- Add AI controlled targets for players to kill for c-bills during a match, like in Moba's
- Have a co-op survival mode vs AI for non-competitve casual players
- Have a very short campaign, or even just the survival mode via AI be the new player tutorial.
- Have a respawn game mode option
And here's why:
- Understand just WHY AI controlled opponents are there to begin with, because human players hate to lose. By having AI controlled opponents to fall over and die makes it so that even the suckiest warrior FEELS like he's contributing or doing well. Logic really says he's not, but for many people it will brunt that bu-tt-hurt feeling they get to constantly losing. AI opponents can take a loss without feeling bad about it. It's there PURELY for player ego.
- Not everyone wants to play competitively. Some people want to play co-operatively. Have a mode for that. Hell, I know a fellow MWO player that was the leader of a pvp guild in WoW and even he admits that he sometimes needed to go off and not pvp because even for die hard pvp players, it gets boring/tiring/frustrating.
- Remember Chromehounds? It had a basic single player game, but it was so short, that it really was just a playground for new players. Once new players cut their teeth there on derp AI enemies, they could go online and try their hand at real players. Again, this is for player ego. New players won't want to continue playing when they keep getting their azz handed to them when they're just starting a new game. Rather than trying to group them with other derp newbies, let them cut their teeth on incompetent AI that will fluff their ego and they can move onto real MP when they feel they are ready. It's human nature.
- It takes a long time to setup and start a game and then you die and you need to wait for the match to finish if you want all the c-bills from kill assists. A respawn mode makes it so that you can continually be in action without all this waiting after finally getting everyone into the game. It also lessens the blow to their ego if they can just respawn again. Yes, let respawning reduce your rewards. Yes, have no-respawning be the default option, but at least provide 1 game mode where you can respawn. Respawning also reduces roll-overs. If someone on your team plays poorly and dies early, at least they'll respawn and get back into the fight. Having no respawns means that more than half the game it's just a mop up and let's be honest PGI, a slaughter for the last half of the game is no fun for anyone. The losing player is frustrated and the winning player is just mopping up with no challenge.
To have a largest possible player base, the game needs to appeal to the largest variety of players. I've heard Russel spout what he believes is PGI's "vision" of what the game would/should be like to have most fun. I can respect that, but I would put forth that it would be more profitable to have multiple visions, multiple modes, multiple options. Give as many options as you can to the players and let them decide. Here is an example:
PGI tried to find a set of colors for the UI/HUD that could appeal to everyone or at least the largest amount of people. What they should have done was to just let players choose a color themselves. Not every color is going to work for everyone, but everyone can find their own color that works for them.
PGI thinks it is most fun to not have respawns. What they could have done was to have respawns as an option. Let the players choose and whichever is more popular will get used the most.
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Just some suggestions PGI. I look forward to the great stuff you're bringing us in the future.