Would you play Elements more if the cost of upgrades were lower?

[guolin]

Back in my day....
Let's put this into perspective:

When I started playing Elements, upgrades cost 1500.  Changing marks cost 100.  The trainer was free and there was no Oracle.

Now, upgrades still cost 1500 but changing marks is absolutely free.  There is still a free trainer to try out decks before buying/upgrading your cards on a wild hunch.  And now there's the Oracle dishing out free electrum and free cards just for logging in.

Now I am a very casual player--probably no more than 5-8 hours a week and I rarely grind FGs.  But in the meager amount of time I have played I have accumulated no fewer than 7 upgraded cards in any given element, with as many 32 in others.  This does not include the 100's of unupped cards I simply have never sold since I'm stingy like that.  I see very little reason to lower the cost any further since if a guy like me can accumulate that many upped cards without really trying, anyone can do better just by putting the smallest amount of effort into it.

Now get off my lawn!

+1 Karma. Us older players have painfully upgraded those towers for 1500 too. Towers are worth the 1500, too, imo.

[Korugar]

Oh, they most definitely are. I have used a fully upgraded(and slightly modified) golem fire rush deck for a long time. Because my towers are upgraded, I've been able to have two golems out on the first turn.

[dougempty]

If this debate is split between people who have already upgraded a bunch of cards and mostly voted no and people who are just starting out and mostly voted yes, it would seem to me that most of the people who are just starting wouldn't be likely to be members of the forums yet and aren't voting. It would also seem to me that the number of people just starting would grow as the game spreads and be greater than the number of long time players but i don't know that for sure.

if the people who have been playing a long time don't want to feel like they're losing something, maybe it could just be made easier to make money instead of changing buy costs. i mean a doubt many people complained when they implemented the oracle. maybe they could add more spins for higher levels or make upgraded cards sell for more or something. something so that everone gains something.

i like the longevity of this game but i do think it takes too long to upgrade a card. i'd like to see upgrades get a lot easier to get so it doesn't feel like forever to get somewhere for people who can't grind all day. if they do change that, i'd like to see them add something like a second upgrade and higher ai and pvp levels so the game doesn't lose longevity.

[jmizzle7]

If this debate is split between people who have already upgraded a bunch of cards and mostly voted no and people who are just starting out and mostly voted yes, it would seem to me that most of the people who are just starting wouldn't be likely to be members of the forums yet and aren't voting. It would also seem to me that the number of people just starting would grow as the game spreads and be greater than the number of long time players but i don't know that for sure.

if the people who have been playing a long time don't want to feel like they're losing something, maybe it could just be made easier to make money instead of changing buy costs. i mean a doubt many people complained when they implemented the oracle. maybe they could add more spins for higher levels or make upgraded cards sell for more or something. something so that everone gains something.

i like the longevity of this game but i do think it takes too long to upgrade a card. i'd like to see upgrades get a lot easier to get so it doesn't feel like forever to get somewhere for people who can't grind all day. if they do change that, i'd like to see them add something like a second upgrade and higher ai and pvp levels so the game doesn't lose longevity.

I don't know what kind of longevity you are talking about, but I think over 400,000 active accounts (and counting...) with over 11 million games played since launch is a pretty good indication of longevity.

[Korugar]

I think his reference to longevity is referring to how long it takes to "master"(get to where you are) the game.

[jmizzle7]

Oh... that's not what longevity means.

[Korugar]

I know what the definition of the word means, I was just guessing by the rest of his post what he was referring to. And of course, like any guess, it could be completely wrong.

[Kidsinister223]

Yeah 600ish for pillars/towers/pendulums, 800-1000 for bazar cards, 1200-1500 for rares.

I've taken a more simple approach to the game due to the high cost of upgrades. I just play pvp1 decks, and farm with a mono-darkness pvp1 deck.

I have two upgraded shards, thats about it.
I think one of two things needs to happen, more money for pvp3/top50 wins(Not everyone wants to just build a FG deck :p) or lower cost for ups

[jmizzle7]

Yeah 600ish for pillars/towers/pendulums, 800-1000 for bazar cards, 1200-1500 for rares.

I've taken a more simple approach to the game due to the high cost of upgrades. I just play pvp1 decks, and farm with a mono-darkness pvp1 deck.

I have two upgraded shards, thats about it.
I think one of two things needs to happen, more money for pvp3/top50 wins(Not everyone wants to just build a FG deck :p) or lower cost for ups

Or, you could play AI level 3 with a fast deck and earn the money to build whatever unupped decks you want, upgrading cards if you feel like it.

[jmdt]

Yeah 600ish for pillars/towers/pendulums, 800-1000 for bazar cards, 1200-1500 for rares.

I've taken a more simple approach to the game due to the high cost of upgrades. I just play pvp1 decks, and farm with a mono-darkness pvp1 deck.

I have two upgraded shards, thats about it.
I think one of two things needs to happen, more money for pvp3/top50 wins(Not everyone wants to just build a FG deck :p) or lower cost for ups

Or, you could play AI level 3 with a fast deck and earn the money to build whatever unupped decks you want, upgrading cards if you feel like it.

AI3 worked for me.

[dougempty]

If this debate is split between people who have already upgraded a bunch of cards and mostly voted no and people who are just starting out and mostly voted yes, it would seem to me that most of the people who are just starting wouldn't be likely to be members of the forums yet and aren't voting. It would also seem to me that the number of people just starting would grow as the game spreads and be greater than the number of long time players but i don't know that for sure.

if the people who have been playing a long time don't want to feel like they're losing something, maybe it could just be made easier to make money instead of changing buy costs. i mean a doubt many people complained when they implemented the oracle. maybe they could add more spins for higher levels or make upgraded cards sell for more or something. something so that everone gains something.

i like the longevity of this game but i do think it takes too long to upgrade a card. i'd like to see upgrades get a lot easier to get so it doesn't feel like forever to get somewhere for people who can't grind all day. if they do change that, i'd like to see them add something like a second upgrade and higher ai and pvp levels so the game doesn't lose longevity.

I don't know what kind of longevity you are talking about, but I think over 400,000 active accounts (and counting...) with over 11 million games played since launch is a pretty good indication of longevity.

i meant replay value. an upgrade system makes me feel like there is still something new to see, somewhere to go. between that, pvp, and the numerous strategies/decks to build and test, that could keep people playing for a long time. i have more friends though that don't play very often or have stopped completely because it takes so long to get anywhere than i have friends who play often. they play games that feel more rewarding for their time. i think that for this game to appeal to the widest audience, it needs something for the majority (i assume) with little time to game and to the minority (i assume) with lots of time to game.

i'm curious how many inactive accounts/soon to be inactive/deleted accounts there are. how many people played for awhile but got bored of the monotany of endless grinding for a couple of upgraded cards

[ayoth]

If you guys haven't seen my "Second Upgrade" topic, well, I suggest that there should be a cheaper first upgrade, and then a ridiculous upgrade like 10k for those higher league people... But people disagreed, and we are thinking,

1k for pillars
1.25k for bazar cards
1.5k for rare cards

and then theres the

Upgrade A (now) for the horned frog,

+2 attack, giving

x , 5/3.

make another one, alternative, that costs 750 and gives half the bonus... On a different stat

Horned Frog B +1 HP, giving

x , 3/4.

Then there's the Horned Frog A+B, giving

x , 5/4.