For simple things like metal production, that at least sort of correspond to real world situations, I think it's ok. There aren't that many possible combinations to test regarding the production of metal, it was a nice bell curve. Additionally, things like testing eggs and metal weren't expensive (relative to cash shop items being broken from a system not understood by players)
It's a different formula than any he has used in the past that I am aware of, and people are reacting accordingly. It's his game, he can do what he wants, and if he wants it to go in this direction, I merely said he should explain that to people, recognizing that people like having control over their environment and figuring things out, and that if a system encourages brute force methods, it will drive away all but the most dedicated of players (even more than the game does now...)