[UPDATED] Devs' Corner: May 2024

Our developers have something to tell you! Every three (3) weeks, our devs will provide you with information about their work in the “Dev’s Corner.”

This publication is a way of keeping everyone updated on what’s happening with the game. We invite you to discuss and leave your feedback for each of the publications.

Note: All posts must adhere to the forum guidelines and be constructively made.

Take a look at our very first Devs' Corner publication!

Warm wishes,

The Howrse Team
 
Ow
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I seldom change anything about affixes, so I will have to experiment with that change, but I definitely can see how it will be useful for some players, so thumbs up there.

The VAs are largely G3 coats, for which I am glad because the G2s were *terrible*. Almost all the horses looked alike, and they had knees and hocks far too high on the legs, plus they stood like they were suffering from laminitis. G3s are fine, though I mostly prefer the G4s we have now (yes, including Vanners, which look now like actual horses instead of a cartoon -- which is an improvement for a "breed" that pretty much *is* a cartoon... ).



The main interest I really have in the VA is the trophy for it. Beyond that, they sit in their breeding farm and are ignored. Making it a little easier to collect VAs for the trophy is fine with me, I like that.
Becky Barnes
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~Fifi~ wrote:

I'm still waiting with baited breath for our lag to be resolved! Every day for the past 9-some months, I've logged in and thought, "maybe today will be the day". Then, I see how long it takes to even load my home page and I think about all the other things I can do with my time.

In all seriousness? We've had 6-12 hours of lag that affects all players every day for about 9 months now. Maybe we could prioritize making the game playable over the next exciting promotion.


To be honest I didn't even realise this was a universal problem. I just thought either my laptop was dying or my internet was bad, the awful amount of lag recently has made me play less and less because it's taken ages to just do the dailies. I really hope it is fixed default smiley :)
kingojoplops
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One thing I don't like is that, yes howrse has to make VIP etc worth it for paying customers, but they're doing it at the cost of losing some of their most loyal non-pass-buying players.

I've been on the game for almost 11 years (!!) and every SINGLE player I knew right from the beginning has quit the game because of the outright unfair bias against non-pass buyers. I am literally the only one left out of all the friends I made back in 2010.

I have nothing against VIP players and pass buyers, I have bought passes before myself, however it shouldn't prioritise players above others, it should just give them a better gameplay experience. (This does not include allowing them to win all the prizes like for buying passes to add skills to the reindeers etc! This is just outright unfair.)

The game is still very biased and that needs to change!
cang22
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Also this 'we worked hard on the star rain' is a joke.

You're telling me someone will win a mash and someone will win a nyx pack? Laughable default smiley xd
cang22
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cang22 wrote:

One thing I don't like is that, yes howrse has to make VIP etc worth it for paying customers, but they're doing it at the cost of losing some of their most loyal non-pass-buying players.

I've been on the game for almost 11 years (!!) and every SINGLE player I knew right from the beginning has quit the game because of the outright unfair bias against non-pass buyers. I am literally the only one left out of all the friends I made back in 2010.

I have nothing against VIP players and pass buyers, I have bought passes before myself, however it shouldn't prioritise players above others, it should just give them a better gameplay experience. (This does not include allowing them to win all the prizes like for buying passes to add skills to the reindeers etc! This is just outright unfair.)

The game is still very biased and that needs to change!


I am just going to point out that it is also a Pegasus perk, which everyone has access to and a month can be bought with 10 days of successfully completing both objectives, or 50 days worth if you decide to buy 6 months. Absolutely zero pass purchase required for this perk if you save for a while.

Been here for 12 years myself, about 8 of those were spent as a non pass buyer, a further 2 was spent with the very rare purchase, while only in the last year or two have I been able to spend a fair amount.

It's very possible to succeed with this game if you are willing to put the time in.
Oathkeeper
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26jumper
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I miss the days when new people had to get a job and Learn about horses. We could hire them and it helped each one of us. Now it is the people who spend their money to buy passes and those who can't get usher aside. Why do we all have to put in the piggy bank when few of us want the things we could buy. Which still cost equis. Makes no sense to me. I had a job when I started. Now it is not as much fun and we are getting away from the point of being on here. Fun! Excitement! And the horse don't even look like horse. More like demonic things. Tired of updates and changes and I am not very old. Imagine what it is like for them Really?
jazzygirl59
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Where is the affix change? No mass or new thing on my breeder farm page.
SusanG
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SusanG wrote:

Where is the affix change? No mass or new thing on my breeder farm page.


You select the horses you wish to add the affix to and then scroll down on the actions until you find "assign an affix".
Oathkeeper
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Becky Barnes wrote:

The VAs are largely G3 coats, for which I am glad because the G2s were *terrible*. Almost all the horses looked alike, and they had knees and hocks far too high on the legs, plus they stood like they were suffering from laminitis. G3s are fine, though I mostly prefer the G4s we have now (yes, including Vanners, which look now like actual horses instead of a cartoon -- which is an improvement for a "breed" that pretty much *is* a cartoon... ).





(Slightly off-topic: This picture brings back nostalgia! I would love to see more V1-4 pictures of the different breeds! Any idea where to find those?)

That being said, I do think the V4 Vanner horses look very pretty, and the vintage apple vanners look very.. weird? Cartoony, I'd say, with the overly big heads. The only vintage apple coat I really really love is the trotter, especially in combination with the 'old' pegasus wings. The old wings give some shade on the body as well, which I really love.

(The VA akhal-teke/marwari looks cool too, but really... intense? The wrinkles on the neck, the huge hind legs..default smiley (lol) )
Kipduif
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RowanGreen wrote:

Oh by the way, for those that don't know, the thing that's gone wrong with this update is... there's a problem with submitting via the Black Pearl. So there may be less creations to vote on this month.

Wouldn't be an update without something going wrong default smiley xd


I second this :') Really hope my submitted coat will come through somehow.
Kipduif
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I actually kinda like VAs, and they do come in handy when you need to put a customization item on a horse. I really love the Marwari/Akhal Teke coats. Especially when they have wings or a horn, they're really pretty.
And they sell pretty fast when up for like 15 passes. So if you don't like them you can always sell them and make some profit. There are a lot of people who like them and those who just want to collect.

If I get 1 mash from the star, I'll literally throw my phone default smiley (lol)
Yall gonna have to give me 500 mash to make me happy cause it isn't cheap, but a nyx or even a harmony pack would be better
apollonia
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I personally love the current vanner coats, but have a soft spot for the VA mustangs and nokotas, so, for me, I love VAs and wish they could be traded for in the exchanges.
Oathkeeper
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I like vintage apple thoroughbreds,Arabian, akhal teke, trotter, fjord,friesiens, and the vanners are ok but not realistic looking.
Ravenknight
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I like the vintage apple coats, especially the pony ones, cause they kinda look like diamond apple coats and are the closest I will ever come to owning one default smiley (7)
ϻoɨʀα
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cang22 wrote:

This does not include allowing them to win all the prizes like for buying passes to add skills to the reindeers etc! This is just outright unfair.


So far buying skills on the deer doesn't seem to be a thing. The ones at the top of the ranking at the moment seem to be mostly original Blitzens that have some skills from the promo they first appeared in. The small amount of extra skills gives them a bit of an advantage: but anyone who took part in that promo has one, so it's not a VIP advantage.

Actually buying skills could end up being a bad move: it appears there is some banding of comps by skills. Right now if you put a lot of skills on your deer you might just end against deer who'd also had their skills boosted, or even having trouble with comps not running. It might change, but I think right now consistently getting your deer in as many comps as possible is the most important factor. The original Blitzens are low enough that (I think....) they sometimes run in higher banded comps, but can also end up against the later/lower deer much of the time.

My original Blitzen (the first divine I got, actually on the day I joined Howrse!) nearly won the first contest: she only came second as the winner got an extra comping session in between site update and the comp ranking! (A move which lost them a day this month of course). This month she's in the top 10: last time I looked she was in third, but is likely to drop a few places by the update. She's had no passes applied.
RowanGreen
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cang22 wrote:

Also this 'we worked hard on the star rain' is a joke.

You're telling me someone will win a mash and someone will win a nyx pack? Laughable default smiley xd


When I opened up Dev's Corner and saw this I was definitely not default smiley <:o) more like default smiley (d)
lavakirl12
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By Retired breeder, 5th January 2021 23:11:58
Quick question (I'm sorry if this is not aloud, please let me know), but what are the stars and how do you get them. Is stars just another name UFOs? Thank you for answers.
Retired breeder wrote:

Quick question (I'm sorry if this is not aloud, please let me know), but what are the stars and how do you get them. Is stars just another name UFOs? Thank you for answers.


It happens on the 11th and they will act like ufos.
Oathkeeper
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I'm personally a fan of pretty much all of the V3 horse graphics. V4 does in most aspects look more realistic, but it also makes them incredibly boring. None of the breeds have any personality or unique features, besides Curlies having curly coats and such. Plus, a ton of breeds all share the same graphic. There are several sim games I play, all with each breed having their own unique graphic, including a couple of horse games.

I really wish Howrse would back off the new features and ask the player base what we'd like to see fixed or changed in the future. There's a lot of work to be done on the inside before adding more to the outside.

Also, as a side note, was the entire site down for a long time today? I couldn't log on for about 10 hours.
Glory Days
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By Retired breeder, 6th January 2021 01:16:50
how do i access the special horses page?
By Retired breeder, 6th January 2021 01:54:45
Retired breeder wrote:

how do i access the special horses page?


Hello!

This is a question for Game Play, but for reference click on Achievements on the blue home bar, and from the list that drops down click Special Horses (2nd from bottom).

Hope this helps! default smiley (l)

-GreenHorse
Ever since this update yesterday. I haven't been able to use my lap top to play as the howrse pages will not open. I have tried on my mobile and can only get on if I use my 4g. I have cleared the cache and all other web pages work. Has anyone else had this issue?
Leah415
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Love the affix change! I can stop affixing every single horse when breeding a lot out for teams, such as to tear, and just wait until the end. Unexpected change, but very welcome!
jericho
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Glory Days wrote:

Plus, a ton of breeds all share the same graphic.


This! I would love more 'personality' in the horses. Or maybe even... a slight difference in pattern between different colored tobiano coats (on Vanners, for example). Every single horse has the exact same marking default smiley xd
Kipduif
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