The Official Species Rerelease Discussion

elf • 3 August 2015 at 10:17 AM

@fakeworld
I kinda like where the rerelease thing is going as well ^^ And oh, didn't know that last part 😋

netherling • 3 August 2015 at 10:21 AM

@fakeworld @leonx

Yeah I heard it was because they didn't have the forums yet so they all talked together on the blogs.

But I said a while back that re releases would've brought more people to the site, and more people buying CSPs would bring in more money and such to help out the site. Though they did say it wasn't set in stone and things could be discussed again, but first I guess we have to see how this'll go.

Ian • 3 August 2015 at 6:03 PM

Friends,

Thanks for your continued feedback regarding the idea of rereleases. While I could go through the list of questions that have been asked since my original response, I don't think that answering them with the finer details of what rereleases would like would really appease either side.

Semantics, rarities, and the frantic defense of creature values aside, we're trying to address a larger, underlying problem at Egg Cave: the current way of releasing species makes certain species completely inaccessible years later judging by their circulation, value, and rarity. There will always be those shiny species, yes, but how can we make it so maybe not 75% of them become inaccessible? If the status quo doesn't shift slightly, we'll begin to effectively extinct older species in the near future, with an entire generation of species being released right now that will be doomed to the same fate in 5 years. That's why arguing semantics about being "retired forever" just doesn't quite cut it.

This type of problem is actually a testament to Egg Cave's success to me. I didn't anticipate that Egg Cave would have been as successful as it's been. My head couldn't have conceived such a vast and complex economic system. When I conceptualized Egg Cave at the very beginning, I envisioned a small island with a Science Center and Town Hall with only 10 species. Now there's more than 420 little Egg Cave critters, each with their own unique value, that continue to shape this ever-advancing virtual world.

We receive messages from people constantly who dream of obtaining a Doovoo or Onny some day. New users join and see this challenge and are disheartened and sometimes leave. Others settle for "their place" in the Egg Cave world and think that they don't have the access to the same kind of fun because the shot at an ultra-rare is nonexistant.

Special creatures were never meant to be guarded by a small majority, whose only reason they got the ultra-rare was because they knew about Egg Cave back in 2009 or 2010 and not 2015. "You're too late to the game" is a really lame reason for not being able to get a creature, guys. Please know that we don't wish to cause the economic system any chaos but that we want to make dreams of the "dreamies" possible for more of our players, even if that chance is one in a million. But right now, for a Doovoo, that's zero for most players.

This is my last post in this topic. Know that everybody's input will be taken into consideration as Team Egg Cave continues to ponder these questions. From Team Egg Cave, our honest and frank conclusions from this discussion are... we don't know what we're going to do. However, we do feel that we've been able to discover that there is a lot of support for the idea of rereleases if they are, in the words of many in this discussion, "done in the right way." We're committed to that "right way" but don't know if we've discovered it yet. We do really like the idea of perks for loyalty, too, and we're trying to figure out if these ideas could interface in the future.

Please know that our hearts and our mission in this is not to upset a delicate economic balance of ultra-rares but is to ensure the survival of ultra-rare species themselves, while giving newer players access to what is currently unobtainable to them. Ultimately, our goal is to ensure that Egg Cave remains fun for everybody. And after all, Egg Cave is all about the creatures, right? That's what's fun!

In light of this discussion, all Cash Shop items and creatures from 1 September 2015 will no longer be sold with the phrases "retired forever." This wordage will no longer appear with our Cave monthlies either. As many virtual pet sites, including Egg Cave, might have noticed, promising to retire things forever is not the best system to go with. I think it's mainly a lack of foresight.

The very best,

Ian

EDIT: Reopened the topic for closing comments.

despair • 3 August 2015 at 6:15 PM

Interesting response. I'm kind of sleepy so some of that didn't make sense lol.

veritaspunk • 3 August 2015 at 6:29 PM

I'm more optimistic about the long term at egg cave, hopefully I can be a part of it. It isn't just the eggs that take stages to fully evolve :-P

okami • 3 August 2015 at 6:39 PM

From that it sounds like the rerelease of creatures is inevitable, so I'll just say this. I feel like some creatures should never be rereleased. At least keep some that are 'shiny species' as it's been put. Like these big 3- the Tine, Doovoo, and Onny. Don't rerelease them and maybe a dozen or so other creatures, so at least something has some 'shiny' and unobtainable quality to it.

veritaspunk • 3 August 2015 at 6:48 PM

@bluewolf

Oh kewl, The Macbot still has a chance :-P

veritaspunk • 3 August 2015 at 7:03 PM

@bluewolf

What are you exactly inferring ? Attention to details is a process that's responsible in any work, concept. ... "nitpicking" .. I don't think that term applies to this fundamental subject matter by anyone ...

veritaspunk • 3 August 2015 at 7:17 PM

@bluewolf

You're so superior with your discretionary skills aren't you ?


Anyway apparently it's a law or common fact that I failed to realize - that the big three creatures don't include the Macbot ? .. no ? ..

dawnfur • 3 August 2015 at 7:18 PM

I don't think this is what Ian had in mind when he reopened the comments, maybe we can realize that and not argue over the things he probably closed it for in the first place?

Not trying to be rude, i just don't think it's a good idea. .-.

promise • 3 August 2015 at 7:32 PM

Thank you for hearing us all out and taking the time to reply and consider all of our suggestions! I love some of the ideas that have been said and I know you can work out a great way to do it! ^^


I also have a few ideas about how it could be done if you happen to make another topic for suggestions. 😃

elf • 3 August 2015 at 7:33 PM

I think every single creature should have a *chance* at being re-released/obtained no matter how small, of course we're still going to respect their values, but releasing a few definitely won't hurt. Such as when Eggcave gave away a Doovoo Egg for a certain amount of creature views, nobody thought that was too out of hand or anything ^^ Thanks Ian 😊

rosaline_kaye • 3 August 2015 at 7:41 PM

Thanks Ian for the response.

I'm glad that the oldies are probably not going to be re-released (???), but having newer ones re-released is completely fine with me. It seems fair to newer users.

Thank you for listening 😊

scorch_cloud222 • 3 August 2015 at 7:47 PM

I'm beyond glad to know that you've considered our comments. I expect that the EggCave team will come up with a solution that is fair and sustainable in the long run. 😊

metaphor • 3 August 2015 at 7:55 PM

Perhaps I misread something, but I don't think he said that old creatures weren't going to be re-released, just that he was no longer going to promise any creature will retire forever.

But maybe I overlooked something. That's possible. 😊

netherling • 3 August 2015 at 8:08 PM

There's hope for everything now. Well, most things. I know things will be figured out in a way that makes everyone content at the least ^-^ I'm just happy it was all finally addressed 😋

iceiceice • 3 August 2015 at 8:09 PM

@metaphor
That's what I interpreted it as too, but he's still trying to figure out a way to make 'them' accessible.

despair • 3 August 2015 at 8:26 PM

@Ian

I'm going to say my final piece before I'm gone as well.

I believe that, at the very least, Ian should stick to what he said earlier. For the CSP creatures, I feel we should leave those as retired at the very least. It was alluring to purchase something that was going to be gone forever, and that's why some people brought them. Since cave creatures are free, I can understand why you would re-release them, although I still disagree with the premise in general. I'm also glad that you will be no longer using the retired forever slogan.

I agree, though, re-releasing stuff would make a lot of people happy, but it would also make alot of people unhappy. The polls aand whatnot indicate otherwise, but I know several people who did not voice their opinion on the matter, if that wasn't obvious. Some people don't like drama and were turned off at all the pointing fingers and tempers that seemed to be going on in here.

I would also like to add that I have never once said anything about "arriving late to the game." I know that comment may not have been directed at me, but it sounded like you were talking to the non-supporters in general.

It's important for a site to have credibility with actual purchases. If past cave creatures, future cave creatures, and future CSPs are re-released, you're only not re-releasing past CSPs. There will be alot of creatures to go around.

That's it, I'm done. I've expressed my last pieces on the matter.

howrsetoo • 3 August 2015 at 8:31 PM

@Ian
Oh my gosh I JUST found this. *jumps up and down with excitement* I would love it if creatures were re-released! I didn't join until 2013 and took a huge break that lasted almost a year (from sometime in 2014 until recently). I think it would be cool if older creatures were re-released first, moving toward the newer ones, but that's just me. And I don't really care about CC creatures, because I have accepted that I probably won't be able to get them until I'm like an adult with enough money to just sit on the computer buying little virtual creatures. 😉 Anyway, I totally support this and that was just a suggestion of mine. I hope it happens! With my luck, it will happen when I'm like on vacation or something and they're only available for a few days. 😃

emo_pattys • 4 August 2015 at 2:52 AM

I totally agree with the idea of rerelease. The prices of the creatures are too inflated and I believe the only way to fix this problem is promoting some kind of rerelease.

Besides that, I'd love to see more people getting their dream creatures. I've seen many new players (and some older players too) giving up on the site because they think this will never be possible. For me, as Ian said, Egg Cave is all about the creatures and also about the community. With more opportunities, hopefully more users will keep playing and this means more people to talk to, more friends and more fun.

I hope I'm not too late in the discussion lol 😊

Deleted • 4 August 2015 at 3:36 AM

Thank you very much Ian for replying to all our doubts and ideas. As for me, I think I've seen and read enough, at least for now.

The point of this topic wasn't to decide If re-relases are to be done, but to hear out all the users' ideas, pros and contros, and we did that. So, I'll wait patiently to see when, how and expecially If the situation will evolve in the future.
For now, I'm quite happy just to have seen the staff taking an interest to the idea of doing something to ensure a more fair and fun Eggcave, for everyone, even the ones that joined later, and to find a way to balance this complex, somewhat absurd economical system.

Being "late", like Ian himself said, it's not a fault for which new users should be "punished" with the sad awareness that they could never get a creature they'd want, even If they'd worked hard and sold their souls for it. I truly wish to see, in the future, a site which gives a chance -and with that world I'm not meaning "a prize given free on a silver plate", but earned with hard work instead- to everyone.

darexxis • 4 August 2015 at 7:36 AM

a dream came true if pets are getting re-releast 😃

and i think alot of the egg cavers think the same

atleast then every on gets a chance to get there dream cove and do not come with ''you have to work hard for it'' because thats not true those days its al abouth cc if you dont pay $300,- - $800,- real live money on 1 pet you can say good bye to most of them

i dont mind if CC or cave pets get re-releast even if i got that same pet for 10k cc {$95,-} the day before 😊

raitonchidori • 6 August 2015 at 4:45 AM

"Oldies like Onny, Tie and Doovoo shouldn't be rereleased." That doesn't make sense for me. If not all creatures are going to be rereleased, it should be random, I don't think picking the creatures we want or don't would be the point. There'll be those who doesn't want Macbot being rereleased, those who doesn't want Nym and those who want all or least a chance for being all.

I still hope Egg Cave Team decides what's better for the site. I think priorizing the ego of some old/"rich" (in terms of species) users instead of new players, that may become great users too, is a good thing.

Deleted • 9 August 2015 at 6:43 AM

@Ian,

Hi,

Poor Ian,

I'll give you the point of view of "one" (just mine^^) newbie...

In every game when you arrived, they have many things you can't anymore found...(like in the life^^) it's understandable, but not all the past things too.

Same as you love for example the roaring twenties or the renaissance, in spite of, you can't jump to the past ...
However, "Hope" is the bigger present of life...
Hope, mean you can dream to ...
Nothing's stronger than Hope to pull and keep alive ...

As in life you've got somethings to travel in time, like fotos, or archaelogie, or astronomy ... it could be great to keep a sweet little part of posibility to hope, how infinitésimal it could be, ...

Said how, and on which I really don't know ^^ that's what I really don't want to be in your shoes about this ^^

And personally I don't think that newbie leave cave because of no re-releast, at any case not me 😃

Have a nice Day 😃

zhachary • 12 August 2015 at 12:18 AM

As a general rule I am all for a CONTROLLED re-release of retired creatures at greater values (EC or CC) and limited times (a week/2 for each at maximum).

I would also be in favour of limiting the amount a single user can purchase (say maximum of 2 or 3) - this will limit the "overflow" into the market and ensure that the "rarity" factor, which seems to important, is somewhat preserved/controlled.

Obviously these creatures would be released randomly (without scheduling) with no way to know WHICH creature/s will be "re-released" or remain retired forever, this should keep the trade centre in business and decrease the "I won't trade because it'll be re-released some day" feeling.

Now I don't want to step on ANYONES toes, but there are other ways around this problem. Why don't we try approaching this from a different angle?

Instead of making it an EXLCUSIVE re-release of previous creature/s. Why not release creatures from deleted/no longer active/cancelled coves? There are plenty around that are dying/haven't been active in years/no longer wanted - obviously there would need to be careful selection criteria before this happens to ensure that someones inactive storage isn't accidentally raided! But this could work quite well.

Another idea, like the resurrection stone - which has a limited range - would be to "resurrect" creatures that died before the level 2000 immortality came around - believe me there would be a HUGE amount of those! This idea would be harder to implement and would take a great deal of effort and time for @Ian and the mediator team, (if there are any records at all) but if it keeps the majority of users happy, it might just be worth it.

In this way we avoid the "breaking EggCave's word" fiasco (as technically they are not NEW creatures, they are old ones being recycled back into circulation) and we can concurrently appease those users who wish for a greater chance at getting some of the "retired" creatures.

These are just suggestions so feel free to pick holes, add other ideas etc...

Thanks for reading 😊

elf • 12 August 2015 at 9:32 AM

@zhachary
Ian already said he was against the Account Purging I think 😋 And I think the Resurrecting idea would be interesting, but if the site would have to personally go through each account, that'd take too long.

zhachary • 12 August 2015 at 5:06 PM

@leonx
Thanks for the info 😊

midinite • 22 August 2015 at 9:48 AM

So, I just found this topic. XD
Well, of course I support this idea of rereleases, being a rather new player and all, I'd like a chance to get my dreamies, even if it's really small.
Basically, I'm for this idea, and I don't really care how it's done, so long it is, and I'm confident that whatever way we find will be the right way, even if that means we just dump the idea altogether.

murdermansion • 30 August 2015 at 7:43 PM

This idea has my tital support 😸 i wish that the doovoos would be rerelased D:

Deleted • 5 September 2015 at 10:29 AM

I agree that there should be a way for newer members to snatch these creatures that existed long before their arrival. I am in support for this procedure, however the approach will be.