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Post by wortelboer on Aug 26, 2017 6:33:14 GMT -5
Me too. I was really looking forward to being able to purchase a Membership kit....but then there doesn't seem to be the need for a "membership" anymore. We are all just mass marketing "customers" now. They may as well change their website and get rid of the wasteful "get approved" portion and change it to "open an account".
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Post by distantsmoke on Aug 26, 2017 7:48:32 GMT -5
I humbly suggest that emails to the concierge may change minds.
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Post by phraca on Aug 26, 2017 8:18:59 GMT -5
I have to say, I find my interest waning a bit as well, especially given how many other excellent experiences from other companies and independent artists there are now. Ironically, in an attempt to mass market their product, they seem to be moving away from the very thing that distinguished them in the past and that would keep me coming back without pause. I have now seen a few well done puzzle ventures either shut down or revert to mass market puzzling. I'm beginning to believe there is just not a sustainable business model that supports creative and in-depth puzzles. Best to try and find them when they show up, help sustain them financially for as long as they last, and be prepared for disappointment eventually when it ends. |
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Post by dmikester on Aug 26, 2017 10:55:55 GMT -5
I have to say, I find my interest waning a bit as well, especially given how many other excellent experiences from other companies and independent artists there are now. Ironically, in an attempt to mass market their product, they seem to be moving away from the very thing that distinguished them in the past and that would keep me coming back without pause. I have now seen a few well done puzzle ventures either shut down or revert to mass market puzzling. I'm beginning to believe there is just not a sustainable business model that supports creative and in-depth puzzles. Best to try and find them when they show up, help sustain them financially for as long as they last, and be prepared for disappointment eventually when it ends. I'm actually not as dismayed by the simplifying of puzzles as some here are; I still think that the puzzles in Gods of Madness were expertly designed and were fun to work through, even though it was a weird feeling to finish a C&C issue in a couple of days as opposed to spending a month on them. In fact, rosswor still impresses me, as I'm an avid crossword solver and had never seen a puzzle designed quite like that. I also understand the need to cater to a broader audience by having easier puzzles. I was shocked when I cracked the Volume 2 Vault years after it debuted and there were only a little over thirty people who had cracked it; numbers that low clearly do not make for a sustainable business model. But the decision to discontinue the Membership Kits and The Vault, even if temporarily, suggests that the MPC is doing something much more concerning than just altering their approach to puzzles. They're straying away from the very image and mystique that makes them unique in this market. While I love the Experiences, they mean much more when there's an added element of an unseen hand guiding what's available from their archives, and making the Experiences and C&C only available to "members," even if of course everyone who applies gets approved, creates an illusion that lets you really get into this eerie, mysterious narrative. You feel like you're part of something greater than just their products, and when something new gets announced, it feels almost like a discovery rather than just a new product to purchase. I feel more connected to MPC than any of the other similar companies that I take part in because of this membership element and broader story, and if they go away from that aspect of the experience, they just become a better than average subscription box company that produces entertaining, odd, and expensive things a couple of times a year. I will certainly be writing a letter to them about my concerns. I would have never thought that I might skip an Experience or C&C one day, but if this is truly the new direction of the MPC, the illusion is broken for me. Hopefully they can get back on track next year. |
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Post by thegenii on Aug 27, 2017 0:08:56 GMT -5
The items in the Membership kits are sourced from Asia, likely China. It takes months of planning, then manufacturing, and then another month to ship to Canada by boat. This decision to forgo membership kits this year was likely made last January or February. There is no possible way for the MPC to gear up and produce a Membership kit before December at the earliest, so your protests will be in vain.
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Post by dmikester on Aug 27, 2017 0:25:37 GMT -5
The items in the Membership kits are sourced from Asia, likely China. It takes months of planning, then manufacturing, and then another month to ship to Canada by boat. This decision to forgo membership kits this year was likely made last January or February. There is no possible way for the MPC to gear up and produce a Membership kit before December at the earliest, so your protests will be in vain. I am going to be sending them an e-mail on Monday threatening to cancel my subscription to C&C, especially given the incredibly low quality of Brain Butchers. This is about more than the membership kits at this point; it's about the soul and creative spirit of the company seemingly disappearing in place of a much more generic and lower quality experience, and one that I don't think is worth the expense when there are so many other excellent experiences out there to be had and for better prices. If that kind of concern is in vain, then frankly they deserve to lose customers. |
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Post by thebardess on Aug 27, 2017 20:05:52 GMT -5
The items in the Membership kits are sourced from Asia, likely China. It takes months of planning, then manufacturing, and then another month to ship to Canada by boat. This decision to forgo membership kits this year was likely made last January or February. There is no possible way for the MPC to gear up and produce a Membership kit before December at the earliest, so your protests will be in vain. I am going to be sending them an e-mail on Monday threatening to cancel my subscription to C&C, especially given the incredibly low quality of Brain Butchers. This is about more than the membership kits at this point; it's about the soul and creative spirit of the company seemingly disappearing in place of a much more generic and lower quality experience, and one that I don't think is worth the expense when there are so many other excellent experiences out there to be had and for better prices. If that kind of concern is in vain, then frankly they deserve to lose customers. Exactly. What started out as the Mysterious Package Company is rapidly becoming the Mass-Marketed Products Company.  |
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Post by distantsmoke on Aug 28, 2017 7:16:26 GMT -5
The items in the Membership kits are sourced from Asia, likely China. It takes months of planning, then manufacturing, and then another month to ship to Canada by boat. This decision to forgo membership kits this year was likely made last January or February. There is no possible way for the MPC to gear up and produce a Membership kit before December at the earliest, so your protests will be in vain. I guess I thought it was obvious that a 2017 membership kit was out of the question. But if no one notes the loss, future membership kits become questionable. Whereas a flood of emails bemoaning the lack of a membership kit in 2017 would certainly make MPC revisit the idea. |
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Post by Beckett on Aug 28, 2017 7:27:03 GMT -5
One does wonder if we old-timers are even capable of producing a flood anymore. It is worth the attempt, anyway.
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Post by defiant00 on Aug 28, 2017 8:11:08 GMT -5
This news it truly disappointing, but considering how MPC got a late start on C&C this year due to a near total change in format and are trying to play catch up, along with launching what appears to be their most ambitious Experience yet with Filigree, they probably simply don't have the bandwidth available to create a membership kit that would be up to their standards. There also haven't been any new Experiences launched (other than Filigree) since last year with John Augur and Demon Jar.
That being said, we should all certainly send a message to them to express our disappointment. If they drop the membership kit this year and there's no feedback about it, they may decide that the membership kits aren't something that people want or care about.
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Austruck
Assistant
Always remember you're unique ... just like everyone else.
Posts: 56 
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Post by Austruck on Oct 2, 2017 16:06:33 GMT -5
I just sent them a quick message via their "Enquiry?" link on their site, telling them I was going to miss the membership kits this year and hoped they'd find a way to bring them back. Figured it can't hurt to let them know!
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Austruck
Assistant
Always remember you're unique ... just like everyone else.
Posts: 56
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Post by Austruck on Oct 2, 2017 17:18:41 GMT -5
Hey, I got a response already. Here's what they emailed me just now:
Hi Linda!
Thank you for taking the time to write and let us know how you feel about that - we certainly enjoying creating the kits for our members in past years. I have shared your sentiments with the creative team and know they appreciate hearing about what members have liked (or not) - these things do carry weight when decisions are made! All the best to you, and of course, should you have any further questions, comments, or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact me forthwith.
Allen
a Concierge with Member Services
at The Mysterious Package Company
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chaotic
Assistant
busy fighting cancer
Posts: 65
Blood Type: AB+ mixed with some 90 proof
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Post by chaotic on Oct 3, 2017 17:05:16 GMT -5
Just wondering if it would be worth the expense to have a member who has the handbook copy and ship... any ideas
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Post by Ankhara on Oct 11, 2017 15:41:55 GMT -5
Since learning the handbook was no longer available; I've been kkeping an eye out for a second hand copy for sale. None yet...
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Post by dmikester on Oct 11, 2017 16:39:45 GMT -5
For everyone's amusement, I have changed my profile picture to be of my Corgi lying next to the Membership Handbook. Considering how small Corgis are, this should give you some idea of how small the Handbook is.
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