Planewalker:Water, and the locked earring slots are a scam.

[Rithim]

Why would you add these in and then lock them behind a wall for pre-order. I understand that you can unlock them with in game items, but they're 100,000 void stone each. With the cap of 35000 stone a week, it would be at least 6 weeks to unlock both. It's a money grubbing tactic to get you to buy Nightmare tide. I understand you have to make money in a F2P MMO, but this is taking it a step too far.
You've made RIFT into Korean grind MMO lite. I don't even mind TOO much about the earrings, but the Planewalker stuff is totally not required. I while I was doing Gyel Fortress, almost half the items that dropped were totally unequippable to myself and one of my friends who didn't preorder the game for the sole reason that we DIDN'T spend money on a free to play MMO.
I really respected RIFT for keeping the Pay2win items to a minimum, but when I saw Daglar mention that you were releasing a "Free to play" Xpac and how this was the first time Trion as released a free to play expansion, I knew it was going to be a wild ride of nickle and dimes. Instead of handling it like a Xpac that was also free, you put the "Free to play" part at the forefront of development and it shows.

[Felwitch]

The second quest I did in the reef area, presented to me the option of choosing one of four pieces of Green quality gear. However, I could not equip a single one because I need the Planewalker:Water.

I told my roommate who does not play Rift, he said to me "Welcome to Free to Play".

[Tollwutig]

Free to Play does not mean free to run. They have to make money some where, and fluff items do not pay all of the bills. You are able to get both of these items in game, and no it was not intended to be optimal. The most optimal way to obtain Earring Slots and Planewalker water is to pay $25. You're under no obligation to do this, you can still play 100% free and grind it out.

[Tacotown]

The second quest I did in the reef area, presented to me the option of choosing one of four pieces of Green quality gear. However, I could not equip a single one because I need the Planewalker:Water.

I told my roommate who does not play Rift, he said to me "Welcome to Free to Play".

Wooow. I haven't had a chance to log in yet, but that sounds absolutely awful. Why on earth would I want to do any of the new content if it gives me things I cannot even equip.

[hardy83]

It is sad to see this decision.

The fact that the only way to unlock it is to either pay up now, or wait until 65 and grind, as it stands 100k void stones to unlock it AND the earrings...

Which means all the leveling gear locked behind the attunement is useless, not to mention there IS raid gear that needs the attunement too.

Yes the price is only $25, but if they wanted to charge people money for the expansion, they should be upfront about it, not claim the game is free and gate gearing (the main progression of this game) behind a paywall.

Also, first item from quests needing it..Yeah, like that wasn't an underhanded business decision.

[stingeragent]

Are yall for real. I just hit 61 and every piece of planewalker gear i got was a huge downgrade, and i have 0 SL raid gear. Expert and world gear only. Ive gotten 1 drop that gave me a boost and it was not planewalker gear

[Ethmar]

Free to Play does not mean free to run. They have to make money some where, and fluff items do not pay all of the bills. You are able to get both of these items in game, and no it was not intended to be optimal.

This is 100% true but I don't think it is responsive to the complaint. The issue as I understand it is a matter of degree. To get both the earring slots and and the Planeswalker requires 200K void stones. At 35K week that is six weeks assuming one gets the total 35K each week, which is not likely for many casual players. I suspect that there will be a good chunk of players that will never earn 200K VS the entire expansion and I'd imagine a majority of players won't earn 200K void stones for many months. So it's not a question of being optimal--it's a question of the cost being unrealistic. At least that is the complaint.

[Kerin]

I told my roommate who does not play Rift, he said to me "Welcome to Free to Play".

Good for him, at least he understands nothing in life is free.

[Kerin]

This is 100% true but I don't think it is responsive to the complaint. The issue as I understand it is a matter of degree. To get both the earring slots and and the Planeswalker requires 200K void stones. At 35K week that is six weeks assuming one gets the total 35K each week, which is not likely for many casual players. I suspect that there will be a good chunk of players that will never earn 200K VS the entire expansion and I'd imagine a majority of players won't earn 200K void stones for many months. So it's not a question of being optimal--it's a question of the cost being unrealistic. At least that is the complaint.

You don't need this gear to play the game, thus no one is locked out of any content, if they want to obtain them without paying Trion any money to support the game they can do the grind, the CHOICE is theirs.

[KaiserPhoenix]

you don't need this gear to play the game

LOL

"It's only pay to win if Trion explicitly states that it's pay to win" is next or what?

Why am I reminded of the Betas and Gammas from Brave New World all of a sudden?

[KaiserPhoenix]

oops doublepost.

[Kelvenaru]

To be fair, it can only be seen as a scam if you believed the hype that they said the only things you would need to buy are the extra Souls, for 5000 Credits, and the expansion would be free.... apart from the extra gear slots and a few other things they didn't mention, that could be seen as a "pay to get there faster" "scam", for want of a better phrase... everything, apart from the fluff, can be ground out, in game, over 2-3 months, or so, I think, from other peoples maths, besides the credits, which can be bought in game for 4 to 5 Rex, so around 8 to 10k plat, but if you want to save 2 to 3 months grinding, there is always thew basic CE option.

Just a basic "incentive" to encourage some sales, thats all. It's just that the way they worded it all to start with, we were led to believe the cost of the souls were it... just a lie by omission, thats all... ;)

[Islesi]

It makes no sense to lock levelling gear behind a wall you can only grind when you're L65 doing experts. No sense at all.

[Enepttastic]

To be fair, it can only be seen as a scam if you believed the hype that they said the only things you would need to buy are the extra Souls, for 5000 Credits, and the expansion would be free.... apart from the extra gear slots and a few other things they didn't mention, that could be seen as a "pay to get there faster" "scam", for want of a better phrase... everything, apart from the fluff, can be ground out, in game, over 2-3 months, or so, I think, from other peoples maths, besides the credits, which can be bought in game for 4 to 5 Rex, so around 8 to 10k plat, but if you want to save 2 to 3 months grinding, there is always thew basic CE option.

Just a basic "incentive" to encourage some sales, thats all. It's just that the way they worded it all to start with, we were led to believe the cost of the souls were it... just a lie by omission, thats all... ;)

There's one gaping flaw in your argument: There is damned near no way1 for a F2P player, at this time, to unlock the earring slots for use while leveling. This means that, currently, anyone who's bought a CE has a straight-up gameplay advantage over anyone who hasn't during the 1-65 grind that is not, otherwise obtainable.

That, in and of itself, is my issue with the earrings.

The simplest fix for this would be to make the void-stone purchasable earring unlock account-wide instead of going with a player, by player basis. If the devs can't stomach that, then vouchers should come back. Failing that, as a last resort, the unlock should have a credit price associated with it.

1I won't say no way because it wouldn't surprise me if someone figures out a way to pull off getting 100k voidstones while 64.947 and tries to derail this argument with that.

[Kelvenaru]

There's one gaping flaw in your argument: There is damned near no way1 for a F2P player, at this time, to unlock the earring slots for use while leveling. This means that, currently, anyone who's bought a CE has a straight-up gameplay advantage over anyone who hasn't during the 1-65 grind that is not, otherwise obtainable.

That, in and of itself, is my issue with the earrings.

The simplest fix for this would be to make the void-stone purchasable earring unlock account-wide instead of going with a player, by player basis. If the devs can't stomach that, then vouchers should come back. Failing that, as a last resort, the unlock should have a credit price associated with it.

1I won't say no way because it wouldn't surprise me if someone figures out a way to pull off getting 100k voidstones while 64.947 and tries to derail this argument with that.

You mistook my post for an argument, terribly sorry... I guess my sense of humour just doesn't translate well to the post. Some of that post needed a /sarcasm bit in it, truly sorry.

I don't think ANY leveling gear should be behind a paywall in any shape or form. I have supported this game since it started, and up until 17 months after SL I was actually a patron, and have bought £100 worth of credits as well. Many of us thought... or were led to believe... the 5000 Credit Soul price was, in effect, the cost of the expansion, not that we mind Collectors Editions one bit, in fact I always bought them, eventually, in most games I have played... I like some of the fluff things to, it was the lies by ommission that have annoyed quite a few people, and although some have mentioned a few of the things, it will only be now, when people, who hardly ever come to the forums, but play the game, will start to see what has happened, and what impact it has on their playstyle.

People would have been fine with Top gear needing the planewalker achieve, as they could grind for it... people would have been fine if the ear slots needed a quest, in game, to unlock them as they leveled from 60-65, as well as it been in the CE as a perk if you wanted it open on all alts of all levels, straight away... it's the individual alt grind that is annoying people.

This could have been handled so much better, just like many things they try, in all professions, from Governments to Game Designers, they think somethig looks cool, or they can get x amount of money out of people for something if they do it one way or another... and they mess up, and alienate many of their once strongest supporters.