No replies to this topic

[Willard Phule]

Ok, before I get started, I want everyone to keep in mind that I pretty much arbitrarily hate everything that PGI ever does and expect them to break more than they fix with every patch...historically, that's been the case.

But, let's just do a little simple math to see whether this last one was better or worse than the ones that came before...and, remember, this is just my opinion...yours may differ completely.

Achievements Added - ( +1 ) I'm not into "cheevos," but with the recent cbill/xp nerfs, it's nice to get a little cheese for doing your job. Even if it's a one time deal.

TXAA is now enabled for GPUs that support TX - ( -1 ) I've seen a lot of posts out there that say it's not working like it's supposed to. Can't give it a positive rating until it's working as planned.

Added "Mech Detail" screen in Mech Lab. (Phase 1 - Static) -( +1 ) Yep, I've seen it. It works. Nice to know what engine is where, even if it's more complicated than simply cursoring over something. It's a step in the right direction.

Mech Tuning

• Highlander HGN-732, HGN-733, HGN-733P, and HGN-HM torso movement speed changed from default to -10%.
  
• Highlander HGN-733C and HGN-733C© torso movement speed changed from +5% to default.
  
• All Victor variants' turning speed and torso movement speed changed from default to -20%.
  
• All Victor variants' arm movement speed changed from default to -10%.

(+1) Lots of whining and crying over this one, though and I'm not sure why. I've got plenty HGN chassis and they work just fine. Granted, I'm not a poptart, so I'm sure that's why there are so many complaints. Keep in mind that HGNs and VTRs are supposed to be "ASSAULT MECHS," which means they're not supposed to be able to move as fast as Mediums or Heavies.

Locust leg hitboxes reduced by approximately 10% to make them a little harder to hit. - (-1) PGI's historical ability to manipulate hitboxes in any fashion tends to break more than it fixes. Locusts now have "Spider Armor" in their legs. I fail to see how that could possibly be seen as a "good thing."

NARC Weapon Update

• NARC no longer gets knocked off a 'Mech via damage.
  
• NARC counters ECM while the NARC is still active.

( +1 ) This is a positive thing simply because it allows yet another way to counter the broken ECM system. Personally, I'd rather they revisit ECM and correct it's deficiencies but...anything that gives a team another viable option to counter ECM is a good thing in principle.

LRM Weapon Update

• LRM flight speed has been increased from 120m/s to 175m/s

( +1 ) All the whining and crying aside, this actually puts LRMs back on the map as a viable weapon system. Up until this patch, the only people that were using LRMs were the dedicated support people that refused to give up hope that LRMs could still work.....or Derps in that Trial Stalker deathtrap. I wish I could give it a +5 but for this tally, it's all 1s.

AMS Weapon Update

• AMS active range has been increased to 120m (up from 90m)

( +1 ) Even though the AMS is borked simply because it targets EVERY missile, not just the ones coming at you, It needed the increase. They've increased the range of every single BT weapon system...why not the AMS?

Additional Zoom Level Command - ( +1 ) Haven't seen a single comment about this yet. It's all been whining and crying about LRMs. I'm surprised the Snipers and Poptarts haven't noticed that they can set their zoom to "maximum zoom" with the touch of a button...instead of having to cycle through the different levels.

Turret Updates

• Destroying a Turret now rewards the player with 750 CB.
  
• Destroying a Turret now rewards the player with 150 XP.
  
• Turrets in cocoon mode will now have a damage reduction value of 85% instead of 99%.

( +1 ) Anything that increases cbill and xp awards for doing something productive is, in itself, a good thing. As long as it works the way it's supposed to.

General

• Fixed a build configuration issue that was resulting in misses in the shader cache causing stuttering for both DX9/DX11
  
• UI 2.0 - Mechlab - Fixed an issue where stripping a Mech of its equipment did not update the inventory until the changes are saved
  
• UI 2.0 - Mechlab - Improved stability while customizing Mech loadout
  
• UI 2.0 - Skills - Fixed an issue where unlocking master of a currently selected Mech which had the module window open caused a critical loadout error

( No rating ) I should give this a -1 out of principle because all of those things shouldn't have to have had to be fixed. They should have been up to speed when the previous patch was released.

So...what's our tally (gimme a second, I have to use my fingers here)?

8 Positives, 2 Negatives. Even if you're not a fan of the LRM speed increase, it's a 7/3. I'd say, overall, that this patch was more positive than normal.

And it makes me nauseous to say it.