I know it’s on the to do list, but I’d like to reiterate the importance of selling items. If you make the wrong purchases early on, it can make the game unplayable. I believe this causes a lot of people to quit, especially the Hour of Code kids.
My kids turned me on to Code Combat after learning about it through Hour of Code at school. At first they were excited about it. Now, they would rather be doing something else. When I asked why they weren’t playing anymore, They both said they were stuck on a level and couldn’t go any further. It turns out that they spent all there gems one stuff they didn’t need yet, like mahogany glasses, engraved wrist watch, softened leather boots, etc… Now they’re at a level that requires better armor and have no way to get it. Younger kids (mine are 10 and 12) aren’t good at saving money, especially when they don’t know they need to.
I don’t have age for an excuse and I ended up wasting my gems too. I would save up and buy the next set of armor available that I could afford. I even bought the sharpened sword about a level before unlocking the long sword. I ended up creating a new account with another email address. I got by with just the tarnished bronze breastplate until I could afford the painted steel one.
Without a way to sell your items, your only options are to create a new account, buy gems, or buy a subscription. Not everyone can/wants to set up another email account just for this game. Also, when a game traps you’ at a point where you can’t progress, you’re unhappy with it and are more likely to just quit than pay your way out.
Having said all that, I really enjoy Code Combat and have became a subscriber myself. On my second account I got to the final levels available and decided to subscribe because I was having fun and wanted access to the additional levels. The extra gems didn’t hurt either. I’ve been encouraging others to try it out. It’s just hard to defend when they ask why they can’t sell the items they don’t need.
Some of the problems could be avoided by locking items from being purchased until they are covered/needed. Some sets of armor could be removed as well, at least for the warriors. You go from hardly needing any armor to needing 300+ health. The polished brass, rusted iron and heavy iron armor don’t seem to be needed. If you buy these, you won’t have enough gems left to cover the 300+ health recommendation At the very least some sort of buying/strategy guide could be given to the Hour of Code kids.
I guess that’s it for my rant. I just want to see Code Combat do well. It’s been like telling your friends about a favorite movie, then finding out half of them turned it off halfway through.
