David's Wandering Mind

Thu, 17 Mar 2016

Game of "discrimination"

I started playing a war game called "Game of War". The same company also runs at least one other game called "Mobile Strike". I know this because I have gotten "support" (better called NON-support) ticket answers that have thanked me for playing Mobile Strike when I don't.

All that aside. I've been playing for a while. The company wants to make money. No problem with that. And they have hooks in the game to entice you to buy. Fine. So I'm actually fairly advanced as I have passed certain points in the game where my stronghold (fortress) is as high as it can go, and my "hero" has reached a level that is considered good, one where capturing it gives the capturing city extra bonuses.

I've come to a point in the game where I actually want to buy something -- they have me hooked. After clicking on an icon that tells me I need to buy a "gold pack" to get an item to use this particular game feature, I am sent to the "gold store". Great, let me see what it costs.

I look at the gold packs I'm being offered (2 of them). Some $10.00 packs with some items in them and a little gold. I don't see the item I need listed. I ask in the chat session of the other players and they say I need to wait until a particular pack is offered. They tell me an XYZ pack that costs $50 or $100.

Now I'm patient. So I wait. And a few days later as I see some gold packs come and go, I ask again. I'm told by my alliance members that the pack I need is offered, look for it, it is called XYZ pack and costs $50.00. Hmmm. I'm only offered $10.00 packs and the occasional $20.00 pack. No $50.00 or $100.00 packs.

Enter the idiot machine. I send "support" a ticket. In fact, I've now sent about 60 tickets, all on the same subject over the course of several weeks (pretty much daily). All I get is nonsensical diatribe about:
1. how they don't control what gold packs folks are offered, that's marketing (and they will forward my request). Never any follow-up from this marketing department I'm now convinced doesn't exist.
2. an absurd rambling bunch of stupidity about balance of power (what in the hell are they talking about, all I want to do is get an item so I can unlock this special item everyone else apparently has unlocked -- is this so I can't compete on an even footing? is that their balance of power? keeping me unbalanced?)
3. lately, complete silence. guess they have no more canned responses other than "they can't help me" (big surprise there).

I'm now just completely frustrated. I've compared my offerings to those of my fellow players. The packs I get offered are like tricycles compared to their ferraris. Their $20.00 packs are equal to about 15 or 20 of the $20.00 packs I'm offered. I'd need to spend $350.00 plus to get even close to what they get offered in one $50.00 pack, and even then some items (the ones I'd like to get) are NEVER offered in the packs I see. Not sure if I don't get offered what everyone else is buying because I'm a military veteran (so would have an unfair advantage in game of war?), or because I'm white, or what (and they won't tell me either).

My recommendation at this time is to stay far, far away from any of these online games until someone (FTC, are you listening?) slaps these people and forces them to make the games fair -- at least everyone gets offered the same deals. I have no idea why other players get certain great deals and all I get is crap deals I wouldn't waste your money on. It makes no sense. Guess the only thing to do is abandon the game. Too bad. Could be fun. Guess I'll never know.

David-

posted at: 08:31 | path: /data/technobabble | permanent link to this entry

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