Why are there such arbitrary walls in the game?

[Dashkatae]

I've played quite a few online games but Warframe has to have some of the most unusual design decisions I've seen.  The big one that I find frustrating is that a lot of progress is stymied not with pay walls but with whether you're in a clan or not.  I find that this really lessens the experience one can have with this game.  As it currently stands, I'm not in a clan.  As a result, I'm locked out from purchasing certain blueprints.  This would be fine if the blueprints were for things like cosmetic items or certain weapons, things that don't have an overall impact to whether I can play the game or not.  But when the blueprints are things like Archwing Launcher Segment or Dragon Keys, it becomes a problem. 

These types of items really shouldn't be put behind such an arbitrary wall mainly due to how it discourages new players.  A new player shouldn't be forced to have to join a clan just to gain access to what are essentially necessary items to not only further progress but to also really enjoy the game.  Not everyone is a social butterfly, not everyone is going to know other players when they start playing. 

These items should be available in the market.  You can make them cost more credits if you buy them from the market instead of from the clan dojo to incentivize players to actually join a clan but if the item is something that is needed to progress the game, they should be readily available to everyone. 

If there was a way to research different clans and get to know who the members are and whatnot, that would probably make things a lot better.  But currently, there is no way to do any real research in game about a clan or how to join one.  You can learn about clans and make one, that's it.  It's very limiting.

Yes, I would like to join a clan, preferably with a group of friends I know or with a group that share interests that I do but since I can't do that at the moment, I'll just have to have stymied progress due to bad game design. 

[More-L]

While I can see where you are coming from, there should be quite a few clans you can join that have no requirements when it comes to MR or participation. You also still have the option of creating your own clan and building everything yourself, I would really not recommend it though.

I am in a clan of mostly vets and pretty much no-one types really ever, so the social part is non existent. The only real "limit" you have on clans is the build time for the dojo key, you can just join one whenever you see it, build the key, buy what you want at the time and leave. It would probably be best to ask a clan admin if that's allowed though so you don't get blacklisted.

 

[Gryban]

Well you could do it like I did and just join a random clan to get access to the labs and the dry dock.

Or you could found your own clan

[-CdG-Zilchy]

9 hours ago, Dashkatae said:

If there was a way to research different clans and get to know who the members are and whatnot, that would probably make things a lot better.  But currently, there is no way to do any real research in game about a clan or how to join one.  You can learn about clans and make one, that's it.  It's very limiting.

[Dashkatae]

6 minutes ago, -CdG-Zilchy said:

But that's not in game though.  One shouldn't have to constantly go outside of the game in order to find all of this info.  If clans are such a big deal for the game, then it should be an in game system to do the research to find one. 

[taiiat]

it sounds like you should join the Lone Rangers, a Solo not Solo Clan.
a Clan that exists for Players to get all of the benefits of being in an active Moon size Clan, but without any of the.....Co-operation that would otherwise be involved with it.

[-CdG-Zilchy]

9 hours ago, Dashkatae said:

But that's not in game though.  One shouldn't have to constantly go outside of the game in order to find all of this info.  If clans are such a big deal for the game, then it should be an in game system to do the research to find one. 

You managed to find the forum to make this topic didn't you?

[EmberStar]

48 minutes ago, More-L said:

The only real "limit" you have on clans is the build time for the dojo key, you can just join one whenever you see it, build the key, buy what you want at the time and leave. It would probably be best to ask a clan admin if that's allowed though so you don't get blacklisted.

 

I don't know if it's still a thing, but there used to be a time when some clans more or less existed for just this purpose and even advertised as such.  Some of them would allow you to stick around or encourage donations, but they usually had a whole rank set aside for "join, hang out for as long as it takes to buy all the blueprints and then leave."

[EmberStar]

26 minutes ago, -CdG-Zilchy said:

Which would be almost useful if it was in game, and if even a fraction of the existing guilds bothered to use it.  Or if most players even knew it existed, which I'm not sure many do.

[vegetosayajin]

Clans are a strange decision to put segments in, I agree.
That said it's easy to get into them in game.

The bigger problem is clans are not as interactive as they should be so you have an incentive to get into them for more then bp-s.

[-CdG-Zilchy]

9 hours ago, EmberStar said:

Which would be almost useful if it was in game, and if even a fraction of the existing guilds bothered to use it.  Or if most players even knew it existed, which I'm not sure many do.

My clan uses it :(

[SenorClipClop]

When I was a new player I learned that there were clans, and that certain things were bought from clan labs. I looked on Recruit Chat, some Moon Clan was recruiting, I asked to join, and at no further questions was granted access. Bought some BPs, donated a bit (my choice entirely) and that was it. Joining a clan is really easy and fast to do. Some clans are picky about who joins, but many really aren't. Some Tenno even recruit to Clans specifically so that others can pick up the exclusive BPs, and they have no issue with Tenno quitting the clan immediately after.

Later on in Warframe I wanted to try my hand at dojo design, so I quit the Moon Clan and started my own Dojo. I now have a little Ghost Clan with a handful of members and basically everything unlocked. It's a bit more of a grind, especially if you do it yourself (mostly in the Forma department), but it puts you more in control of the experience. Making your own clan is better for longtime players, but still possible for new-ish ones.

If you're really opposed to joining or making a clan, most of the ClanTech blueprints (for weapons and gear) are available at random. Weapon BPs are in the login reward table, and completed Detonite etc are Invasion rewards. Not a thorough solution, but then again not really a problem since joining a clan is pretty easy.

[sillman74]

I builded my own clan, it cost me some forms but I think it's worth it

[Brosef42]

Did the same. It's nice being able to decorate your own hall

[chaotea]

2 hours ago, Dashkatae said:

Yes, I would like to join a clan, preferably with a group of friends I know or with a group that share interests that I do but since I can't do that at the moment, I'll just have to have stymied progress due to bad game design. 

While I understand you, Im not much of a clan joiner in games myself, clan joining is relitivly easy and low hassle. Lots are recruiting all the time. That said you can always make a solo clan.

Alot of the weirder design desisions are due to the way the game is developed. Rather than building the whole thing, then viewing it as a whole, its developed in layers. Each layer adds new stuff, but also hides issues beneth. Whith clans, this stuff was originally put in to encourage people to join clans. Then it became a usefull place for developers to put stuff, perhaps forgetting that not every clan had been around since the begining (like the Hema).

[chaotea]

1 hour ago, Dashkatae said:

But that's not in game though.  One shouldn't have to constantly go outside of the game in order to find all of this info.  If clans are such a big deal for the game, then it should be an in game system to do the research to find one. 

I mean while i do agree, warframe really has grown to be one of those games were alot of its resourses are external. (Fortunatly its not like Destiny where you have to use an external website just to que).

That said, the game does have a recruiting chat, and many clans advertise there. You can also advertise yourself, saying 'looking for clan'.

[0_The_F00l]

While i do get the issue ,

Finding and joining a clan is not overly complex,

you could also make a "solo" clan (i dislike the concept but i understand why it exists)

 

As to why clans as a whole exist?

its for DEs twisted belief that putting things behind a minimum social interaction condition would make it a social hub.

And having a social hub would make players more inclined to bring others from their social circle.

And while there were darksectors that was true (in a monkeys paw kind of way) it was getting a little too toxic.

 

I like my clan , its got most of the stuff, i am one of the decorators so making stuff is interesting , and the few times people in the clan actually are online we chat and joke.

 

The clans are not a failure , but we cant really call them successful either as there is little to do outside of getting the latest blueprints that DE deemed so.

[(PSN)robotwars7]

4 hours ago, Dashkatae said:

I'll just have to have stymied progress due to bad game design. 

there's plenty of clans out there that will accept just about anyone and has full research, so you can join them, get all your Blueprints and then leave if you want. I disagree with it being bad game design, it's designed to encourage players to band together and form a community, and in that regard it works, so how can it be bad design? the reason you don't like it is because it's stopping you from getting blueprints, but that's because you're letting it stop you.

[Kaotyke]

So many people afraid of interaction.

I know dealing with a real person can be scary. They have GERMS after all. But you are safe behind your computer screen.

Or... are you?

Spoiler

 

[Surbusken]

You are free to come over to our dojo just to buy what you need, leave and rejoin if need any stuff and you won't have to talk to anyone or do anything at all

[Serafim_94]

Some of the design decisions of WF, while rather old, were specifically made to force people to band together. Clans and trading system are among those.

What you can do is build a clan yourself. I've built my dojo with just one friend of mine, and majority of lab/research job was on me anyway. It was actually quite fun to do back in the day.

[(PSN)Yggranya]

If you have played many online games, you should be well aware that the only reason most people join a clan/guild or whatever it's called, is that the developers add some "encouragement" like buffs or in warframe weapons/warframe you can't get anywhere else. Note that encourage = enforce.

This isn't anything new. Personally, i would be intrested in seeing the numbers in a game that doesn't have any of that (if such a game even exists, which is unlikely) and comparing to a games that does. The obvious, of course, doesn't require any confirmation.

[ShadowTalons]

You can find plenty of clans that accept people just for blueprints and that is allright and some content is more fun with mates and you can find them in clans.

[nslay]

6 hours ago, Dashkatae said:

But that's not in game though.  One shouldn't have to constantly go outside of the game in order to find all of this info.  If clans are such a big deal for the game, then it should be an in game system to do the research to find one. 

The recruitment chat tab is in the game (it's even the default chat tab when you login). And there's always clan recruitment spam to be found. So many players want to reinvent the wheel and farm for Hema... and they want you... to join their clan.

[(PSN)haphazardlynamed]

OP understands paywalls

but not clan as a wall

 

Consider this OP:

clan is actually a paywall. you start your own ghost clan, then buy all the Formas needed to build the labs and get those blueprints.

now you should be fine with it, right?