Thank you for listening to the player base. While we as players don't necessarily know the best system to implement for Dappervolk, I am relieved that RLC gacha (which for anyone reading, yes gacha, lootboxes, etc. are, by definition, gambling) is going to be removed. Theoretically the gacha was a good way to get these items into the trade market in a sense - but the negative consequences gambling can have on a person, especially young people or those who are more prone to gambling such as addicts or those using it and/or games as a coping mechanism for something else - the negative consequences are more important.
The Dappervolk team mentioned the fond memories of gacha they had growing up, and I understand because I also grew up with them in certain places; however that is exactly the kind of statement that makes me worry for young people. Dappervolk received a very strong response to the RLC gacha because of those of us who are aware of its place within a larger context, which is that of the game industry as a whole. The game industry has been implementing more and more gambling mechanics in their games (even games for children) in increasingly predatory ways over the years. Children are growing up accustomed to a manner of exploitation of which they should not be accepting. Since I myself grew up with similar mechanics, I can say that you really don't question it when you're young. That is a very dangerous mentality to grow up with. It is literally trying to condition you to become a gambler.
Outside of that, I was scared for Dappervolk's longevity because I am also a former TinierMe user, an avatar dress up site that used RLC gacha as well. In Japan it was obviously very successful, but their English website only lasted for about three years, over the course of which I saw the user base turn increasingly bitter towards the website for its unfair practices as it became harder for people to obtain premium currency; and in the end, the RLC gachas had a negative effect on the trade market anyway, since eventually no one was trading for anything else that wasn't also a premium currency item. Free site currency gacha items were worthless unless they were rare, retired items. Anyone who started out on the site at that point would be too late to the party, since getting free premium currency was not as possible as it used to be, and premium items were only circulating between premium users at that point. I don't remember if the site closed simply because it wasn't making enough money, or if it was because the users of the site were hounding the site with complaints and protests so often, or both...
I don't know how to make it easier for free users to trade for premium items. I just wanted to mention that even with a gacha in place, it didn't necessarily mean premium items would be more accessible for free users. Dappervolk is trying its best and I wish it all the best. I want to see this site succeed and last for a long time in a healthy way.
