9 replies to this topic

[MeiSooHaityu]

Free to play games always seem to have an unfriendly economy. I understand why they do (they have to be able to sell real money booster content), but it always creates a steep curve for new players.

The trial mechs were there to let people try a new chassis, but you only have 1 per tonnage class and they can not be altered or changed. This is an issue because

• You can not try all the mechs
  
• The loadouts can not be touched
  
• The loadouts are often too hot or lacking too much ammo to be representitive of play

It does make me wonder though, should MWO have "Rent-able" mechs? Maybe have it where you can rent a mech for a few days for a small fraction of the C-bills spent on buying a mech to see if you like it.

The mech would be customizable like a regular mech minus some key features.

You Can...
Install weapons, Engines, Ammo, Heatsinks, etc... via inventory or buy them in mech lab as any other mech. Can alter armor values as well. Can accumulate C-Bills from match as usual.

You Can Not...
Accumulate general or mech specific XP. Install Modules of any type.



Things chassis specific like Artemis, Ferro Armor, Heatsinks, or Endo steel might not be changed from the mech's standard loadout (so you don't loose those items after the rental period). It could be changed if the C-Bill amount was re-imbursed, but I could see that being difficult to do. Still possible I suppose.

When rental period is up, weapons, ammo, engine, equipment installed will be returned to your inventory automatically.

Is it too "emmersion breaking"? I don't know, but it seems like a good way for people to try out new mechs, and it might make it easier for new players (with less C-Bills) to try different mechs before spending all the hard earned C-bills on a mech they don't like. It would effectively ease the economy up, but be limiting enough for the player to want to own vs rent a chassis.

If it does feel emmersion breaking, think of it as a mercenary contract where you use the merc unit's mech for the durration of a 3 day contract

[Name115734]

Good idea, if fact I remember suggesting something like this over a year ago.

PGI loves ignoring good ideas, so keep 'em coming.

[Mechteric]

Its definitely an idea I've suggested and still am 100% behind doing, though I think your restrictions are too harsh. Who really wants to play in a stock loadout anyway (unless you are facing only against other stocks)?

Rather it should be able to change equipment but not change upgrades. This way if you decide to stop your rental, your purchased equipment is just placed in your inventory, but equipment that came with the rental does not.

Of course that further leads to "who wants to play with single heat sinks anyway?". Well I dunno, maybe they should make double heat sinks not be an upgrade cost. Whatever, let them figure that part out!

Edited by CapperDeluxe, 04 March 2014 - 01:10 PM.

[Sug]

Every mech, full customization, but you can only take them into the Training Grounds before you buy them.

[MeiSooHaityu]

CapperDeluxe, on 04 March 2014 - 01:07 PM, said:

Its definitely an idea I've suggested and still am 100% behind doing, though I think your restrictions are too harsh. Who really wants to play in a stock loadout anyway (unless you are facing only against other stocks)?

Rather it should be able to change equipment but not change upgrades. This way if you decide to stop your rental, your purchased equipment is just placed in your inventory, but equipment that came with the rental does not.

Of course that further leads to "who wants to play with single heat sinks anyway?". Well I dunno, maybe they should make double heat sinks not be an upgrade cost. Whatever, let them figure that part out!

That's what I said LOL. It can be fully customizable minus upgrades (the stock upgrade setup). I think you saw my listing of the issue with trial mechs and assumed it was applied to my rental mechs. You just skimmed and didn't read it .

Sug, on 04 March 2014 - 01:33 PM, said:

Every mech, full customization, but you can only take them into the Training Grounds before you buy them.

I think people should be allowed to try them in actual combat. I think you should be able to really use a mech to see if it was right for you. That is difficult to do in training grounds.

If it seems like rentals would be too much of an aid, you could make it so that you can only rent each mech variant only once.

[Satan n stuff]

MeiSooHaityu, on 04 March 2014 - 09:09 AM, said:

OP

Not a bad idea, but you forgot "You can't sell anything that was on the mech when you bought it."

[MeiSooHaityu]

Satan n stuff, on 05 March 2014 - 08:57 AM, said:

Not a bad idea, but you forgot "You can't sell anything that was on the mech when you bought it."

Very good point. What would stop someone from renting, stripping the mech, and waiting 3 days for the mech to return without equipment. Maybe anything removed would be non-saleable in your inventory and removed from inventory when the mech was returned.

This might be getting too complicated to implement

[fandre]

I suggest Rent-a-mech on a per-use basis, payable with MC for example 1-5MC per match, maybe with an additional starting fee of around 10-20MC, depending on the mech and its variant. No limitation in equiptment, a one time color+pattern selection and XP/GXP stay.

Edited by fandre, 05 March 2014 - 09:21 AM.

[Joseph Mallan]

Maybe not replace it, but an option to it. Some folks don't want to spend money so free Trial Mechs need to be available.

[Mechteric]

MeiSooHaityu, on 05 March 2014 - 08:54 AM, said:

That's what I said LOL. It can be fully customizable minus upgrades (the stock upgrade setup). I think you saw my listing of the issue with trial mechs and assumed it was applied to my rental mechs. You just skimmed and didn't read it .

Hehe, sorry. Must have been a weird day at work for me! Carry on!