Slashman

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All he was saying was that he creates his own stories for his characters, and likes to be creative. Interpreting that to mean he thinks he is special is taking his statements way out of context.

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Forget it Doorknob...there are people who will constantly look for insults and negative meanings in every statement that doesn't happen to say what they want to hear.

I stopped trying to justify my viewpoint in this thread. The insanity level went a bit too high for my liking.

In response to your edit:

I'm not up in arms over my being unable to do something 'special and unique' in the MA. I'm upset because NO ONE can. I'm not a professional modder or anything like that. I just like playing great stuff that other people have made.

When I asked what makes someone's arc stand out from mine...I'm not making a better or worse comparison. I'm saying that the tools aren't there for someone who WANTS to make something truly epic and amazing to do that.

I actually enjoy playing the simple straight-forward missions at times as well. MA doesn't really offer much more than that though...except for greatly bloated rewards for those who want to farm it.

When I play mods in other games...I'm enjoying the fact that the people did something that the devs could never or would never do or have the time for. I'm enjoying that there wasn't anything suppressing their ability to create as they choose.

MA stamps a limit on a lot of things. And while those things may be necessary because its an MMO...I'm not looking at it and saying 'aw...too bad it's an MMO'. I'm looking at it and saying here is a game that implemented a feature that wasn't really all it could be and maybe that time should have gone to something else.

I took the time to create something with MA and give it a chance...it's been broken multiple times and I honestly have no idea how many people may have been interested in playing my arc that tried and gave up after realizing it wasn't working.

Whatever agenda you think I have or assumptions you think I'm making about people, well I can't do much more to change your mind and I really am not inclined to anymore at this point. You have chosen to take offense at something that was never meant to be offensive. It was meant to illustrate a point.

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This part right here is most telling. Whereas you're somehow stifled by the inability to script things (and evidently bothered that you can't be a unique and special snowflake), the rest of us are doing pretty good with "just" customized pre-existing NPCs, custom critters (with customized powersets) from scratch, custom villain groups, custom contacts, custom clues, custom glowies, and custom mission text.

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By the 'rest of us' are you referring to a greater portion of the community who loves playing story arcs versus those that want to farm the MA? I'd personally love to see those numbers myself...I'm sure it would be interesting.

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Of course, complaining that the MA is lacking in innovation and features is sort of like being given the Model T back in 1908 and complaining that it didn't even go that fast or get good gas mileage.

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Right...except that the 2009 Lexus ES 350 didn't exist in 1908. While many better examples of community mod tools and content exist all over the place for any number of games. So what's your point again?

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Yanno, I'm not sure where I got it either. How terribly odd.

Though I'm vaguely certain it has something to do with word choice and specific sentence structure, and may well be a subconscious trait manifesting itself.

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Ok...let me rephrase that, since its causing such a commotion.

I don't make toons based on other toons in comics or tv/movies. I try(wherever possible) to make something that people can't look at and go...oh that's a Hulk, Thor, Green Lantern etc. ripoff. For me...there's no real point to it. If other people want to do that then by all means go on. I just thought it was frowned upon and likely to get the character genericed anyway(something that's happened to many of my friends in the game). Why would I give myself the same headache if can avoid it?

So no...I don't want to use the MA to bring in copyrighted material or do some homage to a superhero that already has his/her own book/movie/tv series. What would be the point?

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I think you're expecting far too much of both the feature in question, and of other people's ability to not exaggerate or assuming that they have experiences that equate yours.

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I may well be expecting too much. Still, I wonder just how many people are truly using and experiencing MA as the Devs believed it would be used based on the response they got from the forums when they first announced it. And could all that development time have been spent making general improvements to the core game and QoL...or even revamping some of the unused zones and old content?

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I'm starting to wonder if you're aware of the distinction between 'server side data' and 'client side data' in that post, Slashman. If so, I'm fairly certain that the obvious flaws in what you're suggesting would become readily apparent. Especially when you consider a number of variables (a 100kb limit on MA files in general, the limitations of space on a server-side machine, the way the client/server model most MMOs use interacts) that I don't think you're fully accounting for.

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I am very aware of how the MA works. And what client/server model most MMOs use. That has nothing to do with my original complaint.

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It's possible for games that offer no hard multi-player functionality (ie: individual players tend to host their own content in a more immediately modifiable framework, for a game that's predominately focused in a single-player environment; To wit, both NWN and it's sequel, any Elder Scrolls game [or anything put out by Bethseda using the TES format, like Fallout 3], and so on) because at those points... A grand majority of all the files are hosted on the client end.

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And herein lies the problem. This tool that's being touted as the greatest MMO innovation since...well I can't really think of any truly great MMO innovations off the top of my head. In any case...its a VERY limited tool. And that means that what people create with it is also VERY limited. User created content isn't supposed to stifle creativity and limit options. That's why I mentioned before that I was very unenthusiastic about MA in the first place. I saw this coming.

Anyone can write a story. Some people are better than others...but what really distinguishes yours from mine in MA? Have you used a map that no one has seen yet? Do you have an NPC with powers that no one else can access? Do you have some tough and clever puzzles in yours that I didn't think of in mine? We can't even branch story arcs...so failing a mission means jack squat!

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That's not what happens in MMOs, and thank god for that.

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You're right, that doesn't happen in MMOs...which makes them pretty unsuitable for user made content in the first place! That's why MA is so pointless to many as anything other than a farm tool. No matter how many Dev Choice or hall of Fame arcs you run...they will NEVER differentiate themselves from any other arc apart from text and odd power combinations for NPCs. You can't even give temp powers in them!

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You're still completely and utterly missing the points on a number of things, and I had to try very hard to take you seriously with your 'I am a unique and special snowflake!' vibe running rampant in my brain.

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I'm not sure where you got the idea that I'm trying to portray myself as 'special' in any way. I'm no different than anyone else...I was simply replying to the whole accusation that I wanted to make a rip off of copyrighted content. That's totally against the whole reason why I play this game. I want to make my own unique toons with a distinctive background. You can interpret that however you like.

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I apologize for any possible misunderstandings as a result of this post. I'm tired as heck right now, and on some significant allergy medications to facilitate breathing. I'm probably not being very tactful or clear at all.

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Get some rest!

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Come on Commander, let's not be any meaner than necessary. I'm genuinely interested in what he was planning.

But now that you mention it, I hadn't even considered the possibility that he was planning to make a rip-off of a pre-existing story.

Say it ain't so Slashman!

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To set the record straight, I don't have even ONE toon that's a rip-off of something else. I never even made a claws scrapper until they made claws customizable simply because I think it's lame to do silly homages with twisted around names for toons and the wolverine theme has been beaten to death.

All of my toons are original concepts that I create and have their own unique backstory. I happen to think that people have imaginations for a reason and should use them liberally.

And as for what I might want to import that's not there? Lots of stuff! Maybe you aren't too familiar with the mod scene on other games which have user-made content...but the community usually spends thousands of hours making stuff that the developers never add.

If you're familiar with Neverwinter Nights...that's a great example right there. The Community Enhancement Pack added thousands of new armor pieces, weapons, placeable objects, character portraits etc. And that was apart from the people who made their own stuff when the module they were making required it. I still remember when Adam Miller made a mod that had a working dragon riding sequence in it when the developers swore that mounts were impossible for them to do in the game.

And as for what I'd like here. Well for starters, I'd like a tazer baton for NPCs, mission maps that have hackable security gates, lab maps that don't have SO much of everything, some puzzle elements(the community made some very cool puzzles for modules in NWN) and the list goes on.

That's what makes community made content so great in other games...the community can make and use it's own stuff. MA is still extremely limited in every way apart from powerset customization for NPCs. Having MORE stuff taken away as time goes on does not make me a happy camper. And it certainly does not entice me to make more MA arcs.

Exactly! None of those things got patch notes! That's my point, I had to wait to hear that my arc didn't work from people who wanted to try it.

Destructible objects were in the game for a long time and they all caused damage when destroyed. I have never heard of anyone using them to kill spawns. I assume it can be done...but the amount of bother it would take to herd things close enough would hardly make it worthwhile. Plus...isn't there a limit to the number of destructible objects you can place in any map?

I'm done messing around with an arc that has only gotten more genericed and gutted with each patch with no warning or notes.

I tried MA and made an arc...my opinion on it is now bleh...more than ever. Looking forward to some dev content that doesn't need editing by me after every patch. MA is a waste.

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The changed destructible objects to versions that do no damage, and apparently there's no version of the generators that don't do damage. Hopefully they'll be back once they have the time to make a non-damaging version.

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It's a POWER GENERATOR. If you blow it up...why would it NOT do any damage???

You know I really never had much faith in MA. User created content in an MMO was never something that I thought would work.

The limits of not being able to import any resources and having to confine yourself to everything that's in the game already pretty much killed a lot of my enthusiasm.

Still...misgivings aside, I decided that before I condemn it, I'd give it a solid try. So I made an arc. A pretty decent arc(IMO) that's story driven and solo friendly(pretty much).

Got it working and found the perfect end map to use. I was moderately proud of it. Then patch after patch kept breaking my arc.

The first and harshest blow was the removal of the Paragon Protector Clone lab map. So then after getting a tell that my arc wasn't working I had to chose a stupid generic map that didn't have the room at the end with the clone lab which I had thought was pretty cool.

After the last patch I again get a tell that my arc is invalid. I'm pretty confused because I can't for the life of me think why it would be invalid. Turns out they have now pulled the power generators that you get in some Council maps and in the Marshall Brass/Aeon arc(the ones powering the WSPDR building. They can no longer be used as destructible objects.

It's bad enough that we can't import external resources to flesh out our arcs...why are they continually killing the stuff that we had access to? What's next? It's frustrating as hell that I've spent a good amount of time trying to make at least one decent story in MA and it get's more and more gutted with each passing patch. I give up!

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5 is especially good but they are all really good ideas for ways to improve gameplay.

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Thanks...I'm hopeful that Going Rogue will address some of this stuff. If they would...only...release...some...INFO!!

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It comes down to an absolute refusal by the devs to update old content. To have the contacts give you their phone number after 1 mission. To clean up and fix old tf's. People have been asking for this stuff for years. And were ignored. Instead of fixing the tf's, they added merits to them to bait you into doing the unused ones. They were unused for a reason.

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THIS I can agree with. The concept of 'if it's broke then make something else and leave it laying there' leads to a lot of broken stuff laying around catching dust. Like 'hazard' zones. Hello Perez Park!

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The only thing that surprised them was the farming- note their disorganized overreaction to it.

Again, I said this would transform the game before it came out.
And I know a lot less about MMOs than they do.
That's the only possible result, assuming the system works at all.

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Except it really didn't transform the game. It just changed the point of it to farming.

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Think what you like, it is what it is.

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Thanks for the permission...especially since you can't provide any evidence to support your ideas except for unintended consequences.

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Sure they did, up to a point.

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No they didn't. Castle said recently in relation to the balance of MA content to regular content:

'In theory, this is all balanced by there being no "end of mission" reward in terms of XP/Influence/Prestige. In practice...not so much.'

That would seem to suggest that MA content is STILL too rewarding vs. regular content. And this isn't a desired situation for them.

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Uh.................that's exactly what AE is.

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AE is a lot of things...but an expansion to core gameplay isn't one of them. Expansion to core gameplay would be things like branching story arcs, more interactive mission environments, more mission types to choose from, a skill system separate from combat powers and new ways to use our powers in missions.

AE is the same old mission types we have had since launch with player-written dialogue. You may think this a vast expansion to core gameplay...but I think its just so much blah.

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It's a paradigm shift. It's intentional.

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I highly doubt that it is intentional. I think the dev team simply got a lot more than they ever bargained for. A lot of it is lack of foresight IMO.

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The game is moving toward a more freeform, sandbox style of gameplay and away from the old rigid, linear hierarchy of levels.

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Again I don't think that's the case. And I have never seen any dev comment that supports that sandbox play is their new overall goal for the game.

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I don't get why it's so hard for some folk to see.

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Perhaps because it's not there.

Look I agree the devs intended AE to have the ability to get someone from 1 - 50. That is indisputable. I do NOT however, believe they planned it to get someone from 1 - 50 in a MUCH more efficient and rewarding manner than regular content.

Lack of foresight and unintended consequences don't equate to intent. It's why I have always said that this game didn't need AE...it just needed some core gameplay improvements and expansion of the current content.

Sometimes listening to your players(especially forumites) is a bad thing. The same people who are now complaining that AE is a problem are likely the ones who were all for it when they thought it would only be used to 'tell neat stories'.

I consider AE a waste of time and effort really. Because now the core game which I DO care about has been getting content lite in favor of 'putting the power in the hands of the players'.

User content belongs in single player/limited multiplayer games like Neverwinter Nights. Not so much in an MMO.

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So what would you like to see it expand upon that would bring it up to par with the standard you wish it be?

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A few things come to mind.

1) More mission variety. The mission types we have now have been done to death and by the time you are level 20 you have seen all the different types you will see.

2) More interactive story/mission elements. I'd like to stop feeling like I'm being dragged along for the ride on every story and mroe like I'm actively helping things along by my actions.

3) More interactive environments. Ways to use all the pretty but ultimately useless stuff we see in mission maps that have no impact on the gameplay of the mission whatsoever.

4) Branching mission/story arcs. Make content that doesn't play out the same way all the time and produces different end results at least SOME of the time.

5) Some kind of secret identity system that isn't about choosing where you log out of the game. And maybe entwined with that...a meaningful skill system to work on that's not directly combat related but can help you advance missions better or even create the opportunity for new missions.

6) Make the gameworld itself more immersive. Now that no one actually street sweeps anymore...you hardly see heroes/villains fighting outside of missions. If a hero chooses to fight crime on the streets...then I think that should generate opportunities for random missions given from people on the street. Encourage players to explore the world for more than just badges.

7) Zone event revamps. I like the burning building stuff in Steel Canyon and I think that kind of thing serves better than spawning giant monsters or ghost ships that no one pays attention to anymore. Which leads me to point 8.

8) Can we have some missions/events that include natural disasters or accidents that don't involve combat? How about rescuing people from construction accidents/gas leaks/auto accidents/tram wrecks? Why does every bad thing in the city have a super villain/villain group behind it? Its nuts. Heroes in comics and movies help people period...they don't just fight bad guys.

That stuff is all off the top of my head. And some of it is based on things that people have said to me about the game as well as my personal observations. The core game has never been truly expanded in a way that generates new types of gameplay.

And in a game like this...I think that's even more important than in those grindy fantasy MMOs. The things I listed above lend themselves to the type of gameworld the devs have created.

Well I'm not saying that Inventions didn't take time to grow on me. I was indifferent to it for a while...probably up til I got a few rare drops and sold them...then started to think about what to do with my money.

When Jack was still here...the talk about new types of enhancements lead me to think that we were simply going to get enhancements with differing properties and that they would be sold at regular vendors. I honestly didn't think we'd get a 'loot' system to go with them.

All that aside, I'm not saying that the things that make us unique are a bad thing. It's just that we've relied on them a bit too much to keep people here and bring new ones to the game.

I know there was behind-the-scenes trouble and that the game was being run with a skeleton crew for quite a few issues. Still, that's not my fault...or yours. And while I can sympathize with how hard it is to push out content when you're short staffed...I'm not obligated to care or stick with your game just because bad decisions were being made by management.

Nevertheless I stuck...well I took a year off right before COV...but I came back the next issue. A lot of people obviously didn't and not as many as should have been enticed to try the game did.

My main point is that we should be farther along...and there is no acceptable excuse as to why we are not when you look at another game in a similar 'niche' that dragged itself from being horrid and almost unplayable to an MMO phenomenon as the largest singe-shard MMO gameworld in existence.

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A friend of mine plays EVE. He showed it to me. The game world graphics look incredible, but I can't get excited about a game where my character graphics are alittle snapshot, spreadsheets are crucia, and PvP means 'start over'.

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Been a while since I left EVE, but I have seen dev posts there saying that the player avatars will soon be able to move around and interact with things in space stations and other places where your ship can land. Not sure if it's in yet but its definitely coming from what I understand.

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I think there is something in that there was a window of opportunity in the beginning that COH did not exploit, and did not grow. Instead we got ED, developers stolen for other projects, a surviving Freem-15, NCSoft buying out Cryptic, and here we are.

Was it worth it so we could nerf enhancements so we could gut production and make room for Inventions waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay on down the road? I don't think so.

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That's kind of what I'm getting at. The game needed to be expanded on years ago. We were already ahead of the competition in terms of costume options and avatar customization...no one was even TRYING to catch up to us then. Instead of fleshing out the rest of the game, we just kept adding costume stuff and zones that looked nice but offered nothing much different.

ED and GDN went into place so we could get 'new types of enhancements' and 5 issues later we got Inventions. Hey I love Inventions...but FIVE issues later?

We were supposed to get an alternate skill system for out of combat use...that got scrapped and we got...well... DAY JOBS about 8 issues later! That totally refreshed the game for me...all that thinking about where to log out next you know? It's DEEP.

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That emphasis is what has kept me here so long. Expanding the mission types/format would be nice, but it's not as important as more costume pieces/options and powersets are to me. It would take a major overhaul of the combat system and mission system for me to get truly excited.

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Well I'm still here too. The thing is that catering to 'just us' doesn't bring in more people...or more importantly keep more people.

Every review of this game that I have read says the same thing: 'Great costume creator...almost limitless options to customize your hero. Powerful abilities and nifty travel powers. Lootless system is refreshing(well that was before Inventions).'

Then they go on to list the cons: 'Repetitive after a while. Missions all come down to the same thing. Not enough variety in mission maps. Hard to keep interest for the long term.'

We're doing great on the costume and powers front. Hey...we even added loot and a player-created mission system. But those same damn cons remain five years after the game has launched.

EVE keeps expanding in ALL directions...its playerbase keeps growing. They've added more stuff for PVE players to pursue, more casual PVP options for people who don't want to get into the bigger alliance warfare stuff, greatly expanded their PVE mission system, research systems...grown the whole friggin galaxy(which was plenty damn big to start with), added more complex ship combat systems and modules, updated their graphics engine, are adding station exploration stuff. ALL directions and they haven't lost the focus of their core game.

We here on the forums can all talk about what keeps us playing...but why aren't there more people coming to join our fun? I happen to think there are very definite reasons for that. They relate back to those ever-present cons that the devs have yet to address.

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Super Hero games are a niche market.

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Superhero games are an UNTAPPED market. So many of them in the past have been badly done that no one took notice.

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I'm still irritated that EVE was partly the reason Earth and beyond went under. EVE isn't even similar to the gameplay syle of EB. Frankly I don't understand the pull that EVE has for the sci-fi niche. I didn't like it at all.

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Your irritation is greatly misplaced. EVE was horrible in beta. I know...I was there. And it was horrible at launch. CCP lost their publishing deal and ended up self-funding and publishing and they had less than 20K subscribers for a while. EVE didn't kill E&B...trust me.

As to EVE itself...it's draw is that it has very few limitations. You can do what you want and pursue your goals at your own pace. As well it has a SINGLE SHARD system...the entire game is on a single instance.

The niche thing is a horrid excuse and I've heard it used here on the forums several times to defend the lower numbers of this game. You want to know why we have lower numbers than EVE? This game failed to expand fast enough and add enough things of real value in its earlier days.

This game started with a lot of momentum while EVE started with 20K players. They are now pushing 350K accounts and we are certainly NOT. I think this game has/had a lot of potential that went untapped due to lack of resource allocation and a harsh 'vision' of what a MMO was supposed to do.

Instead of expanding the core game, for a very long time 'side fluff' became the focus. The mission types/format never got properly expanded and costume pieces and options became too much of the focus of development.

I'm not saying this game hasn't come a looong way...but we're no where near where we should be in terms of what COX can offer. It's sad...because when we hold this game up next to EVE...we started way ahead and both games are in the horrid 'niche' market people keep holding up in COXs defense.

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I have to agree that for the most part the game is quite challenging, based on your character, team, difficulty and mission choices.

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The game is challenging based on your AT. A bit too much so for my liking. This is reflected by the fact that certain teams are much less effective than others. Difficulty comes into play because the 'right' teams can just ramp it up and not care.

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If you choose to do easy 8 person missions (at whatever difficulty) you have decided to make the game easy.

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Doesn't mean you can't team but always playing with the "perfect" team build makes the game a lot easier. Try a team of 8 stalkers and you won't be knocking around groups of level 54 Bosses easily.

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That's an interesting theory...but once it actually collides with real life...it becomes apparent how silly it is.

Now I don't know what kind of PUGs you find in this game...but I(and I'll admit I don't PUG that often) have never found one where I could just tell people that our team composition is too optimal and that we need to change it or I'd quit and find one what was less optimal.

Likewise, when my SG has our weekly team events, people like to play certain ATs. We have a lady that loves tanks, another guy who loves to make squishy girl toons(i.e. controllers) another lady that likes defenders and controllers and I'm the only one that likes damage dealers(mostly blasters on blueside). The only time anyone can tell someone else to switch toons is if there is a level difference problem and/or a powerset redundancy that we don't need. People don't purposely build sub-optimal teams. That's nonsense. It doesn't work to balance the lack of challenge in a game...human nature doesn't allow it.

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MMOs are about balance and even if you take farming out of the equation, AE is not balanced.

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Your post pretty much sums it up nicely.

AE is a system with no downfalls, while the current dev content has them.

As much as we might hate running from top of IP to the bottom just to let a contact know you finished a mission and want another, or hate having to do 3 paper missions before a broker will give you a contact, those things give some kind of cohesion to the game experience. You're seeing the city, you're getting a chance to look at zone events. In COV, you might come across an unlockable contact you didn't know about.

We may hate some or a lot of things about how the devs choose to present the game content and some of it may need revamping after all these years...but it should never be made irrelevant simply because it does not get you uber-leveled or offer enough phat lewtz in comparison to AE stuff.

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Are sales of COH actually up or down right now? When the AE came out, sales were booming, as I understand. What does the situation look like right now?

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I'm not sure. I do think that the AE generated a lot of bad vibes for COX, even as it attracted players. There are several forums I go to on the net where the perception is that COX became a PLing haven and all of the content has become trivial.

AE is obviously NOT being primarily used for its intended purpose and sometimes I feel like the devs put in a lot of effort in something that could have been used to improve other aspects of the game. I got a lot of backlash when I said this before AE came out...and now look at it.

When you talk about community created content in other games, it doesn't really compete with Dev content. Since Dev content in a standard single player game is done and then you move on to look for something else to do. Community created content basically fills that void of wanting more. In an MMO...the devs are going to want their content to always be relevant.

Neverwinter Nights is a great example of a single player game with great community content. In an MMO though, the devs have to care that user created stuff can outshine their content, not just in terms of storytelling, but in terms of reward. That's where the problem lies here. In NWN, it didn't matter if a player-made module bumped me from level 1 to 12 in short order. It was a self-contained story that had no impact on any other content I may or may not play.

Some of the stuff you said is worth considering.

I actually once posted that perhaps there need to be mobs that are specifically anti melee and use powers that hinder them more.

The tech is there to have those awful Quantums and Voids spawn in every Kheldian mission. Why not use that same tech to give enemy groups the chance to spawn mobs that specifically aggro on tanks/brutes/scrappers/stalkers with powers that effect those ATs specifically?

In a sense...have the game react more intelligently to the consistency of a team, rather than just random globs of mobs that could be anything.

I said to someone the other day...even with the dom buff, you still need to play carefully. If I miss 2 holds or a hold and an immobilize in a row, I'm going to HURT. A scrapper or brute can miss as many swings as they like. They aren't going to get held, stunned, slept, knocked back(usually) and then gang [censored] in a few seconds if they are off their game a bit or have an unlucky streak.

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Thanks a bunch. Now I have this song stuck in my head.

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Muahahaha! All according to my evil master plan! (That song is a classic!)

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Ah well, perhaps it will finally push this one out that I have had for the past day or so.

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Hey...that's mean! Now I have it stuck it MY head!

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It might seem goofy for a Crab Spider to become a hero, but I want to turn a Warshade into a Nictus, dangit!

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Well I want to turn a tap into a tape dangit!

Oh wait...I can! With the magic of silent 'e'.

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Hold on. sorry if I wasn't clear. I have no problem with an entire spawn not ALWAYS aggroing.

But . . . This = not right.

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I'll concede that THAT...is not right.

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But, for instance, a Controller can hold one, immob the first one to start charging, go to work on the 3rd and 4th with other powers and then start using holds and immobs again.

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Holds can miss, immobs can miss. Sometimes both will miss. Throughout all this you may have forgotten that this is an RPG with random numbers behind what's seen on the screen as a straightforward use of a power. You won't hold everytime, you won't immob everytime. And the margin for error for a controller or dominator(a bit less so now) missing a hold on a critical mob is a lot tighter than a scrapper, tank or brute missing a swing.

There are mobs that resist holds, stuns, sleep etc. Mobs that have those things themselves. There is no way that having an entire spawn ALWAYS aggro straight on you is always desirable for every AT. Blasters have a similar fine line to walk. 2 or three misses can mean that a tank freak gets in his 450dmg attack and you go down.

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If a controller can't EVER deal with a 3 or 4 level appropriate mob spawn then that AT needs to be looked at. The worst solution is making it so mob AI is so passive they will not initiate an encounter with a close by character.

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That does not ALWAYS happen...some mobs have greater perception than others. Like Fortunatas for instance. But they are NOT in every spawn...nor should they be.

At the end of the day...its not a shooter you're playing. It's a freaking RPG with randomly placed and randomly composed groups of enemies sometimes in random maps.

There are plenty of great games out there with just the type of action you're looking for.

I have always lobbied for deeper gameplay elements in this game...but mob perception isn't at the heart of what really needs to change. Making the game slower for some ATs and powersets to play through just so you can get your 'challenge' fix isn't to the benefit of the whole.