Underlying Issue with the Game

[EvanDavidson]

The underlying issue with this game is that it is entirely geared towards non-casual/hardcore gamers (i.e those that would probably not be in such a forum... : P ) This is a huge issue, especially with a F2P monetization strategy, and needs to be addressed before this game goes nowhere fast as casual gamers bolt.

Basically, there is no way for a casual gamers to properly enjoy this game. Some specific issues include (1) better decks win 99% of the time because of draw and select card mechanics (lack of RNG) so no way for a casual gamer to get lucky (2) Some card combinations are just unbeatable (i.e. defender and make card to the left invincible) without exact counters. A casual gamer isn't going to spend all their time optimizing their deck so they just lose. (3) There is no game mode for quick, casual play. Rank, unranked, and seasonal are stocked fill of net decks that destroy anyone just looking to wing it (4) Reward Points are way too time consuming to come by - let's say a casual gamer plays for an hour a day, they may only earn 3 reward points, which effectively gives them nothing (5) Season trees disappear for some awfully poorly thought out reason - why would a casual gamer who is getting no RP try to complete a tree if it is just gone and they are expected to wait a year to finish it...not going to happen.

All these reasons and more show a game geared toward non-casual gamers and in my view is the reason why this game is not attracting and keeping much of a player base.

 

[dragoonzen]

The game needs a vs AI mode that could scale in difficulty to challenge newcomers as they build better decks with better cards? Maybe...

 

[DRK3]

The OP does make some fair points, others not so much.

-The game is still probably geared towards non-casual gamers. Not necessarily just veterans, but also players that maybe started not long ago, like 2-4 months, but played regularly every day and were able to get into a comfortable position.

CDPR have actually made an effort to shift the game to be more newbie-friendly, but i dont think they've had much success, the retention rate of newer players is probably quite low because beginners get a bad experience being stomped, not just by longtime players but by anyone with enough scraps to craft a metadeck and play it a dozen times.

2) no combination is unbeatable, at least for the moment. That would be a tier 0 deck, and with the slight ST nerf last patch, its actually the most balanced the game has been for the past 4 months

3) indeed, that is where CDPR should focus, to try and make new players experience less harsh

4) i think reward points are fine. Players of the betas know, back then it was WAY harder to come by resources, by comparison now its a rain of resources

5) completely disagree here. the seasonal trees need to rotate to motivate players to play more, and i think the reward book system is one of the few things CDPR got absolutely right (with the exception of the recent MP node change ofc)

 

[croloris]

DRK3, are you referring to the 3/6/12/24/48/64 Ranked Victories from the beta

for 100 - 300 ore and 50 - 100 MP? I feel like my numbers are only slightly off, but it is hard to remember when the journey back is uphill both ways

 

[DRK3]

DRK3, are you referring to the 3/6/12/24/48/64 Ranked Victories from the beta

for 100 - 300 ore and 50 - 100 MP? I feel like my numbers are only slightly off, but it is hard to remember when the journey back is uphill both ways

To be honest i cant remember that about ranked victories. I recall the end of season rewards were quite substantial, but that was about it.

There was no reward book, reward points or contracts; no daily quests (or quests whatsoever); no login bonus, no prestige bonus (some that are vital to earn meteorite powder), etc.

What i do know is i put 1000 hours in Gwent before HC launched, and even with all that playtime i only managed to get a full collection in May of that year (2018). Then HC launched and not only did i immediately get back full collection, i got full premium collection (since premiums were craftable with scraps at that time).

I think that is proof enough that at least in resource generosity, HC has the upper hand vs the betas.

 

[StrykerxS77x]

Completely disagree. This game became more about the casual player when they kept dumbing the cards and mechanics down to a boring degree.

Casuals do not have a problem with cards because they are at low rank playing other people who also need cards. Then there is the fact that its easy to obtain cards in this game so even a casual player can put together a full deck that pro players use in a short amount of time.

 

[Immyrsturm]

As someone who tends to lean more towards the casual side of things, I must confess I'm still having a pretty good time with Gwent. That being said, I must confess that I would like to see a matchmaking system meant for people like me, i.e. those who are more interested in experimenting with decks or are leaning more towards casual play.

Ranked matchmaking ensures that people will be at least of my own ranking, and therefore (ideally) being my equal in skill, the tendency towards competitiveness tends to make players create and play with meta decks. In contrast, unranked matchmaking feels like being thrown to the wolves, and I'm going up against people who might be twice or thrice my own level with decks that, following the meta or not, still outstrip my own as a casual newbie with limited options.

Perhaps what CDPR needs is the equivalent of MTG's "pauper" mode, in which players can only utilize cards/decks of a certain predetermined power level? Or a separate way of determining matchmaking for unranked play altogether?

 

[Anciluart]

and therefore (ideally) being my equal in skill,

That is not competition, it is an illusory ability system, it is more than enough that both players have the similar rank (which is currently happening).

Perhaps what CDPR needs is the equivalent of MTG's "pauper" mode, in which players can only utilize cards/decks of a certain predetermined power level?

There isn't a single MTG mode where a no-card rookie competes against a veteran on equal strength (apart from the draft). There is a reason why the best thing to start with is to go straight to a monored deck.

A matching system is not necessary, what is needed is a variety of strategies and balance, if the meta decks were not so disproportionate in power, you could experiment and compete against those decks in better conditions.

Ontopic...

Gwent remains one of the most casual-oriented games in the short term, in HS if you are not willing to dust your entire initial collection to create a hunter deck you will be the food of the veterans for several months. MTG is more accessible than HS due the wildcard system, even so you have to orient yourself to an aggro deck to start, control decks require a lot of rare and mytical cards.

Gwent maintains the system that all decks have quite similar costs and that allows you to choose where you want to go without limitations.
LoR is similar in this regard since you can choose which faction to use as an initial and you get cards from that faction as a reward.

 

[Qzman]

Throughout the thread people ask why isn't there a casual mode? What's the unranked mode then? Am I missing something?

As a mostly casual player myself I disagree with the OP on points 1, 2 and 3. But reward points are indeed rare and seasonal trees are exhausting resource-wise but that's why you choose your battles.

OP, if you're looking for a more casual, luck oriented card game, I'd say any other one would be better except maybe Magic, but be prepared to struggle for months before assembling a starter deck. I've recently stopped playing HS after a few years and the luck factor there frustrates a lot of players.

 

[dragoonzen]

Casual don't feel like casual sometimes when my opponent is spamming emotes and using tier 1 decks and I'm testing out certain combination with a new deck I just came up with...

 

[Qzman]

Casual don't feel like casual sometimes when my opponent is spamming emotes and using tier 1 decks and I'm testing out certain combination with a new deck I just came up with...

Must be new to online games? Yeah lowlives like those are pretty common...

 

[DarkTl]

That would be a tier 0 deck, and with the slight ST nerf last patch, its actually the most balanced the game has been for the past 4 months

And this is pretty sad fact, because in a properly balanced game each faction should always have at least one tier 1 deck and at least one tier 2 deck. But it almost never happens in gwent, especially now, when monsters are pretty much lost cause.

 

[DRK3]

And this is pretty sad fact, because in a properly balanced game each faction should always have at least one tier 1 deck and at least one tier 2 deck. But it almost never happens in gwent, especially now, when monsters are pretty much lost cause.

Gwent has gone through something more than just meta shifts, specially in the summer of last year:

-before, there were dominating factions and weaker factions, but after that it shifted so all factions have one or two popular, viable leaders/decks while the rest is trash, in my opinion that is almost as bad as the previous balancing situation.

-another shift was that the game stopped being defined by strong finishers and a strong opener, usually to set up engines so your opponent cant handle them and the situation becomes impossible to recover from. That is why SK, but specially MO went from top factions into the bottom (and the current SK is more focused on engines, thats why it became viable again)

 

[Qzman]

-before, there were dominating factions and weaker factions, but after that it shifted so all factions have one or two popular, viable leaders/decks while the rest is trash, in my opinion that is almost as bad as the previous balancing situation.

How is this bad? I mean isn't this exactly how it must be? Surely not all decks can be equally strong?

 

[DRK3]

How is this bad? I mean isn't this exactly how it must be? Surely not all decks can be equally strong?

Its bad because there are 36 leader abilities, and if only 1 ability per faction is used because its clearly better than the rest, maybe a 2nd one is also kinda viable, and the rest are completely neglected, that means there's 24-30 leader abilities that are there just to provide a fake sense of alternatives to the less-informed players.

Does that sound like a balanced game?

 

[goodninja3]

The underlying issue of the game is............

NILFGAARD

No but seriously, the reason casuals don't enjoy the game is because there are no tutorials on card synergy. There's no tips on how factions play with one another...the only reason why I undertood Gwent is because of the Witcher 3's Vanilla Rules. The extra stuff took some getting used to. I mean hey! That's probably the best way to learn gwent; BUY WITCHER 3 for the casual version XDD