how fast

[Slicerlot]

found a neat little speed test site

speedtest.net/

[Slicerlot]

Ok silently the item mall is getting shoved at every player. It appears as if the game officials have become purpose driven in cramming spend your money / ok now spend more of your money at every player. I have yet to spend a dime on this game, I look at the item mall seeing nothing that makes me want to get off my Visa Platinum. Aeria Games if you want those of us to get off our Credit Scores and use our American Express Cards give us a reason to do so.

Jap armor 1 and 2, packages, weapon covers, then there is pots and smithing stuff, stones, I mean come on just watch in the game how many players do you really see even using any of it?
30% / 20% / 10% of the players, I would be willing to bet it is probable less then 5% of all players that use the AP in item mall on a regular basis.
Everything that has become a good sell for item mall, sets the game up to what real life is for each and every player. What is that you ask, it is of the simplest of greed driven impulses "The Haves and The Have Nots".

Here is what will get myself as well others involved in buying AP. Give an item that last for 1 month which gives the player these choices and/or allowances.
Purchase from NPC = Premmie buys for 5% to 10% less then non-premmie, not a couple of things but everything.
Selling to NPC = Premmie gets an increase in the amount all items sold to NPC are worth.
Hunting areas = Premmie only hunting areas, a map or a section of a map that Premmie Only has access to, not better monster, not better drop rates, just Premmie Only access with same as non-premmie results.
Exp points = could allow Premmies a small increase per kill. By small I am talking under a 5% increase per kill.
Skill points = you could do it same as with the Exp. It would only take a 1/10 or a happy medium of less then 1% increase.
The buying and selling of Premmie stuff can and does incorporate interaction between players, due to Premmie gets a better deal they will help their Non-premmie gaming friends. When all games that have fell by the wayside resort to forcing all players to go pay to play or be left behind out of the game. Have yet to see those games keep the member base growing like the sells charts project, they end up just short of hopeful, on a plateau that they learn to live with or shelf the game.

It is not about generating short term peaks of interest that is going to keep it alive, you're going to need a long term goal to keep it alive.
Most of what all players have been apart of in the short time LC has ran the servers is not the lack of players but the lack of trying to play the game without being over ran by to many players on very small map areas. Unless all that is wanted is a member base that only plays part-time.

I say this not to just trash talk an otherwise very good game with very good "eye candy" appeal. I point this out because the Wife and I do and have in the past used Premmie to promote contest on our member based Fan-sites as well inter-guild contest.
Give us a few reasons to generate fan support so we can bring back the 60 plus players we have lost over the last few months. Then again maybe it is the players like us that are not welcomed in these types of games.