Arena is fantastic for new players

[StrykerxS77x]

Arena is fantastic for new players

I have some big critiques of Arena but I think it's awesome that it's there for new players. I wish it had been around when I was new. Getting to play and practice with any card in the game is a great learning tool. It's also never been easier to grind out scraps and ore. I have felt bad for new players because they have to start with so little but I really feel like CDPR is giving so many resources to allow new players to play the game a lot and earn what they want at a fast pace. So while I want to see Arena fine tuned I am very happy it's there for people to enjoy.

 

[Lisandre]

The problem is that after the free charges a new player probably is screwed, payinf to play against people with MUCH more experience than theirs. I'm not even a "new player", but was paired with people 25-35 levels more than me, with proportionaly much more experience.

 

[Legendarum]

Lisandre

I'm not so sure, the fee is only 150 ore after all, which isn't difficult for any player regardless of when they started, and the rewards are so nice.

Sure youre often against people twice your level or more, but you're also sometimes against low levels. And the randomish nature of arena means it shouldnt take a lot of luck (even if youre new) to rack up a few wins at least.

I know I've beaten people twice my level and also lost to very, very low level people. I'm with the OP here, I think it's a great format for new players.

 

[OG.laloquaint]

I'm glad new players are having fun with it tbh, I think it's a great tool for new players and experienced players alike. I also think it's a much better environment to play in rather than Casual/Ranked since both of those modes are littered with really strong decks, which can be extremely frustrating for new players.

 

[Kingoko]

Arena was a great addition to Gwent, gg CDPR

 

[RYPGlenn]

I like Arena...but it needs a leaderboard, or ranking points, or something. I don't care about the rewards...already have almost every card.

 

[StrykerxS77x]

I like Arena...but it needs a leaderboard, or ranking points, or something. I don't care about the rewards...already have almost every card.

I would like that stuff as well but you can't do that when Arena is this casual. It's simply too luck based to be a competitive mode.

 

[bighunkofmeat]

Why is Arena gone?

 

[Void_Singer]

Arena is great for new players!?

so it's great that it charges you to play, but based on average win rates you can't possibly even recoup your initial stake?
it's great that newbies are playing against vastly more experienced players, who understand much better what combos are possible and when to play them?
It's great that this so called 'education' comes at the price of slowing the growth of their own card collection, making it more difficult to build competitive decks outside of Arena?

New players beware... it's a trap.

 

[Legendarum]

Void_Singer

Woah. Usually I agree with stuff you say, but this seems a little excessive. As I've said before, I am a terrible arena
/draft player in all card games, but having said that, I rack up an OK amount of wins, usually somewhere between three and seven.

I'm not sure what the average wins would be for a new player, somewhere between two and five I'd guess. But the rewards, for me at least (a terrible player) virtually always make it worth my while. You often get enough ore to buy a second card pack, and that's not to mention meteorite powder which isn't that easy to come by.

About fighting vastly more experienced players too - that's true, but I've beaten many players (probably a lot better than me) in arena just due to the random nature of the format. I'm sure that new players would have the same experience. What's more, although a lot of arena players ARE a high level, I've fought plenty of low levels too.

I'd genuinely be interested to hear more about why you appear to think it's such a bad idea for new players. As I honestly can't see how it's anything but a good thing.

 

[StrykerxS77x]

Arena is great for new players!?

so it's great that it charges you to play, but based on average win rates you can't possibly even recoup your initial stake?
it's great that newbies are playing against vastly more experienced players, who understand much better what combos are possible and when to play them?
It's great that this so called 'education' comes at the price of slowing the growth of their own card collection, making it more difficult to build competitive decks outside of Arena?

New players beware... it's a trap.

In my experience I always at least get 1 keg back which is only 50 ore away from the cost of entry. I don't think this is a problem for new players because once their dailies/missions are done there isn't much else to do to earn more.

New players will eventually lose to experience but it's very important to be able to use and learn the cards. It's very valuable experience that they won't get playing casual or ranked. Losing to more experienced players is going to happen in any of the modes.

I don't agree that it slows the growth of their collection. Also we aren't necessarily talking about brand new players. I'm sure there are plenty of people pretty good at the game but still need a lot of cards. If they have even a small chance to go far in arena then they can make a lot of currency doing so.

 

[Void_Singer]

all matchups are zero sum: for every game someone wins, someone loses... (draws count for nothing)
that means 3:3 is the average (technically it's 2:3 or worse, since the balance bracket (where wins = losses) is 10.5 rounds at top vs 3 at bottom, and ignores 11 round plays)
that means an average of 3 slot machine windows. analyzing the various rewards you don't get back full value of those Ore, even with one being a Keg...

2 tries at Arena is worth 3 Kegs, for a new player those kegs are worth more because they contain a higher proportion of cards they don't have yet. for older players that value goes down to nearly the level of raw scrap. That means not only are the unlikely to recoup their full initial investment, but they are giving up the value they would have gotten from just buying kegs. At least in casual in ranked they continue earning as they go (even for the third tier of dailies)

now if you're an experienced player, AND you have a high completion rate for your card set (meaning kegs are worth less for you on average, then yeah, by all means gamble away... but it's a losing proposition all round for new players, both by numbers and experience.

 

[Cocadaly]

I have some big critiques of Arena but I think it's awesome that it's there for new players. I wish it had been around when I was new. Getting to play and practice with any card in the game is a great learning tool. It's also never been easier to grind out scraps and ore. I have felt bad for new players because they have to start with so little but I really feel like CDPR is giving so many resources to allow new players to play the game a lot and earn what they want at a fast pace. So while I want to see Arena fine tuned I am very happy it's there for people to enjoy.

Was it easier to get scraps in the past?

 

[StrykerxS77x]

Was it easier to get scraps in the past?

I said in the quote that it's easier to earn scraps and ore because now there are more ways to do it. Arena and Missions didn't exist until recently so Dailies and Ranked rewards were all you could get. Going back even further before ranked was put in all you had was dailies.

 

[VladAtheris]

I don't recommend arena as a way to grind cards if you are a new player. It would more than likely be worse than just buying the packs directly.

 

[Voyagers]

The problem with Arena is that it does not count for tier round wins and if you can't get that many wins in arena you are better off just doing your dailies in casual or ranked if you are new.

 

[StrykerxS77x]

The problem with Arena is that it does not count for tier round wins and if you can't get that many wins in arena you are better off just doing your dailies in casual or ranked if you are new.

I definitely think they should do dailies/quests first and then consider doing arena. If anything just to stay interested and learn.

 

[ofratko007]

I agree. A novice can try all the cards. Unfortunately some cards still don't interact with each other ( Stannis and Hattori didn't work for me) but otherwise it's brilliant. The only thing I would change is the amount of scraps needed for playing it... 100 would be enough. The price of the keg....

 

[VladAtheris]

I agree. A novice can try all the cards. Unfortunately some cards still don't interact with each other ( Stannis and Hattori didn't work for me) but otherwise it's brilliant. The only thing I would change is the amount of scraps needed for playing it... 100 would be enough. The price of the keg....

The arena mode is there to make money for the company so it would be counterproductive for them to make the experience cost-effective for the user. It would be like making every lottery ticket guaranteed to yield at least 1 cent of profit.
Arena is a gamble and in gambling the house always wins.

 

[Kingoko]

Arena could be based on 2 tiers. lvl 1 - lvl 30 players and lvl30+ players.
Cause true atm its better for new players to do dailys, getting 100 ore and then maybe 75 ore as well. If you still want play this day go to arena then.