If you, or anyone else, thinks this is an active discussion, well, I suppose I'm just too damn old for what constitutes a conversation this day.
No, my post isn't triggering the rage. It's already established and I'm sure you've read the reply above to note my statement about opinions has just been confirmed.@Violynne Then I would suggest coming into the thread (which, despite what you and I see happening in the forums right now has been one yet uninfected by the rage that's happening due to the patch notes) and layout things more in the manner that you did responding to me.
The "type" of your previous response is the kind of post that has been triggering that rage, attracting all the angry mobs to come in and turn each and every concern thread into a boiling cauldron.
No, my post isn't triggering the rage. It's already established and I'm sure you've read the reply above to note my statement about opinions has just been confirmed.
When I read the patch notes, the only thing which upset me was the notice CP was being raised to 180, as I had just spent most of my dreugh wax upgrading my CP160 from head to toe. That news hurt, since my bank only has a few wax remaining.
As for the rest of it? No concerns. No issues. No worries. Why? Because they're patch notes for a PTS.
The same thing happens every time: ZoS makes a statement, people rush to buy bomb shelters and bottled water because their world is ending.
Every. Single. Time.
You'd think this community would learn to keep its mouth quiet enough until the notes actually reflect the changes which will be ported over. But nope. It's "the sky is falling! Lost sales! ZoS only cares about money!" rhetoric bombardment.
I suppose you could say I'd rather wait until the changes are applied, try them for myself, and IF I experience issues, address them to ZoS without accusing them of caring about their game, threatening a walk out, or predicting their sales will tumble because the change is too horrible to play.
I know this seems counter-intuitive to the rage machine on the forum.
I have, and never will, put any confidence on opinions formed on rhetoric, conjecture, or blatant disregard of any facts (so no, I don't watch Fox News).
I especially don't like it when people then project these asinine remarks and include me in their audience.
I'm complaining about changes on a test server because I believe they affect my game now.
Despite the tone, nothing in the OP's post indicates they saw these changes for themselves. Quite the contrary: they're only complaining on hearsay of other vocal members.
The fact he mentioned Deltia's departure completely removes the exact reason why Deltia stated he was leaving the game. It wasn't about the changes. It was about Deltia's life changing, which came directly from his mouth
Ever since the patch notes were released, this forum has been in an uproar. Atypical from people who can't take 10 seconds of out their day to say, "Hmm. Some of these seem troubling, perhaps I should get clarification on the changes."
Instead, instant backlash, accusations of greed, destroying the game, and other idiotic hyperbole with most having nothing to go on but patch notes of testing.
That's not a discussion. That's just idiocy spreading like cancer, and far too many jumping on board to "speak their piece" of the "world is falling" over test notes.
The ONLY people whose opinions we should be open to are those who've played the PTS and notes how the changes actively affect the game.
Everyone else should shut up and stop making assumptions or making threats.
You're misconstruing the OP's post as a discussion. It's not. Decrying anything about lost sales, what another MMO did (or didn't do), blah blah blah takes away from the point of the discussion if it's to be related to the patch notes.
There's no room for a discussion here. Hell, you and I have been having a better discussion than what the OP barfed out.
When I read the patch notes, the only thing which upset me was the notice CP was being raised to 180, as I had just spent most of my dreugh wax upgrading my CP160 from head to toe. That news hurt, since my bank only has a few wax remaining.
As for the rest of it? No concerns. No issues. No worries. Why? Because they're patch notes for a PTS.
The same thing happens every time: ZoS makes a statement, people rush to buy bomb shelters and bottled water because their world is ending.
Every. Single. Time.
You'd think this community would learn to keep its mouth quiet enough until the notes actually reflect the changes which will be ported over. But nope. It's "the sky is falling! Lost sales! ZoS only cares about money!" rhetoric bombardment.
I suppose you could say I'd rather wait until the changes are applied, try them for myself, and IF I experience issues, address them to ZoS without accusing them of caring about their game, threatening a walk out, or predicting their sales will tumble because the change is too horrible to play.
Ironically, you are the only person in this thread who has been going off on one and having a rageful and unreasonable rant; no one else, just you.I know this seems counter-intuitive to the rage machine on the forum.
I have, and never will, put any confidence on opinions formed on rhetoric, conjecture, or blatant disregard of any facts (so no, I don't watch Fox News).
I especially don't like it when people then project these asinine remarks and include me in their audience.
@Zyrudin, Wrong.
This thread is about ZoS launching a superior class behind a paywall, nerfing previously fine classes, and the OP's experience with DCUO which I will vouch for because I had a similar experience.
All that "I wish I was a game developer" analysis you're doing out loud are other issues that should find themselves in a different thread.
Back on topic. I see that nobody is stepping forward, so I'll post my own opinion.
@MacCait, I agree that the essence of the issue here is that PvE is being affected by changes that were mostly needed (and previously noted in) PvP. Therefore, the core problem with this change is that they are triggered by an environment (PvP) that makes no sense for PvE.
In PvP, crowd control is (almost) everything. Mostly, a PvP'er is observed trying to wear the opponent's resources down with CC and DoT's before leaving him vulnerable for the kill. This will be even more so in Battlegrounds, as there is no incoming passing train to rescue either of the players.
In PvE, you (mostly) are unable to even CC a boss (the majority is immune), so it is all about sustainability in a long fight and avoiding damage. This is where the issue arises, in that possible PvP changes would be affecting PvE gameplay - incompatible playstyles.
However, it must be noted that certain levels of high DPS numbers in such a short period of time that break down boss mechanics and skips them, were not intended by ZOS. It must also be noted that group dungeons were not intended to be soloed. This was, of course, developer's fault - and they tried to correct it in later group dungeons, with the introduction of mechanics that required more than one player in the group.
In any case, truly top players will not feel it, in my opinion, and will continue to do their own thing. But from there down, there are a lot of players that need a change (this one or another) to bring them back to playing the game as it was supposed to, that is, to play in teamwork. There will be absolutely no problem with overland solo content, which is doable almost naked (yes, I have tried to test). It is working in a group that needs a fix and I think that this is the direction the changes are going for, whether they will be successful or not. I feel that most are enraged because they can do the maths and feel that their formula will no longer work.
I had defended in the past a sort of radical idea where you would get sort of weekly random behavior bosses, to stir the pot a bit, see who adapted and who didn't, to see who changed their approach to a new behavior and those who just kept trying their same copied formula. Not that I expected it to be implemented, but just to convey the idea that a lot of people that consider themselves top players are merely copies (albeit skilled) with little creativity. If any change can provide that need for creativity ("necessity is the mother of invention") it will make the game more interesting, in my opinion.
The timing and all that are well noticed on your part- it was a gross communication miscalculation on their side.
@Zyrudin, Wrong.
This thread is about ZoS launching a superior class behind a paywall, nerfing previously fine classes, and the OP's experience with DCUO which I will vouch for because I had a similar experience.
All that "I wish I was a game developer" analysis you're doing out loud are other issues that should find themselves in a different thread.
I loled at your attacks on warden's blue betty (it's pretty bad in terms of sustain, actually), but other things are kinda on point.
@Zyrudin. Yes I think this is a key point. I think the majority of us feel that PvP DOES need changes, and the direction ZOS are taking on that is both needed and mostly good. I’m not an expert PvP player so I don’t claim to know what all the problems are, but I can understand a few from experience and understand more from listening to sole PvP players.
So yes I do think the core problem to the majority of players in game is that these drastic changes hit PvE and affect the average player. This is a problem for two reasons. Firstly, it’s not fair to the mass majority of players, who do not play 20 hours a day, and who are not part of the minority of elite, or even part of the percentage of players who regularly PvP. Secondly, and more importantly, it is contradictive to what ZOS has stated is their intention; to raise up and help the average players (the floor), while nerfing and lowering the small percentage of elite (the ceiling), thus decreasing the gap between them. As PTS testers are stating, this isn’t what’s going to happen.
I totally agree with the intention behind what ZOS is attempting, and I think there are easier ways to achieve that, by simply creating a separate PvP system. Certain things like this are already in place, such as Battle Spirit, and the PvP passives that alter other effects in a PvP setting. So in effect there is a basis for PvP having it’s own adjustments already. I think building upon that and entirely separating that from PvE is a wonderful idea, and one that the entire community could get behind and actually be happy with.
This kind of change supports the game and keeps its consumers happy, thus keeping players invested in the game/product, and ensuring the longevity and health of the game; which is something we all want.
Yes, you hit the nail on the head. Totally agree. They are very, very different play styles, and management sustain of resources are imperative for the PvE setting against AI bosses and mobs. Can you imagine what it’s going to be like for certain melee classes who have no stamina, and have to now engage a Boss with nothing but Heavy attacks (using the Tenacity CP) all the while they generate more Stamina to use weapon powers? It’s not going to be pretty lol.
One idea I’ve seen mentioned, as feedback on the PTS is to adjust Tenacity so that it includes generating from Light attacks. I personally thought that was a good idea if the complete hack job on sustain is going to go ahead. There needs to be some sense of balance for PvE players going up against difficult PvE content.
Yes I agree that is a problem. However I think they just need to get creative with a solution. One idea that immediately came to mind when you said this was they could introduce code that acts as a sensor to a group Dungeon; a code that reacts to the number of people in a Dungeon. IF the number of people in a Dungeon is less than 4, the difficulty increases. IF the number of people in a Dungeon equals ONE, then if ZOS chooses to they could make the difficulty so high that it would be impossible to solo (if they do not want people soling that type of content). I think there are many creative ways things could be done by just doing something different. There is a term in psychology and self-improvement circles: “If you always do the same thing, you’ll always get the same results”. It also amounts to the same thing in any scientific approach to experiment design; change small things and examine those interactions, but don’t run the same experiment over and over and expect different results.
Totally spot on. The most enjoyable aspect of this game is teamwork. The most fun I have ever had is when I’ve been in a great group, felt that sense of teamwork and where we struggled but won the moment. That is something that needs to be encouraged within the game, without making it so difficult that the team becomes so frustrated. I think that’s a fine line and a very difficult job for ZOS to achieve. Keeping a balance between the joy of playing, which in turn keeps the consumer happy and coming back, and enough challenge to make sure its not too easy. Two things that will turn away a customer are frustration and boredom; both relate to a lack of joy.
I also agree that many players can see on paper that it will not work by doing the math, or making calculations. Although I’d regard myself as an average player, I’m probably somewhere in the middle; I’m certainly not elite, and I mostly PvE, but enjoy PvP from time to time. Where I may differ from the usual average player is that I theorycraft; it’s one of the things I most enjoy about the game and keeps me invested.
I much prefer this type of game where a player has the ability to come up with their own build based on the mechanics and gear available. Many other games just have set skills that everyone shares, and it’s a matter of just pressing buttons. This game is superior because it has the ability to theorycraft, and involves a lot of strategy, IF the player so wishes it. So players that are used to theory crafting can see straight away that if you take away too many things, and replace nothing, it’s going to be a real problem. Many of us were able to predict this on paper, which in turn for many things is now showing to be true in current tests. This is what is worrying for the state of the game when concerned with PvE and the average player.
Hey I like this idea. I’d never heard of that before. That’s actually pretty good. It would keep the game pretty interesting as long as it wasn’t too difficult; just a little unpredictability in the AI personality. I think it may be a difficult thing to implement though. Code wise, you might still just end up with a variety of personalities that, with enough experience, top end players would then still be able to predict. I think it comes back to the same problem; top-end players are always going to re-adjust and find ways around something, where the mass majority won’t. Therein also lays a danger in constantly hurting the average player because of this effect.
I was pretty shocked I admit. The reason was because I think for anyone who has either worked in sales, advertising, merchandising, and strategy consulting; it is a very basic principle for any new product. You don’t want to present uncertainty at the time of a new product launch. In fact, if possible, never present uncertainty… though that’s harder to achieve. But definitely not at the time of a new product launch.
IwakuraLain42 wrote: »In case you missed it (or didn't knew): on tonight's ESO Live there will a segment with Rich Lambert and Erich Wrobel where they will be discussing the changes to the gameplay. Let's see what they have to say, maybe we will see some adjustments on the next patch.
Here's the link to the announcement where you can find the details: elderscrollsonline.com/en-gb/news/post/2017/04/27/eso-live-april-28--2000-bst
@MacCait What would you think of this type of balance?
Offensive-
Power: damage of each attack
Range: how far you can deal damage.
Speed: how fast and frequently you can deal damage.
Defensive-
Vitality: how much damage you can take.
Control: how well you can stop an attacker.
Agility: how much damage you can avoid (or escape).
To address the issue of prolonged fights, I gave a rough golden ratio (3:2 to offense:defense.) This way, someone will die before the Zerg can come save them. Each class gets 100,75,50 for offense and 75,50,25 for defense.
Limitations: this would need to be properly weighted with certain goals in mind (e.g. how much DPS should each class do; how long should dungeons take; how long should duels last, etc.) This is more illustrative to show that sustain doesn't need to be crushed and classes don't need to be homogeneous to be statistically equal.
If you spent your money on DCUO, or Everquest Next after Sony sold out,
luen79rwb17_ESO wrote: »Getting back on track is not "devolution".
ESO as it is on live is totally broken on the damage vs sustain department. I believe they're in the right path despite some harsh treatment on certain classes.
When I read the patch notes, the only thing which upset me was the notice CP was being raised to 180, as I had just spent most of my dreugh wax upgrading my CP160 from head to toe. That news hurt, since my bank only has a few wax remaining.
@Zyrudin. Yes I think this is a key point. I think the majority of us feel that PvP DOES need changes, and the direction ZOS are taking on that is both needed and mostly good. I’m not an expert PvP player so I don’t claim to know what all the problems are, but I can understand a few from experience and understand more from listening to sole PvP players.
So yes I do think the core problem to the majority of players in game is that these drastic changes hit PvE and affect the average player. This is a problem for two reasons. Firstly, it’s not fair to the mass majority of players, who do not play 20 hours a day, and who are not part of the minority of elite, or even part of the percentage of players who regularly PvP. Secondly, and more importantly, it is contradictive to what ZOS has stated is their intention; to raise up and help the average players (the floor), while nerfing and lowering the small percentage of elite (the ceiling), thus decreasing the gap between them. As PTS testers are stating, this isn’t what’s going to happen.
I totally agree with the intention behind what ZOS is attempting, and I think there are easier ways to achieve that, by simply creating a separate PvP system. Certain things like this are already in place, such as Battle Spirit, and the PvP passives that alter other effects in a PvP setting. So in effect there is a basis for PvP having it’s own adjustments already. I think building upon that and entirely separating that from PvE is a wonderful idea, and one that the entire community could get behind and actually be happy with.
This kind of change supports the game and keeps its consumers happy, thus keeping players invested in the game/product, and ensuring the longevity and health of the game; which is something we all want.
ZOS, for some reason I honestly do not understand, want to insist on keeping PvP and PvE with shared skills. This will never work, certainly many have tried before. Perhaps they think that if they separate skill balancing between PvE and PvP they will divide players or demotivate them from trying the other. If it is that, it makes no sense, because there are already people that only play PvE and other than never left Cyrodiil (or IC) as soon as they got in.
There are a lot of people that do both and I am sure they realize that shared skills aren't at all effective balancing.
I would even go as far as having the alliance war skills (even the passives) have different effects in PvE and not just PvE skills and passives having different effects in PvP environments.Yes, you hit the nail on the head. Totally agree. They are very, very different play styles, and management sustain of resources are imperative for the PvE setting against AI bosses and mobs. Can you imagine what it’s going to be like for certain melee classes who have no stamina, and have to now engage a Boss with nothing but Heavy attacks (using the Tenacity CP) all the while they generate more Stamina to use weapon powers? It’s not going to be pretty lol.
One idea I’ve seen mentioned, as feedback on the PTS is to adjust Tenacity so that it includes generating from Light attacks. I personally thought that was a good idea if the complete hack job on sustain is going to go ahead. There needs to be some sense of balance for PvE players going up against difficult PvE content.
Stamina builds will always be in more trouble simply because they use the same resource for not only their abilities, but also for blocking, dodging and breaking free. Melee stamina are in even worse ground, because they need to evade so much more. It really takes mastery to play them effectively right now. Some kind of solution has to be implemented for stamina builds in this respect and the stamina cost increase is one of the points I disagree the most with the patch notes for PvE.
Light attacks providing resources back might be a bad idea due to the fact that you could get an outstanding return with a tight animation cancelled weaved rotation. I would rather suggest accessible abilities (class, weapon, or any other type) that provide staminasteal on a certain area. then it is controlled per second and not per hit. This is why they introduced the -steal effects, I think.Yes I agree that is a problem. However I think they just need to get creative with a solution. One idea that immediately came to mind when you said this was they could introduce code that acts as a sensor to a group Dungeon; a code that reacts to the number of people in a Dungeon. IF the number of people in a Dungeon is less than 4, the difficulty increases. IF the number of people in a Dungeon equals ONE, then if ZOS chooses to they could make the difficulty so high that it would be impossible to solo (if they do not want people soling that type of content). I think there are many creative ways things could be done by just doing something different. There is a term in psychology and self-improvement circles: “If you always do the same thing, you’ll always get the same results”. It also amounts to the same thing in any scientific approach to experiment design; change small things and examine those interactions, but don’t run the same experiment over and over and expect different results.
Yes, that would be merely to prevent soloing, but it would be putting a filter at the end and not at the start of the flow, let's say.
What I speculatively think, personally, is that they want to somehow come up with a solution that prevents builds from being "Over-Powered" in the first place, so that they have to resort to grouping with others and "play the game as it was intended". even in groups, I think they want people following mechanics, instead of just stacking and burning bosses too.
This is why I agree with the direction of the changes, even if I have doubts about the content of them. The game is currently not being played as intended by a lot of people, because Youtube channels are able to share with everyone how to copy ways around the actual intended gameplay.Totally spot on. The most enjoyable aspect of this game is teamwork. The most fun I have ever had is when I’ve been in a great group, felt that sense of teamwork and where we struggled but won the moment. That is something that needs to be encouraged within the game, without making it so difficult that the team becomes so frustrated. I think that’s a fine line and a very difficult job for ZOS to achieve. Keeping a balance between the joy of playing, which in turn keeps the consumer happy and coming back, and enough challenge to make sure its not too easy. Two things that will turn away a customer are frustration and boredom; both relate to a lack of joy.
I also agree that many players can see on paper that it will not work by doing the math, or making calculations. Although I’d regard myself as an average player, I’m probably somewhere in the middle; I’m certainly not elite, and I mostly PvE, but enjoy PvP from time to time. Where I may differ from the usual average player is that I theorycraft; it’s one of the things I most enjoy about the game and keeps me invested.
I much prefer this type of game where a player has the ability to come up with their own build based on the mechanics and gear available. Many other games just have set skills that everyone shares, and it’s a matter of just pressing buttons. This game is superior because it has the ability to theorycraft, and involves a lot of strategy, IF the player so wishes it. So players that are used to theory crafting can see straight away that if you take away too many things, and replace nothing, it’s going to be a real problem. Many of us were able to predict this on paper, which in turn for many things is now showing to be true in current tests. This is what is worrying for the state of the game when concerned with PvE and the average player.
That's it: gameplay was designed around teamwork. I am here since launch. You know what the main concerns were in the first few months?
"I am stuck in a solo instance and can't invite a friend to help me out."
ZOS had exaggerated in the early difficulty and many an average player struggled to even get by in the main story or guild quests, and all these were solo instanced. For the most part, from mere delves to public dungeons, to group dungeons, to world bosses, to trials, to PvP, the gameplay was designed around grouping and teamwork. It is how it should be played, how it was designed. It wasn't well designed for that, but it was clearly their intent - and still is. They are trying to fix that, in my opinion, to "force" people to work together, share tactics, agree on strategies and actually play together.
This direction of things I can only agree to, even if not on the method or way it is done. Maybe our contributions will help them.Hey I like this idea. I’d never heard of that before. That’s actually pretty good. It would keep the game pretty interesting as long as it wasn’t too difficult; just a little unpredictability in the AI personality. I think it may be a difficult thing to implement though. Code wise, you might still just end up with a variety of personalities that, with enough experience, top end players would then still be able to predict. I think it comes back to the same problem; top-end players are always going to re-adjust and find ways around something, where the mass majority won’t. Therein also lays a danger in constantly hurting the average player because of this effect.
It was just something I threw into the forum, in a discussion, knowing that it wouldn't be implemented. I just wanted to convey that there are a lot of builds and playstyles in ESO that are exact copies, in gear, setup, rotations and behavior. I wanted to show that a lot of players do not play creatively. Not saying that they should change, but just wanted people to reflect on that.I was pretty shocked I admit. The reason was because I think for anyone who has either worked in sales, advertising, merchandising, and strategy consulting; it is a very basic principle for any new product. You don’t want to present uncertainty at the time of a new product launch. In fact, if possible, never present uncertainty… though that’s harder to achieve. But definitely not at the time of a new product launch.
I think technical dictated commercial this time around.
@Zyrudin It seems we agree on many points. I too agree with some of the changes, and some of the ideas for the direction of the game... I just can't get behind a system that:
Hacks everything apart so drastically; a system that cannot be tested and tracked to see what changes are going to affect what (tracking variables); a system that has in place many contradictions over what it states it wants to achieve; a system that states it wants to help make things easier for the average player and the new player, in in actuall effect over complicates things, and with results that will most likely (at this point) do completely the opposite and make things harder for the new players and the mass majority of average players; a system that perpetually makes the same mistakes of trying to opperate one system for two entirely different models (PvP - PvE).