[QUOTE=strychzilla;436475]Their is more money in micro-transactions, i.e. guns, scopes, skins, loadouts etc than large purchases, i.e. 10$ for a merc loadout. I only price them that high because it’s a new model, weapon, everything. I can’t see them selling those mercs cheaper than 10$. If it was any other game I would say it would be more towards 15 - 20. We don’t really have an idea of how the store will function and probably won’t for awhile, which is fine. I do think we need to figure out this class uniqueness/over nerfing/bitter from xxx game **** though asap.
Is SD even open deleting the sniper class and merging it into Soldier and just make them the best at all combat ranges and scenarios (like they should be?)
Is SD open to making every class an even playing ground and let ultimate teamwork determine who is the victor and not this class > this class < this class making skill less of a requirement?
These are important things to handle earlier rather than later. =/[/QUOTE]
RAD Soldiers charges $5 for the most expensive recruit/merc. Their system of using RAD Bux is probably a good base of what we can expect for Dirty Bomb. I think more than $5 is going to be a lot for simply purchasing a loadout. If each of the 5 classes has 3 or 4 loadouts, that might mean we have to purchase 1 or 2 if there is no way to earn them in-game. That can be a lot of dough! Or, they take a “buy all for once price” approach which would include current and future loadouts (ie: Smite).
Regarding unique classes, runes, and loadouts I do agree that the more complex the system the more balancing will have to be done. Which can be a good thing (ie: more unique units in StarCraft 2) or a bad thing (ie: a constant and never ending nerf/buff process like WoW). I understand that balance tweaks will come to every game, but I do not want to see certain loadouts become the flavor of the month and then nerfed into oblivion. This is disappointing as a player.
Runes, in my opinion, are not the way to go. When you start tweaking base damage and abilities based on how much you grinded and leveled then I think we are taking the fun out for newer players. If they wanted to grind or level up a character I am certain they would rather play an MMO. At least that’s how I feel. The only game I think that kind of made unlocks fun was Battlefield 3. It was exciting to get a new weapon, but I never ever felt that I was underpowered with the choices I already had at my disposal. For instance, switching to your secondary becomes a necessity in BF3, and I kept on the “grind” of leveling up my character until I got the magnum for my secondary. Immediately upon getting this upgrade I did instantly become an imbalanced powerhouse, but instead had a more efficient and effective sidearm for situational use. In fact, I think Battlefield 3 does a lot of things right when it comes to its classes and ranks/leveling system.
I like Strychzilla’s idea of unique perks to their, already, special abilities. In fact I posted something similar to this in my “Meet the Medic” thread where I mentioned a combat medic who’s healing mechanics differed from a regular medic. I think this provides some extra flavor and variety, but I guess this is already what Splash Damage is doing, but just with the other classes. The new Lt. has an arty instead of an airstrike and the new engy has mines instead of a turret. I like these differences and it really makes me wonder which will be the more popular choices. Maybe we can continue to shape and improve these abilities before we start adding runes or the like. Passives would be interesting too, but I think we may be adding an element that feels forced and tacked on rather than something that actually improves and adds to the gameplay.
Answering Strych’s other questions: I think there is a place for all five classes, especially a differential between Sniper and Soldier/Assault. The sniper in the game right now does not feel very fun or rewarding for some odd reason. I think that is because of how the recoil and holding the breath mechanics are handled. Again, I look at TF2 to see how both fit into the game very well. I know these are apples and oranges as far as games, but the way each game handles the class can be similar. The sniper works VERY well in TF2 and in the early competitive scene it was almost a surprise at how effective Snipers became. An entire team’s coordinated attack and efforts could be stifled because a sniper caught a headshot on their medic before he could let off an uber charge. It became a necessity to hunt down and take out that sniper or have another sniper out snipe him.
If we can just get the sniper to be more effective by removing the artificial holding of your breath and super out of control sway then we’d have a game changer on our hands. Finally, copying this over may not be a choice, but it is interesting how being scoped and “charging” your shot for TF2’s sniper adds to damage. Body shots should be 2 shots to kill, but a consistent recoil (and less sway) should make this more doable. Headshots should always be one shot, one kill.
The Assault/Soldier should be the ultimate killing machine in medium/close range. This means pushing with the soldier becomes an important tactic. This gives a class that newer players could feel confident in killing with, but may not choose because he does not have the “cooler” special abilities they may feel more inclined to use. Veterans would use this class as intended, but obviously the synergy of a team behind him would be the reason why he becomes so effective and, essentially, a mobile turret. It is these reasons why I can understand different run speeds for different classes, thus making the assault the 16 Wheeler of the group, but let’s not go too overboard with this. There should still be some mobility with this soldier of fortune.
Finally, I don’t think every class needs to be on an even playing ground. I think body shot wise, certain classes (more specifically guns) should do different damage. HOWEVER, every class should be able to kill with the same number of headshots with NO DAMAGE DROPOFF at range. I think different damage to headshots and damage dropoff at range are two things that need to go and would immediately make the more skilled feel rewarded for getting the pots and pans to clang. So, maybe that is the even playing ground you’re hoping for anyways? I definitely am.
Better teamwork is also determined by who has the best class makeup or utilizes the classes the best. For instance, in RTCW you did not have to run a panzer, but if you had a good one, you could expect some attacks being stuffed harder than a Thanksgiving Turkey. Dikembe Mutumbo would be proud! Thus you need people playing their roles effectively, more so than who can get the most headshots. That is, after all, why this is a class based shooter and not BlackOps with objectives/escorts.
