Hi all, I notice that among previous game suggestions there are some really cool ideas but also that admin for perhaps obvious reasons are wary of introducing radical changes and would rather focus on getting the game right and improving retention. Apparently they also have limited time to make coding changes which is also understandable.

With this in mind I would suggest that the following 10 changes would all have a benefit to gameplay, player retention or both. With each idea I suggest why. I know that some of these have been considered before and I don't claim any particular originality but I have given balance some thought and played the game for a while now....

Suggestion 1: Better expeditions.
So obvious, but why not make expeditions a bit more worthwhile? They really are a total waste of ships and fleet slots. The opportunity to get a few rubies from an expedition would make it a totally different prospect, or even just to get some of the ruby upgrades such as a one-week boost to metal mines.
WHY? Would provide a new aspect to the game and therefore increase interest. Would encourage non-raiders/fleeters to spend more time actively playing.

Suggestion 2: Non-player empires
There seem to be some computer-generated players populating the galaxy, but they mostly remain at 0 pts, what is the deal with that? Having real large players comp generated would be an interesting and fun prospect. Perhaps better still, make inactives after a certain time, rather than deleted, taken over by computer player, thus becoming part of the game, following one of a couple of possible algorythms e.g for example, log on once per day and build defences/fleet, or log on twice per day, build fleet, and attack a random nearby target or deploy all to another base. This could be particularly used if a server is low on active players.
WHY: To make things fun and less predictable, and also add to targets and activity when PB is a bit small.

Suggestion 3: Player styles like Generals, incl. 'Trader' playing style
Make trader a viable playing style... Allow or even encourage for-profit trading. Perhaps this could be a 'Generals' playing style choice. There could an option to pick a playing style (this could be changed occasionally maybe max once per month like name changes). Other playing styles could include mentor, and a more clearly defined mercenary role with standardised payments. Each could have its benefits.
WHY: Makes it more diverse there are only 2 real playing styles currently and it's pretty hard to make 'turtle' work long-term! A more diverse choice of game styles encourages more players to play and stay, as not everyone is interested in crashing fleets.

Suggestion4: Inactive delation gradual and consistent.
Delete zero-point players quickly (e.g. after 2 weeks). Ones who have actually spent time playing and built up some points - yes delete them, but do it more slowly. Also, rather than clearing lots at once which unbalances the game (anyone who starts after a clearout is at a disadvantage, therefore unfair) set a specific amount for higher level in actives e.g. 6 months.
WHY? 0-pt inactives add nothing and just clutter up the galaxy; higher point players are good farms therefore helping others to develop AND are much more likely to return after a few months. I have seen (i) players return after 6 months or more. Also, higher-level inactives make raiding more interesting, fun and competitive.

Suggestion 5: 60 day limit on v mode.
Unlimited v mode should remain an option if players are checking in occasionally (perhaps contributing to their alliance chat etc). But if blue and effectively inactive, set a time limit before v mode 'expires' and they can become farms ( players could get a warning email).
WHY: This will turn v mode players that are never returning into great targets, and encourage v moders to keep checking in and hopefully return and add to the PB. Also, perma-blue players take up useful planet slots, so this would lead to their eventual deletion.

Suggestion 6: Emergency v-mode
Sometimes real RL sh*t happens e.g. illness, family crisis, and the last thing you need is to be unable to put on v mode because a few defences are building. An emergency v mode option would allow players to override the usual restrictions. To avoid making it too easy this could have a frequency limit (e.g. limited to once per 6 months) or cost e.g. any ships/defences cancelled but not refunded.
WHY? Because sh*t happens! We probably lose players to inactivity because they can't v mode and so get crashed.

Suggestion 7: 'Shield'
Alternatively or as well as the above - a 'shield', rather like newbie protection is something that could perhaps be bought with rubies.. In another game (ahem..cough...mustn't name) that some of us play, you can buy a shield for 1, 2 or 7 days and it stops you being attacked - you also cannot attack others or raid but otherwise can play normally. It is also limited as to frequency so you can't have it permanently (some other ruby powers could also do with a 'cool down' e.g. max once per day or twice per week!)
WHY - Gives another option rather than just v mode, allowing players to still play actively, and also brings money into the game.

Suggestion 8: Quick raid button
Often we are clicking through the same screens again and again, without actually changing the options e.g. 100% fleet speed and then just clicking 'send'. It's unnecessary clicking and takes time if the connection speed is slow. So why not at the foot of the screen where you pick the fleet, have a 'QUICK RAID' button that would just send the same ships again? Or perhaps players could set default ship choices in Options, e.g. picking 1 EC and 50BCs.
WHY? Because it's best to reduce mindlessly repetitive aspects of the game to reduce boredom.

Suggestion 9: Tutorial system at start
I'm sure it has been discussed before but no sign of it yet… Instead of handing out 10 rubies and having a pretty useless 'guide', why not help newbies with a simple optional tutorial to work through. They could get their intro rubies for doing various things e.g. starting research, joining an alliance, making a trade, fleet saving etc.
WHY? Would teach game basics better than trial-and-error leading to improved player retention, and make the early stages more engaging (currently you spend all res in a few minutes and then there is nothing to do - I bet a lot quit at that point!)

Suggestion 10: Upper limit to growth.
It's a radical one, but… What about putting a maximum on certain elements of the game? At least in certain servers (Massacre?) The current set-up means that you are always going to have a big disparity between a small number of huge players and the bulk of smaller ones. The gap will just keep getting wider with time, too, as the strongest players make the biggest hits and have the best mines. We could consider setting an upper limit on certain things e.g. ship numbers, defence numbers, mine levels. The effect of this would be to cap the growth of the biggest players ultimately resulting in a top 30 or more who were all quite equal. The emphasis would then be on strategy, skill, alliance building etc, not just a 'numbers game'. Just a thought but I think it would be worth experimenting with!

Expedition thing might be fun.

computer players would be a good idea, depending on how they are set up. if they are unbeatable (because really not many humans can compete with computers), there's no point. we desperately need new players or computer generated players.

Elaborate on the style thing.

lol basically if you are raiding it's mostly inactives. There aren't enough peeps.

vmode thing is fine.

shield cool.

quick raid option could be very useful.

tuturoals awesome.

i'm kinda iffy on the upper limit thing.. but i could see some advantages to it. it would have to be a HUGEEEE limit though.

I say +1 for everything you've listed

I really like the Vmode thing xD

Another thing I like is the raiding change. Choosing a number before and just clicking Quick Raid, will make it faster and easier to use and should be more interesting too

Shield idea is also good. Should give a good break instead of Vmode.

A proper tutorial would also help newbies a lot and we might actually end up with more players.

All in all I like all these ideas and I would love to see them getting implemented

Nice topic! Keep it up

I like all those mentioned above, some which have been discussed before.

-Administration baiting
-Warning Issued

-Zorg

3:
I'm sceptical but, if the current state is included as a default, and opting into anythign else provided 'balanced' pro's and cons i'd say it'd be a good idea.

6:
if its a real emergency then arguably the player should be able to explain to the admin or whoever what the emergency was to get the 6 month timeout reset.

7:
perhaps whatever duration is bought is the duration that it cannot be repurchased for? (max 50% of time shielded)
Personally I'd like to see a 3 day option (friday-monday ) and if you attack then the shield is lifted (preferably with a warning) but the timeout remains as it would have been.

8:
while this woudl be nice, it woudl make other people raid more and there'd be less for me :/
I'm neutral on this point.

9:
I'm unsure if this is practical since it coudl be abused badly, but potentially new players (for the first 24-48h) could have a list of 'tutor' players online (who have checked a box in options saying they are happy to give advice to new players), that way they know exactly who they can ask for advice who is likely to respond immediately.

10:
perhaps a non-linear cost to moving larger groups of ships? (arguably the more ships there are then the more fuel spent avoiding each other) that would slowly make it hard to fleetsave large fleets beyond planet to moon, unless multiple fleetslots are used.
buildings return less on the investment you put in over time so i think those cap naturally fairly well...


points that i didn't mention i more or less agree with
hopefully some of these make it into the development cycle, if not all

speaking of development cycle... perhaps a status update?