Will there be a S.M.A.R.T. system in Dirty Bomb?

(Litego) #1

Loved the S.M.A.R.T. (Smooth Movement Across Random Terrain) system from BRINK and would really like to see it in this game. So do we know, is this system, or an improved movement system like this, in Dirty Bomb?

(TwiceDead) #2

I agree, loved the SMART system in Brink and would love to see a return in some shape or form.

(NeoRussia) #3

SMART + quake engine ET movement = why not??

(Raide) #4

While I personally thought the SMART system was great, it was clear that many people thought it was clunky and felt off.
They’re probably not going to add it just because they want to focus on the gunplay.

(Boognish) #5

Frankly I disliked the SMART system. At least the way it was implemented in Brink. I’m okay with having moves to hurdle and climb up ledges, but I didn’t like SMART button and other context based action buttons in the game. SMART button and that seemed like it was for consoles where you don’t have as many buttons. Make it work with the existing moves: i.e. jump at a ledge and you will grab and climb up if you hold down forward (like Urban Terror), or while sprinting and you hit crouch you slide under a ledge, etc. Make it take a modicum of skill to use, and remove the one-button for use, heal, rearm, boost, etc. I’d always find myself in Brink wanting to do one move and then having my character point the other direction and sprinting to heal someone or something because it thought I wanted to do that.

(Litego) #6

I agree, the system had faults, I also didn’t like that it needed a special button to activate the feature, it should be more automatic and natural. That’s why I also asked about an improved movement system. The concept is awesome, the execution could be better, and I hope it is. But I also do hope they add an advanced movement system that allows us to move like we did in BRINK, maybe better, and with less of a hassle.

(NeoRussia) #7

[QUOTE=Raide;414988]While I personally thought the SMART system was great, it was clear that many people thought it was clunky and felt off.
They’re probably not going to add it just because they want to focus on the gunplay.[/QUOTE]

my idea is that it’s amazing for mobility. You have your normal movement for combat, but for getting around, escaping, making flag runs etc SMART is perfect. SMART’s only weakness was it sucked in combat and you could not fire while doing it.

(weeschwee) #8

That is exactly how it is for the PC. If you hold sprint it becomes the s.m.a.r.t. button. Your character will automatically mantle or wall run when making contact with an obstacle. On the other hand, if you press and release your sprint button, your character will just sprint until you stop moving. This way you can manually do every s.m.a.r.t. move. Sprint and jump to hurdle. Sprint and crouch to slide. Sprint and jump while heading towards a wall to wall run. Also, doing these things manually was more effective, because, naturally, you would climb over a wall easier and faster if you had a jumping start.

It seems not many people knew about this or it wasn’t an available option for all platforms. I knew about this method since before the game came out because of developer interviews and articles. I’ve used it since launch and I’ve only ever had problems with the game auto-sliding for me when I’ve just dropped from a small ledge. For this reason, I’ve never understood why anyone would oppose the s.m.a.r.t. system.

(Boognish) #9

[QUOTE=weeschwee;415022]That is exactly how it is for the PC. If you hold sprint it becomes the s.m.a.r.t. button. Your character will automatically mantle or wall run when making contact with an obstacle. On the other hand, if you press and release your sprint button, your character will just sprint until you stop moving. This way you can manually do every s.m.a.r.t. move. Sprint and jump to hurdle. Sprint and crouch to slide. Sprint and jump while heading towards a wall to wall run. Also, doing these things manually was more effective, because, naturally, you would climb over a wall easier and faster if you had a jumping start.

It seems not many people knew about this or it wasn’t an available option for all platforms. I knew about this method since before the game came out because of developer interviews and articles. I’ve used it since launch and I’ve only ever had problems with the game auto-sliding for me when I’ve just dropped from a small ledge. For this reason, I’ve never understood why anyone would oppose the s.m.a.r.t. system.[/QUOTE]

I was aware that it could be done manually, I guess what I’m asking is for it to only be possible manually. I don’t want anyone to be able to mindlessly hold a button down and do all the cool moves.

(weeschwee) #10

What is wrong with other people being able to do it automatically? You have less control and it’s slower than doing the moves manual. Are you worried new players will be on an even playing field without having any experience? If someone absolutely has to rely on the auto s.m.a.r.t. I don’t think you have to worry too much about them being a huge threat.

Personally, I would want an option to fully disable the auto s.m.a.r.t. for those occasions when it does something you didn’t expect.

(prophett) #11

I liked smart, but I hope DB has a somewhat harder movement/jumping system to master, equivalent to strafe jumping in ET.

(Boognish) #12

[QUOTE=weeschwee;415088]What is wrong with other people being able to do it automatically? You have less control and it’s slower than doing the moves manual. Are you worried new players will be on an even playing field without having any experience? If someone absolutely has to rely on the auto s.m.a.r.t. I don’t think you have to worry too much about them being a huge threat.

Personally, I would want an option to fully disable the auto s.m.a.r.t. for those occasions when it does something you didn’t expect.[/QUOTE]

Everyone should be on an even playing field, and I think the auto SMART button dumbs the game mechanics down. It’s no different to me than auto-aim assists.

(Litego) #13

Strafe jumping is awesome, I’m just not sure how well it would fit in a shooter like this.

And I’m not sure if I agree that the movement system should be so complicated. Having it being responsive and natural is what’s important, that it does what you want it to without any mix ups. If that can be achieved without complicated controls, than I think that’s great! Fighting controls and silly game mechanics is not a fun thing to do.

Strafe jumping was a skill that had to be learned, but the controls were not complicated, strafing while turning and jumping, pretty simple stuff. Rocket jumping, aim down, jump and fire. Plasma climbing, same as rocket jumping, just against a wall with the right angle. They don’t require extra buttons, just the correct execution. That’s a good movement system, it has a skill curve, but it is simple to learn, no extra control clutter.

(weeschwee) #14

It also limits the potential speed and efficiency of the player. Anyone who excels at the game will do everything manually for the best possible outcome. Making simple operations skill based or complicated is dumb. Climbing over an object should not be the winning factor in a duel. There should be practiced aiming, calmness under pressure, awareness, tactical decision making, etc. that should decide who wins each encounter. I don’t blame the other person for winning a fight. I blame myself for losing.

Also, I gladly disable auto-aim assists when I play a console shooter. It makes it that much more satisfying knowing I did decent or topped the charts against others who use it.

(Grayman) #15

I want Brink and Mirror’s Edge type of movement in any shooter with a bit of a realistic bent. Brink’s implementation was a little bit clunky in feeling but that could be improved. The real flaw was that the maps did not get as much use out of it as they could have. The parkour this mission challenge had more tricks in it than all the maps combined.

(Kendle) #16

And this is what was wrong with it. If SMART had been on a separate key there would be no issue, those who wished to use it could, those that didn’t wouldn’t have to.

By combining it with the sprint key you take away some of the functionality of the sprint key. In quake engine games timing the release of the sprint key is crucial to making some of the moves. Tapping sprint to sprint and carry on sprinting till you do something to cause sprinting to stop is counter-intuitive and restricts what you can do.

SMART in DB fine, as long as it’s on it’s own key and those of us who don’t want / need to use it don’t have to.

(Stumperd) #17

I hope they don’t add smart but just make the movement almost exactly like in ET (so trickjumping and strafing will be possible). In ET the movement was just perfect.

(Erkin31) #18

Parkour in Brink was good, but for an arcade multiplayer game, I don’t like to launch an animation for jump through a window.
In a game like ARMA or Red orchestra, it’s ok, but not in a fast and skilled game like ET.

(obliviondoll) #19

SMART was a great concept, but it could do with better implementation wherever it shows up next, be that Dirty Bomb or something else.

Most importantly, it should be possible to assign SMART and sprint separately, and/or to turn off the automated SMART system. The “smooth” part could use some work as well, but it was pretty amazing for a first iteration of the system and cleaning it up should go without saying. The bigger problem, for me at least, was the fact that the system was MEANT to give players more freedom and control, but frequently ends up TAKING CONTROL AWAY FROM THE PLAYER instead.

Lets say you’re close to a chest-high barrier, and there’s a higher and more solid wall not far from you, then someone comes around the corner and opens fire. You could sprint into the higher cover, risking a few headshots and bodyshots along the way, but why? You can just slip into a sprint and slide, using that wall to protect yourself completely as you get to a better position. Except that you’re running pretty close to the wall, and you don’t know if the SMART system will let you start sprinting there, or if it will instead make you leap out into the open like a total moron. If it fails, you’re exposing your entire body as a target, the EXACT OPPOSITE RESULT to what you’re aiming for - and it’s not because of a bad decision, or because you’re bad at the game, it’s a random chance that the system will go wonky because of two distinct functions being bound to a single button.

If there was a delay before SMART kicks in when you press the button, that would have fixed the problem. But a BETTER solution would be to let players un-bind the automated system, and only use SMART when you manually trigger events with the jump and crouch commands. This could also tie into better customisation of the controls, allowing players to have a “toggle SMART” system where you can give the automated system free reign with the touch of a button instead of being forced to hold it down, or a “hold to sprint” option instead of a toggle, so people who prefer it can do so WITHOUT being forced to rely on the automated system the whole way, or to stop/tap sprint again when they decide to slow down.

(Hundopercent) #20

I enjoyed the SMART system as well even with its flaws. I don’t have a preference for this. If it’s in the game, sweet, if not all well maybe it will pop up in their next IP.