261 replies to this topic

[Mercu]

The comms wheel should be updated. Help is useless and should be changed to 'under attack' and 'pushing enemy (plus grid reference)'. Also 'group up' as someone has already stated would be useful. You should be able to take a drop ship for quick play and then select the appropriate mech, or better still variant/loadout for the map, this would greatly enhance the user expérience.

[color=#030303]And deployable mines to help the slow assaults against light mechs, directional UAVs that function similar to airstrikes, deployable ECM beacons, etc. PGI could go crazy with these.[/color]

[Mercu]

I love the idea of having the roleplay style mechcommander pilots, that we can assign for small percentage bonuses, they can be injured, skilled up, even killed, again allowing for sutomisation and also adding the element of 'preservation' that is so desperately needed. I can die/lose/piss around on the battlefield and compromise my team every single game without any repercussions. That destroys gameplay and turns it into 'arcade' gaming.

[Mercu]

Would like to see a lot more xp/cbills given for team cohesion, scouting, uav detection, etc. to promote the tactical side of the game. I love playing radar, UAV, scouting, support ECM, LRM, etc. but they aren't valued (except LRM because they can farm dmg.)

Also a new category of score - dmg done short / medium / long range or 'sniping'. If you hit a moving target with a projectile at 1200m you get less score than if you did the same with splash damage SRMs at 60m? Short range you have brawling, flanking, lance lead but at long range its... just 10dmg.

[Alreech]

thievingmagpi, on 24 November 2020 - 01:17 PM, said:

Mixtech is absolutely, 100% not viable.

It's mixed in quickplay all the time.

Supertanky IS Light and Clan LRM Boat in one team... if the IS Light pilot is using VOIP to cheat with teamwork the other team will have a problem.

[Alreech]

Brauer, on 22 November 2020 - 06:04 AM, said:

Comp is where you see teams attempt to play the game in an optimal fashion. You basically do not see that in QP. In QP the objectives and spawns are part of what makes team movements and enemy locations predictable, but a HUGE part of it is player behavior. Nerfing lights won't eliminate Nascar.

So Comp is irrelevant to Quickplay there the NASCAR happens.

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Asymmetric balance - lights abuse speed and mobility to beat up on bigger less agile enemies, assaults abuse massive firepower and heavier armor. Each class plays a role and has a niche. As opposed to just nerfing lights into the ground so all they can do is look at enemy mechs, which is essentially useless in QP. Not to mention there are clear and direct limitations on loadouts (tonnage, slots).

The only role in quickplay is killing enemy Mechs.
And the tonnage differences in the classes are the only thing that counts. There is almost no reason to use a Locust as light Mech if you can use a Firestarter, Wolfhound, Javelin... or a Charger if you can use an Anhilator.
Also due the state of the matchmaker there is no reason to select a light or medium. Yeah, matchmaking takes longer but lol, if it's too long the matchmaker doesn't bother with class balance any more.

Make other roles (like capping, scouting, spotting,...) aviable / viable and light Mechs like the Locust or Spider are viable.
Add resource managment to the game (and drop decks are such a thing: limited spawns and limited tonnage) and picking just the biggest Mech of each class (or the best) won't work any more.
And make the game more like comp, with organised teams instead of random solos...
That all would kill NASCAR, not nerfing light Mechs.

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A mechlab with far more limited options, such as in MW4 or MW5 just severely limits the options available and in the case of both of those games is also HEAVILY biased towards heavier mechs because the options available to lighter mechs are far fewer. In MW5 only a handful of mechs are viable, especially in the early game.

So that's the difference to MWOs Quickplay?
Only a handfull Mechs are viable here too.

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Switching to such a bad mechlab would not improve anything, it would just lead to even more complaints about too few mechs being worth playing.

It's to late to switch to an other Mechlab, so that's a thing for a MWO2

[thievingmagpi]

Alreech, on 25 November 2020 - 11:06 AM, said:

The only role in quickplay is killing enemy Mechs.

As it should be.

Alreech, on 25 November 2020 - 11:06 AM, said:

And the tonnage differences in the classes are the only thing that counts. There is almost no reason to use a Locust as light Mech if you can use a Firestarter, Wolfhound, Javelin... or a Charger if you can use an Anhilator.

Which is an issue addressed by simple .xml changes.

Alreech, on 25 November 2020 - 11:06 AM, said:

Also due the state of the matchmaker there is no reason to select a light or medium. Yeah, matchmaking takes longer but lol, if it's too long the matchmaker doesn't bother with class balance any more.

Lmao.

Plenty of reason to bring lights and mediums.

Alreech, on 25 November 2020 - 11:06 AM, said:

Make other roles (like capping, scouting, spotting,...) aviable / viable and light Mechs like the Locust or Spider are viable.

No thanks. This is a shooter.

Alreech, on 25 November 2020 - 11:06 AM, said:

Add resource managment to the game (and drop decks are such a thing: limited spawns and limited tonnage) and picking just the biggest Mech of each class (or the best) won't work any more.

Balancing the weight classes is what makes choices viable.

[IceHawk00]

Skill Tree: Barring a return to the old skill tree system, I would say that it would be a vast improvement to layout the skill tree so that players can get to the perks they want without grabbing a lot that they don't.

Increase the values of the currently available skills. (0.6% to 1% etc). This would allow the usage of less skill points to master a mech so we could drop the points needed to 75 rather than 91.

This current skill tree is definitely more useful than the old one, and I understand that the points are laid out the way they are to bring some sort of give-and-take to your build, but in the end, with the values as they are, it doesn't really change things very much, just makes planning your build more confusing. It would also be nice to have our skill points refunded to make a change rather than having to dump more in just to swap to a skill you didn't unlock previously on the same mech.

Heat Spike: If you have a red hot chunk of metal, then cut off and throw away half of it, the remaining half does not immediately increase in temperature and vaporize. Yes, you're losing heat sinks, but you're also losing the chunk of the mech that is loaded with said heat. This mechanic needs to go.

Heat Management: It would be nice to have a visible value of total heat capacity AND dissipation shown in the mechlab. The weapons have heat values listed very clearly for each, it should be as clearly labeled for the mech itself as total threshold and heat points dissipated per second.

Simplify Command Wheel: I would leave the current wheel in place, but it would be nice to be able to bind specific commands to a button press.

Remove TOD Change in Maps: Yes, this needs to go. We are playing in real time, and a day is far longer than 15 minutes. We should have fixed TOD for the maps and leave it at that.

UI Performance Pass: It would be nice to be able to customize our HUD color and size on top of what we currently can do.

[Bowelhacker]

There needs to be a penalty introduced for players who hit HELP on the command wheel when they aren't within 1500 metres of the enemy...

[ShaneoftheDead]

Daeron Katz, on 16 November 2020 - 01:10 PM, said:

In this thread, lets discuss ideas for updating or adding to our current monetization model in MechWarrior Online, such as:

• Skill Tree / Grind Reduction

Perhaps more bundles for GSP like you do for C-Bills? Seriously, 'Mechs should not have skills. They have capabilities provided by equipment.

Daeron Katz, on 16 November 2020 - 01:10 PM, said:

• Remove Torso Heat Spike Mechanic

Sounds like a good idea.

Daeron Katz, on 16 November 2020 - 01:10 PM, said:

• Heat Management Values Not Representative of Heat Efficiency

Not exactly sure what you mean here, but how about you give players more information about the heat in the 'Mech in the Mech Bay. Give us graphs and numbers if you cannot convey the information in a single number.

Daeron Katz, on 16 November 2020 - 01:10 PM, said:

• Simplify Command Wheel

This may be more about re-defining what you want the Command Wheel to be. Presently, the most useful function is calling for help. The second most useful function is spamming "Negative" when someone suggests something. Perhaps finding things worthwhile to put on the wheel would be a good start?

Daeron Katz, on 16 November 2020 - 01:10 PM, said:

• Remove Time of Day Change in Matches (FPS hit)

Sounds like a good plan.

Daeron Katz, on 16 November 2020 - 01:10 PM, said:

• UI Performance Pass / Scaling?

Any optimizations that can be made in the User Interface during a drop are very welcome. The less impact it has on FPS, the better. Not sure about scaling the UI, but giving the players options to customize the UI would be nice. In fact, if you would open up the APIs and let the modder's take a crack at making their own that would be a good thing.

[Elizander]

I'm okay if losing a side torso doesn't create a heatspike.

Command wheel is lacking in options.

• Something to indicate that whoever is in the front is attacking/charging. Specification of coordinates would be great.
  
• Status report to team. Tell the team the status of your mech in general terms:
  
• Something to let the team know that you are intending to flank or scout.
  
• Something to let the team know you intend to hang back and snipe (so the team can tell you to get your *** back to the front)

To expand on this idea outside of the command wheel, there should be more voice queues for the 'pilots' for the following:

• Deploying UAV. Pilot should say, "Deploying UAV at <coordinates>"
  
• Airstrike/Artillery. Pilot should say, "Calling Airstrike/Artillery on <coordinates>"

I really haven't given much thought how you can fix the skill tree other than JJ/Mobility trees are the most unused trees because their % modifiers have no effect on low base values for mechs that need mobility/JJ boosts. A Direwolf with 3 JJ jumps for 15m and a max JJ tree won't even get it to 20m which is what most other big JJ mechs can accomplish. A Timberwolf prime with full mobility doesn't feel anywhere near as mobile as it should be for that point investment. An Atlas with mobility other than for speed tweak is a waste of points.

[MW Waldorf Statler]

in can remember me to old day , who the F1 to F12 Keys war for Cmmands in Games or to the very intuitive command Rose in Battefield 2 ...in MWO im not using once the comrose, while to difficult to use for me(its like the more terrible Weapon/Action Wheel in RDR2)

[Forgeling]

If you were to add Pilots but keep the skill tree the same, how would you balance assigning pilots to your mechs? Deploy style like mechs currently are for matches? cockpit item style?

[Tenchuu]

Marshal Jim Duncan, on 24 November 2020 - 07:00 PM, said:

I don't necessarily mind grinding out the skill on the mech, because it often gives me a chance to build out an atypical loadout that works for me.

What I would wish for is a way to grind out a mech without having it have a negative impact on the tier ranking.

THIS. It's super fun to drop in ranking every game with a new mech you're learning, be told you're dropping, and suddenly be at 5. Either hide that ranking entirely or make it only apply to certain kinds of matches, and definitely not quick play.

[Tenchuu]

Daeron Katz, on 16 November 2020 - 01:10 PM, said:

In this thread, lets discuss ideas for updating or adding to our current monetization model in MechWarrior Online, such as:

• Skill Tree / Grind Reduction
  
• Remove Torso Heat Spike Mechanic
  
• Heat Management Values Not Representative of Heat Efficiency
  
• Simplify Command Wheel
  
• Remove Time of Day Change in Matches (FPS hit)
  
• UI Performance Pass / Scaling?

Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you mean by monetization model, since these seem just quality of life. For monetization, you need to copy Wargaming.net as closely as you can to learn how to get people paying for premium time for events and excited about small prizes that lead them to make purchases. I spent $50 on them last night, and I don't buy that often. That reminds me, I just found out there were three tasks I apparently passed in an event but didn't redeem within two weeks because the game didn't tell me I passed them and I had no idea they existed. Now I'm locked out of redeeming them. Come ON, guys. Events should be integrated, big bold things, not "dig through the web page outside of the game and you might land on one." It took me a good twenty minutes of digging to find the yearly bonuses or whatever tonight, and I didn't bother opening the game to do it.

[Odanan]

The Skill Tree needs to be greatly simplified. Less options and more meaningful upgrades. And how you buy skills needs to be rebuilt - it's too clumsy, complicated and counter-intuitive.

[The Ghost Dog MadderKayne]

I'm not sure where this goes. And I'm relatively new. Been playing about 6months and totally am obsessed with this game. I know there's some changes being made soon and I just had a few asthetic suggestions I'd like to throw out into the universe.
1.The Assassin's energy pod bolt ons for it's back and arms are totally cool and need to be available to alot more mechs.
2. More paint job options please.
3.Colors are too expensive
4. On some mechs the ultra AC is a three barrel and some it's a double barrel (mad cat and Jaguar)
5.i personally think the incubus sabre needs with ecm or jump jets

Thanks for listening and making a really fun game

[Brauer]

Alreech, on 25 November 2020 - 11:06 AM, said:

So Comp is irrelevant to Quickplay there the NASCAR happens.

Comp is not irrelevant as comp is where you come closest to seeing how teams should play the game to give themselves the best chance to win. QP is just chaos. That's part of the reason we have nascar, it's simple and requires minimal discipline, teamwork, or thought. Basically it's teams following the herd.

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The only role in quickplay is killing enemy Mechs.
And the tonnage differences in the classes are the only thing that counts. There is almost no reason to use a Locust as light Mech if you can use a Firestarter, Wolfhound, Javelin... or a Charger if you can use an Anhilator.
Also due the state of the matchmaker there is no reason to select a light or medium. Yeah, matchmaking takes longer but lol, if it's too long the matchmaker doesn't bother with class balance any more.

Other than saying that the only role in quickplay is killing enemy mechs you are pretty much wrong about everything here. There are many excellent QP mechs in each weight class. For lights you've got the Flea, Wolfhound, Javelin, and K-9 as well as a bunch that specialize in very specific roles.

Additionally, many of the absolute best QP farming mechs are mediums. Vulcans and Veagles are among the best QP mechs in the game right now and can actually be more reliable than assaults because you're less likely to get caught out in them. Phoenix Hawks, Dervishes, Huntsmen, and others are also quite strong in the medium bracket.

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Make other roles (like capping, scouting, spotting,...) aviable / viable and light Mechs like the Locust or Spider are viable.

If you watch some comp you will see how important scouting is. You will also likely learn that a mech that scouts the enemy out isn't generally very useful unless it can help to do something about that enemy. Having a mech that's just a bystander to the action means that instead of fighting 12v12 you are fighting 11v12 and that is an immediate disadvantage. It is much better to have a scout who can get early intel and then contribute to the fight rather than serve as a cheerleader.

BTW the reason Spiders and Locusts are not particularly viable is power creep, not a lack of reward for things like capping. Fleas are generally better at what the Locusts do, and the primary niche for the Spiders would need to take advantage either of the 5V cap quirks or it's huge number of JJs. Panthers, Wolfhounds, and other lights are just better generally.

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Add resource managment to the game (and drop decks are such a thing: limited spawns and limited tonnage) and picking just the biggest Mech of each class (or the best) won't work any more.
And make the game more like comp, with organised teams instead of random solos...
That all would kill NASCAR, not nerfing light Mechs.

So go play Faction Warfare. It includes the features you're discussing already.

Also, BTW the heaviest mech in each weight-class is not necessarily the best. Look at the Vulcan 5T for example, it's one of the absolute best mediums in the game and it is just barely a medium.

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So that's the difference to MWOs Quickplay?
Only a handfull Mechs are viable here too.


It's to late to switch to an other Mechlab, so that's a thing for a MWO2

Many mechs are viable in MWO's quickplay. Most probably are in fact. That doesn't mean most mechs are any good, but you can make just about anything work in QP.

[Jonathan8883]

Not sure where to put this. Haven't played in a while (6 months? 12?), but saw news of your hiring. My top issues, in no particular order.

#1
PGI management, or lack thereof. You can't fix that.

#2
Mobility.
One of the big things, for me, that makes many chassis un-fun, is how bad some of them handle. You know how a Cyclops can torso-twist, move, and do stuff? Try that in an Annihilator. Very few people enjoy driving something that maneuvers like an 800# pregnant sow on ice.
I recognize that this is an effort at balance, but it was taken too far. Take those 6s and 7s up to 18s and 20s, and the 20s to 30s, and the 30s to 35s, and on up the chain.

#3
Chassis balance - an alternative perspective.
This ties to #2. Assign individual chassis a Battle Value or some other measurement, and factor that into matchmaking. One side gets an Annihilator (high BV) and a Commando, so the other side gets a Battlemaster and a Wolfhound.
Pilot skill plays into this also, possibly as a multiplier, but it's a way to balance chassis without making half of them un-fun.

#4
MMR.
Everyone reaches Tier 1/Tier 2/etc eventually. Drop the XP bar in favor of a true ranking for the top 1/5/20/40/60/80% of players. Assign accordingly.

[Alreech]

ShaneoftheDead, on 25 November 2020 - 02:57 PM, said:

Perhaps more bundles for GSP like you do for C-Bills? Seriously, 'Mechs should not have skills. They have capabilities provided by equipment.

I support this.

The old skill tree systeme was a scheme to sell Mechpacks of 3 Variants.

The new skill nodes are a scheme to prolong grinding to sell GXP packs / encourage XP conversion for microtransaktions.
It's also a balancing problem for quirks & chassis, because that state should be used for that? The unskilled Mech, or the full skilled mech were quirks are buffed by skill nodes ?

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This may be more about re-defining what you want the Command Wheel to be. Presently, the most useful function is calling for help. The second most useful function is spamming "Negative" when someone suggests something. Perhaps finding things worthwhile to put on the wheel would be a good start?

As Lance Leader you can put currently an "Attack" order on an enemy mech, and this order even moves with this Mech.
A great way to concentrate fire, call in LRM support or pick a target for a wolf pack of light Mechs.

Nobody uses it in quickplay because nobody gives a dam about their "15 minute teammates".

Edited by Alreech, 28 November 2020 - 04:47 AM.

[Elizander]

It's not mentioned in the topic, but I'll add this here. The experience of leveling up a new mech is atrocious due to it being linear from earning 1 to 91 SP. I repeat, the progression is too linear. Progression of skilling up a new mech should be a curve where it is easier at the start and gets harder at the end. A new player is going to lose a lot of games. We're talking 200 xp matches. You're asking new players to play 4 games for 1 skill point on an unskilled mech. That's an atrocious rate of progression

It should be easier to earn skill points with a fresh mech up to a certain point before normal progression begins. This will also make it less annoying for veterans to kill up new purchases. A new mech should be relatively easy to skill up until it reaches around 40-50 SP. You want players to buy mechs, but skilling them up is annoying so people don't want to buy mechs.

To encourage players to keep playing the (currently dull) process of skilling up a mech, you need to implement a curve to make reaching the first 40-50 SP easier and earning points up until 75 slightly better than normal rate and proceed with normal rate at 75+. This is arbitrary on my part, but having a difficulty curve to keep players interested is pretty basic in game design.

Possible Solution #1:

• Mechs with 0-40 SP get a 75% discount to SP cost.
  
• Mechs with 41-60 SP get a 50% discount to SP cost.
  
• Mechs with 61-75 SP get a 25 discount to SP cost.

Possible Solution #2:

• Mechs with 0-35 SP earn +5 SP on first win of the day with the mech up to 40 SP.
  
• Mechs with 41-59 SP earn +3 SP on first win of the day with the mech up to 60 SP.
  
• Mechs with 60-74 SP earn +1 SP on first win of the day with the mech up to 75 SP.

Possible Solution #3:

• Mechs with 0-39 SP have a 75% chance to earn +1 SP after each match.
  
• Mechs with 40-59 SP have a 50% chance to earn +1 SP after each match.
  
• Mechs with 60-74 SP have a 25% chance toe earn +1 SP after each match.

These mechanics are designed to work with the current skill tree system and game mechanics. Adding extra rewards, applying discounts at certain breakpoints (if SP_TOTAL < 40 THEN XXX ) shouldn't be rocket science from a programmers perspective.


Solution #1 encourages grinding a mech up at a more acceptable rate of progression through normal play. Solution #2 encourages players to log in daily and get 1 win on their mech. This might be good for longer retention of casuals who don't have hours to grind. #3 is like #1, but the RNG might appeal to people who are excited from winning RNG stuff. It might also look like a nice bonus that the game is giving them for playing instead of a more static and predictable system that solution # proposes.

Edited by Elizander, 28 November 2020 - 06:31 PM.