[QUOTE=Rahdo;194703]Dead (can I call you Dead?), you make very good points about stats and the potentially negative impact they can have on player behavior. I’ve long had a similar concern about achievements, and am not a big fan of the “get 100 head shots with this weapon, get 500 groin shots with that weapon” type stuff. You’ve given me food for thought 
As for keeping friends playing together, we haven’t settled on a final system yet, but there’s a lot of ways we could handle it. Allowing higher level guys to jump into lower ranked matches but temporarily giving up the higher abilities they’d earned, the city of heroes “side kick” stuff for lower players hanging out with higher players, players giving each other XP so one can help one’s friend catch up, let lower level guys jump into higher ranked matches - warning them of the dangers, but giving them more XP, etc. Lot of ways we can go with this, don’t know what the final solution will be at this point, and about the only thing I can say for sure on the topic right now is that ensuring friends can play together without stuff getting in the way is one of my number one priorities for the game…[/QUOTE]
Indeed, call me Dead.
I am glad you guys are thinking over there… Hell I trust you, but I have played SEVERAL games in competition and for fun, and to be honest… I think stats impact things in a bad way. Take QuakeLive for example. Old school game, amazing… I loved Quake 3. Then you add stats… What do you get? People who care more about their K/D and accuracy over winning the game.
In QuakeWars I played with a guy who would only recruit around stats. “Oh well he has a .22 K/D so he is bad…” Maybe not, maybe he just did the jobs that put him in the enemy line more often and is really good at those jobs…
I could write you a book on why I don’t like stats… And if you want me to I will. I think they are fun, don’t get me wrong… But for a more “casual” game and trying to be that “gateway” game. To me, they don’t fit.
“Allowing higher level guys to jump into lower ranked matches but temporarily giving up the higher abilities they’d earned” - Your only bad idea IMO. Then you will just have people trying to play with high levels to get the “free” unlocks… Whats the point of playing to level if people can do it for you?
But actually I think QLive did a great job with the skill level of servers. If you go there, you will notice some servers say “skill too high” some say “just right” and some say “your skill higher.” In QLive there is no real advantage to these servers. You get owned in the “too high” one and you can go pillage the “too low” one with ease. But what if there were rewards for playing higher? — Thats a good option. Maybe if you are higher and you drop down, your character is nerfed? Handycap? hmmm
I would say TF2 is a good balance for the most part. I actually just started playing again believe it or not… so all my characters are low on the totem pole. But as tokamak said before me… Most of the primary weapons in TF2 stay the same, aside from the Scouts new gun. So there really are not many issues. The other upgrades make the player more versitile in a given situation, which I like… but not more powerful.
As for CoD4, it was horrible. I was a sniper for a semipro CAL-M / LAN clan. So give me the perks of Deep Impact, a 50CAL with Double Tap and the one that gives 3 gernades. I will be getting that stupid helecopter all day. I could clear servers with those loadouts… And it was because as you level you get better guns that allow you to be more powerful.
For example: In TF2 - I play the sniper. I unlocked some jar of yellow stuff (pee)… and when you hit an enemy with it you get mini crits. But this replaces your 2nd weapon, the automatic gun. See, so now you have to finish them off with your 1 shot bow, 1 shot sniper rifle, or knife. This balances it out… And makes you versitile, and not more powerful.
Now CoD4. Low levels you dont have the AK47. Higher levels do… Higher level players end up on top 90% of the time. Now, if I am lower… I don’t care, I am 24 and have been playing games since I was 8. I can handle it… I can do well. Now the average new guy? The guy who just got the game and is scared of multiplayer? (I am talking Brink now) … They will get turned off if Brink was made in such a way. You may coax them out with 2x XP… but they will just run away again if the higher levels can just stomp them. (Oh and then brag about stats and k/d and calling them noobs while felxing their e-peen… lol)
