Post by Danny Linguini on Jul 1, 2017 12:56:25 GMT -5
For discussion on findings, opinions, thoughts, ideas, grips, etc. on this weekend's test server for iOS players.
<Not sure if this is the right place for this, so mods can move if another forum is more appropriate.>
I didn't get many games in this morning -- wait times for finding players was ridiculous, like usually 2 minutes or more. I needed to get my gold tasks done in the regular game, so I only got four games in on the test server so far. Hopefully they do something about that wait time in the next session.
Anyway, here are a few of my observations from my short time in the first session -- please add yours!
1 - They seem to have tweaked the colors a bit for the ally and enemy indicators and statuses, and it is helping to see them better. Overall, I'd say the UI is slightly improved over the last test weekend, but I still found it difficult to see everything on the battlefield as well as in the current UI. I forgot to check to see if enemy distances are showing beyond 500m -- I didn't notice that they weren't there, so I think that's been fixed. I'll definitely check that again in the next session. But the targeting reticle is still too dim, and it's still very difficult to pick a specific target when the enemies are clustered close together. By the time I remembered to turn Target Lock on, I only had one quick game before I had to quit for the morning.
2 - Rebalanced Zenits - seem to target a little more accurately, though it was difficult given my gripe in #1. Once I got used to that dim-「bum-bum」 reticle, I was finding the targets a little better with it. However -- those long-distance lobbers are going to be absolutely useless against the new dash bots (more to come on that).
3 - Scourge prototype - This is a pretty dangerous weapon for a medium gun. I put three on a MK2, and they fried opponents pretty quickly if they weren't fast enough to get out of the way. I also used a couple of bot setups from my real hangar to see how they'd fare against the new bots and weapons, and I'm frankly scared of when these hit the real game. As quickly as I get melted now, I fear Scourges are going to make it even quicker. Imagine a lowly Vityaz with a Zeus and a Scourge -- gonna be instant death at 600m.
4 - The new Tempest is going to be a cool and welcome addition to the heavies, at least for the 'traditional' arms. If I don't win one in the next event, I'm dropping the Au for one. I plopped one on a Leo with Molots and it was pretty formidable, as long as you can keep a bead on your target. But ....
5 - The new dash bots are definitely going to change the game. I'm pretty sure as they become more commonplace, a lot of current bot/wep setups are going to become increasingly ineffective. In just a couple of games with the Mk2, I can see that they're going to take a bit of learning as far as when to and when not to dash, and I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to take that plunge into them yet in the real game, but they are going to create a different play style both using them and playing against them. Not only is the dash ability an excellent evasive tool, it's also going to be a frightening offensive one. Think about how fast the current fast-movers can show up around you, and multiply that x2. I had one battle where I was going 1 on 1 against an enemy, and all of a sudden there were two others surrounding me before I even knew there was anything else in the area -- both had dashed into range out of nowhere. Now part of that is my own still-crappy battle awareness, part of that I also attribute to the new UI that's more difficult to gauge your surroundings than the current UI, but a lot of it is just the speed at which these bots can now descend upon you. You will NOT want to be caught alone anywhere on the battlefield, even if you're behind cover, because they can be there flanking you on both sides literally in the blink of an eye. You're going to have to totally rethink your safe spots for cover as well as offense.
They are also very well armed with two or three medium hard points, decent health, and armored with Ancile (at least the MK2, not sure about the others), in addition to having the dash ability making them even harder to kill. I have a feeling they're going to be even more annoying than Stalkers (which I already hate), making the slow, heavy mechs even more obsolete and/or reliant on longer-range weapons. They've even pretty much knocked the Rog off my current bot wish list. I'll probably end up with one of the dashes in my hangar as time and Au allow (or whatever currency will be required), but it's going to make me drastically change my playing style -- whether I'm playing with one or against them. Our only hope is that they are so difficult to obtain that only players with more money than brains/skill get them at first, giving the rest of us time to get used to them and figure out ways to kill them before more skilled players hit the field with them.
More to come following session # 2!!!
<Not sure if this is the right place for this, so mods can move if another forum is more appropriate.>
I didn't get many games in this morning -- wait times for finding players was ridiculous, like usually 2 minutes or more. I needed to get my gold tasks done in the regular game, so I only got four games in on the test server so far. Hopefully they do something about that wait time in the next session.
Anyway, here are a few of my observations from my short time in the first session -- please add yours!
1 - They seem to have tweaked the colors a bit for the ally and enemy indicators and statuses, and it is helping to see them better. Overall, I'd say the UI is slightly improved over the last test weekend, but I still found it difficult to see everything on the battlefield as well as in the current UI. I forgot to check to see if enemy distances are showing beyond 500m -- I didn't notice that they weren't there, so I think that's been fixed. I'll definitely check that again in the next session. But the targeting reticle is still too dim, and it's still very difficult to pick a specific target when the enemies are clustered close together. By the time I remembered to turn Target Lock on, I only had one quick game before I had to quit for the morning.
2 - Rebalanced Zenits - seem to target a little more accurately, though it was difficult given my gripe in #1. Once I got used to that dim-「bum-bum」 reticle, I was finding the targets a little better with it. However -- those long-distance lobbers are going to be absolutely useless against the new dash bots (more to come on that).
3 - Scourge prototype - This is a pretty dangerous weapon for a medium gun. I put three on a MK2, and they fried opponents pretty quickly if they weren't fast enough to get out of the way. I also used a couple of bot setups from my real hangar to see how they'd fare against the new bots and weapons, and I'm frankly scared of when these hit the real game. As quickly as I get melted now, I fear Scourges are going to make it even quicker. Imagine a lowly Vityaz with a Zeus and a Scourge -- gonna be instant death at 600m.
4 - The new Tempest is going to be a cool and welcome addition to the heavies, at least for the 'traditional' arms. If I don't win one in the next event, I'm dropping the Au for one. I plopped one on a Leo with Molots and it was pretty formidable, as long as you can keep a bead on your target. But ....
5 - The new dash bots are definitely going to change the game. I'm pretty sure as they become more commonplace, a lot of current bot/wep setups are going to become increasingly ineffective. In just a couple of games with the Mk2, I can see that they're going to take a bit of learning as far as when to and when not to dash, and I'm not sure if I'm quite ready to take that plunge into them yet in the real game, but they are going to create a different play style both using them and playing against them. Not only is the dash ability an excellent evasive tool, it's also going to be a frightening offensive one. Think about how fast the current fast-movers can show up around you, and multiply that x2. I had one battle where I was going 1 on 1 against an enemy, and all of a sudden there were two others surrounding me before I even knew there was anything else in the area -- both had dashed into range out of nowhere. Now part of that is my own still-crappy battle awareness, part of that I also attribute to the new UI that's more difficult to gauge your surroundings than the current UI, but a lot of it is just the speed at which these bots can now descend upon you. You will NOT want to be caught alone anywhere on the battlefield, even if you're behind cover, because they can be there flanking you on both sides literally in the blink of an eye. You're going to have to totally rethink your safe spots for cover as well as offense.
They are also very well armed with two or three medium hard points, decent health, and armored with Ancile (at least the MK2, not sure about the others), in addition to having the dash ability making them even harder to kill. I have a feeling they're going to be even more annoying than Stalkers (which I already hate), making the slow, heavy mechs even more obsolete and/or reliant on longer-range weapons. They've even pretty much knocked the Rog off my current bot wish list. I'll probably end up with one of the dashes in my hangar as time and Au allow (or whatever currency will be required), but it's going to make me drastically change my playing style -- whether I'm playing with one or against them. Our only hope is that they are so difficult to obtain that only players with more money than brains/skill get them at first, giving the rest of us time to get used to them and figure out ways to kill them before more skilled players hit the field with them.
More to come following session # 2!!!
