KidRiots Interview With Matt Higby

I just wanted to say my point of view as an above average mag pilot.

I am meh about infantry vs tanks. Sure, many infantry can all pull av and kill me or make me run away, but I rarely see it. Most of the time, I am able to kill whatever I want unless a vanny, Vulcan-H, or air is there to make me scared. IMO, most infantry I see on emerald is too unorganized to stop a decent tanker.

Edit: the same is true for air vs ground. If 5 people in a platoon pull bursters, it becomes a no fly zone. Then the air will just go where the enemy isn't smart.

(keep in mind that I have left the game for a very long time and have recently came back so a may (definitely) not have completely up to date knowledge)

Here is how I think tanks should be changed, First they should be increased in cost and have possibly have a recourse used to maintain them (needing a special recourse to repair them that may be low do to A. a way to many tanks up at a time compared to the number of players B. being cut of from the warp gate or C. there is only 3 players and their really shouldn't be a MBT up. Next, the MBTs should get a massive buff to armor in general, allowing them reliably sit out in the open, and as long as they don't get flanked, hit by air, or stay close to infantry (ill explain why infantry should be avoided later). The only threats to Tanks should be air, another tank, flanking, mine fields, and infantry up close (again ill explain why they are so dangerous up close but not at distance). They also should get a good bonus to their anti infantry abilities, in general more damage to the main gun and to a lesser extent the secondary, and possibly (this is off the top of my head so its not to well thought out) a defensive slot upgrade that gives the tank 1-2 anti-infantry auto turrets that have low accuracy at range, decent damage, but still not as much as a infantry rifle/carbine/smg/ect, only attacks spotted targets or targets in a cone view around the point the player driving is looking at (so it will only attack a target that is spotted or already screwed because the tanks main gun is pointed right at it up close, but at long range it will put down suppressing fire on several targets (but do to the range wont actually do all that much damage)). Tanks should also get the ability to fire different types of shells at the same time (similar to war thunder were you can choose HE or AP rounds) with a possible reduction to damage if im using a different barrel (HE shells with the AP gun barrel will be less effective then HE with the HE barrel and the HEAT barrel will be able to fire HE and AP with minimal damage reduction while the HE shells also get minimal damage reduction when fired out of an AP/HE barrel)

Infantries AT abilities will also get a buff, C4 will be able to severally damage (but not kill) a tank (but the repair time increase and possible resource needed to repair it will make that damage very, very painful), mines should not insta kill on their own (needing 3 mines or 2 + a rocket), but the major changes to infantry AV would be the rockets, at close range they should be very deadly but after a bit quickly lose damage, there could also be a long range rocket that does relatively little damage but maintains its damage a lot longer. Hopefully these changes would make the tanks feel like an actual tank at long range, but at close range be very vulnerable.

With these changes battles would hopefully play out were the Tanks would form the "front line" were the infantry would often be, the two front lines would be lobbing rockets and bullets at the enemy and the "no man's land" were primarily infantry are fighting over every little rock/mound/pile that they can use as cover while bullets fly past their head and tanks shells and rockets explode to their left and right as they desperately try to take that one mound the enemy has were you could launch a rocket that will maintain most of its damage at their tanks. Then there would be the flanks were (do to terrain) the fighting is mainly infantry with support from air and light vehicles (harassers). And the infantry try to get to that one building/hill were they can land shots on the weak rear/side armor of the tanks ether with long range or short range rockets or even C4.

Also about the soup analogy, not all people like the soup the same way. similar to how I can want soup with 60% water and 40% onion, someone else may prefer 60% onion and 40% soup, I may prefer battles like i recently described were its a general stalemate with the line slowly shifting back and fourth until someone makes an important/decisive move, such as a platoon getting a few galaxies and dropping in behind the enemy taking troops from the enemy main line away to deal with the infantry behind them allowing friendly tanks to break through or surround them. while the other person could prefer infantry only, tank/air only, call of duty, battlefield, fighting against/with a bunch of AI, minecraft, or they could even prefer going outside and doing something out their. All in all this has been a pain in the *ss to wright (tried doing it on my I-pad fist but it glitched and i had to restart after nearly finishing) i'm going to get something to drink and figure out why my I-pad glitched when i was writing this the first time, good luck on the battlefields of planetside!

The balance is they're worth more xp so people go after them the same way they do tanks. Stop treating them like they're an infantry unit. They're not.

i really dont know why people have a massive problem with maxes, without fellow squad support they die quick and all you really have to do with a non attentive raven spammer is drop 2 mines on him and kite him around a rock

That won't work because that'd encourage outfit players to not revive randoms.

People have suggested if killed within 'x' seconds of being revived then can't be revived again. Another thought is limiting a player to only accepting 1 to 3 revives per spawn.

Other games have used mechanics where headshots and explosive deaths don't count.... Given the Qty of headshot and explosive deaths though, not sure that'd work well here.

A downed state could work maybe, but players would need an extended "downed" HP of minimum 500HP if not even 1k. They're immobile right where they died, almost no revives would be given if it only took 1 more tap to perma-kill.

Alternatively you could at least allow Melee permakills only maybe.... possibly combined with an earlier concept (limit per spawn/permadeath if instantly killed after revive.)

I agree that C4 as an automatic pick that makes other choices pointless is bad, but I also think that Infantry AV and Anti-Max is bad in general.

The game has boiled down to each player spawning the OP power or counter unit. Every unit being used has users that complain about something about their unit, but each of those units is OP in one regard or another... or they wouldn't even be picked anymore.

They'd be better off looking at unused stuff and improving it to the level that it was a viable choice. Just nerfing something that is an OP power or counter unit will just remove that thing from being chosen, and the list of things being chosen will shrink even to an even smaller list.

Depends on a lot of things. Seems Medkit is more useful in Casual Standard Play than Server Smash or Hardcore Organized Play.

Medkit (and Regen Impant and close access to Terminals) contributes to making Medics less useful as a Support Class, but so does wounded players running away from Medics. It's pretty obvious that PS2 Designers haven't paid attention to the topic Class Support, Roles, etc. in like forever. That's why most players just play HA as Inafntry, Engineer as Driver, Max, or a few of the other classes getting crumbs. And in the Server Smash or Organized Play, you see the same OP tactics with the same sets of Class combos.

Works for me. I have barely looked into the Medic issue, in terms of solution branches and relative possible side effects. And I can understand how tuning the wrong aspect will just breed different tactics to get around the change and continue to abuse the same basic mechanics, OR could breed a totally warped meta where a handful of Power units or Units with Power Synergy dominate the game.

Putting a cap on # revives per player works for me (pending side effect testing or theorycrafting). Though ideally there should be an icon to communicate this to Medics, and Medics should get an XP increase on revives since they have a new Cap.

I thought Outfit players already largely ignored randoms. But I can see what you are saying and how this would contribute further to that negative element in the game.

Not sure if that addresses all problem situations. Seems like it applies and arbitrary factor to things and not as clean as the limited revives method.

Yeah, seems to make another arbitrary situation to relied upon.

Also, I already hate the different treatment of high skill players and their methods. It's enough that their prowess gets them more efficiency, making loopholes for them to excel just creates a game with 2-castes of gameplay access.

Yeah, I would think it should be melee to administer perma-kill, but that again might make it not work to stop OP tactics from the game. Also, in EC it seems all players can perform the revive, so with PS2's medic monopoly on revive, it might creates weird disproportionate kill/revive situations or put more emphasis on running more Medics.

I think it has potential, just not sure. And might not fit with a dedicated Medic Class as the sole source of Revive.

I agree giving a long range Infantry AV (and non-ESF AA) option (Lancer) to only 1 Faction is a mistake.

And while I agree that long range Infantry AV options like pre-nerf Engi AV Turret were OP, I preferred having it in the game because these is no other long range threat to Armor zergs in the Casual Standard Game. (NOTE: Hardcore Organized Play both doesn't use Armor and also can kill armor easily without pre-nerf Engi AV Turrets)

There needs to be a spawnable Counter to OP Power Units or OP Power Unit Synergies. Both in Casual Standard Play and in Hardcore Organized Play.

Think how crazy you'd have to buff non-Skyguard Tanks for them to be used in large amounts in Server Smash. Portals to instaport them across the battlefield or being able to Gal Drop them? Would that even be enough? Maybe on open air bases. It gets pretty crazy when you think about what it would take to make non-AA Armor viable in current Server Smash.

What about Gal drops or Valkyrie drops directly onto Base Caps?

And if they don't change the Infantry infinite Revive loop issue, players will just set up Medic chains on instaport inserted forces to break the game.

I like your suggestion to remove Squad Respawn in Vehicles. I watched a Server Smash replay and it was atrocious Infantry instaport to enroute Valkyries. At the very least require being a certain proximity to the Vehicle.

When you say can only respawn in Beacon in the same Hex as you, does that mean in the same Hex as a non-Corpse too? I agree that Beacon should not allow people outside the Hex to spawn there.

If you don't nerf the broken travel method/time and revive loop stuff from Hardcore Organized play, it will continue to dominate and keep it such stunted subset version of the game.

I would love to see the game moved back to emphasis on both the field and bases. The way it was at launch. I would remove Beacon (unless your version can show it being severely reduced in power while still having a meaningful non-broken purpose), expand role of Galaxy and kill Gal Drop reliability (can be countered by ready foe), remove Revive loop, etc.

I am all for removing superior weapons from the Sunderer. Sunderer can currently rely on ~2 players and default guns to drive off ESF attacking it, and I like that... and I am a full time ESF player. Removing superior Firepower options from Sunderer and making sure to give it clear Counter units (if those units can close distance, etc.) is my preferred.

I agree that players pushed back to spawnrooms and camped from there as a tactic. It allows an end-game to engagements. And I agree that respawning and attacking flanks is a neat and good thing, including to the point of breaking the siege on the spawnroom and countering the Attackers.

But the pan-Faction or pan-Faction at Base communications in this game are trash...

And much of this 2nd Front tactics is not viable if there isn't the Counter Units in the game (let alone very hard given the communication to coordinate it). Or if it's trivial to knock out the Counter Units. I LIKED when you could sneak into CoraMed Labs and Hack and spawn a Sunderer and park it to the East of the Ridge to the South, and set up a 2nd Front to break Tank Zergs around Indar Excavation Site. That was neat, now it's not so viable because the Infantry AV tools are bad (not to mention it's hard to communicate to anyone that the Sunderer is there).

Imagine if you could send a Region Tell to a Region you weren't in... "Bail the Spawnroom and respawn and flank them from the Sunderer to the East on the ridge". In order to do that I had to leave the Sunderer and respawn into the Spawnroom. Nightmare.

Okay, MAX is a tank. Oh goodie! So happens tanks are overpowered too! They provide an advantage with no weakness! Who knew

"Worth more XP" is a bad argument. People don't play the game for the XP.

My problem is with AI MAXes, I couldn't care less about Ravens. My problem is that MAXes have 10 to 16 times more effective HP than infantry, while packing same or higher firepower, making it extremely hard to take one out.
AI MAX allows to get easy kills without any need for skill, and a choice No1 for indoors infantry farming. It destroys the competitive spirit of the game. And the worst of all is that - as it turns out - it doesn't even have any reason to exist except for "it was in PlanetSide 2".

To me it's not so much a MAX is a problem ( Unless it's pulled in a 1-5 fight ) it's the fact that there is no limit on how many can be pulled ..

Five, Ten , Fifty there is no limiting factor other than a personal resource system. And if I haven't got the resources for a MAX it's a given that another 10 people have to fill my place ..

Yes MAX crashes can be fun and tactical .. But it's gotten to the stage they are happening at every other base due to the ease at which factions can acquire them.


Oh and the fact they can be revived .. That was a bad idea from the get go ...

So why are you even playing this game again when clearly all you want is straight infantry combat in a combined arms game and the power to kill everyone and everything solo when this is an MMO?

I wonder if maxes wouldn't be "better off" balance wise if
-the cost was slashed in half
-accuracy at range was a bit better (think supersoldier maybe; you pick 2 weapons with twice the current stats you can switch between. This means you can zoom/ADS etc. ADS would be like the vehicle ADS: max 2x.
-the armor is slashed in half. 5 times health vs infantry fire not enough trade-off for the slower speed and larger hitbox? Though.
-no max-revives
It is quite silly a max has the same resource cost as a heavy bomber-gunship. (liberator)
Charging into a room full of infantry? Sure, you may kill someone/a few, but you'll be dead too.

Not really. The whole point is that they can charge intro entrenched infantry and take a lot of them down while absorbing fire for other allies. They already die in 1 c4 (most of the time) and cutting health in half would let every HA instakill them with dumbfire launchers. Not to mention how effective AP mines would become.

Removing the ability to revive them and of course the resource system revamp would pretty much be all they need.

Because apparently I like the good side of this game more than I hate its bad side.
And I don't just want straight infantry combat, I just wanna have a fighting chance in all situations, like in Titanfall. It's a crappy game, but it got that part right.

I wanted to slash their armor in half, not their HP.
I was mostly referring to halving their effective HP vs small arms;
The max currently has 25% dmg reduction from rockets, and 50% from the splash.
So no, I don't think they'd be instagibbed if we halved those numbers.

vs the default: 1135 direct, 750 splash.
1135*(1-0.25)+750*(1-0.5)=1226.25
halved armor:
1135*(1-0.125)+750*(1-0.25)=1555.63.
And tbh, I think we can leave explosive splash as is, perhaps even increase it, because otherwise every frag grenade becomes a problem for maxes too.
-> Increased direct dmg from RL only.

Should it really be possible to charge into a room and absorb their current level of bullets, whilst also having significant dps output at short range?

By the max=supersoldier approach, they get ads, and their firepower becomes a more important reason to spawn one, than bulletsponge.
Currently, the max has 45% dmg resistance from tank shells (heat & HE), 52% damage resistance from armor piercing shells (AP cannon)
Those are direct hits from a 150mm explosive projectile. 52% dmg reduction.
Yes, our max supersoldier carries around an AV weapon, but should he be dueling tanks at range? NO!
1 AP round hit= byebye, no rezz.
Our max AV weapon could, on the other hand, be made much more effective vs sunderers and harassers for example. And still be effective vs mbt's, when the mbt's isn't shooting back.
Now: long range Raven/Vortex spam. If killed, hope for a rezz.

Realy... Have you ever played as a tank, even once? They have a ton of weaknesses and to be honest, I see that I often get more kills per min/however long I can survive in one playing infantry (though I get a worse KDR because tanks can take a few shots, and before you use that as proof that tanks are OP, sniping in genral gets you a higher KDR (you tipicaly shoot from a distance away from the mojority of bullets) no one is complaining about that.) tanks can't do much to help when the infantry start to get to the base (pretty much 90-95% of the game excluding a few places), when tanks start farming bases people often dont realise that the platoon or two of infantry is doing most of the work keeping you traped, tanks are made of wet paper (they don't feel like they can take a hit, if i get hit by any more than 1 rocket or tank shell, I don't feel like I can hold my position until the person shooting me is dead, I have to pull back or the next missile she'll will put me in critical condition (I play only NC so at least I have the sheild that lets me retreat without getting blown to bits though), tanks (or at least the vanguard, don't play TR or VS) don't have very good anti-infantry (that means they arnt good at fighting 90% of the threats) at the very best the main gun is a slow firing sniper rifle (again that's for the vanguard) that can take out a target every few seconds provided I hit every tiny infantry guy at Meduim range (so C4 has to run over to me and I can stil actually see the infantry) 100% of the time, the only use I've reliably seen for my tank (the vanguard) is to take out other tanks (the only role for a MBT is to kill other MBTs anything else and it is out competed by infantry or air). the only thing I use my vangaurd for is an armored sniper rifle with the bonus of being able to fend of a harasser or lighting when the typical sniping spots I use are blocked/taken/have a few counter snipers taking me out. Again keep in mind that I only play NC so the vangaurd is the only tank I can talk about from the driving point of veiw, but when I play LA or engineer and fight them they seem pretty much the same (exept for the mag rider as it is next to impossible to C4 when there is a skilled driver)

I'm not even gonna read you wall of text. Use the force of formatting, Luke.

I realy don't feel like formatting that mess, I'll just summarize, the im calling BS on you saying that tanks are OP and have no weaknesses, list a bunch of weaknesses (90% of the previos post) including them having poor anti-infantry (infantry are 90% of the things a tank will face), them genraly killing less then you would if you would play as an infantry (not talking about KDR the tanks have higher of that because they can run to cover) they can't effectivly help on a lot of bases because they can't move into it/it has buildings in it and will get hit by C4, and in genral the only thing they are good at is taking out other MBTs. Also as I stated this is from the perspective of a NC only player, but from what I see the only diference to the prowler and married r is that one gets slightly better AI weapons and the other is a pain in the *ss to C4.

If you're not gonna respect me by laying you thoughts in a concise and readable manner, then I shall not respect you by reading them. Simple as that. / Not like I wanna participate in umpteenth "why tanks are OP" discussion anyway.

Lets face the facts:

The entire combat system has been made so unrealistic for the sake of infantry balance.

We use the equivalent of 1960's tech.

If Infantry used a 21 century missile launcher (lets say a Javelin for example) 9/10 there would be a dead tank in one shot and the same can be said for GtA AA missile as well.

Now if Rocket launchers were one shot only AND cost resources maybe there could be some sort of balance between infantry and air/ground vehicles.

Anything and we are just going around in circles.

I apologize if i insulted you or "didn't show respect", but i dot have to ask why you are being so rude. I thought I made the post a concise and readable (the summary, the first post was a mess) display of the weaknesses of tanks. I will gladly avoid another argument, but I despise when someone talks without any knowledge of a subject. I'm going to play some PS2 now, good luck in the fight!

You did not insult me, and I'm not being rude. Simply stating the fact that reading a wall of text just so I can spend more time proving why an obviously OP thing is OP is not my idea of a time well spent.

At the very least, tanks are OP because they are an additional layer of armor and firepower on an infantry player. It provides an advantage without downsides, and if suddenly a downside appears, the player can instantly just pop out of the tank and continue on.

The only cost a tank has is some nanites that generate freely over time, and that's not enough to justify an enormous buff to survivability, speed and firepower. Immune to all small arms, has an OHK cannon, and even dedicated rocket launchers require 5-8 hits to take down. That's more than one HA can carry without certifications.

It is insane how anyone would consider even for one second that tanks are not OP.

I've been playing this game for two years, I assure you I know the basics of tanking.