
FNMs are no longer well attended by Standard players (what few there are left).
Promos gone then back again.
Rotation changed, changed back sort of.
Hasbro - obviously they've said 'make more money' and some of the changes are forced by this. Doesn't excuse all the other departments for trying to do it in the worst possible ways or torpedoing standard for almost 4 years now.
BaB exclusivity and the outcry after was a warning. They did not listen and are doing it again with a better card than last time. To continue to have a legal card that is not in print and cannot be acquired in boosters is not ok nor should it be with any player. "I got mine, suck it" is the most damaging and toxic kind of response from those who do not care about the community or longevity of mtg at all.
I have my playset, bought a box and traded for the 3 others because I intended to play the card in my deck.....people who are complaining only does so because they either missed the boat or lost money tradewise for waiting.
I hope the BAB promo stays that way.
If the card stays below $40 long term, I think that Wizards will continue the same practice going forward. $40 and lower is reasonable enough for a high-demand mythic in Standard as long as they don't make future BaB promos staples by any measure. If anything, Wizards' experience with Nexus of Fate only proves that such a practice makes the promo highly desirable and will serve to move boxes even more in the future.
As far as the people complaining about it, I highly doubt that the vast majority of those individuals actually want to purchase a playset of the card to be able to put it into a deck. Those of us who wanted to play the card knew it immediately after the card was spoiled (I know I did), and did everything they could to acquire the necessary copies of the card as soon as they could. Instead, the majority of the outcry on the issue comes from the perception that players may find it more difficult to play a certain deck in Standard if they so desired. No one likes being told they can't have something, even if they don't necessarily want it, especially when it comes to MTG.
So it's ok to make a card that is one shot and legal in multi-formats? So know immediately that you want this card and pay to grab them up and forget everyone else. New players who never had a shot at getting one. Changing what standard deck you want to play? Too late, $80 bucks a copy... and don't say 'it's only 40' because if they continue the practice and a card is more widely desired and the same deal you bet the price will get there. The price is a result of supply being pathetically low and no more 'openings' along the way.
Crap idea, poor implementation, and not right. The price of standard is already a problem and this only has the potential to make it worse. They can't even spit out sets that work right why is this a priority other than box sales.
I say don't let them think they're smart. Don't buy boxes.
I have my playset, bought a box and traded for the 3 others because I intended to play the card in my deck.....people who are complaining only does so because they either missed the boat or lost money tradewise for waiting.
I hope the BAB promo stays that way.
I got mine so screw everyone else isn't good for the game. I believe the article touches on that.
Sperling refers to the deck's success, at least for the short term the deck has reared its head and good luck getting your copies.
Thanks WotC, brilliant plan many of us told you was sh** last time you tried it.
<thumbs up>
All I did was mention a big company that is no longer that people would be familiar with. Joining them in history type comment.
I did not compare anything else. I even specified in my last sentence, 'WotC is the victim of share holder pressure...'
WotC is under pressure to make more money. The changes they've implemented, if participation is any indicator, have done the opposite. So they're trying new things. That's all.
Time to take a break is right.
I'm with koreandog on this too, go back to the way it way and make it a cool value card that is in the set.
Stores can just mark a preorder and take those boxes for themselves and pure profit off the BaB. BS.
Sad times.
No one's saying they're shuttering tomorrow, but they're not on a path to riches right now either. New CEO was hired to make online $$, we will see how that goes.
This is what the result right now is whether that's what they intended or not. Thus the 'I got mine, suck it'.
Yatsufusa has it right, the corporate is really what has screwed us, I suppose I had been hoping these last few years that WotC might see the error of their ways and convince HASBRO that the right way to cash is the way it's always been. But corporate greed only leads to downgrades in product and increase in profit or death. Toys R Us and KayBee were the victims of wall street buy and burn. WotC is the victim of share holder pressure but they're on the road to join TRU from their own failed efforts to please the masters and 'innovate'.
Arena could have been SO much more than skinnerware.
Arena is being set up to rob some people of money. Straight up, not much else to see there. Instead of fixing things that are broken, they break it more by manipulating matchmaking (which is a fantastic failure so far). The predatory gem system is a big red flag for skinnerware and they just ignore users trying to tell them... fix the game, make it the best, and the $$ and glory will come.
As far as the core design and brand strategy, they keep saying they've learned their lessons but evidence shows they don't like learning. Like in another thread about BaB one guy said 'Maro uses positive spin' and too many mistake that for 'he has so much more info than us'. Common sense defying stuff.
Maro was replying to all the angry and wary people and oh look... we were right. It's getting worse.
This is not 'just a group of players' that are disenfranchised by BaB exclusivity combined with being legal for play. It hurts everyone and it hurts the game.
How many times can they shoot themselves in the foot and still survive is what they need to start asking themselves.
Standard is not enjoying a heyday of populated LGS events. This BaB thing is bad for the game because how many people will show up, get eaten by Nexus decks, try to make their own, and find they either can't get the card or smartly will refuse to pay for it?
How many players do they lose (which really they can't afford to keep bleeding) because now you have to hunt down cards that you can't find in packs?
You can take Maro's side but things like Kaladesh are his responsibility. Set design and constructed play are HIS to create and nurture. Not much nurture for 3 years but plenty of bans and stagnant metas.
You bet I don't give them my money anymore. I don't buy boxes. Hell the only reason I play is because I have a large credit built up from FNMs and card trades to the store so I don't spend cash. If that runs out and we're still in the Standard nuclear winter I'll just quit too, like so many others have already.
Positive spin is not positive environment or the result of good decisions. It's damage control.
When the game is good sales happen and market share increases. You don't make money for very long tricking people and handing out feel bad all the time.
I snipped all but the punchline... however I agree fully with the whole post.
Paper players should be incensed that they made more copies of Nexus available in MTGO but paper gets the shaft. I think they forget that a great many of the digital come from the paper. You're completely right though they're totally banking on Arena and I have to tell you right now that's not going to pan out for them like they hope as it's currently going. Same poor decision making different medium.
I find the total lack of interest in the community and making a great game of Arena somehow classic WotC right now.
Arena devs have their idea of what it's going to be and seems to be a waste of time to try to explain to them how they're wrong. Oh and predatory gems system... so awesome. I can think about the waste of money while my opponent's animations are bogged down and my timer is ticking away removing MY timeouts.
People got pissed off about the last BaB (Buy a Box) promo and Maro gave us a 'heard you loud and clear'. So then they release a BETTER promo the next set. Whuuuuut?
It's like oops we made a 2 card infinite combo in standard... lets not ban that before release or anything sensical...
When you serve spaghetti, it should have protection, even though we removed that from the game, and dammit you should be able to cheat it in.
We SHOULD have banned CoCo...
Sorry we'll give you back the promos for FNM but we won't like it...
Goblin feceswhirler will be fine... later... we think...
We're going to make you buy cards more often by rotating faster! Holy crap everyone moved to Modern...
Spikes should play on weekends! FNM is for newbies! Because... uh... we say so!
We don't like fixing bugs for Arena so let's make people play only decks that we think rate against theirs and not tell them what the details of that system is. Random matching based on rank? That's just stupid. It's soooooo much fun to play against the same decks again and again and especially mirror matches!! Everyone will love it!
Systemic failures throughout management.
Not sure I can be optimistic since the only good decisions they seem to be making are the ones where they walk back stupid ones.
Another thing that bodes ill for the future is one person with too much influence who keeps making catastrophic mistakes.
The word catastrophic is totally appropriate if you consider how many people play standard right now as compared to 3 years ago... think just before Rally and CoCo days. "Should have banned it" and 'learned from mistakes' aren't cutting it anymore.
MaRo came up with the 'make more money and give people what they want' strategy which was nerf removal and counters and create midrange slam fest mtg. Look how that went. Even if he wasn't the originator of the idea he is the LEAD designer and that buck stops with him.
Kaladesh. Sure fine limited set... constructed? Dumpster fire.
Forsythe is supposed to force balance onto sets that are being produced. Look at the last 3 years of standard plus the bans. Nuff said.
Marketing might be responsible for trying to force players to change the days and times when they play, for changing the rotation cycle, for getting rid of FNM promos, and for lots of other smaller insults that were very poorly timed. I'm unconvinced that there isn't a more 'group effort' going on at WotC's MTG team where many of these things came as team decisions or dictated decisions from design. Ultimately though, marketing should push back against stupid ideas. How many of the above have been walked back or are still screwing things up?
FNMs are no longer well attended by Standard players (what few there are left).
Promos gone then back again.
Rotation changed, changed back sort of.
Hasbro - obviously they've said 'make more money' and some of the changes are forced by this. Doesn't excuse all the other departments for trying to do it in the worst possible ways or torpedoing standard for almost 4 years now.
BaB exclusivity and the outcry after was a warning. They did not listen and are doing it again with a better card than last time. To continue to have a legal card that is not in print and cannot be acquired in boosters is not ok nor should it be with any player. "I got mine, suck it" is the most damaging and toxic kind of response from those who do not care about the community or longevity of mtg at all.
So it's ok to make a card that is one shot and legal in multi-formats? So know immediately that you want this card and pay to grab them up and forget everyone else. New players who never had a shot at getting one. Changing what standard deck you want to play? Too late, $80 bucks a copy... and don't say 'it's only 40' because if they continue the practice and a card is more widely desired and the same deal you bet the price will get there. The price is a result of supply being pathetically low and no more 'openings' along the way.
Crap idea, poor implementation, and not right. The price of standard is already a problem and this only has the potential to make it worse. They can't even spit out sets that work right why is this a priority other than box sales.
I say don't let them think they're smart. Don't buy boxes.
I got mine so screw everyone else isn't good for the game. I believe the article touches on that.
Sperling refers to the deck's success, at least for the short term the deck has reared its head and good luck getting your copies.
Thanks WotC, brilliant plan many of us told you was sh** last time you tried it.
<thumbs up>