GREE Priorities <--> Player Priorities

[G Wiz]

Very simple.

How "N'Sync" are the priorities of the company vs. the priorities of their customers? Do you feel that there are any at all?

An example of harmonious priority is one that involves needs being coupled with favorable actions that allow for both parties to benefit at the same time.

What do you feel?

[TonySpaghetti]

http://blue-box.blueislands.net/blue-box/nsync1.gif

[Dipstik]

I'll give credit where its due, even when it's due to tony. That post is made up of equal parts win and god.

[TonySpaghetti]

I'll give credit where its due, even when it's due to tony. That post is made up of equal parts win and god.

I like visual aids. :)

[Vile Lynn]

http://blue-box.blueislands.net/blue-box/nsync1.gif

ahh... Priorities.

[Vile Lynn]

tbh ot, they probably have the same priorities as any other business:
highest priority goes to the highest spenders (ie, the top 250)

[Burn]

Here's my theory, based on playing for 8 months straight, taking 2 months off to watch from the sidelines, and returning with a different (free play only from now) mindset...

Gree haven't established any customercentric priorities yet, because they are still experimenting with the wide variety of different methods there are of extracting money from your pocket.

In simple terms...

1. Launch new method of making money
2. If succesful tweak and test again to generate sufficient data for more accurate analsysis of tipping points where maximum profits are made
3. Fix the bugs and improve the customer experience

They never actually get to 3. Because 1 and 2 are far from being exhausted (example: they probably haven't yet even established if 250 or 500 is the magic number for event leaderboard yet).

Because they never actually get to 3, the playing addictiveness/duration of player retention has now overtaken the expected lifespan of the game.

That's why you are still pulling Boxer Shorts and Nail Bats as loot, that's why the late game Respect items are all now redundant, that Redundancy has actually been accelerated by the changes brought about by 1 and 2 (Respect items are devalued by Scratchers for example).

Basically, you have stuck around too long, and the game has not kept pace with your consumption. Ironically, the more Gree see you are here to stay, and are actually full blown addicts, the more they then think of options 1 and 2, and never ever is 3 reached.

Internal Gree memo: Customers are as dumb as hamsters on crack, take them for ever penny you can. Suck those dummies dry.

You're probably gonna hate reading that, it might even make you angry. Sorry about that.

[Burn]

You did get The Last Call though. Gree love you really :)

[G Wiz]

Glad everyone got the N'Sync part...It's tearing up my heart truthfully because this really is/was a good game, but it can be so better if optimized and I just feel like the directions in which GREE is heading vs it's customers is in opposite directions.

Maybe they are scared to really overhaul this game for fear of losing even more people. Maybe this game was never forecasted to stay in operation, especially after the buyout!

[TonySpaghetti]

Maybe this game was never forecasted to stay in operation, especially after the buyout!

I've got a feeling that this is probably the case.

[Burn]

Anyone know where CC sits it in terms of popularity/user base vs MW or KA?

I guess a look at the other forums would give a snapshot. Most populated forum = most populated game.

Did Gree have a catalogue of Japanese games that they are now gonna roll-out in English?

[<3 Hz]

It was pure genius on their part to heavily market this game to the world's top 0.0001% wealthiest individuals.

They really should hire me in their marketing department. I'd use multiple events to benefit free players and huge gold spenders. For the big spenders, I'd have an event where the first person that spent $1,000,000 in gold in 5 days would win a mafia member named Chuck Norris that would give 1,000,000 att & 1,000,000 defense LOL.

[TRAZ]

Sitting at a crossroad.

[Nyx]

Anyone know where CC sits it in terms of popularity/user base vs MW or KA?

I guess a look at the other forums would give a snapshot. Most populated forum = most populated game.

Did Gree have a catalogue of Japanese games that they are now gonna roll-out in English?

The only way I know to roughly gauge this is by checking the top grossing free games in the iTunes store. The last time I checked, a couple weeks ago, I think MW was #4, KA was around # 13 and CC was around #34, I think?

This time it's much different. MW is #157, CC HD is #174 and KA is #291.

[Zendfrim]

Fungreeo's priority is clearly to get as much money as possible while implementing no changes to improve the game at all. Cut and dried, plain and simple. Please Fungreeo, prove me wrong.

[Nyx]

The only way I know to roughly gauge this is by checking the top grossing free games in the iTunes store. The last time I checked, a couple weeks ago, I think MW was #4, KA was around # 13 and CC was around #34, I think?

This time it's much different. MW is #157, CC HD is #174 and KA is #291.

Well, this is full of fail. The numbers above are from the Top Free IPad games, not the Top Grossing IPad games I had checked a few weeks ago. Derp.

However, it's interesting to note that while MW only slipped a couple spots to #6, KA has slipped quite a bit from being about #13-14 the last time I checked to #61 and CC has gone from the #30s to #91.

I keep reading every so often that MWs events are much better than CCs and not quite as transparently GREEdy. Is this true? And if so, could this be an indicator that the mad grab for $$ of the new event format may not have much longevity? It'll be interesting to see where the games sit in the next couple weeks.

[in-game j]

It was pure genius on their part to heavily market this game to the world's top 0.0001% wealthiest individuals.

They really should hire me in their marketing department. I'd use multiple events to benefit free players and huge gold spenders. For the big spenders, I'd have an event where the first person that spent $1,000,000 in gold in 5 days would win a mafia member named Chuck Norris that would give 1,000,000 att & 1,000,000 defense LOL.

Hahahhahhahahaha "the chuck Norris"

I would bid on that heavily since I'm "dumb as a nail"

[G Wiz]

Considering the new addition to the events, I think its safe to say that the priorities here are geared toward profit? I feel like similar effort could be used in other avenues.

Any ideas on this?

[Paulio]

I think they have done something about cheaters, which is a step in the right direction, and they also added farmable explosives, so there are some positive things going on. However, the events have become a HUGE part of this game. I think Gree should show goodwill by introducing a new PvP tourney every month. Even reducing it to top 250 gives everyone a chance to win big - even non-gold spenders.

[dudeman]

Considering the new addition to the events, I think its safe to say that the priorities here are geared toward profit? I feel like similar effort could be used in other avenues.

Any ideas on this?

The event items are becoming more powerful too, and not just the grand prizes. For a lot of HL players the four consolation prizes still provide only a small boost, but for most players entering the shark pool those items provide a bigger stats increase.

The lootable explosives also don't really help a lot of players who are already strong, but they do help weaker players.

All this is just part of the grand design to make players spend exponentially more and more gold to increase their stats. Players who don't spend will eventually lose their edge, if they had one to begin with, and once they become unable to compete they will simply leave, freeing up a space on the server for the next cow in line.