Different Pricing for two users

[MommyWan]

My daughter and I downloaded restaurant story yesterday and noticed that the cost of everything is doubled for her. Examples:

my expansionn to 8 x 10 cost $5000, her game will cost $10,000
my french toast costs 20 coins, her game is 40 coins

I've looked on the web, in these forums, and believe mine has the correct pricing. How do we fix her game????? Needless to say, she is NOT happy.

[MommyWan]

Oh, we are both running on 4th gen ipods and both of us have RS ver 1.5.1

[greygull]

Sometimes the prices can vary, but I've not heard of this one. Email support@teamlava.com Give them both your and her IDs, and what's happening.

[MommyWan]

Just wanted to update everyone on the response I received from TeamLava support. They wrote that it is common for different prices for different players. How can this be???? From a programming perspective it seems like a nightmare. From a player perspective it's a rip-off. My daughter now has to sell twice as much food to be able to afford anything. This is really taking the fun out of the game for us. We like to expand together and just keep pace with each other. Now it's extremely hard to do. PLEASE FIX THIS TEAMLAVA!!!!!!!

[ButterPanda]

Not everyone will see the same prices for things in game.

[bigbux3]

Not everyone will see the same prices for things in game.

Why is that? I'm hearing it's a new issue.

[nmishii]

Not everyone will see the same prices for things in game.

We know that there are different prices for things like appliance slots and expansions, but this is the first we've heard of recipes costing different prices. Is this normal now? Will decorations cost different prices?

When recipes cost more, will the profit be more?

[bobbyrae]

Well my french toast is neither 20 nor 40 coins:
http://i1178.photobucket.com/albums/x380/annjohnbobbyrae/b343d629.jpg

This is beyond ridiculous.

[pinkster73]

Omg seriously? Different prices for this now? :\

[bobbyrae]

Omg seriously? Different prices for this now? :\

Can you believe it?

Smh. It really is too much now. It's like they live for controversy.

[nmishii]

Well my french toast is neither 20 nor 40 coins:
http://i1178.photobucket.com/albums/x380/annjohnbobbyrae/b343d629.jpg

This is beyond ridiculous.

My prices are like yours.

It would be interesting to see screenshots of the french toast that cost 20 and 40 coins. If the profit is the same, its not that bad.

[chuchulovestore]

Not everyone will see the same prices for things in game.

Why? this is extrange. I don't understand TL.

[tzvetkata]

Oh my... just when I thought TL can't suprise me any more...



http://i1178.photobucket.com/albums/x380/annjohnbobbyrae/b343d629.jpg

Just checked... my prices are the same as yours, bobbyrae.

[MommyWan]

I don't know how to do the screen shot. I will see if I can figure it out. Anyway, my prices are the same as yours, bobbyrae. My daughters prices are 300 for grilled cheese, 20 for french toast and 800 (that's right 800) for spaghetti. Highway robbery!!!!

I'm going to see if I can get screenshot.

[MommyWan]

http://i46.tinypic.com/23hsktg.jpg


Okay, I hope this worked. This is a screenshot of my daughters prices for grilled cheese, french toast and spaghetti.

[sweetstuff525]

Wow and the profit drops down since she pays more wow

[bobbyrae]

http://i46.tinypic.com/23hsktg.jpg


Okay, I hope this worked. This is a screenshot of my daughters prices for grilled cheese, french toast and spaghetti.


My prices are like yours.

It would be interesting to see screenshots of the french toast that cost 20 and 40 coins. If the profit is the same, its not that bad.

Well there goes that theory. How on earth can this be right? I would really like to understand the rationale behind this. Seriously.

[nmishii]

That's unbelievable.

I guess they know they can't lower the profit and plates for existing users, since that didn't go over too well when they did that temporarily earlier this year. So I guess they decided to gradually make it worse for newer players.

[pinkster73]

Wow. Just wow.

[trace35]

Next time customers are queuing in my store, I am going to charge them different prices for the same item and see what they say! Imagine that TL!

[trace35]

I think they are testing the market. Both new players, both different prices. They are probably splitting it down the middle for a period of time and seeing which group spends more real money at the end of the day.

[MommyWan]

If they are testing the market, they failed. I won't let my daughter spend a dime of real money on RS! I guess they didn't think anyone would find out, how sneaky!! I hope one of the moderators reads this and offers some kind of explanation other than the different players are charged different prices. I just want to understand why.

[pinkster73]

If they are testing the market, they failed. I won't let my daughter spend a dime of real money on RS! I guess they didn't think anyone would find out, how sneaky!! I hope one of the moderators reads this and offers some kind of explanation other than the different players are charged different prices. I just want to understand why.

This is what they will say:

This is by design

[bobbyrae]

If they are testing the market, they failed. I won't let my daughter spend a dime of real money on RS! I guess they didn't think anyone would find out, how sneaky!! I hope one of the moderators reads this and offers some kind of explanation other than the different players are charged different prices. I just want to understand why.

ButterPanda is a TeamLava staff moderator. He already gave the explanation.


Not everyone will see the same prices for things in game.

Don't expect another response or even a proper explanation.


This is what they will say:

This is by design

Yep.

[bigbux3]

Don't expect another response or even a proper explanation.

Well for goodness sakes, you're running a company and you have a forum for discussion, bugs, and explanations. This is a big issue, and for all I know, it could be a glitch. Not getting an explanation gets me a bit suspicious about this company now. I'm finding it that questions like this I'm not getting answered by TeamLava.

Just like my questions about not every user receiving goals or the weekly update on Thursday. All they can say is they're not available for all users at this time, or they're given out randomly (you'll get the update on Tuesday). Why is that?

[trace35]

Well they don't have to give an explanation. Players still buy gems (and theynhave the right to do so, really) and we all continue to download their games and play and they still continue to make money in spite of complaints like this.

Truth be told i've scaled back on all the games. I'm losing interest, really. But then it doesn't matter. I've never spent a cent of real money on these games so while tl will eventually lose me as a player they will replace me with hundreds more new players.that is all true. And that is why things will continue as they are and they never have to tell us why.
People will buy gems regardless of how they are treated because let's face it , we are all addicts lol!

[bigbux3]

Well they don't have to give an explanation. Players still buy gems (and theynhave the right to do so, really) and we all continue to download their games and play and they still continue to make money in spite of complaints like this.

Truth be told i've scaled back on all the games. I'm losing interest, really. But then it doesn't matter. I've never spent a cent of real money on these games so while tl will eventually lose me as a player they will replace me with hundreds more new players.

Exactly. And now I look at it this way: Buying gems is kind of pointless (I still do it when I can... sometimes... not really) because why spend real money on virtual things when you can go out and provide for your family, or buy yourself or your lover something nice?
And the fact that TeamLava even asks for good reviews in-game is a shame because they can't even answer a simple question to it's customers such as: Why not?
http://i50.tinypic.com/mw5bmx.png
http://i50.tinypic.com/iwk9cx.png

[lylahmae]

These people are until believable! Hope you are proud of yourself for ripping off children TL. It is disgusting how you treat customers!

[bobbyrae]

These people are until believable! Hope you are proud of yourself for ripping off children TL. It is disgusting how you treat customers!
Well they have been treating us all like this for a while and we just keep coming back so i think we're enabling them. Lol. Smh.

It makes me wonder what else is different...especially in farm. Smh.

And to just say that not everyone will see the same prices in the games is just so ridiculous...just like the issue of bonuses for android players being so vastly different than for ios players. I wish someone would just explain why such a vast difference. How does his benefit players, especially new players?

[bigbux3]

Well they have been treating us all like this for a while and we just keep coming back so i think we're enabling them. Lol. Smh.

It makes me wonder what else is different...especially in farm. Smh.

And to just say that not everyone will see the same prices in the games is just so ridiculous...just like the issue of bonuses for android players being so vastly different than for ios players. I wish someone would just explain why such a vast difference. How does his benefit players, especially new players?

It doesn't benefit new players! The new content being released is expensive. I'm in the millions in coins and if I try buying in bulk, I lose a lot of coins! It took me 3 or 4 months just to get from 2,000,000 coins to 3,500,000 coins to expand my restaurant.

[bobbyrae]

It doesn't benefit new players! The new content being released is expensive. I'm in the millions in coins and if I try buying in bulk, I lose a lot of coins! It took me 3 or 4 months just to get from 2,000,000 coins to 3,500,000 coins to expand my restaurant.
That the reason GM gave us (http://forums.teamlava.com/showthread.php?23031-Drop-in-prices-(&p=212926&viewfull=1#post212926) when that hullabaloo over the drop in food sale prices took place. So i suspect that is the reason for this as well.


These changes were made to improve the balance of the game, particularly so for new players, and should improve the overall life-cycle for the game. Recipes should also cost less to purchase now, which should help when stocking up on recipes.

However, I understand that many of you are upset with these changes, which I'll relay to our design team.

I guess this was how the Design team responded. His answer made no sense then and it still doesn't make sense now. But oh well. In the land of TeamLava anything goes i suppose.

[bobbyrae]

Although that "recipes should also cost less" part didn't quite happen, now did it?

Nothing new.

[bigbux3]

That the reason GM gave us (http://forums.teamlava.com/showthread.php?23031-Drop-in-prices-(&p=212926&viewfull=1#post212926) when that hullabaloo over the drop in food sale prices took place. So i suspect that is the reason for this as well.
I guess this was how the Design team responded. His answer made no sense then and it still doesn't make sense now. But oh well. In the land of TeamLava anything goes i suppose.


That's not true because I couldn't keep my counters stocked for 10 minutes! I noticed in Bakery Story that the recipes may cost 1,000 coins and have 4,000 plates! That's why I can keep my counters stocked for months. Then I cook in bulk which is a great thing.

[MommyWan]

The "recipes should also cost less"????? Are you kidding me? I don't see how making the food cost more for some players extends the life of the game. If anything, I think it makes the player feel like they can't get anywhere which leads to frustration which leads to not playing anymore. Have you seen how many players give up at levels in the 20s and 30s? It's no fun when it takes all your coins to make one recipe. You can never get ahead.

I will say it's short sighted of teamlava to not put everyone on the same playing field. I might not spend a lot on gems, but when my daughter gets with her friends they compare what games they have. Word of mouth is powerful and right now, we will not be recommending Restaurant Story. We have recommended Bakery Story in the past, but unless teamlava fixes this for us we won't recommend any of their games. BTW, we also play Dragon Story.

[bobbyrae]

The "recipes should also cost less"????? Are you kidding me? I don't see how making the food cost more for some players extends the life of the game. If anything, I think it makes the player feel like they can't get anywhere which leads to frustration which leads to not playing anymore. Have you seen how many players give up at levels in the 20s and 30s? It's no fun when it takes all your coins to make one recipe. You can never get ahead.

I will say it's short sighted of teamlava to not put everyone on the same playing field. I might not spend a lot on gems, but when my daughter gets with her friends they compare what games they have. Word of mouth is powerful and right now, we will not be recommending Restaurant Story. We have recommended Bakery Story in the past, but unless teamlava fixes this for us we won't recommend any of their games. BTW, we also play Dragon Story.

He GM quote was the response he gave to why the sale price of food had been lowered. We have not seen any explanation for why there is a difference in prices for some players, other than the woefully inadequate standard response given in this thread.

I don't know what could possibly be the explanation for the price difference. Hopefully someone will come and give a proper explanation. I'm not holding my breath though.

[nmishii]

He GM quote was the response he gave to why the sale price of food had been lowered. We have not seen any explanation for why there is a difference in prices for some players, other than the woefully inadequate standard response given in this thread.

I don't know what could possibly be the explanation for the price difference. Hopefully someone will come and give a proper explanation. I'm not holding my breath though.

Maybe it's the operating system that causes the differences. :p
Sorry, still can't believe that answer when TL used it yesterday.

[bobbyrae]

Maybe it's the operating system that causes the differences. :p
Sorry, still can't believe that answer when TL used it yesterday.

I think that must be it nmishii. It would be the only logical reason that could be given. Might even be device specific too.

[bigbux3]

I think that must be it nmishii. It would be the only logical reason that could be given. Might even be device specific too.

They claim it isn't. But I don't think it is. I think they choose what they want, who they want, and if they want. I think it's biased.

[Syphar]

I'm new to rs since yesterday and so is my fianc?, she's using android while I'm on iOS and the difference between us two considering we started the same day, even the same hour, is very annoying. I've emailed support so we'll see about the reply from them, but let me give you ppl on here a few examples and you tell me if it's fair at all. "Steel counter": hers=40,000, mine=160,000. "First expansion": hers=5,000, mine=20,000. The same goes on and on with pretty much everything expect a few things, mine is simply put x4 more expensive in every way. Now considering we both started at the same time the result is this so far: she's expanded twice already, she's got more "cash" and she can make more food. I think it's a rip off and we both play some of the other "story" games and it's the exact same in those. Wouldn't care one bit if this was about a dish costing 100-2,000 coins, but making a counter cost 160,000 for me and 40,000 for (it's not about it being her) someone else is just simply put something a game developer will no doubt lose customers on. The result for you teamlava is that one that normally purchases "the gems" (that would be me) will simply not pay one dime for any of your games ever again. I suggest anyone that has the same problem with EXTREME pricedifferences do the same thing! I'll get back about the support inquiery, cya guys. :)

[MommyWan]

Maybe it's the operating system that causes the differences. :p
Sorry, still can't believe that answer when TL used it yesterday.

We are running the exact same operating system on our ipods. I double checked after reading the posts here. We tried deleting and re-installing on her ipod several times (hoping for a miracle), but that hasn't resolved anything.

[mattyboo1]

I have the regular item prices but then with the high prices wouldn't French toast be totally devalued since it gives 40 and costs 40

[MommyWan]

I am very happy to report that TeamLava appears to have fixed my daughter's account!!! All her prices for food, items and expansions are now the same as mine.

Thank you to everyone who wrote in support of fixing this. My hope is that it was fixed for everyone as it is totally unfair to make some players pay more for the same items.

Thank you TeamLava for making my daughter happy. That's really all a mom wants!

[mattyboo1]

I am very happy to report that TeamLava appears to have fixed my daughter's account!!! All her prices for food, items and expansions are now the same as mine.

Thank you to everyone who wrote in support of fixing this. My hope is that it was fixed for everyone as it is totally unfair to make some players pay more for the same items.

Thank you TeamLava for making my daughter happy. That's really all a mom wants!
AWSOME everybody's should be normal now

[Syphar]

Yeah mine's normal now as well and there's no x4 prices on the things I had checked earlier either, good work teamlava and a big thx to everyone that's been involved in fixing this!

[bobbyrae]

Excellent. Great job pointing this out mommywan.

[pinkster73]

Hooray!

[trace35]

Wow! That's fantastic!

[fiery2423]

http://i46.tinypic.com/23hsktg.jpg


Okay, I hope this worked. This is a screenshot of my daughters prices for grilled cheese, french toast and spaghetti.


My prices are like yours.

[bobbyrae]

My prices are like yours.
I thought this had been changed across the board.

Guess not. Ridiculosities galore! Smh

[jennptc]

Did TeamLava change your prices without any interface with them, with the exception of this forum?

I am trying to figure resolve the same problem with my RS. Totally frustrating.

[MommyWan]

jennptc, I too thought this was changed for everyone.

While I'm happy it was fixed for my daughter, I don't understand why it couldn't be fixed for everyone. I saw firsthand how it took the fun out of the game. If people are having fun, they will spend more money!

[acbdghj]

Mine game is just like that. My French toast costs 10 coins. I never heard of this problem before.

[BettyJoPeters]

Just started this game 3 days ago. I think I'll uninstall :( NOW

[anselm49]

I'm currently still experiencing this problem! EVERYTHING is twice more expensive! decor, food prices etc. UGH. takes the fun out of EVERYTHING.

[waliwonk88]

EVERYTHING is expensive for me! DECOR AND CAKES! It's just lol ridiculous. E.g. a potted plant cost 10k instead of 5k, my choco cake cost 380 instead of 190.

TL PLEASE DO SOMETHING:mad:

[antisocialiteone]

I was going to expand for 5 million, but wanted to have an extra cushion before doing so. I waited one extra day and now it'll cost me 10 million? What gives!

[yukibosco]

I started the game AT THE SAME TIME on my iphone and ipad. My iphone received an increase on decor - now it costs twice the amount as my ipad. I emailed TL support and after a week of waiting for a response this is the bs answer i rec'd: "changes to features or prices may occur as you continue to play. We continue to make adjustments to the games economy and balance to ensure the prolonged quality of the game for both new and existing users", What does this mean? They can arbitrarily increase prices for certain users and NOT EVERYONE? They can just increase prices whenever and to whomever they want in an unfair manner and expect us all to continue playing? You are right - they have taken the fun out of this.
Way to go TL. IF you are going to do an increase and use the above excuse it should be unilaterally and not just to whoever drew the short straw.
BS