Some of the most popular new features we have added to Mafia Wars are the two “manufacturing” New York properties: the Chop Shop and the Weapons Depot. I wanted to let you guys know how we came up with this feature, and what we have in store for properties in the near future.
The origins of the current properties system is the evolution of the original New York properties system, the business system of Cuba, Moscow and Bangkok and the rackets experiments. Each of the previous systems had some issues:
• The old New York properties system didn’t require any engagement of the player – we wanted to make systems that players would like to actually have to do something to get rewarded.
• The business system of Cuba, Moscow and Bangkok allowed you to tailor the capacity, output rate and profit. While this allowed each player to choose what and when they wanted a return from their businesses, it was often confusing and unclear for novice and casual players what they should be doing.
• The rackets experiment was implemented in part to try and create a third type of player, the Influence/Rackets (in addition to the Energy/Job and Stamina/Fighter types) such there would be a new path of progression in Mafia Wars. Our analysis of this system was that while SOME players liked it, most didn’t really get it.
Ultimately, the most important take-away from all these features is that complexity in properties didn’t really increase players’ engagement in any significant way. Don’t get me wrong, this is an obvious conclusion, and one that we understood and expected when we design new features. But there is a delicate balance between simplicity and creating a challenging and engaging experience, and we tried to walk that line with all these options. This lead us to the current Properties that you see today. These properties are simple to use, especially now with a collect all button, and still provide the maximizing player the ability to choose when and where they should concentrate their collection cycles.
The Chop Shop was a concept that was created to address the type of player who wanted a little more challenge and excitement to their property experience. Previously there was little to no interaction between fighting and doing jobs aspect of Mafia Wars, and we wanted to have more “Eureka!” moments (instances of excitement when something you are looking for finally drops). So it was decided that an elite set of properties, under the umbrella of “manufacturing” properties, would be created, starting with the Chop Shop. The idea that you could trade building materials and car parts between friends was to create social interactions with real meaning, such that you could help your friend who was really dedicated to his or her Chop Shop to start creating awesome cars. The response from the players was overwhelming and nearly everyone wanted to get a Chop Shop, and started sending Chop Shop building materials to their friends.
One of the most common complaints we have for the Chop Shop is that users don’t want to “spam” their friends for building materials, especially when the demands for creating the Chop Shop are so steep. We have heard this plea, and our response is that soon it will be easier to build your Chop Shop, so that even more players can have fun with this great feature. This will be true of the Weapon Shop too – we want as many of our users to have fun with this game, while still making it a fun and engaging experience for all.
Another common complaint is that it would take an immense amount of time to get 501 copies of the best vehicle (or weapon) since you can only create one a day. We are currently considering new ways to get around this issue, so that players who do attain the highest levels of these properties will be able to create more of their favorite items (while still making sure exploitative players don't cheat the system).
There are two new exciting developments for properties on the horizon. First is one that most of you have predicted: the Armory and the Breeding Pen (these names aren’t final). As you would expect, these are properties that will be able to manufacture or create new Armor and Animals respectively. Beyond that – there will be more specialty properties in the future of Mafia Wars, but we’ll roll them out slowly such that you won’t be overwhelmed with too many features at once.
The second is something I’ve alluded to in a previous post – the Vegas Casino property. Instead of having multiple buildings and businesses that you see currently, the Vegas property system will actually have you customizing (both visually and numerically) a single complex, so you can be your own Casino mogul. You’ll be able to choose your slot machines, upgrade your Hotel, as make sure your Vault is secure from robbery. In the coming weeks, I’ll reveal even more about this exciting new addition to Mafia Wars.
And in closing, I’d like to give you a quick note about the two most overwhelming issues that you have brought up on these forums (and via your customer service feedback), that of bugs and pop-ups. We are systematically going through our most pressing bugs, and our crack team of developers are coming up with good fixes for them. As with most fixes, there are ramifications that each change makes to the game, it takes a little time to make sure they work properly. As such, it will take a few weeks for some of our bug solutions to get seen by the players. Needless to say, we’ve listened to your feedback as much as possible in creating a plan for dealing with the many bugs in the game.
As for pop-ups, we totally understand that the number and frequency that they appear is really eating into the player experience. We are constantly moving towards having a better methodology about when and how much we choose to use them, and making sure that they will be used when it is most appropriate. As you might expect, since much of our information and game explanation currently resides in pop-ups, we need to be careful that the information is not lost, and new players are able to understand the game. But all the feedback is appreciated and examined, so please continue the dialog with us. Remember, the more constructive the better!
Until next time, may your robbing drops all be diamonds...
The origins of the current properties system is the evolution of the original New York properties system, the business system of Cuba, Moscow and Bangkok and the rackets experiments. Each of the previous systems had some issues:
• The old New York properties system didn’t require any engagement of the player – we wanted to make systems that players would like to actually have to do something to get rewarded.
• The business system of Cuba, Moscow and Bangkok allowed you to tailor the capacity, output rate and profit. While this allowed each player to choose what and when they wanted a return from their businesses, it was often confusing and unclear for novice and casual players what they should be doing.
• The rackets experiment was implemented in part to try and create a third type of player, the Influence/Rackets (in addition to the Energy/Job and Stamina/Fighter types) such there would be a new path of progression in Mafia Wars. Our analysis of this system was that while SOME players liked it, most didn’t really get it.
Ultimately, the most important take-away from all these features is that complexity in properties didn’t really increase players’ engagement in any significant way. Don’t get me wrong, this is an obvious conclusion, and one that we understood and expected when we design new features. But there is a delicate balance between simplicity and creating a challenging and engaging experience, and we tried to walk that line with all these options. This lead us to the current Properties that you see today. These properties are simple to use, especially now with a collect all button, and still provide the maximizing player the ability to choose when and where they should concentrate their collection cycles.
The Chop Shop was a concept that was created to address the type of player who wanted a little more challenge and excitement to their property experience. Previously there was little to no interaction between fighting and doing jobs aspect of Mafia Wars, and we wanted to have more “Eureka!” moments (instances of excitement when something you are looking for finally drops). So it was decided that an elite set of properties, under the umbrella of “manufacturing” properties, would be created, starting with the Chop Shop. The idea that you could trade building materials and car parts between friends was to create social interactions with real meaning, such that you could help your friend who was really dedicated to his or her Chop Shop to start creating awesome cars. The response from the players was overwhelming and nearly everyone wanted to get a Chop Shop, and started sending Chop Shop building materials to their friends.
One of the most common complaints we have for the Chop Shop is that users don’t want to “spam” their friends for building materials, especially when the demands for creating the Chop Shop are so steep. We have heard this plea, and our response is that soon it will be easier to build your Chop Shop, so that even more players can have fun with this great feature. This will be true of the Weapon Shop too – we want as many of our users to have fun with this game, while still making it a fun and engaging experience for all.
Another common complaint is that it would take an immense amount of time to get 501 copies of the best vehicle (or weapon) since you can only create one a day. We are currently considering new ways to get around this issue, so that players who do attain the highest levels of these properties will be able to create more of their favorite items (while still making sure exploitative players don't cheat the system).
There are two new exciting developments for properties on the horizon. First is one that most of you have predicted: the Armory and the Breeding Pen (these names aren’t final). As you would expect, these are properties that will be able to manufacture or create new Armor and Animals respectively. Beyond that – there will be more specialty properties in the future of Mafia Wars, but we’ll roll them out slowly such that you won’t be overwhelmed with too many features at once.
The second is something I’ve alluded to in a previous post – the Vegas Casino property. Instead of having multiple buildings and businesses that you see currently, the Vegas property system will actually have you customizing (both visually and numerically) a single complex, so you can be your own Casino mogul. You’ll be able to choose your slot machines, upgrade your Hotel, as make sure your Vault is secure from robbery. In the coming weeks, I’ll reveal even more about this exciting new addition to Mafia Wars.
And in closing, I’d like to give you a quick note about the two most overwhelming issues that you have brought up on these forums (and via your customer service feedback), that of bugs and pop-ups. We are systematically going through our most pressing bugs, and our crack team of developers are coming up with good fixes for them. As with most fixes, there are ramifications that each change makes to the game, it takes a little time to make sure they work properly. As such, it will take a few weeks for some of our bug solutions to get seen by the players. Needless to say, we’ve listened to your feedback as much as possible in creating a plan for dealing with the many bugs in the game.
As for pop-ups, we totally understand that the number and frequency that they appear is really eating into the player experience. We are constantly moving towards having a better methodology about when and how much we choose to use them, and making sure that they will be used when it is most appropriate. As you might expect, since much of our information and game explanation currently resides in pop-ups, we need to be careful that the information is not lost, and new players are able to understand the game. But all the feedback is appreciated and examined, so please continue the dialog with us. Remember, the more constructive the better!
Until next time, may your robbing drops all be diamonds...
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