Changes to the payments section of the game (Updated on July 31)

[semyonkirov 29,038]

 

Seymon

 

Why is there a difference between us and the Russians in the process of buying Crystal? Doubled difference!

 

I do not know why you can not to make the purchase, such as buying Russians process completely

 

This is injustice us Russians enjoy all things, and we are the opposite? Now all the players knew the difference between us and the Russians

 

And they will quit on shipping if you have not configured their prices to be quite like the Russians

 

The thing that invincible if that reduction came on the purchase of 50% Russians enjoy preference for most of us

 

This double act is just completely .. The best way to make Packages in Euros And Packages in US dollars

 

And ending the problem!

 

This is tricky, but let me try to explain. 

 

All the rates were fair before the Ukraine crisis started. Back then ruble was a relatively strong currency, and crystal price for buying in rubles, euros and USD was the same.

 

Then the crisis started and ruble got affected, it basically lost almost half of its value compared to euro and USD. We, however, decided not to change crystal prices for various currencies back then, so crystals bought in rubles got about 30% cheaper. That's where the huge difference in crystal price came from.

 

With the recent update, we made the decision to make those rates fair again, buy making crystals 20%-44% cheaper when buying with USD and euro. The change was made, but it had to be rolled back shortly after that. This was done due to a financial risk we didn't take into account originally.

 

So, the fact that it was rolled back doesn't mean that it will stay like that forever. Our intention is to introduce fair rates for crystals in USD and Euros, but we'll be doing that step by step, in a very gradual way. It will take more time, but it's less risky for the game. 

 

Basically what I take from this is that the Russian players would be furious that players around the world get the same as them, since it is their game and the rest of the world are guests and should pay a premium to have the pleasure of playing with them.

We wouldn't want the Russian players to be upset and stop buying.

Russian players don't care about anyone else except Russian players, the same way most of this community doesn't care about RU players. This is human nature. So, I have to say that your theory is nonsense. Sorry for being so blunt.

 

So it is proven that those who buy with RUB get a distinct advantage. In fact even those who buy with EUR get an advantage over USD buyers (even though the euro is almost equal to the dollar). Some sort of anti-US bias it seems?

 

Also to state that it would effect the economy negatively but without providing specifics, is just plain mysterious.

Yes, currently it's cheaper to buy in Rubles due to reasons I described above in this post. And yes, USD purchases are a bit more expensive than purchases made in Euros. Same reason, USD got a lot stronger recently, now costing almost the same as Euro. Current Tanki rates don't take these changes into account, that's why USD crystals are the most expensive. As I already said, this will be fixed, step by step.

 

So here is some more disturbing information.

 

The amount of "free" crystals you receive in a package is different depending whether you are on a EN sever or RU server.  Even before we get to price they get an advantage and this completely wrong. I would like to hear the explanation for just this, never mind the difference in cost.

• RU  -  if you buy 15000 you get 7500 for free. = 22500
• EN  -  if you buy 15000 you get 4000 for free. = 19000
• So that is 3500 more crystals just for buying on the RU servers.

 

So now lets look at the difference in cost.

• The 15000 pack on the RU server costs 299 Rubles.
• The 15000 pack on the EN server costs 630.16 Rubles.

Don't forget they also get more free crystals. So lets break it down a little further.

• RU - 22500 / 299 = 75.25    Which means they get 75.25 crystals per ruble.
• EN - 19000 / 630.16 = 30.15 Which means we get 30.15 crystals per ruble.

That is approximately 60% more crystals just for buying on the RU server. Another unfair advantage.

 

What I can't understand is why there is such a unfair advantage given to the Russians. The exchange rate should be the only deciding factor in the cost to players from different countries.

 

 

Solution:  The simplest thing would to sell all crystals in Rubles and let the exchange rate determine the cost to the player. You can't get any fairer then that.

Hey there! The crystal price difference has been explained already. As for the different bonus in 2 same packages, I agree it is weird. However, current EN packages and rates are a temporary measure. As I said many times, they will be getting more favorable for players with time.

[nowhere2run-fakeban 3]

Not really, all violators are punished equally.  :)

u r one of them u will say that.

[Canadian_Eh 1,354]

This is tricky, but let me try to explain. 

 

All the rates were fair before the Ukraine crisis started. Back then ruble was a relatively strong currency, and crystal price for buying in rubles, euros and USD was the same.

 

Then the crisis started and ruble got affected, it basically lost almost half of its value compared to euro and USD. We, however, decided not to change crystal prices for various currencies back then, so crystals bought in rubles got about 30% cheaper. That's where the huge difference in crystal price came from.

 

With the recent update, we made the decision to make those rates fair again, buy making crystals 20%-44% cheaper when buying with USD and euro. The change was made, but it had to be rolled back shortly after that. This was done due to a financial risk we didn't take into account originally.

 

So, the fact that it was rolled back doesn't mean that it will stay like that forever. Our intention is to introduce fair rates for crystals in USD and Euros, but we'll be doing that step by step, in a very gradual way. It will take more time, but it's less risky for the game. 

 

Russian players don't care about anyone else except Russian players, the same way most of this community doesn't care about RU players. This is human nature. So, I have to say that your theory is nonsense. Sorry for being so blunt.

 

Yes, currently it's cheaper to buy in Rubles due to reasons I described above in this post. And yes, USD purchases are a bit more expensive than purchases made in Euros. Same reason, USD got a lot stronger recently, now costing almost the same as Euro. Current Tanki rates don't take these changes into account, that's why USD crystals are the most expensive. As I already said, this will be fixed, step by step.

 

Hey there! The crystal price difference has been explained already. As for the different bonus in 2 same packages, I agree it is weird. However, current EN packages and rates are a temporary measure. As I said many times, they will be getting more favorable for players with time.

Well thank-you for taking your time to explain all of this to us in better detail. I know many of us appreciate this more open dialogue. All the vague answers we usually get only lead to frustration, anger, and mistrust. Many of us love this game and what you have been able to accomplish up till this point and only wish to help Tanki progress even further. Unfortunately because of the past lack of good communication between Tanki HQ and our forum, we have arrived a point in time where tensions are very high and conversations turn nasty far to quickly. I hope with the addition of to your team, you and your team will have more time to discuss hot topics with us and be able to but all this mistrust behind us. There are some great minds and ideas in this forum and if you take the time to discuss them you will see what we see.  :)

[Veraxin 236]

it was love at first

You could say that again , but it just took a couple of hours for us to find out the unequality between EN and RU servers payments. We are not fools! We demand a procedure of equality between both the servers!

[JD-STARZ-X 29]

@Semyon Kirov  I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU NEED TO PAY YOUR DEVELOPMENT TEAM + STAFF . WE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT AND WE RESPECT IT! ,  THATS WHY I HAVE SPENT OVER £1500 POUNDS TO SUPPORT YOU AND YOUR TEAM !

 

WE JUST WANT THE CRYSTAL PRICE TO BE FAIR FOR ALL PLAYERS!!!!!!! IF I PAY £100 FOR X AMOUNT OF CRYSTALS THEN I WANT THE BLOODY RUSSIAN PLAYERS TO PAY THE SAME IN THEIR CURRENCY !!!

 

STOP MUGGING US OFF AND TREAT US EN PLAYERS THE SAME AS YOUR OWN RUSSIAN PLAYERS OR GIVE US BETTER DISCOUNTS THAN THE RUSSIANS GET TO MAKE UP FOR THE FACT WE PAY 50% MORE FOR CRYSTALS ..

 

 

JUST SHOW US SOME GOD DAM RESPECT PLEASE !

 

 

ps its so simple >>>> EXAMPLE >>>> IN ALL FUTURE TANKI SALES  >>>> give the russians a 50% off micro upgrades and 50% off speed ups and give the EN players 70% off micro upgrades and 70% off speed ups to make up for EN players buying crystals at 2x what the russians do .. OR ANOTHER EXAMPLE >>>> tanks and turrents for russians 50% off in sales and EN players 70% off ... etc etc etc .

 

 

 

PROBLEM SOLVED !

Edited August 1, 2015 by JD-STARZ-X

[Canadian_Eh 1,354]

You could say that again , but it just took a couple of hours for us to find out the unequality between EN and RU servers payments. We are not fools! We demand a procedure of equality between both the servers!

I sometimes think, they think that we are all a bunch of kids and think they can just fool us.   :(

 

@Semyon Kirov  I UNDERSTAND THAT YOU NEED TO PAY YOUR DEVELOPMENT TEAM + STAFF . WE ALL UNDERSTAND THAT AND WE RESPECT IT! ,  THATS WHY I HAVE SPENT OVER £1500 POUNDS TO SUPPORT YOU AND YOUR TEAM !
 
WE JUST WANT THE CRYSTAL PRICE TO BE FAIR FOR ALL PLAYERS!!!!!!! IF I PAY £100 FOR X AMOUNT OF CRYSTALS THEN I WANT THE BLOODY RUSSIAN PLAYERS TO PAY THE SAME IN THEIR CURRENCY !!!
 
STOP MUGGING US OFF AND TREAT US EN PLAYERS THE SAME AS YOUR OWN RUSSIAN PLAYERS OR GIVE US BETTER DISCOUNTS THAN THE RUSSIANS GET TO MAKE UP FOR THE FACT WE PAY 50% MORE FOR CRYSTALS ..
 
 
JUST SHOW US SOME GOD DAM RESPECT PLEASE !

We all agree with what you are saying but by "yelling" and swearing, you only discredit yourself.  No disrespect to you because we have all lost our cool over this game, which only proves it is worth the effort. If it wasn't we would just leave and find fun else where.  :)  
You reaction only goes to support what I have explained in my response to .The relationship between the EN community and Tanki HQ has been destroyed, mainly by their lack of interest and involvement in what we are saying. They will need to do a lot of damage control if they want Unity to be a success because, as it stands, I don't think too many players have any trust in the people making the decisions. I truly poor way to launch a new platform.

Edited August 1, 2015 by Canadian_Eh

[r_roi140 35]

i am done with tanki online. after wasting so many years on my account. still my account is not mine. they can ban us whenever they want. we can lose our account in any sec. and will never have it back. what we get at the end ? nathing !!! think about it.

The World oF Unfair . Tanki Online = Unfair Online = Fooling Us Online

I agree 100% he give me block injustice ..

[swede1 1,726]

This is tricky, but let me try to explain. 

 

All the rates were fair before the Ukraine crisis started. Back then ruble was a relatively strong currency, and crystal price for buying in rubles, euros and USD was the same.

 

Then the crisis started and ruble got affected, it basically lost almost half of its value compared to euro and USD. We, however, decided not to change crystal prices for various currencies back then, so crystals bought in rubles got about 30% cheaper. That's where the huge difference in crystal price came from.

 

With the recent update, we made the decision to make those rates fair again, buy making crystals 20%-44% cheaper when buying with USD and euro. The change was made, but it had to be rolled back shortly after that. This was done due to a financial risk we didn't take into account originally.

Russian players don't care about anyone else except Russian players, the same way most of this community doesn't care about RU players. This is human nature. So, I have to say that your theory is nonsense. Sorry for being so blunt.

 

LOL Semyon,

 

Granted, that post may have been geared to provoke discussion.

I'm sure players have nothing to do with the economic difficulties within the organization, English or Russian beyond the fact that players aren't buying in the volume or numbers they used to.

It did clear one thing up for me though. The international  and not the RU community is the bread and butter of Tankis economy thus the hugh impact to the game economy, by lowering cost to international players.

 

This is the issue.

Why are players not buying?

It has very little to do with in-game economy, players have fewer crystals than ever in their garages, so it has nothing to do with scarcity  of game currency.

It has everything to do with aggressive blackhat marketing strategies, which hurt the relationship between players and game platform.

Further to the heavy marketing strategies, including unrealistic expectations set by the developers in regards to advancement in the game through gameplay.

It also has to do with placing important updates on the back burner and/or scraping them all together such as Kick2, training more Game Violator mods, and tools for those mods to do their job effectively.

And finally, the massive contradictions and uncertainty in the future of the game. This has caused the biggest problems, if players no longer feel ownership they will inevitably not invest in a product.

[xaris52 75]

to your team, you and your team will have more time to discuss hot topics with us and be able to but all this mistrust behind us. There are some great minds and ideas in this forum and if you take the time to discuss them you will see what we see. :)

Edited August 1, 2015 by xaris52

[xaris52 75]

Honestly, I have no idea at this point in time. Speculating on this wouldn't make any sense. I will be honest, it might take a lot of time, but we have the intention to make prices more fair.

What about greece,it has not a crisis? Or its a small country so its not taken into consideration? And not only greece but other europian countries too.What do you have to say about that?Only ukraine's crisis matters for tanki?

[miasne007 49]

Guys,should i buy 30.00 € worth of crystals when i get next x2, wait for prices to lower or spend money on Steam?

[wladixxx 5]

This is tricky, but let me try to explain. 

 

All the rates were fair before the Ukraine crisis started. Back then ruble was a relatively strong currency, and crystal price for buying in rubles, euros and USD was the same.

 

Then the crisis started and ruble got affected, it basically lost almost half of its value compared to euro and USD. We, however, decided not to change crystal prices for various currencies back then, so crystals bought in rubles got about 30% cheaper. That's where the huge difference in crystal price came from.

 

With the recent update, we made the decision to make those rates fair again, buy making crystals 20%-44% cheaper when buying with USD and euro. The change was made, but it had to be rolled back shortly after that. This was done due to a financial risk we didn't take into account originally.

 

So, the fact that it was rolled back doesn't mean that it will stay like that forever. Our intention is to introduce fair rates for crystals in USD and Euros, but we'll be doing that step by step, in a very gradual way. It will take more time, but it's less risky for the game. 

 

Russian players don't care about anyone else except Russian players, the same way most of this community doesn't care about RU players. This is human nature. So, I have to say that your theory is nonsense. Sorry for being so blunt.

 

Yes, currently it's cheaper to buy in Rubles due to reasons I described above in this post. And yes, USD purchases are a bit more expensive than purchases made in Euros. Same reason, USD got a lot stronger recently, now costing almost the same as Euro. Current Tanki rates don't take these changes into account, that's why USD crystals are the most expensive. As I already said, this will be fixed, step by step.

 

Hey there! The crystal price difference has been explained already. As for the different bonus in 2 same packages, I agree it is weird. However, current EN packages and rates are a temporary measure. As I said many times, they will be getting more favorable for players with time.

 

 

"The change was made, but it had to be rolled back shortly after that. This was done due to a financial risk we didn't take into account originally.

 

So, the fact that it was rolled back doesn't mean that it will stay like that forever. Our intention is to introduce fair rates for crystals in USD and Euros"

 

This souns so poor and cheap man...this again prooves Tanki is not a serious company but group of people who want to make as much money as quckly as possible. I didn't stop playing tanki after Ukraine crisis because It was obvious to me that devs and staff have nothing to do with it and game is cool. Now you show some nationalistic signs giving lower prices for Russians. Now that's poor. Loosing faith in you really....

[torres_a.s 69]

:excl:I don't have money . omg I hate that ......

[Papaya14 481]

Someone who knows their economics well want to explain to us why Tanki would stand to lose if they made crystal prices fair for all countries? I keep trying to understand but it's way beyond me at this point. :unsure:

[miasne007 49]

Someone who knows their economics well want to explain to us why Tanki would stand to lose if they made crystal prices fair for all countries? I keep trying to understand but it's way beyond me at this point. :unsure:

Yeah. They are afraid of 10 players who will buy crystals at fair price and with that ruin economy.... Well, the Kits and Drugs are ruining economy....

[ChineseTankMan 98]

Yeah. They are afraid of 10 players who will buy crystals at fair price and with that ruin economy.... Well, the Kits and Drugs are ruining economy....

 

 

No, hackers and saboteurs are ruining the economy.

[BlueDragon_tamki 3,204]

it was love at first

it was? because I didn't like this update, even before and after

[U.N.E.X.P.E.C.T.E.D 118]

What about greece,it has not a crisis? Or its a small country so its not taken into consideration? And not only greece but other europian countries too.What do you have to say about that?Only ukraine's crisis matters for tanki?

You better go back to school to learn two things: reading and economics. If you don't know what you're talking about it's better to shut up.

 

So I see Semyon saying somewhere that they rolled back the update because there were problems with the company economics. So that means it is the SECOND update within 1,5 weeks which you roll back/nerf because things ended up different than you expected (while even a kid could have seen these things coming). Do you even think about your updates for a decent amount of time before putting them in the game?

[ChineseTankMan 98]

When is the 5X? In UTC time.

[Abdul.Bas1t 3]

I think this is unfair. Because amount of crystals via SMS are smaller but price is same.
Before : 3500cry
Now : 1120cry 
Amount of crystals is decreased too much

[ChineseTankMan 98]

I think this is unfair. Because amount of crystals via SMS are smaller but price is same.

Before : 3500cry

Now : 1120cry 

Amount of crystals is decreased too much

 

I regret having pointed out about the credit/debit card arrangement, because others whined so much that Tanki changed it to no longer pay out more than SMS despite getting the opportunity to use C/D C versus SMS is far more costly so it should be rewarded accordingly, but now it's all equal.

That new equality now means that the payment options are unfair.

[creeperskelly 1,281]

This is tricky, but let me try to explain. 

 

All the rates were fair before the Ukraine crisis started. Back then ruble was a relatively strong currency, and crystal price for buying in rubles, euros and USD was the same.

 

Then the crisis started and ruble got affected, it basically lost almost half of its value compared to euro and USD. We, however, decided not to change crystal prices for various currencies back then, so crystals bought in rubles got about 30% cheaper. That's where the huge difference in crystal price came from.

 

The current situation has nothing to do with the crisis in the Ukraine and has everything to do with the US being a net exporter of oil now which has caused oil prices to drop for the past 10 months or so.

 

At least be honest instead of blaming something that is unrelated.

 

I called this about 6-8 months ago when crystal drops were pulled from the game. If nobody believes me here is a post:

 

http://en.tankiforum.com/index.php?showtopic=236822&p=4188264

 

I said drops were removed because the ruble was declining in value (about 50% over the past year) and it's because of a saturated oil market.

 

This is why people who buy crystals in USD will never get parity with rates for those who buy in rubles.

 

Stop with the nonsense.

[xaris52 75]

You better go back to school to learn two things: reading and economics. If you don't know what you're talking about it's better to shut up.

 

So I see Semyon saying somewhere that they rolled back the update because there were problems with the company economics. So that means it is the SECOND update within 1,5 weeks which you roll back/nerf because things ended up different than you expected (while even a kid could have seen these things coming). Do you even think about your updates for a decent amount of time before putting them in the game?

I didnt ask you,learn history to other people,if i dont ask you not your business to answer.

[Rohrmeister 1,535]

"The change was made, but it had to be rolled back shortly after that. This was done due to a financial risk we didn't take into account originally.

 

So, the fact that it was rolled back doesn't mean that it will stay like that forever. Our intention is to introduce fair rates for crystals in USD and Euros"

 

This souns so poor and cheap man...this again prooves Tanki is not a serious company but group of people who want to make as much money as quckly as possible. I didn't stop playing tanki after Ukraine crisis because It was obvious to me that devs and staff have nothing to do with it and game is cool. Now you show some nationalistic signs giving lower prices for Russians. Now that's poor. Loosing faith in you really....

See it like that:

If they would decrease the price along with the currency exchange rates everyone would be happy.

But if the currency exchange rates would have turned directly after the crisis hot times, then they would have to increase the prices as well.. and every buyer would be pis''*d instantaniously. It is always hard to give away a benefit.

 

Such decisions are hard to take. You need to think way in advance and consider a lot of things (I know that due to my job; and no, I am not working for Tanki :P :P). So it is never easy.. and it's better if they take their time to make a stepwise solution instead of rushing into something (without considering customers reaction, without giving information... such stuff).

 

I really apriciate the info given by Seymon on the reasons. Such information would be much more needed right from the start. A lot of players here are maybe not interrested in background information... but some mature opinion leaders here are. I think it would be wise, to sattisfy their need for more detailed information in order to prevent chaos through the community.

Changes that are understandable can easier be adapted to. Especially in cases, when the reasons are outside of Tankis responsibility.

Edited August 2, 2015 by Rohrmeister

[creeperskelly 1,281]

But the problem is that Tanki doesn't sell anything - nothing tangible. It sells intangible goods over which it exerts 100% control in terms of pricing and exchange rates.

 

Tanki sells a virtual currency that only is used for Tanki and can only be used to purchase items "sold" by Tanki - thus, Tanki has a monopoly over exchange rates in terms of X amount of currency for Y amount of crystals as well as a monopoly over how many crystals must be used to buy certain items.

 

This is not the same as a company that produces physical objects, and, thus is susceptible to profits or losses depending on the exchange of hard currency for manufactured goods (i.e. automobiles, electronics, oil, etc).

 

The value of the dollar, ruble, or Euro mean nothing with regard to each other in the virtual world. Except that people who buy with dollars or Euros are paying higher prices for the same amount of crystals, and, thus subsidizing the Russian players.

 

Why? Because Tanki controls the value of the crystals.

 

So, don't buy into the nonsense about economics or some crisis somewhere in the world.