Mad King Clocktower waiting period

[OriOri.8724]

> @DeadlySynz.3471 said:

> So here are the numbers which spell out the issue perfectly. Decided to whip out the phone/stopwatch and time this. Though I'm getting far better at this, I'm going to use the part in the JP I see people typically crashing and burning in which is the first 5-10 seconds after that "1st checkpoint".

>

> - The amount of time spent jumping up to the point typically people crash & burn is 20-25 seconds

> - The amount of time one would wait if one failed at that point AND someone completes the puzzle is about 80 seconds (before you start jumping again)

>

> So you have a case of someone jumping say on average 25 seconds, then waiting 80 seconds if someone completes the puzzle...

>

> Some people simply just aren't as fast and will have greater difficulty in completion.. it is what is is. How exactly is this good design when that person has to now wait up to 80 seconds if someone completes the puzzle? Imagine if this happens repeatedly. From my experience, people on average are spending 80% of the time standing around in the JP waiting to participate in it. How exactly is this justifiable?

 

I'm in that boat of failing fairly early in the JP (though from what i've been told repeatedly, the first part is by far the hardest, so this makes it even worse), and that's what prompted this post. Every time I try it, I spend the vast majority of my time waiting, and I'm usually the second or third person to fall, so some people are waiting even longer than I am.

 

I get the feeling that a lot of people who are fine with it are better at the puzzle, and even if they can't reliably finish it, they aren't falling in the first part either, so they are spending far less time waiting around, doing nothing.

[Solvar.7953]

It is true - if you are the best person in the instance doing the puzzle (even if not completing it), you then are not waiting, as it resets in about 5 seconds after the last person dies.

This does make for an unhealthy dynamic - if I'm doing the clocktower, I really want everyone else in that instance to fail as soon as possible so things restart faster. Of course, I don't want to fail, which means that to some degree, the ideal is that everyone ends up waiting a long time on me.

One thing that would make it better is if we could actually watch those people still attempting to complete it, instead of sitting in the waiting room. If we could watch them, at least we can perhaps have some incentive for them doing well (like watching your favorite sports team), or perhaps pick up some pointers based on what they are doing.

 

[Player.9621]

i just wish this wasnt a required part to obtain the new backpack because i just dont have the patience for it anymore

its not fun

[Manasa Devi.7958]

> @Player.9621 said:

> i just wish this wasnt a required part to obtain the new backpack because i just dont have the patience for it anymore

> its not fun

 

You don't need to do it for the backpack. You can just craft the boots instead. Recipes sold by the Lunatic Alchemist.

[Zaltys.7649]

> @Nidome.1365 said:

> Unless you are an expert you spend far longer waiting than jumping. That is not an activity - it's a waiting room.

Even if you're an expert, actually. You have to wait one full round after each win. So if you win every time, you spend more than half of the time waiting.

[RoseofGilead.8907]

> @Solvar.7953 said:

> It is true - if you are the best person in the instance doing the puzzle (even if not completing it), you then are not waiting, as it resets in about 5 seconds after the last person dies.

>

 

If you complete the puzzle, you don't get back to the waiting area in time to go with the next round. So, the "best person", if they complete it, also has to wait to go again.

[Sodeni.6041]

I totally agree that there should be a single player instance where you don't have to wait after you fail. I don't know if that would be possible since im not a game developer.

[MMAI.5892]

> @"Illconceived Was Na.9781" said:

> > @MMAI.5892 said:

> > I liked the waiting period as it allowed me to breath deep and let my rage simmer down before the next run.

>

> A sensible attitude.

> Doesn't help me, though, since I fail within 7-10 seconds and I'm not willing to wait (calm or otherwise) for a variable amount of time. I'm not on strike, I'm not refusing to do the puzzle ever, I'm not boycotting. But... every time I consider making another attempt or doing one of the other gazillion things at which I can actually see myself progress (or play mindlessly), I never end up choosing this.

>

> Essentially, it's niche content: it appeals to a particular fraction of the community (and it's super appealing to a vocal minority). But it won't be done by another group of people. Combine that with the fact that it gates some achievements and skins... the result is some super cranky players. That can't be healthy for the game.

>

> I can't say that it's worth ANet resources to change the waiting period. But it might be worth their time to reconsider whether they should add any other festival items that involve a massive scavenger hunt **and** that are gated by the festival JPs.

 

Oh I can definitely understand the annoyances for some people. About the only reason I stuck with Clock Tower is because I kept getting a little a farther a long more often than not. (Let's not look at the times when I missed the first jump due to my holding down the wrong button too closely.) I had just enough progression to keep me from saying 'forget this, I'll farm candy corn until I die and get the recipe'. And that actually surprised me because I have a low tolerance for JPs in general and am more than happy to tip a friendly Mesmer as opposed to trying and failing time after time. I really expected to try the CT a handful of time and then just give it up.

 

I could definitely get behind maybe adding an achievement(s) that is more likely to be completed by a wider scope of people that maybe let them pick from any skin to get ones (such as the JP one) that they didn't/have no interest in getting?

[killermanjaro.5670]

I tried this a few times, but as soon as I saw that I had to wait at least a minute or two each time to retry it I lost interest and haven't returned to it since.

 

A shame as I enjoy JPs so I'd liked to have experienced completing it, and get the free boot box from the achievement. But having to wait between tries has killed it for me. The waiting around each try, followed by the cutscene, is not fun, it's frustrating and tedious. I think out of the few tries I did I spent more time waiting than actually attempting the JP.

 

Roll on Wintersday. A fun JP without all this waiting around in a holding cell rubbish.

[Solvar.7953]

One other thing I now find myself doing, is that if when I enter the clocktower instance, the score is non zero, and it isn't going to start immediately, I just pop out, wait a few seconds, and join another, on the basis that if there are good players in the instance that have completed it, I'll probably be waiting a while.

 

[Ardid.7203]

Anet should just stick a chronometer to every player for each run they do, and then compare results every few minutes. That way you keep the feeling of a race, without having to make people miserably wait every time they fail.

[Orion Templar.4589]

I also would love to see a way to eliminate the waiting. Since you know you're waiting for the remaining people in the JP to fail, you find yourself hoping they fail quickly so we can all start another run at the JP. Also it's rough if you succeed at the JP, even if you zone back to the starting area as fast as you can, you still have to wait a full cycle if you want to try the JP again. I do like this JP and find it fun, but really dislike the waiting.