IconBuffet | Free Icons, Stock Icons, Custom Icon Design

soprano on Oct 29, 2008

Yes.

Betty on Oct 29, 2008

Yes.

Classicsmiley on Oct 29, 2008

Yes

davethegr8 on Oct 29, 2008

Yes.

animuson on Oct 29, 2008

Not to sound repetitive, but yes.

jameshilton on Oct 29, 2008

Yes! Definitely YES!

It seems to me that the Chefs have forgotten that IB's VIP's partially funded Packrat, i think that Packrat is a good move for IB allthough I don't enjoy the game, but you should always look after your original customers.

soprano on Oct 29, 2008

@jameshilton: Is it a coincidence that just as I looked at your avatar, the PackRat set icon was there?

bjendrick on Oct 29, 2008

I sent an e-mail to the Chefs today beseeching them to have us help rekindle the glory of IB, and even how they could reuse some of their effort from PackRat. I got a decent response, but there's no saying they'll take any of it to heart.

MrDee on Oct 29, 2008

could you please post the reply on http://www.timelydbs.com/blog

bjendrick on Oct 29, 2008

The entire correspondence has been posted. Thank you for requesting that, MrDee.

louiemctool on Oct 29, 2008

well...

guess there's always iconshock...

:p

animuson on Oct 30, 2008

IconShock is way too techy looking for me, I like the simple icons that IB has to offer. :)

wallerdm on Oct 30, 2008

Ben,

Not wanting to be too defeatist (I love the IB and have only been VIP for 6 months but hav seen a steady and dramatic decline in sets and activity) but the email response seems a bit too much like a "thanks but no thanks" to me.

:-(

wallerdm on Oct 30, 2008

.....and, where's my "gosh-darned" Tokyo badge!?!

VINZ on Oct 30, 2008

the rat eat the buffet! ... let's find a raticide!

beanface on Oct 30, 2008

This is very sad.

Darkneo on Oct 30, 2008

Yeah, without this PR wouldn't have been around

B3llit0 on Oct 30, 2008

@bjendrick and his email

…wow. Sounds like copypasta to me (i.e., it sounds like they slap that on every request to improve and move along). I'd like something more personal than boilerplate text for writing something that long and well-thought-out.

annikalee on Oct 30, 2008

1. Yes

2. I agree with B3llit0. The email sounds a little like the emails that actors send out when a fan writes to them. The whole, "We love your support. Thanks!" I'm not sure anything is coming out of that email.

B3llit0 on Oct 30, 2008

Typical Layout of Customer Service Response to Suggestions

1) Thank you for writing
2) We're happy to know you care about us
3) We'll keep your suggestions in mind
4) Thanks again
5) Bye

misterhaan on Oct 30, 2008

i get the feeling most of otherbrian’s job is to answer everyone who’s disappointed that ib is so much less now than it once was. i also suspect most people aren’t as polite about it as bjendrick was.

i’m certainly disappointed as well, but i don’t think there’s anything we can do other than to keep using ib to show that we find ib valuable, and hope the chefs will eventually start paying attention to ib the way they used to when they started the current incarnation of it.

what bothers me most is that the lack of new icons and improvements to the site as well as the rarity of chef posts in the forums shows me that the chefs no longer care about this site — i’m actually surprised every time a new set gets released now. i’ve seen posts that packrat makes money and ib loses money, but money isn’t everything. if ib were important, the chefs could find ways to make money with it.

i just keep hoping for the exciting newness of working on packrat to wear off which will hopefully help the chefs remember they have this website with a great community and bring some attention back to ib.

debbye on Oct 30, 2008

… have we been here, before ¿

nickpixel on Oct 30, 2008

Copyright infringement not intended but I couldn't resist. :)

brannon on Oct 30, 2008

lol Nice. :o)

Darkneo on Oct 31, 2008

I like it nick

AlterEgo on Oct 31, 2008

Whose work is this? RatZilla

nickpixel on Oct 31, 2008

@AlterEgo

Looks like that artwork was done for the latest Packrat changes.

AlterEgo on Oct 31, 2008

Oh. I'm not a player, so I didn't know.

I thought it was 'fan art' (of sorts).

AnnaK on Oct 31, 2008

Just read @bjendrick's email and the response. Must say, this is a *little* insulting. I have been here for only a couple of month, so I don't really know how has it been in the beginning. But I saw this very discussion in the forums for more then a few times already. And each time the chefs write the same things. I would at least bother to write a decent answer instead of the automatic-reply thing you got...
Btw, the only reason I'm not going VIP is because I see that in this rate, I would be done with the game in a couple of month, like many of you. And that's too bad.

nickpixel on Oct 31, 2008

I tried Packrat early on but not for long. It is too tightly integrated with Facebook for me.

I have updated Ratzilla. :)

B3llit0 on Oct 31, 2008

Ohh, excellent, that. Why must it be illegal to hack Facebook apps to replace their logos?

soprano on Nov 01, 2008

For those who were wondering (I know, it was none of you), here's a response I got to a bug report in July:

Thanks for the feedback! We'll take a look.

Thanks for being part of the 'Buffet!

Brian @ IconBuffet

And the bug still exists.

gswd on Nov 01, 2008

@soprano - maybe they have adopted the microsoft bug strategy. keep it internal (cause nobody else will find it), roll out the fix days after someone makes it public, then complain about how people don't keep these kinds of things confidential - instead showing everyone of various levels of sinisterness any and all vulnerabilities.

bjendrick on Nov 01, 2008

@nickpixel: Thank you! The Tokyo collection now has a badge icon in the IB Dashboard.

louiemctool on Nov 01, 2008

hey, do you think if we all piled into a van or something and drove down to hot, sunny Texas, the Chefs would freak when we knocked on their door....?

:D

Darkneo on Nov 02, 2008

Let's do it, we need our mob accessories though

Darkneo on Nov 02, 2008

I just joined iconshock, http://www.iconshock.com/vista_icons/Darkneo/

gswd on Nov 02, 2008

@Darkneo - I would say welcome to the dark side, but I'm not sure which is which anymore. Maybe they are both shades of grey.

Darkneo on Nov 02, 2008

yeah, things just seem to be dying here

Starry on Nov 02, 2008

Yes.

(Sorry, I was just so amused by the chain ;) )

Darkneo on Nov 02, 2008

lol, me too. XD

austingirl on Nov 03, 2008

Yes.

Darkneo on Nov 03, 2008

I wish the chefs would just try to keep things at least somewhat going here, they can lower their efforts without letting it die

a2 on Nov 03, 2008

It is sad that I actually have more fun on Iconshock (yuck!) nowadays. At least things are rolling more over there, even if their icons aren't as nice. *sigh* I miss the good 'ol days...

Darkneo on Nov 03, 2008

a2, whats your iconshock name?

debbye on Nov 03, 2008

maybe the IB iconshock users can have another takeover! we overran them during one of IB's old server problems. i'm open to any trades over there, even tho i'm not online as much as before.

i still i ♥ IB

Darkneo on Nov 03, 2008

I'm on there a lot and here too, but PR seems to be killing things here :(

bjendrick on Nov 03, 2008

Soemthing to ponder: Blog Post

gswd on Nov 03, 2008

hmmmm

louiemctool on Nov 03, 2008

yep.

soprano on Nov 04, 2008

mooo,

Darkneo on Nov 04, 2008

Our community will get better

debbye on Nov 04, 2008

Our Community is awesome, regardless of where we are!

Darkneo on Nov 04, 2008

Yeah :) But we need somewhere where the owners are more active

a2 on Nov 04, 2008

@Darkneo: Same as here, a2. I use to not check that site very often, but since they release sets often and IB is getting kind of boring for me, I find I'm there a lot more now a days. I just confirmed you as a friend so look for trades soon!

Darkneo on Nov 05, 2008

Ok, I will ;)

Jen on Nov 05, 2008

I tried, but I couldn't type in the text boxes to register. :(

Darkneo on Nov 05, 2008

on where? iconshock?

SonicBoom on Nov 05, 2008

What browser are you using, Jen?

Denise on Nov 10, 2008

Hellooooooo, Chefs! Are you listening!!!!! Is anybody there????

brannon on Nov 10, 2008

No...they don't really care very much anymore, despite what they may say. What's the old adage? Actions speak louder than words.

Darkneo on Nov 10, 2008

yeah, exactly :(

hexadec1 on Nov 11, 2008

I haven't requested any icons since May. I haven't liked any of the icons for a while now and this place has sort of died for me.

Darkneo on Nov 11, 2008

still you can collect them for the sake of collecting

tmharter on Nov 11, 2008

Well, if it isn't Packrat killing IconBuffet, something is... apathy?

wallerdm on Nov 11, 2008

Hmmmm, I'm just about done with my VIP status - 9 more tokens to spend before I downgrade. Sad really :-(

Jen on Nov 11, 2008

@sonicboom - firefox 3.0.3

Darkneo on Nov 12, 2008

@jen, I use that browser and it works fine

bjendrick on Nov 18, 2008

Prior to now, I never would have said it, but actions speak louder than words.

Since Pumpkin Eve 4 (10/09/2008) was released six (6) card sets have been released on PackRat.

Those sets are (referenced at PackRat Recipe Wiki:
• Ink Wars - 10/13/2008
• Bulls and Bears - 10/20/2008
• Barnyard Ruckus - 10/29/2008
• Pee Wee Thanksgiving - 11/5/2008
• Arctic Expedition - 11/11/2008
• Wizard of Oz - 11/18/2008

And yet we are still waiting for a Tokyo badge, and quite simply another icon set to avoid losing tokens every month.

The worst part, is that I'm saddened to have ever associated with a site having so little integrity. Makes me wonder if the effort put into the IB Dashboard was worth it.

Thanks for nothing, Chefs!

AnnaK on Nov 18, 2008

Regardless of how much effort the chefs are putting/not putting into IB, IB Dashboard has made my IB experience much better. So yes, it was well worth the effort, for me and I'm sure for many others here.
A good opportunity to say thnx btw - for all the work you put into it! :)

bjendrick on Nov 18, 2008

@AnnaK: Thank you, and to be clear, I didn't post this to gather praise. I know from all of the comments received since I started the Dashboard that it was worth the effort. Even if compared to the value earned from the learning experience, it was invaluable.

With all of that said, I stick to the rest of the message. I've reached my limit. The chefs lack of response or inclusion on this site reeks of a similar feeling on Blinksale. Suffice it to say that I no longer wish to give my money to them, or to support their business efforts. I think I'll be switching all of my account information to Freshbooks as quickly as possible.

Here's what it all comes down to in the end. Sure, I play PackRat, and I find it as addicting as most. However, I'm not going to pay for the application. I'll do that with WoW or something WAY more intensive than I will a Facebook app. And what happens in another year when Alamofire gets tired of designing for PackRat? Another slow & dismal death? I'm done. And I refuse to be part of their revenue engine any longer.

Thank you for the memories, but really, just hit the power button already.

Laurwren on Nov 18, 2008

I really enjoy both places I have let my VIP lapse in IB and have a current VIP in PR. But really all the icons I was collecting here were mostly collecting dust on my hard drive. Personally I think the PR paid subscriptions will carry both products alot better than subscriptions here will. How many people have bought a set of Icons from this company if anything when I buy a $299 set it would be cool to get tickets in PR. Even if FB mysteriously died out PR could be hosted on it's own site and live for a long time. As for other sites like Iconshock. I am a member but almost never go there since it is so tedious to trade. Over all I do how for a few more sets that don't have to do with food and are a bit better quality to be posted on IB - I'd pay for a PR set to be picked up here. :)

Jen on Nov 18, 2008

wonder where they got the idea for this icon.

http://www.packratwiki.com/Image:Dashboard.gif

Jen on Nov 18, 2008

http://www.google.com/search?sitesearch=iconbuffet.com&q=icon+ideas+inurl%3Ablogs&q2=icon+ideas&blogcheck=Y&btnG=Google+Search

and a lot of the other sets apparently, after having browsed the packrat wiki a bit and our icon ideas blogs here.

bjendrick on Nov 18, 2008

@Jen: As much as I'd like to think they borrowed the idea from us, I'm not going to get my hopes up. I mean, I would think that many people think of their speedometer when the word "dashboard" is mentioned. Who knows?

I guess what enamored of this site was the quality of icons, and then the incredible community hooked me. So sure, we still have community, but the morale absolutely sucks. And that's because we've been abandoned.

So sure, the Chefs could resurrect this site by sharing their pixelicious joy from PackRat, but as stated in my blog post, they have given no indication of returning to this site. Nor have they made an attempt at notifying us of any intention other than silence. And the silence around here... is deafening.

My final point is that when I built the Dashboard, I knew that if it gained popularity, it would need to live for as long as IconBuffet did. Knowing myself & how my energy in projects will wane beyond a year or two, I knew that I wanted a way to keep the system alive & running despite my own motivation. That's why I built it with collaborators in mind. There are currently 5 admins, including myself. And if I got to the point where I was totally unable or unwilling to work on the site, I was prepared to turn it over to those trusted individuals, FTP passwords & all. And that's where responsibility & commitment to the community stops with the Chefs. As a whole, many people have made suggestions & offered to donate their own time & efforts to IB. All seems to have fallen on deaf ears, and we're left to wonder how long the joy will last.

Integrity is out, and the Chefs refuse to acknowledge the lapse. Hence my reticence to support their work.

louiemctool on Nov 18, 2008

I'll admit, if I had a failsafe way to keep up with the people I consider friends on this site, I would walk away. I love the icons Brian and John make, but without the interaction and anticipation of waiting for what they will do next, what is left to keep anyone coming back?

I could give a PackRat's ass about ever getting another icon set. I just would like to see something, anything that says, "Yeah, I do give a crap" from Josh and Co.

I find myself wondering what benefit Alamofire derives from keeping IB around, unless they are still getting occasional sales of Stock sets. Seems like they could go the way of FastIcon/Iconaholic, if that was all IB is still here for...

Hmm...

:|

gswd on Nov 18, 2008

I am going to state something her that is really starting to bug me. Yes, when PR first came out, I played. I talked about it here. I got very bored, very quickly. I uninstalled the application on my Facebook account. However, I still get message in my notifications panel on Facebook that someone has stashed something in my pack, or that they have taken something from my pack. I consider this a violation of my privacy at Facebook, and have reported this issue to Facebook and the PR Developers (who are they again). This issue has not been remedied as I had another round of these Stash/Steal messages today.

So, if you ever installed and then removed the PR application, check your notifications and see if you are also being violated. If you are, report it.

MacManX on Nov 19, 2008

bjendrick, it's funny that you had mentioned Blinksale and FreshBooks yesterday. A few months ago, I was considering using Blinksale for my business, but I made the decision to go with FreshBooks last month based entirely on how the Chefs have treated IconBuffet.

I only support companies which support 100% of their products 100% of the time.

Jen on Nov 19, 2008

You have a point there Ben about the dashboard icon, but there is more than a speedometer in a car/truck dashboard. I guess my point is that it seems a bit unfair that the IB community was asked for and gave their ideas and feedback freely and now the majority who have posted around feel they have been abandoned rather than feeling appreciated by the chefs. Its a sad site to witness.

I have mixed feelings about it all myself. The only promise we got from chefs was one free set per month. I don't keep track so I don't know if they have fulfilled that commitment thus far, but I can agree with most that their presence here is definitely less than it used to be. Maybe we're spoiled, but wouldn't it be great if we could have that back sometimes, even if its only one day a week dedicated to IB?

I think that a lot of folks are trying to convey that they miss the chefs presence, notes, jokes and such here at IB and we want them to come back and visit.

Jen on Nov 19, 2008

One more thing, if you play Packrat, please go over there and message the chefs to come back and visit IB. I'd do so myself, but Facebook and all the rumors about it scare me too much to sign up.

Wile on Nov 19, 2008

Sad to say that, but I just sent an email to the chiefs to cancel my VIP account and downgrade to non VIP ... :'(

tonyaoldfather on Nov 19, 2008

Wile I am thinking of doing the same.

MacManX on Nov 19, 2008

Now let's see how long it takes then to respond to your cancelation request.

gswd on Nov 19, 2008

If you get charged again after requesting the cancellation, dispute the charge with your credit card company.

nickpixel on Nov 19, 2008

I cancelled my VIP more than 3 weeks ago and received confirmation of the downgrade from the chefs the same day. I have not been charged again but my VIP still remains (although that could have to do with billing cycles).

In 2 days, if a new set isn't released, I will have lost 63 of 64 tokens over the last 2 months.

brannon on Nov 20, 2008

I sent a bug report to Iconshock a few days ago. What do you know? I got a real response from a real person who really forwarded it to another real person that really fixed the bug.

It was refreshing.

B3llit0 on Nov 20, 2008

I wish there was a way we could get the chefs' attention.

FunkyMunky on Nov 20, 2008

We just need to accept the fact that the Chefs have abandoned this site and this community. Even if we did manage to get their attention it would be too late. The damage is done.

We've given them suggestions on how to improve the site. We've offered to help implement those suggestions. We've visited the site less often and we've canceled our VIP memberships. As sad as it is to say, the last message we can possibly send to them is to delete the bookmark from our browsers and move on.

I appreciate the time I've been able to share with this community and I wish the best for all of you.

iconmaniac on Nov 20, 2008

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWtHEmVjVw8

brannon on Nov 20, 2008

@FunkyMunky: Unfortunately, I've only gotten 57 of the sets. I'll probably stick around long enough to get at least most of the rest of them. But after that, who knows?

Darkneo on Nov 20, 2008

My vip is gone on january 16th, then i'm done. I'll have all the sets

tamashii on Nov 20, 2008

I'm pretty sure that the money garnered from VIPs here on IB did not, in fact, contribute to the creation/maintenance of PackRat. That is thanks to a venture capital firm that gave them 2 million clams. (VentureBeat Article)

Unfortunately, once I learned that, my hopes for this site's livelihood dropped quite a bit. There just isn't much of a reason to keep it up.

misterhaan on Nov 20, 2008

i'll still be around collecting the sets i don't have -- even if the chefs ignore this site completely but still leave it running i get 12 tokens a month and i have somewhere around 100 sets to collect

debbye on Nov 20, 2008

@tamashii - WOW, that is a kick in the arse! i doubt that the boys got 2 million, here.

the closest anyone will get to PR icons showing up is to take screen shots and crop them all individually. i plan on doing that for some of them and want to restrain my OCD, so i don't do all of 'em! i'm not going to bother with tranparancy - they'd be display only.

in the event that IB closes down, be sure you have downloaded all of your sets. i used to let it go till "later," but there may not always be a "later."

i miss our old lifestyle. i used to check in @least a dozen or more times a day. now, sometimes not at all for a few days. i'm a creature of habit and don't like leaving my comfort zone! And … i have always been comfortable, here. :-)

louiemctool on Nov 20, 2008

hey, what do y'all say to a good ol' fashioned Town Meeting? Anyone want to make concrete plans for life after IB...?

:p

debbye on Nov 20, 2008

thanks to Jen for the link above. icons from PR Wiki can be download as 32x32 icons WITH transparency!

Great idea, Louie!

Darkneo on Nov 21, 2008

@louiemctool, We have to build a new community, if we have to we can start a community at my site

Darkneo on Nov 21, 2008

If someone can find or make a new them for my phpBB 3 forum then we can use it, I am building it right now for IB users

B3llit0 on Nov 21, 2008

I've never done themes before, but I can do other graphics-related things. How about buttons… from IB?

wallerdm on Nov 21, 2008

I think a lot of people are wanting to support the IB community as the IB site gradually slows down.

I too am in the process of creating a graphics sharing site.

Darkneo on Nov 21, 2008

B3llit0, that sounds good :) lol

The site is at http://forum.darkneonetwork.com

B3llit0 on Nov 21, 2008

Sent you a PM.

brannon on Nov 21, 2008

@Darkneo: Any chance you'd be willing to migrate to SMF? I have a considerable amount of experience with it, and I may be able to take a crack at a theme. I know nothing about phpBB 3, other than that I sure hope it's a lot better than phpBB 2. :o)

B3llit0 on Nov 21, 2008

…I don't know anything about SMF, but I've done phpBB3.

Darkneo on Nov 21, 2008

I've tried SMF, i really don't like it. phpBB has always been one of my favorites.

louiemctool on Nov 21, 2008

Roll Yer Own™

:D

misterhaan on Nov 21, 2008

i wrote my own forum for my site, and i even used some ib icons (maybe just one). if anybody wants the source i’ll give you the svn urls for it.

i write everything for my site from scratch — makes it a lot easier to change things and protects me from somebody seeing that i’m running phpbb and then exploiting some phpbb bug. also i’m by definition always on the latest version :)

iconmaster on Nov 21, 2008

This is really my fault, guys; and I do feel guilty about it. I'm trying to knock out collections for PackRat and sets for IconBuffet, on top of occasional company meetings and other stuff that gets in the way. IconBuffet has gotten squeezed to the periphery -- not because Josh told us to leave it alone, but because I'm human and I let it fall through the cracks.

PackRat is the priority for us, obviously enough. But we are supposed to give IconBuffet a little love here and there too.

I can't promise anything, especially with Thanksgiving imminent, but I will try to knock out a new set over the next couple weeks. I know it's not enough, but it's something.

louiemctool on Nov 21, 2008

Thank you.

:)

Darkneo on Nov 21, 2008

iconmaster, a tokyo badge might be easy enough ;)

Maybe a couple of others too

KAHRules on Nov 21, 2008

Iconmaster, Thank you so much for the message. I truly appreciate words from the Chefs.

sloan on Nov 21, 2008

hey...what just happened? I feel all squishy inside...

anti on Nov 21, 2008

This is no surprise for me. I wondered from the beginning. I hope that we can be a happy group that you want to create happy things for.

I do not understand the duplication of effort between the two sites.

B3llit0 on Nov 22, 2008

@iconmaster:

We would all like to take this opportunity to thank you. That was really reassuring, I think more than you might realise. There is yet hope.

JBVisions on Nov 22, 2008

Thanks John, a little communication goes a long way.

alicevian on Nov 22, 2008

Oh! Finally a word from the chefs!!! I've been sooooo sad lately... I've been checking out the site daily, hoping that something would happen. It is wet season in Brazil and the non stopping rain makes me wonder if the chefs could send some news from the so "hot, sunny Texas" for us, in the south...:)

rossanyl on Nov 22, 2008

@iconmaster - nice to see an active chef around the boards! hope to see you and the others more often, thanks for coming by :)

a2 on Nov 22, 2008

Thanks! JBVisions said it best. All it takes is a little communication. I know we aren't the favorite child anymore, but it's good to know we're still in the family. =)

debbye on Nov 22, 2008

i am impressed with the sincerity! thanks, John.

notice: this time no shameless plugging for the game.

sloan on Nov 22, 2008

rats and buffets seldom mix well...

MacManX on Nov 23, 2008

John, thanks for taking the time to listen and reply!

brannon on Nov 23, 2008

It's amazing how quickly one post from a chef seems to appease everyone. Call me a skeptic, but I'm still waiting for the action. :o) I do appreciate the communication, though. It's 100% better than silence.

AlterEgo on Nov 23, 2008

^werd

quicksilver on Nov 23, 2008

I'd also like to chime in with thanks on responding to us. It's nice to know you're still around, even if we aren't the priority

louiemctool on Nov 23, 2008

@brannon: i'm not appeased, but it does take some cojones to post in a thread that obviously has more than a few upset "customers." so, a simple "thanks" seemed appropriate...

:D

thedudedean on Nov 23, 2008

@Iconmaster it would be really smart to take those silly packrat sets and release them as Gold and Diamond sets.

Also some new badges and putting some planning into what you are releasing for future badges instead of just making 10,000 Alexandria and Shanghai sets.

brannon on Nov 23, 2008

@louiemctool: Glad to hear it. haha! And I agree. I expressed my appreciation for the communication, as well. :o)

Liquix on Nov 24, 2008

Has Packrat killed Iconbuffet?

Yes it has :)

gswd on Nov 24, 2008

Wow. If he can "knock out" a set in just a few days, I don't see what the problem is. They can't possibly need new sets daily over there.

B3llit0 on Nov 24, 2008

Niiiice, now let's see more.

sloan on Nov 24, 2008

chick is in the mail...

anti on Nov 24, 2008

I am not a chick.

sloan on Nov 25, 2008

Fine chicken...hehe.

Good to see? you anti :0

anti on Nov 25, 2008

nobody here but us chickens.

Darkneo on Nov 25, 2008

lol :)

silveria on Nov 27, 2008

It seems like there's trouble down in packrat land as well.
Just read the reviews:

Idiot Game!!
by Masaharu Sakamoto at 8:04am on November 22nd, 2008
Packrat is the best and the worst application in facebook.

When I first join, it used to be very entertaining and really fun to play.
After the upgrade, it is becoming very boring and very lame.

I heard they start selling cards for a very high credits, it is really showing how hard they are trying to get rid of their players and forcing those who stay to buy ticket.

Basically it is an online shopping game now, but the items that available there is only a virtual cards that we cannot even touch.
They are still belong to the Developers' database which they can erase/change anytime they want.

While they are charging money for XL, tickets, and yet they are not able to provide the standard customer service. The Developers are too busy to even reply to complain or query emails that they only response after few days/weeks.

They are release a new features called XL, which will have much more perks in the future, which no one knows what it is after more then a week of it release. Sound pathetic to me.

And one of the Developers posted a thread saying she will delete a thread that contain "discussing packrat direction". What the fish.
Are they even to scared people speculating about the game while they are unsure about where it will be heading in the future.

Basically, this game ruin because of the DEVELOPERS selfish action.
Maybe they have nothing to lose after reeking up so much money from the players.

For those player who bought ticket/XL and still willing to be treated this way, I really wonder are you loyal or are you dumb.

I am not sure if this game is worth a star.
by Jeremy Fredrick Kumala at 9:54pm on November 23rd, 2008
The way they change the game is like the way they down grade it.
It seems to me they are ready to pack their bag and run away, leave the packrat alone, and will be dying soon.
After all they are pocketing everyone money from the ticket and XL sale.
I am not sure if this game is worth a star.
Half a star is a bit too much!!

Disappointed in lack of developer's care for the users...
by Terry Shen at 7:19am on November 18th, 2008
They refuse to see the light of day and acknowledge that some serious changes to take place in order to keep the majority of players happy. They continue to place profit over compromise and won't allow the new current cards to be placed in the credits market more readily. They acknowledge in an article that they want to get more players and have them spend less time on the application. Well, that goal was certainly accomplished. This application is truly boring now. What's the point of having 10 extra slots when my current 10 slots is sitting there anyway with nothing to fill it with? Well, I won't be surprised if their monthly users number continues to decrease and it would serve them right for ignoring their customers.

There are wayyy more bad comments at
http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=2431403991

Don't those comments sound just like the community at IB? Frankly, if you are that profit-oriented, perhaps community-based projects aren't the most suitable ventures.

Kuifje on Nov 27, 2008

People have been complaining about one thing or another about Packrat from about day one - nothing new there. Also fail to see how trying to make a living from something makes some one "profit-oriented".

B3llit0 on Nov 27, 2008

I like the first comment. That's something I've always admired in Japanese people and culture– they're very polite, but when something isn't right, they say it quite plainly without getting openly angry, frustrated, and making people simply tune out like so many Americans do. It's a really efficient way of communicating.

I like everything Japanese though– the culture, food, language, etc. :D