I was pleased to see the survey and some of the questions included. I do hope they are prepared to actually act on the feedback they end up with.

legacy ann, either it's allowed or it's not. the rules clearly say NO "sms" speak is allowed. so either they need to add that specific word in as an exception or remove the emoji. unless they're gonna start banning people that use it as some sort of litmus test or something.

@Oathkeeper

Got it, that clears it up a bit. Still a steep price I would of had to pay in order to get all the fragments required for that particular divine

I'm just saying them immediately breaking their own rules doesn't exactly look good on the site. no text talk allowed, except they actually have said text talk built into the forum itself. what other text talk is banned but not actually banned then?

That text talk emoji is one of the few things that I actually like about this game and I want it on other stuff like WhatsApp

Please don't make them remove it..

Which just goes to prove you have never read the forum rules or you would know that this has been a rule for ever.

Nothing has changed. There has been an attempt to put all the rules together in one easily accessible place which is what players have been asking for.

How many people wanted to use a magic wand to restore the old trophy system (maybe just adding prizes for winning trophies)?

Honestly, they wanted to know how motivating the trophies are. Well, they used to be a main motivation and now there's none. So frustrating.

I did mention the trophies in my answer. I mentioned that I liked receiving rewards, but that I missed how the trophies used to look, and that I wished we could have some of the old trophies that were removed back. I feel like that's a reasonable response. Doesn't undermine the new system they want, but encourages them to add more trophies (that aren't just event and new divines related) and to maybe change the way the trophies are presented on the page.

@Legacy Ann has a Youtube channel, and she's made some good constructive feedback regarding the trophies page that I wish they'd take into consideration.

I did the survey and said exactly this. I had to put the new trophies as the lowest score for motivation, but I did mention the old trophy system ought to be brought back or at least the collections should be revised. I mentioned particularly the fact that they can't be displayed and the fact that they are (mostly) impossible to complete in entirety as the main reasons they're so unmotivating.

I also mentioned the Divines need to be worth the cost, as I've found the current run of them and even the re-releases to be very overpriced lately. 8000 passes may be reasonable for a metal Divine, but not a Chimera or a Pet.

I think the 'no text talk' rule is just a formality and only when it's used in extreme cases. I've never seen anyone get banned or their message removed for saying 'lol' or anything like that.

It's also been there since the game began, I actually don't see any rules that changed unless I missed something.

This certainly isn't the first time they have sent out a survey. I have completed them before. Nothing changed and I was never recontacted. I always put in my 2 cents, but just like this forum, it's like talking to a brick wall.....just another pacifier.

obviously my point isn't coming across at all. I know it's not a new rule, thank you very much. also definitely love the accusation I haven't ever read the rules, thanks.

my point is they're highlighting that the "No Textspeak Ever" rule exists again with this update when it hasn't *actually* been a "real" rule for years now, if it ever even was. either take it out, change it to what it *actually* is (no extensive usage to the point of unreadability), or start enforcing it.

it's not like they aren't currently obsessed with changing everything now anyway. swapping out a single sentence is certainly easier than revamping the entire trophy system ain't it.

The no text speak rule is there so that mods are able to use their common sense and stop players from overusing it and turning the English language into unreadable rubbish that online translators cannot hope to deal with. The most important words in that sentence are 'common sense'.

And yes we do enforce it when we need to. If the rule was not there we could do nothing.

there is not a single word in the rule that says anything about there being nuance. which means it is telling a new user reading it that "no, none of this is ever allowed. except actually it totally is, so maybe these other rules can be bent or ignored too!" I'm literally saying all it needs is adding the word "excessive" to it or some variation therein. -_-

And then you would argue about what is excessive. I suggest this pointless conversation ends here.

There’s a real irony in Howrse and moderators trying to police players’ language without being able articulate their own rules.

If permitting a certain behaviour is subjective, it should not be classed as “forbidden” or “not allowed”. It should be called a guideline.

Also not a great look that players asking for clarification on rules is considered a “pointless conversation”.

I mentioned the trophies/collections being unmotivating now and the percentages are less than helpful when trying to figure out 'how many more' you need of something cuz 37% of 5000 is not helpful

What more clarification would you like? Chatspeak has always been against the rules. This whole conversation began with a complaint that Howrse was breaking thier own rules by having this "emoticon" ---> which has also always been on the game.

Mods have given as much clarification as we possibly can. Chatspeak is not allowed because it is not easily understood by everyone nor is it translated easily by those players that use translators. If someone needs more clarification beyond that, they are free to go to contacts and ask.

I do wish they'd updated the rules a bit better, I admit, since they were going about it. Seems like they really did just copy-paste the old rules.

My particular problem with the current rules is that they're not forum-specific. The Game Play forum has two major issues that aren't addressed under the general rules - posting additional questions in open threads ("hijacking"), and players putting opinion/chat type threads.

Neither of these are allowed, for good reason, but there's also nothing that clearly says NOT to do these anywhere in the rules (that I can find) so instead people have to correct new players over and over because they make the same mistakes every time. And it's not really the new players' fault, either. "Stay on topic" is a hard rule to follow when there is nothing but the title stating what the forum's topic is. Game Play means "questions on HOW to play" but that's unclear from the title alone. It could absolutely be interpreted as "anything related to playing, including opinion or chat topics."

I think a little blurb either explaining what the forums are for at the top of the forum page, or an added bit for the Game Play forum specifically about opening your own thread if you have a new question would be helpful.

I feel like a better use of everyone's time would be to send in tickets to Contact Us suggesting updates to the rules, and/or more better understanding/clarification of the rules if they bother you, rather than arguing about it in here. Not trying to pick sides, it's just I think it would be more productive and less hostile. Mods can only explain the given, set rules. They can't change them or make edits to them lol.

“Chatspeak has always been against the rules. This whole conversation began with a complaint that Howrse was breaking thier own rules by having this "emoticon" ---> default smiley which has also always been on the game.”

I’m not even the player that was asking for clarification but this is literally a direct contradiction.

“lol” and is chatspeak. If “it has always been on the game” then chatspeak has always been permitted.

Also isn’t the point of this forum to “invite you to discuss and leave your feedback”?

Like many others I am fully aware Contact Us is an option but as always, we would like to encourage transparency which is seldom received.

I know! I wasn't trying to start a fight with my comment, sorry. I just thought since it was addressed in the recent update, and this forum is about discussing updates.

Are we allowed to use Contact Us to suggest rule changes? I thought it was more for troubleshooting and bug reports, that kind of thing.

I just know that sometimes it can go a little off the rails in these forums. So was just trying to offer another perspective.

But yes, you can offer feedback on the game, or ask a question about the game. I've done it multiple times before! Both are under the "Game" category when you go to fill out a request.

My original point about the emoj is that it is that--an emoji. It has text on it, but I've never viewed it as a contradiction because it's an icon like all of the other emojis, and not actual part of written language. It's something I can gloss over when reading if need be, because it's not something the player wrote out. I actually won't write out the letters myself in-game, and will instead use the emoji because I view them differently. The emoji is something players using translators don't have to copy either.

And yes, this forum is for discusion, but when it keeps going in circles, it's best to go directly to Contact for clarification or suggestions.

Also, to answer the above comments about rule changes, yes, you can submit those as feedback to Contact as well

I still have strong feelings about the trophy changes but up until now I haven't had the time to sit down and write them out. However, I just did for the survey, and I would like to share them here. I want my fellow Howrse players to know that many of us have not resigned and will continue to speak out about this.

I want the old trophy system back so badly. My main goal in the game was collecting trophies, and it brought me such joy to have the icons displayed on my page. The goals for the trophies made sense and were satisfying in that there was a clear sense of success and completion when I would earn them. They were the main/only reason I would buy passes. Since the trophies have changed, I find them overwhelming despite having given them a good look to accustom myself to the new system. They are not rewarding or motivating in any way.

And I am livid that I lost all my old trophies that I spent thousands of passes on to fulfill and obtain. It feels like I was stolen from and I know I am not alone in this feeling. I used to be ranked in the top 200s for trophies and now I have dropped down to around a thousand.

This is such an immensely popular opinon and outcry from senior, pass buying players such as myself, and it seems that almost no one has "gotten over it" even with all the time that has passed. I mean it when I say I feel we were robbed by howrse, and until this is addressed and mitigated in some meaningful way, I lack the motivation and desire to play and contribute my finances to this game, and even if I had not lost everything about the game that provided me the intrinsic desire to play, I would still wish to boycott it in principle (due to the lack of accountability and communication from the developers, allowing our genuine concerns to fall on deaf ears.)

I have years of happy memories with howrse and it saddens me that it has come down to this. But it's never too late for Howrse to rectify the situation!