The PP issue

Others may disagree, but I do think there is a fundamental PP issue.
Simply put, there's no way of using any surplus amounts.
And when you get to the higher levels, there's a lot of surplus amounts!
I am close to 10 million PP now, and I am sure there are others in the same, and probably bigger boats!

My suggestion would be to introduce a way to use any surplus amounts.
In the form of "overtime".
You click a button, and instead of it costing 11000 to produce roof tiles, it would cost 22000 but you would get double the amount of roof tiles.

You could limit the amount of "overtime" that was used in a 24 hour period, in case there was a fear of the rich getting too far ahead, but really don't think that would be a good idea. If people have the spare PP, they should be able to use it.
They can use CC, they can use EP to a certain extent, but not PP....

It would also be nice to have the option of "turning off" PP as a prize in events/loot-o-matic/other stuff, but don't see that happening somehow, although I'd love to be proved wrong!

 

maybe a poll?
But yeah good idea. maybe also something for OP at the moment I'm close to 2 million OP

 

That's why you don't need to fullfill all needs 100 %, because then you produce more PP then you can use and then don't know what to do with, and it get's you into yet another dilema/complaint. Learn the art of balance.

 

I also don't mind if not all my building are covered 100% but still even with that I produce and get from events loads off PP and OP

 

I don't have workers in any more buildings (unless those where I have no choice) so your argument is moot on this occasion.
Besides, you need some workers otherwise you won't get through the events (without spending MM)

 

That's one good thing in more and more events you get items from all the sorts of residents

 

Erm ........ let me think. I'm sure I can find some solution for you.

OK:

1. Make sure all workers exclusive buildings are without need fulfilment. Has it solved the issue? If not:
2. Demolish some of workers exclusives and replace with residencies with capitalists. Worried about not making it through events? then:
3. Hide those workers exclusives and only take them out for events.
4. Not happy with any of above?
5. Keep bothering devs to find some use for excess.

Btw: I have tons of EP in my non ERS city

PS: Don't think I have exhausted all the creative options as there are more like "don't collect rent from workers exclusives" and others.

 

I would also like something done about the excess amounts of pp. I am at level 42 and have over 3 million pp. I have changed all my residences to capitalists except obviously the worker exclusive buildings. For the worker exclusives I have moved them all together and do not fulfill the needs. This has meant my pp is dropping but very slowly.
It doesn't deal with the excessive build up of pp that I have collected.
I also feel that the overtime suggestion by Mr Mungo is a good one as I feel the brick production is too slow. My new buildings and upgrades have slowed down dramatically as I need over 17,000 bricks just to cover my current upgrades.
It seems madness that I have the pp but not enough ways to use it.

 

The overtime idea is excellent. I've just hit level 35 and 'm beginning to see the same accumulation of PP despite building high PP items (panels and tiles).
It would probably solve the bread roll shortage too.
It doesn't need to be a level locked feature as early in the game it very difficult to have enough PP, as other posts testify.
I also imagine this would be quite easy to implement.

 

While initially I am tempted to love the idea and almost sent in my vote of approval, but then I realized I have some major concerns about the outcome.

My biggest fear is that this is one of those upgrades that if done incorrectly could collapse the entire game. I played other games; in which, in my opinion, were ruined as soon as "super" methods of production were implemented. I love the fact that this game is not primarily a market game and that the quests are largely attainable.

On the premise that the upper levels have access to more materials you also have to create a way to drain those resources, or the next complaint will be "Help, I have 500,000 tomatoes and no one will buy them". And seriously, show me one person to stand up and say, "An event that requires me to sit and grow 50,000 tomatoes in a week...Love it!" Sure its do-able and I've done it but its far from fun. Does the ability to create more now mean that quests are too easy for the higher levels, and will they be made un-completable for the 25-40's to compensate? You could divide the levels for quests up more and that could help, but would that actually happen and where would you draw the lines? It also dosen't diminish the fact that the quest requirements would be higher at x level whether your city was ready for it or not.

Will the prices in the market be controlled completely by the 40+? How will it affect the ways new players "grow" their new city? I could go on about that but I don't enjoy playing the market, so I won't...The overtime method would in essence double the output of advanced players, because lets face it, with an excess of 2 million PP, 1-2 overtimes in a 24 hr period wouldn't make a dent. Or you could charge an exorbitant fee so that it becomes much less efficient to do double batches, in essence just throwing the PP down the drain and not really "using" it anyway. On top of that our human nature is to have a surplus to some extent. If it became possible to use more PP to get rid of surplus, even with an inefficiency fee, people would still start putting workers back into buildings if it was necessary to be assured that they are producing to the maximum level possible. Thus the surplus fix just became the new standard of normal.

I could be considered a little biased on this issue. I am almost level 25, and from what i hear PP gets better around level 35 and I don't have an overstock of millions. But I am comfortable with where I am at, its been quite awhile now since the last time any of my buildings have sat idle for lack of PP. But HOW does it get "better" at higher levels if not by more workers in buildings. Doesn't the PP cost of materials go up? Ah yes, but the number that can be cycled of those per day also goes down. Also, do any of the higher levels actually make all their lumber and potatoes I really wonder. I have 5 brickyards and i can go through 10,500 every day just on bricks alone. I have all 5 lumber mills fully upgraded and going through beams about 6-7 times a day right now because I still can't keep up with them. I have 153 beams in storage and I have bought more than I have sold! Beams, I would love more beams! But I am afraid of the cost for the ability to create more. The lack of beams in some respects keeps me balanced. It let me buy a new plot of land yesterday because I had 100,000 and didn't have the materials to upgrade any buildings. Something always has to be the limiting factor, if its not this its money, or power, or energy.

A drain of PP could be a nice concept but I can't envision a way it could be done without creating a new standard. At the very least it wouldn't be easy and I fear it would affect other aspects of the game besides just the PP surplus. Give me another 20 levels and I might have a different viewpoint, an idea, or the motivation to look for a solution but coming from a mid-leveler it looks like a scary prospect.

What about a spin the wheel with PP for the normal lame prizes? Somebody punch holes in that theory I have done all my thinking for today, don't make me shred my own idea to bits Aww haha I can already envision it, "Great, I received 100 PP from a spin the wheel that cost 10,000 PP"

Edit: I will say one other thing, I outproduce materials far above my ability to generate PP. As the OP stated quite of bit of PP can be generated through events and while I still value the PP rewards greatly, if there was a pick and choose prize that sounds ideal. I am just not familiar with the logistics of how difficult that would be to implement, and do not feel like I would even know what had to be considered for that decision.

 

Instead of a market for excess PP, how about an exchange, like a bank would do for different currencies. The exchange rates could change daily based on use, kind of like the market. For example, today I can exchange 10,000 PP for 4,500 CC, or 8,500 EP. The, add a "processing fee" of like 10 or 15% (that could change too based on how much is exchanged). Maybe at a maximum amount you can exchange per day. Generally, the idea would be you would not "make more" by exchanging, but you could increase in one area that's needed and decrease it from another.

Or, how about exchanging PP, CC, EP for a temporary boost in mood or power?

It would also be neat if you had to make the "exchange" building before you could use it. That should be done for the market too. IMHO

 

@Kitsuma:
You have a legitimate concern, but I think in reality it would be OK.
As you level up the buildings require more and more materials but your manufacturing capability has been maxed out long, long before.
So the game just gets slower and slower. There is already the possibility of increasing production with xpresso, so I don't see that another way of doing it would be such a bad thing.
I think because the game was designed with Level 35 as the max, post 35 playing has not really been though through.
@Doctor#3
This is a good idea, but I don't see that there could be a real market - there is only a need to sell PP. At lower levels you are short of PP, but I can't remember having an excess of CC to buy what I needed.

 

first of all, sorry i havent read all the posts before, wall of text scares me sometimes. but i read the initial post and i wanted to reply.

when i first started playing i was always short on PP, later on there were ups and downs but i managed to keep my PP steady and i realized one thing.
when PP keeps going up even if my production is full time it means i have to many workers. so i shift them to capitalists and students.

nowadays i have shifted most of my buildings to capitalists which does not provide the useless extra PP but instead generates revenue.
yes the worker/student shortage can affect event drops but in a big city that's not really an issue, i always end up with alot more spare items then i actually need to deliver.

so capitalists is the solution, at least for me it works.

 

@brucenic
Two very good points which I failed to notice. I do use X-Presso to finish events and I made the incorrect assumption that when I finished maxing my production buildings that it would not be necessary. I realize now I am just a little ahead of the curve which is why i have been watching my X-Presso use steadily decrease. (That will change in about 4,000 experience for wood requirements despite the fact I have all lumber mills fully upgraded) I also was not aware the game was designed with a lower max, although that makes sense. I do recall reading an old OA about production buildings now being able to be upgraded and would be curious if that was before or after the buildings with high material demands were implemented.

@Doctor
I am intrigued by the idea of an exchange building. If balance is the goal, the rewards can't encourage excess PP production, unless a new normal is considered desirable. That is the reason I both love and hate the idea of doubling material production. An unequal conversion of PP to CC for example, seems like it would give something to those with an excess that they have tried to remedy and cannot, and yet, for others would not encourage them to take capitalists out in favor of workers for surplus PP production.

I am very curious about this balance issue. I have seen testimonies from both sides and I am curious as to which side I will fall on. It makes me want to level faster so I can "experience" the situation in my own way. I would love to have about 700,000 PP to just sit on. I have a population of about 900 which is still not enough to comfortably finish quests. I have 600 workers and yet I rely on events, booster packs, medals etc for the majority of my PP usage. I now hoover around 200,000 PP so despite the deficit I am investing new buildings with desperately needed capitalists and an occasional student here and there. I have been very pleased with levels 1-24, and I am hoping to enjoy this game for a long time to come.

Edit: Deleted tangents of blabbering and tried to refine response to Doctor. Sorry, I am usually the silent type...

 

Just a few quick thoughts:

Higher levels with increased power to generate CC can easily use the market so the slow down is not such a big issue. And as we can see there is a lot of CC in the game, which needs to be taken into an account if we really want to talk about balance.

This fact can be easily and correctly used to argue in exactly opposite direction: We already have a way to double/quadruple etc. production where we need and want to, so why clamour for yet another?

We don't really know how the game was designed. This level expansion could have been forseen and fourthought in broad terms right from the beginning, and with experienced game makers I would clearly expect this type of preliminary framework planning. If they know their business they must have known that the game will get to this point. It's not the first game on the market and the issues repeat, nothing new for them under the Sun. Smaller or bigger adjustments are of course made as we go. I could expand on this point a lot but want to be brief.

To finish on personal level: I'm level 33 now so can't talk about post 35 experience yet. Will get back to that later. So far despite some issues tha game has been nicely balanced and with nice pace of development for me. No problems with excess PP and no real problems with lack of anything. Just a nicely balanced and a very enjoyable game. Already looking forward to further land and levels expansions without production increase.

 

My city has a similar set up to yours i maintain my pp at around the 2 million mark or just under the extra cc is more than welcome i have no students anymore. this hasnt hurt my game plan at all so far

 

Hi
What about a conversion system?
I am playing RC without the emergency system so I have no need of students in the game. But I still get lots of edu points from events and when i'm in dire need of PP, I keep wishing I can convert those edu points into PP...or MM... or X-pressos.. or CC.. you get what I mean.