Regional Minipets

None of these things, save the Gray Giant (a minipet, might I add), are able to be traded in-game. That, I think is the crux of the matter. Special regional things like the Coke items and preorder items are fine, tradeable items are not. That is, unless you think it's ok to offer tradeable items in the online store. I'm pretty sure you don't.

Ahhh Gaile, sometimes I wonder why you answer... It's all greed and jealousy... and you'll never be able to satisfy that.

Like the "controversy" over the Roller Beetle mini pets... Like the rare skin weaps being 'out of reach' for the 'poor humble casual' player... etc etc etc

gimme gimme gimme...

I want, I want, I want...

It's the mantra of the gamers, like spoilt brats in a shopping mall.

ad nauseum

Thank you for your comments Gaile, answers my original question rather well.

As for Friday, thank you for your constructive post to a question string.

It 's not about things being out of reach and jealousy.

I completely agree that mini's and the like awarded as prizes for in-game competitions should be just for those that won them.

What i disagree with is that the 'free' promo items, such as the 'purple' Asian mini-pets are not available as promo items for everyone. These mini-pets were free, there was no competition, no special challenge for the players, but they ended up with items which now sell for 200k plus gold in-game.

I'd be perfectly happy if they got extra character slots and Grey Giants (which were ugly mini's) and all other regions should be given the same promo opportunity on the Naga, Oni and Longhair Yeti.
This would firstly be fair and secondly stop the damage the silly prices of these pets is causing to the in-game economy. If everyone could get them, their price would drop to a more reasonable 20k to 50k like the Giant.

Please give EVERYONE a magazine or internet offer to gain the purple Asian mini-pets that were not won by any sort of competition.

What the hell kind of damage does a minipet cause? So what if they are more expensive... -.o

How does it affect you negatively directly?

i am personaly from China, and i also read the fourms on chinese web-site(they are still in beta test), i would like to see what chinese ppl will get after the releas of the GW in China, and we can easily find out the whole "world balance" thing

I think given the number of times this issue has come up...meeting the needs of the different communities would be to give everyone an EQUAL shot of ALL the mini-pets, or at the very least the promo-purple ones.
If that happened, you'd stop having these threads coming up.

Oh dear...by your profile it suggests you have an issue to burn anyway.

When a new player comes along and finds they have something they had to do NO work for is worth 500k (for example) they sell it. Remember, as a promo item, a bit like the Grey Giants, these were probably easily gained even at low levels and possibly even without the need to even do a quest.
They now have a huge sum of in-game gold that allows them to get almost anything for their character. It is quite possible they will pay higher than normal prices to make sure they get said items, as they dont have to worry about the gold so much.
The sellers now see people will pay this new 'falsely' inflated price for the items and now they expect that price. Suddenly something gets far more expensive and out of the reach of the regular player and causes even more player dissatisfaction.
That is why promo items should be generally available, it keeps things balanced.

Competition wins are different, they had to be earnt (in a way) and would therefore always be a rarity.

Edit: Ok, you're right, your profile is irrelevant, my apologies. How does it effect me personally? Well, i try and look at the bigger picture, not just myself, but it does mean i cant get a Naga mini without paying silly money, which shouldnt be the case. When things that shouldnt be expensive suddenly shoot up, it effects everyone, me included. Yes, some things should be expensive, but there are many that should not.
Things that are rare drops and special wins are one thing, things that were tradable freebies is another.

My profile is irrelevant to the discussion.

Good explanation of what is happening. But it doesnt satisfy the question of how it affects YOU specifically in a negative way.

Not everything is supposed to be affordable by the average player. Some things are meant to be expensive.

You guys complain too much.

Trying playing from Brazil, where we have no nearby servers (therefore usually high ping), no promotions ever, no special editions, no magazines. In fact, we cant even buy expansions here!!

You guys have already so much more then a lot of people do to even think about start complaining.

Consider this a crusade for guys like you too. This is about EVERYONE getting the same access to things that were not special wins and the like.

I consider those exclusive mini-pets bribery since those regions never get favor and Guild Wars was released there at a much later time than in the US / Europe.


on a side note: Pandas are cute, but id rather have a roller beetle.

I cant see how this "crusade" is any good for me. Like i said, we dont have promotions, magazines, or anything like that.

Anet just doesnt seem to care about South America, despite the fact that there is a big number of players from this region and its growing everyday.

As i said, at least you guys could get the grey giant! And you got districts for you and servers nearby. You guys shouldnt be the ones complaining.

So if I understand you correctly Ferret, your main complaint is that because a small group of folks were able to get something for free that then ends up (because of its rarity) becoming insanely expensive. And that this then somehow disrupts the game because... a "new" or "lucky" character is suddenly rich instead of having had to grind/farm their way to it. Is that a fair restatement of your complaint?

To a degree, but its not just about the insane costs caused by the rarity, its about balance and fairness.

Anyone has the chance to find something in-game that is super-rare and suddenly giving them a financial boost, but to get something for free right from the start that has been made delibrately rare due to its somewhat unfair distribution is the problem. It falsely inflates the price of something that really should not be worth that much (using the Naga Vs Grey Giant as an example).

I guess my main complaint is that myself and others did not get the equal opportunity to get one of these very nice free mini-pets through a promotion related to something in their own country and region. If it had been made available, you could be sure i'd be doing my best to get the magazine, use the internet cafe chain or whatever and got myself one of these pets, mostly because they are far better/more interesting than most of the others IMO.

So extending your logic, you would be opposed to every 100,000th character that gets created being given a mini-Cynn. Right? What if every 100,000th character that completed Glint's quests got a mini-Glint. Would that be more fair since those characters have obviously spent more time and are therefore more deserving of being lucky?

You say that these regional mini-pets are "falsely inflated". How is their high cost false? They are just as rare as the mini-racing beetles yet you don't disagree that those minis should indeed be expensive. Why does getting something for having a code outside of the game make it unfair to be valued highly?

I'm just not sure I understand why there should be a bias against someone getting lucky at the start versus getting lucky later on.

This has NOTHING to do with luck or time playing. It was a promo in that region, everyone there had the chance to get them, it wasnt random (at least not for the purple pets which is where my arguement rests).
It was a marketing gimmik. Luck is when something is gained by chance (like the odds of a mini-bone dragon Vs troll) or finding a super-rare gold.
The price IS falsely inflated as the mini-pets were only marketed in one area, but otherwise free.

I dont think you're really paying attention to the details of what is being said here.

In fact, by the ORIGINAL arguement of the OP, what was being pointed out was that when the Asian regional got a mini-pet promo, they got a choice or chance of three types as opposed to the ONE that was available to everyone in Europe and USA. Getting the Mini-Grey Giant was not anything to do with luck, you just had to order the right copy of a magazine. We should have had the same chance to aquire them. On the same note, all other regions should have had the chance to get a Grey Giant and have extra character slots, etc.

Edit: Having just seen that Wiki has updated the info on the purple mini's i now have to admit there was some element of luck as only so many were given out and to random people (who enetered the netcafe promo i guess and assuming there were more entrants than mini's available). This was still unfortunately ONLY available in that region. If all regions had been given the same opportunity, it would have made the whole issue a fair one and made these mini's more sensibly priced.

Actually, no I am paying attention to the details and I'm trying my best to understand your opposition to the purple mini-pets.

So because these mini-pets could potentially be traded for a profit and the only folks that could get them were located in a small region - there is an inherint unfairness in your eyes. Correct?

Let me then ask, if at an electronics gaming convention the folks that attended were given codes which gave them a mini-Cynn. Would this then also be unfair?

Well, yes, it would be unfair unless it was made available in some way to players in every country that played the game and yes i would say that even if i was one of the few who got one.

Unless there was going to be a convention in all regions/countries where this mini was available and it was advertised on the GW site so players were aware, it would be very unfair.

At least you had the chance to get the grey giant? Lots of players didnt have the same chance, so yet i dont see why you are complaining.

I dont see you asking for south americans, australians or africans to get promos or the chance of having unique items. You are only asking for something to benefit YOURSELF. That itself invalidates the whole argument.

Actually, i have said ALL items should be available to ALL regions and ammended what i said before your post to reflect that, check my previous posts and you will find i'm not just saying that other regional items should be available for us, but ours for others too...i think you'll find that my agruement is not invalid on that point.

True, unfortunately i was already writting when you made your last post, and before that you only mentioned US and Europe.
The thing is, Us and Europe had the grey giant+collector edition, asia got all those minipets+coke items, South America, Africa and Autralia(probably others too) get nothing!

Every item should be obtainable in-game only, or else we will always find regions getting unique items and selling them by ridiculous prices without actually making any effort to get the items.

So because Guildwars is played by a global community, ANet should only provide global prizes and incentives to play regardless of market penetration, competition, or pricing? They should be disallowed from providing perks for players to folks when they attend certain events (skill pins are evil by your definition then also)?

I really dislike this idea. I got a mini-pig in this last festival (heck I got multiples) and I've got to say that because its available to pretty much anyone - I will more then likely end up tossing the pig on my mule or giving it away to a new player that gets GW for Christmas. On the other hand my mini-grey giant does get playtime. Part of the allure of mini-pets and their variety is that not everyone has the same pet.

Would I like to get a mini-raincaller? Absolutely. Is it unfair that I have to pay more for it then a mini-siege turtle? Nope - There are a ton more turtles out there then there are raincallers. Scarcity drives the price up. It doesn't matter how the item arrived on the market, it matters how the market values that item.

So just because some folks in one region are "gifted" with a valuable in-game resource does not make Anet an unfair company.

If we were talking about a resource that changed the balance of the game allowing one set of people to more effectively PvP or PvE, then yes I would agree that there would be an inherent unfairness. However, boutique items that affect only the appearance of your in-game persona - well there's an entire market around that and folks are more then welcome to use their hard earned gold to make their toons as "purdy" as possible.

Ferret, I appreciate that you are disappointed that you were unable to have a chance at one of the purple asian released mini-pets. Heck, I'll go so far as to say that I appreciate that you are upset that there are regions out there which have not as of yet had a chance at a regional mini-pet. However claiming that the mere existence of these mini-pets creates an unfair bias in the GW economy is just too much of a reach for me.

So what if a group of folks luck into an item that the rest of the world values at a high price. Just wait until the next hot item shows up. Remember the first days of the IDS, the first Totem Axes, the first Greens? There will always be items that hit the market and are worth large sums of in game money. Yes, its too bad that right now there are regions which have not yet had a chance to get a regional mini-pet. I'm sure it will balance out in the long run. If not, then Anet will be making that conscious choice.

Life isn't fair, this isn't a socialist experiment where all resources are given out equally to all parties.

Very true and in fact probably the fairest thing to do, but no doubt others would then have complaints about that.

With the GW Store, most things could even be added there to be available to everyone who plays.

Ultimately, as passionate as i am about this whole issue, i do wonder what the point is. It is very unlikely anything will change or anything will be done about it. It all comes down to marketing and profit, which at the end of the day means revenue and GW continues as a game. It would be nice if these things could be fair and open to everyone, but i just cant see it happening even though i'd be overjoyed if that was the case.

Not really, they have no game effect.

True enough and cant agrue with you on that.

Most of my last post would generally sum up my view on the rest. Thanks for taking the time to give your views as well though, it is appreciated and makes for a more balanced arguement.

Since we all bought the game for the same price (teorically), then yes, everything should be equally available to all.
Its like going to macdonalds, you pay 5 dollars and get an hamburguer, then next one in line pays 5 dollars and get a big-mac!

How great it would be if i could get an item worth 200k+ with no effort at all. For those who dont farm, that is really a big sum and a great advantage.

Niether do mini-pets. Last i checked. they dont do anything....

Well...the Japan and Taiwan got the game later than the rest of us.

Its more like, i pay $5 and get a hamburger. The next guy has to wait like 6-7 months, pays $5 get a hamburger and gets a free gift for waiting so damn long.

I'd call selling in-game for 200k plus gold an in-game effect.

Guess what? No expansion is sold here in Brazil. I know only one place i can buy Prophecies box, yet i dont think they will ever give us gifts for that.

That said, they should aswell give everyone a chance to get nice/unique items, not regionall based.

And what does gold do in guild wars?

Buy yourself some armor? weapons? runs?

What advantage does gold have?

Doesn't make you a better player. Doesn't improve your skills.
All armor and weapons are balanced out so it certainly doesnt give you a fighting advantage.

I really fail to grasp whats so unfair. Free money in a place where money doesnt really do much?

Now if they gave them 200k in Balthazar faction or instant UAX, id be pissed. But its just a friggin mini-pet. -.o

"The goggles, they do nothing!"

Well I'm sorry you cant get a hold of a copy of faction or nightfall. That is a valid problem and something to complain about. Regardless, theres always importing, if you want it bad enough, you'll find a way.

The mini-pets are cute. They are fun. But really they don't do anything.

What you should be complaining about are the Pre-order items for Prophecies. Some of them have some nice effects thats not recreate-able. Now THATS imbalanced and needs to be resolved.

NP, I appreciate you taking the time to respond as well. I would agree that 200k is a valid in game effect - but only to extent that it allows for a greater customization of your character's appearance - however for a strict PvPer it would have zero effect. Perhaps that's why rewards for PvPers center around pretty fringes to their capes!

This is just a game, unless A-Net is giving out REAL-LIFE pets like a panda, alligator, monkey, snakes or whatever. I would get those in a heart-beat!

I'd personally like to see mini-pets available in all regions. Once I've amassed a hefty amount of gold and I've pretty much finished NF, other than farm and try to help my leader and I's newly established guild off the ground, I'd like to start a collection. However, the prices for some of them are eye-poppingly ridiculous, the beetle for one, and I don't want to fork out tonnes for a foreign regional pet that we weren't entitled to in the the first place which others recieved for either very little effort or as a way to boost sales in those regions.

I believe that the so-called Asian or Japanese Miniatures were prizes for winning a competition, and a very tough competition, to boot. They were not handed out like Easter candy to anyone who asked. (Do you guys fact check things, or just run with what someone else says as "truth?" ) Those miniatures are rare, and hard to come by, because they are the topmost prize for a Guild Wars PvP event.

So those items are rare, yes, rather like the rarity of those who earned a whole bunch of Wintergreen items or the Greased Lightning miniature. Funny, I don't see people complaining about the latter. Can it be a shadow of xenophobia colours this discussion?

Xenophobia? Nah. I mean, it's not like GW promotes war between countries/regions or anything.... oh, wait...

Its not as much fear as it is jealousy.

Point well taken. It's just a shame that things like a free character slot with a pre-release bonus pack (Nightfall), or a pre-order item (Prophecies, Factions, Nightfall), or the Gray Giant are seen as just fine, because, well, they're in someone's own region. But an item given as prize in a different region, even where the qualifier to get it is ever so much higher, is seen as unfair or preferential.

As far as I know, the miniatures are all tradeable. Is that not true? If it is true, then anyone, anywhere, can purchase one, if one is available and he/she can meet the price. That seems the very essence of supply and demand, free trade, and fairness.

[wiki]Miniature[/wiki]
Gold, green, and purple minipets were given as tournament/contest prizes. The purples ones were additionally given out at netcafe drawings, which could be some cause for concern. But whatever: most of this argument in this thread is "Somebody else has something that doesn't affect me but I can't ever get it, so I want it." I'm not worse off because I can't get that sexy spider shield from Taiwan.

And all I really want is a Bone Dragon. *sob*

I have to admit the Naga is beautiful, and ... ok, ok, there are some pretty cool ones amongst the prizes in other countries, I admit. But still, no need to get all heated about it. It's just the way it goes. Some have the Chimeric Prism, for example, and because it cannot be traded, it may end up being even more precious over time, who knows?

Anyway, as I said before, I have been told that my team will get some of those miniatures for prizes in the future, so all hope is not lost!

Ya but unlike the Miniatures, which do nothing, the chimeric prism is actually useful. o.o

You should have put pandas in those COWs.