darkSpyro

Quote: Nelomet

I suppose so, maybe we'll see the likes of Boomer, Ghost Roaster, Camo, Sunburn, Dino-rang, Voodood, Warnado and Wham Shell in Series 3.

I would pretty much guarantee it.

i would like the prices to stay the same for once. >.>

In my opinion the biggest issue for me is that they take too long in between releases of waves. The best way they could have released the characters and still extended the overall release of all the characters would be to release 3 or 4 characters every 2 weeks to keep things fresh. When you have over a month between the releases of the waves interest dies. Also, knowing when wave releases are coming would help, I don't see the reasoning behind keeping it secret. I signed up, on their site, to their newsletter to let me know when new waves come and I have not been notified of any releases yet, why tell me to sign up to let me know when characters are released and not tell me.

keep in mind that many people get paid monthly, so by having releases on a monthly basis, it gives people a chance to buy things as they are released then wait until the next month when they have money again.

Quote: DragonsDream

keep in mind that many people get paid monthly, so by having releases on a monthly basis, it gives people a chance to buy things as they are released then wait until the next month when they have money again.

First of all, the waves don't come out monthly. Secondly, that would be a stupid reason to release waves on a monthly basis.

Quote: Himewad

Quote: DragonsDream

keep in mind that many people get paid monthly, so by having releases on a monthly basis, it gives people a chance to buy things as they are released then wait until the next month when they have money again.

First of all, the waves don't come out monthly. Secondly, that would be a stupid reason to release waves on a monthly basis.

He actually makes a good point--strike when the iron is hot, and when you have money. Makes sense to me.

Sounds like if the rumors are true most of them are coming out next week. We'll see.

Adults (who would be the ones getting paid once a month) have money all the time. Or at least have access to credit cards. I'm telling you, the wave releases have nothing to do with company payroll cycles.

Quote: GhostRoaster

Quote: Himewad

Quote: DragonsDream

keep in mind that many people get paid monthly, so by having releases on a monthly basis, it gives people a chance to buy things as they are released then wait until the next month when they have money again.

First of all, the waves don't come out monthly. Secondly, that would be a stupid reason to release waves on a monthly basis.

He actually makes a good point--strike when the iron is hot, and when you have money. Makes sense to me.

Sounds like if the rumors are true most of them are coming out next week. We'll see.

She actually, and Himewad is an idiot if he doesn't think releases may be based on when people get paid. And I'm glad to hear he has lots of money all of the time, but many people start to run a little low on disposable income at the end of the month before that next payday.

If your theory were true, new figs would be released on the first of every month. And if you are an adult with cash being a problem before your next payday, perhaps you shouldn't be spending your disposable income on toys.

Thank you for your concern about my household budget. I'm quite sure we can manage on our though.

It has nothing to do with th exact date. It has to do with giving people a chance to get a payday again before more characters come out. Despite your suggestion that we not buy toys unless we are rich, many people have a budgeted amount of disposable income each month for things like toys or going to the movies or playing miniature golf or whatever. Also, not everyone is buying every Skylander that is released, but only those that interest them. A month between waves is a reasonable amount of time to allow people to find & acquire the ones they want before more become available.

It also allows the toy stores time to sell their current inventory before adding new characters which will demand shelf space.

I have no concerns about your personal household finances. It was a general observation. And it has nothing to do with being rich or not. No need to take it so personal. But why should these so-called rich people have to wait for figs? It doesn't make a lot of sense.

There is a ton of things to do.
Collect all treasures.
All luck-o-tron Wheels.
Etc.

I know this has been said before, but you dont have to buy them. but since you said your a completist (may of spelled wrong) I won't stop you. if you have done all the things above, then your pain is understandable.

(dont forget about the legendaries!)

So, they release all the toys the same day as the game comes out. What happens.

1) No one can keep up with just what is out and where to find it
2) Certain figures become more rare than others, because of popularity over other characters.
3) Activision loses customers because there's nothing to keep the game 'fresh'. With the simple format in that it's aimed towards kids, it need to be simple enough for them to play and complete by themselves, the new characters are what gives the game replay value, as stale as it is.
4) The series would die a lot faster because those that can have bough all figures within the first week of the game and have played it to death and now have no reason to play it or even pay attention to the series till the next release.

Skylanders is beyond just a game now. It is a franchise. It has merchandising that exists throughout the year non stop. And the toys are the biggest selling point. Releasing them in waves suits a lot more people than it doesn't. It is what is keeping the series alive. If they didn't do this, people would've forgotten with the first game and it wouldn't have continued.

Quote:

There is a ton of things to do.
Collect all treasures.
All luck-o-tron Wheels.
Etc.

In fairness though that took me about 2 weeks. I think most people could find these things fairly quickly with the exception of a few very well hidden items. Game play is very limited. To illustrate what I mean consider this:

Let's say that you played each chapter of each game 10 times and on average you spent 20 minutes on each chapter each time. SSA has 22 chapters + 4 expansion packs making it 26 chapters in total. So based on the 10 times x 20 minutes you would have the following total play time:



If you then brought every character (32 not counting variations) and gave them equal game time each character would get the following game time:



Here in Australia each character costs around $14 in a single pack or $29 for triple packs, so using the triple pack price each character is roughly $10 each. So at 3 hours game time that's around $3 per hour you pay for your characters.

Now obviously this doesn't take into account completing Heroic Challenges (remembering you have to buy more characters to open up more challenges), but it's an interesting exercise yes?

Now let's look at Giants. Imagining you never brought SSA and you're only getting into Skylanders now. So to start with you have 16 chapters and using the 10 times for 20 minutes example from above you have:



Let's not count any of the lightcores in this exercise but we will count each character including reposed S1 characters. So you have 8 Giants, 8 newlanders and 24 reposes giving you a total of 40 characters all up. So now giving each of them equal game time you have:



Once again this doesn't count HC's or Arena Challenges but for me it shows that we all spend a LOT of money for very little game time. The less characters you buy the better off you are in some ways, but you need at least 8 to access all areas and from the sounds of it you will need even more to access all Swap Force areas.

So there are 2 major problems that I have with the game which are:

1. Not enough chapters/areas to play which means if I want to try to get value for money I am forced to play the same scenario over and over again.
   
2. Characters become redundant. To explain what I mean, not counting variations and the handful of characters not yet released I have every character. My reposed characters can now swap upgrade paths so why would I ever again use a S1 Gill Grunt, or S1 Slam Bam or any other S1 that I have a reposed S2 for? I wouldn't, so my S1 characters are now just dust collectors.
   

So I would really like to see Activision create more game play for the characters I've already purchased. Yes I understand they need to make money and they make it from selling characters, but if I can't get better long-term value from each character I own I will stop spending my money with this franchise and so will plenty of other people who feel the same way.

More focus on new chapters and games and less focus on creating a million new or reposed characters or I personally think Skylanders will die a quick death. With the state of the world economy, this is no time to be ripping your customers off.

Quote: Graz73

It would be NICE, and a way to reward long term players, if they did things to encourage people to keep playing with their existing toys in the newer games. So far, I think they are not doing that.

With Swap force, there will be even more people coming into it with s1 or s2 toys. I wonder if they will, this time, do things to encourage those players to stick around.

Just saw this, and I agree. They need to provide an incentive for those who bought previous skylanders, as away of incenting and KEEPING people in the franchise, as opposed to alienating them with constrained gameplay that REQUIRES new toys (I'm actually ok with new toys, less so with reposed characters I already have).

If they continue with SSF like they did with SG I suspect their target market is a constant turnover of their customer base, which would be sad.

Quote: Himewad

Adults (who would be the ones getting paid once a month) have money all the time. Or at least have access to credit cards. I'm telling you, the wave releases have nothing to do with company payroll cycles.

Yes, to that I agree...but I get paid every two weeks and I NEVER have money. LOL

Quote: GASSA

So I would really like to see Activision create more game play for the characters I've already purchased. Yes I understand they need to make money and they make it from selling characters, but if I can't get better long-term value from each character I own I will stop spending my money with this franchise and so will plenty of other people who feel the same way.

More focus on new chapters and games and less focus on creating a million new or reposed characters or I personally think Skylanders will die a quick death. With the state of the world economy, this is no time to be ripping your customers off.

I agree! That seems to be the major beef here--adding value to the expense so far. The interview with Activision CEO and Toys R US seems to disagree with our assessment...but the bottom line will be their bottom line--and if enough people vote with our pocketbooks maybe they'll listen...or maybe they'll be like Capcom lol.

And, seeing the now rather infantile SSF character design...I also feel less compelled to collect the toys from a cool factor. It looks more like a chew flip for my dog now.

If they allow all previous characters to participate fully in the experience with no limitations, that would satisfy "old timers". New timers can get the new characters. They will have an EPIC FAIL if they think they can strong arm certain purchases for game completion. I have no problem buying ~32 new characters on each release. 58+ for SSF? Are they out of their minds?

Skylanders basically is the majority of my son's entertainment for the year. I guarantee you the minute he wants to experience other games and their admission price is $50 and not $350 he's going to want more variety. I hope there is enough magic for one more year--he's turning 11. Again--value. If each new character brought 8 hours of unique content instead of simply playing the same levels we'd be more keen on sticking around.

Quote: LunarEclipse83

In my opinion the biggest issue for me is that they take too long in between releases of waves. The best way they could have released the characters and still extended the overall release of all the characters would be to release 3 or 4 characters every 2 weeks to keep things fresh. When you have over a month between the releases of the waves interest dies. Also, knowing when wave releases are coming would help, I don't see the reasoning behind keeping it secret.

I agree with you, but I think there would actually be a production problem. I'm fine with monthlies...4 months max to get out all the characters. If they want to stretch it out they need to find a reason, as the game is OLD by the time 9months have passed. Which is probably telling on the execution of the longetivity of the game. I think they have the toy stuff licked...they need to SERIOUSLY ramp up game side, or face the wrath of Disney.

Quote: GASSA

Quote:

There is a ton of things to do.
Collect all treasures.
All luck-o-tron Wheels.
Etc.

In fairness though that took me about 2 weeks. I think most people could find these things fairly quickly with the exception of a few very well hidden items. Game play is very limited. To illustrate what I mean consider this:

Let's say that you played each chapter of each game 10 times and on average you spent 20 minutes on each chapter each time. SSA has 22 chapters + 4 expansion packs making it 26 chapters in total. So based on the 10 times x 20 minutes you would have the following total play time:

10 x 20 x 26 = 5,200 minutes or a little over 86 hours

If you then brought every character (32 not counting variations) and gave them equal game time each character would get the following game time:

5,200 minutes / 32 characters = 162.5 minutes or a little under 3 hours each

Here in Australia each character costs around $14 in a single pack or $29 for triple packs, so using the triple pack price each character is roughly $10 each. So at 3 hours game time that's around $3 per hour you pay for your characters.

Now obviously this doesn't take into account completing Heroic Challenges (remembering you have to buy more characters to open up more challenges), but it's an interesting exercise yes?

Now let's look at Giants. Imagining you never brought SSA and you're only getting into Skylanders now. So to start with you have 16 chapters and using the 10 times for 20 minutes example from above you have:

10 x 20 x 16 = 3,840 minutes or 64 hours play time

Let's not count any of the lightcores in this exercise but we will count each character including reposed S1 characters. So you have 8 Giants, 8 newlanders and 24 reposes giving you a total of 40 characters all up. So now giving each of them equal game time you have:

3,840 minutes / 40 characters = 96 minutes or a little over an hour and a half per character

Once again this doesn't count HC's or Arena Challenges but for me it shows that we all spend a LOT of money for very little game time. The less characters you buy the better off you are in some ways, but you need at least 8 to access all areas and from the sounds of it you will need even more to access all Swap Force areas.

So there are 2 major problems that I have with the game which are:

1. Not enough chapters/areas to play which means if I want to try to get value for money I am forced to play the same scenario over and over again.
   
2. Characters become redundant. To explain what I mean, not counting variations and the handful of characters not yet released I have every character. My reposed characters can now swap upgrade paths so why would I ever again use a S1 Gill Grunt, or S1 Slam Bam or any other S1 that I have a reposed S2 for? I wouldn't, so my S1 characters are now just dust collectors.
   

So I would really like to see Activision create more game play for the characters I've already purchased. Yes I understand they need to make money and they make it from selling characters, but if I can't get better long-term value from each character I own I will stop spending my money with this franchise and so will plenty of other people who feel the same way.

More focus on new chapters and games and less focus on creating a million new or reposed characters or I personally think Skylanders will die a quick death. With the state of the world economy, this is no time to be ripping your customers off.

I agree on everything youve said but sadly this is Activision and all they care about is profit. look at guitar hero, CoD, SC,.Diablo etc all games where made to make profit with subtle change or worse from previous game. some of them released yearly to milk the consumers more money untill the franchise die. I do hope they will make their games better
as they will loose more fans. ive supported them but seeing how they make games now im thinking twice before I purchase or prolly will wait for reviews first.

you are all looking at this as hard core gamers and not as kids getting toys. If you are only getting an hour and a half of play time with Tree Rex it's because you aren't putting all your life Skylanders on one side of the bed and all your undead Skylands on top of pillow mountain and having an epic battle on the plains of bedsheets. Fire skylanders might try to flank you from the Night Stand Hills only to be attacked from above by Air skylanders launching from Bookshelf Plateau...

Oh wait... your Skylanders are still in the boxes on display shelves. Try being a kid playing with toys and not a gamer with a display collection.

Quote:

you are all looking at this as hard core gamers and not as kids getting toys. If you are only getting an hour and a half of play time with Tree Rex it's because you aren't putting all your life Skylanders on one side of the bed and all your undead Skylands on top of pillow mountain and having an epic battle on the plains of bedsheets. Fire skylanders might try to flank you from the Night Stand Hills only to be attacked from above by Air skylanders launching from Bookshelf Plateau...

Oh wait... your Skylanders are still in the boxes on display shelves. Try being a kid playing with toys and not a gamer with a display collection.

I would like to say that you make a good point, but from my experience is very different to what you have described.

My 4 year old played with his Skylanders that way for a little while because he wasn't really into video games and couldn't use the controls. But now that he can use the controls and can complete levels he has become bored with playing the video game. Interestingly both he and his 6 year old brother NEVER play with the toys outside of the video game itself.

It makes me wonder what they would choose - given the option - if I gave them 'X' amount of money and told them they could either buy Skylanders toys to play through the same levels they've played dozens of times, or they could buy a brand new video game for the Wii? I'm not so sure they would be bringing home Spyro or Wrecking Ball. They are becoming as disinterested in Skylanders as I am.

BTW on a side note I'm personally not a hardcore gamer, Skylanders is the ONLY video game I play, unless you count Bubble Shoot on my smart phone.

Quote: DragonsDream

you are all looking at this as hard core gamers and not as kids getting toys. If you are only getting an hour and a half of play time with Tree Rex it's because you aren't putting all your life Skylanders on one side of the bed and all your undead Skylands on top of pillow mountain and having an epic battle on the plains of bedsheets. Fire skylanders might try to flank you from the Night Stand Hills only to be attacked from above by Air skylanders launching from Bookshelf Plateau...

Oh wait... your Skylanders are still in the boxes on display shelves. Try being a kid playing with toys and not a gamer with a display collection.

ah, you make a beautiful point 'memories of playing with toys on my pillow'

im now an adult, probably classed as a casual gamer nowadays (was definitely a hardcore gamer in my teens)
but when i like a game, im a 'completionist' ive played through hard and nightmare, up to 74% completed and
slowly making my way to 100%, completed all the arenas on nightmare and im up to skylander number 32 of my 36
to complete all 24 of my heroic challenges (as some are series 1 i dont have the heroics unlocked for all my skylanders)

so ive definitely got my moneys worth, once i finish all the heroics on all my skylanders ill be obtaining the gold
rank for each of them, then obtaining lvl 15 on all of them, i play maybe an hour a day - maybe 2 on the weekend
and with every new skylander i purchase i get another 4-5+ hours playtime.

I will say though that the primary reason i do play through this with all of them is for 2 player and for the future
internet Vs mode (which if it doesnt come in the next game or announced soon afterwards i 'may' loose interest)

so at this stage i really dont have anything bad to say about the series, i say, keep em coming.

My wife & I have spent around 3000kr (that's approx $500) on figures since getting Giants for Xmas. I've played Diablo II almost exclusively for the last 10 years, which is the extent of my gaming. We have about a dozen Xbox games (mostly Lego ones) but Giants is the first one I have spent more than 5 hours on. We have 37 figs and I am working my way through the 42 challenges we have unlocked. I figure at 3 minutes a challenge x 45 challenges x 40 characters that's 90 hours of play time. We play the chapters together, taking about 45 minutes to an hour a chapter. If we miss anything (areas, treasure, etc) or die, we redo the chapter until we have all stars except time. Later, I will do a speed run to get the third star. We play each difficulty level and have just started hard. I am quite happy with the game and have found plenty to do. I have the figures displayed in the glass cases over our TV where I have my dragon figure collection. So I am getting value for that as well as a game that I really enjoy.

Since we started with Giants, we don't have the issue of wondering if we should get S2s, but I suppose that will become an issue if S3s arrive. Being completionists and collectors, we'll probably get them anyway. But even then, I will be buying them because I want them, not because Activision is forcing me to or making me feel like I am getting less than if I don't. So, no complaints here. I'm an adult. I can choose what to buy and what to play and I don't need to blame anyone else (like Activision) if something doesn't give me enough enjoyment. I just move on.

Quote: DragonsDream

keep in mind that many people get paid monthly, so by having releases on a monthly basis, it gives people a chance to buy things as they are released then wait until the next month when they have money again.

Just to clarify, the CLEAR majority of people get paid every 2 weeks, with a handful getting paid weekly, and a slightly larger number being paid monthly. Partially because of what you basically mention here, that budgeting a whole month from ONE pay is a nightmare! And most people who get paid monthly are being assisted, like on welfare. Anybody on welfare can't afford to be wasting money on this stuff.

Also, as far as I've heard all the releases have been every SECOND month - not every month - and on around the 22nd or 23rd, near the end of the month. Anyone getting paid monthly is usually on the 1st, and money is tight by the 23rd.

Trust me, these releases are REALLY not thinking of people who get paid monthly. Not even a little bit. Not enough people do get paid monthly to be making decisions like that, and release dates so late in the month make it obvious they aren't doing it.

Quote:

Being completionists and collectors, we'll probably get them anyway. But even then, I will be buying them because I want them, not because Activision is forcing me to or making me feel like I am getting less than if I don't.

If you are a completionist as you say then by the time Swap Force comes out Activision will mostly likely be forcing you to do something - either dropping your desire to complete everything or forcing you to buy characters whether you like it or not. Of course you may want to buy every S3 character. But will you still want to be buying figures by the time Skylanders 4 rolls around? Particularly if Activision have made a whole bunch of your S2 characters redundant by then?

Wouldn't you love to see new games with a focus on more game play for the toys you've already invested in? That's the real point for me. I am feeling ripped off because I thought that my upgraded Series 1 Trigger Happy would still be part of the adventure in S2, S3, S4, S5 etc. And sure he could be, he will still work on those games no doubt, but the completionist in me wanted to achieve the Grand Admiral status in Giants like I had in SSA, so I purchased the series 2 characters. I rationalised my investment by saying that I would now have 1 figure on each upgrade path, but of course S2 repose characters can switch paths, making S1 Trigger Happy and the rest of them excess to my needs. They now represent a waste of money.

So I still say Activision should focus more on game play and less on rehashing the same characters over and over again. New characters I could handle, but not reposes.

Quote: niceguy1

Quote: DragonsDream

keep in mind that many people get paid monthly, so by having releases on a monthly basis, it gives people a chance to buy things as they are released then wait until the next month when they have money again.

Just to clarify, the CLEAR majority of people get paid every 2 weeks, with a handful getting paid weekly, and a slightly larger number being paid monthly. Partially because of what you basically mention here, that budgeting a whole month from ONE pay is a nightmare! And most people who get paid monthly are being assisted, like on welfare. Anybody on welfare can't afford to be wasting money on this stuff.

Also, as far as I've heard all the releases have been every SECOND month - not every month - and on around the 22nd or 23rd, near the end of the month. Anyone getting paid monthly is usually on the 1st, and money is tight by the 23rd.

Trust me, these releases are REALLY not thinking of people who get paid monthly. Not even a little bit. Not enough people do get paid monthly to be making decisions like that, and release dates so late in the month make it obvious they aren't doing it.

when I lived in California and worked for the state school system, getting paid monthly was standard. Nearly all government jobs pay monthly. In Sweden where I am now (and in the other Nordic countries) getting paid monthly is the standard for everyone, not just government employees. And oh, pay day is usually the 25th (unless that is a weekend then payday is the Friday before).

And regardless of payday, most people do a monthly household budget, since that is how expenses come (unless you are paying a two week electric bill and weekly rent!)

And even people on welfare can afford a $10 toy for their kids once every month or two. (and please don't tell me how people on welfare shouldn't have an Xbox and thus force me to give you an econ 101 lecture. those are sooooooo boring)

My original point being that the releases are spread out in monthly (or bi-monthly) launch windows because it gives people a chance to get everything for that wave before money gets tight. There is also the question of shelf space in the stores. They don't want to have to redo their Skylanders section every two weeks because a new character is out and needs a place. There are also manufacturing, shipping and warehousing considerations. I blame Hollywood. It used to be that films were "rolled out" over several weeks, opening on a few screens and then expanding as they got popular. Now it's all about opening day and by week 3 no one cares any more. And yet, not every one goes on opening day, just like not everyone buys new Skylanders the day they hit the shelves. Activision hasn't succumbed to the "opening day" mentality, thankfully.

Quote: DragonsDream

when I lived in California and worked for the state school system, getting paid monthly was standard. Nearly all government jobs pay monthly. In Sweden where I am now (and in the other Nordic countries) getting paid monthly is the standard for everyone, not just government employees. And oh, pay day is usually the 25th (unless that is a weekend then payday is the Friday before).

I didn't say NOBODY gets paid monthly. Just that such jobs are in the clear minority. After all, government jobs make up, what, 10% of all jobs? (I'm just pulling a number out of thin air, my guess is that it's in that ballpark). And being a Canadian, I know the U.S. isn't the center of the universe, but marketing decisions like this tend to focus on a national scale, taking only Americans into account, and forgetting to consider things on an international scale. In the States, only a minority are paid monthly. And also, in North America - in my experience - monthly pay day is the 1st. Rent is pretty much always due on the 1st, you see.

Quote: DragonsDream

And regardless of payday, most people do a monthly household budget, since that is how expenses come (unless you are paying a two week electric bill and weekly rent!)

Yes, and most people doing a budget figure on 2 paycheques a month. So on months where there's 3 (like January was for a lot of people), that 3rd is like a bonus, can be used for fun stuff or putting money away or whatever.

Quote: DragonsDream

And even people on welfare can afford a $10 toy for their kids once every month or two. (and please don't tell me how people on welfare shouldn't have an Xbox and thus force me to give you an econ 101 lecture. those are sooooooo boring)

Don't get me wrong, I hate those moral objection people. I spent considerable time stuck on welfare. Just that from my personal experience - if may be different elsewhere - welfare pays WELL below the poverty line. It barely could cover my expenses, and my rent is and was ridiculously low. If I had normal rent, my monthly cheque couldn't cover my basic bills, never mind luxury items like toys. I was talking from a technical perspective, not a moral one. Let's just put it this way: The Skylanders purchased using welfare are certainly not going to have enough of an impact for Activision to be catering to them.

Quote: DragonsDream

My original point being that the releases are spread out in monthly (or bi-monthly) launch windows because it gives people a chance to get everything for that wave before money gets tight. There is also the question of shelf space in the stores. They don't want to have to redo their Skylanders section every two weeks because a new character is out and needs a place. There are also manufacturing, shipping and warehousing considerations. I blame Hollywood. It used to be that films were "rolled out" over several weeks, opening on a few screens and then expanding as they got popular. Now it's all about opening day and by week 3 no one cares any more. And yet, not every one goes on opening day, just like not everyone buys new Skylanders the day they hit the shelves. Activision hasn't succumbed to the "opening day" mentality, thankfully.

These are all valid points, I'll give you that. Staggering them out gives, uh, healing/saving time. And I'm one of those not-opening-day types, I hate the crowds. I just wanted to make the point that it's, at most, highly unlikely that Activision is thinking of monthly paycheques when deciding on their roll-out schedule.

Stupid Hollywood. Me hates them.

And you can count me as a person who thinks people on welfare have no business buying a $300+ gaming system. Call me crazy, but I believe welfare should be a short-term assistance program so that people in REAL need can get by until they can find a better life. It shouldn't be a way of life for people who don't want to work. Too many people treat it as such. Not everyone, I know, but too many.

Quote: Himewad

Stupid Hollywood. Me hates them.

And you can count me as a person who thinks people on welfare have no business buying a $300+ gaming system. Call me crazy, but I believe welfare should be a short-term assistance program so that people in REAL need can get by until they can find a better life. It shouldn't be a way of life for people who don't want to work. Too many people treat it as such. Not everyone, I know, but too many.

right... because no one on welfare bought that Xbox before they became unemployed. I mean really, people on welfare shouldn't be driving cars either! or reading books! where are they getting money for books? And what is that welfare recipiant doing talking on a cell phone? The nerve! Don't they know they are supposed to be living in poverty? People on welfare must sell everything they own and start from 0 so that they appear "poor enough" for everyone else. Ugh. See, I told you these lectures were boring.

Yeah OK! Who's everyone kidding here? Your all going to preorder or buy it outright as soon as the dates are announced! We all be certain that all S2 figures that were not released yet will be in a S3 configuration when swap force comes out. I got a couple S2 figures but thats just ones that my kid likes thats all.

All I'm saying is that we need more replay value than more characters! The game has very little replay value especially the original game for the reason that you have to sit through every cut scene. The only fun me and the kid are having is fighting the BROCK battles to get coins to upgrade everyone. Then when that's over with it would be really boring to play!

So start saving your pennies your going to need around 24,000 give or take!!!

Quote: DragonsDream

Quote: Himewad

And you can count me as a person who thinks people on welfare have no business buying a $300+ gaming system. Call me crazy, but I believe welfare should be a short-term assistance program so that people in REAL need can get by until they can find a better life. It shouldn't be a way of life for people who don't want to work. Too many people treat it as such. Not everyone, I know, but too many.

right... because no one on welfare bought that Xbox before they became unemployed. I mean really, people on welfare shouldn't be driving cars either! or reading books! where are they getting money for books? And what is that welfare recipiant doing talking on a cell phone? The nerve! Don't they know they are supposed to be living in poverty? People on welfare must sell everything they own and start from 0 so that they appear "poor enough" for everyone else. Ugh. See, I told you these lectures were boring.

Not sure that was a lecture, but whatever. People on welfare should be doing everything in their power to get off of welfare. Not spending their welfare checks on gaming systems. Gaming systems, cars, books, cell phones ... they are all things you can either do without or find a cheaper alternative somewhere else. If I were on welfare, I would be busting my butt to get off it as soon as possible. Not accepting it as my new way of life. Too many people just accept it and say, "woe is me" instead of doing something about it.

You can read books for free by going to the library. You can get around town a lot cheaper by taking public transportation. No one NEEDS a cell phone or Xbox. A cell phone is a convenience. A gaming system is a luxury. There are a lot of things that people don't NEED but still want. No one said they need to sell their possessions, but if it is necessary to get by, I would do it. You do what you need to do until you get back on your feet. When you start being a productive member of society (instead of a drain on taxpayers), then you can start looking at purchasing non-essential goods and services.

Other then wanting to keep playing to collect coin/get achievments and level my guys, i dont have an interest in the levels them selves anymore. Im mostly doing the battle arena

This toy gimmick is what kept me from buying anything in this franchise. Video games are expensive toys. Adding a toy gimmick to an already expensive toy just makes things more difficult for the consumer. Then again, if it wasn’t for this “Portal of Power” the game would not be classified as “innovative” nor would it have made more than 300 million dollars. I’m paid on a bi-weekly basis, but this doesn’t mean I will pay hundreds of dollars for a game aimed for 6 to 12-year olds. This game is for everyone, but not for me.

The people are what sustain the industrialized world. Business companies, such as Activision, EA, Capcom and so forth, cannot survive without the people. Their need for money is like the need for food to them. If they do not have something that we desire, they will not survive. If I was able to create a game that will sell a billion units in one week, on a yearly basis, I would continue to milk it because people desire this game. What I would not do is unethical business practices that would REALLY tick the consumers off. The only way a business would stop downgrading, delaying or anything of this nature, is when the consumers stop buying their products.

I like this franchise, hence the reason why I make comics out of it. However, I’m not willing to pay for a wii game that costs $69.99. I’m glad I didn’t buy anything from this business practice. Otherwise, my wallet would hate me. Everything goes up while our pay gradually goes down. I haven’t bought a single activision game since Radical Rex.

Also, ask yourselves this: is this game worth the bang for your buck?

^

yes, i love the toys, collecting them is fun
and ive spent every day since christmas playing the game, so thats 2 months and counting, still have a lot more i want to do in it.

i dont see why people get so angry about this game and the way its made, if you enjoy it, play it, if dont, dont.

"if i do not approve of a game then nobody should! and ill keep telling them that until they agree with me!"

Quote: Himewad

Stupid Hollywood. Me hates them.

And you can count me as a person who thinks people on welfare have no business buying a $300+ gaming system. Call me crazy, but I believe welfare should be a short-term assistance program so that people in REAL need can get by until they can find a better life. It shouldn't be a way of life for people who don't want to work. Too many people treat it as such. Not everyone, I know, but too many.

I guess you didn't read (or really read) my post... See, the whole "welfare people are leeches on society" attitude bugs the hell out of me. As I said, welfare pays less than a person needs to live on, i.e. below poverty line. You CAN'T rest and get comfortable on welfare. Pure necessity pushes you to get a job, because you can't cover your BASIC BILLS on what you get from welfare. If someone on welfare is buying a luxury item like a game system, that's money not going towards basic needs like food or electricity or rent. Can YOU decide to simply not eat in exchange for getting a luxury item? I doubt it.

And as has already been pointed out, the XBox (and the game) could have been bought before the person fell on hard times. Keeping them doesn't cost money, and being careful with money can mean being able to avoid selling it for a while as you juggle bills.

Oh, and cell phones are actually quite necessary. Most people have a cell INSTEAD of a land line, especially when money is tight. And people on welfare need a phone, how else can they get called for job interviews?

FYI, I haven't been on welfare for like 5 years, I'm STILL paying off the debt I ran up by just making ends meet back then. Welfare does not pay enough to coast and do without a job. Period. Stories of people who do are just lies spread by pessimists and people who are making a bunch of money under the table and abusing the system.

We can stop the welfare discussion. I've made my views known. You've made your views known. We disagree at a very basic level. It's not people like you (who apparently worked hard to get off of welfare) that I have a beef with. It's abusers of the system, which I think we can both agree exist.

Agreed, we can let the welfare discussion die. But I just want to point out that abusers are far more rare than people with your views generally realize, just because the only way to abuse the system is to make money under the table elsewhere (since legitimate income will come to the attention of welfare services and get you kicked off). And this money has to be significant and flow regularly. People who share such views as yours tend to be of the opinion that ANYBODY on welfare is an abuser and a leech. THAT'S what I have a problem with.

Okay, so I registered specifically to comment on this thread…

I think that there is some middle-ground here (in the original debate) and I don’t think that the choices are purely cash grabs on Toys For Bob’s part. If this was going to be a pure cash-grab you wouldn’t expect the S1 toys to work at all.

In terms of the Wow Pow move on S2 figures, that’s a fair and fun way to incentivise people to buy S2 characters. It takes nothing away from the original characters. It’s frankly unreasonable to gripe about the lack of Wow Pow moves for S1 figures – it’s totally not required to finish the game in any way.
Ditto for the ability to switch class. Sure it’s nice, but you don’t need it and it takes nothing away from S1 owners. You’re locked into one path, but you were ALWAYS locked into one path… and you had the benefit of using it for a year before the new figure came out.
The lack of heroic challenge for S1 characters is a little bit harder to forgive, just because S1 characters can’t share the benefit of their Challenge with Newlanders and Giants. That’s the area were the choices seem less about a fun incentive and more about being punitive.

But the whole heroic challenge debacle is the exception rather than the rule, and it’s clear that Toys For Bob took efforts to reward S:SA players by making sure S1 characters were compatible (including the 8 discontinued toys), giving the original characters new levels and having the adventure packs open their levels in Giants. Seriously, the Adventure Pack thing really surprised me, because that’s a lot of work for something that they could have skipped – I wouldn’t be expecting those packs to open up whole new levels in Swap Force.

TFB (and now VV) have had to keep several plates spinning with Skylanders. They’ve to balance the existing fanbase with future profitability. And aside from a few missteps they have managed it really well. It’s pointless to complain about newer characters (S2) being better – like any collectable game, the model only works if there is a reason to buy the new sets. The heroic challenge thing is a bummer, but it’s pretty clear that overall TFB have walked the line really well.

I am still on the fence as to whether to buy the new game.

I am really annoyed about the fact that series 1 characters didn't unlock heroics in giants because that was a loss of function (they did that in S:SA and now they no longer do that in SG and unlocking heroics is not a NEW function, unlike path switching or WowPows, so it is a LOSS) and my new characters will never have complete stats because I will not buy all the reposes (I have every character for S:SA) - I opted to buy a couple of personal favourites and I got stuck with a couple I didn't want from battlepacks and whatnot. I will be super pissed if they do this to me again (see below) and depending on the specific 'improvements' to the game, it may be enough to stop me from buying it - I want the game to be longer (more levels), harder (just nightmare/hard mode; keep easy/normal mode for the little kids), and stuff like that. I do like the idea of jumping, we'll see how they work that in, and I'm not too upset if they leave out online play, although it might have been nice for me cause I don't have anyone to PVP very often. In terms of gameplay, I want more info.

I am also wondering how much these new 'swapping' characters are going to cost. If they are going to be 16 x $15 characters + 16 x $10 regular characters I will either have to say goodbye to the game and just play S:SA and SG (I still have a lot of obsessing I can do with levels, heroics, and quests) or accept the fact that I cannot afford to buy all the new characters as I like to do because with the starter pack that would work out to be at least $450 + tax (in Canada Skylanders never go on sale, except the starter, which will probably be $75 again since it has a portal). If the 'swapping' characters are going to be ~$10 (and bet on Activision charging more than $10, just like with lightcores/giants), I might be able to swing this if I use birthday/christmas money and get the game on sale or trade stuff in toward it. But I won't be getting reposes at all and this is where the HC issue comes in.

I want HCs to be unlocked by ALL variants of characters. This is a function that characters normally have and taking it away devalues them and I simply cannot afford to replace all 32 originals PLUS all 16 new ones from giants (plus the handful of reposes I got). Other game companies maintain themselves on charging $60/game initially - Activision gets $75 for a portal pack + sales for every new character ($10/$12/$15 per toy!). Do they really need to try and force previous users to buy every repose too? The new users will buy the reposes because they lack the old characters and some old users will buy them anyway because they are a) collectors or b) they want the NEW features (powers, path switching). There is no need to take away old features from the previous characters. It is just greed; it has nothing to do with making enough money to sustain the game or company. But I don't think this will change. I think they will keep HCs only for reposes to try and force more purchases...

Mostly agreed there. If a S3 figure opens a quest/activity/area then the S2/S1 version should too. Any incentive for new buyers should be limited to stats/skills on the character, not the world itself.
Don’t care too much about them opening challenges if there is no S3 version of the figure, and I’m not demanding that the old levels/challenges come to the new game (I expect they will not – the new game looks too different).

And as for cost… well, the new ‘swappable’ characters better be no more than the current lightcore figures are now. If the new figures cost any more than that, I just won’t buy them.
Hell, I’m just as happy to pick up the starter pack and then play through with my current roster (perhaps pick eight and reset them so their difficulty-arcs aren’t too ****ed up).
The jump from S:SA to S:G was pretty significant on 360 already, and several of the characters already felt like whole new figures (Erupter went from someone I just put up with to a firm favourite – the eruption is both more effective and also far more graphically interesting in S:G) – I’m sure that the jump to the whole new graphical style will make even my original crew feel fresh again.

Funny thing about S:SF toys is that the larger size actually makes me want the toys a lot less. They’re looking more like kid’s toys, and less like something I could display on my bookshelf without feeling a significant amount of shame (I’m likely double the age of most the posters here… maybe even triple… hell, I’m likely old enough to be most people’s father). Certain Skylanders are already off-limits if I think they wouldn’t look good on display.
Most of the S:SA and newlander toys look much like any other video/movie collectable I own, so even when not in use they look great decorating my game room.
But goofy octopus guy? Err… no. No, I think not. If he was in the starter pack he’d spend his days hidden in a draw. The bigger they are, the goofier they look.
If the toys cost too much (or if they look too much like toys and not enough like collectables) I’ll get the bare minimum needed to unlock all the areas and not a character more.

I too was very annoyed that the S1 characters didn't unlock the heroic challenges. I am a "completist" (at least, in game play if not in collecting). I did not plan to buy the S2 characters, but I did want the 16 new characters to be completely leveled up so...I caved and bought every S2 character. I'm pissed that I had to. I've never played with a single S2 character in S:G. I just kept all S2 characters in the packaging and chalked them, up to "collector items."

I do think there could have been a more "let's please everyone" approach to the S1 vs S2 figures. I definitely think the S1 figures should've unlocked the challenges (obviously); but with that said...I think the S2 figures could have enticed prospective buyers in other ways. I too don't think the upgrade path swap option and the wow pow is enough to warrant buying the S2 figures, but there could have been more too them.

For instance...I really agree with what a few other people said above: the S2 characters could've unlocked a new level. It would've been really awesome if Terrafin had unlocked, like, a sequel level to Pirate Seas. Or, if Gill Grunt had, maybe, unlocked a flashback level that introduced us to his missing mermaid girlfriend and how he battled to try and get her back.

And - if unlocking a new level for every S2 character is a bit too much; perhaps they could've just unlocked certain parts of the main story levels that didn't necessarily prevent 100% completion or earning all accolades (I mean, don't piss us off there either)...but, instead, were just a total blast to play and made buying the S2 figures totally worth it.

I love the Skylanders games. I love the collector mentality of it, I love the thrill of the chase to hunt for the figures, I think the aesthetics of the game are beautiful and that the characters are unique and interesting. But, I do think that so much richness and opportunity in this game, is being left on the cutting room floor. I think there should (somehow) be enough new content to get us through all the figure wave releases. I mean, for the die hard Spyro fans: I thought, for sure, that with him being in the final wave of S2 figures he'd unlock some new levels to keep everyone interested and give everyone new opportunities to explore the game. At this point, whose S2 Spyro is really going to see any gameplay?

I think the game makers could have really put their expertise and brain power into more creative ways to drive customers to buy the S2 figures. I think the S2 requirement to unlock heroic challenges was a lazy crutch. I think the makers of such a creative and innovative game should be above that. And, if they had really tried to improve on the previous game, they would have reached higher. Thus, allowing customers like Himewad (I'm guessing, I don't mean to put words in your mouth) and me to sit back and be content with fully completing the game and unlocking heroic challenges in S:G with our S1 figures and the 16 new ones. While, at the same time, giving some irresistible / further gameplay through the S2 figures that would still drive sells and please both old and new customers.

I mean, how cool would it have been if Eruptor unlocked a level where Master Eon had sent him on some secret mission to an all fire island, or something. Or, better yet...some all water island where the battle and opposing elements were crazy difficult yet, satisfying?!? And, once news of this "secret level" hit the Internet, wouldn't that really toy with guys like me who never planned to buy S2 Eruptor, but now couldn't resist because the extra gameplay sounds so awesome? Or, a kid would realize all his friends had played the "secret Eruptor level" and he/she hadn't...I'm sure the kid would drive the parents crazy until they caved and bought the S2 Eruptor.

I just think the game makers now really need to focus on diversifying the game...more levels....more unlockable content....better replay-ability. (A real peeve of mine is no real big pay-off for acheiving all accolades, I mean - give us something, anything...even some extra treasure would be nice! Something!) If the game is right and wonderful and amazing to play and pleases the fans...Activision and company will get the money they're hoping for.

What’s funny about the posts suggesting unique unlockable areas or micro-levels for S2 characters is that it’s exactly what a heroic challenge is – a small unlockable level as a reward for buying the character. I mean, it’s a good idea, but that’s why they did it.
And while it seems like a good idea to people who own 80-90% of the toys, the idea of yet more content being locked out of the main game makes the rest of us raise a single, disapproving, eyebrow.

I guess the problem is that the challenge/micro levels being unlocked are ones we’ve seen before.
Perhaps the answer would just be to let S1 characters unlock their old level and to give S2 characters a whole different challenge to unlock. Perhaps one that wasn’t timed.
Of course if they did that we’d no doubt hear people complain that they are forcing you to buy both versions of the character.
They can’t win.

Quote: Tel Prydain

What’s funny about the posts suggesting unique unlockable areas or micro-levels for S2 characters is that it’s exactly what a heroic challenge is – a small unlockable level as a reward for buying the character. I mean, it’s a good idea, but that’s why they did it.
And while it seems like a good idea to people who own 80-90% of the toys, the idea of yet more content being locked out of the main game makes the rest of us raise a single, disapproving, eyebrow.

I guess the problem is that the challenge/micro levels being unlocked are ones we’ve seen before.
Perhaps the answer would just be to let S1 characters unlock their old level and to give S2 characters a whole different challenge to unlock. Perhaps one that wasn’t timed.
Of course if they did that we’d no doubt hear people complain that they are forcing you to buy both versions of the character.
They can’t win.

That's the point why people want new content---do I REALLY need to grind through EVERY Heroic Challenge for EVERY character and it's a level that ALWAYS unlock for a given character--that's why some are saying some UNIQUE in game content on a PER CHARACTER basis would be sufficient for helping justify re-purchase of existing characters--and REINTRODUCE a fresh adventure in our minds.

Or, I guess you folks can grind on all 80+ characters on every HC or levels to get your character upgrade and pretend you are getting value. Now THAT would get a frown that would not turn upside down.