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Seaons should take more than a week. One month = a whole year in game

<strong>Firstly, I LOVE that there are changing seasons. Amazing.

But I recently found out that the seasons last a week each, then start over... a whole year in game goes by in one month.

I think that's honestly way too fast.

I feel like a season should last AT LEAST one month in game.</strong>
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Comments

  • stirr up your imagination and think of a planet that is not ours and where there is more then each season once a year... maybe 4 times season change a year because this planet has several moons and suns... i mean, yeah its fast but its not immersion breaking fast... it would be hard to not grow crops for a whole month wouldnt it?
  • Tottaly agree, seasons should last 1 month, one week is to short.
  • Yep, i think 1 week is too short as well.
    1 month sounds about right.
  • In regards of agriculture, I also think that one week is to short. Depending on the time you are able to spent on the game, you may be able to do one harvest, and that's it.

    However, I think 1 month is far too long. Just think about it:
    You want to craft that damn legendary item, but need an ingredient that only grows during one season (the season that just passed).
    The market is empty and now you have to wait 3 <strong>MONTHS</strong> in order to get it.
    Ain't nobody got time for that!

    IMHO: 2 weeks sound better.
  • well, i would ask if they have transition time. like from fall to winter, will there just be the next day everything covered in snow, and then from winter to spring all the snow is just gone?

    if they add transitions time then i can't see one week per season work.
    maybe more like:
    Winter(1 week) -> transition week winter to spring(1 week)-> Spring(1 week) -> transition week spring to summer (1 week) -> Summer (1 week) -> transitions week summer to fall (1 week) -> Fall (1 week) -> transition week fall to winter (1 week) -> repeat

    this would mean 2 months until the seasons starts over again. Or bumping up the weeks to 2 weeks each, would mean 4 months for all seasons to occur

    the transition time would maybe make it possible to profit from 2 seasons at once, but only for half their effectiveness. like in the transition form winter to spring, some lakes and rivers are still frozen and available access to some areas while some spring spots already allow gatherers to harvest herbs and flowers
  • <blockquote><div class="d4p-bbp-quote-title"><a href="https://www.ashesofcreation.com/forums/topic/seaons-should-take-more-than-a-week-one-month-a-whole-year-in-game/#post-26933">Enrif wrote:</a></div>well, i would ask if they have transition time. like from fall to winter, will there just be the next day everything covered in snow, and then from winter to spring all the snow is just gone?

    if they add transitions time then i can’t see one week per season work.
    maybe more like:
    Winter(1 week) -> transition week winter to spring(1 week)-> Spring(1 week) -> transition week spring to summer -> Summer (1 week) -> transitions week summer to fall (1 week) -> Fall (1 week) -> transition week fall to winter (1 week) -> repeat

    this would mean 2 months until the seasons starts over again. Or bumping up the weeks to 2 weeks each, would mean 4 months for all seasons to occur

    </blockquote>

    There won't be a visible transition.
    Seasons will change during the server maintanance.
  • I think they were saying the server maintenance would be weekly so switching seasons becomes easy.
    So that would rule out seasonal transition periods.

    But yes I agree 1 week is too short IMO.
    If people run out, they adapt and survive like we have always done
    They stockpile....They ration.....they manage.
  • There are reasons why seasons only last a week. Seasons will have a real impact on questing, gathering, and farming. Imagine you need an herb that only grows in Spring. If seasons were monthly it would take 3 months for that herb to be available after spring is over. So no. Seasons do not need to be longer than a week.
  • I like seasons lasting a week.
    I might prefer having more than four seasons, though.
  • One week sounds like a short time to experience everything that they could do with seasons, BUT never played many MMOs that actually had impactful seasons so I am willing to try it, before I knock it.

    I'd even be willing to try out an extra season or two just for the experience and the affect on play. Maybe "Scorch" is a real dry time between summer and fall. Maybe "Drench"(monsoon) would be a good season after spring....

    Hmmm.... maybe 4 is plenty. Seems redundant.
  • <blockquote>There are reasons why seasons only last a week. Seasons will have a real impact on questing, gathering, and farming. Imagine you need an herb that only grows in Spring. If seasons were monthly it would take 3 months for that herb to be available after spring is over. So no. Seasons do not need to be longer than a week.

    </blockquote>

    but that would in a way regulate prices. If things are not always accessible, things keep their value. On the other hand if things are nearly always available, prices could go south. So for the economy aspect, longer seasons would be more valuable.

    But something different come to my mind. Do we know how big the world is we play in? is it a continent, or the whole world?
    IF, that's a big IF, they implement a realistic season system that would mean in the northern and southern hemisphere the seasons would always be the opposite. so seasons would still shift in say a month, but the season you want is next month available in the other hemisphere. This could play into the caravan system, bringing goods from one season to another season, which in turn plays into the meaningful conflict they put as a core pillar. Do i stay in my region and wait for the season shift, do i go south/north, do i organize a caravan, will that caravan be a target for other players and so on.
  • I was thinking about this in my sleep for some reason, but one week seems a little short; if you think about it, after 1 real year goes by, that will be 12-13 years in game time...we'll be OLD people in no time. ;)

    Perhaps as the OP suggested a month or even a meager 2 weeks of season time. If you are a casual player I can see where a year of game time goes by and they may have missed a season, or that it would seem like every time they logged on it's a different season. It would be a little disconcerting.

    I was also thinking about those who want to do farming, in which a season (week) might be overwhelming. Of course, having not tried being in this world, it is hard to say how I would really feel about seasons passing at that rate.
  • I like the idea of seasons lasting a week but I would like to see plants being able to be harvested at different points in a season. For example, tomatoes might grow in Spring only but beans might grow second half of spring to early summer. This would allow for continual harvesting of something no matter when you might be able to play. It would also allow for greater impact on the player economy as things cycle continuously in and out of season.
  • It would work if seasons were only there for aesthetic , but since they change the world and have an impact on gathering, spawn of certain mobs and all sort of other things, it just won't work.
    For example you have to kill - let's say 3x camels for a certain task, and they only spawn in the summer season, does that mean you'd have to wait 3 months to finish this task?
    1 week sounds reasonable, also it's a fantasy game, just imagine it's how things work on that planet.
  • When I first heard about season potentially lasting only a week I, too, thought it was a little too short a time span,

    Yet, after hearing the counter arguments, I can understand why you wouldn't necessarily want to have an overlong season.

    I think a fair medium would be 2 weeks. Long enough to get in engaged in that season's particular content, whether it's crafting or adventuring, and still have the next season in clear sight.
  • again i bring up my idea of transition weeks, with this we would have each season for three weeks, technically, but only a 2 month rhythm for a full cycle.

    3 weeks for Winter: autumn->winter, full winter ,winter->spring
    3 weeks for Spring: winter->spring, full spring, spring->summer
    3 weeks for Summer: spring->summer, full summer, summer->autumn
    3 weeks for Autumn: summer->autumn, full autumn, autumn->winter
  • Sorry Enrif! Not sure how I missed your first post, regarding transitional seasons. Went back, found, it, and read it through. I really like your proposed idea, for how the seasons flow from one to the other, works! Excellent idea!
  • <blockquote><div class="d4p-bbp-quote-title"><a href="https://www.ashesofcreation.com/forums/topic/seaons-should-take-more-than-a-week-one-month-a-whole-year-in-game/page/2/#post-27108">Enrif wrote:</a></div>again i bring up my idea of transition weeks, with this we would have each season for three weeks, technically, but only a 2 month rhythm for a full cycle.

    3 weeks for Winter: autumn->winter, full winter ,winter->spring
    3 weeks for Spring: winter->spring, full spring, spring->summer
    3 weeks for Summer: spring->summer, full summer, summer->autumn
    3 weeks for Autumn: summer->autumn, full autumn, autumn->winter

    </blockquote>

    Really like this as well.
  • <blockquote><div class="d4p-bbp-quote-title"><a href="https://www.ashesofcreation.com/forums/topic/seaons-should-take-more-than-a-week-one-month-a-whole-year-in-game/page/2/#post-27108">Enrif wrote:</a></div>again i bring up my idea of transition weeks, with this we would have each season for three weeks, technically, but only a 2 month rhythm for a full cycle.

    3 weeks for Winter: autumn->winter, full winter ,winter->spring
    3 weeks for Spring: winter->spring, full spring, spring->summer
    3 weeks for Summer: spring->summer, full summer, summer->autumn
    3 weeks for Autumn: summer->autumn, full autumn, autumn->winter

    </blockquote>

    I like this as well :)
  • Imagine you had no oil for 3 real life months available today. Imagine you had no herbs you need to make your health potions for 3 months. 3 weeks will already make you think about what you spend and what you save up for later. Having itemavailability locked away for 3 months, I don't think you understand what that means in a game.
    We are talking about non renewable ressources in the first place, if the forest is gone, it's gone. If the herbpatch is gone, it's gone probably until next years season.
    I think you don't imagine the whole picture and just get hung up on the timeframe itself, but not the surrounding mechanics involved.
  • Throwing my hat in.

    Agreed. Seasons should be lasting enough that you feel it's impact. Not just 'Lol I get Winterherb next week for my snowball build!' ... I like the idea of monthly cycles at minimum if not normal season cycles. A month gives time meaning, rather than just 'Oh, I'll just log for a week so I can farm snow again.' ... I dunno.

    Agree.
  • Grisu, while I understand your concern about the weeks being too long without specific resources or locations, I think adding that fine tuning that mechanic of having to reserve, store, and manage your resources adds to the gameplay. It will increase the economic factor and improve the trade system they're going to/have implemented. It would be quite and interesting idea to have it on a monthly basis.

    As for the timeframe specifics, I think that while one week is too short, I would have to agree with either the three week time period per season, or even shorten that to two weeks per season. Either way would add a lot more aspects of play.
  • To play the devils advocate here, by running the seasons over a longer period it likely to have significant impact while the first few full season run through.

    Once a few "year" of seasons have run through, then the markets will likely have the plentiful materials during the "on season" and less to sparse on the "off seasons".

    This brings a great dynamic to the market and for strategic play and planning potential providing a resource gathering, releasing to market and economic goals and strategy as well.

    I, for one, back the longer seasons to bring a real dynamic to the markets and a sense of planning and accomplishment in game!
  • <scratches head irritated> Finetuning by having a fixed long timeframe? I'm sorry, but what? I'm sorry again but I think that word is used a bit out of it's meaning range.
    I already said it, but they have an actual finetuning mechanic which they could adjust on a week by week basis. It's called non replenishable ressources.
    You know, with one week, or maaaybe two there could still be an actuall exploring part in gathering ressources like herbs,pelts and whatnot but with three and more? Just thinking about how pumped full the world must be to give us enough ressources to at least get by makes me shiver. We are possibly talking about 10.000 players give or take. Everyday necessities would need to grow and be available in amazingly high numbers to get us through 3months of no supply ability.
    Sure we could talk about a 2nd harvest spawn, but first, that doesn't always make sense for ressources. Second how will it work so there again is a reasonable amount/it's meaningful.
    It's all there from the go? well, again that's just a huge cluster.
    A batch just gives higher numbers? We are turning away from high numbers, it makes a stack of something meaningful. (at least that's what it feels like, gathering limitations, caravansystem and so on)
    If you didn't pick stuff in the first week, will it just not spawn again and leave you to dry out naturaly? That's a lot of stress and would force people to gather. It doesn't feel like something they would want.

    Reasources are just a small part of the picture, actual content will be locked away additionaly to everything else that's going on, possibly entrances to dungeons, pathways and who knows what else. We have only heard bits and pieces about the implications of impactful seasons.
    We haven't even started to talk about the benefits and drawbacks from a real life perspective and timeconstraints, missing out an ingame-year or one season due to circumstances is a huge difference.
    I'm not necesserily against longer seasons. Especially the transition idea is quite intriguing (althou I think it's to much bother and is just weird to be the same length as the season itself. With the technical limitations of having to wait for the weekly maintenance we would again be at 3 weeks per season, transition included), but it appears like people haven't put enough thought into the magnitude that longer season bring.
    And quite honestly, it feels like not even enough thought went into ressources that everyone seems to be rattled about. "A real dynamic"?
    3 weeks without any new supplies? That's already mid-length planning level on a standart basis, 80% of the playerbase doesn't even think about the day to day or time of day situation. They are not bothered with profits, and why would they, they just want to get rid of some stuff, or need some stuff. Having everything dragged out to 4xtimes, like people propose, will achieve the opposite, it will get stale and stiff because the" change" is slow and lasts long.
    A good dynamic market has short, mid and longterm opportunities, but if it is all naturally longterm, well that will be a bore.

    Now, take your time and grasp the full, half known picture we know right now and have an actual conversation about it, not just a short sighted rant.
  • @Grisu
    Deconstruction and recycling.
    Humanity has always repurposed and repaired goods.
    Specifically because resources were occasionally scarce and hard to come by.
    What happens when the billions of the human race doubles ever more and has pulled all available resources out of the gorund ?
    We wont be able to magic new resources out of thing air.
    We will have to manage with what we have.
  • My own personal opinion has already been voiced by others on this thread.
    Up front, a week seems too short....but three weeks for a season feels too long.
    The devs will trial it, and hopefully we'll be able to see in alpha/beta what the actual months system 'feels' like, or how it works, or what issues there might actually be prior to launch.

    I do however feel that I have to comment on the last post by Grisu....
    You have some fantastic points, such as
    <blockquote><div class="d4p-bbp-quote-title"><a href="https://www.ashesofcreation.com/forums/topic/seaons-should-take-more-than-a-week-one-month-a-whole-year-in-game/page/2/#post-27843">Grisu wrote:</a></div><scratches head irritated>

    3 weeks without any new supplies? That’s already mid-length planning level on a standart basis, 80% of the playerbase doesn’t even think about the day to day or time of day situation. They are not bothered with profits, and why would they, they just want to get rid of some stuff, or need some stuff. Having everything dragged out to 4xtimes, like people propose, will achieve the opposite, it will get stale and stiff because the” change” is slow and lasts long.

    </blockquote>

    Yup, people are naturally lazy, and have been conditioned over the last few decades to have shorter and shorter attention spans, we neither want current players to get bored nor new players to be shut out of certain crafting materials or content for too long.

    However, and please don't take this the wrong way as it's meant kindly....

    <blockquote><div class="d4p-bbp-quote-title"><a href="https://www.ashesofcreation.com/forums/topic/seaons-should-take-more-than-a-week-one-month-a-whole-year-in-game/page/2/#post-27843">Grisu wrote:</a></div><scratches head irritated>

    Now, take your time and grasp the full, half known picture we know right now and have an actual conversation about it, not just a short sighted rant.

    </blockquote>

    ... but this didn't come across as kindly as you probably meant it to be.

    < In the: lets give them credit that the devs have thought about it and wait until we can give it a go camp, If you need me, I'll be the one on the fence
  • Now, if the Zones of Influence (ZoI) are on different seasonal timers (or grouped on different timers) then this too could increase cross trade pollination.

    If the length of time is short, the impact is small, if the length is long the up and down of will be very extreme.

    If the season are mid to long then there might be nomadic tendencies for financial driven players. An mass movement of populations between nodes bringing a further dynamic.

    Players / Clans that horde materials can play the market on a broader scale if seasons varied across ZoI's.

    Players that want things "now" will be at the whim of the market!
  • Just created a small visual depicting how the different proposed season times would affect a whole real life year

    <img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/sfUI41HOswIQmtMpUVeFbjq6tVbsrBjtsiNS1lJylp-V5UEeFGnNXKPnRS9Dk9LHFGSlY1FD_owHTis=w1680-h982-rw" alt="" />
  • Yeah I would have to agree AkaBear, it would add a lot of interesting concepts into the game. Specifically with the citizenship registrations. It would help push the economy, and I would hope/think that possibly every zone (or possibly by artificial time zones), would have a different type of season. While I think that may be hard to do from a design perspective, it would be interesting to see. Either way, long or short, I look forward to how they're going to implement it and see what happens in the alphas and betas.

    Also, Grisu, I should reiterate, what I was trying to state. Too long, a month or more, would have a very large significant impact. I agree with that, it would be much too long of a time frame for that. I believe a 2 week period would seem more appropriate, 1 week feels too quick, 3 weeks a little too long. As for the fine-tuning, I did mean fine tuning the mechanic during the alpha, and beta phases of the game. I should have more clearly stated that.
  • <blockquote><div class="d4p-bbp-quote-title"><a href="https://www.ashesofcreation.com/forums/topic/seaons-should-take-more-than-a-week-one-month-a-whole-year-in-game/page/2/#post-27951">Enrif wrote:</a></div>Just created a small visual depicting how the different proposed season times would affect a whole real life year

    <img src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/sfUI41HOswIQmtMpUVeFbjq6tVbsrBjtsiNS1lJylp-V5UEeFGnNXKPnRS9Dk9LHFGSlY1FD_owHTis=w1680-h982-rw" alt="" />

    </blockquote>

    I'm leaning more towards 3 weeks to 2 weeks taking into account impact on players.
    Your link is broken for me.
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