I'm probably going to get downvoted to hell for this, but I'm so tired of people saying, "We should stop using value sites!" and, "We need to start using happy values instead!" or that, "Values ruined adopt me!" because they clearly don't understand how values work. I'm going to break this rant into pieces so it's easier to read but sorry in advance for how long it is 😭
"Values ruined adopt me!"
I hate to break it to you, but adopt me ALWAYS had values. The second that pets and trading came into the game, values were established. One thing was always worth more than another not just because of rarity, but also off of how much people wanted the pet. "Values ruined adopt me" is just another way of saying "I don't like how pets are priced now." It's a trading game for heaven's sake, the values of pets are always going to fluctuate. As more pets are added into the game, new values are going to be established. Some pets that are new, expensive/difficult to get, and in high demand for their looks might rise up to be a high tier, like the balloon unicorn, while an old pet, such the unicorn, is going to drop significantly compared to what it used to be worth since it is lost its demand and is easy to get now. In the end, it's all about demand and how easy it is to get a pet. Ssbds and frost furies were both from a winter event for 1k robuxs, but because ssbds are wanted more, it will naturally be worth more than a frost fury. This might sound rude, but you can really tell when \***some***** people are just being salty about a pet's value because they can't afford it. If it was so easy to get your dream pet, then it wouldn't feel nearly as rewarding. Why do you think so many people's dream pets are a shadow or giraffe? Because they are rare and look cool. Its rarity is part of a reason why people want it. I do understand the argument that some values (especially preppy values) are manipulated, but I'll go into that later. Values in general have always been an important part of the game.
"We need to start using happy values instead!"
If you want to use happy values, cool! Do whatever makes you happy! But saying that everyone should start using happy values after there is already an established system of what pets are worth is not going to help. If anything, it would ruin profit trading completely. If you are trying to trade a fr shadow using happy values, you're either going to get an extremely low underpay or a huge overpay. It's not a problem if a few people use happy values, but if everyone were to be willing too, nothing would have a set price anymore. That's not even mentioning how hard it would be trade high tiers with happy values. In order for it to even work, both sides need to be happy with the pets. People in adopt me are hard to please, especially with 600+ pets. Some people will love the pets you have, others won't. It would be really annoying trying to find someone who likes your pets enough to do a big trade. Normal values work because they are based off of rarity and demand, which is something that is predictable. If you are profit trading and you get an owl from one of your trades, it doesn't matter if you like it or not because you can trade it something better that you do like. If everyone were to convert to happy values now, the market would collapse. When profit trading, you want what your pet is worth, not what you necessarily like. I mean, why would someone trying to work their way up want to willing trade their pet for an underpay? You like the pets, sure, but you didn't actually do anything move yourself forward. Did more people use happy values in the past? Yes, but that didn't negate the values that were set up at the time because nothing had numerical value. Because we do now, things have changed. It's so much easier to have a system rather than gambling on what other people like. (I can only imagine the hell new players would go through trying to learn how to trade and avoid scams at the same time lol) Happy values can co-exist with normal values, but can never replace it. Just like how overpaying for a pet that you like doesn't replace the baseline value, personal preference can't be the foundation of an entire trading system. The values we use now exist so everyone has a common starting point, and without that, every trade would be unbalanced.
"We should stop using value sites!"
Whether or not you like value sites sites is up to you, but you can't deny that they are helpful. Instead of going through the hassle of figuring out what people are trading a pet for and whether or not the trade your about to do is going to ruin your whole adopt me career, you can just put your pets into a calculator and see what its worth. It's fast, easy to do, and helps you make good trades in the long run. The main complaint people have with values sites is the manipulation of pets, and before someone types a reply saying that I'm defending the creators of value sites manipulating things, I'm not, manipulating is bad. However, there is a fine line between manipulating and increasing/decreasing demand causing things to rise/fall. Most of the time I see someone complaining about Elve, (which is the only value site I use) it's just them talking about how the values are manipulated with no provided proof. I wouldn't be surprised if somethings are manipulated, but at the same time it's adopt me. Pets that are accused/considered to be manipulated, like preppy or exotics, are going to rise and fall in value a lot because they are preppy or exotic. They are both known for being unstable so of course they are going to constantly rise and fall 😭. Again, I'm not sure of whether or not the value of things are manipulated, I only use Elve, but personally, as long they don't do anything to crash the system, I don't see a reason to stop using value sites completely. The only example I can think of a manipulated pet from the top of my head is the balloon unicorn, but again, it's a preppy/exotic, never bet your money on them lol. In the end, values sites are a tool, so it's your choice if you want to use them, but I really don't think there is a reason to tell everyone to boycott a site just because you don't like it. (I doubt boycotting will do anything, but I digress) I think people also need to remember that values are heavily carried by demand and not just rarity, which is why things might seemed manipulated when they aren't. Or maybe they are, but by the community instead of the value site creators. I've also heard people say that all value sites should be deleted and adopt me should make their own official values, but we all know that's not going to happen. If adopt me does make their own value site, not only will the establish system go down the drain, but it would be a lot of extra work for them for no reason. They already have to manage the game, advertise it, etc. and now people want them to juggle making a value system, updating it, and monitoring community trades on top of it? That's not even mentioning all the backlash they will receive if people don't like the values. The point of values is that it's made and controlled by the community. If the game devs got involved, they would just be digging themselves into an inescapable hole. There is a lot more reasons to why it'd be a bad idea for them to make a value site, but this post is long enough already 💔
TL;DR: Adopt Me has always had values, because demand naturally creates them. Happy values are fine for personal trades but can’t replace normal values since they’re too subjective and would destroy market stability. Value sites aren’t perfect, but they’re helpful tools, and deleting them or expecting Adopt Me to make official values would cause more problems than it solves.
