Saving Utopia.

[CaptainC0w]

No, unfortunately I do not possess an answer to save our beloved Utopia however I would like to discuss a few issues that I have been pondering that may help members of the utopia community up an answer to save Utopia.

Bear with me while I try to outline my thoughts.

I play utopia because the strategic depth and diversity is present (it is an easy game to play but tough to master), the teamwork and social interaction is present and there is no 'pay-to-win' feature. In order to be successful I think utopia needs to continue to have these characteristics.

However Utopia has many unsolved issues. For the owners, understandably, it is intended to make profit. For us it's players it needs to keep the aforementioned characteristics that we so enjoy. These two aims can come into conflict with one another which is why it is difficult to solve these issues.

Most on-line games make money by a pay-to-win feature, no doubt many of us have left utopia saying we won't play again and return after trying several other text based strategy games that suck because they are pay-to-win. If Utopia were to do this I believe it would be the end of utopia as it conflicts with the characteristics that attract/maintain utopia's player base.

However Utopia is never going to be restored to it's former popularity until it earns money for the owners allowing them to advertise and put more of their time into the game. Unfortunately, as I said above, I do not have an idea of a feature that is not pay-to-win but has the attractiveness to players that it creates money for the owners. That is what I think is needed to restore Utopia.

That feature is clearly not easy to think up otherwise some genius in the community would have done so by now. But there are some things that could be done to improve Utopia's popularity without a huge deal of effort or expense and I am intrigued as to why, correct me if I am wrong, they are not currently done.

Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Bebo all these social networking (SN) sites have almost unlimited potential in their audiences. I am (thankfully) only a member of one but when searching facebook for utopia nothing came up that led me to a group covering the game. If I may assume the other SN sites also lack a Utopia group/page I would like to know why. These would take an minimal amount of effort to set up on all the major SN sites, a few minutes each day to invite people to join/spread the word and give Utopia free, but more importantly, effective advertisement.

Caveat: I understand this is not the answer to all of Utopia's problems. But I would like to know how many active players they would need to make money from their advertising alone which would allow them to devote more time to utopia.

*hic* (Time to put down the wine).

[Palem]

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref...49314088438349

^Utopia's facebook page.
The recent change of allowing a kd to buy moves is the current try for a feature that allows the game to make some money.

The only problem with the "unlimited" potential of facebook is that Utopia's potential is not unlimited. Utopia is not a game that a lot of people take to. It's sort of complicated from the start and it only continues to get more complicated as you learn more. Some people are really put off by that kind of game and unfortunately, Facebook's (and other large websites) are typically made up of mostly those people.

[Hooah]

I do my bit by posting a utopia link occasionally :D don't wanna spam but do share the word sometimes

[CaptainC0w]

*Link removed - Something about a low post count :P *

^Utopia's facebook page.
The recent change of allowing a kd to buy moves is the current try for a feature that allows the game to make some money.

The only problem with the "unlimited" potential of facebook is that Utopia's potential is not unlimited. Utopia is not a game that a lot of people take to. It's sort of complicated from the start and it only continues to get more complicated as you learn more. Some people are really put off by that kind of game and unfortunately, Facebook's (and other large websites) are typically made up of mostly those people.

Thanks Palem. The group has 253 likes, surely there are more of us on here who are on Facebook and can spread our knowledge of this group.

True, utopia is definitely an acquired taste due. I agree the majority of facebook users will not appreciate utopia's difficultly but Utopia does have many positive features that will bring in players if it is heard about/tried by those potential players.

I do my bit by posting a utopia link occasionally :D don't wanna spam but do share the word sometimes

I know what you mean about spamming. But I do think a post by those of us on facebook and more activity in this group by the owners would help more than many think but maybe I am an optimist. I guess we need to know the player count required to make advertising revenue and the current features profitable. Is such information available anywhere?

[Hooah]

Well I posted on both Utopia Walls that I've liked. Do not like there is 2 but meh.

[Palem]

True, utopia is definitely an acquired taste due. I agree the majority of facebook users will not appreciate utopia's difficultly but Utopia does have many positive features that will bring in players if it is heard about/tried by those potential players.

I didn't mean it in a "there's no hope" kinda way. Just that people think getting the word out on FB means we'll get back up to 100k players or something. We'd grab some players, but nothing near where people assume it would get us.

Best case scenario, the game gets an influx of randies and 5% of them stay.

[coboss]

- I would recommend they create a video for the front page to draw in new players, in place of the current boring text-based testimonial fluff.
- I would also recommend they create a cool video that acts as a tutorial for new players. The wiki is a joke with all its knowledge spread out in a database with a horrible interface. They should also create an edgy video/virtual utopia tutorial (the current ones are on the right track but are pretty lame) that teach players how the basics of the game.
- The sign-up should also include a button for new players which will automatically choose their race/base buildings/possibly personality for them. I would've recommended the Race be Dwarf from last age since it is rather neutral in A/t/m ability, a new player could take it either way, plus the free build credits are forgiving; or the gnome since it was cheap to develop and get the hang of, even if it is tough to compete. I would probably recommend Avian this age with the potential changes since it is neutral, fairly cheap and has least elements to deal with (no stables/fog/ambush) which will create an easier learning curve
- make the game more forgiving by allowing to buildings to be cancelled and rebuilt without penalty in the first hour.
- Make the game more intuitive. Incorporate values and calculations found in utools/angel/etc... I find it is much more frustrating to play without these tools (when I use my phone I'm sure I over-send by like 20%)

All of these elements should help with the brand of utopia. Having a great game just isn't enough, you need marketability and you need to reduce the learning curve so that people can get the hang of it fast and not completely with the help/mentorship of KD-mates.

tl;dr
- create intro-page (utopia-game.com) video
- create video/virtual tutorial
- create beginner option utilizing most 'neutral' race
- cancel buildings option within first hour
- incorporate utools/angel into the game

[gojete]

that sounds great cobos.
im going avian cleric myself, im pretty bad player but thanks to the fast attacktimes and tips and flames from ppl in this forum, i learned a lot and was able to rebuild over and over this age, at times i switched strats every 10 hours for day after day. accelerated construction and staying small makes it easy to find plunder targets so one finds what one likes.

Being able to get this nearly unlimited ammount of cash over and over to try diff strats and armies, i went all elites no defs specs, all def and off specs no elites. elites and def specs, 70% homes, 50% banks 50% armouries, geez i tried everything but training grounds and forts. My plunders were of 5.40 hours out of war sometimes. when i ran 70% homes and 30% barracks lol. IF i wake up at 8 am ans sleep at 10 pm, that gives me time to make 3 attacks a day and sleep comfortably my 8 or 10 hours without worrying that i have to wake up in the middle of the night to make an attack. God bless the avian warrior.

I think that theres a lot of new provinces been made, that are inactive, and there sholuld be more, especially between 700 and 900 acres. Like bots or something made by the game, so that new players can stay little and plunder and attack and get money this way to try many strats and what they like before they venture in the +1000 acres and income system.

It would make the game a lot easier for new and ghetto players. Im not saying have inactive provs with cash at higher acre sizes but at the small sizes, This game is awesome but it very punishing and im sure it turns a lot of ppl off.

If you are only living out of income and you are new. odds are that you will never be able to have a semi decent province until late of middle age.
One really needs a great deal of experience to live out of income , that should be left for the more advanced players. Right now i think every kd between 1 and 5 million gc should be given a bigger chance to have fun without having to know so much. And plundering is the way.

Let the little people plunder their way into learning the game, by giving them more plunder chances.Not punishing them having a crappy province with 40 opa and 50 dpa because they dont know how to balance their prov and not being able to help in wars. Ive seen it many times, ppl log in but never attack, im like wtf?

well when i see their throne page i understand, their province sucks, and they are too scared of attacking, this leads to their own kd mates cursing at them, the pressure from getting destroyed, imagine you have a little 900 acres province that lives out of income , and you dont know how to play. you see your kd mates who are better than you getting chained to the ground, so you dont want to lose 2 or 3 weeks of work , so you dont attack. The impotence man, sucks.

And this leads to mass defections, people hating each other, frustration ,and eventually , if you was new to try the game, or have been playing for a while, it makes you quit cause you feel sad.
Spent 3 weeks trying to build a province and your kd dies in 3 days ,wtf!

And if you are alright, but end up bad kd after bad kd you also quit.

Showing little people the way of the plunder is way more forgiving, all we need are more plunder targets. And eventually one can move on to higher tiers and learn how to balance the province, lowering wages to 50% after a war and ,using banks and armouries etc. This is all too advanced for a new player or a bad player like me. I bet a lot of ppl will stay little like me just because its more fun to be able to rebuild a province in 5 days than 15 days.

People ten to care a lot about their acres, and its because its very hard for them to build them. I myself get razed every time a war finishes so i come out not fat. Cant stand having 120nwpa and trying to repop, retrain elites and army, crap it takes 2 weeks! I rather be ready right after war.
It is possible to play the game at a way faster pace but very few know about it.

I really win wars our of stubborness, we are not very good players many of us suck, but were pretty active and keep attacking over and over. But we are able to attack because we have good offense and some defense too.

Being unable to attack because once province is never ready sucks. So try to be ready at all times.

I really think a lot of ppl quit because their kingdoms suck and out of frustration. One cant blame ppl that leave, why would you stay if its very boring and you lose all the time. No one likes to lose all the time, but some ppl do so they go away.

[freemehul]

a video tutorial, especially for the newbies, is a great idea coboss

someone really should post one on youtube

[DHaran]

http://www.trevoroldak.com/guide/guide.php

I miss these kinds of things.

[freemehul]

http://www.trevoroldak.com/guide/guide.php

I miss these kinds of things.

that guide was great, but it's so out of date. I remember pointing newbies to this guide, when it was still regularly updated.

[Ironballs]

Maybe not raze killing every new player that joins the game because they don't play "heavy attacker", don't attack twice a day, don't follow kingdom dictated strategy rules or don't use pimp would be a good start.

[Zauper]

Maybe not raze killing every new player that joins the game because they don't play "heavy attacker", don't attack twice a day, don't follow kingdom dictated strategy rules or don't use pimp would be a good start.

Crazy talk.

[Avenger]

http://www.trevoroldak.com/guide/guide.php

I miss these kinds of things.

I miss that interface...

[Drunk Dragon]

Utopia is going to die.

1. The developers have managed to kill it by making the game far more complicated that it needed to be, thus scaring off most noobs who even look into the game.
2. The remaining *elite* players made the game hyper competitive driving off many of the casual players. The Casual players started leaving because their friends left and etc.