Doctor_Unlikely

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"Doesn't do half the damage of a Blaster?" Scappers have the single highest damage modifier in this game, short of Nova form Kheldians, and the second best form of personal protection available to any hero AT. I'm confused and bewildered as to how exactly they've "nerfed past the level of uslessness," to say the least. And I own both Scrappers and Blaster, so you'd think I could compare.

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Yeah, you'd THINK so. But I'm kinda gettin' the vibe that if this were WoW, you'd be telling us how you beat up Warlocks with your Mage.

But all joking aside...

In the early days of the game, (which you apparently weren't around for), Scrappers couldn't even level as fast as Blasters, because they had no way to stop Runners. Blasters would be standing half a block away, getting kills without moving, and Scrappers would be scrambling around like roaches on a hotplate trying desperately to get in a Killing Blow on a mob that was sprinting across Galaxy City at right around Mach Ten.

Scrappers may be better now. I wouldn't know, as the early days left me so angry over the whole thing that I now play exclusively Blasters/Tankers. Yeah, I hope they fixed them, but it doesn't alter the fact that Scrappers got the short end of the stick for a LONG time in this game.

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But the thing is, in our case we do the exact opposite. Therefore it must be a good thing.

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Perhaps. I don't read as much as the board as I'd like, so maybe there's vast pockets of dissent, wherein the fanbase is actually clamoring for an end to PLing and suchlike. In which case, maybe it's time the Devs listened to you. Of course, my time on the internet has led me to believe that most of the time, when forum fans say that they don't blindly defend the Devs, what they REALLY mean is that they complained bitterly about the last bunch of changes the Devs made, because they liked the game just like it was.

Me, I love the game. I come back to it every six months or so. But there are definitely some things they could do that would make the experience more enjoyable.

Ah well. CoH is still better than most other games, warts and all.

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One thing I know as a noob forum poster is CoX currently has a level of customer loyalty (me included) that most corporations would kill for it.

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What I think you meant to say was "that most corporations would be killed BY."

Fanboys have never, in the history of the planet, "improved" the object of their devotion. What corporations want, and in fact NEED, is a broad userbase. Want to know what Fanboys create, with their fanatical "Comic/Movie/Game X is ABSOLUTELY PERFECT, and ANYONE THAT DISAGREES IS A HERETIC WHO MUST DIE" attitude?

"Matrix Revolutions"
"The Phantom Menace"
"Clerks II"
"All-Star Batman and Robin"
"Hostel II"
"Alien vs Predator"

...and the list goes on and on. The problem with Fanboys, and why they're sheer, absolute poison for the object of their obsession, is this: They have so much of their personal ego invested into whatever it is they think they're "defending" that they prevent any valid criticism and therefore any needed improvements, from taking place.

So yeah, it's great that a handful of people think that CoH is the "bestest, most goodest, uber-perfect game in creation", but at the end of the day, you're hurting the game. You're hurting it the same way the Star Wars fanboys hurt the three Prequels: by convincing the people in charge that the majority of the fanbase are "wrong", and that everything is completely peachy-keen.

During the first month or so after Release, I sent an eMail to Statesman, and outlined everything that I saw as a potential problems with the game. He graciously and politely wrote back to me. He seemed to understand what I was saying and encouraged me to hang in there until they got all the kinks worked out. A lot of the problems I noticed have been addressed: The insane leveling curve, the overly-zealous Debt mechanics, the lack Enhancements that don't decay with levels, the complete uselessness of Scrappers, and so forth. However, there are still big, huge problems that are keeping the average gamer away- the biggest being the entire Bridging/Doorsitting/PLing nonsense. Normal gamers won't play a game with those issues. But instead of fixing it, as it should have been fixed on Day One, the Devs ignore it.

So, I guess the bottom line is this: If the game exists to cater to a relatively tiny core of hardcore fans, then congrats, mission accomplished. If, however, it's a business venture that actually wants to grow and expand, then the Devs absolutely MUST throw off the Fanboy Yolk, and start paying attention to what the market wants, and not just what the loudest, most obsessional fans want.