ARK needs a TRADING SYSTEM

[Hterag]

"When goods stop crossing borders, soldiers start."

Since the beginning I've been reading comments on how mega/alpha tribes are an issue, raiding, etc. but what's the alternative? For most people, the goal in ARK intuitively is to level up, gather resources to make stronger weapons and then defend the resources you've collected. Once you're strong enough, you raid others.

What other goal could there be?

A trade system! Let's bring this idea up again.

As a mid-late-game item we could have a vending machine. Players set up trade listings (e.g.10x metal ingots => 1x fishing rod), fill it with tradable items and other players can come up to it with metal ingots to trade. The disadvantage is these vending machines could be destroyed and stolen from so it’d be best to put them somewhere protected etc. but they’d work very well in PVE towns.

With the tek tier we have an option for an even better item… A server-wide or even network-wide trade system with tek terminals that allow users to upload items that can be traded at any other trade terminal. Trade any item for any other item, with or without a special, "currency".

You’d still have the option to raid, of course. But it brings the benefit of raiding down when there’s an alternative to getting stuff. It’d also encourage people to build towns/cities, the dawn of civilization!

Let’s stop being tribal space men.

What do you think?

[Kraken:1]

It has a trading system, it's called the Chat Box.

[Hterag]

You're right in that people can walk up to each other face to face and throw things on the floor but that's so primitive. The game as it is now is all about tribal warfare but at the same time we can advance to modern and beyond technology.

There's no reason for people to interact besides to kill each other, raid or pay tax/tribute to the alpha tribes. Is it any surprise people play it like savages?

If we have a trade system there are far more reasons to interact. Imagine those towns we always see in the trailers... The only reason people would build towns is for trade. Trade hubs, places people go to trade in safety. We could still have alphas ruling over it, police, security guards...

All of it and much more would appear naturally as players adjust to the new features.

[Frostbringer]

An auction house type thing could be interesting.

Have it set up where the seller defines the trade item, and either set a specific amount or min bid with timer.

Example :
120 ingots for x amount of cementing paste where the paste = $$

Would remove risk of trading by dropping stuff from a chat agreement.

[Hterag]

That's a nice idea. I'm sure some kind of currency would end up appearing. In Minecraft it was iron ingots (in many of the barter-based trade mods). It could be ARK dollars or cementing paste or anything else.

The price would be whatever people are willing to accept and pay.

[Brax]

My server's owner uses the auction house mod: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=898049820

It's great. You can specify what to take as currency and people can sell items for polymer, ingots, crystal, element, whatever. I've already started making some element by selling some of my best craftable weapons from blueprints

[Hterag]

That looks like a cool mod, I'll definitely try it out on my server. I think we really need some sort of trade system added to the main game, though. Otherwise, we'll just have constant raids and isolated metal boxes that tribes call homes, no sign of a town or area where people actually come together for reasons other than to kill each other and steal stuff.

[Grumpel]

They could add a secure trade tab to the obelisks. It would force interactions face to face, with a bit of risk involved.

[Hterag]

Yeah, the way I see it going is either an, "online" trade system with an inter-server (official only) marketplace. Everyone can buy/sell on there once they access either the obelisk or a tek trade terminal that they build. Possibly even through the drops...

The other option would be mechanical booths/vending machines that people have to go up to to trade with. The owner stocks it and other players come along to buy from it with whatever the owner wants.

I think this is the only real way to get people to interact in non-hostile ways. Wars and raids etc. would still work but I'm sure people would work together to make towns where trade goes on, paying rent/tax/whatever to keep your stuff safe, that sort of thing.

I mean, this is basically what created civilisation in the first place.

[Slordar]

I like dis idea alot actually. Would also help if attacking/defending was balanced.

People just spam breed bronto as bullet soakers and can wreck any base easy. Seriously it only takes like 5 bronto and most serious alpha tribes have over 100 just sitting around collecting dust.

[Hterag]

Yeah, so much energy is invested in making the toughest dinosaurs with the only real goal being to attack others. ARK isn't Counter Strike or Call of Duty. There's no specifically defined enemy and right now it's the Hunger Games with respawns.

I think a trade system would create more gameplay options, more choices and more reasons to interact with other players.

Think of the big games like Eve: Online, they have a trade system and many people play just for that (collecting resources and selling them or the products). At the same time they have absolutely massive battles... But there are places where you're not allowed to fight/kill and have to follow the rules set up by other players.

[Tryst49]

One of the biggest PITA things is trading between characters. You have to both drop items for the other to pick up.

Apart from the bug that often causes stuff that's dropped to fall through the ground and be lost forever, actual trading between tribes is more a case of trust than barter. I drop what I am trading and I trust you to drop what you're trading. You can imagine that unscrupulous players are going to pick up your stuff and run. On a PVE server, there's not much you can do about it.

[Hterag]

This is exactly it. Throwing it on the floor and trusting... Not to mention the fact both players have to be online at the same time and willing to travel across the map to meet. If there were stores/vending machines/online trade systems then we'd be able to do it any time and set up areas specifically for trade.

[Stephania]

I believe who the main objective of developers is to make people be hostile each others. Trade is not usual into the war zone.
I believe who trade is something good at least to PvE servers.

[Spills51]

Thats not a bad idea. Your basically ytalking about something like 7DTD vending machines.

[Hterag]

Originally posted by Stephania:

Trade is not usual into the war zone.
I believe who trade is something good at least to PvE servers.

Exactly, I'm suggesting we add trade to the game so it isn't just a war zone. There will still be wars, there will still be fighting but there could also be cities/towns and neutral areas. It'd naturally form in some areas the way it does in other games like Minecraft once mods are added for trading.