Community wishlist, an organized list of the players desires for the game

[MrGeekyGamer]

Dear Obsidian and future players of Project Eternity

 

Here is a suggestion: Make a community wishlist, a separate website/webpage that holds a list of features that players would like in the game. New entries can be made by users, and every entry can be voted upon by users, the most voted will then trend among the top, giving you as designers and developers a clear indication of what the players really desire.

 

As opposed to crawl through this forum in an attempt to get an overview of the various features that players would like to see in the game. An obvious example of a community wishlist is present at GOG:

 

http://www.gog.com/wishlist

 

An absolutely phenomenal system, that is easy to view and gives a clear indication of what the users would like.

 

What do you think?

[MinotaurWarrior]

I'd like this. Another example of this sort of system might be the new Project Greenlight feature on steam. I like the way that one has concrete goals built in.

 

Here's an idea for how it could work. Say someone suggests implementing an underwater dungeon (random example). They submit the idea, it goes on the page. Time passes, people can support / oppose it (I think there should be a downvoting option). If it gets the attention of a guy at obsidian, he can run it by some people, and see what they think. If it's an absolute no-go (everyone at Obsidian is cripplingly hydrophobic) then the're a notice on the suggestion, saying it ain't gonna happen. If they're open to it, they'll set a support goal reflecting how much of an investment the proposal is. This support goal will have two parts: a hard number (we'll only add this if at least 500 people want it) and a ratio factor (we'll only add it if at least 75% of those who vote on it want it). Additionally, there'd be a disclaimer that the whole system is non-binding, and the devs can do whatever they want.

[Oerwinde]

Doesn't google have something like that? Wasteland 2 has one. People submit ideas and people can vote on whether its a good or bad idea.

[MrGeekyGamer]

I'm not sure there should be a down voting, or at if there should be any rules at all to when a proposal is picked. However, it will provide a very clear picture of what the players want, and thus a very useful tool for creating a good game.

 

I feel this feature is crucial, so i hope you guys will continue to discuss and support it. It would be ideal if a topic like this could be stickied, to keep people's attention.

[Moonlight Butterfly]

I think it's a good idea and I trust Obsidian to not just use it blindly.

[BasaltineBadger]

The most popular options would probably be "add romances" and "remove romances". Not necessarily in that order.

[Kilroy_Was_Here]

I think the way an idea like this would work best is if Obsidian posts the categories and the fans do the voting. That way there wouldn't be an impossible to implement idea (ie: playable dragon race) that gets 85+% support.

 

The danger here is that if a less popular feature were included but a more popular feature was not the FANBOI RAEG would become difficult to contain, especially here on the official forums.

[Infinitron]

IMO, the current method of just reading forums is in fact the best one. It adds a context of discussion to the desired feature that would be missing in a simple list of entries.

Edited September 18, 2012 by Infinitron

[Moonlight Butterfly]

I have this sneaky feeling that chain-mail bikini's would crop up too...

[MinotaurWarrior]

The most popular options would probably be "add romances" and "remove romances". Not necessarily in that order.

That's why I think there should be down-voting.

 

I think the way an idea like this would work best is if Obsidian posts the categories and the fans do the voting. That way there wouldn't be an impossible to implement idea (ie: playable dragon race) that gets 85+% support.

 

The danger here is that if a less popular feature were included but a more popular feature was not the FANBOI RAEG would become difficult to contain, especially here on the official forums.

That's why Obsidian should have the option of labeling proposals as "not going to happen"

[alphyna]

Being harsh here: I think only kickstarter backers should be allowe to vote, otherwise we'll end up with 4chan: The Game, won't we? Surely I know that some people may be broke, but then again, it is probably humanly possible to scrap a buck just for this privilege. Obviously it's not about the rich being able to vote, just the means of protection from randomness.

[MinotaurWarrior]

Being harsh here: I think only kickstarter backers should be allowe to vote, otherwise we'll end up with 4chan: The Game, won't we? Surely I know that some people may be broke, but then again, it is probably humanly possible to scrap a buck just for this privilege. Obviously it's not about the rich being able to vote, just the means of protection from randomness.

 

I also think that makes sense. Perhaps there should even be a degree of the mega-donors getting some sort of special privelege within this system?

[Sensuki]

Hi I paid $10K, I want all the females to be naked in this game.

 

No thanks.

[alphyna]

Hi I paid $10K, I want all the females to be naked in this game.

 

No thanks.

Come on, don't misrepresent my words. "I paid $10, so I can be one in thousands of people to express my opinion on the level of nudity" is more like it.

 

(Actually, I also think that the developers shouldn't listen to the audience too much. It's their game, not mine.)

[alphyna]

Being harsh here: I think only kickstarter backers should be allowe to vote, otherwise we'll end up with 4chan: The Game, won't we? Surely I know that some people may be broke, but then again, it is probably humanly possible to scrap a buck just for this privilege. Obviously it's not about the rich being able to vote, just the means of protection from randomness.

 

I also think that makes sense. Perhaps there should even be a degree of the mega-donors getting some sort of special privelege within this system?

Nah, I don't think so. Money doesn't make creativity. it shows commitment though, and that was the point of my suggestion

[Sensuki]

I was making a wise crack at the person who posted after you.

 

Basically I was saying their idea was a silly one. The backer only thing is a fair call though.

Edited September 18, 2012 by Sensuki

[MrGeekyGamer]

Anyway... I don't think that it should be for backers only. It all depends on how the wishlist is regarded. It will always be suggestions, we cannot decide anything, backing the project does not give us that privilege.

 

Basically the wishlist needs to be managed by a moderator, eliminating non-serious proposals. However, keep in mind that if it is nonsense it will not be voted upwards, thus no trend will occur. I would happily volunteer to moderate, but i am sure Obsidian already have qualified people for something like that.

 

I strongly disagree that the forum is the best way to expose ideas and suggestions. A list like this will make it easy to see what the players want, and it is much easier to just click to vote, rather than starting to debate in the forums. Every item on the list should be accompanied by a small description, which would be done by the creator, the suggestions could be made that the creator would have to moderate, kinda like a wiki.