Where Apexis dailies failed as engaging content: no VIPE

[Deleted]

Isle of Thunder could frequently take 15-20 minutes to get through and you were being herded like a cat through the whole thing.

As opposed to doing most Apexis dailies usually take only 5 minutes to complete if you aren't trying to brute force it like a fool (tack on a couple minutes for travel time to the zone).

How does any of this in any kind of way relate to what I wrote? Because it really, really, really doesn't. Then again apexis dailys don't just take "5 minutes" the travel time alone are a lot longer than that and you're missing out an all the other stuff I wrote such as reputation, story, actual tangible rewards, having a coherent "hub" where there was more to do than the dailys alone and so on and on.

[Drilnos]

The Apexis model does suffer from a lack of direction and purpose that daily hubs don't. It's too much of a sandbox. And the idea that you can choose which objectives to complete falls flat when you get rewards for kills that you don't get for clickables - specifically, rep. So you've got all these clickables that do, in fact, do cool things, but you avoid them actively. Which devolves the whole thing into mob grinding, and doesn't do anything to make the different areas actually feel different.

What would make the concept work is to actually put dailies in the Apexis areas. Actual NPCs in the actual areas hand out mini quests that fill up the bar and, here's the important part, give rep, at least until the bar is full. Quests like "roll an iron star into the Pit" or "kill one of the rares" or "free X slaves", etc. They don't even have to add much, if anything, in the way of objectives.

[Deleted]

The Apexis model does suffer from a lack of direction and purpose that daily hubs don't. It's too much of a sandbox. And the idea that you can choose which objectives to complete falls flat when you get rewards for kills that you don't get for clickables - specifically, rep. So you've got all these clickables that do, in fact, do cool things, but you avoid them actively. Which devolves the whole thing into mob grinding, and doesn't do anything to make the different areas actually feel different.

What would make the concept work is to actually put dailies in the Apexis areas. Actual NPCs in the actual areas hand out mini quests that fill up the bar and, here's the important part, give rep, at least until the bar is full. Quests like "roll an iron star into the Pit" or "kill one of the rares" or "free X slaves", etc. They don't even have to add much, if anything, in the way of objectives.

Which is exactly what I'm thinking they should do. I mentioned it in the OP.

I had some more discussion on the matter. I tried to find an analogy to the Apexis system. Imagine that for the next 8 months, every Superman comic would be the same: Superman sits in his Fortress of Solitude, checks his Supercomputer, Sees Lex Luthor doing something evil, takes a taxi to get there, stops him and then just returns to his Fortress to do nothing. No motives for either except "I need to stop him" and "I need to be evil". (in case you're a Batman fan, replace Superman with Batman, FoS with the Batcave and Lex Luthor with Ra's Al Ghul.) That would be SUCH a boring arc that would make many people just stop reading altogether. And in this case, people did.

Apexis really needed AT LEAST a story. Klaxxi, Red Crane, Shadopan, Golden Lotus, Krasarang, Cloud Serpent, Isle of thunder, Quel'Danas, Crusader's Coliseum, Hodir, Molten Front, they all had a story that made you want to continue JUST to see what the next part was. Hell, even Sha'Tari Skyguard (Skettis) has a story.

At this point, even Swiper from Dora The Explorer has more and better story than Apexis crystals.

[Reyzzz]

Really? Not a single one takes 5 minutes. Specially not skettis. Maybe on a low pop realm, but on Thrall it takes at least 15 minutes.

Skettis especially does. You take 4 keys from the mobs closest to the FP, go to the high density area and starfall. Quest complete.

[Deleted]

I never really understood the problem with MOP dailies. I enjoyed it at the time. Really felt like I'd done something when I completed that last epic quest where you fight off the mogu.

Did one apexis quest, thought f*** this halfway through, never done any others.

In retrospect the MOP dailies were like crack cocaine by comparison.

[Deleted]

Skettis especially does. You take 4 keys from the mobs closest to the FP, go to the high density area and starfall. Quest complete.

stop thinking that everyone plays your class. As a ret paladin, on a mid pop realm, I was so frustrated by Skettis that It was a major reason in stopping to do dailies.

[Deleted]

The Apexis model does suffer from a lack of direction and purpose that daily hubs don't. It's too much of a sandbox. And the idea that you can choose which objectives to complete falls flat when you get rewards for kills that you don't get for clickables - specifically, rep. So you've got all these clickables that do, in fact, do cool things, but you avoid them actively. Which devolves the whole thing into mob grinding, and doesn't do anything to make the different areas actually feel different.

What would make the concept work is to actually put dailies in the Apexis areas. Actual NPCs in the actual areas hand out mini quests that fill up the bar and, here's the important part, give rep, at least until the bar is full. Quests like "roll an iron star into the Pit" or "kill one of the rares" or "free X slaves", etc. They don't even have to add much, if anything, in the way of objectives.

I think that can be really good idea.Like you get the dailsy apexis zone and all these extra stuff there can be simple dayli quests in this zone which ppl can complete if they want for aditional rewards

Also they need to cut abit the prices for regular gear not gate it behind even huge wall of gold (not every one have millions of gold after all).So far in PTR the gear from apexis vendor is like the gear from missions you simple click and create piece of gear for your class and specialization

[Deleted]

I really enjoyed the Molten Front and how it was delivered.

[Raelbo]

Really? Not a single one takes 5 minutes. Specially not skettis. Maybe on a low pop realm, but on Thrall it takes at least 15 minutes.

There is an achievement for the Skettis one which requires you to do it in less than 5 mins. I finished that achievement with 2 mins on the clock still. I play on Argent Dawn EU which is a high population realm. There is, of course, a trick to getting it right, and it does entail knowing what you are doing instead of running around randomly killing stuff...

[Niwes]

the absolutelly biggest problem is: they have the stick (apexis) but they forgot the carrot !

apexis crystals for a normal progressing "short-nhc > long-hc > maybe 1 myth" is totally worthless. if apexis crystals were designed as the new valor points, then you either would have some items that are not worthless or there is a upgrade mechanic like mop's one, so you can grind apexis every week witha a cap, to progress your items through ilvl.

even as catch up mechanic they are wayyyy to bad, because befor you have some apexis after hours and hours of stupid grinds you have 10 times more gear from crafts, dungeons, cheap ah items, lfr and so on. there is literally no moment where you say "and now its apexis time".

so in wod, for 95% of all peoples, apexis are totally useless. blizz is stupid like hell and forgot the carrot for their stick.

[Flutterguy]

Apexis crystals have to be the most worthless currency I've ever amassed in this game.

[Delaios]

The Apexis model does suffer from a lack of direction and purpose that daily hubs don't. It's too much of a sandbox. And the idea that you can choose which objectives to complete falls flat when you get rewards for kills that you don't get for clickables - specifically, rep. So you've got all these clickables that do, in fact, do cool things, but you avoid them actively. Which devolves the whole thing into mob grinding, and doesn't do anything to make the different areas actually feel different.

That's what I do as well. I do apexis dailies purely for triggering invasions, getting scraps of reputation and getting reputation with bodyguards. Using clickable objects gives me none of that.

What makes it even worse is that there's nothing useful to spend apexis on. I'm resorting to buying my 3 seals for apexis and buying and selling reputation pets on the AH. I don't even know why apexis has a cap to begin with.

[Shroud]

Which is exactly what I'm thinking they should do. I mentioned it in the OP.

I had some more discussion on the matter. I tried to find an analogy to the Apexis system. Imagine that for the next 8 months, every Superman comic would be the same: Superman sits in his Fortress of Solitude, checks his Supercomputer, Sees Lex Luthor doing something evil, takes a taxi to get there, stops him and then just returns to his Fortress to do nothing. No motives for either except "I need to stop him" and "I need to be evil". (in case you're a Batman fan, replace Superman with Batman, FoS with the Batcave and Lex Luthor with Ra's Al Ghul.) That would be SUCH a boring arc that would make many people just stop reading altogether. And in this case, people did.

Apexis really needed AT LEAST a story. Klaxxi, Red Crane, Shadopan, Golden Lotus, Krasarang, Cloud Serpent, Isle of thunder, Quel'Danas, Crusader's Coliseum, Hodir, Molten Front, they all had a story that made you want to continue JUST to see what the next part was. Hell, even Sha'Tari Skyguard (Skettis) has a story.

At this point, even Swiper from Dora The Explorer has more and better story than Apexis crystals.

This is my problem as well I need a reason to kill ten of this or that and with out a little story progression it just seems tedious.A follower is not exactly a thrilling reward to get knowing that they will most likely not carry over to the next expansion.

[Gaidax]

Apexis crystals have to be the most worthless currency I've ever amassed in this game.

This is basically the biggest issue with Apexis really, it is pretty much worthless. The activity to gather it is pretty weak and the reward is bad, so it's like the worst of both worlds.

People would not mind Apexis dailies as they are now THAT much, if they would lead to actual good rewards one way or another. But yeah both the means and the end here are basically very subpar - go kill random shit, collect trash rewards eventually.

[Osmeric]

Apexis dailies appear to have just one thing going for them: they must have been very cheap to implement.

WoD's development budget must have been slashed at some point, I suspect when the Vivendi buyout occurred.

[Conscious]

He may say the feedback is good, but he's not going to do anything about it.

No one is.

This game has gone down the pipe already.

[Unholyground]

What they should have done was make them instanced events with proper objectives and with bonus objectives.

[Deleted]

Molten Front, Krasarang Wilds and Isle of Thunder were ALL the correct way to advance end game story and content outside of raiding/pvp.

Timeless Isle was the INCORRECT way. They gave us a directionless sandbox, for pve and pvp alike, to keep us happy until WoD was released. Fine, but now they've brought that same design into WoD and it is f**king s**t.