Real concerns over Brinks Rank system

(Jamieson) #1

Just want to express some of the concerns I have over Brinks Rank system, I have mentioned these in other threads but no one seems to take any notice what so ever.

Here is a diagram I made to help get my concerns across. It is a comparison of the system used in ETQW compared to what Brink purposes to do. Brink’s rank system will be identical to that of Quake Live, As you play you will earn experience points which will rank you up. The higher the rank you are the Higher the group you are placed, on this diagram that would be Rank 4.

As you can see, for every rank (we don’t know how many there are) there is a different group or mini playerbase. So in theory in ETQW if there is 5000 people playing you can play with any of those players, In Brink that 5000 would be divided by however many rank bands/groups there are.

This is where the real concern comes in, Its very unlikely Brink will have the huge player base that Quake live can boast, Quake has been around for ever, its a well established Franchise, Brink isn’t, in fact its a new IP which is relitevely unheard of.

If there are not enough players then it is only logical to assume that throughout the games life there are going to be rank bands that are pritty much empty. At the start of the games life this will probably be the higher ranks, at the end or the middle the lower ranks. SD have already said you cannot play against lower ranks (just like Quake live) , This means if your rank is empty you will be forced to play against higher players with better skills and weapons.

The real thing that puzzels me is that the system is pointless, A rank 1 player will never play a Rank 4 player unless they are completely stupid and want to commit suicide, so therefore there is no way to measure scale here. As a rank 4 your abilities might be more poweful than a lvl 1 but you will never find this out. The only people you will use them on are people of similar rank and skills i.e. to keep it fair and well balanced.

This means that we divide the games playerbase for no real reason what so ever.

I know its a long read but take my concerns on board.

(Nail) #2

"but no one seems to take any notice what so ever. "

correct

(Jamieson) #3

I would be interested to know what you actually think regarding the issue Nail.

(Nail) #4

I play on PC, I get to join any server I want and play with who I like, on a dedicated server. It’s a non issue to me and many others

(Jamieson) #5

The Rank system will be on the PC though, Its on all 3 platforms dedicated or not.

(Nail) #6

on a dedicated server, you set your own rules, I think you’ve severely misread something

(Jamieson) #7

I don’t know though Nail if its true that its not going to effect dedicated servers then what is the point of SD implementing the rank system if it wont be used on lets face it the majority of servers, which as you say will be dedicated.

SD have confirmed they are using Dedicated servers but they have also introduced the rank system, they must be connected why else would they use it, unless there lying about dedicated servers…

you might have a point if you mean authenticated servers.

(Nail) #8

afaik, it’s just a matchmaking service, optional

(MILFandCookies) #9

While I understand the concern, which you have mentioned in other threads - what outcome are hoping for exactly with this thread? If you expect them to scrap it, I think you might be disappointed.

Nonetheless, I think this system would be suitable more to the new guy learning about online gaming, than you or I or anyone else on this forum. So it segregates the new guys from the “veteran online players” of the same rank, simply because the latter will opt to use the server browser, instead of the match making system. Its a perfect “environment” for the new guys getting their first taste of online gaming, as they wont get owned all the time and rage quit.

I’d imagine somewhere down the line they might hear the message “hey we think youre good enough now to play with the big boys… how about you try this server in the browser for 50 billion XP”.

(Jamieson) #10

Its not optional Nail, the only option you have to is to choose to play against higher ranked players and thats it. Thats what the concerns are about, about it dividing the playerbase.

Milfandcookies, the impression I got is that you don’t choose to use the matchmaking service, it simply does it for you and then you see who you can play against. Even on the server browser you will only be able to play against people of the same or higher rank much like QL where if your to high it wont let you play.

My intention was to spark a debate, I know its unlikely that SD will go omg Jamieson is right we must delay the game for a year to fix it, because lets face facts thats not going to happen, atleast if it does not work they can’t say people didn’t warn them.

I don’t think the system will stop new players being owned though, The xp system is based on time invested, not performance. Im sure there will always be new people to game who fall into the category of above average and will be able to own new players. Like I said the system only seems to offer negatives and no benefits to anybody involved. Thats why I disagree with it.

(DarkangelUK) #11

Do you have the article, interview or magazine piece that says it’s not optional? I can’t recall ever reading that, from what i got is more or less what Nail said, server list = join and play, matchmaking is used for rank matching.

(H0RSE) #12

[quote=rahdo;211538]for pretty much every single one of you guys on this board, i suspect that simple “take me to the next mission” option will not be good enough, and you’ll all instead opt for the “take me to a server browser” choice. Once there, you can find missions where voip is on by default (for everyone), ff is on, player ranks are restricted or open, high level abilities are allowed or disallowed, etc.

I expect the majority of console players will opt for the former (the standard ‘friendly’ matches), and the majority of pc players will opt for the later (the let me play the game without restrictions, i’m a big boy, i can handle it matches). So hopefully everyone will be satisfied… :)[/quote]

(Jamieson) #13

[QUOTE=H0RSE;219757]----- Originally Posted by rahdo View Post
for pretty much every single one of you guys on this board, i suspect that simple “take me to the next mission” option will not be good enough, and you’ll all instead opt for the “take me to a server browser” choice. Once there, you can find missions where voip is on by default (for everyone), ff is on, player ranks are restricted or open, high level abilities are allowed or disallowed, etc.

I expect the majority of console players will opt for the former (the standard ‘friendly’ matches), and the majority of pc players will opt for the later (the let me play the game without restrictions, i’m a big boy, i can handle it matches). So hopefully everyone will be satisfied…

-----[/QUOTE]

So we basicly have two systems, thats interesting though, How many people will really select the restrict rank option, Will new people have enough people to play with? The last thing we want is people quitting the game because there is no one to play against or because it looks that way.

Your still effectively dividing people which ever way you look at it though.

(H0RSE) #14

like he said, console players, or players that just want to get into game and play - and don’t care about server settings.

(MILFandCookies) #15

[QUOTE=Jamieson;219754]

I don’t think the system will stop new players being owned though, The xp system is based on time invested, not performance. Im sure there will always be new people to game who fall into the category of above average and will be able to own new players. Like I said the system only seems to offer negatives and no benefits to anybody involved. Thats why I disagree with it.[/QUOTE]

If say I’m a Rank 2 playing Brink and I avg around 70 kills a round - If I have the choice to completely ignore the match making system, the new guys to online gaming who are also Rank 2 wont ever get to play me. They might occasionally get smashed by guys of their own skill level, but thats hell of a lot different to getting smashed by a vet of the same rank.

(AnthonyDa) #16

Until you start the game over to change your (fixed per account?) body type.

(MILFandCookies) #17

Yep exactly.
But you’ll be a new rank still avoiding the match making system.
:slight_smile:

(Nail) #18

rank based matchmaking is great for consoles, they’re peer to peer, PC servers are up 24/7/365, you find a couple servers you like and hang out there, not an option on consoles. The idea it would be mandatory on PC is ludicrous

(INF3RN0) #19

If it was not optional I would be pretty angry, but I think Radho cleared it up last time this was brought up and he had the right answer :slight_smile: (not too vague this time). This should at least help separate the newbies from the experienced server wise and help make for more even games. I can’t help but wonder if high ranking XP whores will be trolling rank 1 servers to get early unlocks though :wink:. Only concern here is that rank=practiced experience instead of measurable advantage.

(aaarrm) #20

Honestly, I’ll be glad if they separate ranks. I always hated that about CoD / GoW. Going into matchmaking and not knowing whether I will have to try my ass and play against really good kids or be able to just chill back and relax and play casually. Not everyone is hardcore 24/7, those people like to take casual-game breaks too. And with the no-ranking system these other games had, things just never turned out the way I wanted them and it really pissed me off, so I for one am thankful for a ranking system.

And come on dude, you don’t think Brink will be able to hold the attention span of only 5,000 people for a while?! Have some faith in the game, dude.

If the gameplay alone is horrible, somehow (yeah, right), then the game would still hold people’s attention for like a few months at least purely because of the unlocks. Lookit CoD, everyone I know hates that game so much, it pisses them off more than anything. Yet they still go home and get on and play it everyday, why? Because they want that new unlock, that next perk, that new gun… that want subliminally drives them to get on and try to get that damn unlock.

-Brink Will Succeed-