Not too long ago, Paul was saying he missed the days of the forums being a fun place where the community could gather to discuss strategy and build camaraderie (or something to that effect), and now all we do is complain. Well guess what, the "whiners" miss those days, too.
It pains me to say this, but the game is in a real sad state. EVERYTHING is being monetized to the point we're only complaining about how MUCH we're paying for each item. SP needs to go back to giving players more for free - as in beer. Something to keep customers happy enough to stick around. And I'm not talking about decorations or (now) useless rares in Monsterwood.
Earning the top prize in card flips through gameplay is literally impossible for higher-level players. Progress in mazes is slower than ever with fewer coin opportunities. Breeding events yield so many genies and epics that even if you speed some up, there's a better than ever chance you'll come away broke and empty-handed. The vault.. my gods... THE VAULT! I'd say they're nickel-and-diming us to death, but they've moved on from "micropayments". For very minor enhacements in our game, we're paying what other mobile games cost in their entirety.
This business model is NOT SUSTAINABLE. Either SP/TT doesn't care and plan to milk the game into the ground, or they think this golden cow will last as long as the servers are running. I'm here to tell you that unless things change, they're on a fast path to destruction.
We're already witnessing a steady stream of long-time players leave the game in frustration. As a co-lead of a pretty good team (well, now lead since @Sam retired), I've seen good people quitting and the pool of potential replacements far smaller than it used to be. Teams are fighting for scraps just to stay at 30. And with each new overpriced feature or event, that pool gets smaller and smaller.
SP/TT, please understand that you've got a real good thing going. You have a great game and a loyal fanbase. Quit messing this up. Give us all (not just the whales) good reason to keep playing. Fix the things we've been asking you to fix for months, and in some cases over a year. Do it more to regain our trust than to squeeze us for more money. Don't you get it? This community WILL PAY if you do business the right way. Keep doing what you're doing, and no one but the whales will remain. And how long do you think they'll stick around when there's no one else left to squash?
Finally, I implore anyone interested enough to still be reading to make SP see the light. I won't suggest a boycott for purchases, but please be more mindful with your spending. And if you agree with this post, please show our game runners by posting a reply here and in any thread speaking of the same issues. Show SP we're not just whiners. We're concerned customers who hate seeing such a well designed game become such an un-fun wallet-buster. This is not a time to be passive. Join with me in encouraging SP to pump the brakes before they crash and burn!