Ultimate Challenge response - Thanks for all the feedback!

Alright! So that was a good weekend for feedback! Thanks to you all! 
So apparently Hilltop was feeding the walkers well, which affected our test and of course your performance. There was some learning there, and we’ll definitely tell Maggie that this is an awesome defensive strategy if the Saviors decide to attack Hilltop again.
Anyway! Analyzing your comments and suggestions, we’ve decided to run similar challenge settings for this week’s challenge. The main differences are that instead of 1 round pass per 5 completed rounds, you’ll get them after every 3 completed rounds. And of course, we are not going to use Memory Lane again; we are going to go with Farmlands instead (the same one used for the first Ultimate Challenge).
It’s worth mentioning that those changes were made mainly because of your feedback. So yeah, we are listening to you all and kudos for sharing your thoughts! I particularly REALLY enjoyed the threads where you shared your feedback considering the Hilltop situation.
The other settings will remain the same (and here they are again):
- No timer after 3 rounds in less than one hour
- Higher starting difficulty for all players:
- Slightly higher for players whose top Survivors are level 20 or lower
- Significantly higher for players whose top Survivors are level 21 or higher
- Two rounds per difficulty instead of three when difficulty is near the level of the player’s top survivors
- Three rounds per difficulty for the highest levels in the game [26 and above]
- Fewer Stars needed for players and Guilds to earn rewards
And also:
-Increased minimum and maximum Tokens in Token Crates
-Increased phones for Guild phone Rewards
After that, we are going to run the challenges with the usual settings and we hope to rebalance the challenges as soon as possible.
Thanks a lot for all your feedback! Especially the very constructive ones. It was beautiful to read them through!

So apparently Hilltop was feeding the walkers well, which affected our test and of course your performance. There was some learning there, and we’ll definitely tell Maggie that this is an awesome defensive strategy if the Saviors decide to attack Hilltop again.
Anyway! Analyzing your comments and suggestions, we’ve decided to run similar challenge settings for this week’s challenge. The main differences are that instead of 1 round pass per 5 completed rounds, you’ll get them after every 3 completed rounds. And of course, we are not going to use Memory Lane again; we are going to go with Farmlands instead (the same one used for the first Ultimate Challenge).
It’s worth mentioning that those changes were made mainly because of your feedback. So yeah, we are listening to you all and kudos for sharing your thoughts! I particularly REALLY enjoyed the threads where you shared your feedback considering the Hilltop situation.
The other settings will remain the same (and here they are again):
- No timer after 3 rounds in less than one hour
- Higher starting difficulty for all players:
- Slightly higher for players whose top Survivors are level 20 or lower
- Significantly higher for players whose top Survivors are level 21 or higher
- Two rounds per difficulty instead of three when difficulty is near the level of the player’s top survivors
- Three rounds per difficulty for the highest levels in the game [26 and above]
- Fewer Stars needed for players and Guilds to earn rewards
And also:
-Increased minimum and maximum Tokens in Token Crates
-Increased phones for Guild phone Rewards
After that, we are going to run the challenges with the usual settings and we hope to rebalance the challenges as soon as possible.
Thanks a lot for all your feedback! Especially the very constructive ones. It was beautiful to read them through!
70
Comments
Cough Every change cough NG does cough cough is for cough the cough better cough.
Probably making a video!
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I must say, I am very pleasantly surprised and appreciative of this level of communication. Well done NG! Please keep it up!
I have 3 lvl 23's
18, 19, 20, 21 are single
22, 23, 24, 25 are double
26+ are triple.
Am I to understand players who have 3 lvl 20 survivors aren't starting at RSL 18? They are starting lower? Can anyone with 3 lvl 20 survivors advise me of what rsl they started at and when double and triple rounds started for them?
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Just to make sure player expectations are set reasonably, I would bold/emphasize this line and make an in-game announcement so people aren't disappointed next week: "After that, we are going to run the challenges with the usual settings and we hope to rebalance the challenges as soon as possible."
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> I didn't check star counts etc but if I'm reading this correctly players with 3 lvl 20's (and nothing higher) start at a lower RSL than those of 3 lvl 21's or more. So 3 lvl 20's have the potential to earn more stars regarding they have more rounds is that correct?
>
> I have 3 lvl 23's
>
> 18, 19, 20, 21 are single
> 22, 23, 24, 25 are double
> 26+ are triple.
>
> Am I to understand players who have 3 lvl 20 survivors aren't starting at RSL 18? They are starting lower? Can anyone with 3 lvl 20 survivors advise me of what rsl they started at and when double and triple rounds started for them?
And that is what we worked so hard to get stopped just a few months back.
My advice to everyone is, if you only have two 20s now, don’t upgrade anymore. The star loss was massive. Not sure wkat it is now but someone will work it out.
Great :-( I sincerely hope that doesn't become a permanent change
The other settings will remain the same (and here they are again):
- Higher starting difficulty for all players:
- Slightly higher for players whose top Survivors are level 20 or lower
- Significantly higher for players whose top Survivors are level 21 or higher
- Two rounds per difficulty instead of three when difficulty is near the level of the player’s top survivors
- Three rounds per difficulty for the highest levels in the game [26 and above]
- Fewer Stars needed for players and Guilds to earn rewards
If players at lvl 20 for example start at 16 and have
single rounds 16, 17, 18, 19
double rounds 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25
triple rounds 26+
and if playes at lvl 21+ for example start at 18 and have
single rounds 18, 19, 20, 21
double rounds 22, 23, 24, 25
triple rounds 26+
Then those at lvl 20 are playing 16, 17, 20.2, 21.2 (minimum of 146 star difference)
16 + 18 = 34
17 + 18 = 35
20 + 18 = 38
21 + 18 = 39
34 + 35 + 38 + 39 = 146
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Yes I understand players with lvl 23's will make it further in the challenge than lvl 20's... I agree.. I'm just wondering if that "star loss" issue is back with this UC.
*edit to add... It used to be 20,21,22 started at the same... Maybe since the introduction of 23's the "bar" has just been moved 1 level later so it's 21,22,23 start the same. I think that's more likely the case.
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Most end gamers prefer the shorter format. With the cool down timer and the long grind you can spend hours upon hours to hit potential. I bought 1 gas booster last week and was able to get to point where I wasn't still flying through.
I put up nearly 1300 stars compared to almost 1700 and it was great having the additional time to enjoy life instead of meaningless grind.
Now that being said I think guild rewards were off. I believe that as a TOP 10 OG seemed to gain less rewards than normal.
@DLich do you have any intel or data on this based on NOCs score? I would love to see how many actual radios and TG were earned compared to traditional grind
The ultimate challenge run last week and next week does still have a maximum difficulty setting, but it is less punishing than before. Players with the top possible level of survivors will still have an advantage over others by being able to go into more rewarding rounds sooner, and by having a better shot at being able to continue after lower-leveled players are unable to win further missions.
The players who choose not to upgrade are seriously hamstringing their chances of getting the best rewards and reaching the top difficulty levels.
Please note: Development is a fluid process, and suggestions and implementation take time and iteration. Any discussion of future features, deadlines, updates, balance changes, and such should be considered prospective and subject to change.
As far as the “star loss” issue is concerned. I remember experiencing this when upgrading a while ago. My view was that while it is undoubtedly real, it is a temporary blip while you upgrade everyone to a higher level, at which point you will be stronger and be able to progress further and score more stars. The other option is that NG cap the challenge starting level - which they did, and it led to the grind.......!!!!
And I know which of those I would prefer (easy for me to say, I know, with all my survivors now at 23.......). So looking forward to this week’s challenge. Thanks again, NG
Yeah I agree, I prefer the shorter format with less grind, definitely. What I don't like is players with a lv20 roster able to earn similar scores to a lv23 simply by taking advantage of the high level handicap.
I put alot of time and effort in to reaching lv23 only to be told I could've stayed at 20 and still put up similar scores...
Thank you for listening to our feedback.
@Kaz
Would either of you have a breakdown on when and what rewards were for guilds. I didn't take not of each reward we earned as I got started late, but I am curious it seemed there was less TG and Radios for upper tier guilds. While my crates dropped 22 gear still even tho I was killing level 30 walkers(thought this was fixed)
Dudes. Real life yo. Grind to grind to grind to grind < real life.
Unfortunately, the accidental extra tank and armored walkers raised difficulty by more than we had planned for. We'll make sure that they don't return, so you won't need to worry about them raining on your parade.
Also, the bonus rewards this week will start at a lower threshold, so more people should be able to get a shot at them.
Please note: Development is a fluid process, and suggestions and implementation take time and iteration. Any discussion of future features, deadlines, updates, balance changes, and such should be considered prospective and subject to change.
I don't know if I should laugh or cry.
@Kaz no timer lock confirmed? That's VERY important as it allows us to manage our time.
In the end though, I don't really care. During ka-boom I broke 2k* for the first time and nearly cleared 32.4. What was I more pleased with, the 2k* or the fact that I reach round 32 for the first time and nearly cleared it? The round I cleared to every time. I'm confident I would have reached 33 this week if it wasn't for hilltop. Ultimately, stars don't determine how well you did, the stage you grafted to does.
https://forums.nextgames.com/walkingdead/discussion/40263/wild-walking-is-actively-seeking-new-members"
But at what level should my gear drops be? Isnt crate rewards based on the RSL? If I am on level 29 shouldn't any Crate I open and get legendary gear be at level 23 and not 22? I know this has been discussed a lot but as a new Max player I am not starting to see that all my crates don't equal out to what they should be. I realize when I buy in trade shop the 7500 crate it is based on my Player level 66 which means 22 drop which is bad enough, but in the challenge with increase odds of getting legendary gear and knowing my RSL is more than high enough I would like to see the drop rate be what it should and that is 23. Big difference in Damage/Health between the two.
Also correct I knew Guild rewards were lowered but I am talking overall reward not just when earned. So if say Guild X typically earns 75 radios but this past challenge only earned 60... That isn't a big deal I can document it this upcoming week to see the difference either good or bad. I just didn't know if you had a list of when the rewards were earned and at what point they are earned.
You said this in another thread;
As a reminder, the reward-based alterations made for this event are:
- Better chances of finding Weapons and Armor in Challenge Crates
- Increased rewards at high star counts for players and Guilds
Additionally, the number of stars needed to reach the crates was adjusted to account for players playing fewer rounds overall since the difficulty increases faster.
Therefore, the number of tokens in crates, or the rarity of individual pieces of gear found are not expected to be any different from before.
The feedback is appreciated, but I wanted to ensure that people don't feel disappointment in a change we didn't make.
Now you say this;
> @Shteevie said:
> @drunken In the Challenge last week, we increased the chances for gear in the challenge crates, meaning that you had a better shot at legendary gear. We also increased the chances for phones, gear, and components for mission crates at very high difficulties. For Guilds, we pulled down the number of stars needed for rewards by a bit.
>
> Unfortunately, the accidental extra tank and armored walkers raised difficulty by more than we had planned for. We'll make sure that they don't return, so you won't need to worry about them raining on your parade.
>
> Also, the bonus rewards this week will start at a lower threshold, so more people should be able to get a shot at them.
This is what I mean by vague information and poor wording.
Comment (1)
Gear is not expected to be different from before.
Comment (2)
...you had a better shot at legendary gear.
Honestly, this is 'almost' unbelievable.
I'd like to say more but I'll bite my tounge for now.
Players at 20 will get similar totals as players at 23 if they play the same number of rounds. But players like you that really test your strategy and survivors will always make a lot more. We see it in the data every week.
Please note: Development is a fluid process, and suggestions and implementation take time and iteration. Any discussion of future features, deadlines, updates, balance changes, and such should be considered prospective and subject to change.
Lets say you were asked to flip a coin, and would get $1 for every heads. Would you expect to make more money flipping the coin 10 times or 20? More flips [gear dropping from crates] will, in aggregate, result in more heads [legendaries]. Similarly, every individual heads or tails you got wouldn't be any different from any other individual heads or tails - you would just have more total results. I am generalizing, of course, as the odds for leg gear are clearly not the same as flipping a coin, but it illustrates the way the promotion worked.
Please note: Development is a fluid process, and suggestions and implementation take time and iteration. Any discussion of future features, deadlines, updates, balance changes, and such should be considered prospective and subject to change.