Less than impressed...
By
Aliana Blue,
Posted on: 2011-09-21 08:44 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
I was also surprised to see it was a lvl 20 arc, simply because I was anticipating an "epic" story in 7 parts. I figured it would require a high-level character. Mostly, though, I was worried that I wouldn't survive it with my tank dropping to less than half her usual strength. I keep her at x6 difficulty most times and worried that this would be the end of me, but figured I'd give it a shot anyway.
I found it fairly hard and quite a bit slower than usual, given my fewer attacks, but I had fun and it wasn't half as bad as I'd feared. I'm not sure about the majority of plaers, but my characters always seem to hold up pretty well when exemped.
Est sularis oth Mithas
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What about:|
Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison
Let me ask, that of the two scenarios I present, which is the more agreeable:
1) SSA as is. Exemp to 20, participate in the story, fight level 20 foes, earn rewards for fighting level 20s. 2) SSA without exemplaring. Stay level 50, participate in the story, wipe out level 20 foes, earn no rewards. |
3) SSA auto-scales up to 50 with you.
It's not as though "missions which can be played at higher levels" are a technology unknown to the game.
Dr Aeon mentioned in the Ustream this morning that future SSAs will have a higher level when you exempt and require you to be a higher level in order to start the SSA.
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Doesn't work that way because these enemy groups are not on par with level 50 characters. They would have to be redesigned to match the proper difficulty.
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Originally Posted by seebs
What about:
3) SSA auto-scales up to 50 with you. It's not as though "missions which can be played at higher levels" are a technology unknown to the game. |
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Just gonna say that....
a. I don't mind exemplaring.
b. I have lowbie arcs in my Architect work too. Lowbies can use content.
c. But, I don't think these "pay to get", hyped-OMG-SIGNATURE-RELEASE THE KRAKEN!!! arcs are the place to do exemplaring like this.
That is all.
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That's not a good reason to focus most or all of the new content on the level cap. That's not even a bad reason to focus most or all of the new content on the level cap.
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Originally Posted by Venture
Because the level cap is where everyone ends up. Lower levels are only transitory.
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What does that have to do with anything?| Did they charge any less admission at release than other movies in theaters at the time? |
Back when Babylon 5 was being made its creator was on Usenet almost every day answering messages from the fans. After explaining how something had gone wrong in a recent episode (I forget which or what the problem was), he added (from memory, can't find the quote right now), "By the way, I'm telling you guys this because part of what I want to do is educate people about how TV shows are made. I'm not trying make excuses. One of the things I learned in my theater days is that the audience only sees the play that's in front of them. They don't know that you're hung over from the pre-opening-night party, or that your costume is torn in back so you can't turn around, or that someone didn't put out a prop so now your next line doesn't make any sense. They just see the play, and that's the way it has to be."
How many people worked on this or what went into making it isn't part of the equation. All that matters is what the players see, and what we're seeing isn't nearly worth the asking price. The Current Opposition's for-pay mission content cost slightly more but delivered waaaaaaaay more content. As a bennie for subscribers this is OK (not great); as a store item, it fails dismally.
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| Doesn't work that way because these enemy groups are not on par with level 50 characters. They would have to be redesigned to match the proper difficulty. |
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| That's not a good reason to focus most or all of the new content on the level cap. That's not even a bad reason to focus most or all of the new content on the level cap. |
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"And I say now these kittens, they do not get trained/As we did in the days when Victoria reigned!" -- T. S. Eliot, "Gus, the Theatre Cat"
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Why?|
Originally Posted by Venture
They made a choice to peg the arc at the 10-20 bracket. They could -- and should -- have chosen to tell the story they wanted to tell using factions that went to the top.
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The factions they chose fit very well with the story they're telling.
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No, they don't. There is really no "story" here in any case. It plays the same if (just off the top of my head) Crey makes a deal with the Freakshow to steal a device from Arachnos that will let them steal Synapse's powers yadda yadda yadda. Actually this is better, since Crey created Synapse in the first place so now there's actually a connection. In the existing arc Synapse is just RANDOM_HERO_VICTIM_01. And it would have the benefit of opening a wider level range. More characters would be able to play at their native level and preferred difficulty.
| The factions they chose fit very well with the story they're telling. |
Current Blog Post: "Why I am an Atheist..."
"And I say now these kittens, they do not get trained/As we did in the days when Victoria reigned!" -- T. S. Eliot, "Gus, the Theatre Cat"
TL;DR (the following is my guess, but it makes sense)
Arc 1: 10-20
Arc 2: 15-25
Arc 3: 20-30
Arc 4: 25-35
Arc 5: 30-40
Arc 6: 35-45
Arc 7: 40-50
There. That's why - its a linear progression along your characters career.
Deamus the Fallen - 50 DM/EA Brute - Lib
Dragos Bahtiam - 50 Fire/Ice Blaster - Lib
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Formally Dragos_Bahtiam - Abbreviate to DSL - Warning, may contain sarcasm
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Originally Posted by Shubbie
Im very good at taking a problem and making it worse.
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Ok then, by extension the entire game has no story. Why are you here?
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Originally Posted by Venture
No, they don't. There is really no "story" here in any case. It plays the same if (just off the top of my head) Crey makes a deal with the Freakshow to steal a device from Arachnos that will let them steal Synapse's powers yadda yadda yadda.
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Check out all my guides and fiction pieces on my blog.
The MFing Warshade | The Last Rule of Tanking | The Got Dam Mastermind
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don'T attempt to read tHis mEssaGe, And believe Me, it is not a codE.
I am not bothered with exemplaring down (even if I play a hero who has not been resepected to get Stamina in time). TF's, ouros and even joining a mission with a friend brings forth this great feature that allows people from diferent levels to play together. This is not a game where only the top levels are getting any development. If you don't want to exemplar then play a lowbie instead. Plus, I like the fact that they used this particular faction. They are nice, fun and hardly ever used.
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False, there are a substantial number of arcs that do have story behind them. This just isn't one of them.
| Ok then, by extension the entire game has no story. Why are you here? |
Current Blog Post: "Why I am an Atheist..."
"And I say now these kittens, they do not get trained/As we did in the days when Victoria reigned!" -- T. S. Eliot, "Gus, the Theatre Cat"
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But at the end of the day, they all "play the same."|
Originally Posted by Venture
False, there are a substantial number of arcs that do have story behind them. This just isn't one of them.
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Whether someone's stealing something or you're defeating someone or yadda yadda yadda... right?
Where to now?
Check out all my guides and fiction pieces on my blog.
The MFing Warshade | The Last Rule of Tanking | The Got Dam Mastermind
Everything Dark Armor | The Softcap
don'T attempt to read tHis mEssaGe, And believe Me, it is not a codE.
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This whole thing doesn't actually mean anything.|
Originally Posted by Venture
No, they don't. There is really no "story" here in any case. It plays the same if (just off the top of my head) Crey makes a deal with the Freakshow to steal a device from Arachnos that will let them steal Synapse's powers yadda yadda yadda. Actually this is better, since Crey created Synapse in the first place so now there's actually a connection. In the existing arc Synapse is just RANDOM_HERO_VICTIM_01. And it would have the benefit of opening a wider level range. More characters would be able to play at their native level and preferred difficulty.
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You mean to say that the story arc has no "story" where that's demonstrably false. In fact, you just demonstrated it by taking the basics of the story and stripping out the flavor dressing and applying to another set of flavors. They do that with Hamlet all the time - look at Sons of Anarchy.
What you probably mean to say is that they haven't done anything interesting with this story, or even what they haven't done before. Which we can argue about, and you might be surprised to find that I'm more on that side of things than you might think (although in terms of game play presentation it was fun as hell for me). Still, there was a story.
"Be a beacon?"
Blue Mourning: lvl. 50 Katana/DA
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No, its not a good reason. The reason "I need more different stuff to do" applies equally to people who want to continue to play at the level cap and those that want to play different alts. In this game, we don't prioritize one over the other, and everyone who either knows that or should know that should also know that sort of reason is therefore inoperative here on its face.|
Originally Posted by Venture
Yes, it's a good reason. People end up with level-capped characters and nothing to do with them. Oh, that's right, we do have something to do with them now: we can farm for more powerful stuff that lets us run tougher farms for more powerful stuff that lets us....
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A good reason would be some reason that *justified* prioritizing the players that play at 50 over the players that play at 20 beyond "we all get there." We all generally get there, but we don't all stay there.
If the early levels are just transitory, and there's nothing to do at the higher levels except absurd stuff, then I'm assuming you're here to subsidize my play. Which I do appreciate everyone who chooses to do so, by the way.
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Not my logic. Careful not to put words in my mouth|
Originally Posted by rsclark
Actually, mid 30s works pretty well. By your logic, why not just level lock at 2 - after all, alternating those two underslotted attacks and brawl is loads of fun.
Lower levels have some semblance of a point when you are learning to use a characters, but once you're past that point, then ... well, you're past that point. |
But think on this... sometimes your game is off. You can't come to the crease and smash a century of 20 balls... maybe you'll get out for a duck... or you bowl your best spell ever and still get carted around the field without a wicket to your name.
Sometimes it's tough to achieve a goal and in achieving it against the odds often gives a greater sense of satisfaction. It's level 20 for a reason. I bet you that you'd enjoy it if you got a toon to 20 and ran it immediately. Being 50 and exemping is your own issue and nothing to do with the content
Thelonious Monk
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self promote much? |
Originally Posted by Dark_Respite
At the very least, I know that mission 4 is in the 40-45 range (I found it in Ouro while filming my trailer - it's called "Masterpiece").
Michelle aka Samuraiko/Dark_Respite |
Why are people raising issue of story and so on? It clear that one part of Paragon was lazy, and rather than creating a level 10-50 arc, opted for using a mob group that capped at level 20, could they have made ti cap at 50? Sure. Did they limit it due to narrative placement in our hero/villain lifeline? Probably not.
Brawling Cactus from a distant planet.
I just want to make one point. I never asked nor suggested that the arc should be level 50 content. I'd be more than happy for it to be level 27+ content. And still exemp down for it.
20 for me is too low especially on a character that loses more than half her powers and most of her attack chain. I don't need telling how to play the game (nor do I want it). I PL most of my characters past that level to the point where I enjoy playing (around 28-32 FYI) and generally ignore the lower level TFs and arcs as I don't find them very enjoyable. Both through poor story telling, repetitious missions and not feeling super.
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That's their prerogative, it doesn't change the fact that you're getting 6 missions.|
Originally Posted by Sun_Runner
Not everyone (and probably not even most) play both sides. For a good number of people, its' three missions. For me, its' three missions.
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The Devs could raise the level cap, since Lost don't become Rikti till level 31 if memory serves me correctly.
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I'll be sure to add that to the list of reasons not to buy the signature arc stories when talking it over with friends. Won't use half of the stuff included.|
Originally Posted by Mr. DJ
That's their prerogative, it doesn't change the fact that you're getting 6 missions.
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Content that we pay for but that we don't see without going out of our way to do so (by rolling and leveling redside when we don't usually do so) ... is wasted money.
Feel free to give me more things to add to my list.
It's your choice, $5 for two arcs isn't that bad imo.
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The story they are telling could be told with a CoH MadLib book.|
Originally Posted by Dechs Kaison
The factions they chose fit very well with the story they're telling.
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"Come here, says <dead magic using NPC>, the traitorous <other NPC faction> have stolen my <generic magic object>."
Waterworld was profitable
Those other 2 were bombs.