The value of frackers – an attempt of a quantitative analysis

DrThodDrThod ✭✭✭

I just added my last contribution to my blog. I hope @NianticBrian has a chance to read it. You find the whole post here: https://drthod.com/the-value-of-frackers-an-attempt-of-a-quantative-analysis/

I try to compare the price/value of a fracker to other items in the shop. I then calculate the value of a fracker for different scenarios. The values I get for a single player are below:

I use simplifications and assumptions - but I describe them and hope they are reasonable. Read all of them on the blog - happy to hear what you think.

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Comments

  • @NianticBrian

    How about 100 free CMU everday for your first claimed portal? That's still 24 days just to get the cheapest free pack. I see a lot of incentive for your company to do this and you already give out premium currency in your other two games. Or you could do something smaller like a daily portal claim streak bonus that improves your CMU rewards weekly like POGO does with spins but in CMU rewards instead.

    1. Encourage people to play daily. If they are playing they interact with others increasing fun for all and they certainly aren't quitting if they play. You are hooking them into a habit

    2. Give them a taste/introduce them to the store. Once they make their first free CMU purchase. They may be enticed to pay for the next one if they like what they bought.

    3. Get them browsing. Folks have no incentive to even look at the store unless they are already looking to buy. Give them free CMU they will check the store often to see what they have on current balance. Browsing could encourage impulse buying You might even get buyers at what's left in difference is now in their budget they will buy the remaining CMU to get the item now.

    4. Give me a way to spend my remaining CMU. Ya jerks have your item costs and pack purchase amounts at numbers that always force me to have unspent CMU. With a growing total I can finally spend all the money I spent on your game. This would do well for you to get rid of the resentment caused by the "real" cost of a pack being higher than their sticker price.

  • GrogyanGrogyan ✭✭✭✭✭

    CryoPenguin That is a good idea.

    But I would go one step further, and couple it with Sojourner hack.

    This would bring the "daily reward" in line with what other FTP games have.

  • ntzzntzz ✭✭✭

    @CryoPenguin this is not POGO, The store is just for purchase beacons, frackers and if someone needs... a little bundles of items.

    Here we don't need the Money Game to unlock other items or more spaces... so, why in the hell you will make CMU as rewards?

    If you want frackers or the Key Capsules, just buy it, they are not expensive at all, and is the only earnings in the game...

    I really think that POGO mentality isn't extrapolable to Ingress, so stop trying to make Ingress as POGO, Ingress is perfectly well as it is, maybe needs changes, but not the same changes as other games, because there isn't any other game as Ingress in the world.

  • Thank you for your thorough analysis, @DrThod. As you mentioned, a couple additional variables include the number of unique players who hack a fracked portal, and that frackers are typically installed on high-level portals to double the output of L7 and L8 gear. It's something I want to continue to dig into further, but in the meantime, duly noted on the need for me to improve the timeliness of my communication with the community.

    @CryoPenguin a quick note on having unspent CMU. I'm in the process of creating smaller bundles of items at lower CMU cost than the current bundles, so that may help at least use some of your remaining CMU balance.

  • DrThodDrThod ✭✭✭

    @NianticBrian Thanks for taking the time reading my analysis and posting here. I plan to follow it up with a part 2 - more looking at the value of a fracker at a gathering - including calculations for max value. Just not sure when I manage as Aurora keeps me busy right now.

  • Thanks @NianticBrian ! I really appreciate the feedback you give and take here.

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