tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post8577536844773734758..comments2024-03-27T10:35:46.596+01:00Comments on Ravalation: Artificial versus designed difficulty: a critique on SWTOR's master mode story design Ravanelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03447777640056476366noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-77971124278069045772017-08-13T23:12:35.340+02:002017-08-13T23:12:35.340+02:00None of this works for me. To me, gameplay should ...None of this works for me. To me, gameplay should be immersive and be based on the actual game's story. I don't want gameplay that is Dance Dance Revolution which is what all these mechanics are. I want fights with bosses to be me pitting my will and power against their will and power. Screw stupid Dance Dance Revolution. It is fine that you enjoy the current iteration of MMO boss fights that are just Dance Dance Revolution but I do not. I want parity with the boss. If the boss can one shot me then I MUST be able to one shot the boss. If I only deal 0.1% hp damage to the boss per hit, then the boss MUST only be able to deal 0.1% hp damage to me per hit. If I will be instantly killed or take massive damage if I stay in a circle, then I must have a skill which will one shot or deal massive damage to the boss if the boss stands in MY circle. I want fairness and parity in boss fights. I am according to the story just as strong as the boss, if not stronger and the actual gameplay should reflect this. I HATE FIGHTS WHICH ARE JUST YOU DANCING AROUND THE BOSS DOING CHIP DAMAGE TO THE BOSS WHILE THE BOSS IS CAPABLE OF ONE SHOTTING YOU. THAT'S CRAP! I AM JUST AS POWERFUL AS THE BOSS AND THE GAMEPLAY MUST REFLECT THAT!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02077724952980059519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-50018217273182480072017-02-13T17:18:41.716+01:002017-02-13T17:18:41.716+01:00I love SWTOR but I honestly think it would have do...I love SWTOR but I honestly think it would have done better as a single player game. I know the game can be played solo but still. Jennyhttp://jenpants.tumblr.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-62432355919172584612017-02-13T00:31:57.909+01:002017-02-13T00:31:57.909+01:00I just realized after I posted that giant wall of ...I just realized after I posted that giant wall of text I could have cut the explanation about how mercenaries in EQ2 and just got to the point of AIs. /sigh<br /><br />Anyway, this is one of those cases where not having experience with SWTOR makes it hard to discuss as I need to keep it to generalities and assumptions.<br /><br />I am not sure it is that easy to implement a companion management system like you suggested. The way I imagine it would have to change the mouse cursor of the player so they can tell where they want the companion to move. The companion then would have to stop whatever they were doing and go to where they were told to do. But then what should they do next? Just stay put in there until they receive new orders? Try to attack from range (assuming they can?). What if adds come and start attacking the companion? Should they stay put too, without attacking back or defend themselves? What if the boss has a ranged attack that targets the companion? There is a lot of different situations you would have to consider in a system like this.<br /><br />As far as companiones being weaker and having much less skills than players it is pretty much the same with mercenaries in EQ2. Mercenaries also have an hourly payment and I think they take a bit of your XP. But those costs are usually insignificant. Just adding this as something like interesting similarities.Rakunohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00253609981961681014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-76106175320802111222017-02-12T23:47:44.493+01:002017-02-12T23:47:44.493+01:00Thanks for the heroic attempt, Rakuno! It took me ...Thanks for the heroic attempt, Rakuno! It took me hours of research to write this article, and although I'm happy to hear people enjoy my screenies...<br /><br />Making companions immune to AoE damage would be the easy solution. The situation would be better than it is right know, but the better option (in my opinion) is to improve the companion management. Sending your companion to specific locations out of harm's way would be an extra thing to keep track of during an already busy fight, which would be a nice extra challenge for master mode. If it's easier to implement, the developers could also add a button that does that just in master mode story, so they don't have to be afraid of anything breaking outside that context.<br /><br />Not that I think it would. Even though companions recently received an massive buff due to the new influence system (see ***), they will never be better than a player, simply because they cannot react to unpredictable situations. Players are also way more versatile, having 30-40 skills, while companions only have 7.<br /><br />A difference between the two games is that SWTOR has always had companions; the game is built around it. If you don't have enough people to run a dungeon (or flashpoint, as they are called), it is intended to bring a companion to help you out instead. However, if you want to use the group finder system to instantly port to a flashpoint or other instance, it will only count players when looking for participants. If you want to use a companion instead of a player, you have to actively seek out the entrance of the flashpoint, so in that sense it's not stimulated, but the option is there.<br /><br />Companions are, however, disabled in raids.<br /><br />Overall, I believe better micromanagement will not make companions too strong (even the insane influence buff didn't do that); if anything, it will result in less frustration when attempting to complete the recent storylines on harder difficulty settings.Ravanelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03447777640056476366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-58539972176030866132017-02-11T22:47:05.461+01:002017-02-11T22:47:05.461+01:00I thought if I should comment on this or not since...I thought if I should comment on this or not since my experiences and circunstances in Everquest 2 don't exactly match these but given that others are just commenting on the screenshots... :p<br /><br />So, in EQ2 since a few expansions ago we have mercenaries which, mechanically speaking, are similar to the companions in SWTOR. Another thing that started from a few expansions ago has been the addition of solo versions to most dungeons. They are intended for two players or one-player plus mercenary (hence the term solo) are easier than the regular versions and rewards equivalent to its difficulty. They are nice for people like me who prefers to solo and just wants to see the dungeons and whatever story it has (like me) or that have no friends playing the game *coughs*alsolikeme*coughs*.<br /><br />The named (how we call the "bosses" there) fights tend to be very scripted too. So the experience can vary widely depending of the combination of the player class and the mercenary class. Usually my experience has been that tank players plus a healer mercenaries have an easier time. Healer players with tank mercenaries are bit trickier and another class with any other combination of mercenaries can vary widely. This isn't always true though. There are encounters I had an easier time with my healer character than my tank one, for example.<br /><br />Most of the difficulty depends on what the fight script asks. For example, if the enemy announces he will do something and you need to get away from him. Or a debuff that needs to be cured or you will die. It also used to be worse but they changed things slightly to make it better, like making mercenaries immune to AOEs and some other stuff I forgot about.<br /><br />I am sure the developers could make the AIs behave much better but then there is the danger of players choosing a companion or mercenary instead of another player in normal group dungeons. In EQ2 you can do that as mercenaries count as another player as far as group content goes. Unless it changed since release, I believe SWTOR can also allow you to bring companions for normal group content?<br /><br />As for artificial difficulty, I agree completely. I always hated it hence why I never bother with changing the difficulty setting to anything above normal in games.<br /><br />Oh, just to keep with the theme of the other comments (and because it is true), your screenshots are awesome as always. :)Rakunohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00253609981961681014noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-26344819554580338072017-02-11T14:39:00.405+01:002017-02-11T14:39:00.405+01:00Well, now at least you know not to expect any new ...Well, now at least you know not to expect any new mechanics and mostly just a gear check. I do love that screenshot as well! It reminds me of all the times I'm like "nooooo, [insert companion name here]" when doing story on veteran or master mode.Ravanelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03447777640056476366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-79717577437297049352017-02-11T14:36:12.302+01:002017-02-11T14:36:12.302+01:00Glad you enjoy them. It was fun to come up with cr...Glad you enjoy them. It was fun to come up with creative ways to show how companions fail the player from time to time.Ravanelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03447777640056476366noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-10516082245821028692017-02-10T09:56:49.204+01:002017-02-10T09:56:49.204+01:00I know this doesn't have much to do, but your ...I know this doesn't have much to do, but your screenshots are the best! :)Armathyxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12605672751498969775noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5922857679980740630.post-43964062111717665912017-02-09T21:20:33.885+01:002017-02-09T21:20:33.885+01:00I can't really comment on the actual content o...I can't really comment on the actual content of this post much, seeing how I haven't tried any of the master mode chapters... but I do love that screenshot of Lana standing there very calmly and staring at you while on fire. :PShintarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16758343475446510635noreply@blogger.com