If you have been playing the apps for as long as I have, you know what getting a new high end insert feels like. Scrolling through all of your locked cards to determine which of your other collection pieces needs to be taken off quarantine and opened back up to the world. In each of the 3 apps I play, I am well past the point of 25 locked cards. In 2 of the 3 apps I am desperate, and frequently have to fend off terrible offers for cards I would never trade. The only protection we have is coming up short, and I am PLEADING for more card locks throughout the Topps apps.

Background

Prior to 2014 Bunt’s release, there was no such thing as a locked card. You were literally open for business on every card, even if you had a 1 of 1 card that has your own picture on it (right Lee Obrien?). After the users asked fervently to get a way to take cards off the market, a small respite was provided in the 25 no trade locked cards that each user may use at their leisure. These “locks” prevents another user from making an offer that includes that card, basically giving you all control over which people get access. Locked cards can still be offered in trades by the person who owns them. However, if the person getting the offer wants to counter, any locked cards are automatically removed from the block. Its a great system.

The problem is, for users with big collections, spanning multiple years in Huddle and Bunt, 25 cards to take off the market can be a drop in the bucket. Even if it were expanded to 50, those extras might not even be enough. That is the desperate nature of this need for some people.

Reasoning for 25 Available Locks

Here is my take on things. Im pretty sure that the 25 locks were put in place to keep the trade economy partially secure but not completely stalled. If unlimited locks were available, too many cards might be removed from regular circulation. Although I would make an argument that this likely isnt a big enough concern to not move forward with the unlimited situation, Im guessing its a factor.

Im also guessing software is a limiting factor, as revamping a system significantly could impact the general running status of the app. Im sure that they have tried to figure something out, but the software may have limited their changes.

Solutions

Despite software limitations, I fully support overhauling the entire card display system. This is a feat that will likely need to happen during an offseason build development, but my suggestion is simple.

1. Bring back the display case – in 2013, each build had a 9 card display that popped up every time a trade offer was made. It was mainly used for the play system, as a card had to be in the 9 card loading screen or they wouldnt score. When games werent being played, we used this as a way to show off our best cards, or cards we were looking to trade. It needs to come back, even if the play system is not involved.
2. Create a For Trade / Not For Trade toggle – Think of this utopia. You are on the fan feed and you see someone offering their cards. You pull up their sheet and sort by “for trade.” In this tag, you will see every card that the user wants to move. You can also sort by Not for trade, which acts like a lock, and is available unlimited. They cannot be put into offers. If a user is indifferent, they can leave the card untagged, which is the default setting. The card can still be traded, but its not advertised.
3. Create a Wish List – give users an opportunity to designate which cards they are looking for from any in the game. This could be extremely helpful if we could sort our sheet by cards they have designated that they want.
4. Create an auto accept system – give users an opportunity to build their dream deal, which will automatically accept if someone offers the cards they designate.
5. Create an auto decline system – give users a setting that says they only want inserts or they only want base, etc.
6. Build an offer strength indicator – functions on the above elements to let people know if they should continue with the cards they are giving. Use a pop up if the trade doesnt meet even minimum standards. Prevent a negative trade experience for new users who dont know any better.

In the mean time, my plea is simple – just give us enough to tide us over. I have heard that Kick supports 100 locks, which would be great to have in each of the other three apps. Give us some sort of defense in games that function on releasing high end cards each day.

Im past the point of being nice. Im past the point of educating new users that I dont want their base for my Gold Variant Sig. Help me out so I dont have to be the bad guy.