Umbra Digital Packs feedback

jsylvisjsylvis ✭✭✭✭

These packs are being handled differently than in the past, for the worse.

The first issue: because packs are being handled in the store, there is no longer a direct purchase price. Instead of pack, I have to buy _the next highest_ tier of CM and deal with leftovers. As a consumer, that sucks.

The second issue: because packs are being handled in the store, items are directly applied to your inventory instead of being tied to a passcode. This sucks for multiple reasons.

1) Presumably, these packs are only available for _a limited (but unknown) time_. They may be available after the anomaly... or not. No one knows. This means that, to be safe, we have to get them beforehand and recycle excess gear, wasting it.

2) the value to the gear is not the gear itself, but the ability for _you or another agent_ to redeem the passcode when needed. This has saved more than one fielding op when an emergency flipcard or SoftBank was needed. This facilitated community engagement by allowing those who could afford such passcodes purchase them - and that user set doesn't always overlap with the set of agents in-the-field during an op.

The third issue: after the **** Niantic was feeding us about "very rare gear should actually be very rare" when nerfing MUFG capsules, here we are a year later and you're still selling it (albeit indirectly) in the store. It's time to either admit you were moving the game towards pay-based gear sources or to truly commit to _making VR gear VR again_.


My suggestions:

Either bring back the passcode mechanism for gear redemption in order to restore its strategic value or abolish the gear part entirely. Even better, find a way to provide that strategic value that doesn't involve a purchase.

Either way, make a cosmetics-only option for those of us who might want to chip in a few dollars for profile bling but don't want to participate in pay-based gear sources. Gear should not come from the store.

I purchased these packs. Without changes, these are the last.

Comments

  • grendelwulfgrendelwulf ✭✭✭✭✭

    How about the option to generate the purchase as a QR code that you can screenshot and gift to another agent? Or leave in geocaches.

  • mortuusmortuus ✭✭✭✭✭

    the gear packs is meant mostly for those that are going to anomalies.. not everyone can attend a farm or have time for it.. so it will only be available like a week after the anomaly ended or so, then it will disspear and no VR items will be sold... i dont see a problem they do this really..

  • I like it.


    1: I have leftover CMU from buying frackers and other things. Meetup Bundle is really nice and the common shield bundle lets me keep shielding every portal for cheap for max AP and engineer progress.

    2: It'll be more convenient than a passcode for people who go to the anomaly. There will absolutely be a point where all their bursters are burned and they can restock with two taps. The sharing was never an intended use and creates a black market.

    3: It's a good chunk of cash for a small number of VRs that can be bought once. Hurting the black market makes them even more rare.

  • jsylvisjsylvis ✭✭✭✭
  • jsylvisjsylvis ✭✭✭✭


    #1: Similarly, actually playing the game and farming / working with your community lets you keep shielding every portal for cheap, without resorting to pay-to-play mechanics. Also, "black market" for gear codes? Definitely a top-tier concern...

    #2: See above re: pay-to-play. If anything, that should be addressed as a separate issue (selling X8s in the store).

    #3: And yet, allowing them to be purchased at all makes them less-rare. To borrow the flawed backpack argument from the MUFG capsule nerf, nothing stops people from just making another account. If we're doing away with the strategic value (a sharable code for redeeming the gear), just do away with the gear aspect altogether and get pay-to-play/pay-advantage mechanics out of it entirely.

  • jsylvisjsylvis ✭✭✭✭

    That would be really cool. Similar to the password aspect - same strategic value - but gets away from the poor overloaded passcode system. Makes them easier to redeem to boot.

  • 1) Presumably, these packs are only available for _a limited (but unknown) time_. They may be available after the anomaly... or not. No one knows. This means that, to be safe, we have to get them beforehand and recycle excess gear, wasting it.

    NianticBrian said the packs will be available at least until 22 October.

  • ioHpeiHioHpeiH ✭✭✭

    I bought the very rare packs last 3 anomaly’s. And rare packs the 3 anomaly’s before that. Redeemed the characters, gave away the doubles. And kept the gear code’s for emergencies.

    This time I’m not buying anything. I don’t need gear delivered to my inventory, not this weekend. Not next week.

    Niantic wants to make more money, getting less...

  • Over 100 dollars for 3 anomaly badges... who the hell are Niantic kidding. Appalling, greedy and un-necessary. Boycott. Talk about screwing over your player base... remembering that alot of your player base are from countries that 20 bucks is a weeks pay. What a sad bunch.

  • CliffMCliffM ✭✭✭✭✭

    I don't care about the money, I hate giving up the freedom of redeeming when and how I want. It's why I will not be purchasing kits going forward.

    Voting with my wallet.

  • GoblinGranateGoblinGranate ✭✭✭✭✭

    I understand that overriding the passcode step is Niantic's ultimate way to shut down badge black market.

    I'm ok with this new system, but the loadout should be separated from these.

    The QR suggestion is quite good, that should come straight to your mail inbox and it would also dodge the iOS problem since no passcode would need to be redeemed. Perhaps this is incorrect, I am not an iOS user, not sure how that really works.

  • MoogModularMoogModular ✭✭✭✭✭

    An option for just acquiring the characters should be made. I always enjoyed the physical media from anomalies. I can see dossier cards still being made digitally for the characters - similar to the declassified dossier you receive in the Prime tutorial about XM. It just would be neat to see the art incorporated similar to how they implemented Tycho's work.

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