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Discuss the massively-multiplayer home defense game.

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#1 2014-07-30 18:46:52

ggabri
Member
Registered: 2014-07-30
Posts: 2

How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

I'm thinking about buying the game, but i've heard that not so many people are playing the game, i really like the concept of the game but i wanna know if a good amount of people play it and if it still worth buying. PS:Sorry about my bad english.

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#2 2014-07-30 22:57:57

AMWhy
Member
Registered: 2014-02-04
Posts: 435

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

The player base has dropped dramatically since it's peak in March/April.  From the one time 100+ houses, now we're down to around 30.  This means two things: There are less houses for you to rob and less robbers to attempt to break into your house.

Having said that, I have played every day since I bought the game in February. If you like it and can get passed the MANY disappointments as you die over and over, losing everything each time, then it's still worth a look.  Alternatively, you might want to wait until Cullmann's reboot is complete!

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#3 2014-08-04 08:32:27

oxxyjoe
Member
Registered: 2014-08-04
Posts: 2

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

This is a game that popped kinda like a bubble soon after it launched. Nothing has changed about it. Just that when they did the steam release, those who would venture forth tried it and many fell away after this initial splash. It does seem to have gotten smaller since the time that I started playing it, which was about 2 months ago. It honestly feels like the population is dwindling at a fairly mathematical rate. I suspect that one of two things will happen: the game will gain popularity and become more incredible than we ever thought, soon to be followed up by a powerful and beautiful update, or, something crazy will happen, like, you know, out of the seeming blue a woman is elected president and people who are alive to see it wonder the rest of their lives about why this never happened before.

Sometimes a good video game is simply kinda minimalist. Who needs intro screens or settings?

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#4 2014-08-04 14:37:28

castledoc
Member
Registered: 2014-08-04
Posts: 9

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

I think it would help if the 25 or so of us with houses up at any given time would throw the love around.  I'm that (2)saw, (1)club, (2)brick, (3)drugged meat,(4)water guy.  You know, the dumb one who stomps into your place and blindly wanders around until I die.  Usually following the same path, about once every 24 hours or so. 

Did I try this as a leap of faith last time?  Oops, yep. Now I remember.  Really should write this down.

Every time I manage to fail a self-test or just overestimate my ability to deduce one of your traps, I pitch every available house $1000 in the supplies above. 

I seem to be the only one playing who does... But really, where's the harm?  I have no prayer of knocking off Earl's place.  I try.  Would be fun if I mess up and pull it off, but it isn't going to happen. 

Instead, I throw up marginal traps hoping one of you will wander in and pitch a bounty and/or tools my way.  I'll just spend it attempting a trap too complicated which results in me throwing all 25 of you another $1000. 

I think makes the game more fun for all of us because most of the tapes I watch are 25 steps, see commit; leave. 

I get it for Earl with his 110K place, but most of the rest of us don't have crap, anyway. As I type this, the $2K cutoff is Raymon Robert Mccall, the 15th of 26 listed houses.  This morning, it's worse.  There are 20 of us up, (1) with a house not locked out to me (and dude, seriously (2) pit bulls and a pissed off wife who has all the cash - anger management and all that) and I see that of the (6) who tried my place last night (4) died and left $100 each - including the guy who killed my wife.  No tools left behind (ok, 1 club in the vault).

I guess my point is, there aren't enough of us to really enjoy the game unless we help each other out.  If you mess up a self-test or guess wrong while exploring, throw some love around.  It doesn't hurt you and the rest of us appreciate it and I'll keep on being (2)saw, (1)club, (2)brick, (3)drugged meat, (4)water guy.  Every time I die.

Is that unreasonable?

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#5 2014-08-04 17:08:12

AMWhy
Member
Registered: 2014-02-04
Posts: 435

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

I think a lot of players still spread the cash when they die. I do.  However, with an 11k house on the grid, I'm not passing that commit without a back up plan.  This means I don't plan on dying for a while yet.  That's one of the problems with the game (as much as I love it).  Due to the permadeath, people are more cautious than they would be.  Once a player has something to protect, they are loathe to risk it all.

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#6 2014-08-04 21:40:02

cullman
Member
Registered: 2014-03-21
Posts: 424

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

I'll do a santa run.

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#7 2014-08-05 05:45:45

castledoc
Member
Registered: 2014-08-04
Posts: 9

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

I did a couple for the poorer houses smile  My own house has started increasing in value and it's scarier, but as I walked through my first leap of faith (Schrodinger!), I figured what's the worst that could happen? a santa run from Mr.  (2)saw, (1)club, (2)brick, (3)drugged meat, (4)water...

And a special thanks to Mr. (5) saw and Mr. (2)saw, (5) water, (2) club, (3)meat... What's odd is that I was actually rooting for you as I watched the tapes!  What kind of sick stuff is that?

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#8 2014-08-05 09:04:07

voxel
Member
Registered: 2014-08-05
Posts: 84

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

Well, I just bought the game today, knowing full well about the "dwindling" player numbers and what the mechanics of the game are and the coming reboot. Personally I prefer permadeath in games

I described the game to some others and they were keen (permadeath included)... until I mentioned the price and lack of players

Unfortunately I immediately spent my $2000 on a house design that took me forever, and now I don't want to immediately go robbing smile

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#9 2014-08-05 18:14:57

GotABigTrap
Member
Registered: 2014-02-26
Posts: 200

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

haha which house is yours.  I like to imagine that the only players left are me, Jason and a bunch of his alts.  But I will have you know that I have an impenetrable house design that I will unleash as soon as I take down another big house.

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#10 2014-08-06 10:11:26

voxel
Member
Registered: 2014-08-05
Posts: 84

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

Well there's more people playing than I expected; seems plenty.

When was the last time Jason appeared around these parts anyway? I think I saw he made a minor bugfix to the game not long ago.

Well I've rapidly lost three houses (too broke too fix them). I've killed a couple people but I keep overlooking cheap ways to bypass the traps. Was amused to see someone spending most of $2000 brute forcing one house, even though a water would have sufficed to bypass my cat puzzle in perfect safety.

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#11 2014-08-07 09:24:58

voxel
Member
Registered: 2014-08-05
Posts: 84

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

I have the impression that someone with four alt accounts died/suicided all of them in one of my no-cash houses. Either that or everyone around here behaves similarly. Who other than Jason would have so many alts?

I wonder how many people (accounts) are actively robbing, but don't have a house?

Another amusing death: someone breaks in with a gun, shoots the first thing that moves, and, oh dear, I was fooling with you, actually that panic button that Jimmy was reaching for opened the vault door. The burglar never finds this out; he missteps onto a grill.

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#12 2014-08-20 06:29:49

tacobandit744
Member
Registered: 2014-08-20
Posts: 2

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

Yeah I got the game yesterday. I actually heard about it through one of the hilarious fake "positive" reviews on Steam for Air Control that said it was better than Castle Doctrine. So I checked out the game and watched a few LPs and it looked pretty cool, so I got it. Liking it so far, just wish there were a few dozen more people. I'm like castledoc, I spread the tools around.

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#13 2014-08-21 07:00:29

AMWhy
Member
Registered: 2014-02-04
Posts: 435

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

Welcome to the game!

The userbase has dropped a lot, but I'm still playing and enjoying the game as much as I ever was.  I'm currently houseless and spending some time enjoying the robbing side of the game.  I've developed a habit of gifting money often to most houses, although there are 6 houses I will not attempt or give money to at all: Dodson, Haynes, Huff, Smith, Lawson and Finch.  Houses like these are the most boring in the game and require pure luck to pass.  Also, as the owners can change the correct route with a couple of clicks, I have no intention of wasting time trying to learn them.

For tips, read the forum and prepare to die and lose everything a lot!

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#14 2014-08-21 10:18:10

AMWhy
Member
Registered: 2014-02-04
Posts: 435

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

I have visited the Cotton house many times and I still cannot fathom how to complete the entrance!

Another perplexing house was Donald Lewis Chamness, however about an hour ago I managed to reach his safe!  My biggest heist yet: $56,000!

I would love to post my map but will respect Chamness' house for now.  If he does not return or reuse the house, I will show what I had mapped.  I certainly received some good fortune while robbing his residence - particularly the last dance.  I don't know if he hadn't set it right or I guessed well (I went with the same answer as to a previously scouted dance of his) but I made it to the safe in one piece.

Of course, just as nervewracking was the creation of my new residence with my... er... winnings.  Creating a $40k house in one go can be extremely tense.

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#15 2014-08-21 17:45:00

AMWhy
Member
Registered: 2014-02-04
Posts: 435

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

That's right, although it wasn't a timer.  It took me a while to get an opening in the house as I needed a crowbar to see where the cat went.  After that, and a few exploratory deaths later, it was quite easy.  Although I'm sure I had a lot of luck on the way in the last third!  All I can say for now about the later parts is that the house was designed as tamper-proof.

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#16 2014-08-26 11:12:58

thoth
Member
Registered: 2014-04-13
Posts: 62

Re: How many people actually play the game?Should i buy the game?

AMWhy wrote:

Welcome to the game!

The userbase has dropped a lot, but I'm still playing and enjoying the game as much as I ever was.  I'm currently houseless and spending some time enjoying the robbing side of the game.  I've developed a habit of gifting money often to most houses, although there are 6 houses I will not attempt or give money to at all: Dodson, Haynes, Huff, Smith, Lawson and Finch.  Houses like these are the most boring in the game and require pure luck to pass.  Also, as the owners can change the correct route with a couple of clicks, I have no intention of wasting time trying to learn them.

For tips, read the forum and prepare to die and lose everything a lot!


Ha, I think I might be Smith!  As I can't find him elsewhere on the list.  To the OP, thanks for this question I didn't realize this many people were playing the game still.  Kind of makes me want to buy another copy to start alt'ing like the rest of you!

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