[Suggestion] "OP" isn't what bothers most..

So besides from the vocal minority who scream nerf for everything - I get the feeling the majority of the playerbase isn't as fussed about "balance" as the forums would suggest. Ultimately balance is an illusion, you can't have balance without having everything nearly identical, and that's plain boring (hence why we probably have the 'best level of balance' currently in PS2, because most **** is nearly identical, and boring).

For example, in my opinion, VS MAX AV weapons are pretty significantly subpar compared to the TR and NC equivalents, do I care about that? No, because we're still winning alerts, it's not like all of a sudden my KD has dropped to 0.5, so ultimate balance isn't a big deal.

What IS a big deal is laziness in design, using the MAX example again, simply slapping Lancer pistols onto a MAX and calling them new AV weapons is incredibly lazy, and boring. For starters, with current TTK and the way the game plays, Charge Up's have little or no place in the game, more importantly, they're NOT FUN TO USE. The same can be said with some of the TR gear, it's all very bland.

Am I the only one that wants SOE to stop caring about balance so much, and care more about fun? Flash + Wraith Cloak + Fury = Makes for immense amounts of fun, it feels great to use, and in some situations it can "feel OP", but I've yet to see anyone ingame or a thread on the forums specifically complaining about it, because it's so easily countered, yet a Fury nerf was seen on test. No need, SOE just saw this as "the ceiling for damage you can cause is too high" and it needs to be harder.

Factions need to be vastly different, when I look at other factions I want to think "**** that's cool, I want what they have" and currently I only really have this for MAX weapons (being VS I obviously find our MAX AV very boring, though this post isn't a 'Waah VS got the shortstraw again' it's just a good example). In PS1 I mostly felt this way for TR's minigun, I gawped at that thing.

Ultimate balance isn't attainable without making the game drab. I don't care if TR get the ability to turn 6 prowlers into a Transformer of Doom, I really don't, nor do I care if VS get the ability to turn 10 Scythes into a floating box-fortress, balance shouldn't be a massive concern, of course things need to be toned within reasonable scales, just give factions stuff that is DIFFERENT and FUN, please. It's been worn out and said again and again, but it really is turning into a game that looks like it was designed by the same studio that churns out Battlefield, American or Russian, your **** might have different names, it might have a different skin, but everything pretty much feels the same.

I really would like to see the prowlers turn into a transformer of doom.
And I main VS

It would be ******* cool, and if the "omg so OP xx faction so op full of noobs who play ezi mode" would shut the **** up for 5 minutes, can you imagine how fun that would be to fight if you had your own version of something equally unique, regardless of balance.

I agree 1000%. Speaking as a TR mainer, balance arguments just make the game samey. Like the mag burner/strafe whiners. The magrider ought to be fast/able to strafe well. What i think the devs should is go more Sc route, accentuate a units traits, and then balance by also accentuating it's weaknesses. So the speed shouldn't have been touched, the mag armour/hp should've been incrementally nerfed so that the racial K/D balance for MBTs was the roughly equivalent, but the users would have to use wildly different tactics.

The prowlers ought to have good anchor - and it ought to be stronger in terms of firepower but not as a 'on the move' tank. Make the vanguard slower, beefier, hell give it upgrade options so it can have additional crewed auxiliary weapons (like say 6). Turn it into a rolling fortress that inexorably rolls onto capture positions, harried by mags and prowlers that are use their respective strangths (manuverabilty for VS and artillery for TR) to keep it at arms length.

Should the NC even EVER get high fire rate weapons? Surely you can balance infantry weapons to make the 3 races more disparate, and yet roughly matched in even numbers fights? Should the TR ever use shotties? We can have flamers or something! Vs maxes should be rolling scary **** beam weapons and Ut shock rifles. I know the bird has flown inf weapons wise, but i hope fun and 'racial diversity' are the drive for SOE in the future

Yea, and I think everyone is guilty of the "omg my stuff is **** compared to xx faction wtf SOE" reaction sometimes, some people far more than others though. I just really feel like SOE need to stop listening to that altogether and let it play out.

I honestly believe games were much more interesting before it was pretty much a must-have to have devs active on forums, and before the use of twitter and reddit allowing players to get in direct touch with devs all day every day.

I want to see a game that's the VISION of the developers, I don't want to see a game that 90% of the playerbase has had input on. I'd much prefer 50% of the population thinking this game is the bomb, rather than 100% of the population thinking this game is "alright". A game should never cater to everyone, it just shouldn't.

I DO think its not really well thought through that VS new AV max weapon takes atleast 12 hits to kill 1 infantery... (even if the dude stands absoloutly still it takes you 20s to kill him and same ttk with TR/NC is less than 1 second)

Also agree that difrences makes it more fun and that the VS charge-up-crap is hellaboring (would be cooler if you i.e had to keep a laserdot trained on a target for 3 s non stop and a ion canon vaporised it from orbit) If the point is off target even 1/100 of a second during those 3 s=0 damage...

I feel like NC max got a "omg i want one of those" with their dual mobile-MAX-AV-MANA-turrets... (would be really fun to use)

i would love the idea of a 6 man supervanguard with 5 enforcer ML85's on it. i don't think any other vehicle in the game would be too fond of it though.

@ Zalk. Yeh, maybe that would a smidge OP. But you could limit the type of heavy guns and still have 'bolt on' Kobalts and things to make the Vanguard more of a siege breaker. I feel like it's the tank that needs the most love, it's bit meh right now, a big blue Abrams. 'Sif you haven't wanted to see C and C style Mammoth tanks trundling along......

I agree with this sentiment, and, barring a few extreme examples, don't see much merit in the vast majority of balance complaints on these forums. I'd love to see more originality with each faction's weaponry. As it stands as a NC main, there are already a handful of VS and TR weapons I miss using; if only we could capture fallen enemy kits... Think a MCG is OP? Go kill someone with one and take theirs then!

+1 for more originality...especially that 5 prowler idea. Even as a NC, I'd love to face an epic opponent like that...and PREVAIL!

FFS SoE READ THIS THREAD!

But they do, NC are full of it, unique weapons the other factions dont have, unique useful skills the others dont have, a good selection of powerful low recoil weapons the others dont have, standard plus CQ MAX selections none of the others have, standard ESF choices plus selections none of the others have, what did i miss?

Sure is great to be NC atm. I have no idea why anyone would choose another faction to have fun here and we see that reflected in the populations. Cant see it changing tho, seems NC are intended to be more OP, better stocked and have more choices than the others, why? because they did in PS1, thats about the only answer I get.

So if youre bored go join higbys army, theyre not bored and after the NC pop grows to 50% or more on every server maybe, just maybe, someone will think about what youve written.

You win \o/

That's how it should be.

Other than the Phoenix?

Like what? Vanguard Shield? VS get magburner, TR get lockdown.

Like what? AH? VS get the PPA.



Certainly from a bitter VS perspective, NC do seem to have it the best currently in terms of uniqueness (which right now isn't saying much), but this thread isn't about "xx is OP", if you thought it was then you missed the point entirely. If you think NC has got it all and have all the best unique stuff, then I say, their stuff still isn't unique enough, neither is TR's, neither is VS'.

im not sure its me whos missing the point

You make a good point, However I do think balance is an issue that does need to be adressed, but SoE have done and are doing it in the wrong way.

The way to make things both balanced and interesting is to give the empires different attributes, TR weapons should fire fast and the vehicles should move fast, NC should hit hard and have high armour, and VS should value accuracy and maneuverability,

If the infantry and vehicles had been designed in this way, with no vehicles shared across factions then we would be seeing a very different game, while the empires would be more different, it would be more balanced because each would do something the other empires could not do.

The way balance is going at the moment more weapons have to share stats, so do vehicles and we end up with stupid things like the NC carbines that fire at 800RPM.

The way to balance this game is to make the empires more different and imbalanced, then you can have some sort of balance

Way to answer my questions.

Along you run mr "OMG XX IS OP". This thread is actually aimed at people the opposite of you, and if you read it you'd see that I stated half the problem is in fact you and yours. Enjoy making vague statements without answering any question and following it up with a smiley face to perceive a level of intelligence that no one else can match. You're ignorance is transparent I'm afraid.

That's essentially the point I'm trying to make. Right now they're balancing everything as equals, when they're actually not, and they balance it so harshly that it all becomes a mixture of much the same, and everything gets diluted.

dont worry, you aren't alone on this, just the minority, a ton of people are really happy with everything being bland and lazy.

and so long as they are enablers the developers will push that **** down their throat until this game dies from it.

Unfortunately you can either achieve balance by making things really different or the same, SoE opted for the same, which has short term boons but long term problems, theres a reason why the empire specific stuff, airhammer, PPA, Banshee, Jackhammer, Lasher and chaingun all suck, its to stop people from complaining that they are too good because their own faction doesnt get access to it

If I was in charge of the balance I would have made this game very differentely, but its too late to do anything about it now, im hoping there are lessons learned if they ever want to make a planetside 3

I was actually agreeing with you for the most part MNO, if you bother to take more than a second to read past what you think its OP bias but no matter, you get the answer I give and youll like it or lump it.

Insulting my patience further wont make me spend half an hour backing it up with the easily available stats or facts or explain what I meant because while i could simply, from your tone obviously something is embittering you to believe its an attack, thus nothing I reply with is going to be taken at face value by you. THAT is why i didnt (and wont) bother to expand my answer, I didnt join the thread to argue with you, all the information I mention is readily available and ive got better things to do that spoon feed people common knowledge items today.

Good day to you my friend

EDIT, forgot to add the smiley just for you

I'm hoping by the time a Planetside 3 comes around (15 years minimum) I'll be too rich and too busy banging my 20 year old trophy wife to witness any lessons learnt. If something goes horribly wrong and I'm still in this chair, then CUTHERE.

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