Csikszent Mihalyi
DUST University
Ivy League
218
   |
Posted - 2013.09.23 14:38:00 -
[1] - Quote
Your fishes are delicious, but allow us to fish in your ponds and we might just never go hungry again.
We all have our own pet peeves. Whether you think that tanks are too expensive, the AR is too versatile, or mouse users should die in a fire, there are also a few issues we can probably all agree on:
1) Performance issues. The game is pushed to its limit, especially on some of the more complex large maps in 16x16. Even more so in a competitive setting with its blobs, explosions, and uplink spam.
2) PC is not available for everyone and slightly cumbersome, while public and FW contracts do not provide a sufficient challenge for competitive players.
3) The new player experience is severely marred from constantly being steamrolled by experienced proto squads, which are only there because of point 2 to begin with.
Now, hypothetically, imagine there'd be a 6on6 league setup, where squads could not just easily find a match against an evenly matched opponent, but also compare themselves in a motivating competitive setting. These matches could, for example, take place on domination maps, which do not necessarily require a large amounts of players. This could go a long way at improving all three major issues mentioned above:
- Performance issues should be practically non-existant in a 6on6 setting on smaller domination maps. While this would not improve public gameplay, it is primarily the competitive setting where framerate issues become particularly annoying.
- It would provide highly competitive players a way to put their skills to the test and keep them motivated.
- It would keep at least some competitive squads from the public servers, making the experience a bit less gruesome for new players. It might even get to the point where facing a top squad on a public is more of an exciting event than an annoying chore.
Now, you might say that DUST is designed as a large scale team game and this would go against its spirit. True, but having low player count alternatives is nothing unusual with team based games. E.g. Enemy Territory is mostly played 5on5 (or 6on6), but 3on3 also always used to be a very popular category. While it was less tactically demanding, it was more skill based, easier to make teams / find matches for, and even allowed players to compete who didn't have computers fast enough for full 5on5.
Likewise, a 6on6 competition in DUST would provide an alternative that requires more skill from each individual, offers better performance, and is much easier to find matches for. It would not necessarily detract from full 16on16 (or eventually 24on24) being the supreme discipline.
You may also say that providing a 6on6 league setup is too extreme to expect CCP to provide something like this. I agree, and this is where my actual point comes in:
If CCP would allow us to set up our own exhibition matches, we could do it ourselves. Instead of the matchmaker, we could use chat channels to arrange matches just like in the old times. And we could use third party websites to setup leagues and tournaments. Not just would this provide all the advantages I outlined above, but also foster a new, competitive community as well as advertise the game on third party websites.
Of course it doesn't stop there, 6on6 competitions would just be one of many possible things we could do as a community without relying on CCP to spoon-feed us the fishies.
TL/DR: CCP, please provide us with capabilities to arrange our own (competitive) matches ASAP. This will provide you with some breathing space and time to work on your full vision of the game, while we take care of ourselves. |
Csikszent Mihalyi
DUST University
Ivy League
223
|
Posted - 2013.09.28 21:56:00 -
[3] - Quote
M McManus wrote: 6v6 competitive structure is definitely needed as now adays it seems, even some of the most veteran corps aren't able to field 16... 6v6 may breath some new life into Dust...
But with CCP's track record, they will acknowledge the need but it will take them 3 months and they will put organized 24v24 ambush only matches and call it new content! !
I don't expect CCP to put in a 6on6 mode either, but that's why it matters so much that we can organise our own. This would also allow new players to get a taste of competitive gameplay before they are ready for PC (and in a structured league setup, which puts teams against teams of comparable skill).
Just being able to set up private matches at will would make this possible, all other things can be worked around by a crafty community. Although more could be done to help us fish, like:
- A spectator mode.
- The ability to record replays of a match (which are at least watchable until the next release) to ease conflict resolution (since recording on the PS3 is not trivial).
- Voting options (change map, kick player, restart game, etc).
- The ability to appoint one or more referees that get powers like pausing the game or changing the map instantly.
- Control over what side of the map we play on (so that e.g. one team can pick the map, and the other can choose which side to play on). If voting is implemented, this would be as simple as offering a vote for "swap teams" while in the war barge.
But again, none of that is absolutely necessary.
To avoid abuse, I think that such matches should only award SP based on time played, completely ignoring the amount of WP, and ISK payout should be entirely based on value of ISK destroyed. Also perhaps these games should not count towards your leaderboard scores, although frankly no serious competitive player would take those seriously anyway. |