This Needs to be Discussed.

[ButterflyChaser]

I mean seriously this is a common.

I don't understand why after weeks of asking for swaps not a single one is being offered. I feel irritated because a common? Why is it so hard to get one common pet? I don't understand. What am I missing?

[betulacarelica]

ive only just come back to the site after a ~10 year absence so im surprised to hear that the concept of litters having much rarer outcomes is new because i kind of thought thats always how it worked!! lol

slightly off-topic but for a reason, unfortunately this kind of approach has also been apparent in the pokemon card community. ive just gotten into collecting those again recently too with my friend and both of us have found it extremely difficult just to buy cards because there are so many people buying up HUNDREDS of packs/boxes just to sell them on. without being too preachy i think its just a symptom of a super modern mindset where everyone is convinced they have to find value (or even the most possible value) in something. but i agree it can definitely be frustrating if youre just a hobbyist because i think you can get pushed out by the more 'intense' side.

unless im misunderstanding, i dont think the system itself is 'wrong' (ie having rarer outcomes) or inherently problematic, but i do think its good to build the community around the casual and completionist type traders who arent hyper-focused on pushing value or hoarding for re-sell (re-trade?). im hoping i can just reach out in the right ways and right places with people who are also interested in swaps & such and remember them as each new month comes along.

[The Muse]

well if you ever need someone to do swaps with you can always check my trade groups!! it can be difficult finding people to swap with when the forum can get crowded with people

i do agree that its not the system but the people that are using the system. people take this rareflation and it will still apply to pets despite rarities, bc hoarders bought them for C$ and want a return investment. comparing them to scalpers was something i didnt really think abt but its so true?? i appreciate the fresh perspectives!!

[Faith3344]

Hey! Recently returned player here.
I’ve noticed that this community, I don’t want to say feels unfriendly anymore, but I can’t think of a word that fits better so I’ll try and explain;
Like the trading for instance, when I use to play I was making trades All. Day. Long. Now most of the trades I get are people basically trying to grab my oldest pets for super super new omgsc or ec which is always followed by a foe when I decline it. And month swaps aren’t as fun either.. I always remember everyone being so helpful even if you’d have nothing they’d need for a swap now it looks like most players tend to be a bit selfish with swaps and won’t trade unless it benefits them.
I feel it’s a generational thing that us older players aren’t use to.I know many gen alphas have now started using this site and a lot of them as a generation are very much “myself and I” personality types (nothing against them, i admire how confident and self aware they all are ) due to the “fend for yourself” mentality quarantine caused on them since they were so young and developing during the world basically resetting.

I think it’s something we’d have to work with and learn how to adapt and develop as a community and I’m sure things will start to make sense and be less confusing/irritating as we go!

[Sunabi]

Personally I've been liking the change, but I have to say it's because I feel like the "hard to trade" mentality was already kinda in place. I have very few old rares, I joined in 2016 and gave away most of my collection in a trade when i was about 15, didn't take the game very seriously (still don't, but I have a better grasp on the value of what i gave away now).

The more uncommon outcomes in monthly stuff lets me get back to an even playing field if someone's willing to overpay for it. I don't tend to collect everything, so unless it's something I really like, I tend to trade away all my rarer outcomes for pets I may have difficulties trading otherwise (got the purple centipede eastern that way).

I feel like it gives an opportunity for people who don't have old rares to acquire mildly sought after pets. You won't be getting anything super rare with the monthlies, people do still stop at a certain point of inflated prices, but it has been a lot more successful for me than trying to bulk trade common pets. I feel like it's extremely hard currently to transform any sort of "miscellanious doubles" into older pets, people only trade old rares for other old rares, or at the very least bulk old pets.

So yeah i'll say i've never exactly felt that idea that chicken smoothie used to be nicer with trades. I met nice people. I still meet nice people. They're definitely not the bulk of the monthly trades, and in my experiences trades have always been kinda skewed toward feeling unreachable if you weren't there at a certain point in time or aren't willing to buy store pets in bulk for trades. But perhaps I'm not playing the game like other might, I'm overall interested in specific linearts and neutral on most others.

[The Muse]

thanks for your input!!

so far, ive noticed that those that dont mind the system use the inflated outcomes to trade for rare pets. what about the people that just want to complete months, and dont think about chasing rarities?

thats where the divide in the community is at the moment, and i do believe it should be worked on!! im very appreciative of everyone thats read this and responded kindly, as i didnt intend for this to be discourse. its good to understand the websites population as a whole so then it can be fun for everyone

[Lex.]

Honestly didn't expect it to be like. every month theres a rarer outcome. I was thinking once every few months there be a rare outcome from little events/monthlies, but having one of them a month and sometimes for more than one litter is a bit overwhelming. ATP i've stopped trying to just get the whole month in general [personal choice] but I can see why it's really frustrating.

@the muse

so far, ive noticed that those that dont mind the system use the inflated outcomes to trade for rare pets. what about the people that just want to complete months, and dont think about chasing rarities?

And yeah, those who don't seem to mind like to capitalize on it's scarcity and sell pets for more than 20c$ usually.

[Juliamon]

Honestly didn't expect it to be like. every month theres a rarer outcome. I was thinking once every few months there be a rare outcome from little events/monthlies, but having one of them a month and sometimes for more than one litter is a bit overwhelming. ATP i've stopped trying to just get the whole month in general [personal choice] but I can see why it's really frustrating.

The thing is, there's NOT a dramatically rarer outcome every month. But because nobody knows if there will be one, nobody is willing to trade even slightly less common outcomes because they're afraid of getting burned.

I too have observed that people are much more often cancelling trades for their duplicates if you're not offering something they don't have. Less willingness to help others, more "I got what I needed, sucks to be everyone else." It's unfortunate and I don't know what can be done about it other than to try and actively avoid being like that.

[Lex.]

Honestly didn't expect it to be like. every month theres a rarer outcome. I was thinking once every few months there be a rare outcome from little events/monthlies, but having one of them a month and sometimes for more than one litter is a bit overwhelming. ATP i've stopped trying to just get the whole month in general [personal choice] but I can see why it's really frustrating.

The thing is, there's NOT a dramatically rarer outcome every month. But because nobody knows if there will be one, nobody is willing to trade even slightly less common outcomes because they're afraid of getting burned.

I too have observed that people are much more often cancelling trades for their duplicates if you're not offering something they don't have. Less willingness to help others, more "I got what I needed, sucks to be everyone else." It's unfortunate and I don't know what can be done about it other than to try and actively avoid being like that.

ohh yeah that makes sense. part of it is probably a sense of I need to keep this in case it is rare, which I do from time to time but i either keep them just as collection pets if i get more than one, or put them into regular trade groups when the hype is over.
I have a friend IRL that also plays CS, and I always offer her some doubles if she needs em, and vice versa. its one of the first things I did when I got a double of that ladybug snake, i helped her as soon as I could, just as a solidarity thing ! I think it's cool, and I think befriending some people could always help. friends helping friends is cool, and hey why not encourage some engagement? though it does sound transactional, we just gift each other stuff here and there, there's no expectation to give a "better" gift ofc lol. but maybe this is a situation where creating amicable relationships between other users is a good idea !

[The Muse]

i completely agree! i think building a stronger community among the people that want to focus on collecting will help plenty of people, especially new players that may be looking to bolster collections