"Old Wars Are Best"

[maximus_asinus]

I don't see why they couldn't make Classic free for trial members (saving stats). They could even bring back ghost mode on Classic in combination with the other suggested ideas. Anyone could log on and save your stats, but you'd have to wait in a queue line if there was 150 players online. If you upgraded your account, you skipped the wait list, that way it'd encourage players to upgrade if they didn't want to wait and/or if they wanted to go back to their old server.

[Omini]

Originally Posted by maximus_asinus

I don't see why they couldn't make Classic free for trial members (saving stats). They could even bring back ghost mode on Classic in combination with the other suggested ideas. Anyone could log on and save your stats, but you'd have to wait in a queue line if there was 150 players online. If you upgraded your account, you skipped the wait list, that way it'd encourage players to upgrade if they didn't want to wait and/or if they wanted to go back to their old server.

I remember that from when Graal was free. That ghost mode wait thing, if I remember right, provoked me to upgrade.

[Darlene159]

I think it might be a good idea to make the original server free to attract paying customers, but I wonder how many would just continue to play classic because it is free and not upgrade.
If they did this, it would be better to advertise heavily along with it, making sure that people realize that what they are getting free is only a taste of what Graal actually is.

They should make it so trials cannot go on any other PW except Classic at all, with a box saying "Sorry, you have to upgrade to play this server", but they can see all the other servers in the list.

The website should be updated with lots of screenshots from different servers, and lots of info on the servers, as to advertise them to make people want to upgrade to play.

I, for one, would pay because N-Pulse is my home, and I can't seem to play other servers for a long period of time without going back to N-Pulse.

On the other hand, though, there are alot of people that will just play classic because it is free, and never upgrade, so I don't know if the idea would work or not....

[Crono]

Moonie, I think its better to see Classic with an insane playercount. It will sure boost Graal's population.

[Omini]

Originally Posted by Gerami

Moonie, I think its better to see Classic with an insane playercount. It will sure boost Graal's population.

Yeah, what would you rather see - Classic, the original Graal server, with a high player count as opposed to its 50 max (estimate), or UN and Era with 100 each?

[Darlene159]

Originally Posted by Gerami

Moonie, I think its better to see Classic with an insane playercount. It will sure boost Graal's population.

UN always has a pretty decent playercount. I have seen it up near 200, even over sometimes.

It might boost Graal's population, but will it boost income? Maybe, maybe not.

[Crono]

Originally Posted by Darlene159

UN always has a pretty decent playercount. I have seen it up near 200, even over sometimes.

Yeah but Classic needs to have the most because...It's CLASSIC. It's supposed to be the definition of Graal.

It might boost Graal's population, but will it boost income? Maybe, maybe not.[/QUOTE]

Yes. It's more enjoyable when Classic has many players, and maybe a p2p account can bring benefits on Classic, like special npcs?

[Darlene159]

Originally Posted by Gerami

Yes. It's more enjoyable when Classic has many players, and maybe a p2p account can bring benefits on Classic, like special npcs?

Or maybe, they could be limited to a certain area of Classic, and not the whole map? Like just the main areas.
They would not be able to do the quests and stuff to level up.
Then again, that might be too much of a limitation, I don't know.

[Shaun]

Originally Posted by Darlene159

Like just the main areas.
They would not be able to do the quests and stuff to level up.

Doesn't sound much different than it already is.

[Warcaptain]

i think the ghost que was a good idea.. but (and get ready for this 'so obvious im a pw owner' moment) should also work that way for classic accounts on hosted pw's.. should have a que.

so if you are going on a hosted pw to work and you have a classic account.. if the pw is private staff only you wont have a problem logging on i hate that i have to make most of my staff not even be able to see the pw except through SS i send them because they dont have vip/gold

[Mafukie]

They used to have Ads in PM windows, might beable to integrate the same idea differently or better for people who play for free... If they dont want to see the ads, upgrade

[Warcaptain]

heh i should put google pay-per-click links in all the GUI's of mana realms

[Omini]

I was originally talking about having Trial accounts appear Classic accounts on Classic only, but trial on others.

The ghost queue thing could work as well

Quite a few ideas have been formed in here, some new, some old. Maybe unixmad or Stefan could take a small timeout to read through it and at least think about it.

Originally Posted by Warcaptain

i think the ghost que was a good idea.. but (and get ready for this 'so obvious im a pw owner' moment) should also work that way for classic accounts on hosted pw's.. should have a que.

Yeah, I agree with the classic accounts Ghost Queue thing for UC PWs, and I'm not just saying that because I've got a PW as well (well, maybe I am a little)

[Tyhm]

I agree conditionally:
Graal needs a *braces for backlash* Newbie Server. A Best-Foot-Forward in a sense, but not necessarily Let's Make The Best Server Free. Classic was always an excellent hook: Here's this server, it's not great, but look at the potential. Look what Fox did, look at Fuitad's domain, what could YOU do? From this came the playerworlds, the gold servers, and ultimately the money - but only because Classic was free.

I say Free Classic. Yes, yes, here comes the inescapable cluft about how it's not ready yet, it's incomplete, this is somehow unforgivable - Classic has never been complete. Even when I filled in the gaps and fixed the trees it was incomplete. Even when I routed all the quests from the gnome house to the lizardon sword, even when I commissioned the Magic Quest at long last, it was incomplete. It's supposed to be incomplete, Classic's charm is its potential to grow. There's a level without a house, a hera without a quest (Yes, nobody likes Heras, not the point) - as long as there's a horizon there will be a desire to reach it, smooth the path, put in a railroad, start up a lemonade stand halfway there, and put a few towns for prospectors along the way. It's Manifest Destiny.

Rant over: If Classic is made free, Newbies will make houses for Classic. If Newbies make houses for Classic, they'll want to make quests. If they make quests, they'll want their own server...

[Omini]

Dude that's so true. You're forgetting one little important fact though - every server is incomplete, every server has more potential, people can call them finished, but there's always room for improvement, but how about also only hire staff that are classic/not trial? That may also provoke them to upgrade.