A new player's opinion (too pay to play)

kataclysm • 28 March 2022 at 3:33 PM

Having caught up with this thread, I think it's important to keep in mind that a lot of valid points have been made.

Yes, Ian has a life and other priorities.
EggCave remains a priority, somewhere on that list, for as long as he staffs it.
It's not out of the question for his userbase to query his choices, his promises, etc. Nor is it unreasonable for members to utilise the suggestion forum for its intended purpose.

We get into these threads to come together and support one another and our ideas. Popular ideas catch the eyes of the staff and sometimes, not always, help change happen faster.

Remaining quiet is not the way to go, and as far as I can see, no one has suggested anything extreme here.

quinoafuntime • 28 March 2022 at 8:45 PM

@kataclysm I always enjoy reading your eloquent and well-reasoned posts. Thanks for your support ❤️ I'm really hoping that we'll see an increase in inclusivity in the content on this wonderful site. The pay to play nature is a source of sadness to me right now, but there's a potential for it to get better. I hope Ian is listening.

viltuvitrast • 29 March 2022 at 12:45 PM

I completely agree. I feel very left out because I don't have much money to spend on this site. I spend a lot of time on this site and enjoy it but I feel like they don't care very much about players like me ☹️

Today is another day when we might hear something 😊

@thedarkarcher
@staticm
@emo_pattys
@taud25
@cryptic_cryptic
@wolfhorse
@perfect_despair
@spacecowboy79
@mango91

kataclysm • 29 March 2022 at 1:06 PM

Thank you for the high praise! That means a lot to me.

I know Ian is listening - he's a good staff member. I was recently griping about not being able to purchase items from a blocked user's store, despite their items showing up in search results, and he popped in and agreed and fixed the issue. It was a small fix, but it shows me that he cares about the happiness and accessibility of his site. I have faith in him and his crew.

spacecowboy79 • 29 March 2022 at 1:16 PM

@viltuvitrast
thanks for the ping!

I completely agree, Eggcave seems to be very much a pay to play site and could use a huge improvement in that regard. I’ve bought CC once (admittedly not a lot, only 500) to make an offer on a creature I REALLY wanted, because there didn’t seem to be any other way to get it. That seems to be the case for A LOT of the older creatures, and that’s a big problem.

I for one would LOVE to see better questing implemented as a way to earn CC, whether that’s monthly/weekly quests, or just an improvement to the existing quest scheme (earn CC in VEND pool maybe?).

As I’ve seen it said before, I’m sure some change would be better than no change, regardless of how that’s implemented. I don’t always have extra money to spend on a site like this, so giving free players better accessibility would mean everything. It’s frustrating to feel like certain aspects of the site are almost unattainable.

I love that this is being discussed. I’d been thinking about this recently and it’s reassuring to see my fellow players having such a respectful and productive discussion about this. Reading through this thread (and prairie’s thread!) there seems to be SO MUCH good feedback, constructive criticism, and so many creative ideas for the EggCave staff to take into consideration.

I hope our thoughts and opinions are being taken seriously. I have a lot of respect for sites who listen to their player base, and I would love to see that happen in this instance. It would be incredibly validating to everyone who’s been stressing how much this change needs to happen, and would probably help the site in the long term. 😊

@quinoafuntime


edited bc I accidentally typed EC instead of CC whoops

riceboysleeps • 30 March 2022 at 12:44 PM

Very well put, @quinoafuntime @kataclysm and @spacecowboy79 😊

First things first: the site is too pay-to-win/pay-to-play. Almost any creature you want can be yours quickly if you pay. You can freeze any stage you want if you pay. You can get loads of EC within the hour if you buy and trade CC vouchers.

Now, people don't like it when games and sites are too P2W/P2P. It comes across as sleazy and greedy, and it tarnishes the reputation of the game/site. Case in point: I have many friends IRL that are interested in games and virtual pets, and I could share the site with them. But I don't recommend EC in its current state, even though I spend a lot of time and have fun here.

Solution: focus less on selling CC and more on improving people's opinion of the site. Be more generous with the premium currency. Have faith that making players happy will lead to an increase in spending. There are many other pet sites that do this and are still doing well (Subeta is one of them). Make it so that people can achieve their dream coves through time and hard work (not just with money).

Ian and co have taken a big step in the right direction with the rereleases. There are a tiny minority of people that don't like their creatures decreasing in value, but most love the fact that lots of unobtainable creatures are now *possibly* obtainable. This is a great start. But it's not enough. CC needs to be somewhat obtainable for free players, more than just gobbler hunt and site birthday.

I like Prairie's idea of an exchange terminal with a monthly cap, but I also like the idea of quests and/or daily/monthly achievements that award CC (though if those ideas would take a lot of time to create, I would probably go with a simpler option in order to fix this problem sooner).

@ian I appreciate the work that you put in with quality of life updates like the recent change to the donation center and adding the creator's mark, but in my opinion this problem should be a much higher priority. Please let us know the status of making the game less P2W/P2P when you can. Thank you 😊

lobstertheremin • 31 March 2022 at 12:54 PM

@spacecowboy79 I like your idea of adding CC to the VEND pool, and I also like @prairie's idea of an EC to CC terminal. Both of those seem pretty simple to implement.

I keep wanting to bring this up because I'm missing so much great content on this site (monthly CSPs and rereleases) that I want to be able to access through gameplay. It's frustrating to keep being unable to obtain that stuff since I don't have the cash at the moment to spend.

But like you said @kataclysm, I also have confidence in and respect for @ian, and I'm sure that he's working on this 😊 I just hope he's making it a priority.

Some more pings: @rainbowkittyartist @widgetspinner @amberwater @puppybear @ida92 @structuresfromsilence @bone @sulvas

Deleted • 1 April 2022 at 1:29 AM

I won't deny that CC is the one of the main things that helps players get creatures. I used to spend quite a substantial amount of time and effort grinding for EC and participating in giveaways held on EggCave.

Thinking through it, it's getting the CC that is the issue. Undoubtedly, in the current moment we can get it through EggCave events, or by trading with other players. But, not everyone wants to bother other players to directly trade for creatures, some people just want to buy straight from the Cash Shop Park.

I.. feel like if anything CC Vouchers in the Vend Machine would work. Implementation of any idea, even the EC to CC terminal would need a lot of discussion and hashing out to avoid loopholes for anyone to exploit. But, the general consensus is difficulty in getting CC without interacting with others,

I've really been loving the rereleases, with how it's been adjusting the prices of EggCave creatures. Yes, an old creature design like the Onny or Xiang.. or Dabbit is extremely beautiful, but the prices have skyrocketed ever since it's release. Even the Nyacos or Izalav are pretty pricey.. but I guess 10M EC for a Deena is the upper limit. But anyways, now even through trading the prices of rereleased creatures are affordable.. in comparison to over 10k CC like in the past.

aquafaba • 1 April 2022 at 12:44 PM

@laylamocha Nice to read your thoughts 😊

I agree with you that getting CC is the issue. Even if we want to bug other players for it though, it's still hard to find players who are interested in trading CC for EC (whenever CC voucher trade lots come up, they're offered on and closed very quickly). Meanwhile, people are constantly posting in the forums "looking for someone to trade CC for EC." It's pretty frustrating. And getting CC twice a year (or only once if one doesn't have enough time to do Gobbler Hunt) isn't enough.

CC in the VEND could be interesting, but I still think that the EC to CC terminal is a good idea. It doesn't have to be a permanent change, though. @ian could try it out and see if it works and if there's any kind of abuse that jeopardizes the site's ability to pay the bills. It would be better than keeping things as they are now, in my opinion.

quinoafuntime • 4 April 2022 at 2:16 PM

@kataclysm @viltuvitrast @spacecowboy79 @riceboysleeps @lobstertheremin @laylamocha @aquafaba

Thank you for all your thoughts! I'm happy that I'm not alone in feeling frustrated by the inability to acquire so many creatures without spending money here.

@ian, any new developments? I'm sure you're busy, but I hope something is coming soon to fix the site's economy. Thank you for everything you do 😊

lobstertheremin • 5 April 2022 at 3:06 PM

@ian Thinking about this thread this morning and hoping that the problems with the site being too pay to play are fixed soon. I like the CSPs this month and would love to earn them through hours spent on the site. As it stands, I'm discouraged from spending real money here because of how necessary it is to spend money here. Thank you for reading 😊

Hope it's not annoying, but I would like to ping some more people that I see on the Recent Topics section of the Forums to see if they have any thoughts:
@iia @bgunny @megamisama90 @dragrawr @alarune3 @immortalraven @storm-sage

immortalraven • 5 April 2022 at 3:40 PM

@lobstertheremin @quinoafuntime
As an older player I do pretty much agree. At this point it's too late for me lol
Advice, don't spend a lot of money on here. The things I could have done with all the cash I blew. Plus I was in a stage of depression where this was the only thing that mattered to me at the time which made spending worse.
It's ok to do it occasionally like if it's a little birthday present for yourself or whatnot, but in the long run of life it's not worth it especially with prices of real world stuff going up and up. Gas prices make me wanna cry ;-;
If I could sell this cove for real money heck yeah I would and probably not come back cause at this point when I look at it it just makes me feel bad for spending so much, but I get on occasionally because if not then it would have been a complete waste.
I don't know how old y'all are cause I know older people and younger people play here. But if younger, then I suggest take my advice.

storm-sage • 5 April 2022 at 3:47 PM

@lobstertheremin
I personally haven't spent any money on the site.

The real trick is patience. Collecting as many of the limited time pets as possible and holding them as they go up in value. When I first joined I collected a lot of Cerberus pets as they were cool and free at the cave. Today they are worth 50cc each. Finding and trading pets is what I find fun and has grown my cove. Some pets I would buy for 100k ec each, hold for a while and they sell for hundreds of CC.

Plus from the devs perspective there is already a free way to earn all the pets. Just click and feed. When I first started it got about 100kec per day feeding.

I've never felt the need to buy CC with real money

If you want CC don't try and get it with EC.
Use EC to buy pets, then sell the pets when they go up in value for CC.

EC to CC is just a shortcut that removes the fun of the game for me.

dragrawr • 5 April 2022 at 3:52 PM

@storm-sage Here’s the problem with trading creatures for CC. Many people don’t have the cc to begin with to buy creatures. This is why we are wanting an ec to cc terminal. There is no fun in a game if things are virtually unobtainable even with patience. Patience to get 5mil would be less time considerably and then to exchange it would be great rather than buying creatures you don’t want to just sit in a cove. Then that inflates the price making them unobtainable for others too. It’s all a balancing act but the terminal is a great start I think.

aquafaba • 5 April 2022 at 4:00 PM

@dragrawr I agree with you. So many people are constantly asking for CC, which means that there is too little of it to go around. For me, the fact that people only want CC for creatures takes the fun out of the game. A way to earn CC by being here and feeding coves or doing quests or something seems like it would make this site much better.

autumnal • 5 April 2022 at 4:33 PM

I have to agree with @dragrawr and @aquafaba on this one. @storm-sage, here are some quotes from older players (who have had time for their creatures to increase in value) who still feel that it would be beneficial to increase the amount of opportunities to acquire CC through the site:

"When I started playing on Egg Cave over 10 years ago, I felt there was a balance of value for both CC and EC. It was much easier to trade creatures, and trades were not limited to solely CC offers or Cash Shop creature offers. I feel like trading is stagnant as is, but having more creatures in circulation and the ability to give EC more value in Ark will be beneficial for everyone." - @brookie (2011)

"As someone who has been on Eggcave since 2009, I would LOVE to see this suggestion implemented on site. I used to feed creatures diligently to pay for Tim's for my creatures, but since the Leaf of Vaka was introduced, I have very little use for the EC I have and no real motivation to feed anymore. And I'm sure that there are many other veteran players who are in the same boat.

If I could convert my currently useless coins into CC, I'd be more inclined to be more active on site. And as an added bonus, I think converting EC to CC would boost the game's economy a bit, allowing users who are currently unable to purchase CC a way to get into trading more easily, as well as bumping the value of EC since it would have a new official use." = @pipkitten (2009)

"As a veteran player myself I love and support this idea❤️. It's definitely been proposed in the past but I think a cap would be great to make sure things don't get too out of hand! 500CC seems reasonable to me. Not too much to throw values out of wack but not too little because you can still get at least one CSP a month (or a few things from the shop) from just playing!! the!! game!! instead of $$$. I stand by the 1M EC=100CC conversion rate, it's simple and makes sense.

I just really would like to see the site more active again, I feel like there's been a lull in both trading and the forums lately and hopefully this idea will make CC more attainable and increase foot traffic again! Who doesn't want to join a cute adoptable site where you can actually work your way up to your dream cove through hard work?? And a more thriving, happy community?? Win-win in my book! 😉" - @lexicon (2012)

"I’m going to be honest here and say that this is the most well thought out plan on EC to CC conversion that I have ever read! I think this is an excellent way to do it. The 500CC cap is such a good idea.
I’d support this 100%! " - @solaris (2009)

"I barely ever go on the forums and I'm so glad I did today. It's my first time hearing about the EC to CC conversion idea and this honestly makes me feel excited about. I could tell that all of the above ideas and suggestions are from players that truly care about keeping the site sustainable and enjoyable for players. A good read for sure! Thanks to you all!

I can see that this can stimulate the use of click exchange. Also at the same time, I think this could prevent "crazy inflation" of CC offered in shops or auctions. I noticed that as time goes by, 50CC has gone way beyond 500,000EC worth..." - @doublechin (2009)

"Awesome suggestion. Been discussing this with @techno for a while. I fully support this. I too would also urge @ian to seriously consider the arguments made in this thread. I believe they are well-considered and fair. Thank you!" - @stellalunagirl (2009)

"An EC for CC terminal will not only reinforce the fact that the game is completely free to play but also give everyone a fair chance at accessing CSPs while boosting the sites' activity as it encourages more new users to continue playing.

With re-releases and their pricing system, the need for CC has just risen over the past few months, so I don't see any harm in implementing a EC-CC conversion terminal with limits which would help normal users access CC without having the need to pay or compete with open market inflation." - @portal (2016)

"I've been playing Egg Cave for so many years now and I think this EC to CC conversion, especially with a hard limit, would really help bolster activity and the uses for EC. That way if people want a monthly, they can afford to gain one with a little bit of work, and selling creatures for EC becomes more doable! Or if someone wants to save up CC, that is also possible with patience and trading." - @chapus (2012)

I can keep going, but I'll leave it at that.
(I got these quotes from the EC to CC Conversion Terminal thread)

dragrawr • 5 April 2022 at 5:02 PM

@aquafaba agreed.

@autumnal this is a great collection of quotes this is wonderful 😊 I really hope the staff can back us on this one, and I don’t want us to force them either. I am so grateful they are not doing NFTs and creatures are released constantly for us. Players just need a bit of an economy boost as an incentive to keep playing, I think.

storm-sage • 5 April 2022 at 7:16 PM

@autumnal Unfortunately from the devs standpoint creating such a system would likely lower their profits. (in comparison creating the re-release system people were asking for is likely increasing their profits)That alone makes it unlikely to be implemented. Sure I'd like a conversion terminal as well but removing the incentive to buy CC is not in the best interests of the site. It's not impossible to get CC, I gave some basic examples for new players, and that alone is enough for me. I support the idea but I would understand and it wont affect my enjoyment if its not implemented.

aquafaba • 5 April 2022 at 10:10 PM

I wouldn't be so sure that it would lower profits! The fact that the site is so geared towards CC right now is causing many players to leave, and new players usually don't stick around for very long once they realize how much money or time (years) it would take to get the creatures they want to get.

Adding a feature to acquire CC through gameplay isn't a direct source of income in itself, but it's a wise choice to increase the site's appeal among the vast majority of players who either don't want to spend money here or who are willing to spend a bit, but just a bit. Increase the reputation of the site, and the money will follow.

I don't think it's warranted to just tell players that the status quo is fine and that they just need to become better traders. I think that's ignoring the elephant in the room (that the game is currently very pay to win/pay to play).

And the proposed EC to CC terminal idea wouldn't remove the incentive to buy CC. With the 500cc monthly cap, it wouldn't be possible to acquire every CSP and rerelease. People would be able to earn a bit of CC every month (and let's remember, it would take a lot of time and hard work to earn 5 million EC every month), but there would still be an incentive to purchase more. Actually, it's a foot-in-the-door tactic that may very well increase the amount of purchases (give people a sample and they're more likely to make a purchase).

It's not impossible to get CC right now, yes, but it's very difficult. Any time CC trades are posted, they are dogpilled, and we see forum posts asking for CC all the time. That is a sign that something is broken here.

The good news is that Ian has actually signaled that the team is looking into implementing some kind of feature for players to get CC via gameplay, which is great news. I just hope it happens soon and doesn't take months/years to develop.

crescentmoons • 6 April 2022 at 7:44 AM

Everyone's responses here have been wonderful and well-put. I'm just coming back from a very long break and being reminded of all the reasons I signed up. I loved the creature collection and the overall mature and kind nature of the community. Even when I started (several years ago) I found getting creatures to be super difficult. I am a person who does have a bit of money to spare here and there to support the games/sites I like, but I don't want that to be the ONLY way I can acquire things in the game.

Someone mentioned Subeta in this thread and I also agree with that sentiment - they make it so that new players, and/or players that can't spend money, still have the opportunity to get cash shop credits and items. I've been on that site for 13 years, going from a teenager who didn't have any money to an adult who WANTS to throw some money their way, to support a place that (while not always perfect) has made efforts to make things accessible to everyone.

I hope to see this place continue to grow, evolve, and look forward to what great things are to come 😊

dragrawr • 8 April 2022 at 6:01 PM

I’m gonna input a quick sentiment. This game is truly lovely, and I have been here since 2015 and I was just a kid. Being able to collect these adorable creatures kept me excited to play, kept me coming back.
💕🌸🌸💕💖💕
The site being too pay to play is a fact, as seen in this forum. And I just would like to thank everyone for being so kind to the staff and Ian on this. This is beautiful thread with so many amazing ideas and I’m sure that together we can create ideas that the eggcave team can implement and help make the site grow. This game will never be perfect and I don’t think any of us want that to change- that’s the charm of the game. It’s fun to collect creatures. It’s FUN to be here.

This thread will hopefully make rise a new and beneficial means of playing the game and making it so everyone can get something (as long as they try.)

And all of you guys are great so keep it up! Can’t wait to see where this site goes.

structuresfromsilence • 11 April 2022 at 3:04 PM

@dragrawr I agree so much with what you're saying and I love your positivity. It is good to have players like you on this site ❤️

@crescentmoons thank you for your input, I like what you're saying as well. "I am a person who does have a bit of money to spare here and there to support the games/sites I like, but I don't want that to be the ONLY way I can acquire things in the game."

@ian thank you for considering the ideas here and for working on this 😊

greengrassoftunnel • 15 April 2022 at 12:11 PM

I feel a bit frustrated seeing so much attention towards the premium rereleases but that we haven't seen any new updates on making Eggcave less pay to play in a few months (and it was 12 years ago in 2010 that Ian said that an EC to CC terminal would be created:

"EC can be converted into cash to be used at the cash shop... Egg Cave will ALWAYS BE FREE 😃"

@ian when your schedule permits, can we get an update? I missed the Squearth and Onny rereleases and now I will miss the Doovoo and Macbot rereleases too because I don't have the cash to spend, and i feel very sad about that. I spend hours here every day and love this site, but it feels like I don't matter.

Thank you ❤️

blub • 15 April 2022 at 2:55 PM

I'm an old player and I've definitely seen how the site got more and more CC focused, and how so most trades have gone CC focused. I used to trade a lot, now I just can't bring myself to it anymore.
For a while I actually had fun to get CC with patience, with EC through feeding, and good trading. For a couple of years now that's as good as impossible (and the re-releases were definitely a catalyst to get the vouchers on such a ridiculous EC price).

On the same note, I'm not happy with how the re-releases are done. For years I was a supporter of re-releases because I just saw how impossible it was to get older creatures for new players (and a lot of old players were just lucky to be on this site when those creatures were released).
Now with high amount of CC asked, it honestly still feels the same, it's impossible for too many people to get one of them, and at the same time you just feel worse because you saw your dream creature pass by again, knowing you're not able to get it. I just see the announcement of next month creatures and think 'crap, there goes one of my dream creatures since I started again, and I know there is no way possible I'm getting enough CC to get it'.
It's honestly a reason I'm starting to think of leaving for the first time since I started playing. It makes things just not fun anymore.


A while ago I also realized that while a lot of pet sites I play do have things you get with 'exclusive with real money paid for' kind of payment, basically all of them have other means to get this, by playing so many games, or watching an ad, things like that. Eggcave is the only pet site I play that doesn't have this, and this is what makes the whole CC thing so out of balance.

I personally would love to have a couple of features you can do to get (even small amounts of) CC that at the same time will force you to spent a bit more time on the site, like the EC to CC exchange, through the vending machine, or a CC gift for the Leaderboards, or the daily return gift that's once a month has a bit of CC or something, or a bit of CC you get if you feed 400 creatures in the Feed Exchange or something.
Make it a possibility in the Thief Shop for all I care. Do something with the festivals, give something with the Easter Hunt, or the Halloween Fair. There are so many possibilities.

It will both make CC a bit more accessible, and at the same time it invites people to play on your site more.

quinoafuntime • 15 April 2022 at 4:35 PM

Thank you for your post @blub. I totally agree with everything you said and I appreciate you taking the time to write out your heartfelt thoughts. @ian, please let us know what the plan is with making this site less pay to play. It is something that so many of us are waiting for.

structuresfromsilence • 18 April 2022 at 3:11 PM

"it's impossible for too many people to get one of them, and at the same time you just feel worse because you saw your dream creature pass by again, knowing you're not able to get it. I just see the announcement of next month creatures and think 'crap, there goes one of my dream creatures since I started again, and I know there is no way possible I'm getting enough CC to get it'."

"A while ago I also realized that while a lot of pet sites I play do have things you get with 'exclusive with real money paid for' kind of payment, basically all of them have other means to get this, by playing so many games, or watching an ad, things like that. Eggcave is the only pet site I play that doesn't have this, and this is what makes the whole CC thing so out of balance."

These are my thoughts exactly @blub thank you for putting it so well. Hoping to get an update from @ian this week!

lobstertheremin • 19 April 2022 at 1:40 PM

Looking through the trade center this morning has me pretty depressed at how many people are looking for only CC. This site's economy is so transparent about how much it revolves exclusively around spending money ☹️

We really need some way for us to earn CC through the site @Ian, please!

(I remember that you told me on a blog post a while ago that it's in the works, but I hope it'll happen soon. Otherwise, there's no chance that I'll be able to get most of the creatures that I like)

dougprishpreed • 20 April 2022 at 12:02 PM

It's been almost five months and 56 posts since this thread was started and still no concrete news about this. Bummer, dude ☹️

Hoping that @ian will fix the economy of this site soon. As it stands, you sign up because it's free and then you realize that without spending money, you have virtually no chance getting the creatures you like unless you're content with the most common creatures. Loving the site and spending time here should be rewarded, yeah? Not just money.

Pinging some people I see in the recent forum posts to see if they have any thoughts. Hope it isn't a bother - @stormwarden @galactic_pigeon @senkou @aedia @sparklefox @tryvegan4theanimals @mastermewtwo34

stormwarden • 20 April 2022 at 12:25 PM

thanks kindly for the ping! i actually do have lots of thoughts on this, especially because i made my account in 2017 and only just returned. i think if i found this game in 2022 today, i would not be able to stay. gaining traction and "trading up" is way too much of a grind, if it's even possible because a newbie would, really, only have access to the monthlies as their "rare" fodder.

who even is the target audience of this game? the only people who have disposable income at the rate that this game demands to accumulate the "chase" creatures (to put it in tcg terms) are adults who either have school or work or family to occupy their day-to-day, so the grinding clicks for EC is nigh impossible. the PG-rated everything offers a kid-friendly experience, but kids aren't going to stick around if they're literally never going to get anything with a population # of >~500.

real tcg collectors are adults who work for their disposable income that they can then dump into ink and cardboard with the occasional holo alt art secret rare EX card that makes it all worth it. that's the chase! but this game—collectors of any creature that's retired—it all comes down to CC. sure, adults can also dump their income into these colorful 50x50 pixel jpgs, but not everyone wants or can afford an expensive hobby.

this will affect things like player retention and even engagement. will players who are actively paying continue to pay when they see the dying and stagnant playerbase? even events like the recent easter egg hunt are absolutely terrible—we're literally all refreshing at the oasis/thief shop?! why couldn't the egg cave staff have implemented something to do with "hunting" the eggs that have a random chance to be "found" when you feed creatures? so then creatures get fed, people get EC, and we're actually "searching" for the eggs. instead, it all comes down to CC: some people would rather just buy the cloudbun, if they can afford to blow the five-ten bucks or whatever it goes for.

honestly, i apologize for the harshness of my words and this game has so much nostalgia for me, but i see this game in its death throes. i actually would be utterly convinced that the whole "clicking for feeds" gimmick is a way to get sheep-players to refresh through the ads for the site if this site weren't so astonishingly atrocious at balancing/maintaining/facilitating/encouraging the only way to gain EC. like, ~100 EC per click? when the going conversion rate for EC to CC is the way it currently is? yeah, i would totally drop a twenty if i could afford it and if i still wanted to support this game when it doesn't care about nor communicate with its players.

galactic_pigeon • 20 April 2022 at 12:40 PM

I would agree with the pay-to-play thing. I feel the economy of this game would be very hard to fix. If I remember, Ian mentioned something about getting free CC by converting it. He said something along the lines of (but not exactly), "if it was too easy to obtain Cave Cash for free, then it would break the economy and cause inflation for creatures, and if it was too grindy to get Cave Cash for free, then players wouldn't care about getting it for free anymore."

I've seen other adoptables websites where the same problem of value was out-of-control. Take Virtuadopt for example, they completely reset the website to fix it up. All of the creatures of any value were impossible-to-obtain after their event ended, and money in the game was practically worthless.