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Newbie impressions, and where I would love to see this game going

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Arthem White:
Hey there!

I recently discovered GOIO and, being captivated by what I saw, I got hold of a 4-pack. Together with three close friends, I'm having an absolute blast.

We used to be members of an EvE online pirate fleet. This means we are used to complex mechanics, teamwork and heart-destroying levels of adrenaline. Even though EvE required quite a bit of teamwork, there is nothing like sharing the physical space of the same airship. Somehow, it makes the communication much more intimate and interesting. What I like the most is that, and I can't really put my finger on why, it is hard to get angry at your teammates if they do something wrong. You're keeping a ship afloat, there is no need for that!

I understand that, being new, I know very little about the game, but I think I wanted to offer my opinion at this stage anyway, because sometimes the perspective of a newbie is interesting. Why? Well, things that I like or dislike of the game are the sort of things that a new player will realize first, and in order to make it a successful game, appealing to new recruits is important.

So here's what I noticed: I've been showing the game to several friends since I first knew about it. Interestingly I got extreme reactions. They either showed their patent dislike (before of after playing) or got absolutely hooked. I studied who among my friends fall in each category and this is what I got:

Dislike: The sort of players who game mostly for the entertainment value. Amusement park MMO gamers (GW2, Wow...), single player orientated gamers, with interest in narrative and slow-paced, easy going, visually stunning experiences.

Like: Competitive, study-minded players. My former EvE flight mates, MOBA gamers, players with interest in complex tactics that arise from a simple ruleset on a level playing field (chess players, Go players, MTG players)...

I am not saying that GOIO can't offer good things for both groups! I am amazed that Adventure is coming and there will be more engaging content that might draw that subset of my friends to it. However, the correlation is so strong that I couldn't help but notice it. I personally belong to the second group, and I could really feel the draw of GOIO when I realized there was such a thing as metagame, proper balance, strategies, tactics...

So, despite the fact that I'm excited for Adventure Mode, I would personally love to see GOIO evolving in the direction of an eSport. I think it does have a great potential in that regard. With some effort put into server architecture and lag issues, some work on balance, matchmaking, ELO based leagues, and more engaging game modes, I would definitely tune in to GOIO streams, read GOIO guides and put hours on training. I would also love to see more ship building options with specific niche purposes, in order to develop a very rich meta (similar to MTG in which, when a new deck is introduced, the meta may quickly change around that new strategy in order to counter it).

So I guess the conclusion is: Adventure is going to be awesome, but I would also like to see more of what keeps me hooked today: Teamwork tactical PvP fights in the sky!

Kyren:
I think there are some rather "easy" possibilities towards setting up some easy accessible PVP stuff. Some games work pretty well with automatic tournaments and scoreboards.

With a scoreboard, detailed in Daily/Weekly/Monthly highs, there'd be a higher level of competition here already - I'm personally not a friend of all that fancy "I always shoot down Level 1 Pilots, that's why my profile says I'm only missing 3% of my shots" stuff, but it'd definitely make the game richer. Things to appear on a scoreboard could be highest kill streak, matches won, etc.

Ideally, those could be tracked by Player AND Ship or Guild, to give some more importance to the ships and crews one flies with. Also, commendations received and given could be counted.

Lord Dick Tim:
Great post Arthem!  I'm also of the second group, and as one EvE pirate to another, Sul'Det Matar, we come for our people.

WPGAMING:
Nice post mate  :D

Arthem White:
Thanks guys! :)

I also think it would go a long way for GOIO's popularity to make Skirmish mode free to play (of course keep all the cosmetic improvements in the cash shop) and charging for Adventure Mode alone.

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