Do NMS players value their time?

phatalerror said:

Where do you get this "$1" part? That's not what I see at all. You can drop a twenty-spot and come away with a current-program hero. I can make that intermittently refreshing the Companion App over just a few minutes while I'm doing something else.

I don't brag about being NMS, but it's definitely a shame that users can spend their way to having a substantially better roster. Pretty soon the LTD's will have discounted abilities, and that's when the spenders will really start to distance themselves from NMS.

I hate that the real difference between NMS and spenders shows up in the random interactions. I get shut down at the line off scrimmage repeatedly, forced into third-and-longs, for no reason other than that the differences in attributes skew the randomness in the algorithms that decide block shed successes. I can't scheme around dice rolls. I just lost because the game decided so. Not really very footbally.

What do you mean by "drop a twenty-spot"? What does that mean?

antitwisted said:

What do you mean by "drop a twenty-spot"? What does that mean?

Twenty dollars. Or, "A Jackson".

phatalerror said:

Twenty dollars. Or, "A Jackson".

Oh, ok...well you said "I don't brag about being NMS" so I didn't think you spent. It makes a lot more sense now though.

antitwisted said:

Oh, ok...well you said "I don't brag about being NMS" so I didn't think you spent. It makes a lot more sense now though.

I don’t spend. My point was that people who spend can burn cash on a card that is almost valueless for the money spent. I can earn a hero in a few non-exclusive minutes of auction house activity.

No question, if someone wants to spend hundreds of dollars over the course of a few months, they’ll dominate in Head-to-Head with little resistance. And they won’t burn many hours on the Auction House. I just don’t think the $1-per-hour reference this started with was predicated on facts.

antitwisted said:

It doesn't help to stereotype or classify. NMS are not the only ones talking down others (heck, just look at your very thread - literally calling NMS people sad or at best, a subcategory of NMS). I've heard people bash NMS, call it an illness, or say "I spend on this game because I'm not broke". I've heard NMS act high and mighty because they can win against spenders. The real issue at hand isn't about spending or not. It's about "the other" if you will. And threads like this do not help. Maybe NMS have issues with you because of you talking to them, or about them, in such a manner as this?

If your thread was about removing animosity, being more accepting, looking past status or classifications etc, then sure. Alas, it apparently cannot be.

Yeah you're probably right.  

I just think more people need to realize the value of time.  You can't get time back.  What you choose to do with it is your choice, but seeing people marginalize others who work hard for a living, and choose to spend their disposable income on what they enjoy kind of irks me.

DJONES13 said:

Yeah you're probably right.  

I just think more people need to realize the value of time.  You can't get time back.  What you choose to do with it is your choice, but seeing people marginalize others who work hard for a living, and choose to spend their disposable income on what they enjoy kind of irks me.

I have never heard an NMS marginalize someone who works. If anyone actually does that, you are clearly wasting YOUR time on the wrong people. You know, the time you can never get back and such.

Odog123 said:

I didn’t even think of this title being antagonizing and maybe you didn’t either. My mind simply saw a logical question and maybe that was all that was intended. I’m guilty of being oblivious to how my words and actions impact others. I’m going to continue under the assumption it wasn’t meant that way.

Of course they value their time. Sounds like you are making an argument for time being undervalued in this market and that’s how many identify investment opportunities. As an economics major it should be a good experiment for you to reinforce your education on currency fluctuations, nominal exchange rate, real exchange rate, exchange difference, currency appreciation, currency depreciation, etc. Have you seen the cost of a McDonalds in parts of Europe? I paid about 40 franks for 20 chicken nuggets, a medium fry and a medium coke in Switzerland. Not what I wanted to be eating in Europe but wasn’t really up to me in this case.

Doing an economic evaluation could be useful but that data is only useful to a point. We would need additional data to get an accurate consumer value. Perceived value and perceived benefit vs cost is needed. Market research is not enough to determine those values either. You need things like focus groups and surveys. This is place where EA fails because they focus on things like economic value to customer. There isn’t an alternative to Madden so this value is inaccurate and as a result inflated by EA but that’s off topic. I took your statement to mean you are currently studying economics. If that isn’t the case I apologize.

As pointed out already this can be out of necessity. I’ve been there too. I work very hard and have for many years. One of the things I’ve earned as a result is expendable income.

I think there are a fair amount of people who refuse to spend additional money because they are uncomfortable with gambling or are too young to be gambling. I completely understand this as well. I have felt this way quite a bit. To eliminate that I allot myself a certain amount of money for hobbies/recreation every month. I’ve never actually participated in typical style gambling and never intend to. They don’t let you take your spreadsheets in the casino. They get a bit fussy about that stuff.

Another reason is for this is users feeling a strong distain, distrust and taken advantage of by EA. All while playing a game that does not meet their expectations. An easy one for most of us to understand.

I think this is also a group, a club or a clique that has emerged within MUT. I believe the NMS player circle really solidified during the pack strike. That social organization allowed people to feel a part of something real that made an impact. Ties like that are not easily broken. Nor would I want to break them. The NMS user is as essential as any other. We may want to organize again in the future and many NMS users have experience with that.

Finally, I think there are a large amount of people who do not view time as a currency. I mean simply that they do not understand or do not care to. While I am not a supporter of ignorance I am an advocate for a persons right to say I don’t care.

One person’s personal values cannot be used to assess another’s. It is a matter of perspective. I often roll my eyes when I find trash in my yard. Shohei Ohtani would say he’s lucky to have the opportunity to earn good karma.

I’ve rambled on enough for one morning.

Very well said.  I forgot about people who are against gambling as well.

Also on the subject of the packstrike causing players to organize, I think it would be amazing if there were a players union of some sort.  I think EA takes advantage of the players, and things could definitely be run a lot more professionally.

Hell, when I was playing competitively, EA at one point sold a "DJONES pack", which gave the person the team I had recently used in a tournament.  Did I get any share of the profits from them using my name for marketing/profit?  No.  

Was probably my fault for allowing myself to be used/exploited, but a players union would be amazing for ensuring players are not taken advantage of, and also getting the gameplay/content changes we deserve.

SpareRibMoon said:

As a general rule, I wouldn't "hate on others" for the choices they make.  For most things - to each their own.  As someone who is NMS I would just point out that from a purely economic standpoint time isn't always money.  Some players have passive income or don't need to work.  But everyone wants some amount of entertainment.  Paying Madden is their entertainment.  I have never heard anyone argue about the economic opportunity cost lost for people that go hiking, to the movies, or a trip to Disneyland.

Ah yes good point.  Do what you enjoy, nothing wrong with that.  Often times the pleasure we experience from doing the things we like cannot be quantified.

Dirk26 said:

People who spend $ vs. NMS has always been a feud like snowboarders vs skiers, flat earthers vs science, 50 Cent vs JaRule, The Game, Jay-Z, Lil' Wayne, Diddy....etc.  It probably will never end.  The funny thing is both sides are a touch jealous of the other side, and both sides need each other to exist.  I've been on both sides of it myself.

$ vs NMS is jealous because at the end of the year all of us who put money into the game are a touch sad because it truly is a big waste of $ with no "tangible" return.  I've popped packs and then immediately after been disappointed/embarrassed with myself before.  

NMS is usually jealous because of the wealth and team you can accumulate by putting money into the game.  The other part is NMS typically thinks EA's greed is credited to the money spenders.  If people didn't put money into the game, EA would pull back on the reins of their greed.   

Both need each other for Ultimate Team to exist (if UT died it wouldn't be the worst thing, but that's a different convo).  If people didn't put money into the game, EA wouldn't put any resources towards it and it would be a shell of a mode.  If people didn't buy packs, NMS wouldn't have cards to flip on the block.  If NMS went away, this game would get really tiring playing the whale squads over and over.

I have never really felt bad about spending money on the game, I just view it as my hobby and something I like to do, and make sure to not go overboard.  To me a few hundred dollars a year is more than reasonable.

When I was playing professionally it was often necessary to spend at the start of the year in order to compete at a high level.  At that point it was more of an investment in myself.

As for when I was a NMS player, I never felt the need to advertise such things, and did not hold any animosity towards people who chose to buy packs.  

I also feel like it was easier back then to make enough coins to field a competitive team by just playing a lot of h2h.  It seems a little more difficult these days.

DJONES13 said:

Being an economics major, I just find it rather funny seeing people brag about being NMS or getting cards for "free".  

Time is literally your most valuable commodity...spending hours "grinding" the game for a return rate of $1 per hour is just kind of sad, especially when "NMS" players hate on people with actual jobs who choose to spend some of their disposable income on their hobby.

That being said, I definitely respect players who choose not to spend money for philosophical reasons.  Not wanting to give extra money to a company that puts out what many believe to be a subpar product is commendable for sure.

Carry on.

Being a professional, who works in finance, i find it funny people don't see the "clockwork" ebbs and flows of this market.. i used to spend a few bucks when i was a bit younger (still would if i had a reason.. not opposed to it at all) - (i was more competitive back then).. this year i havnt spent a dime... im  89 ovl, got about 3m left...

So ill play on a friday/weekend (i essentially just do the dailies, and time sensitive stuff during the week.. too busy) - 

• If you understand markets (especially one as predictable as this, with every promo causeing a "sell-off")  u can play ur games on the weekend, while spending aprox 20 min between, find a handful of undervalued assets and repost em, get back into a game..

Minimal effort - easy 1-200k gain per weekend, or any long session of games.. with minimal time spent in the AH.. (this is where you weigh the time vs money - maybe you spend 45 min extra doing auctions and rake in 300k total.. u get the pt.) 

Then effectively manage the rewards - and yes, this method requires u to sometimes have some patience on new cards.. i rarely have to, and if it comes up.. then i have the option to spend a few bucks and get it  - np - (also, planning ahead helps) 

So, Basicly, excellent resource management, can give u a pretty loaded NMS experience... without an absurd grind...

But most ppl are stupid so ... it's not for everyone.. "mostly just.. people who read" - 

(Part of the fun for me is getting "over" on EA - 🤷‍♂️ - but everyone shuld just.. play how they want.. spend what they want.. who cares..)

hulksmashr2 said:

EA banned you from competing in the MCS why are you even giving them more money other than buying the game? Are you being serious? Cmon bro think!

Even though I'm not allowed to play in MCS tournaments anymore, I still love Madden and enjoy playing most of the time.

Although it is somewhat difficult to play casually after competing at a high level, I feel like spending a few hundred dollars a year on a hobby you enjoy is more than reasonable.

However, I will admit I have considered not supporting EA in any way after the way they have treated me, but I honestly don't think it would have much impact.  They probably wouldnt miss the amount of money they get from me as they profit billions of dollars per year.

TecmoEagles said:

Money spenders and NMS players, all the same.

NMS players have to use NMS in the in their name just to let you know. Even in online forums they usually start the post with "I'm no money spent . . "

OP DJONES13, started several comments in the last few months letting us know he is a former comp guy (for credibility?) . Today he let's us know he is an economic major before giving his opinion (again, for expert cred???). My bet is in a few years he will begin his statements with "Being a great family man . ." when he attacks folks who spends time on a game they choose to play on their time.

Being extremely good looking and intelligent like I am, I rather resent your implications.

phatalerror said:

Where do you get this "$1" part? That's not what I see at all. You can drop a twenty-spot and come away with a current-program hero. I can make that intermittently refreshing the Companion App over just a few minutes while I'm doing something else.

I don't brag about being NMS, but it's definitely a shame that users can spend their way to having a substantially better roster. Pretty soon the LTD's will have discounted abilities, and that's when the spenders will really start to distance themselves from NMS.

I hate that the real difference between NMS and spenders shows up in the random interactions. I get shut down at the line off scrimmage repeatedly, forced into third-and-longs, for no reason other than that the differences in attributes skew the randomness in the algorithms that decide block shed successes. I can't scheme around dice rolls. I just lost because the game decided so. Not really very footbally.

For example, there are solos you can play which reward you an 82ovr sellable card or an 84 ovr BND.  These solos probably take about 30 minutes.  

82 ovr players go for about 6-10k.  84 ovr players go for about 20-30k.

You can usually make an average of about 1 million coins for a $100 bundle.

 30 minutes of your time for a 10-30k return is about $1-3 per hour at that rate.

robbd22687 said:

Being a professional, who works in finance, i find it funny people don't see the "clockwork" ebbs and flows of this market.. i used to spend a few bucks when i was a bit younger (still would if i had a reason.. not opposed to it at all) - (i was more competitive back then).. this year i havnt spent a dime... im  89 ovl, got about 3m left...

So ill play on a friday/weekend (i essentially just do the dailies, and time sensitive stuff during the week.. too busy) - 

• If you understand markets (especially one as predictable as this, with every promo causeing a "sell-off")  u can play ur games on the weekend, while spending aprox 20 min between, find a handful of undervalued assets and repost em, get back into a game..

Minimal effort - easy 1-200k gain per weekend, or any long session of games.. with minimal time spent in the AH.. (this is where you weigh the time vs money - maybe you spend 45 min extra doing auctions and rake in 300k total.. u get the pt.) 

Then effectively manage the rewards - and yes, this method requires u to sometimes have some patience on new cards.. i rarely have to, and if it comes up.. then i have the option to spend a few bucks and get it  - np - (also, planning ahead helps) 

So, Basicly, excellent resource management, can give u a pretty loaded NMS experience... without an absurd grind...

But most ppl are stupid so ... it's not for everyone.. "mostly just.. people who read" - 

(Part of the fun for me is getting "over" on EA - 🤷‍♂️ - but everyone shuld just.. play how they want.. spend what they want.. who cares..)

Tell us more about getting over on EA, I like the sound of this 😈