Daijhi
Registered: 16.03.2007
Location: Germany
Posts: 32
22.04.2014 11:23:00
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THE NEW BUDGET SYSTEM
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Hi Maverick
Maybe I am wrong - maybe others don't agree - but I am finding the new budget rules very dispiriting.
Like many others I naturally invest in elements which I predict will rise in value. But now, if successful, I must forfeit the automatic 2M budget increase. Hence I am overtaken by inflation as I cannot invest in every element that rises in value. Furthermore without the automatic cash increase there is very little point in changing my team set up unless I can successfully predict a retirement. I feel simply stuck where I am.
Can we not return to awarding everyone 2M cash each race as before and limit all valuation increases to 1M per element per race? By that method the successful players will not be able to draw ahead so far so fast.
Surely every player has the same opportunity to predict valuation increases and the traditional choice between more points now or more value at the end of the race was (in my opinion) always the most interesting element of game. Very sadly that element now seems to be gone.
Does anyone else feel like this?
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GaKra Motors
Registered: 02.03.2006
Location: Switzerland
Posts: 1047
25.04.2014 17:56:03
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@Dominik Now this is definitely true... if there were only three races per season there wouldn't be many players with many trophies but more players with a few of them. Over the course of a season good and bad luck is distributed "fairer" to everyone, and those with the best strategies have better chances to win.
But doesn't this also solve your problem? Those who are in the lead now budget-wise won't gain 5 millions per race from now on... or they are doing really, really well and deserve it.
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CarlisleFrost
Registered: 19.03.2009
Location: USA
Posts: 174
24.04.2014 19:03:40
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As one of the other ones last season that was quite successful in maximising budgets, the change has also brought me a fair bit of pain. To really benefit and gain a budget advantage, you need to find 6 million of increases, which is anything but easy (looking to the next race, I can't see a decent way to get such an increase), so a lot of the time I spent last season to try and build teams that both scored good points AND built a strong budget isn't really needed. In short, it takes away a bit of the edge that budget builders had (harder to benefit now from smart team choices) and that'll only start being a benefit in the latter races of the season.
That said, changing anything mid-season probably isn't fair. For this one, I'm going to have to adjust to the way things are being done, as that change means I'll have to rethink how I set up my teams.
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Dominik
Registered: 06.03.2005
Location: Austria
Posts: 453
23.04.2014 16:21:19
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GaKra, you would indeed win by a higher gap if PFRL had not this budget system. I am well aware of the fact that I am not a master of estimating the exact starting position or the fastest lap of the race, hell, I am light years away from it, and the only reason why I am still fighting for the World Championship in the last few years is that I mastered the budget system of PFRL, that is also the reason why I find it easier to win the Constructors championship than the World Championship.
Someone can occassionally find five millions of increase in value, but it is nearly impossible to find six millions of it during the main part of the season.
You are right if you say that it is not pure luck of those, who are ahead after the first three races BUT the more the season advances, the fewer people can stay in competition with the most experienced and glorious constructors. None of us talkative users in this forum would have earned that many trophies if a F1 season would consist of only three races.
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GaKra Motors
Registered: 02.03.2006
Location: Switzerland
Posts: 1047
23.04.2014 15:44:53
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Dominik, I had 5 millions of budget less than you last year, so according to your calculations I should have had 60 points less than you. Does that mean I won by a budget-unbiased margin of 63 points? 
Just kidding, but this I honestly don't understand:
You proved many times that you have the skills to gain +4 or even +5 per race, and I also agree that many others don't have these skills but can still gain +3 and keep up with you.
What I don't get is this: What's the reason that gaining budget in the first three races requires luck only, and from then on all you need is skill? Is there absolutely no way that those in the lead after race 3 actually deserve this because they made good decisions?
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Dominik
Registered: 06.03.2005
Location: Austria
Posts: 453
23.04.2014 02:46:28
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I totally agree with you Daijhi, all you need to do is select components with an expected costs increase of 3 millions and you keep pace with everyone else. If you want to move one step ahead, you need to find six millions of costs increases, which means for fifteen or more races during the season, every component from team principal to tyre has to gain value for a race and you have to select them in order to get a +1 Mio advantage to anybody else.
History has shown this won't happen. Instead the cost changing system of PFRL allows greater steps of +1 Mio in the 3rd and the last two or three races only. Minor changes occur for the team managers for the first few races, it will be sorted out around the seventh race.
So the benefit have those, who were lucky enough to have an higher budget after three races than most others.
1 Million difference in team budget is roughly 0,8 points worth, multiply this with 15 and you see the advantage such a team owner has (12 points... last years world championship was decided by 3 points)
Now imagine if some of your teams did not perform so well in the first three races and miss 3 millions, which is just an average performance, it adds up to 36 points.
Since I don't expect any changes during this season, I will have to make my final conclusion after this season. Maybe I am all wrong and the new rule improves the gaming experience on PFRL. |
Maverick
Registered: 10.01.2004
Location: Austria
Posts: 1109
22.04.2014 22:51:02
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Hello Daijhi
It sounds a little bit like, Sebastian Vettel would say: "Let's take the last years' cars from now on, because I am used to it and I am much more confident with it."
The point is, that I have established the new rule, because I wanted to take back the focus from the budget management a little bit. The selection of prize rising components is still an important factor.
Do you really think, that you are able to select 4 or 5 money making components in every race? If you have bad luck in 2 or 3 races, you will still have a chance to catch up your competitors because you won't loose that much money. I think that the introduction of RRA was a good decision and it is at the moment too early to deliver a judgement.
Please give the new rules a chance!
Let us observe the development of the team budgets and let's talk about it at the end of the season. I am always open minded for new ideas, but I don't like hasty reactions.
Kind regards
Maverick
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GaKra Motors
Registered: 02.03.2006
Location: Switzerland
Posts: 1047
22.04.2014 13:13:02
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I can imagine there is at least one certain person who feels that way, too. 
The old budget system was good as long as it wasn't exploited, but last year one was pretty much forced to go after value instead of points to win the whole thing in the end. I only won last year because I tried to get the MVT in the first half of the season and then changed plans. The whole balance of the game is endangered if someone exploits the old system... and why shouldn't one exploit the rules to the max? So something had to be done about the rules.
Just look at the components I chose in the team that leads the competition at the moment. That would have been almost suicide last year. Now I even got lucky and got +1 millions for Ricciardo and Marussia chassis which I didn't expect, because basically I was after the points. Last year one would have had to choose two out of Hamilton, Bottas, Kvyat, Hülkenberg and Chilton, plus a Williams chassis everywhere while this year one can try to collect points by other means without "losing" 7 millions in the budget department.
By the way, it can still be a good strategy to try to gain +5 millions of budget in a race. Okay, if you manage to do so, you won't get a total of +7 anymore... but you will get +5 millions even if one of your drivers retires. 
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