903 réponses à ce sujet

[Scarecrow_ES]

Thank'ee

[Scarecrow_ES]

Thank'ee

[Scarecrow_ES]

been a few days so... bump

[yuncas]

Damn... Nobody? This sure has fallen off the map. Not good not good..

[Scarecrow_ES]

It's alright... I've been sick so I haven't had time to keep an eye on the thread. I'm working on a refresh of the OP to add in some of the good ideas that have been discussed in the thread. There are just too many that deserve to be on the front page. Once I feel better I'll start working on another update to the compendium.

[Dualfinger]

So...topics anyone?

[Doctor_Jackstraw]

Reading it all...the weapons and armor improvements seem like a quantitative one, something that's basically already happening through dlc and is destined to expand for the third game.  Although if we do end up getting way more armor pieces i'd like to see a "save favorite armors" option added in, being able to slot in a few of our favorites into the "armor switch" bar at the top would be pretty nice.


The ammo system seems interesting, basically it's the me2 system but with "regenerating bullets" if you don't pop the heat sink. I can see the usefulness and the options this would create and I'd welcome a system like this. There's a chance of it having negative implications on the gameplay but depending on how useful the powers in your next system would play out could offset something like that.


The powers...I like the idea of a "buildup gauge" that once you hit the max you enter cooldown phase, allowing for alot of little powers, a few big powers, or one monster power. The idea of an immergent "combo system" from this idea is very interesting, as if you use powers in a certain succession you could say, do a pull, throw, and then a biotic charge to isolate an enemy and finish him off from close range while everyone else is floating in midair. (Using a larger power at the end of your gauge would be a tactical decision)

I also like the idea of charge moves to increase their power and effectiveness. I imagine that in this system the gauge wouldn't be refilling during the charge, and your movement speed would be severely reduced while charging your power, much like when using the various charge based heavy weapons. My only concern is that I wouldn't be able to charge abilities I've mapped to my mouse-wheel...


Extending this to the melee action would be a welcome change too, allowing various classes to beat down enemies in close quarters combat. For instance, charge the melee button and releasing would see your character automatically run forward homing in on an enemy and then say, uppercutting them or performing a kick or throw. What could add some depth to said system would be if the two genders featured different "takedowns" as well as having a few additions depending on their class, the kind of enemy you're facing, the range of your strike, and which direction you're attacking from. Having a few additional animations based on your class would be interesting as well. Biotics having a "biotic punch" and kick or techs electrocuting someone when they strike, soldiers having some brutal melee fighting and judo moves would be thrilling.

There could even be a tech tree ability assigned to beefing up melee skills and maybe even some upgrades and equipment that change the takedown's properties. You see these kinds of combat scenarios in cutscenes alot (thane beats the **** out of dudes and shepard especially has some VERY brutal actions you can take in the cutscenes) and it'd be interesting to involve them in gameplay.

Several classes could benefit from this in different ways. Vanguard being able to combo this with their biotic charge, infiltrators going out of cloak to snap someone's neck, soldiers could probably pop an adrenaline rush and take out a few guys before it drops even. There's alot of possibilities there. (knocking a dude down, then charging a takedown to stomp him royally would be INCREDIBLY USEFUL)


Reguarding extra powers, while hybrids would benefit from being able to "ape" an associated power, "regular classes" like soldier and adept would need something else. Maybe just adding a second "class specific power" that you unlock at a higher level would be enough of a benefit right there. (Plus I'd like being able to fill up my 8 slot hotbar with my own moves)


The scanning system you suggested seems like it might be too complicated for repeated gameplay engagement.  I think the solution to scanning is making it more interesting to "spend time" scanning, without adding complexities to it.  Maybe allowing us to zoom into a "birds eye view" of the sorts of areas we drove arround in the mako might be interesting (with added flaura and fauna, and water obviously)  It might also be interesting to visibly "scout" for anomalies that we can actually see.  Fog, weather effects, various things that might not be too difficult to use en-masse would add depth to this system as well. 

Just the visualization of it while not having the tedium of exploring in the mako might create a sort of "investment" that sees players WANTING to explore the entire galaxy just to see what's going on on every planet, since it would only take a few minutes instead of the half hour it does on the mako.  The key I think is creating modular elements that could make each planet feel like a different ecosystem. 

Even just HAVING that diversity would make even the typical "asteroid" somewhat interesting for it's "null" value.  I'm really interested what this would mean for gas-giants though.  Do those even HAVE a surface?  I need to read up on my astronomy...


Here's something I thought up that might be kind of interesting (or terrible and dumb??)  What if each class had an "ultimate" ability on the level of some of the more dangerous heavy weapons that you could use by building up enough kills over a short period of time?  Attackwise I'm thinking on the scale of...Blackhole gun for adept, Lightning gun for Engineer, Cain for Vanguard, ect.  Maybe stuff like the soldier can keep his time dilation going, like every kill he gets resets his countdown on that.  Something that encourages NOT just skipping non-essential enemies in combat.  (Hilariously, if you just run past battles in me1 alot of times the hordes of enemies will be standing right next to you in the cutscene and attacking while you're casually discussing whether someone should live or die.  (Hilarious with thorian creepers)

Modifié par Doctor_Jackstraw, 23 mai 2010 - 09:22 .

[Scarecrow_ES]

Jackstraw... I've only just skimmed your post so far, and you're due a more complete reply than I can give at this second. I just wanted to let you know right now, though, that I thank you so much for taking the time to weigh in on the topic. I appreciate every bit of input I can to help refine my suggestions and present something truly compelling to the good folks at BioWare.

[HCS01]

First off, those are some very good ideas Scarecrow. And Jackstraw, I definitely like the melee idea.

If I may be so humble, I would like to bring up the idea of having a choice to land on a planet, or search for anomalies from space. It could be possible that certain anomalies could only be seen from the ground (a small buried cash, certain mineral deposits, personal vehicle wreckage) and others only from space (large mineral deposits, ship wrecks in remote locations). This would give the player options for exploring the planets. I for one, enjoyed the Mako, even though I found it tedious at times. I also enjoy the planet survey system because of the number of planets that one can visit.

In addition, I have seen several people bring up the idea of weapon customization.  I would personally like to see this implemented as it is for the armor.  Weapons would be divided into different sections (grip/stock, barrel, sight).  A limited range of "dialing in" could be had with the original configuration and additional pieces could be acquired for further customization options and/or bonuses.

Modifié par HCS01, 24 mai 2010 - 12:22 .

[Scarecrow_ES]

Ok... more comprehensive post time, Jackstraw...



My intention with weapons is to add variety and difference in meaningful ways. We're starting to see variety and difference now in the DLC weapons, but so far it's not to the extent I believe should have existed initially. I think BioWare is doing a good job with heavy weapons, as this category has the best possible flexibility, but the others are just lagging. The ultimate problem with how BioWare is approaching weapons, though, is that there's still really a best weapon in every category. One is always better than the rest. It's not a personal choice issue, or a trade-off issue, as it would be in mine. I don't want players to have access to one weapon or conifguration that eclipses all others. That's how my proposal differs. It's less about number (I actually suggest no more than about 5 basic platforms in each category) and more about real difference.



The ammo system, as you said, has potential negative consequences in gameplay. It also has potential positive consequences in gameplay. That's why I like it so much.



You're one of the few people who's understood my intent behind the modified power usage system, which makes me hopeful that I didn't completely botch the initial description. What you describe is ideally what I'm looking to allow. As far as charging, I wouldn't say movement would be severely limited, but there would be things you couldn't do while charging - move in or out of cover, storm, shoot, etc etc. You aren't a sitting duck, but you certainly aren't highly mobile either. This provides a slight deterrance to using charged powers without thinking it through. Try to charge in the wrong situation, and it could get you killed. Do it right, and you'll have a huge payoff.



As far as charging powers for pc users, I do recognize this is an issue. My only reasonable solution is to place the charge power in the selection wheel like the normal one (maybe independantly selectable, or some sort of modifier). You would select it as you would any power from the wheel, and your character will charge and release the power on its own. Of course the only detraction here is that you can't simply stop charging halfway through if you change your mind, as you could with a hold setup, but since the charge time is only a few seconds at most, this is not a huge issue.



I would like to see better utilization of melee combat, too. For instance instead of just a generic punch or something every time you hit the button, we could have context sensitive actions. Come at a person from behind? Choke hold. Storming at a person? Body check or flying kick... something with more oomph. I'd love to see these take on more personality for different characters too. Grunt should be able to toss around most smaller enemies. Biotic and Tech users should be able to work those powers into melee attacks. So yeah, I'm all for some improvements here, but I'm ok with them being left out too if there's not time to get to them.



The scanning system I've proposed is simply a way to break up a long session of really tedious gameplay with shorter sessions of less tedious gameplay. Ultimately it's a stopgap. If we have to have this system, here's how to make it suck less - that's all. I think it'd be difficult, to be honest, to have a vastly different system than we see in ME2 and still have all the associated features that go along with it that players generally support (upgrades and research with emphasis on material management). I just don't want to spend half an hour combing the surface of one planet to find every one of the 30 mineral deposits on it. If I've got to spend an hour doing anything, at least break it up, throw some different gameplay at me... something. Right?



I'm not opposed, certainly, as you, HCS01, and others have suggested, to allow planetary exploration in some cases for mineral mining. I can see many occasions where there's an unknown anomaly that requires a Hammerhead expedition to discover, and then have some sort of gameplay associated planetside for that. If BioWare wants to throw that kinda stuff in for good measure, I'm all for it.



As far as the "ultimate" power concept, Jack... I'm just not sure. The new evolved powers I've proposed should all be more powerful than anything the player has had access to before. Nothing on the level of Cain, but still more powerful than your average cast. I do think giving the player some bonus for successfully using a power in combat would be a good idea... however, how do we do this effectively for every class or power and not have one class become more capable than other? It's a very fine line to walk, and I'm not sure it'd be possible. The idea, for instance, to allow the soldier to continue on in slow-mo possibly indefinitely in combat could be potentially game-breaking for that class. The idea has merit, certainly, but requires a delicate touch.



As far as weapons customization, HCS01... I know there is a lot of support for a return to customizable weapons. I would support such a change under only a few conditions. One, we start with my basic suggestion for a handful of different weapon models in each category which are all fundementally balanced against each other. Each has unique attributes, but none is inheritly better than another. This allows players to find a basic model that fits individual playstyles. Next, we allow for mods to be applied in key points of the weapon, largely different for each weapon category, slotted in a la KotOR - the typical suggestions for barrel, sight, grip, etc are fine.



Further, the mods are all made on the ship using mined minerals. New mods and upgraded mods are found in missions and in stores in the form of schematics. You will never find an actual physical mod, only the blueprints or reference materials that you can send up to the ship to use in the mini-manufacturing facility. An acquired schematic automatically upgrades existing versions of the mod already produced and in use on weapons, and all further versions of said mod produced will be the most current version. This eliminates the hoarding problem from ME1, as you'll never end up with a collection of obsolete tech. Old, unwanted mods can be reprocessed back into minerals at a slight loss. Again, less hoarding. You're always using the best mods you have access to, and you never have inventory you don't want or need.



Mods will ALWAYS have a trade-off. ALWAYS. There will be no mods that only increase the damage capability of a weapon. There will always be a reduction in accuracy, cooling ability, rate of fire, or other such attribute to balance out what was buffed. This is non-negotiable. My reasoning is simple... for one, in real life there are always trade-offs in tech. But more importantly, I want nothing to do with uber-weapons. There is little point, in my opinion, of offering a player a variety of anything if one of those choices will always be better than another. Very few players will intentionally use an inferior item simply for vanity's sake. So if we CAN mod a weapon beyond simple research upgrades, we need to make sure a player is always giving something up to get something else. Want to add a super accurate scope to a weapon? It's going to take power to run it, which will cut down on damage, or rate of fire, or something.



Ultimately, this keeps the variety intact, but also adds another layer of forethought into customization, and beyond that, true customizability. It'd be possible to tailor a weapon type to play exactly how the player wants, without giving him the ultimate gamebreaking hand cannon. In the end, this is the only way to make a mod system that would be worth the investment to the player.

[Scarecrow_ES]

Holy schnikees that was a long post.

[Scarecrow_ES]

Well I'd imagine weapon configuration would happen entirely in the armory. While you might have to do some initial research via the lab to upgrade the overall weapon class or unlock new mod levels, as in the current ME2 system, applying mods to weapons would be done via the same interface you use to outfit your party.



In that same vein, you could pull open a party member's inventory, go to its available weapons, hit a button to access the customization menu, and it will show a list of the different slots, what mod occupies that slot, what mods are available for that slot, a description of the mod and what attributes it changes, what materials are required to produce the mod and the amount required, etc. Select the mod and press the button to add, and you'll be prompted with the material cost of the part and a "are you sure" question. Hell, I figure it might even be possible to add an option to copy a weapon configuration already in use by another party member.



There should be a handful of mods available for each "slot" that each have a different trade-off - damage for accuracy, accuracy for damage, etc. Different weapons should have different types of slots available, according to what might be most important in that weapon class - maybe only 3 or so slots in total. It's possible to have a slight visual variance between different external parts as long as it makes sense in presentation, but the visual differences in each chassis might be more noticable overall.



Also, as with just about everything else, I think there should be the occasional "goofball" mod. Rather than just have a simple trade-off formula which would be the standard for mods, these mods would have unique attributes that might change the way a weapon operates. Maybe something like a burst-fire mod for assault rifles (same overall rate of fire per minute, but done in very fast bursts with break in between), or a magnum mod for pistols (very heavy round with lots of power and kick, but significantly reduced rate of fire and capacity), etc.



Ultimately, I think what a system like this mod system allows is for a very wide band of customization... true customization... to be achieved given very few real options. Beyond that, no matter what a player does to customize a weapon, there is no chance of that weapon becoming unbalanced or gamebreaking. Plus, as I've stated before, and worm_burner just echoed, this setup gives you good reasons to participate in resource hunting.

[Doctor_Jackstraw]

Just a short one: What would work for the pc version would be if you hold down the right click (zoom) when activating a power it could trigger the charge and release when you let go of right click. I think that would be simple and intuitive enough to work.  But you should also be able to hold down the hot key button as well if it's on something that can be held down.  (as opposed to on the mouse wheel like how i play.  It's real badass to put throw (mwheelup) and pull (mwheeldown) on the wheel, makes you feel super powerful to just zip those out at a moment's notice.)

Modifié par Doctor_Jackstraw, 24 mai 2010 - 10:26 .

[Arijharn]

You know what I think would be a good addition as well? A 'lock on' function to make 'bending' activated powers around cover more seamless.



For example, on Dragon Age for the Xbox, you merely press one of the analogue sticks down and lo and behold you are now locked on (which makes some spells easier to cast without been forced to pause gameplay by entering the power menu). The main reason why I never (well, rarely) used powers... dynamically is because someone like a mercenary can quickly enter cover, making it orders more difficult to actually aim a power while also bending it to make it bypass said cover.



I'm more than sure this feature can be duplicated on the PC in some way as well.

[Doctor_Jackstraw]

Being able to lock onto multiple enemies and fire multiple blasts for charge based moves might be kind of an interesting evolution of what Arijharn said, as the sort of move that would totally sap your powers cooldown meter thingie.


Maybe some interesting skills could be created for mass effect 3 where you make a choice between having a shorter cooldown or being able to do more moves before maxing out your cooldown meter.  That could really create some extremely unique gameplay situations between different players.




Also this is sort of a dumbo "I have an idea" edit here but I'd really like to see more class specific moves.  Like what if the infiltrator had a skill that allowed them to "mark" a target and then rebound a shot arround cover into the guy's skull like Revolver Ocelot in Metal Gear Solid 3?  Or maybe Adept could make a force field bubble like in the suicide mission, but shorter term and still allowing free use of thier hands.  That way you could isolate one or two enemies while taking fire from a group and take them out, protect yourself and your squad while initiating a retreat or advancing to new cover, or as a panic move if you get surprised by an enemy showing up where you weren't expecting them to and being totally exposed.  Restricted movement or hampered aiming might be a good balance for something like that (maybe shoot with one hand and hold the bubble with the other?)  More unique class stuff like that basically.

Modifié par Doctor_Jackstraw, 25 mai 2010 - 02:25 .

[Dualfinger]

I know it's not a big thing, but you guys remember when you got the good cooking supplies from the Citidel and then got to try some of the food that was prepared? Well, all I'm saying is that it would be nice if there were some additional props for the characters so that it didn't look like Sheperd was (hilariously) eating right out of the cooks hand (his name escapes me).

[Arijharn]

 I'm totally for Jackstraw's 'dumbo' idea. Or the Infiltrator's 'mark' ability for a small period of time increases ballistic damage received by that target (making it ineffective for example, with biotic or tech ability's) but personally I like the idea of it being an infiltrator ' one shot ignore cover' ability.
Here's some other idea's for new class Abilities (not mentioning the Infiltrator since I actually really like your idea:)
Engineer - Energy Shield: Deploys a stationary shield that absorbs all incoming damage (including melee, biotic and tech) from a frontal attack arc for x seconds. The kinetic damage received will temporarily over-clock your weapon damage after the shield breaks for x seconds.
Soldier - Concentrate Fire: What I suggested for the Infiltrator above, but seems more Soldiery in hindsight.
Vanguard - Fury: After a successful charge, you are guaranteed a second shot within the Charge effect for a weapon capable of firing quickly (in other words, if your shotgun has two bullets immediately available, you'd double tap your target), ignoring normal 'reload rules.' (Does not include reloading the clip). If your weapon is incapable of double shots (for example, the Claymore) then you are immediately able to make a melee attack (think perhaps poor man's Shadow Strike without the sneaking or with a Falcon (Biotic) Punch.
Adept - Disabled Safeties: For a brief period of time, you momentarily disable all Bio-Amp safety protocols to launch an avalanche of destruction upon your foes, gaining massive cd reduction times and/or massive damage amplification.
Sentinel - Mass Shifting: As you wade into conflict you temporarily cripple foes by increasing their mass, making them more sluggish to react (usually to run away).

[Jordan22]

Missing 2 things

space battles
-Upon surveying an uncharted world, (whilst ignoring the warnings) I found myself wishing pirates or some crazy band of radicals might actually try to capture or attack the normandy forcing the Commander to make difficult or risky decisions that could end up risking the lives of nonessential crew members and morale or end up being very lucrative.  Or given a mission, choosing to destroy a patrol or board and disable a Geth Cruiser before landing on a planet might be a strategic option.

Mystery
-It seems they explained a lot in ME2, but given the stage of a nearly infinite galaxy, they didn't do enough to replace that curiosity.  They could have done more to drive you mad with unanswered questions rather than let the galaxy get smaller with more worlds that meet the status quo. That said, Im still really curious what a Quarian looks like under the mask but PLEASE,  DONT SHOW US.  

Modifié par Jordan22, 25 mai 2010 - 05:16 .

[Scarecrow_ES]

Where to start...



Erm... Jack, on the subject of PC controls... I haven't been a PC gamer hardcore for almost a decade now, so I'm never really sure what's possible or desireable in a control config for PC users. I'm sure there's half a dozen ways to make charging powers work for PC users, and a game architect should be able to find some workable solutions.



As far as a lock-on system, it all depends on how reliably it'd work. Part of the usage of arcable powers is skill-based. I wouldn't want any system that holds the player's hands, and many of these missile attacks already home in on the nearest target to the reticule. So as long as it doesn't take the skill away from bending powers, I'm ok with it.



As I had discussed initially in my charged power proposal, and as I'm clarifying in my update, any charged power you use WILL sap every bit of power you have. It will require a fully cooled down system, and will completely deplete it. Just to make that clear. These are intended to be very heavy attacks on a scale we haven't been given before but HAVE seen in cutscenes.



The number of successive power moves available to the player is a balance issue. If we allow too many, a player will just be able to spam powers repeatedly with virtually no consequence. I think the magic number here is 3 for weak powers, so of course I've long suggested a 3-tiered system. This leaves the possibility for weak (1 tier cooldown), intermediate (2), and evolved (3) attacks, and should keep gameplay fairly balanced. I do, of course, still support the ability of a player to upgrade his character to reduce power cooldown times... which is a feature that both ME games and my particular proposals still feature.



As far as missile-based attacks (anything that streaks from you to your target - Incinerate for example), I'd always imagined a super heavy version of the attack for the charged evolved form, but sending out a barrage of small attacks like a firestorm to completely devastate a group of enemies is also a very nice possibility.



Jack... my charged evolved power concept ultimately incorporates some of the types of class-specific ultimate moves you describe. For the Infiltrator's Tactical Cloak, for example, my OP recommended what is basically an instant stealth takedown under the evolved power. If I didn't know better, I'd say BioWare actually used this suggestion for Kasume, as she actually has this ability. I even recommended the shield bubble concept for Barrier's evolved form. I know there are likely dozens of good ideas that could be incorporated here, but my system provides one very necessary caveat - you must earn the right to use these ultimate moves.



Some of these power concepts have the possibility to completely alter gameplay, and could prove amazingly powerful in the right hands. Giving low-level players access to these powers at will wouldn't be right. But allowing true experts in a given discipline the ability to use a more powerful version of the skill makes a huge amount of sense. This is an opportunity to make "evolved" powers truly evolutionary, by unlocking these ultimate skills once a player has invested enough in them. And imagine the greater benefit and expanded possibilities if, of course, the player could conceivably upgrade any of his powers to the point where he could unlock the ultimate evolved version, but it's not possible to do that for all his powers. He's gotta choose. I think that not only is this more balanced, but really makes character creation worth thinking about.



Stay tuned to my upcoming update for the OP, because I will actually make some more suggestions for power evolutions! One is for Charge. In the evolved version, rather than simply charging a single enemy with a single quick strike, the player will unleash a flurry of attacks Nightcrawler-style, zipping back and forth between nearby enemies if there is a group, or hitting a single enemy several times from different directions if he is alone.

[Doctor_Jackstraw]

one really small thing I thought of while playing noveria in ME1...what if you could initiate a targeted biotic throw. A 2 part action basically, select something to throw, then select what you want to throw it at. so you could say, throw a crate at a robot, or a guy into another guy, or "yank" someone out of cover right out in front of you for a well-oiled beatdown.


Also as far as powers and a cooldown meter, I'm not sure if I'm misreading this but I think a system where even if you have a small ammount of cooldown left you can still fire off any kind of attack even if it takes off more than what's left, and it just sends you into cooldown.  Maybe charge moves could gradually drain meter, so that you can't just knock one out right when you have a sliver of ability left.  It would feel weird if it were treated like "MP" gauges where you need x ammount of points to use y ability.  balancing it out with a stress element (slowed movement or hampered aiming) when you're cooling down could prevent people from spamming.


A suggestion for an alternate charge evolution, a sort of "backdraft" that damages any enemies NEAR the line of your charge and blows them back.  Sort of like a soundwave attribute.

Modifié par Doctor_Jackstraw, 25 mai 2010 - 05:28 .

[Arijharn]

There are only two things I want to touch upon by your recent post Scarecrow, and here they are:

Scarecrow_ES wrote...
As far as a lock-on system, it all depends on how reliably it'd work. Part of the usage of arcable powers is skill-based. I wouldn't want any system that holds the player's hands, and many of these missile attacks already home in on the nearest target to the reticule. So as long as it doesn't take the skill away from bending powers, I'm ok with it.

The Lock-On system doesn't affect power usage, it merely prevents the UI from automatically switching to another target should the target reticle move closer to another target. It doesn't 'bend' the ability at all in this case.

Scarecrow_ES wrote...
Some of these power concepts have the possibility to completely alter gameplay, and could prove amazingly powerful in the right hands. Giving low-level players access to these powers at will wouldn't be right. But allowing true experts in a given discipline the ability to use a more powerful version of the skill makes a huge amount of sense. This is an opportunity to make "evolved" powers truly evolutionary, by unlocking these ultimate skills once a player has invested enough in them. And imagine the greater benefit and expanded possibilities if, of course, the player could conceivably upgrade any of his powers to the point where he could unlock the ultimate evolved version, but it's not possible to do that for all his powers. He's gotta choose. I think that not only is this more balanced, but really makes character creation worth thinking about.

I don't really see your point here to be honest because it is no more limiting than say how the regular skill tree works. Sure a person could spend all his points to get the new class ability, but how is that really any different than say a person choosing to put his points into maxing Singularity, or maxing Adept to Nemesis or Bastion? Even then, how is it potentially more op compared to a class (like the Adept - classically weak against shielded enemy's) who chooses his weapon upgrade (assault rifle), gets a Geth Pulse Rifle and chooses Energy Drain?

Also bear in mind that it's highly unlikely that you'll be able to max out all available skills in ME3 like how it is now in ME2.

And lastly, the concept of OP is diminished somewhat due to the fact that it's a single-player game. It's the challenge to the player to either go with his classes strengths or to max up for his defecincies.

[IncognitoPanda]

First of all I'd like to say that you are truly an inspiration to me! I'd sort of given up on adding to these forums, but you really came through with a lot of great ideas (which I personally think are better than what BW has come up with.)
My thoughts on your ideas:

1. Concerning Weapons and Equipment Inventory Refinement {INVNT}
Modifications to the existing inventory system, to include a greater variety of distinct but balanced weapons within each category, increasing the number of armor pieces and upping the effect of passive buffs on them, as well as providing additional squadmate outfits.

Yes, yes and yes. Perhaps even going back to the ME1 armor-system a lot of different armor sets that you may add a few perks to instead.

2. Concerning Weapons Gameplay Refinements {WEAPS}
Introduction of a hybrid heat management/thermal clip system for weapon heat/ammunition management that incorporates the slow heat dissipation system of ME1 and the swappable thermal clip system of ME2 to overcome overheat scenarios.

A agree that hybrid is the way to go. Perhaps making all your "ammo" recharge slowly at all times, so that you may use up the ammo on a gun, but you won't need to collect thermal clips (which I thought were a bit silly.) Then you'll see consequences for using the gun as with ammo, yet with the ME1 heat principle.

3. Concerning Improvements to Power/Skill Customization and Usage {PWRSKLL}
Proposes a change from the current Global Cooldown system for power usage to one of a recharging power meter. Reasserts class customization through limited choice of assigned class powers, and reintroduces an incremental skill point assignment system to eliminate unusable skill points. Proposes a modification to power evolution that produces truly evolutionary, rather than minor incremental, changes to class powers and introduces a charge system for evolved powers to expand power gameplay. Also introduces a revamped controller scheme to account for proposed power modifications.

I have thought about the power meter myself for some time now! Only issue is some powers crave longer cooldowns than others. Perhaps divide the meter into 3 parts, normal powers using 1 part, and bigger powers such as warp, uses up 2 parts. For example. Also, great to go back to ME1 skill point system. Nothing drastic really happens in ME2 unless you evolve a power completely, if even then. Having 1 skill point increasing the power a little bit each time makes more sense, and is practically the same as both ME2 and ME1 systems. Not sure about the controller scheme though.

4. Concerning Planet Scanning and Resource Management {SCNSMGMT}
Expands and modifies the planet scanning and resource management system to break up potentially tedious gameplay through the introduction of varied mini-games and resource management strategy systems.

Absolutely, planet scanning needs some sort of challenge or strategic depth or just pure "fun"! More management. Being able to buy and sell minerals is a great idea I have been wanting for a long time now! What the hell else am I supposed to spend those 100000 palladium on? Also more stuff and armor to bywith more options. Not just "this is better than this".



This has to be the most constructive thread I've ever read in these forums. You're a true hero, and hopefully you'll open the developers minds a bit, and widen their horizon. Truly a great read!

Modifié par IncognitoPanda, 26 mai 2010 - 04:57 .

[Wiggs Magee]

Jesus that was quite a read . But yes i belive you are onto some brilliant idea's though i much rather perfer the heat sink to unlimited but overheating system but a Hybrid would certainly be a change