No offense taken, apologies if it seems like trolling - I'm trying to strongly put across a point about elements of the game being fundamentally broken, it's a mixture of sadness and disappointment that there's endless time and resource spent by CDPR in bringing in new cards, purely to sell more "loot boxes", when the core mechanics of the game don't work. It's also sad that they took so much player money, changed the game entirely, made it more like other CCG's and fundamentally about counters, with one eye fixed firmly on a mobile game to appeal to an entirely different market. My anger via posts is to demonstrate that people should never take any of this crap lying down - we should always stand up for what we believe in. I've paid money for games and disliked certain aspects, of course. But for Gwent I invested time and money in Beta helping to (so I thought) shape its' future - only to have the game ripped up and replaced by this RNG abomination. The RNG defines this game - whether that's the coin toss or the deal you get, that's all that matters. There's plenty of decks that could be competitive against each other and rely on skill, but this game craps on all of that in exchange for this matchmaking/deal deciding rubbish. I appreciate the "advice", but it's of no consequence - telling me what an awesome card can do is irrelevant if I can't keep that card on the board, or get it in my hand. If the deck I built can win a couple of times, it can't be that bad? No such thing as a perfect deck, is there? So my issue is then getting a series of 'unfortunate' match-ups, or 'bad deals' and losing a load of games, I don't get it at all.
"We want two rows instead of three", said nobody, ever. "We want a SMALLER hand size", said nobody, ever. "We want rid of blacklisting", "we want bronze restricted to 2", "we want weather to be pointless", "we want MORE hard counters", "we want provisions instead" said nobody, ever. So the anger in the way I post is because I, among many, spent time that's effectively been wasted. It continues to be wasted (well, until today!) because nothing is listened to. Tweaking a provision here and there is not addressing anything.
The dwindling player numbers, dwindling forum posts, all point to a game that is struggling. They (CDPR) seem to have lost sight of why it was successful - it was originally awesome because it brought a quirky game from the Witcher world to us, the Witcher player. They've now changed it so much that it no longer really appeals to Witcher fans. They did so in an attempt to get MTG players to switch allegiance, and with a firm goal of creating a 'loot box' type mobile game for kids. It hasn't worked, it continues not to work, but they are marching on relentless to the point where they won't be able to keep the lights on.
I mean, just look at this board? In the Gameplay section there are literally days passing without new posts. If CDPR can't understand this as a bad sign, then even those who inexplicably enjoy this game are going to have to find something else to do.
Thank you! A good post, that allows me to follow your thoughts!
As you might know, I'm only playing for 2 months. I'm currently around rank 18, played 420h. I still see cool tricks, I never thought of, and I still do mistakes. I never experienced the beta (and I wasn't even interested, because Gwint was so boring for me), and so HC is like the root version for me.
I don't miss a third row, since I only know the game with two rows. But I do see that there is a lack of differentiation. Most cards can be played on either row, but it should be an exception, a kind of special ability to use any of the rows (
back to Gwint?) Anyway, the distinction of rows (wether 2 or 200) should be more prominent.
I also see your argument. What's so special about a strong card if I don't get it on hand? Correct. But I also see the streak of games, where I DO get it on hand. That's the nature of RNG, yes. But it's also the nature of a card game, isn't it? From skat to poker, bridge to solitary, and of course modern ccg. It is always about
trying to get the best cards on hand. There is not one of the most successful poker players that would have won more than lost.
I can't say anything about the quotes you made from what nobody ever said, simply because it refers to a time I never experienced. And since I don't know how Gwent was played before provisions, I neither prefer one system over the other, nor miss the old one.
I can just say this: The old times are gone. That is deeply frustrating for everybody who loved the old times. And it is a loss of players for Gwent, when those decide to not adapt to the new times. But it also won't change anything that people express their frustration and disappointment about a changed Gwent compared to Beta. As you said, CDPR will hold its course. But it's also their right to do so.
And don't get me wrong: I see a lot of issues with current Gwent, I see bugs (for example deploy cards suddenly having charge icons, which is really irritating), I see flaws in game mechanics (like almost meaningless row mechanics). And I certainly don't want Gwent to stay where it is at now. But I also see that there is no way back. Either Gwent improves in its current incarnation, or it will disappear sooner or later.
I'm willing to face any changes. When it doesn't work for me, I'm out. And as long as I don't feel like Gwent is a full version I won't invest money. I think that is the main difference between us. Your passion led you to spend money, which in return now lets you feel abused. I won't let that happen to me.
