http://money.cnn.com/2011/04/22/technology/amazon_ec2_cloud_outage/index.htm?source=cnn_bin&hpt=Sbin
Here is a fairly in depth story regarding the Amazon issues. Please read this, it doesn't answer everyones questions, but it is surely better than the rampant speculation and ideological posturing that's been going on in the comments and the forums for the last day and a half.
Jonahx, I couldn't agree more. When you care about your job, your harder on yourself than anyone else could ever be. (wish there was a way to email coffee to those guys.....)
amendment: apparently the warbonds were rewarded for an earlier incident, not the recent one, my apologies, don't want to add fuel to the fire. that said, frustrating to be in the middle of a war and have this happen, as I am sure was the case for a large number of players, but it is in beta and these things happen.
apparently the 'major issues' have not been resolved after all....and by the way, i didn't receive any warbonds, and judging from the chat rooms, many others didn't either
pxes, I didn't forget to mention anything. My post was a comment regarding a frustrating element of the game, not the factors that contribute to making that element occur. Of course with any deck we create there is always a win/lose margin, based on the factors that you mentioned, that produces an average success/fail rate. My point was more about how extreme that margin can be with the same deck vs. same deck. I'm talking complete blow-outs, not close calls. To me, that is a frustrating element of the game play. The element of chance is very high when decks are comparable, which to some extent diminishes the feeling of accomplishment one gets from selecting 'just the right cards'.
Have grown to love the game, have gotten used to the energy inconvenience, but I am totally frustrated by the inconsistency of battles. Winning by a large margin and losing by a large margin with the same deck, against the same opponent is more than a little ridiculous. Sure, I suppose an unstoppable deck would get boring, however, from one mission to the next you frequently have to change things up anyway. Same mission, same cards on both sides and you might win or lose by a mile depending on the card order? Just doesn't sit well with me.
Outstanding puzzle game, one of the best I have come across. For me, I found the multiple color puzzles easier than the mono-colored ones, regardless of the rating category. Would love to see many more puzzles added to the master and expert categories.
I'm nearly done with the hard badge and I doubt I will continue playing past that. I am sick and tired of receiving "defeat" when I have my commander left (with greater health than my opponent), and sometimes a structure left as well. The randomness is annoying as well, I can lose a battle by a mile, then win it on the next try with the same deck. It's a shame, I really enjoy the game, but some of these idiosyncrasies have a serious impact on my playing enjoyment
Losing when you have only commanders left and your commander has more health is just absolutely ridiculous. I survive with greater health but I get "defeat" and still lose energy? Not a chance in the world I would ever buy energy for this game. At the very least it should be considered a "draw", you win nothing, but you lose nothing. This is even worse than paying for energy in the first place....
I have made my peace with game time being limited by energy, but I have also come to the conclusion that though I enjoy the game, due to the energy system, I will never spend a dime on it. Since it seems that the energy situation is likely to remain unchanged (judging from the amount of negative comments it has continuously generated to no avail...), I have to concur with several previous comments regarding the card filters.....very frustrating, the card management system is my number one complaint/frustration, would love to see it improved....
Note to developer(s): It is in your best interests to read the posts in the comments section and act accordingly.
The game is as fun as a CCG can be, I suppose, but the business model is absolutely horrid.
As the game is currently structured, enthusiastic players are penalized for advancing through the game by the ludicrous "energy" system. I have little doubt that there are players who are so avid they are willing to purchase war bonds to buy energy, however, I have even less doubt that most people will reject this arcade style approach to a flash game and seek their entertainment elsewhere.
Players are used to, and for the most part accept, having to pay for premium upgrades in these types of games, but having to pay to play for more than a few minutes at a time is a recipe for failure. There are far too many options available to gamers on the internet for this game to successfully compete past the short term.
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