Registration Date: 29.05.2007
Posts: 139
Location: Lithuania -> UK
Is help wanted?
Just a quick question for Erwin.
Do you want community to help you to run this game?
It is just clarify what do you want from this game and community.
I am not talking about about paying for server. That is already happening.
I mean promoting, improving game supporting stuff (youtube, newsletters, twitter, forum, web site).
p.s. not trying to rise a revolt. Just looking for possibilities
Originally posted by Apus
Just a quick question for Erwin.
Do you want community to help you to run this game?
It is just clarify what do you want from this game and community.
I am not talking about about paying for server. That is already happening.
I mean promoting, improving game supporting stuff (youtube, newsletters, twitter, forum, web site).
p.s. not trying to rise a revolt. Just looking for possibilities
This has allready been discussed, read the forum to know.
Registration Date: 29.05.2007
Posts: 139
Location: Lithuania -> UK
Thread Starter
Well, sorry, but could not find such thread (can you pass some links?) :(
Yes, I heard that Erwin is willing to keep control for him self. But there is always other ways to help .
If we know that he would like to have some help, we can advance from topics like "it would be good" to topics "it is good, let's do it".
Registration Date: 13.05.2011
Posts: 1,025
Location: USA
I think a regular newslaetter that would go out once a month to all listed players (with opt-out option, of course) would be a real asset to the game. Once a week would alert them better to upcoming galaxies, but they'll opt out if it is too frquent. Then again, the first issue could ask each one how often they wanted to get newsletters and they'd be put into separate lists based on their response (default monthly).
Erwin maintains the e-mailing lists and will not be willing to change it.
When the email was ready, he'd mail it.
The Spicy news about the cup could go into the first issue, and upcoming galaxies would be a major feature. Are you up to edit it, Apus?
Whoever likes research can research Games advertising venues. It would be good to make this a whole topic, rather than just a thread, and we could donate for advertising year-round, to grow our fave game.
Registration Date: 29.05.2007
Posts: 139
Location: Lithuania -> UK
Thread Starter
quote:
Originally posted by Radiance
I think a regular newslaetter that would go out once a month to all listed players (with opt-out option, of course) would be a real asset to the game. Once a week would alert them better to upcoming galaxies, but they'll opt out if it is too frquent. Then again, the first issue could ask each one how often they wanted to get newsletters and they'd be put into separate lists based on their response (default monthly).
Erwin maintains the e-mailing lists and will not be willing to change it.
When the email was ready, he'd mail it.
The Spicy news about the cup could go into the first issue, and upcoming galaxies would be a major feature. Are you up to edit it, Apus?
Whoever likes research can research Games advertising venues. It would be good to make this a whole topic, rather than just a thread, and we could donate for advertising year-round, to grow our fave game.
I'm not the best writer, but would like to be involved. Newsletter is really priceless tool.
Although I didn't intend to go too deep into details in this topic, why not to discuss.
What I believe should go into first newsletter:
1. Out of these 10k users only little fraction knows at what state the game is. For example, I told my brother, that the game is free now and there is galaxy to join. And he joined it. We need to inform others that there were major changes in how game is run.
2. Statement of how many galaxies is open for sign up. (I think there should be always a few on offer, when newsletter is sent out).
3. As you said, some spicy news from current events. But not too much. There should be a link for full story.
4. There should be a link at the bottom to opt out from news letters.
What first we will need is design of the email (you don't want plain text, do you?). Competition?
Then we can start assembly of text.
Lastly. We would need to make sure, that we have some galaxies ready to join before sending news letter + close monitoring of demand, to make sure everyone can join the party. It is very important not to let people wait first time.
Before sending 10k+ emails to tell people that the game is now free, I'd like to know if you all want that it stays free. Free means also no further development. Personally I'd like that the game went pay-to-play again someday.. Maybe even pay for all (sandbox/testbed free, regular galaxies paying), with a very encouraging price maybe (5-10 euros/year). Maybe 5 euros contribution wouldn't be enough even to pay the server costs, but it would lighten the burden for the main 'sponsors' and it could open new paths if things go better than expected.
If the game went pay for all, a couple of new galaxy format would be welcome: like in the recent Blaer's Galaxy, there are a lot of people who'd like to play a small galaxy among friends, or can't check in every 2 hours, or don't want this kind of stress.
There could be for example galaxies for 3-8 players and a turn limit of 6 or more hours, but an 'end turn' button like in the testbed, and after all players have pressed the button the tick would be processed. There could be an e-mail notification system when a new turn starts, for this kind of galaxies.
This way it would be attractive also for people who don't have much time and/or are accustomed with more traditional turn based games (like MOO2).
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This post has been edited 2 time(s), it was last edited by Quetzalcoatl: 18.01.2012 14:39.
@Quetzalcoatl
Free doesn't imply no further development. There are many people prefer invest their time and skills than their money.
A game is not developed because Erwin is out of time(full time job, his own business) and he doesn't decide to create team of volunteer developers. (Go ahead and try convince him)
Also it's worth noting that even a small price that is not voluntary makes many people to avoid game.
The game is Erwin's, he developed it, and since the game went free he clearly stated he will not develop it further. This isn't going to change. Maybe because he isn't eager to release the source code, since this would mean for him to give away for good any hope that could come from his 5+ years of work for it. Once you release the code for free, and say the game it's free, I don't think you can turn back on your steps.
I don't mean that if the game were pay-for-all and the price/year were 5 euros, he would be more motivated to develop it, probably not, since it would be hard to cover even the costs, again. But if things go well maybe he could be motivated to let some people develop it further.
Also, I can't see how people could be discouraged by a price of 5 euros. A free user could save/load governors, use coat of arms and have trait customization (and all the advanced features) also in the sandbox, or have 2 sandbox gals, one with advanced features enabled and one not. And also a sandbox gal for rank 1, 2 and so on (that would be useful also now).
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This post has been edited 2 time(s), it was last edited by Quetzalcoatl: 18.01.2012 16:04.
Registration Date: 29.05.2007
Posts: 139
Location: Lithuania -> UK
Thread Starter
Believe me, a lot of people will be discouraged even by 5 euros. It is not the size of fee, but the fact that you are forced to pay.
I like now common business model, when the game is free, but you can also buy some little extras. I would say, that it could work here too.
But before that you need player base. Big one. 100 active players won't make you rich.
The basic game should be available for everyone, but let's say app on your phone with many alerts about game could ask for a yearly subscription. Let's say 5 euro a year.
You can still play, but if you want these handy alerts and few extra tools, please pay.
We can always come up with more ideas about extras...
Please, I hate those pay-for-ringtones/alerts stuff.. I wouldn't pay even 1 Euro for a game with that kind of crap. Can't a paying model be straightforward? Like 10 years ago, when you bought games in a box, and you payed for the game. Now can't you simply pay for the game? Must you pay for extra stuff? Many games are 'free', but then you have to pay for this extra crap. This is the kind of things that keep me away from games, when I see them. I don't like this 'donkey and carrot' business model. It's very disrespectful towards the players and customers, imho. Free sandbox/testbed/advanced features would be more than enough to understand if you like the game and want to pay 5 euros for it.
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This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by Quetzalcoatl: 18.01.2012 16:47.
Registration Date: 29.05.2007
Posts: 139
Location: Lithuania -> UK
Thread Starter
How many % of all playing games (let's say RTS) are actually paying? Probably just little fraction. Others just go to Pirate Bay and download torrent + crack.
We had premium membership here. IT DID NOT WORK.
This game is good, but business model "you can play if you go premium" won't work.
It is better to get some income through these non compulsory extras than try to force all to pay and loose players.
Players, even if they do not pay, are valuable assets. They populate galaxies, game is alive.
Paying for extra things/features was done before with the premium accounts and although it worked for what it was, it is MUCH better now that all features is free to play. The way the cost is covered now is good IMO and although major development is on hold it does not mean it can/will not happen in the future.
I agree that even a slight cost to play would turn off more players than it would bring.
I like the newsletter idea and I think it would certainly help now that all features are free to play. (no premium) At least an update so older players would be reminded of this game...some may even think it is still called space-civ and can not find it now??? Several weeks ago I sent a brief message out saying a few developments and inviting players to check us out again. There was one response and about 10 of them the e-mail message could not be delivered. This is the message I sent out, it is brief but it was spur of the moment... (I included the players name also as a way to remind them of what name they are registered under and can log in with the same name
...and the link is to the overview tab not to the main page, this way they will be reminded of all the great features this game has. I think the overview page should be the main so when new people find CS for the first time they will read that info as well...just my opinion though
)
Hello [Player's Name]
Just a friendly reminder that Cosmic Supremacy is still going strong and free for all to play.
Come check us out...http://cosmicsupremacy.com/game_overview.php
Here are a few notes in case you were unaware:
There are no longer premium accounts, all features are free for all to play! Smile
There are galaxies being set up with different turn lengths. 12hr, 6hr, 2hr, 1hr.
There are also speed galaxies that are 2-3 minutes per turn and are done on the weekends usually.
I only sent about 50 out by going to each players profile page and clicking the email tab and the bottom. It was a little time consuming this way but I felt it was worth it. I would love to know an update message was sent to all registered players.
*Edit: I also forgot to put my name in the message so no one knew who sent the email
. This may be why there were not more responses and the only response was posted in the forums here.
On the 28th of February last year, I got this from 'Cosmic Supremacy News':
quote:
Hello Nongolf,
we have excellent news to report from the CS headquarters: Cosmic Supremacy will be a fully and ENTIRELY FREE GAME from this point on, which means that all features that were previously available only to premium players, are now available to ALL players.
This step was possible thanks to a hard-core group of players within the CS community that covered the cost of the server! So CS is no longer a profit orientated game but instead community-driven/sponsored.
So why not visit http://cosmicsupremacy.com and check out the features that you have missed? We would love to welcome you back, and see you as an active part of the CS community!
In short, most are probably aware that SpaceCiv is now cosmic Supremacy.
That there is the last news I got though. Got plenty of notifications and reminders, but they only pertain to galaxies that I signed up to.
I agree that's it at least couldn't hurt to send out more newsletters. Perhaps once every quarter? Including some RP elements might be good, to show that the game can be more than just hard-core strategy.
I volunteer to help make them if we get to that point.
Edits: Don't skip preview!
This post has been edited 2 time(s), it was last edited by Nongolf: 18.01.2012 17:39.
Since i'm now bumming my second year of free CS (due to circumstances i cannot help pay for the server, though next year i will make up for both previous years, promised
), i am of course more than willing to aid in any other way i can, including but not limited to writing stuff for the newsletter.
On the making improvements to the game i am of a dual mindset ... on one hand i would prefer the game to stay free as it is now, carried by a core of players that really care for it. On the other hand i WOULD really love to see some improvements made, obviously. Considering the first depends on Erwin remaining in charge and actually incapable of doing a lot of work on the game, the second becomes quite problematic. It could be solved by Erwin allowing someone else to make improvements to the game, but we all know how he feels about that. So i guess we'll have to make do with the game as is, and hope Erwin finds some free time in the future to make some of the more obviously beneficial improvements.
__________________ It is preferable to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak and remove all doubt.
This post has been edited 1 time(s), it was last edited by Confused: 18.01.2012 18:31.
Registration Date: 26.12.2004
Posts: 8,274
Location: Vienna, Austria
As for news-letters, IF we have something interesting to tell, some new development etc, then sure, I am all for sending out SPAM MAIL. If we desperately try to come up with some semi-news that no-body actually cares about, and turn out to be annoying (especially if such a mail arrives every quarter or so), I am against that.
Either there is something really of value to tell to players, otherwise don't bother them. As far as I am concerned, that mail that was sent out one year ago, was worth notifying players about. So, if you guys come up with a text that holds some new information, or value in any shape or form, then pass it on to me, and I fire up the spam generator. Otherwise, better wait until we have some REAL news to report.
As for, what can players do? You can help promote the game and attract more players. And believe me, the most effective tool is word of mouth! I have seen the effect of what happens if a dedicated CS player starts up discussions about this game on some other forum! They passionately talk about the game, even post screenshots, tell their experiences... this gets people interested! And if you do it at the right place, where you are among like-minded people, it can have a HUGE impact!
Of course, that too has to be done right! If you come up with something like "Hey, check out this game <link>"... don't even bother, that sort of thing has the opposite effect. That's quick and dirty. If you really want to attract people it has to come from the heart! They know the difference, and don't jump on it easily. You have to be attentive, respond to their questions and concerns, lead real conversations. But that takes a lot of time and effort...
So in short, I welcome everything that you guys can do on your own to promote the game. There are lots of things you can do, that you don't need my help for! In fact, if potential-future-players get the impression you are SENT by the game-creator(s), they will not take you (as) seriously. That's the power of the community, baby...
Originally posted by Erwin [CS]
Of course, that too has to be done right! If you come up with something like "Hey, check out this game <link>"... don't even bother, that sort of thing has the opposite effect.
I agree that there should be more to a post than that, but if the link is allowed to stay, it does have the effect of adding to this site's 'google rating', lifting it up in search results (with enough links).
Registration Date: 29.05.2007
Posts: 139
Location: Lithuania -> UK
Thread Starter
Erwin, do you have design for your spam letters or is it going only as a plain text?
I agree, that there should always be something interesting in the news letter. And it will be made by community, so it will be something that community wants to tell others.
The process of creation of news letter will take time and will be sent off only if approved by community.
I would say, let's send news letters when we have major events coming, but no more than one every month or two months.
First newsletter would be sent as soon as it is ready, because it is first newsletter and we have a lot of things to say
...and the link is to the overview tab not to the main page, this way they will be reminded of all the great features this game has. I think the overview page should be the main so when new people find CS for the first time they will read that info as well...just my opinion though 
)
. This may be why there were not more responses and the only response was posted in the forums here.
