15 replies to this topic

[Omigir]

Custom Paint and Quick load load-outs

Ok two things I kinda looked for around in the forums but saw nothing on and options I think would be good in this game and may already be. But I would rather make the suggestion and have them in there, then to not make the suggestion and have it not get considered.

So here it goes, First thing.
Custom paint, yes, they said paint schemes will be in there but to what depth? Clearly every house/clan that is canon has their own paint schemes that probably will be available to everyone. Just like in MW4 there will probably also be different camo paint jobs that are pretty much any one will enjoy using.
Ok so basically what I would like to see for this are a couple key things, One is the ability to upload Custom Clan/faction emblems. That way a lone wolf or merc unit can identify themselves. Merc unit markings were *HUGE* in the books. At least to my memory. If not the ability to upload an emblem, but a way to make an emblem in came to put on your mech(s). Of course there needs to be some regulation or a way to report offensive images so you don’t have like what happened in COD: Black ops where you had **** for peoples symbols. Pin up girls are one thing, but some stuff does not need to be there. <I.E. Rampant literal phallic.img>
The other Paint scheme mechanism I would like to see is the ability to purchase a pattern, (I E tiger stripe, digital print, abstract angle modern art pattern) And be able to select the colors that go into it. So if I wanted I could have oh say, Pink, Purple and Robin’s egg blue Camo paint. In this way I don’t have to get restricted on the colors I want, but a pattern I dislike. Or vice versa.
And kinda a would be nice thing is to be able to buy a pin up girl to have painted on the side of my centurion’s cannon arm, or maybe flames for the barrel or other small trip items. I know there is some talk about different things like this but more than just a warthog grin on the nose of my mech would be great, maybe even wording?

The other feature I think would be good for aiding in customization of Mech’s
I am going to assume that I will have several mech’s and maybe only one or two of any given chassis in my hanger. So on that assumption let’s say I have a oh.. a Dervish, (why not it’s a cool name?) Now if I have two different saved load outs for two different purposes (Sniping at range or running in and brawling) it would be nice to have a drop down menu to select which load out is installed onto the mech before drop into the hot zone to fit whatever need I might think I need. This way I don’t have to manually strip it, change out components and armor distro and refit all its weapons. Assuming they are all in my hanger, I could just use a drop menu and it auto fits everything. (The techs are just fast.)
Mechwarrior 4 had something similar for the online play, and in the campaign you could easily just have two chassis with each of the load outs so I just swap mechs, but I’m poor cus I like to suicide allot and can only afford maybe one dervish chasse. (cougars are expensive!)

Any who. Just some thoughts I had while I was using the bathroom earlier and wanted to share em lest they forgotten, though you might think these are basic things? Who knows, my concerns may be for not. So don’t get mad if you think these are simple and basic requirements, sometimes the smallest things get over looked or forgot!

EDIT: What bold?

Edited by Garth Erlam, 15 December 2011 - 11:11 AM.

[Omigir]

no idea how everything go bolded..

[Dihm]

Quick loadouts... that'd be handled by variants, and I think that should involve purchasing a mech of each variant if you wanna "hot swap".

Mech customization takes a lot of money and time, and there is a non-zero chance of messing stuff up but good. Now, quick loadouts for OMNImechs? Makes sense.

[Skwisgaar Skwigelf]

No to quick-swaps, yes to custom paint.

I think there should be a paint shop where you can save your paint schemes and send them to other people to upload.

[Omigir]

Dihm, on 15 December 2011 - 12:12 PM, said:

Quick loadouts... that'd be handled by variants, and I think that should involve purchasing a mech of each variant if you wanna "hot swap".

Mech customization takes a lot of money and time, and there is a non-zero chance of messing stuff up but good. Now, quick loadouts for OMNImechs? Makes sense.

im all for hardcore and real game play, but there are just some things that are hard to impliment. quick changing variants vice hot swoping mechs i think is a little far. how long will it take for you to customize a mech before you can use it in battle then? How long to repair a damaged mech? These are all things that take hours or even days. And in like wise, to go between plannets can take days or weeks depending on how far your going. They cannot impliment real space jump machanics becuase nobody wants to be disallowed from competeing while they wait for thier pixel jump ship to recharge its jump drive so they can move two plannets over to the next fight. and like wise, no one wants to wait 3 hours for thier hunchback to swap out its AC for a PPC because its not an omnimech and they cant afford to have two hunchbacks.

Edited by Omigir, 15 December 2011 - 01:20 PM.

[Dihm]

Omigir, on 15 December 2011 - 01:18 PM, said:

and like wise, no one wants to wait 3 hours for thier hunchback to swap out its AC for a PPC because its not an omnimech and they cant afford to have two hunchbacks.

That ALMOST makes it sound like people would have to think about their purchases and the function of the mechs they are buying...

[Kaemon]

I'd rather stay away from hot swaps, as it seems dev intensive for little return.

I would say that I hope skins are tied into some type of progressive meter (maybe LP, maybe game metadata i.e. games played, matches won, etc...)

I don't want new players having all sorts of tarded pink mechs wandering around just to **** up the game because they can, however if you put your time and effort in, and you want a pink freaking mech, then who are we really to say 'you can't have that'?

If you put your time and effort into the game (and we're talking alot of time and effort) you should be able to reach a unit or status that allows you quite a bit of freedom in regards to mech customization (which includes skins).

at the high levels, custom skins (and we have some talented peeps in the playerbase) need to be moderated by someone (maybe same level or higher LP peeps? Just trying to add some value to LP here) so we don't end up playing pony warrior online.

[IceSerpent]

Custom paint would be nice and seems like a good idea for a cash shop item. Quick loadouts kind of depend on how the game economy is structured, and how mechlab functions. IMHO, too early to tell whether it would fit into the game design or not.

[Omigir]

Dihm, on 16 December 2011 - 07:13 AM, said:

That ALMOST makes it sound like people would have to think about their purchases and the function of the mechs they are buying...

With the many variants available, sure.
But what is wrong with instead of buying a variant, you just buy the weapons/componets (cheaper then a whole new mech) and you make the mech you have into that variant. A chassie, after all, when stripped is just a shell <more or less>.
Also, customization does not mean a player isnt paying attention to what a purpose of a mech varient is, it just means his play style might be some where between two difrent variants and he wants to cheese it up to suite him a little better. Fair?

[Dihm]

I don't think it's "fair", but that's me. I'm anti-unlimited-customization. It makes balance harder, and heck, if you wanna go there, it goes against canon too. Mechs should be more than just empty shells that you strap whatever weapons you want to. Don't want to derail this thread too much, this topic has been beaten to death already.

Aw, can't post gifs.

[Omigir]

Dihm, they all have. Look at perma death vs perma own. I am not arguing customization, just an option if they include it.

[Dihm]

Not knowing how they are going to handle customization, I'd say that putting in hot-swapping could end up being way more than just an option. It would put limitations/requirements on the customization system itself. If you're charging c-bills for people to customize, I think you'd have a lot of irate people who blew through all they money without realizing it with hot-swapping. It would also require that there is no time element associated to customization. Why ever buy more than one mech of a certain tonnage?

What's the point of an omni-mech if those things are in? It is no different than an IS gun-bag that all mechs become, since everything is already an "omni-mech-plus".

[Omigir]

Omni-mechs are still going to have an advantage 'hot swaping' or otherwise. A hot swap is not going to change that in the least.

But lets say they do allow customization, and they do not have a 'hot swap option'. Is going in and manualy clicking and dragging my changes on the mech going to be enough of a difrence from a drop down menue/save variant to make non-omni mech that much more non-omni?

[Nik Van Rhijn]

Omni's are the only Mechs that can "hot swap" loadouts and even then only in certain fixed variants. Omigr this is at the vey basis of the arguement on customisation. The MW games got people to assume that you could do a class F refit in a few minutes when in canon it would take a factory many months, with no guarantee that it would work properly or would be capable of field maintenance. Especially when using tech that isn't common yet like LBX or FF.. It caused people to think that you could effectively design and build a completely new mech in the field in afew minutes, less if you had already saved that variant in Mechlab.

[Skwisgaar Skwigelf]

Now, if you're just talking about having a custom variant saved then yes I wouldn't have a problem. But you shouldn't be able to "hot-swap" your mech's load-out in minutes, customization should be a lengthy process whether selecting parts from the menu takes a long time or not.

[Omigir]

Skwisgaar Skwigelf, on 17 December 2011 - 06:23 AM, said:

Now, if you're just talking about having a custom variant saved then yes I wouldn't have a problem. But you shouldn't be able to "hot-swap" your mech's load-out in minutes, customization should be a lengthy process whether selecting parts from the menu takes a long time or not.

To any one:
Ya know, in reconsidering... if you cant hotswap.. changing paint should take time as well. Perhaps a 'cool down' timer for changing out items and paint. I have seen a thread that has a good recomendation for timers for 3 difrent kinds of teirs, perhaps paint swaps should like some time as well.