Yea sure, in the same way the design of a pringles can or the calorie count in cakes is predatory.
Same with flavored alcohol and the flavored vapes being banned because they “appeal to kids” (better argument I’m making for you here).
Unfortunately, the issue of things being designed around “dopamine kicks” isn’t limited to Lost Ark. It works that way with Facebook, Instagram and social media (the little ticks and notifications you get do the same as a ‘SUCCESS!’). Edit: Life in 2022 is unfortunately designed around this, the idea of capitalizing on FOMO to rob people of their time and/or money, it’s non-unique to Lost Ark. Posting here wont change it, build up some mental fortitude.
This “preying on customers for their dollars” is unfortunately a design of capitalism but this is not the place for a discussion about political-economic ideology.
As I said, the fact that you can reframe your perception of the system with enough time and game knowledge, and the fact that it is possible to resist the predatory nature of the design, doesn’t make the design not predatory. It is incredibly manipulative and predatory.
There is no “conversely”. The design is predatory. Period. It being possible to resist it doesn’t change the nature of the design. No con is 100% successful and not every mark is going to take the bait, but a conman isn’t less of a conman for those being true.
I mean, yes, all marketing is predatory to some degree. It’s not nearly as predatory as Lost Ark, because most marketing is at least trying to manipulate you into buying their product by either selectively extolling its virtues or by giving you a separate product (entertainment) that you enjoy, even if it’s unrelated to their actual product. Ethical marketing would look more like a infograph.
Lost Ark is far more predatory because it is far closer to a full-blown con, as it intentionally manufactures a specific (negative in this case) emotional state through a convoluted system.
Then you already have experience with this kind of system and did your reframing elsewhere. 10/10 people that come into Lost Ark from, say, WoW, will experience the system as I described, and that is the purpose of the system.
Yea sure. Again, its the unfortunate reality of life in 2022 when it comes to how corporations treat people.
Go read any George Orwell. Go deep into Dystopian literature and art and you’ll see this is literally an unfortunate outcome of a very predictable future. Thank Ronald Reagan and the ‘New World Order’ for this.
Don’t like the leeway corporations are given? Then start taking a close look at your local and national politics and find someone who endorses your views. I guarantee you, complaining about Lost Ark’s predatory design on the game’s forum will not resolve this issue.
It’s like going to McDonald’s and yelling at them for making you fat. They just dont care (and that is a sad reality of today). We’re all expendable, each and every one of us including myself.
Just enjoy Lost Ark for what it is, and if you don’t have fun or it brings out the worst in you? Why stick with it?
The fact that other things are predatory as well doesn’t excuse this game having predatory mechanics. I really dislike this term, but it is whataboutism. You acknowledge that these issues do exist. Why is it weird that people come here to complain because they don’t like such design?
People want to play the game to escape the reality and have fun.
So we should all just ignore these predatory practices of modern society/capitalism, and “build up mental fortitude”. I’m gonna repeat this once more: People want to play the game to escape the reality and have fun. This isn’t an issue with Lost Ark only, but in LA it’s cranked up to 11. These issues do exist elsewhere and in other games, doesn’t mean they are right and moral, or that they should exist.
My point is that you’re advocating for change in the wrong place. AGS and whoever else is in charge here doesn’t give a rats ass that they’re taking money out of people’s wallets and making you write forum posts.
You know who is more likely to be receptive? Your local officials. As much as I hate Asmongold and his merry band of 12 year olds, he made a very good point: The only people that can actually rein in this kind of behavior is government.
The sort of psychological manipulation and predatory stuff rampant in modern games isn’t going to go away on its own because it’s very effective, and unfortunately due to a large portion of consumers just not caring enough i.e. obiwanxshinobi or being willfully ignorant i.e. OP, I don’t believe consumers will enact any sort of change either
I think the only way it would ever get better is if there’s serious regulation from governing bodies, which is a shame but that’s the way it is
Well, some companies probably do care about players’ feedback. I have realized it’s probably not worth complaining here because they don’t want to change this stuff, but many haven’t.
Besides, they could change some of the systems to be less frustrating, while still getting that profit they still care about. I’m sure they’re smart enough to come up with something that would still bring them money. But designing new systems would cost them money, and they’re content with how it is right now. So in the end, they do not care about the game or players.
I’m more disappointed than angry or anything. Because Lost Ark really is a good game without these systems.
They won’t change anything as a result of complaints like this, but even so I think it’s good to at least spread awareness of how all this stuff works because a lot of people, particularly if they’ve grown up with games like this, have never actually thought about the design intent behind all these little irks and frustrations
Awareness would be good. My issue though, is when advocating for people to reframe their thoughts on how to hone / approach these systems I get called all sorts of names.
Really refreshing to have an actual conversation about the systems rather than some shitpost fiesta where we’re all using expletives.
Right but my contention would be that AGS/SG could increase their own value gain from Lost Ark by toning the predatory design down. It is a myth that capitalism results in the most efficient systems possible. This type of game design exists because somewhere down the road it was an easy way to generate more profits in the near future and it isn’t so toxic that it literally causes the company to go under; or I should say that it is toxic in a way that is effective enough on whales/dolphins at generating revenue and not so toxic for guppies that the business goes under.
But Lost Ark is actually a good game. The combat is good. The island/sailing system is good. The PvP is good. The raids and dungeons are good. It doesn’t need to rely on attaching toxic, predatory systems to those things to be successful, and in fact I believe wholeheartedly that it is losing out on potential revenue by doing so. They call it an MMO but Lost Ark is basically a next gen ARPG. If they just focused on producing content that people want because it’s good they would be successful. Pump out skins and stronghold items and, shit, sell tickets to in-game fucking concerts or whatever.
That is what is particularly frustrating about these systems existing, because it’s lose-lose and reeks of insecurity. They could be consumer friendly (in an actual way, not a “not as bad as BDO” way) and make money, but that would require believing in their game.
The best way to go about it would be to first acknowledge that the system is predatory and that it can be frustrating, and then offer a way to get around this by reframing how you approach it. Otherwise it comes off as defending the game and those said predatory systems, and obviously that doesn’t go well for a lot of players.
I agree with this. The issue is, they’re unlikely to change it now, when the game has been already out for how many years. If they were as passionate about this project as they’re about making money, they would be looking to change this system. However, it doesn’t seem to be the case.
