I've been bothered by something about DUST for a while, and I think I've finally put my finger on it. Many thanks to noShwagg, and to the Uprising build for making this problem so over the top.

Feedback:

FULL DISCLOSURE: I play as a heavy.

Range is a huge problem in this game. More so with Uprising.

Here is why: CCP has decided to use a hard range as a metric to differentiate classes.

In no other game is this the case. In practice, it is ridiculous. Rounds stop in mid air. This is absurd.

Sure, in other games and in reality there is different effective damage at range depending on the weapon. But this is not primarily dictated by distance. It is dictated by accuracy of shooter, rate of fire (ROF), and Round Power - Damage Falloff.

Request:

CCP Should:

1) Remove hard range cap on all weapons. Rounds should travel to their natural terminus; in practice this means across the map. (shhhhhh...just listen)

2) Weapon classes should be dictated by:
- Handling (Kick)
- ROF
- Round Power

Example (categorized by effective damage/range, from long to short):

1) Long Range Weapons - Sniper Rifle/Forge Gun
-Extremely High Kick
-Low ROF
-High Power
Skill with Long Range Weapons comes from:
Being a player with excellent aim, despite:
-Extremely High Kick
-Extremely Low ROF

2) Assault Weapons (Broadly) - ARs/LRs/SMGs/Shotguns/Pistols
-Average Kick
-Average ROF
-Average Power
Skill with Assault Weapons comes from:
Being a player with excellent aim, despite:
-Average Kick
-Average ROF
-Average Power

3) Heavy Weapons - HMGs
-Extremely High Kick
-High ROF
-High Power
Skill with Heavy Weapons comes from:
Being a player with excellent aim, despite:
-Extremely High Kick

Do you see a theme here? Excelling at a particular weapon involves having excellent aim despite it's drawbacks.

This is where people will say "Range is a drawback of your class, deal." Even an extremely skilled heavy player should have almost no chance of killing someone at sniper range. This should be due to simple geometry; the barrel bounce of an HMG is causing HUGE angle sway on rounds as range increases. This should not be due to the rounds entering a parallel universe at 50 yards. Dafuq Occasionally, an HMG, AR, or Pistol round should hit that sniper on the hill....

Some will say, this will eliminate CQC. I would agree to some extent, but only in that the maps lack cover and depth. If you added in more cover and ways to approach and move around, you would force squad movement and engagement at closer ranges. A lack of CQC is an approach issue, not a weapon range issue.

As it is right now, you see people shooting at each other over completely reasonable ranges...I'm talking I could throw a football that far...and their rounds aren't reaching each other. This is ridiculous!!!

TL;DR?

Extend range of ALL weapons to common round ranges. No more vanishing rounds.

Differentiate weapons by their other drawbacks, and the users ability to handle them.

I would rather see damage fall off be more progressive rather than all weapons having the same range.

HMG should not be able to fire with that ROF at an ARs optimal and still do more DPS

AR should not be able to out DPS an LR in a LR's optimal but the AR rounds also shouldn't just stop making impact all together.

Despite the range NERF to all weapons the AR is still the most viable weapon....now it's just used in a stampede. A few guys might get picked off in the herd rush by ranged weapons but once the pile of AR clones gets within 65 meters, it's a done deal. They mow down heavies before they get near the 20m heavy optimal. Weapons like the LR and TAR only have about a 20m window to take down the AR herd before their range advantage is rendered useless.


More progressive falloff is needed or a blanket buff to all effective weapon ranges. Being able to sight up an enemy with iron sights or Doom mode plain as day and not being able to do ANY damage at all is pretty game breaking, IMO.

Disagree

New range make game more interesting. No more rooftopers, no snipers far away in red zone.

Infantry playing now is very interesting, coz it not "far-away-head-glitch-shooting" and no permanent camping.

Range need no more changes, its perfect now.