eRepublik.com where we really are...
alexis bonte
I recently posted a story on my blog entitled "The end of the mobile game gold rush, RIP Tactical Heroes". As a result of this story a few articles were published in game, and some like this one by Gnilraps got a high level of comments and debate from several great and respected eRepublik players.
I also got a few direct messages from some of the players such as Jaroslav Kolesnik who read the article. After answering one from Antonio Wimer that he published here, I realized that you all deserved a more personal, complete and direct reply from me.
This is why I am restarting my personal eRepublik.com newspaper, "eRepublik.com Inside News" for this article. And yes, it's been over 2000 days since the last time I used it. That is simply because it´s not the most efficient way of communicating with you but it is the most personal one (other than replying to each individual email or comment) so that is why I'm using it now.
Beside the Gnilraps article which is well written, there are also a lot of very good comments in this article and others that mention it. They just show how exceptional and intelligent the eRepublik.com community is and that is something we really care about.
We have a community of players that understand are have significant understanding of what keeping eRepublik.com running for 8 years means. One of the players for example mentions how it’s important for us to give developers the possibility to work on different games (something that gives them fresh ideas and keeps them engaged, learning new technologies that eRepublik.com can benefit from). Others mention the importance as a company not to put all your eggs in just one basket. All of these are correct and sensible points.
You also know we could have done much better and you are right and that is our aim, to do a better job for you, for eRepublik.com
So first of all, eRepublik is not dead, although I understand that makes for a great headline - it is a claim that is very far from the truth. The team and I have every intention to make all effort possible to see eRepublik.com thrive, simply because we all still love its underlining concept and we still believe we haven't been able to take it to its full potential. Far from it.
I’d like to point out to everyone one important fact that I mentioned in my post but that was left out in Gnilraps’ article. Yes, we failed with Tactical Heroes but we succeeded with Age of Lords. So now we are in a situation as a company where we have 2 successful games instead of one. We have learned how to be successful in mobile as well as browser.
This is extremely important not just for the future of the company as a whole but to that of eRepublik.com itself. If you look at our first attempt at doing a mobile version of Erepublik.com the least we can say is that it was not a successful one. Now we know what it takes to have success on mobile.
Why should you care as an eRepublik.com player that Age of Lords is successful? Well, simply because that means that we now have more resources that we can re-invest back into new games and into our big brand, back into eRepublik.com. The point I tried to make in my post, perhaps not clearly enough, is that we were able to find success with Age of Lords in part because of all we learned first with eRepublik.com but also because of failures such as Tactical Heroes. These learnings will now revert to eRepublik.com
Would we have had more benefits and made eRepublik.com better if instead we had focused only on Erepublik.com? I honestly do not think so simply because that is what we did for 6 years and historically we have made many mistakes with eRepublik.com. Remember Rising? The time we actually had the most resources exclusively dedicated to eRepublik.com was during Rising in 2010 and again in 2013 and that is when we started declining.
Still an important thing that I really want to make clear is that at no time during the past years when we opened development on other games did we stop maintaining and investing in eRepublik.com.
We may have been conservative in the updates we bring to the game but that is simply because as we all know, it’s a very delicate and unique game with a difficult balance and big changes are risky and could break the balance (as it’s happened before). So when eRepublik.com is your only game it is difficult to take risks.
Right now eRepublik.com's main flaw is that it doesn't keep enough of its new players, we all know that. To actually measure it and understand it better, we have been advertising online to get new players in the game over the past few months. One of the really positive things we have learned is that many players out there love the concept, they want to play eRepublik.com our adverts have had incredible results in terms of getting players to try the game, we are just not retaining them. This shows us that the brand and the concept of eRepublik.com still have tremendous potential, we are just not offering the right experience to new users. So that is one clear direction we need to work on. We have tried and failed before, but now we have experience in how to match successfully a new player expectations so we have a higher chance of getting it right this time. One key thing we learned is that the best improvements for new players when done in the right way are also embraced by the older players.
So now that we have learned both from our failures and our successes we are in a much better position to make improvements to eRepublik.com that will have a positive impact on the quality of the game for both new and old players. Yes we will give everything we got so that eRepublik.com and its community not only celebrate 10 years but also start growing again.
We see a future for eRepublik.com the browser game but also the concept and the brand and it is at the center of our strategy to grow it. We think that if as a company we are able to run 3 or 4 successful games rather than just one, then all the games will benefit from that. That is our objective for the next 18 months, to go from 2 successful games to 3 or 4 and most importantly all of them growing, with a focus on eRepublik.com
How are we going to achieve that for eRepublik.com? By giving it more resources again, applying all that we have learned and taking more risks. Does that mean that you are going to see radical changes right away? Not necessarily. Although we all have a different definition of radical, you are going to see key changes in the next few weeks and months. They will be radical in time but not initially as we will deploy them progressively so that we can test them not only from your feedback but also from how they are used and the impact they have on the balance of the game and engagement of new users.
One key thing that is important to mention. The top priority for eRepublik.com at this stage is not to maximize revenues. The top priority for the eRepublik.com team is to find ways to make the community grow again and that will be the direction and objective for all our work.
Thank you again for being part of this community and for caring. I hope the above mentioned points answer at least in part some of your questions and go some way in explaining and demonstrating that as a company we are all very much devoted to not only continuing to maintain eRepublik.com but growing it as well.
o7
Alexis
Comments
you have to add more functional modules to erep
not only war module
make an ecomodule
make a political module
the ones we have dont work
Is war module working?
Only press a red button is functional?
http://goo.gl/L6iZzw
its working, its just not much good xD
It works if you buy packs, it is a medium-term solution xD
Look Alexis, We all love this game and we really care for this game
We have put years of our life into it
Believe me or not the only reason for lots of us to stay is only this
eRepublik staff was selfish for a quite long time, don't you think 2000 days silence of yours wasn't a lot??
We expect to hear from our game developer more than this, and at the same time we expect you to listen to us more often
Many people argue about economic module and they are right but the important answer is how to fix it?? and not everyone knows the answer
We expect you to listen more to those who give answers
Every single language in this game should have someone who is directly in contact with eRepublik lab and proposes solutions
In eIran community we have high educated people, one reason which makes this game popular and lovely to stay is its players!!!!!
For me just like hundreds who was in this game, it is important that who we are playing with!!! All in all this game is a multi playing game and this fact is inevitable .
Players here are not 5-6 y.o children to underestimate them, we have lots of doctors and engineers here who can give expert solutions.
ERepublik staff should look more for players ideas and get more close to them. Indirectly or directly, with a middle man as I suggested or in any other way.
Believe me there is no other way!
by listening I dont mean obeying
You can find worthy things between our words
Signed!
Are we going to keep on ignoring the elephant in the room?
Or should I say, the whale...
Of course we are losing the new players. They start of as weaklings that are thrown into the fray with the big bad wolves. Their influence doesn't matter.
To make things even worse, if they actually fight they soon get to a higher division and their influence becomes that much more insignificant.
Therefore the new players are (rightfully) advised by the old ones NOT to fight, in a game that revolves around fighting.
And you are surprised that the new players don't stay? But why should they?
So they can not fight in a fighting game for a long time, only to do a little fighting somewhere in the future and then get in a higher division and again be useless?
The only way the new players can have some fun is buying an old profile on the black market, for which of course they would have to invest a lot of money in the game right of the start.
Only whales can have some fun as new players, and only if they play dirty.
There is something wrong with that, isn't there?
And that economic module is designed by economists not by veterinarians
There will NEVER be an economic module in this game as long as there are "worker multies". And trust me, I think maybe as much as 50% of all accounts in this game are actually "worker multies" or second / third / fourth accounds for the same players.
As long as someone uses a multi to work in their company it will automatically make it unfair for an honest player to build resources (WEAPONS, FOOD) at competitive prices and have a fair market economy module.
I heard in the beginning of the game the workers and salaries were public and could've been viewed on the profile of every account that had employees. I wonder why they took away that feature and only admins can see who works for who, and for what salary
The economic model is completely detached from reality. The laws of supply and demand do not apply, international trade is absurd and system changes even more absurd, All taxes are regressive and hamper the performance of the rookies. The business system organized by categories stopped working long ago and should be modified.
finally
Voted, now time to read something 😃
I think a major problem with the game is that we have micro transactions that are vital to game play. New players who don't purchase them get left in the dust and generally die in their first sitting at times.
Alexis, we all understand that we afford you to learn things and develop more entertainment, but eR players want to see this game evolving not on the contrary like really it has happened. Bugs, bad decissions regarding modules have killed the interest of new and old players, bad attitude or dimissal answers from moderators when we send tickets, and so on.
If you honestly respect us, stop talking and giving excuses and make better decissions, please.
"You are going to see key changes in the next few weeks and months"
I hope those changes are not just adding images to the country page... We'll see.
o: !
You failed your loyal erepublik customers.
Stop bulshitting you're here only 1 year
F OFF!
Please executive summary.
Please remove/change your slogan. When i see it, im laughing so much.
Erepublik: 'free' online multiplayer bla bla.
Is this about legalising bot farming, "community to grow" \o/
Wake me up when the game is worth playing again *yawn*
Wake me up when the september ends..
"it’s a very delicate and unique game with a difficult balance and big changes are risky and could break the balance"
really? do you really think that erepublik have balance now? xD
"The top priority for eRepublik.com at this stage is not to maximize revenue"
https://media.giphy.com/media/HPvfnOuz1tOgg/giphy.gif
First off, the communication between players and devs/admins is non-existent. I had a ticket open for 6 months Some have it for years (and I am not joking). Secondly your rules are meant to be broken, There is absolutely no consistency in punishments handed down. You banned all of the presidents for their actions back then (your last article) yet keep reinstating blatant cheaters just because they keep paying. Stupid.
Yes, there is absolutely no insentive to new players to stay in this game. None. Zero. And after the infantry kit the situation is beyond worse. New players had the chance previously to actually do something on the battlefield. Now a monster with 100k plus strength can decide the outcome of the battle alone.
Crap. Promises again and again.....
Only promises
hahahaha so funny like allways 😉
8 years of promises its not enaf for erepublik team but should be enaf for players. This game depending only on packs sellers and their co, all countries cant achieve budget like Colin or Zdelmmy rush so ppl dont see any sense to playing this game. Now when selling packs is almost dead its time to make a "radical changes" hehehehehe. You should start keeping community alive with improve in game moderating, for now you dont even punish thiefs who stealing money from you, dont even say about regular players. You dont know nothing about administration. You are totaly blind for sugestion.
" totaly blind for sugestion. "
+1
Wait, you destroyed the balance in the game by joining the already stronger side, forcing the weaker side to use CO to compensate and then you blame their CO for people not seeing the sense in playing? Your logic is amazing...
We dont suporting Serbia hmmm 29 months and you still crying about "forcing weaker side" and you still cant playing without mastercard support? So pathetic. Hehehe Staph crying, gain some manlines.
That reply is on preschool level... but important thing is that you didn't offer any argument against my statement so I will conclude that you agreed with it. So stop bitching about CO when your actions made them implement it in the first place.
Your logic is on preschool level. Blame Poland for all evil of eworld. Allways. Regular players trying to make some diplomatic moeves but Croatia cant. Also other countries from this "weaker side" used to be wiped and they only waiting for your move. Maybe its time to grow up 😉
In whole history of erep allways one side was weaker. And allways Croatia must had support from Argrob, you or Zdlemmy to win something. Yeah. Or when Coling or Trico make Serbia busy. Its so childish to blame other countries becouse without this support Cryatia already would learn how to play without money. Im sure about that 😉
Regards from Poland - place where ppl dont care about your stupidy 😉
My reply to your previous childish escapade still stands for this new one. You type a lot but deliver nothing, just constant ranting about money.
WUT?
So big countries can't ally otherwise all terrible updates made in all those years will be their fault?
sry, disagree.
[removed]
@Romper I expect that. U are too dump to understand your own foolishnes. I can not argue with your absurd level and paranoic view of eworld 😉
Wrong Dio. They can but when they do, they shouldn't bitch about CO that weaker side uses, like this kid does.
And again you fail to deliver an argument and keep ranting about everything but the actual subject. Typical behaviour of the poorly educated people when they lack the arguments to substantiate their point of view.
Such a lame 😉 So im talking about "radical changes" necessity when selling packs is dead and you crying becouse you are on weeker side and you must use CO becouse Poland change side 5 years ago. So now you want from me to dispute with your absurd and you want to know why you must use mastercard and why you are so lame when in whole history you cant rule for one month without mastercards support? Hue hue you are so silly. Romper: allways dumb, allways crying about Poland, allways cant in to meritum. Go be yourself elsewhere. You are too funny for this seriuos topic.
that's insane, Romper. Every game should have balance and allow players to make allies whatever they want, not allies "cause game sucks". However, now I know why Croatia was so bad ally during our relationship - it was marriage of convenience
you are crazy romper???
bring back v1
trololo
Thank you for this. Please continue writing.
Then listen
https://www.erepublik.com/en/article/can-erepublik-actually-refresh-itself-by-n4zgul--2022870/1/20
Lets see how you intend to grow the community if you cannot control multies. Or maybe you encourage mutlies to make us spend.
By the way i have been a diamond customer for 5 years. Maybe that is when your so called game development finished.
To sum up we dont believe jack shit of what you wrtie
The biggest problem in the game are their admins, their programers and their business politics.
Pay any attention to the suggestions of their players and you will get more players, leading to more benefits.
Nos acordamos de Santa Barbara cuando llueve, eR lleva tiempo en la UCI y no creo que porque escribas un post vaya a cambiar la cosa. Hechos y menos palabrería.