Trade In Unwanted Stuff?

Where do you get so many?

It's a lottery

 

It has been my experienc that as you reach a certain point in your city you start to accumalate them. As your city is built out and once all your buildings reach the point of having three RI's every epic RI reduces the number of other RI's that need to be replaced. You then end up with extra RI's

 

Boosters/RI packs will give you tons. I've seen some people with about 50,000 classic RI's, yet for all that, not enough epics to fill their city.

Lottery or not, those are terrible odds (in this context). It doesn't encourage me to use my MM for RI's. It's the lowest priority, and doesn't seem to be worth the price compared to other things in the game. Even the best pack gives you a pretty small chance for epics, and given my track record, I expect epics that I don't want, especially since we can't change specialization accordingly.

So what to do with thousands of RIs? Assumingly the RI workshop would help, somehow, but that's in the state of vaporware.

 

Why to spend money on RI packs if you already have so many so you want to "trade in"?

If they're so called "munchkins" wanting to fill every single house by epic improvements, they should remember that game mechanics justly limit their possibilities. You have 2 choice: either spend tons of money in attempt to be "epic only" (and eventually receive tons of useless RI's of low levels) or just use those RI they get by chance. If you able to "trade in", there would be no choice.

I think every "gameplay improvement" that limits the choice ruins the game.

EPIC is EPIC, it HAS to be epically difficult to get

Wrong question. You had to ask "why to rush for "epic-only" city and purchase these RI packs?" If you don't purchase uselless RI there won't be a question what to do with them.

 

Because you don't get what you want. Decent black hole when you have nothing left to spend money on.

I wouldn't use the term 'munchkin' here. Wanting to optimize isn't always bad, and it's a reasonable long-term goal, just not likely attainable. I think it's more about profit than balance considering the system. After all, even in the most expensive pack they still give you classics (judging by the description as I don't have the MM to waste on that). And again, they 'freely' give us some of the highest ranking epics RIs regularly, though it would still take ages to fill your city on that alone.

I'm not saying they should fall out of the sky, but for 1,199 MM, I don't want classics in the pack…

There is no wrong question here. Evidently we don't want to purchase useless ones, that's just what we get since its random. You don't even have to rush, they just come. Doesn't take long to accumulate classics even if you only use the medals.

 

Why not to give people somethings different to spend money on instead of making black hole not so black?

"Optimization" is one thing and munchkinism is another.
Optimization is making your gameplay more "optimal". People do this to get more profit and (eventually) more fun. If you maximize the amount of houses with fulfilled needs by moving them around the city, that's an optimization.
Muchkinism is an attempt to get the best of the best in every category. Munchking doesn't really care: is it optimal or not, he can throw out tons of money. An attempt to make the city "epic only" is an exact munchkinism.
I thinks it's quite fair to make "munchkin" strategy extremely difficult or expensive.

Yes, and that's the example of good game balance. You have a choice: to rely on low-level temporary RI (and spend a lot of time) or to hunt for epic ones (and spend tons of money). The most profitable (and balanced) strategy is somewhere in the middle.
If you allow trade-in or make epic RI more easy to get, there would NOT be real choice anymore. Get money; buy RI pack; repeat until you fill every single single house by epic RI. Congratulations, you've just killed another sphere of gameplay

You can't imagine how many games died because developers, following players requests, tried to "improve" the gameplay but in fact killed all the variety and, eventually, the game

 

I know what munchkining is and I still wouldn't apply it here. It's a very specific word, or maybe I'm holding onto a specific definition. These are hotly debated, but nuance is necessary.

Wanting all epics, even striving for them, doesn't make one a munchkin or it a munchkin tactic because of that. Minimizing your mood/energy uses, maxing your rent or shortening your timer to the minimum isn't either. Powergaming, maybe, but that isn't inherently bad. You can't have everything maxed because of the design. At best, you can min-max as jack-of-all-trades (mood/energy rent/needs/timer) or specialize.

I never said it wasn't at all fair or imbalanced, just balance doesn't seem to be the main point, as evidenced (to me anyway) by the fact that we are given the better RIs, maybe to make us buy more trying to get more, only to get not much. Trade-up would still give you a choice as you still have to work towards it in the meantime, and depending on each individual's goals. Filling every RI slot with the epic you want doesn't kill it, if you ask me, it completes it; just like upgrading buildings. You can upgrade all buildings if you want, it should be reasonably attainable to work towards epics. By time you will be trying to fill that, you'll probably not even need CC anyway so who cares? It's like polish.

And I can imagine. Already the removal of negative number and emergency damage, I'd say was a bad move. Now I see little reason not to use mostly the same upgrade/RI strategy for all houses, depending.

 

Depends on the reason you're "wanting and striving".
I always do a serious in-game planning so believe me, I know what's optimal and what's not. Yes, epic RI are nice so I also look for them. However, spending tons of money of RI packs just to get that epic RI is not only non-optimal; it's just senseless.
So if you apply completely non-optimal strategy, I see only two reasons. Either you're a munchkin or you just have nothing to spend money on. Both cases are NOT the game problem.
I follow an optimal strategy and have no problems with RI at the moment...

Whatever we discuss, we should ALWAYS keep the balance in mind

It kills the choice because "epic city" becomes explicitly more profitable decision.

 

Yeah, which is why we want it to just be a little more reasonable to attain. No classics when you put out a lot of MM, and maybe guarantee a few epics. I think most people won't just put any epic in, unless it's temporary, so they still have to wait for what they want. It'll still be expensive, but less senseless, especially over the long-term for those that wish.

No mater what you do the city will get more profitable unless you stop any development. Even only using mood/energy RIs will allow you to put a few more buildings. Not as drastic as just plugging satellites and bars, but still. Can't be any worse than the millions I'm already making a day. If it's deemed there is too much currency flow, things can be adjusted.

Edit: Besides, I thought you wanted rent and needs to be increased? More permanent RIs will help achieve that.

 

Also if you are an "epic" city which has been built completely out (no more room to grow) then the only option would be to tear down low value properties and replace them with higher densisty residences. Starting the cycle over again.

 

I would add not everyone is a profit driven opportunist. Some people just want to have fun

 

Geflin If a person has fun then they profit from the experience.

 

You know what I was referring to, you sly ol' owl baiter you

 

Oh that is what you meant. You mean not everyone is interested in a monetary reward and that there are other forms of gratification in life. Have I interpreted this correctly. My friendly favorite Sir Owl.

Me an owl hater. Oh I am crushed and hurt

Here have some fresh seafood for some variety to your diet of wheat fed mice.

 

B-a-i-t-e-r not h-a-t-e-r And I took the bait, hook line, and stinker. Yes, fun is indeed a profit, but 'tis a horse of a different color. On a brighter note, I scored an Epic Satelite dish from a bronze booster pack today, 'bout had a joyful coronary when it popped up. Ooops, there I go, profiteering again.

 

Me a baiter. NEVER mind the man behind the curtain.

 

Ok guys & girls,
fairly new to this game ( about a week into it! & I'm always looking out for new games to play!) I got to say after reading your idea's pool it seem clear to me that there is a need for something new from our hosts! I've got to say this they slow off the mark to respond!
If any of you guy's are like me you'll soon be off playing something better! if they don't get a move on with a new introduction or two!
However, I prefer to be a half class full type of guy so hears my idea's.... how about allowing us to build a junk shop ( unwanted goods ) & a job centre unwanted staff in our city! once built, we can then trade in our unneeded item's/staff for let's say production points or coins & student points directly to other players! just like in the marketplace..
This way everyone wins..

 

same

 

same here