5 replies to this topic

[maxdest]

Each phase runs for 8 hours, always one planet in each phase so players always have a choice.

Phase 1: Scouting
As per current scouting mode, but rewards do not take effect until next phase(s)

Phase 2: Skirmish
As per fast play game modes, but with 4x re-spawns via dropships.
Winner of most games takes an advantage into final game phase(e.g. 1-5 territories are secured and cannot be lost).

Phase 3: Assault
As per current invasion mode.

Also (as per other popular suggestions):
Tweak long tom (one use per match, preferably controlled by company leader)
Reduce factions dramatically (Crusaders / Wardens / Fedcom / Other) ?


Should be relatively easy to implement as largely using existing assets.

[Sjorpha]

But why?

So the only effect is see is preventing people from playing the mode they want when they want, which would be disastrous for the population.

What positive effects do you imagine this would bring?

[maxdest]

As stated within original post each faction would always have 1 planet at each stage, so you could always play which mode you wanted. 4 faction x 3 modes = 12 planets, and you could use some logic to reduce this as both attacker and defender would count as being in a phase (you would have a minimum of 6 Planets, and an average of 9).

As for advantages:

• Firstly, I bet a lot of quickplay players would jump at the chance to play the existing game modes but with 4x respawn. Big player draw = win.
  
• Secondly it delivers more variety by bringing additional game modes to FW, whilst not breaking/making redundant existing FW game modes and all at a lowish dev cost (as these game modes already exist).
  
• Lastly it brings a sense of progression to a planet. At the moment it's just the same from start to end (not at all immersive, and pretty boring).

This is just a base idea and could be tweaked. E.g. maybe conquest could form a second mode in scouting phase, or skirmish could be played in all phases (but offer different planetary benefits dependent on phase).

Putting my dev hat on... I would see a low player base and think about just letting FW rot whilst I built Solaris or PvE.

So something needs to be urgently done to increase FW popularity at a low dev cost, and just changing LT is not enough. What better way of drawing in QP players than leveraging existing game modes?

[Davegt27]

Sounds like a good idea to me

[BearFlag]

maxdest, on 02 September 2016 - 11:55 AM, said:

As for advantages:

• Firstly, I bet a lot of quickplay players would jump at the chance to play the existing game modes but with 4x respawn. Big player draw = win.
  
• Secondly it delivers more variety by bringing additional game modes to FW, whilst not breaking/making redundant existing FW game modes and all at a lowish dev cost (as these game modes already exist).
  
• Lastly it brings a sense of progression to a planet. At the moment it's just the same from start to end (not at all immersive, and pretty boring).

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So something needs to be urgently done to increase FW popularity at a low dev cost, and just changing LT is not enough. What better way of drawing in QP players than leveraging existing game modes?

I agree that bringing in QP modes would radically change FW's popularity, but....

Respawning on them is not good, IMO, for a couple of reasons.

1) Pretty sure to make respawn happen on QP maps you'll be modifying code/script both inside and outside of Cryengine. Better to take the stock QP modes and put a pre-game/end-game FW wrapper around it.

2) We've all had blowout matches in QP. But it's one mech then queue up again. In Invasion blowout matches extend across four mechs and it's not much fun for stomper or the stompee. If you're the stompee you probably get to see your last two mechs spawn camped. Ugh. Stomps and spawn camping across four mechs are among the things that make Invasion unpalatable to 90% of players.

QP modes: yes
Respawn: no

I think you're on the right track. But after a year and a half, PGI can't fix the one respawning mode we have. Better to stick with the popular aspects of QP and leave out the unpopular aspects of FW.

As for progression, what we have to work with without major coding is

Invasion, two sub-modes (sorta, Invasion, Counter-Attack)
Scout, one sub-mode (Scout-Intel)

to which we could add non-respawing QP (call it BattleFront or Frontline)

BattleFront, three sub-modes (Skirmish, Domination, Assault)

While lots of things should have been done long ago to represent progression (planet node maps, context modes, etc), we don't have it. So here's a progression with what we have...

Cracking the Planet's Defenses:
Modes: Invasion/CA and Scout
Description: Before the planet can be fought over it's major defenses (X number of cannons) must be destroyed and held. We have six maps with cannons. Give 'em context.

Fighting for the Planet:
Modes: Sk/Aslt/Dom and Scout
Description: This is now how a planet is actually taken. The QP modes. Grinding battles on familiar maps with familiar modes. It cannot begin until the planet is cracked.

(Optional) Secure the Planet:
Modes: Invasion/CA and Scout
Description: Break the last fortified holdouts. It would be nice if we had palaces, fortresses and industrial objectives, but what we have is cannons. Have to do. It cannot begin until BattleFront achieves X% control of the planet.

The QP modes could be added without these progression enhancements, but it would be nice....

Edited by BearFlag, 02 September 2016 - 10:08 PM.

[nimdabew]

I love the idea except have three planets all in a different phase at the same time so people can choose which game mode they want to play in. There is the standard defense and attack for each faction, but lump the different buckets together. I think this is a FANTASTIC idea and one that would be really easy to implement. Tweak the hours to that the scout/skirmish games overlap a bit and give the invasion force 12 total hours instead of 8.

Also, only two or three drops in the "QP" mode so people can get more drops in. Once the game swings to one side, it is hard to recover and giving everyone 24 mechs to drop in would help alleviate the pug stomps.

This might be the thing that would get all the QP people into FW once and for all so there won't be endless ghost drops. ARE YOU LISTENING PGI? NO? Crap.