614 replies to this topic

[Captain Fabulous]

I'm all for the idea of a cockpit view. As for those who are nervous about somebody sneak up behind them during a battle, I recommend something like a rear-view mirror (camera?). I doubt mech pilots would go into battle with a 80-90 pound behemoth just to have somebody in a little Jenner sneak up behind them and shoot them in the ****. Mini side/rearview cameras could help take that element of blindness away without bringing up the problems of 3rd person corner-cutting that somebody mentioned earlier.

[Omega59er]

I concur with the thoughts that many players have, that first person cockpit view is the way that Mechwarrior is supposed to be, but the cockpits have to be very good for limiting the game to first person only. I know this will buy me some flame from other people, and I love Mechwarrior Living Legends, but the mech combat is almost unplayable for me. The cockpit view is, in my opinion, atrocious. One of my favorite mechs, the Uziel's cockpit jumps up and down so badly I become worried that I will develop epilepsy or some neural problem.

Mechwarrior 4's cockpits were good, and very enjoyable. But I will wager a large group of people still played in third person. I did when I was playing in a support role, because I loved seeing my LRMs flying out of whatever missilepack I had.
I don't know if Mechwarrior 2 had 3rd person, but Mechwarrior 3 and 4 did, so I would say third person has been with Mechwarrior for atleast half of the franchise.
First person only is a plausible idea, but it has to be done better than MWLL.

[Wayside]

angelicon, on 31 October 2011 - 08:48 PM, said:

So a future where people drive 30 foot tall robots doesn't have the tech skill to orbit some micro cameras for outside view? There's nothing weird or cheaty about it, it's real -today-. Give me the option for outside view please.

I think its a game design choice more than evidence of some inexplicable lack of "floaty camera" technology within the fictional universe.

That said, the FAQ (http://mwomercs.com/support#faq) had this to say about alternate camera angles:

Quote

The game is played from the first person. We’re exploring ways to have a third person camera that make sense from a gameplay point of view.

Wouldn't surprise me at all if you could equip a mech to acquire short-term viewpoints from alternate angles. Camera drones being a completely feasible method of delivering that functionality.

[FaydeShift]

I think giving a 3rd person view is kinda cheap. They have a much larger range of view than those using the 1st person, and for that reason alone I would say either go with one or the other, but not both. I don't much care either way, but if I can see around a corner of a hill/building because I have a floating camera, and the other player doesn't, I instantly have a unnecessary advantage.

[Neutron IX]

roh, on 01 November 2011 - 03:22 PM, said:

There are plenty of ways to accommodate screen shots and videos. I am hoping the devs will find those that don't compromise the feel many of us are hoping for.

I agree. I think the real deal here is, we're all so **** excited and so full of hopes for what is in the works, that it's very easy to get hung up on the "what might be's" rather than focusing on the "what we know's".

What we know is, PGI seems pretty promising with what they've released so far, as far as being devoted to the canon and universe, and that so far they seem accessible and are apparently listening and considering when it comes to the fans.

We also know that, there are advantages, and disadvantages to be found when considering multiple camera angles, and considering the above, I'm hopeful that they'll do their best to weigh options and look at things that work and don't work.

We also know that no matter what they end up doing, there will be those who are happy, and those who aren't, and we're most likely sitting here hoping that we are the player that will end up in the former rather than the latter.

I don't envy the job of a game developer.

[C Town]

First person FTW...period

[Captain Fabulous]

omega5-9er, on 01 November 2011 - 03:27 PM, said:

The cockpit view is, in my opinion, atrocious. One of my favorite mechs, the Uziel's cockpit jumps up and down so badly I become worried that I will develop epilepsy or some neural problem.

I feel like in the year 3048, stabilizers would have been invented to keep shock minimalized. As much as I like view bobbing for walking in a first person game, it does indeed get a problem when the people are 30-40 foot tall mechanized titans.

[Sesambrot]

Actually just read the last post, but know how they did it in MW4? they cheated the whole cockpit!
it was nothing but an overlay which was actually floating in about the right height. but with the organic animations those mechs have there hasn't really been a different solution, but actually that is why I find it feels strange to play first person in MW4. the camera doesn't even "bob" an inch!
On the other hand I believe the should be able to make the motions of the mechs less organic and more mechanic (which actually makes sense here) and then it shouldn't be to much of a problem anyways...

[Aidan]

First Person is the only way to go !!!

Period.

Edit: Although I would hate to think that the game would only offer just Forced First Person (FFP). There could be a very small percentage of players finding it very difficult to play FFP for medical reasons. So for these players, a 3rd person view would be good. But I would also like to see server/client command variables allowing administrators to control these viewing perspectives.

Edited by Aidan, 11 November 2011 - 07:45 AM.

[avatar]

Virtual cockpits are nice for immersion. Of course, for those who get motion sickness, home sims used to have a solution back in the days when virtual cockpits didn't have functional instruments (as there wasn't enough computing power to render them - virtual cockpits were just textured boxes). It is called the static cockpit. No camera rock, no cockpit rock. (Of course, if getting hit, running etc. affect the aiming accuracy, the target reticule still needs to bounce or grow in size.) Assumably this should be doable as a simple toggle of removing those effects.

The third person view for movie making and other such purposes might make a sense in private servers where you can film in peace, but as I assume we're having more of a match-based game with clearly bounded maps and tight teams instead of large open worlds, this might not be the game for machinima. As for seeing yourself blow up stuff ingame, I have heard rumours that this game has multiplayer, so perhaps you could convince your lancemates to use FRAPS and fight in a pack? As for canon loyalty, as viewscreens and instruments exist, this would easily justify a "hud view" with you seeing on your screen what the mechwarrior sees on his. Have a "hide hud" key, and this becomes a camera (as long as your cameraman doesn't run down a cliff or something). Naturally, this might not be the easiest option if you're in actual combat, and requires getting a pal to take those "facebook shots" of your new 'Mech. Of course, a hangar view or a test drive / test range option with a free camera might be ideal for the "this is my new baby" shots.

(And yes, I assume it is redundant to say that I do prefer playing in first person in games where that view isn't just an afterthought or a camera quirk?)

Edited by avatar, 01 November 2011 - 03:59 PM.

[AlphaPrime]

Definitely think 1st person is the way to go here, and for people that say you shouldn't be able to have someone "sneak up" on you, that's what your radar is for. Also having the ability to pan your head from left to right inside the cockpit to "look around" would be nice too, though it would depend on the Mech at that point as to whether that would grant you any benefit since the cockpit designs vary widely.

[Zahrim]

No, this needs to be 1st and 3rd person. I want to see my mech, not just in the hangar.

[Venkman]

Zahrim, on 01 November 2011 - 04:05 PM, said:

No, this needs to be 1st and 3rd person. I want to see my mech, not just in the hangar.

I fully encourage you to enjoy looking at all the pieces of it once I've blasted them off.

This game needs to be 1st person. It's not MechWarrior without that. MechWarriors in the fiction don't have the option of hovering a few meters behind their 'mech so they can more easily see things to the side.

[terminator]

Bryan Ekman, on 01 November 2011 - 07:28 AM, said:

Great point. I'm going to make sure we take this into consideration with our design.

It seems the easiest way to fix this is still to only have 1st person, but have an option to disable cockpit movement or "bobbing"

[Captain Fabulous]

avatar, on 01 November 2011 - 03:59 PM, said:

Of course, a hangar view or a test drive / test range option with a free camera might be ideal for the "this is my new baby" shots.

This is an interesting development, and I like its idea. Something that should be considered as sort of an extra bonus.

[RangerRob]

Bryan Ekman, on 01 November 2011 - 07:28 AM, said:

Great point. I'm going to make sure we take this into consideration with our design.

I too suffer from motion sickness, can't play FPS but can tolerate cockpit games depending upon how fast the motion is.

Thanks for considering an over the shoulder view.

[UncleKulikov]

Angelicon, on 31 October 2011 - 08:48 PM, said:

So a future where people drive 30 foot tall robots doesn't have the tech skill to orbit some micro cameras for outside view? There's nothing weird or cheaty about it, it's real -today-. Give me the option for outside view please.

It's cheaty if both options are available, and one option is flat-out better than the other.

I'm fine with both being allowed in the game, but each match should be locked to either one or the other.

Also, who has that capability today?

This is for gameplay only, if there is a Save Film Feature (There should be) then a free camera should be available as well.

Edited by UncleKulikov, 04 November 2011 - 12:28 PM.

[SLUGGO]

first person view is the only way to play

[Ossie]

rip snorgan, on 01 November 2011 - 03:12 PM, said:

No, not confused really. Just pointing out that in the game canon, it would be unlikely that a mech could sneak up behind you anyway,

It's not so much an issue of sneaking up behind somebody as it is being able to see around corners and over hilltops. 3PV essentially removes an entire element of fog-of-war from the gameplay.

It certainly has a place in video playback.

[simon1812]

Im ok with it but I enjoyed watching my mech pawning from the 3th person view, maybe the devs could enable the option for PvE and lock the 1th person view when PvP?