114 replies to this topic

[Chris Lowrey]

Viktor Drake, on 21 June 2017 - 09:51 AM, said:

I mean our new Balance Manager, Chris, apparently went on record at some point saying that he didn't really play the game much and that outlines the basic problem.

Please do tell where I went on record and said I don't really play the game. Because that is just patently false.

I've only been with PGI in an official capacity since Oct-Nov. of 2016, but I've been playing the game all the way back to the beta days on my private account and continue to play to this day.

I don't play on my public "Chris Lowrey" account often both because I have substantially less 'Mech's on it and most of them are not skilled / customized and people tend to play / act differently when a dev is publicly around. But I play on my private account nearly daily unless I'm super swamped with something and have been for years, even prior to taking a position with PGI.

[Athom83]

Antares102, on 21 June 2017 - 08:40 AM, said:

While battlemechs are compared to tanks the fantasy stuff behind them negates any reasoning that they should actually handle like tanks.

Being able to sidestep would take a lot more pivot points, joints, actuators, and other stuff to be able to accomplish. There's a reason it was only accomplished in quad mechs.

Ced Riggs, on 21 June 2017 - 09:23 AM, said:

I'd like to have fun. MW1, MW2, MW3, MW4 was fun. MWO had more fun, but fun, the one stat you cannot get from metrics, has been taken hit after hit. And that needs to change.

MW 1, 2, 3, and 4 were all single player games. MW O is an online only title.

[Felicitatem Parco]

Chris Lowrey, on 21 June 2017 - 10:10 AM, said:

Please do tell where I went on record and said I don't really play the game. Because that is just patently false.

I've only been with PGI in an official capacity since Oct-Nov. of 2016, but I've been playing the game all the way back to the beta days on my private account and continue to play to this day.

I don't play on my public "Chris Lowrey" account often both because I have substantially less 'Mech's on it and most of them are not skilled / customized and people tend to play / act differently when a dev is publicly around. But I play on my private account nearly daily unless I'm super swamped with something and have been for years, even prior to taking a position with PGI.

Chris... You're attempting to Logic your way through an argument with folks who blame PGI for the weather and the loss of their favorite sports team.

[Deathlike]

Fun is a relative term.

When a mech is overused to the point where it is a no-brainer, "fun" in this instance is really just rolling over people that didn't use it. That's not "fun for all" honestly.

Some mechs that used to have decent buffs... Warhammers and Black Knights come to mind... got nerfed to the point where they just haven't been usable in a more grand scheme of things. It was even a thing in comp play (at least with the Black Knight) or a capable option for FP/CW (Warhammers) that made sense considering the alternatives... and then they get nerfed unnecessarily.

That's the definition of "ruining fun".

When viable options (not necessarily comp play worthy, but an acceptable option) get removed off the table, that is a problem with fun. If you want something overquirked unnecessarily like the Arctic Cheetah from its Day 1 debut, then you're going to ruin other people's "fun" in all the wrong ways. But if you change a mech too drastically to the point it is not worth looking at (outside of the curious)... that is a problem.

[Paigan]

Antares102, on 21 June 2017 - 08:34 AM, said:

Fox the Apprentice, on 21 June 2017 - 08:31 AM, said:

Thinking Old man's shooter =/= fast

FTFY

I remember someone ranting for years about real time games being to agility driven and turn based games or at least "slow" games (like Homeworld) being more intelligent and tactically deeper. And that even before that someone was "old".

Edited by Paigan, 21 June 2017 - 10:16 AM.

[Bud Crue]

Chris Lowrey, on 21 June 2017 - 10:10 AM, said:

Please do tell where I went on record and said I don't really play the game. Because that is just patently false.

I've only been with PGI in an official capacity since Oct-Nov. of 2016, but I've been playing the game all the way back to the beta days on my private account and continue to play to this day.

I don't play on my public "Chris Lowrey" account often both because I have substantially less 'Mech's on it and most of them are not skilled / customized and people tend to play / act differently when a dev is publicly around. But I play on my private account nearly daily unless I'm super swamped with something and have been for years, even prior to taking a position with PGI.

Chris,

What do you think of the topic? Do you think there is a fun deficit with the nerffing trends? Or do you see all mechs as equally fun?
I think most mechs have something to offer the individual, but then again there is probably a reason that the Heavy queue is often in the realm of 60% or higher. I would think one possible reason for that is simply those mechs relative to all others are frankly more fun to play than the rest. Why is that? Because they have the best combination of traits to allow the player to be successful in this game. I would find a dev's thoughts on this however off the cuff to be enlightening.

[Requiemking]

Viktor Drake, on 21 June 2017 - 09:51 AM, said:

I don't necessarily agree with everything the OP states but I do agree with the general statement that PGI tends to nerf Fun. I think this comes from the fact that it doesn't really appear they actually play their own game. I mean our new Balance Manager, Chris, apparently went on record at some point saying that he didn't really play the game much and that outlines the basic problem.

Your thinking of Paul, not Chris. Paul is the one who barely plays, and the few times he does play anytime someone kills him, it results in sweeping nerfs and/or mechanic removal that ruins whatever playstyle killed him. For example, the mysterious laser vomit nerf that occurred during the reign of the Dakka Bear. The only explanations that make sense are either:

1) Dartboard of destiny

Or

2) Paul got killed by a laser vomit mech

Edited by Requiemking, 21 June 2017 - 10:21 AM.

[Chris Lowrey]

Prosperity Park, on 21 June 2017 - 10:15 AM, said:

Chris... You're attempting to Logic your way through an argument with folks who blame PGI for the weather and the loss of their favorite sports team.

And that's fine. They can form whatever opinions they want to themselves. Its another thing entirely to be saying that there was an "on record" statement that never existed. So consider that previous post my "on record" statement that yes I do play the game, almost daily. Just not on my "Chris Lowrey" account.

[Felicitatem Parco]

Chris Lowrey, on 21 June 2017 - 10:23 AM, said:

And that's fine. They can form whatever opinions they want to themselves. Its another thing entirely to be saying that there was an "on record" statement that never existed. So consider that previous post my "on record" statement that yes I do play the game, almost daily. Just not on my "Chris Lowrey" account.

Hey, why not? Make every match into a VIP match!

[Ultimax]

Fox the Apprentice, on 21 June 2017 - 08:31 AM, said:

Thinking man's shooter =/= fast

1) This game has never been fast.
2) Just because you can't think fast enough to keep up doesn't mean it's too fast or that there is no thinking involved, it means you are too slow.

[Zolaz]

But we all know that Chris made a very public declaration of his undying devotion for whatever that french fry, gravy, and cheese curd mess is that Canadians love.



I dont even know if you eat your 7 servings of veggies/fruits a day will help out your heart if you eat too much of that.

[cazidin]

Chris Lowrey, on 21 June 2017 - 10:10 AM, said:

Please do tell where I went on record and said I don't really play the game. Because that is just patently false.

I've only been with PGI in an official capacity since Oct-Nov. of 2016, but I've been playing the game all the way back to the beta days on my private account and continue to play to this day.

I don't play on my public "Chris Lowrey" account often both because I have substantially less 'Mech's on it and most of them are not skilled / customized and people tend to play / act differently when a dev is publicly around. But I play on my private account nearly daily unless I'm super swamped with something and have been for years, even prior to taking a position with PGI.

That may've been my fault, sorry about that Chris. In your first thread, the early balance post, I misunderstood your statement about holding a position in marketing to mean you didn't play much, if at all, and were focused on that job. One question I do have is why aren't PGI accounts given... well, all of the mechs and unlimited funds like on the PTS?

[Bud Crue]

Zolaz, on 21 June 2017 - 10:30 AM, said:

But we all know that Chris made a very public declaration of his undying devotion for whatever that french fry, gravy, and cheese curd mess is that Canadians love.



I dont even know if you eat your 7 servings of veggies/fruits a day will help out your heart if you eat too much of that.

Careful. Insulting Poutine can get you killed in some Vancouver neighborhoods.

[Chris Lowrey]

Bud Crue, on 21 June 2017 - 10:16 AM, said:

Chris,

What do you think of the topic? Do you think there is a fun deficit with the nerffing trends? Or do you see all mechs as equally fun?

You guys are free to express how you feel about the game as you see fit. We'll examine what you guys say, including what is said in this thread, and if anything looks like it can be improved upon, we will look into improving it. I don't want to stand in the way of your discussions or debate. Was just popping in to make sure that false information did not contribute to it. As that doesn't add anything to the discussion rather then just inflame emotions of those participating.

[Deathlike]

Ultimax, on 21 June 2017 - 10:25 AM, said:

1) This game has never been fast.
2) Just because you can't think fast enough to keep up doesn't mean it's too fast or that there is no thinking involved, it means you are too slow.

The only time where the game IS fast is if you're driving a Light. Then again, the queue is generally anemic in Lights, so the pace is generally that much slower.

Most of the thinking isn't being done as I feel someone else has to do it for them at times (like, you're drop calling to the point where other people just listen to you instead of thinking along with the drop caller). I dunno, maybe there's something in the water.

[Bud Crue]

Chris Lowrey, on 21 June 2017 - 10:32 AM, said:

You guys are free to express how you feel about the game as you see fit. We'll examine what you guys say, including what is said in this thread, and if anything looks like it can be improved upon, we will look into improving it. I don't want to stand in the way of your discussions or debate. Was just popping in to make sure that false information did not contribute to it. As that doesn't add anything to the discussion rather then just inflame emotions of those participating.

Understood.


Sigh.

[The Mysterious Fox]

pls buff the power fisting assaults, they were rare enough before the nerfs. im a biased and hardcore gargoyle and executioner player haha

[MechaBattler]

People were having more fun before because it was easier. That's what this is really about. It's now harder. You have to think more about when and how to commit to a fight. Medium and lights have enough of a speed and agility advantage to be dangerous.

That was always the case with assaults to a degree. That is why no one recommends them to new players. Everyone recommends a heavy. But now the heavies are starting to feel the sting of that lack of mobility. Not fun? You mean not easy?

[Chris Lowrey]

cazidin, on 21 June 2017 - 10:31 AM, said:

That may've been my fault, sorry about that Chris. In your first thread, the early balance post, I misunderstood your statement about holding a position in marketing to mean you didn't play much, if at all, and were focused on that job. One question I do have is why aren't PGI accounts given... well, all of the mechs and unlimited funds like on the PTS?

No problem.

I can get whatever I need on my dev account for testing, but I still want to grind my own personal account for many reasons including first hand testing of 'Mechs without the ability to just skill up everything in one go.

[Requiemking]

Chris Lowrey, on 21 June 2017 - 10:32 AM, said:

You guys are free to express how you feel about the game as you see fit. We'll examine what you guys say, including what is said in this thread, and if anything looks like it can be improved upon, we will look into improving it. I don't want to stand in the way of your discussions or debate. Was just popping in to make sure that false information did not contribute to it. As that doesn't add anything to the discussion rather then just inflame emotions of those participating.

So, if I said that the Rescale was absolute garbage, would that be considered? Would it be possible to open a PTS with mechs and weapons at pre-rescale values, with in game incentives offered to accounts who played on said PTS? Because if so, I think it should be done, because aside from the Oxide, that last month before the Rescale was the most balanced this game has ever been, and likely will ever be.