2024 Update Phase 2: The Shelter
Forum Index > Core > Announcements > News Archive >
QUOTE originally posted by GinKurosu
I mean, it really is whatever, I'll just have to deal with it. I am sure yall don't really get it since you are hypermode users, but nothing I can do there ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
QUOTE originally posted by impish.sei
QUOTE originally posted by zubatfan
with the shelter moving away from the (unintended) dex usage, would changing how the Original trainer changes to the new adopter ever be considered? if people want to use it to hunt for things they already have/breeding/collecting it seems like it would be useful if the OT didnt change.
QUOTE originally posted by zubatfan
i dont think i understand completely but im looking forward to seeing it in action! will one pokemon still need to be from someone else, or will both being from myself simply matter less?
Hatched Shinies
glitter glitter, shine so brightHatched Albinos
pastel power!Hatched Melans
heart attack in a purple sparkleHatched Eggs
so many eggs.....0 pts
.
QUOTE originally posted by Rainquail
QUOTE originally posted by GinKurosu
I mean, it really is whatever, I'll just have to deal with it. I am sure yall don't really get it since you are hypermode users, but nothing I can do there ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Score: 0
QUOTE originally posted by GinKurosu
QUOTE originally posted by Rainquail
QUOTE originally posted by GinKurosu
I mean, it really is whatever, I'll just have to deal with it. I am sure yall don't really get it since you are hypermode users, but nothing I can do there ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Is there a way to gain points?
Like certain site interactions?
Samira/Sammi/Sam
Profile pic is a photograph of a male snow owl I have taken at Berlin Zoo (Tiergarten) with my Samsung Galaxy Note 8
QUOTE originally posted by LilBadger
Is there a way to gain points?
Like certain site interactions?
juno
mio is fine too!
| adult | any pronouns | pfq's otter hoarder
f2u code ♡ code shop ♡ trade shop ♡ journalart by me for my use only!
QUOTE originally posted by Mio Xenoblade
QUOTE originally posted by LilBadger
Is there a way to gain points?
Like certain site interactions?
I use tone tags! Ones I tend to use the most are /gen
genuine
, /nfnot forced
,/nmnot mad
, /lhlight hearted
, /npanot passive aggressive
, /pospositive
, /neuneutral
, /ssarcastic
. (Hover over for meanings~)
Credits: Avatar
made by Anna-Ravenrock
|| Signaturemy design. Luvdisc is one of my Pokemon OCs adapted from an official Luvdisc sprite, girl and the quote are both from Erin Entrada Kelly's novel You Go First
Long post because I love rambling, yapping, blabbing, etc.
A couple thoughts about the whole "shelter vs lab/fishing" thing, from someone who loves both the shelter and the lab... fishing less so. I love shelter hatching for shiny hunts, and I love lab hatching for unlimited eggs on Niet/Ravyne days. But the big question I have, is, how do new players feel about the gameplay experience of the shelter compared to the lab? Compared to fishing?
From what I remember of the time when me and my friends were new players, a big appeal of the shelter was the sheer amount of options, of being able to search through to try and find your favourite pokemon, and how excited we would get when we found legendaries (and even my first shiny!) in the shelter.
Something I've seen a fair bit in this thread is how dex completion is one of the "primary" goals of the site, with "endgame" content like shiny hunting boosts logistically placed behind dex completion rewards. And yes, the shelter does definitely make that easier! Something I wonder about, though, is if the "enjoyable" part of the shelter making dex completion easier is because the alternatives just aren't as "enjoyable"/fun?
I've seen a fair amount of people who find dex completion a slog in the official games, and the official games have a lot more interactive of a playstyle than a clicker game like Pokefarm Q. I personally LOVE clicker games, to the point where I've been actively playing up to four at once(!!) but I'm very well aware that I'm an outlier in this. A lot of the friends who I've referred to PFQ have all eventually stopped playing because clicker games just aren't their style, and that's fine!!
The thing is, though, for people whos primary enjoyment is not of clicker games but of collecting all kinds of Pokemon, I can see why the shelter would be a clear favourite. You get to adopt anything you can find in there, in comparison to the lab, which offers just as wide of a selection, but only four eggs at a time, you have to wait for a new selection, and if you aren't as familiar with Pokemon or the egg descriptions on this game, you might not know what you're getting. And honestly, as Nintendo keeps adding more and more Pokemon to the official games, there's just more and more you have to do to complete the dex, and with that, there's more and more possible eggs in the lab that lessens the chance of getting something you want. And I'll give you context here so nobody can take me out of context, yes, these are both important parts of the game, yes, the shelter is overpowered and needs balancing.
I dunno, I'm just reminded of the mainline games, and of other peoples' ideas for their own fan-made regions, where progression seems a lot more "linear". If you like normal and flying types, you know you'll encounter one on the early routes, grass and bug types are usually found in forests, water types are found on beaches, etc. You have a "direction" for where to go, there's a sense of progress and moving on, you can "categorise" the mons into their routes so you can prioritise route by route, so you can feel like you're making progress on smaller goals on your way to complete the big goal of "catch 1000+ pokemon".
And that brings me to fishing. I love the idea behind fishing. I love that the progression makes sense, you know what you're getting (water pokemon) and you know what you're working towards (rarer/stronger water pokemon). As a late-game player who doesn't have a lot to gain from fishing, and also someone who personally prefers the clicker gameplay to fishing minigames, it tends to bore me a little bit, but that's fine. Nothing can be for everyone, and I love that.
I think a couple pages back, Niet rather sarcastically said, "That the solution to people not liking the fact that I'm encouraging people to use more of the game's features is to add still more?", and I know I'm probably responding to a very rhetorical question here, but here's my very genuine response: Maybe! I can't speak for everyone, and I can't speak for sure, but if the complaint stems from "I don't find these other features fun", maybe if a variety of additional features were added, there could be "something for everyone."
To bring myself back to my original point... how do new players feel about the gameplay experience? How do new players feel about the various features? Do they feel as if the other gameplay features are adequately engaging/rewarding? Does the intended gameplay focus of dex completion feel possible, inspirational, motivational, challenging, grindy, too broad? If the shelter took the fun out of dex completion because it was too overpowered, does the "nerfing" of it also take the fun out of dex completion if you don't find the currently-existing alternatives enjoyable?
These aren't the kinds of questions I can answer myself, given that I love all aspects of Pokemon, I love collection and completion, I love a good challenge, and I do find the clicker gameplay loop genuinely fun. But hopefully, if you've read this far, it's given you something to think about.
Just gonna put down some numbers/data that I have in support of this update.
While it is true that the Shelter Passes start with very low adoption budgets, it's worth noting that the B pass is extremely cheap and the A pass can be obtained within about two weeks of joining the game through participation in Fabulous Friday at the very least. So this already acts as incentive to explore features that give out free GP to get those early upgrades.
EDIT: As a quick update, I've added some text to the Gold Poké page that directly links to Fabulous Friday and Contests as sources of free GP.
As a result of this, I consider Shelter Pass A to be the "early-midgame" pass. In other words, the pass that I reasonably expect users to have when they've passed the very start of the game and are just getting invested in the game proper. At this point the player has hatched their first few parties, typically from the Lab since that's where the Tutorial focuses primarily, and has followed guidance to acquire their first few upgrades. The player at this point has been around long enough to be invested in the game.
At this point, with a budget of 40 points, they can adopt a full party of unknown eggs if they want, with 4 points to spare - enough to adopt a random hatched Legend if they should be so lucky to find one! (Or just some other favourite, doesn't have to be a Legend XD)
For users in this early-midgame stage, hatching a full party of eggs in a single day is actually an accomplishment. The numbers don't lie, the overwhelming majority of users at this progression level actually have more than enough budget with just 40 points, and the Lab remains a very useful and viable source of free new Eggs if they need more.
I feel like a lot of responses here are blinkered in a way. We've become so used to being able to make tens of thousands of interactions, and hatch hundreds upon hundreds of eggs every day, it's really easy to forget that doing so puts you in the topmost of top percentage of users.
I will of course be continuing to monitor the data and adjust accordingly, but right now things are looking good.
They'll be even better next month, when the Daycare buffs go out. As I explained in the original 2024 plans listing, the collection of updates are being spaced out to ensure each individual update can get the attention it deserves, including post-update tweaks like the S and X passes being bumped up. This does however mean that there will be periods of time where the overall game balance isn't quite as ideal as we'd like. This is that period of time. The balance is shifting, and it will be somewhat unstable until next month's updates come in.
On a side-note, I'm interested in opinions on the Fishing feature. Personally I think the minigame is a fun change from the main PFQ gameplay, so I'm interested to hear specific issues people have with it. Things like "too grindy" (eg. unlock numbers for later areas too high), "needs too much focus" (eg. paying attention to and clicking the Hook button at the right time), "too complicated", "minigame too RNG-heavy"... Specific things that can be collected and looked at, rather than just blanket "I don't like it" statements, would be very helpful.
Cannot post: Please log in to post