There is NO reason for skyblock to be in development. I don't really care how unique or interesting you think it is; it is not going to accomplish anything with regards to bringing new players on
Reika, could you please provide us with your quantifiable proof that developing Skyblock would not be able to attract any new players? Do you have any data or relatable experience to support this claim, or is this just your personal opinion?
I feel like mini-games attract the younger crowd
Putting the target demographic issues aside, it seems that you generally agree that mini-games will attract new players. I would argue that having any new players, regardless of age, is a good thing for the server.
A higher player count makes the server more appealing to other potential players; in turn, this increases server donations. This could be especially true when you consider the following:
mini-games attract the younger crowd, which is used to instant gratification in games
If someone is used to instant gratification, then they may be more likely to spend $10 or $20 in order to get that instant "advantage" in Towny. I agree that many of these types of players won't stay in Towny for a long period, but any donation is a net positive for the server, right? Would these players be less favorable than more patient players that understand they don't need to spend any money in order to enjoy Towny?
I would argue that a healthy server needs a good mix of instant gratification (ig) players and patient players alike. The ig players will join for the mini-games, play for a week, explore towny, donate $10, play for another week, and then leave forever. Whereas the patient players will join for Towny, play for a few months, work until they can pay someone meebles for a $20 donation, and continue to play.
Both types of players fill critical roles that Meep needs: The ig players will continue revolving, thus creating a high, and appealing, player count. The patient players will keep the community strong and tight-knit. Most important;y, both provide viable funding options for keeping the server alive.
resetting the server appears to be the vastly popular opinion
Resetting the server will always be a double-edged sword, and is never as simple as "doing a reset will fix all of our problems." A reset is a great tool to pave the way for new updates, developments, and other major game changes. However, every time the server is reset, it loosens the sense of security than any previous players may have.
When a player has invested hundreds of hours into creating their town, increasing their wealth, and obtaining their gear, then they typically don't want to see all of that work wasted away with a reset. Any resets that are done need to be justified for the hours that are being lost – meaning that it usually needs to come with a major game update.
What updates, and major game changes, do you propose should happen during the next server reset? Additionally, how do you propose the development staff split their time in order to make these updates possible? Will you please provide your proposals in a format ranking the importance of each, along with the hours needed to complete, and a detailed list showing how the tech hours should be split during this update. You may want to provide a Gantt chart to help the staff team visualize your concepts.
additional arguments include the fact that the economy is already completely controlled by anyone established. it will take new players hours daily of grinding to really compete
This is the only argument you've used in favor of a reset, and it's not a very strong argument to begin with. In any established economy, there will be people performing well based on their longevity with the game. It's the exact same way in real life. The more hours you put in, the more wealth you have – this is why the world is run by people around 65 years old, and why people that are 16 don't have any tangible net worth. You need to invest time into a game in order to get a sizeable share of the equity.
You're also contradicting yourself in this sentence. Let's have a look:
It can take months to build a town into a metropolis or even into something one would consider large, and that isn't something that appeals to immature children, which is a good thing.
it will take new players hours daily of grinding to really compete
So which are you in favor of? Do you want mature players that are okay with a grind and the months it takes to build a metropolis? Or do you want instant gratification players that just want to be at baltop 1 in less than a few days of grinding?
Are you also able to provide us with any additional arguments as to why the server is in need of a reset?
Assemble a council primarily comprising older players and those from outside the existing influential friend group as a significant source of feedback and suggestions for the reset
Who do you think should choose who is in this assembly? If all of the current players are in one "friend group," and you don't trust that friend group, then is there really anyone that you would trust to pick and choose which old players should form this council?
The current staff team is too large.
I don't really see the reason that like 15 people with 0 individuality or skills apart from moderation … were given staff
So you agree that the current staff team has moderation skills. Is it shocking to you that moderation is almost literally the only thing that qualifies someone to be on the Moderation team? I don't remember it being called the Diverse Personality team, lol.
Essentially you're saying "staff does a good job at moderating, but I don't like that they all have similar personalities so we should downsize." But you're not presenting any of the cons that come with a large staff team (is it no cons?) and none of the benefits that come from a small staff team.
Also just so you know:
I hate to use deinen's words, but this should be treated like a business.
I am fairly confident that this quote from Deinen, about how Meep should be treated as a business, was in response to players demanding to have decisions on who should and shouldn't be staff. So it very ironic that you're using that quote but missing 99% of the context.
I honestly think you're just trolling at this point. You make baseless claims, you offer subjective opinions as unavoidable truths, you contradict yourself, you miss the context of your quotes, and you make no solid attempts to help reform the server. I'd applaud you if you actually put in some thought into your "suggestions," but that just doesn't seem to be here.
Maybe you should restart by listing your actual suggestions on a sheet of paper. Iron out the details yourself, since you don't trust staff to do it anyway, and then present it in a way that shows quantifiable evidence of the pros and cons associated with your suggestions.
