Contest of Mayors is a joke
WTF how can this be happening? Last week I was beaten by players who put up more points than I had available if I did ALL 28 assignments and now this!
Forum Discussion
This hasn't been my experience with the previous contests I've done, but thought I'd share what happened this time around to put things into a bit more perspective. I've never paid for the game at all.
This time I was going to do things totally random and choosing low mid and high end assignments. The first assignment I did was only worth 320. The next assignment given was Earn 5 gold keys worth 5000. The next one after that was Earn 2 gold keys for 2000.
From the time I completed the 320 to the time I completed the 2000 was at most 10 min and I'm already at 7320. I had a couple "Earn X amount of Simoleans" which were real quick too as I just sold some International pieces that I don't use anyway. Within the first half hour I was already at 14000ish all done legitimately.
I'm sure the guy in 2nd place has got to be thinking.... How the heck is it possible for this guy to get that high that fast. It's really been just the luck of draw. The produce tasks take a whole lot longer than any of these that skyrocketed me to the first place spot.
Right now I'm at 25170 in the Suburban League with the guy in 2nd at 16920 and 3rd at 14630 with 1d 16h to go. I didn't spend a single simcash on it at all, although I did have to do a lot of Vu disasters this time around compared to what I have had in the past.
After my experience this week, I'm starting to conclude that those who skyrocket quickly are getting a lot of tasks that are not "Produce" tasks.
I've done some of those as well this week, however, one little tip about produce tasks is that you don't have to start one, wait for it to finish and start the next one. You can produce your product and as long as you don't collect it until starting the assignment it will count, so let's say you've got assignments for backpacks, firepits and cheesecake all at the same time, you can have 3 different commercial buildings all working towards assignments even though you've only started one of them.
I've also had it this week where I've had as many as 3 different produce tasks all ready within 15 min of each other worth 1500-2000 each. Start one, collect them, claim points, start the next, collect, claim, start the 3rd collect and claim and that will also shoot you higher quicker. Just be careful to not accidentally touch something that is ready.
This week for me has been a series of really lucky draws.....
Although, I am wondering if it has a tie to your placement the previous week because last week I didn't do anything but the bare minimum to claim the small prize and this week I'm at the top of the list, which is the first week I've been at the top. All previous weeks I've either just missed the move up or didn't try.
Just a bit of information to help put things into another perspective.
As for a contest, it's not really a contest, more like a luck fest, but the way I look at it is that it will provide me with more keys than I would have had otherwise.
My experience:
1st League: 2nd place (fell short of a few hundred points)
2nd League: 1st place (43,000 points)
3rd League: 3rd place (close scores)
4th League: currently 39th place. I finished every big task with only 47,060 points. The top 10 is currently from 61,600-69,160 points.
Note that simcash has no effect on the task points, it can only help you do the tasks quicker. Getting a high value task is all about luck, which means these contests are just plain stupid, a waste of time and resources IMO. I don't see any point putting in dozens of hours of work to come 51st, only to win no prize?!?!
#51 in my 4th (City) League is currently 42,835 points.
My preparation for this league:
1. sold a lot of big items in Trade HQ, but didn't claim them (there's a task for making Simoleons)
2. Pre-queued 5 of each of the 2-7hr raw materials (often you're asked to produce 60, but you can only do 55 at a time)
3. Pre-produced 10 of each lengthy item like Garden Furniture, TV, Couch etc, but didn't collect (many tasks for them).
4. Built 3 new Tokyo/Paris/London zones (i'm out of space so I have to destroy my old ones).
5. stocked up on Vu parts.
6. Stocked 5 bronze/silver/gold speed-up tokens, and had 50+ token pieces available for collection (and I didn't even use 1, nor collect any!).
Sadly I didn't get many big tasks for the above list, I got several Airport tasks, but still they weren't very high value.
Even with all that effort, i'm at #39, and that will slip further over the remaining 24hrs.
- Approved
For those of you who feel people are cheating, then I suppose you think the Denver Broncos won the Super Bowl by cheating. Could it be that these players beating you are better than you or at least luckier? In a perfect non-cheating world, would we all come in tied for 1st place?
How could they not be cheating and have so many more points than me (you)? When I cut a piece of wood the other day and it was too short, it was of course the saw's fault. How could it be my fault?
Whats that old expression "Its not the size of the dog in the fight, its the amount of fight in the dog"?
Get it?
- Approved
If you're doing all the highest possible valued tasks, and other people are scoring way higher (like 50% higher), then of course that arouses a lot of suspicion for some.
I don't think there's anyone cheating (although it may be possible), I came to the conclusion that people are just having a lot more luck with task allocation.
You could role a die 6x in a row and be lucky enough to role a 6 all 6 times. Someone else might not get a single 6 at all. I believe that's exactly what's happening here, but I strongly feel that the format doesn't belong in such a contest. Most of the luck needs to be removed so these contests can be based on skill and effort. If you put in just as much effort, you should have a competitive score.
For me, I put in the maximum effort and still came 56th. NO PRIZE! My score is so far short of top10...
EDIT: at the end of the League I finished #61...
The Leagues at this level has become a lucky draw dip, they might as well just randomly place us on the final leaderboard.
- Approved
What league is that? I just may want to stay lower on purpose for a bit. As people go higher, I would expect the lower tiers to become easier too as everyone putting in maximum effort would be in an upper tier.
- Approved
My problem is that we don't all start each league at zero points. Some are already maxed out before you do your first task. That can't be by luck!
- ApprovedBetter players? Better than who, better than you maybe. I fu@:-!g know when I've been cheated, wake up. The truth is out there. Ea has admitted to nickel and dime there players at any and all cost. Named the worst company in America 2 years in a row, beating out company's like BP oil, Bank of America, World com, Comcast, etc.
- ApprovedOh yeah. 🤣
- Approved
if you only do the highest points task, and your lucky, you will average 2k+ points at the end of the competition, that means on megalopolis you have 100k+ points, it is totally doable and if you spend your cash well, you will have all your shops on 11 slots and ready with items hovering, a good club and lots of friends help you to get those items that is scarce, stock up on upgrade items and have your store at 500, you can be out of the starting gate in a flash.
unfortunately there is a lot of sour/lazy players that complain about everything and good players end up being called cheaters.
and there seems to be no investigating from EA so players end up on cheat server, without their friends.
- Approved
OK.... I completed the season with megatropolis. Great right?
wheres my money.. where's the 2k simcash and 250 p keys?
i get 6 p keys for my total score and that's it... bull
i didn't mind spending some of my cash cuz the screen is so real. But I wanted a payday for all that.. I didn't get it. Bull
i know that if I don't get what I'm expecting, then SS won't get another penny from me.
Did you finish in 1st place in the weekly season challenge? If so, you need to direct your concern to EA Sports technical support. If not you didn't win the 2k simcash. Reaching the level and winning the challenge are two different things. Congratulations either way on reaching the Megalopolis level.
Sorry guys, I'm not shouting at anyone - malfunction with my IPad. I apologize to all.
- ApprovedIve noticed the same as everyone else. This time tho i was only given 15 assignments so even after using the max amount of golden tickets i am still unable to compete properly as i normally get double the amount of tasks to complete. I have had to just watch as other mayors are able to complete more tasks and push me further and further down the leader board. I will not be promoted!! I have contacted EA. They have agreed i have been disadvantaged but then just said thr game is working as it should be. Thats it!!!
Hi Andiken76 - I’m guessing you are participating in week one of the new season with only 15 assignments. If you are comparing your performance to those within your challenge the only advantage they may have had is they used 5 golden tickets. If you’re comparing to your club members they may not have started the season yet and would certainly have more assignments contingent to their level. Without getting into a theoretical discussion on the nature of random assignments, my suggestion would be to keep plugging away until you reach the Megalopolis level and earn all the season prizes. Do the best you can and manage your resources and you’ll be fine - best of luck to you.
- Approved
Thank you, EA, for breaking the spell this game had over me. I was a fervent fan until this morning.
I saw the university items, and a particular University Observatory has significant personal value for me, so I aspired to get its look-alike in my city. So great was my commitment to this endeavor that I bought $10 in SimCash when I was almost eliminated from getting to Metropolis league... sped along a few tasks to get the Aquarium.
Then Metropolis. First of all... it jumps from Top 20 to Top 10? I wasn't expecting that. No matter... I was confident I could compete. Spent a lot of time building and begging my Club for help. Bought another $5 in SimCash to complete some high-point tasks... literally required to expedite arrivals for some of the 3 deliveries in X hours tasks. Nice work with that math by the way. In any case, I was generally prioritizing high value tasks and completing every single one. Completed five tickets too. Literally nothing else that could have been done.
Went to bed mathematically in third place (one task to turn in before contest ended) with literally nothing more I could have done. Wake up in 14th place. No observatory. Got some pity Platinum Keys for all my work.
Top score in my league is 13,000 points higher than me. Thirteen. Thousand. I understand that I traded down to 1,200 point assignments when there was a 1,500 point assignment once or twice... but not enough to make up 13,000 points. If this is a "competition," this is like playing football on a field sloped towards one goal.
Now, we've been assured that the field will be made flat in the future, but this nonsense cost me the one item I was willing to compete for. The one that had sentimental symbolism. I feel tricked: I never had a chance at it. Or, perhaps more appropriately, I had a chance at it, but that chance was only remotely correlated to my efforts.
This whole ordeal has embittered me against this game as few things could. I'd take my $15 back -- even in the form of SimCash -- but I'd much rather have the Observatory. I don't suspect I will get either though, and that this will be the beginning of the end for SimCity BuildIt for me.
Not that any of this matters. I'm sure EA is happy they got my $15 and doesn't care what I think, nor does anyone else here. I just needed to rant and to possibly warn the next poor soul who endeavors to spend their hard-earned money to compete that it's not worth it.
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