Thoughts on where this game is headed.

For some reason I felt the need to write some of my opinions on where I think this game is going. I tried my best to make it easy to read and divided this post into different topics. If you are going to comment on it make sure you read the entire post and not just a paragraph here and there, so that you can have full understanding of what I meant to say.


PATCHES
The constant changes in game mechanics and the path that SOE is taking Planetside 2 is ridiculous. No other game messes with game mechanics as much as Planetside 2 does. You get used to a specific playstyle, you master it, only to find out that the upcoming patch will affect the way you play and you will have no other choice but to get used to a different playstyle. Without any promises that next month they won't mess that new playstyle you just got used to.

SOE and the developers paint this picture of 'We listen to the community' and everyone seems to fall for it. There has been some changes that have been made to please the community but at the end of the day what they look into is data and numbers. Developers make changes according to what they believe is fair instead of having a team of testers who play the game consistently, and have them report back to the developers. It's the number one reason of why most of the patches are a let down, creating a chain of patches that could be avoided. This week's patch fixes the last month's patch and so on.

With every patch, the developers seem to be making their game even more 'new-player' friendly than it already is. Let's be blatantly honest and say that Planetside 2 doesn't require as much skill, if at all, as other first person shooters.


NEW PLAYERS
New players have a long list of easy ways to support their faction and get kills. You guys know the list I'm referring to; MAX's, shotguns, SMG infiltrators, bouncing bettys, tank spam, rolling with the zerg and outnumbering your opponent 3 to 1, just to mention a few.
If you are still dying after all the easy ways out that this game offers you even at an early game, then it immediately stops being a Planetside 2 problem and it becomes your problem. There is no reason whatsoever of why an experienced player should feel sorry towards a new player.


COMPETITVE
We all know Planetside 2 is not a competitive game, not even close. The nature of an MMO is either the developers focus a 100% on making a competitive game or a completely casual game. There is no in between, and Planetside 2 is a great example of what an 'in-between' game is.

Initially the developers were chasing the MLG dream but on the other side they were trying to make the game more and more 'new-player' friendly with each patch they released. Where is the common sense in that? You really think pulling a crap ton of MAX's is competitive? Think again.

Shortly after giving up on the MLG scene, they began to support community events which brings me to my next topic.


COMMUNITY EVENTS
Community events are a joke, not because of the events themselves but because of the lack of support from SOE and the developers. Providing users with a private server and spectator camera is not enough. Not to mention, the things you have to do to actually get 'support' from SOE is ridiculous. Trust me, I've been on that boat with the PAL: Professional Arena League tournament.

Before supporting the community and offering us the players with a mediocre event, put your head into it and offer them something they can call an 'end game'. Hire professional commentators, invite players to official LAN parties for the finals, create a more sophisticated spectator camera that can go into first person to measure a player's aiming skills, create art work and animations for the stream, display the player's name instead of CommunityClash01 - You would be surprised at how many people root for players but find themselves completely lost when watching a live stream match. 'Who made that awesome move?!' Guess what, you'll never know. And the list goes on and on.

My respect goes to those who try to come forward with ideas for community events and actually make them happen. I fully support community events because I want to believe that this game has an end game, truth is, it doesn't.


END GAME
Don't bring me the 'First person shooters don't have end game' because they do. End game is what you look forward to when you have experienced the game to its fullest. A game with no end game means that those experienced players who have been playing for a long time will eventually get bored and quit. That's why people have created their own end game, which to a lot of players is farming and striving for better stats.

End game keeps the long time players playing the game. Of course, Planetside 2 and Counter Strike cannot be compared to each other but for the sake of an example I will compare them. Why do you think Counter Strike has players that have been playing the game for 10+ years and to this day they still play? It's because of end game content, which for them is tournaments. It's a way of gaining reputation in the game, winning prizes and being known in the community. That's the real end game.


CONCLUSION
At the end of the day, SOE and the developers' number one priority is to make money without compromising their game. They will not support community events with money out of their own pockets. They will find the cheapest way around it and expect us to be satisfied with whatever they offer. Planetside 2 will never be competitive, it never was in the first place. SOE will keep dumb-ing down the game, making it more and more 'new-player' friendly with every upcoming patch. The only end game there will ever be is the one you create in your head to keep you from quitting the game.

Game design is not and should not be a democracy.


The rest of your thread is predicated on the false idea that the the skill required to play a game is inversely proportional to how easy it is to learn it.

Uhhh..... Nope. Firsthand experience, this is blatantly wrong, not blatantly honest. I just started playing Halo 4 online, about the same time I started playing PS2. In PS2 I have been playing mostly infantry, so I find the following numbers to be fairly representative: I have ~.6 KDR in Planetside, and a 3-4 KDR in Halo. I know KDR is not exceptionally significant in PS2, but it does go to demonstrate that PS2 has a MUCH higher learning curve than an average FPS. If nothing else, the sheer fact that I feel more effective playing Halo than playing PS2 should go to show that PS2 is a higher skill ceiling game.

Saying that PS2 isn't competitive is completely irrelevant. Because it has no competition. There aren't any other MMO FPS games like this out there. Could PS2 be better? Certainly. Could it be worse? Certainly. Don't forget that this is a massive game, that will be constantly in development for years to come. If you are dissatisfied with this game, then stop playing. Come back after a few years, and see if things are better. The fact is that this game isn't what many people wish it could be. The fact is that this game has HUGE potential. The fact is that the devs will keep adding to and changing the game for years to come.

Sorry if I popped your negativity bubble, but I am in an optimistic mood right now. Leave if you like, but don't forget to check back from time to time. Maybe you will be happily surprised!

I agree with demonicspoon.

Also:
Comunity events are, well, driven by the cimmunity, MLG was started by players not developers... on top of that many people think that the MLG aspect should stay out of the game as it may harm the more fun and casual parts of the game. This also leads to my belief that strict competitive rules (like the rules for CC) shouldn't be implemented by the devs, that would kill the sand box part of the game.

Honestly you outtake on the future of the game has me thinking that Counter Strike is more your style as you only seem to like infantry combat.

As for new players, YouTube first impressions of the game... New players are completely lost entering this game.

Can you seriously say with a straight face that Planetside 2 has a high skill ceiling with all these crutches available? Is a tank really all that hard to use? Can you really not get at least 2 kills before you die on a tank? Can you really not get at least 2 kills on a MAX? Or get at least 2 kills with a shotgun? That blows my mind, seriously.

Let me quote myself again: "If you are still dying after all the easy ways out that this game offers you even at an early game, then it immediately stops being a Planetside 2 problem and it becomes your problem." There you go.

Thanks for reminding me because I forgot that Planetside 2 is a massive multiplayer game.

I don't know where did you read that I was quitting anywhere in my post. I didn't write this post because I wanted to announce everyone that I got plans on quitting. When the day comes for me to quit, I'll quit just like any other player and keep it to myself. There's no reason for me to go and announce it on the forums. You missed the whole point of what I was trying to express. You got the wrong impression.

Exactly, just like any other game does. That's a pretty obvious statement, don't you think? Again, you missed my point.

My point is there has to be testers. Testers that report back to the developers and give their thoughts about certain changes that the developers have in mind. You got these tiny game mechanic changes being made because the developers feel is fair, for example, the ADS while jumping. They figured they messed up and are now adding it back in April. That's what I mean with a patch to fix a previous patch.

Same with ZOE ability. Striker. Harrasser. The list goes on and on. Releasing new content, then nerfing it because it's overpowered comes to show that they don't know what they are doing and need a group of people to report back to them before this nonsense such as ZOE hits the live server.

I agree.

End game and community events................I have one idea that might actually work.

Basically run a league, like bowling, darts or pool. They all use a similar format of one known night per week. Run it on Jaeger but instead of just 2 teams per night have 2 or three matches per continent running. Using the comm clash style lanes.

After the first "season" a handicap or tiered system can be put in place. Let it run nine to twelve weeks. One US and one Euro league.

This would effectively allow each outfit to have a reason to practice and give new players a reason to improve while also giving an end game to long time players. It could allow SOE to finally showcase PS2 as they have been trying to do since release.

I like it. Make it so.

It's becoming more and more like the MMOFPS version of Battlefield 4 Online.
No doors.
Death cam.
Multiple points to capture per base (A,B,C).
Preset class system.
Weapon attachments system.

Everything is tailored towards the majority FPS gamer of today, which wants instant gratification, near instantaneous spawning, and lightning fast game play that leans on run 'n gun and twitch shooting mechanics.
Almost nothing to do with PS1 except for faction names, vehicles and certain weapons.

It's where the money is, and plenty of people are performing micro transactions (which is a joke, $5 for tiny DLC like camo or voice packs isn't "micro" at all) which fuels their decision making.

Like someone said, this isn't a democracy. We can give feedback and opinions but that doesn't mean they'll actually do what we say.
They'll do whatever is in the best interest of PS2 turning a profit, not what actually adheres to good game mechanics or structured game play.

For that, there is PS1 and games like Arma 3. Water into wine, all shapes and sizes. (anyone get that? )

I agree. You couldn't have said it better, nailed it

Yeah, really...the constant messing with core game mechanics is prolly what bothers me most.

I can never tell if my NC6 is going to be the same NC6 tomorrow....or if my EM6 is going to suddenly get a massive recoil nerf, disabling its ability to fight at range.

I imagine those that had the release EM6 find the current one a total nightmare to handle. I didnt get it till apparently they had nerfed the Horiz recoil. But the T9 CARV...i did play with it when it had .2 H-recoil and after it got .225....the difference was noticeable and annoying.

Your personal experience of being a horrible player doesn't equate to everyone else's experience (objective vs subjective, etc). As the OP had previously mentioned, this game has so many crutches for terrible players to lean on that maintaining a 2.0+ k/d is relatively easy.

You not being able to reach that level doesn't somehow prove that the game is hard.

Someone do the math on what % of players in this game carry a 2 or above k/d.

" it's going to be a real small number"

Also coming here and calling people horrible gets you banned and ignored(just made my list). Try to remember how to communicate with other human beings no matter how much time you spend in your basement.

You need to stop hurting my feelings.

PS2's endgame is apparently flying a max-certed out aircraft and farming everyone as BR 100.

Yeah, really...

That or using aim bots on an SMG infiltrator.

so anyone with a br100 should just leave the game because all they do is farm with fully certed stuff? nothing but a title is given to you at br100

Umm...you have a massive 4.23 KD, and have been playing for a consecutive total of 65 days...you really can't stand there and speak from the point-of-view of a new player struggling with the dozens of ways they can die at the most unexpected moment. Also when you listed stuff off that newbies can do to get kills early on, only two of the half-dozen or so things you mentioned were available at start...just pointing that out.