[UPDATE 10.27.22]
Over the next few days, players will see updates to KYC Identity Verification and Spark that will improve Spark distribution and improve fair play. Here are the specifics:
Spark Treasure:
KYC Identity Verification will be required for:
Remember: To complete KYC, simply open 'Verify Your Identity' from the Settings menu and follow the steps.
----
If nothing else, Upland is a constant balancing act where fun, economics, and fairness all need to co-exist with the vision of a more decentralized, player-first metaverse. Sometimes, this leads to adjustments that discourage bad actors and unfair play such as bots and multi-accounting. Other times, these balances bring changes to UPX and Spark rewards that keep the economy on an even keel.
Today we’re announcing a batch of important updates that address all of the above. These changes will be rolled out over the next several weeks. We expect these updates will:
What does that mean for you? Fair rewards, fair play, and a more dynamic Upland for all!
KYC promotes fair play by requiring players to prove their identity. Multiple KYC checks will be implemented to reduce the amount of Spark or UPX rewards doled out to bad actors. This helps level the playing field and strengthens the economy through a healthier distribution of UPX and Spark.
Fortunately, completing a KYC check is a straightforward process that you can initiate in the Upland app. All players need to do is:
Identity verification also comes with benefits like setting your Upland Home Address. While we don’t want to lean entirely on KYC checks, they will be added to several activities related to Spark and UPX rewards.
Most activities offering Spark rewards will have KYC. Activities that will have KYC identity verification in this round include:
Activities that have a Spark reward, such as the Competitive Spark Treasure Hunts, will be locked in the app until KYC is completed. Other activities, such as those that have a leaderboard, won’t be locked. However, players that haven’t completed KYC verification will receive a notification to complete KYC before collecting their Spark reward.
These KYC checks are coming soon and may change as we monitor and balance the Upland economy.
The main one here is Competitive Treasure Hunts. Competitive Treasure Hunts completed in cities that have Exclusive and Rare reward drops will require KYC. If you’re familiar with city tiers, this means that Competitive Treasure Hunts in a Tier 5 city won’t require KYC because there are no Exclusive or Rare hunts. These activities will be locked in the app for those without KYC verification.
These KYC checks are actively in development and are scheduled for deployment sometime in the next month or so.
Reaching Director status in Upland is one of most celebrated achievements and comes with several benefits. One key benefit is giving Director-level players a custom Block Explorer of their own design. As such, these are rare, unique items.
The value of these Block Explorers have led to some exploitation. To stop players from using multiple accounts to create multiple Director Block Explorers, we’re requiring KYC for players minting these Block Explorers.
In addition to new identity verification checks, a few changes are coming to Treasure Hunting to promote balance and exploration.
After collecting rewards for a Competitive Treasure Hunt, players will experience a cooldown period. During this time the guidance arrows will be hidden and treasure chest collection will not be possible until the cooldown ends.
This change discourages multi-accounting and promotes a healthier distribution of rewards. Cooldown periods will differ depending on the treasure hunt tier rarity, meaning that players who collect a Rare treasure will still be eligible to claim Exclusive and Limited treasures. Details on cooldowns are still a work in-progress, however, we will release more information in the coming weeks.
In addition to cooldowns for Competitive Treasure Hunts, we are aiming to reduce the number of cities that competitive tiers are active in at any given time. This means that competitive tiers will be active on a rotating schedule, appearing in different cities over time. This mechanic is meant to increase competitiveness, ensure a more scalable distribution of UPX, and add a little more challenge to competitive hunts.
This style of treasure hunts fits right in line with the recent Recurring Rush pilot program. As Upland continues to grow, we are going to place more and more emphasis on dynamic, city-based events that encourage players to explore and appreciate the world. On that note, we are also happy to announce that the pilot program was a success and Rush will be returning on a regular basis.
We realize that fewer Competitive Treasure Hunts means that more players will be competing with each other. This means that the Riot Mode threshold will likely come into play more often. While monitoring these changes, we are aiming to make a quick adjustment to Riot Mode thresholds and bonuses when Dynamic hunts go live. Because we don’t have any data on active treasure hunters in the dynamic system, we anticipate Riot Mode to be active quite often for the first few rounds, so go crazy!
Just note that thresholds and bonuses will be balanced further as we gather data. You’ll need to strategize every movement to maximize your chances to compete and win.
Spawn fees for Standard Treasure Hunts are nothing new. Every day, the first treasure is free and subsequent spawns come with a nominal UPX fee. As an update to this mechanic, there will be a spawn fee multiplier that increases the fee to spawn the next treasure. In short, spawn fees increase with each subsequent spawn of a Standard Treasure in a 24-hour period.
This only applies to paid standard treasures. And the multiplier resets every day (at midnight, Pacific Time). This multiplier is intended to help balance UPX distribution. We will provide an update with specific spawn fees soon.
Changes to Treasure Hunting mechanics are also actively in development. Some of these changes will be rolled out over the next month or so, while others, like Dynamic Competitive Tiers will probably be deployed in the next couple of weeks.
In addition the above changes, we are soon planning to implement a Cooldown for minting properties. This means that each player will need to wait a fixed period before making their next purchase. This cooldown is not intended to interrupt typical gameplay, but should go a long way in preventing malicious activity. To start, we plan to implement a 10 second cooldown between each property mint. This value may or may not be adjusted as we measure the performance of this change.
Lastly, in an effort to mitigate property snipes, we will be implementing CAPTCHA for properties initially listed on the secondary market. This means that for 24 hours after listing a property, any attempted purchase will require the completion of captcha in order to complete the purchase. After 24 hours have passed, the captcha requirement will be disabled. We will continue to monitor the results of this change and make any adjustments as necessary.
Have any thoughts on these updates? Join the conversation on Reddit and let us know!
