DomiNations is being killed by it’s own developers

[KnattyNate]

I don’t know if anyone else is feeling this way but I’m personally getting very frustrated with Nexon/BHG and the direction they have been taking this game over the past probably year or so.

It started out as a free to play game with very little pay to win aspect. I have nothing against them implementing a pay to advance system (crowns) which in it’s own way could be considered pay to win but not as directly as troop tactics.

I personally believe that the introduction of the Stronghold was one of the biggest mistakes that they have made for the actual gameplay of DomiNations. It was definitely not a mistake in their eyes because it’s sole purpose was to be a money maker for them. It’s no coincidence that they made Elephant Archers so completely overpowered and then sell them so that the serious pay to win leaderboard chasers would spend hundreds or possibly thousands of dollars per year just on them alone.

On this type of game, the base building genre with a war aspect, everyone SHOULD be on an even playing field at all times. It’s the only way to make the game fair for all players. Take Clash of Clans for instance as comparison to DomiNations....

They both have 3 resources and three resource collectors. Gold - gold, food - elixir, oil - dark elixer. They both have barracks to train regular troops, the both have a special barracks to make troops with the more rare resource, the factory and the dark barracks. And they both have a building to produce non troop helpers for battle, tactics in DomiNations and spells in CoC.

Where DomiNations differs is in allowing so many variables that make the playing field uneven. The stronghold with its probably 20-30 different troop cards, the embassy to allow coalitions, the temple to allow blessings, the museum with it’s myriad of different artifact combinations, the library and university research...etc. there are so many variables that can make a base that you should be able to five star unbeatable.

I’m finding myself playing DomiNations less, enjoying it less, spending less. Now they’re implementing rebalancing which I haven’t even mentioned yet which is completely changing the game yet again. It was unnecessary and unwanted, just look at all the comments on the sticky threads on the rebalancing. I’m just getting tired of it all.

CoC has set a pretty good model and they are extremely profitable without having a pay to win aspect to their game. I wish Nexon/BHG would have followed their example.

 

[MSS-Gaming]

They slowly introduced more and more pay to win elements and now with the rebalance changes they are forcing the remaining player base to pay to be able to even compete in multiplayer. With the recent changes they are making a statement: buy overpowered troop tactics to use in multiplayer on a regular basis or get out. The game used to be called DomiNations, but from tomorrow onward it'll be refereed to as Hackers vs. Whales.

 

[Vixen]

People shouldn't spend until Nexon fix the cheating

 

[Cryos]

I agree. I never played Clash of Clans because of the too cartoony aesthetic but I might give it a try now.

 

[Esiebert7625]

Like it or not CoC is the gold star example of how to do a multiplayer strategy game correctly. I’ve been playing it for over 4 years, they listen, they have a very active community, it’s a very polished game with no bugs or cheating and it’s a very balanced game with 0 pay to win. They’ve also evolved to add more elements (builder base/clan games/clash Royale) to their game. While Domi is much deeper in strategy, CoC has the winning formula, their huge player base nets them $5 million a day without P2W. While Nexon has copied many elements from CoC they have failed to copy the one element that would make them more successful, grow your player base by having fair play and make your money only off pay to advance.

 

[Mountainking]

People shouldn't spend until Nexon fix the cheating

This is what I am doing..... NOT ONE SINGLE CENT.

 

[oddin]

The last two days 5 alliance members and me have started playing Rise of Civilizations. A game that already has so many things that we wished dominations had the last 3 years. It is not perfect but we have fun again and we are the same people together again. You see, people don't mind to change a game that constantly disappoints them. They are eager to play something new if they know that the same good friends will be there too!

It is the first time in my dominations history that I havent logged on for a full day. I will test for the next few days the changes for myself but rest assured that our alliance will move to another game as a whole and the only one to lose from that is YOU. And the reason is that you don't listen to us...like never

And notice that I didn't even tried this time to put some sense to you guys, you want 300% buff to buildings?? Please do it and watch the results of your idiocy. Me and my friends will not be here anymore...

 

[Manifesto]

KnattyNate , l disagree on a few things eg: this game mirrors life so it shouldn't be a level playing field. Life is not equal and everyone isn't a winner, that's for children and delusional people.
Also, the Uni and library and embassy, etc, adds diversity and that keeps things interesting.
But l agree with most of yours, and others, points. Pay to advance keeps Nexon in money and keeps us all happy.
However, I'm happy to wait for stages 3 and 4 to see if there's any redemption in the 'rebalance'.
Admittedly, I'm CWA so this affects me less than younger players, they're the ones l feel sorry for.

 

[KniferX]

Nate isn't advocating for the equality of outcome, but equality of opportunity. Pit teams at equal terms and let skill decide the winner (or at least make skill the overwhelming factor).

Over here we have a screwed up matchmaker system where the winner is decided right at the beggining if it's a mismatch (and it happens a lot) and an upcoming system where you can't beat even mid upgraded CWA bases without premium troops. That's not a skill based game, it's an elaborate ''insert credit card number to feel good'' scheme.

Also ''this game mirrors life'' what is that supposed to mean? Aren't games supposed to be fun, at times relaxing, at other times being challenging, and a form of escapism ultimately? If you want to play life, then leave your phone and play real life.

 

[No Angel]

Saying so cause you don't get involved in wars, Manifesto ?

 

[Manifesto]

KniferX , everything mirrors life because everything we do is part of life. What can l say, I'm NOT one of these people that tries to escape life. There's only one escape from life, everything else is an illusion. These changes are probably here to stay and we have to accept it or move on. Chances are I'll keep playing, albeit much less, and that's reality.
I'm not happy about it but I'll adapt. I don't 'hate' the changes, l hate the idiocy of the processes involved.
No Angel , these changes affect MP as well as wars, no?

 

[KnattyNate]

Yep...completely agree

 

[KnattyNate]

Yeah I’m done spending...i guess Supercell will get my money now

 

[KniferX]

''This game mirrors life because everything mirrors life and life is unfair, thus it's okay for a game to be unfair''
I extremely disagree with such a nihilistic approach. Also, escapism doesn't mean escaping from life in total but life's hardships, like for example, unfairness. Kinda like a vacation but on a day to day basis, like a hobby. Good games are not based on systems made to extract as much money from you as possible, and those games are not okay. Better games exist.

 

[Manifesto]

@KniferX
Who said life is unfair? Not me. Life is an adventure, like this game.
Life is always unfair to the whiners.
''I want what he has'' ''why is he better off than me'' ''it takes too long to upgrade, make all upgrades in the Uni 1 day long'', etc.
Here's a hint: people with extra things usually worked harder to get them. But this is clearly a different argument to the original post.

 

[Mountainking]

F ing scums. D head morons. You deleted my post where I asked to boycott purchasing your craps? Where is my Fing freedom of speech. F you.

 

[ratata]

Nexon is a company and not a charity organisation. Their goal is to make money, as do all companies.
I'm pretty sure they think things trough very well and maybe some players do not a like some decisions, I'm thinking they are doing pretty well.

I read about 10 different topics (why repeat the same thing over and over again?) about exactly the same thing.
Yeah, some players don't like changes and will always be negative, that's how most people react on changes. --> Maybe try it out first, try to adapt and start so in a positive way?
Yeah, some bigger issues are around such as the cheaters and terrible matchmaking (the 2 things getting on my nerfs the most) --> I'm really hoping the devs are doing something about this.
Yeah, I hate facing teams using premium TT all over, but that is my opinion, other players do not, and everyone has his own playstyle and we should respect each other needs.

But I play this game for fun and when I'm reading this forums, I'm seeing some players (mostly the same just repeating themselves over and over) complaining all the time.
Why are you still playing this? If you don't like the game, just move on. If you want to keep playing, you are of course welcome to do so, but please try to do it in a positive way.
Complaining about some topics is fine, but do it in a constructive way and it the mean time, try to adapt and keep it fun.

I'm still enjoying this a lot, I would personally have done some things in another way, but I'm pretty sure some players would not have liked that as well.

 

[Bootney Lee Fonsworth]

Your copy-paste skills are on point today. Who are you trying to convince? Us or yourself? Complaining is something that people resort to when they actually care about a product. Doesn't do much good with these devs and moderators, but you can't blame folks for trying after investing so much time/money. If people didn't care they'd walk away in silence. FYI, most threads indicate what they are about right in the title if the complaints are so upsetting to you.

 

[Funken_A]

LOL... Ok the bottom line is more people do not like the update then those who think they do

 

[Funken_A]

No its a game and it should be a level playing field.

Its not a game if any one player or group of players can afford an advantage.

I could not disagree more with that ridiculous statement