This website is far past the point where having ranked and unranked games in main lobby makes sense.
Both sandbox and main lobby suffer from this weird choice. Unranked games should go in sandbox, which will boost the ever slowing population of 12 person closed setups, and ranked games should go in main lobby.
Without the influx of unranked games being made, competitive games will not be second paged so fast, and thus fill more often, allowing more than 2 setups to be played each round.
Ok, so I gave this some extended thought whilst in the shower as I had nothing better to do whilst scrubbing.
One major implication I can see of this is dealing with those who report spam or make a report for bad play. This was especially rampant back when I was moderating (try not to be trivial here), and it was a pain dealing with those who weren't happy that their games weren't refunded as someone made a mistake from a lack of experience. There are a lot of people on the site guilty of this, and it can be hard dealing with a fine line on whether to refund or not. This'll have to be something worked out with the current moderation.
I don't want to see any requirement for entry either, there's no matchmaking or placement in EM so there should be no need for qualification. Likewise it's a game of deceit and how convincing you are, you're out there to sway opinions. There are a few issues with this though, one being the entry system is used to defer game manipulation such as cheating and throwing, but also to give a tiny amount of experience requirement before playing. Couple this with what I added earlier >could< again cause disruption with both the existing player base and also the moderators.
In terms of getting people to play ranked first, remember that first impressions are everything. If someone's first game is an absolute nightmare and they hate it, do you think they'll be more inclined to play another 10 games? You want to expand on those who play in a more serious bracket, but people can't be able and ready in the first hour.
My main hard stance with a moving like this is is that I still feel it's implicating a majority or already existing parts of the site. Even if it's not as active, why does it have to be Sandbox?
deletedover 8 years
I also think the mentor system needs a complete and total revamp, but that never happens.
deletedover 8 years
The tutorial sounds good, but I think if people start in unranked they are liable to not know ranked exists, or assume that ranked is what unranked is.
I think that the people who are looking for serious games of mafia are unlikely to make mistakes in something as simple as classic mafia.
Right now that group of people is being pushed away from the site entirely by unranked games.
Oh I'm agreeing with moving the unranked games. I was thinking more of a "start with sandbox and learn about how to play via unranked" or have a tutorial before ranked. The issue I see is people joining their first mafia game as a ranked game losing it and not knowing why only to get reported by 3 people
deletedover 8 years
Just give me this, IMHO.
deletedover 8 years
No they wouldn't. Ranked fancy pants and classic would fill faster. Unranked fancy pants and classic would fill faster. What would they be upset about?
I like the ideas you have. But I think the core of the problem is unranked games existing in main lobby, based on talking to those players.
Your ideas are good. But I think the thing that would have the most positive impact for both communities would be to move the unranked games.
The entire fancy pants and classic mafia community would go ballistic if that were to happen. Not that I personally have a problem with that, but if there was a tutorial or something that showed people how to play just in a basic sense then it would be an easier adjustment for everyone.
deletedover 8 years
I'd rather people start in ranked games if possible, honestly.
I think the people who will like it will like it and the people who won't won't, but starting them in ranked ensures everyone who likes it knows about it.
I think if the mod team and admins unanimously brought it to lucid and let him know that it really is the best move for everyone, it would happen.
He has been very receptive to such things in the past.
What would be cool is to have the sandbox lobby be default until someone plays 4 unranked games, and then get an automated message once said person plays them that says they're now eligible for main lobby and briefly explain the difference between ranked and unranked, show where the rules page was, and link to the mentor program. Course that would require lucid to do something. I think that could solve a lot of pproblems. As in conjunction with splitting the unranked into sandbox.
deletedover 8 years
Watching unranked/sandbox players argue for why unranked games should stay in main lobby is like watching North Korea argue for why it doesn't deserve humanitarian aid.
deletedover 8 years
Right, new players would never go to sandbox unless they wanted to, because their first games would be ranked, as I have said to you thrice now. What don't you get? Core concept?
Yes it is lmao you say how you talk to new users who want more serious games. Guess what? they wouldn't of ran into a person who told them to play ranked or to mover on in sandbox. Sandbox has a different atmosphere that doesn't promote learning.
deletedover 8 years
It's true, I think you're a fking idiot. But I'm trying to address your misgivings with logic anyway, so give me some credit imo.
deletedover 8 years
It's not splitting anyone
95% of unranked players don't play ranked and vice versa.
The 5% or so who do play both will now have to press 1 extra button to switch between lobbies when they want to play something else.
If you want to play to win, just play red hearts, which aren't as serious as gold hearts.
If you don't want to play to win, play unranked.
Every game now fills faster because two userbases with almost no interest whatsoever in playing with each other and no longer stuck together against their will.
That's not what I'm thinking lmao. I'm thinking that the people who really want to play unranked in main will be annoyed they have to move to sandbox to play unranked. The sandbox userbase doesn't really play games to win, when in main they do to some extent. Changing the whole dynamic of the lobbies will bring more annoyance and split the community more.
Looks like someone's been taking some Trump debate classes
deletedover 8 years
I can tell you mostly play unranked.
Let me just put it this way: Putting the unranked games in sandbox lobby is GOOD for unranked players, not bad for them. I promise.
It will make your games fill up faster, not slower. I'm not trying to trick you. There is no deception. It is good for you, and good for us.
Your unranked games will fill with the regular users they usually fill with on top of the sandbox players. Unranked games will have more people than ever before.
Now, it's not that I care about what is good for unranked games. I don't. I just want unranked games out of main lobby. But it just so happens this helps absolutely everyone, completely by accident.
You think you are opposed to this because you have convinced yourself it will somehow hurt your unranked games, when in fact it will do nothing but help them.
Yeah I mostly play unranked or some meme setups anymore and I play that with other older players so I don't know what you're talking about. A better way to introduce them is a better explanation of the game and when you can play ranked.
