Friday, July 27, 2012

Rift Reloaded: How I Would Improve Rift

Rift is, without a doubt, the best MMO on the market today.  I've done seven years of WoW, six months of Final Fantasy XI and three months of Warhammer Online, Star Wars: The Old Republic and Aion alike.  I've played Guild Wars 2 extensively (quite a bit more than just a lone beta weekend if you catch my drift).  I've done a month of Tera and I have an active account for The Secret World as I type this.  All of these games bring something positive to the table but none of them can compete with the overall quality of Rift.  Comparatively, Guild Wars 2 and WoW have better PvP.  Aion and Final Fantasy XI have significantly better music and provide superior overall immersion.  Tera, by and large, has combat that is a bit more fun and engaging.  Star Wars: The Old Republic has an incredible companion and crafting system that leaves Rift's traditional MMO crafting system in the dust and even Warhammer Online has some bits and pieces such as keep sieges that leave perhaps a small bit to be desired in Telara.  Rift may not be the best at any particular category, although I'd make an exception for Rift's raid content.  Yet Rift is good at just about everything leaving us with an exceptionally polished and high quality MMO.  With all this said, however, are there improvements to be made?  Absolutely.  As any MMO company knows, the real work begins once the game has shipped and nobody comes even remotely close to challenging the speed and scope by which Trion delivers outstanding content.

Despite patch 1.9 being a very recent addition to the game, patch 1.10 is already well under way.  Further, Rift's Storm Legion expansion is pending a Fall release.  Guild Wars 2 releases at the end of August.  Mists of Pandaria hits shelves less than a month later.  I want nothing more than Trion to not only compete with these titles, but to really show the world that Rift is, has been and will continue to be the best MMO available.  It is in the spirit of this cause I present my thoughts on how I would personally improve Rift in the coming months.  This list is not exhaustive and I'm purposely leaving out substantial features such as "a new raid" or "a new Warfront".  Rather these changes are focused in large part around improvements that can be made to the existing content of the game to the benefit of players everywhere.  Without further adieu, let's begin:
  • General
    • A "loop music" feature has been added to the UI under "Audio".
    • Attentive travelers may now encounter a few new musical tracks throughout Telara!
    • The LFD tool is now cross-faction!
    • Disgruntled Defiants and grouchy Guardians may now defect from their faction.  A new epic questline is now available for each Defiant and Guardian should they choose to defect.  Returning to one's original faction is possible but let's just say one must "pay their dues" to win back the favor of their original comrades.
    • The races of Telara are no longer faction-specific.  Kelari Guardians?  Dwarf Defiants?  You bet!
    • All new titles associated with the leaderboards have been added.  Think you're hardcore enough to earn the most favor in a week?  Prove it!  Think your guild is good enough to complete Hammerknell Fortress in record time?  Get to it!  Title rewards are shown in the leaderboards UI similar to how they are shown in the achievements UI.
    • Tier 3 Planar Attunement has now arrived and offers new interesting abilities for all elemental schools along with some modest stat improvements.
    • New weather effects have been added to the game including sandstorms in Shimmersand and thunderstorms in Moonshade Highlands.  Weather effects can be toggled in UI settings.
    • Training abilities at your class trainer may now be done in bulk.  Click the "Train All" button and you will be prompted with the total cost.
  • Character
    • In the interest of maintaining an RP-friendly environment, moderation is getting a much-needed boost for RP shards.  Naming policies and chat guidelines will be strictly enforced on these realms.  Potential transfers to RP shards will be prompted of these policies and must accept them before being allowed to transfer there.
    • Players may now create a background or story behind their character that is visible to other players through inspection.  To access your back story, open up the character panel and select "Background".
  • Questing
    • We realize that questing is significantly slower than other leveling methods.  As such, experience rewarded for quests has been increased across the board.  This increase is less noticeable at lower levels but is substantial at higher levels.  For example, a level 40 quest that presently rewards 3000 experience upon completion, will now reward approximately 7000 instead.
    • We've streamlined many of the quest hubs and "tied them together" a bit better so players have more direction while questing.  No more should you have to wander aimlessly in search of peril!
  • Conquest
    • The Oathsworn, Nightfall and Dominion alike have perfected a means such that players no longer take falling damage while in Conquest.
    • The total number of extractors has been reduced to 20.  Zerg play can be fun but capturing and holding an extractor should be important.
    • The amount of Empowered Sourcestone mined by an extractor increases over time.
    • The portal destinations of Caer Mathos, The Eye of Regulos, Burlingham and Briarcliff now have portals of their own.  Visiting one of these locations allows you to port to any other portal you currently own.
    • Base mounted speed in Conquest has been increased to 150% for all participants. Mounted speed can still be improved through crafting.
    • Favor and prestige gains for defending an extractor have been slightly increased
    • Favor and prestige gains for capturing an extractor have been substantially increased
    • During the final 10 minutes after a Conquest match has been won, a moderate bonus to favor and prestige gains is applied.
    • The kill counter has been reduced from 5000 to 4000.
    • The sudden death timer that begins when a faction hits or exceeds 60% ownership, has been reduced from 10 minutes to 5 minutes.
  • PvP
    • PvP gear vendors now provide only two sets of PvP gear for purchase: the previous tier and the current tier.  The prices for the previous tier gear set have been set to the prices that presently exist for the lowest tier of PvP gear while the prices for the  "current" tier gear have been set to the prices that presently exists for the highest tier of PvP gear.
    • Notoriety with The Unseen and The Order of the Eye is now obtainable within Warfronts.
    • Mounts, costumes, weapon effects, companions and more!  All new vanity items are available through the PvP vendors, for some favor of course.  Many of these items carry rank restrictions so hit the battlefield and perhaps you can one day own your very own Fluffy, the Destroyer of Worlds!
    • In order to keep lower-level PvP as competitive as possible, Warfronts while leveling now automatically bolster all participants to the maximum level for that Warfront bracket.
    • The PvP planar attunement trees are now "separate" from the elemental trees and favor is now the currency for this instead of experience points.  Any existing points spent in a PvP hex will stay but future points will now leverage favor instead of experience.  Respecing Planar Attunement will now return favor for any PvP hexes.
  • Instant Adventure
    • Instant Adventure has been overhauled to tell more of a story with each campaign.  No more mindless "kill 10 wolves because that's what the quest tracker says".
    • To accommodate story-telling as part of Instant Adventure, experience and loot rewards have been adjusted.  The result should be a slight overall increase in the amount of XP and loot you receive compared to Instant Adventures of old.
    • Instant Adventure has arrived for Scarwood Reach, Scarlet Gorge, Moonshade Highlands and Iron Pine Peak!
    • The ability to queue for Instant Adventure per zone regardless of present location is back and all zones are now listed in the IA panel.  Queuing for a random adventure still exists and provides a bonus to IA gains for a fixed number of IA campaigns that day.
  • Dungeons
    • Rewards for completing a random dungeon have been adjusted and ascended now have a choice among the following:
      • 6 Plaques of Achievement
      • 4 Marks of Ascension
      • 3 Greater Marks of Ascension
      • 2 Infernal Marks
      • 10 Inscribed Sourcestone
  • Crafting
    • A whole new line of enhancements for Seals are now available for Runecrafters.  Want to have your attacks apply a stacking fire DoT instead of that 9 AP rune?  Now you can!  Want getting hit to provide a 20% chance of increasing your mitigation?  Go for it!
    • A new section to the personal bank is now available for storing crafting mats and, what's more, this section is account-wide so you can now use crafting mats from any of your characters for any of your characters.  And, yes, you can use these crafting mats directly from the bank without needing to have them in your inventory.
    • An assortment of recipes for vanity items have been added to the game files and can be acquired throughout Telara!  Sometimes the best reward for churning out a well-made potion is the ability to transform into a werewolf!
This list is far from complete but, in the interest of brevity, I'll stop there.  These are merely some of the improvements I would make to Rift with the goal of improving engagement and generally making the playing experience more fun overall.
What are your thoughts on these changes?  Do you find them agreeable or are there some you are opposed to?

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Rift PvP and the Curious Case of Supporting Barriers to Entry

The title itself is baffling enough on its own but when you step back and consider it being said without even the slightest intention of sarcasm, it can conjure up desires to slam one's own head in the freezer door ad nauseum.  Yet, sadly, this is precisely where we find ourselves at this point in Rift's history: the majority clamoring for a reduction to the grind found throughout Telara while a small but extremely vocal minority arrives on the scene to fight this cause within an inch of their collective lives.  It's baffling.  It's unimaginable.  And, yes, it's very curious indeed.

In an earlier blog post, written prior to the implementation of Conquest, I laid out a collection of unarguable math that vividly illustrates an extremely clear point: if you want to PvP on a relatively level playing field, you're looking at an absolute bare minimum of 50.5 hours inside Warfronts beforehand.  Think about that for a moment.  50.5 hours.  Fifty-point-five hours.  Five, zero, point, five hours.  Given the most optimal possible situation imaginable, this is the bare minimum amount of time you'll have to "put in" before you will be at a gear level I am being extremely generous in calling "competitive".  For anyone capable of looking at the bigger picture, the argument ends right there.  No further examination required.  No more debate about it.  However, the vocal minority, for reasons that elude me, is quick to assault what is quite reasonable logic with tired and worn arguments whose existence in MMOs of today is a travesty on their own.  With this entry to The Ascended Chronicle, I'd like to examine these arguments, dissect them and close the proverbial book on the case once and for all.  Without further adieu, let's begin.

Argument 1:  You just want everything handed to you without having to work for it.  You're lazy and need to put in the time and effort just like the rest of us did.

This argument is so easily destroyed I almost hesitate to address it but, in the interest of thoroughness, it needs to be done.  To begin, consider the use of the terms "time and effort".  You may substitute your own synonyms at your leisure but the sentiment remains: the vocal minority claims we need to work hard to achieve our goals which, in the case at hand, is simply to obtain enough PvP gear to be competitive.  In the real world, this is a noble and proper position to take: work hard, put in your time and enjoy the rewards of your sweat-born efforts.  This is the mindset that built the railroads, put the first plane in the sky and cured polio.  The problem is that we aren't talking about the real world.  We're talking about a video game set in a fictitious, fantasy world called Telara.  We're speaking of a destination we collectively turn to for a break from reality - a respite of enjoyment where the material world slips into the background and fun replaces obligation and responsibility.  If you think otherwise, then I respectfully urge you to take an extended break from the game to assess your goals and aspirations.  What follows from all this comes easily: under the umbrella of video gaming, concepts of "hard work" and "putting in the time" needn't apply.  Concepts of "having fun", "enjoying the game" and "competing against fellow gamers" do.  It's not about "wanting things handed to you".  It's about enjoying the game and being able to compete during your time therein.  Being a doormat for those gone before while you "put in your time" is not fun and it's not good for the game.  Allowing people to compete the onset is.

Argument 2:  If you're going to ask for PvP gear to be practically handed out then I want PvE gear practically handed out too.

The issues with this argument are so plain and so readily visible that they practically jump off the page.  Here we are comparing two different systems, PvP and PvE, and claiming that an adjustment to one necessitates and adjustment to the other.  The counter argument could honestly stop there as no further rebuttal is required to expose the fallacy of this worldview.  But were I to do this, I'd be shirking my duty to not just counter these arguments but to destroy them outright.  PvE in Rift is a purposely gated system of linear progression.  You start at some arbitrary point about the PvE difficulty spectrum and you progress onward to be met with increasingly difficult challenges as you become ready.  If you are brand new to Rift raiding, and a fresh 50, you might begin in the Drowned Halls and Greenscales Blight.  After you are comfortable with the encounters therein and have gotten some drops thrown your way, you might venture into Hammerknell Fortress to test yourself against even more challenging encounters still.  The cycle continues and the challenges will wait as long as you need them too.  In PvP, the opposite is true.  From the moment you enter Rift PvP, you are immediately thrown to the wolves.  You may occasionally find yourself in a very loosely "matched" Warfront but even the matched Warfronts themselves are not perfect barriers preventing the entry of vastly superior opposition.  I'd be a much wealthier man were I paid for each time I arrived in a matched Warfront during low prestige levels only to be obliterated by a max-rank opponent.  In other words, there is no gating and there is no "progression" - there is only Rift PvP.  Rift's PvP system, using a PvE metaphor, would be like facing Prince Hylas one moment and the very next being thrown into Laethys' treasure room.  Tell me: would your outlook on Rift PvE be different were that actually the case?

Argument 3:  I don't know what you're talking about.  I was able to "compete" from the very moment I stepped into Warfronts and there were many ways for me to contribute even with no PvP gear at all.

This is often an argument of last resort when the vocal minority realizes the ground beneath their feet is anything but solid.  Specifically, they are attempting to equate the terms "compete" and "contribute" and are referring to particular abilities and play styles that allow them to "take part" in PvP with at least some level of effectiveness.  You'll hear them refer to Marksman Eradicate spam, being a pocket healer for some exceptionally-geared Warrior or perhaps running as a tank and holding on to a vessel in some dark corner of the Library.  Are these actions representative of "competing" in PvP?  No - they are without a doubt ways to "contribute" but they are most certainly not "competing".  Competing must be considered with respect to a level playing field.  Everyone inherently knows whether or not they are "competitive" but to illustrate it clearly, consider yourself a Warrior and, standing before you, is a Warrior competitor.  Your opponent has 1300 valor, 100 vengeance and 11,000 health.  You have 1000 valor from the Ascended Courage buff, perhaps 20 vengeance and 6,500 health.  Tell me and be honest: who is going to win this battle?  Barring unforeseen circumstances of a kitten pulling the plug on his router mid-battle or Steam deciding it needs to download it's 27th Team Fortress updates this week, do you have even the slightest chance against this opponent?  I know, you know and everybody knows that the deck is more than just stacked against you here and your chances of defeating this opponent fall somewhere between winning the lottery and lightning chiseling out a blueprint for Meridian in the grass of your backyard.  Certainly you could "contribute" in this circumstance.  Perhaps you can survive long enough to waste that Warrior's time while your team captures another node in The Codex.  Alternatively, maybe you decide to mount up and lead our mentally challenged friend on a chase around Whitefall Steppes thus taking him out of the game for the time being.  The fact remains that you are not at all "competing" - you are "contributing" and the two are very different.  To some, simply "contributing" in gimmicky, one-off manners such as these may prove adequate sustenance while you put in your time towards competitiveness.  For most of us, however, this is not engaging game play and is absolutely no substitute for real competition.

Undoubtedly there are more arguments that could be presented here but in the interest of forgoing the production of a novel, I'll consider the point made with these three.  To be clear, the entire concept of rallying in favor of barriers to entry defies logic.  I don't know when this argument will be officially voted upon by Trion's development but with the release of Guild Wars 2 looming in the shadows, this decision cannot come soon enough.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Arena in Rift: What Would it Look Like?

Arena.  The word itself presents a vortex of wild opinion swirling about the MMO landscape. To some, Azeroth's arenas provided the lone reason to log in each day.  To others, arena was the clear antagonist behind incessant balance tweaks and countless fits of rage.  Blizzard said themselves that their implementation of Arena in World of Warcraft was a mistake so why would we want such a system in Rift?  The answer is quite simple:
  1. Rift currently lacks any semblance of "rated" or "competitive" PvP.
  2. With history as their guide, Trion can do it better
To the first point, let's consider the experience from a PvE perspective.  Several months ago, if you were a Warrior toting around a Kraken's Spine there was a certain level of unspoken respect involved.  It's the MMO equivalent of a trophy case - you wear your accomplishments on your sleeve, so to speak, and people know automatically that either you, your guild or both are good players whom have accomplished something very challenging.  It wasn't simply a matter of time before you got your Kraken's Spine as no amount of idling around could help you dodge those phase 4 waves bent on sweeping you from Akylios' platform.  In contrast, everything in Rift PvP is constrained by time and time alone.  After perhaps 100 hours, you'll have enough favor for a full set of the mid-tier PvP gear.  After perhaps 200 hours, you'll have enough for the high-end tier but with each new tier of PvE content, comes a new tier of PvP gear that pushes everything down a level and the cycle repeats itself.  Let me ask you something: when you see a Warrior with 10K health in Whitefall Steppes, what does that level of HP and the associated visuals from his or her gear say about that player's skill level?  Here's the answer: not a damn thing.  At best you could make a loose argument that, since the player has obviously put in enough time to get all that gear, their skill level should at least be marginally beyond a certain threshold but can you be certain of this?  Some of the weakest players I know have extremely high /played times.  Speaking for myself, I have over 50 days /played on my Rogue alone but I'd hardly consider myself a "high-end" PvPer.  The clear bottom line is that Rift needs some form of competitive PvP to rope in the subscriptions of those who enjoy competitive PvP or, I can say with the utmost of confidence having played the game extensively, that when Guild Wars 2 is released on August 28, 2012, most of Rift's PvP population will jump ship and never return. I don't want this.  You don't want this.  So let's do something about this.

To the second point, we need only look at Trion's track record to understand the logic here.  It is unarguable that Trion is among the absolute best in taking concepts from other games, polishing them and bringing them to Rift with their own Telaran spin.  As a one-off example, fishing was something I never enjoyed during my seven years of WoW so when Rift announced fishing was on its way to Telara, I was among the relatively uninterested.  Upon its release, however, I immediately realized that what Trion had done was taken WoW's fishing system and improved it in subtle ways.  From the stylish overlay placed upon the water, to the sounds of a catch being reeled in; the result is a system that is much more fun, much more engaging and has served as a very welcome addition to Rift's vast arsenal of engaging content.  I could spend hours discussing the borrowed ideas that Trion has taken and improved but I'll assume the point is made: Trion knows what they're doing and is not afraid to borrow another's concept and make it their own.  This isn't theft.  It isn't cheating.  It's called good business and it's an excellent practice - especially within the domain intellectual property.  After all, let's not forget how such practices provided the foundation for a certain company by the name of Microsoft.  They seem to have done quite well with themselves.....

So what would Arena look like in Rift?  First and foremost, we'd need to set some ground rules on how the system should be implemented:
  1. Equalization of gear levels:  gear advantages need not apply for competitive PvP.  All players gear level should be normalized upon entering Arena to keep imbalances to a minimum.  The absolute last thing you want in any competitive PvP system is to gate it with a lengthy gear grind.  The prevailing sentiment should be clear:  jump right in, test yourself and compete.
  2. Interesting Maps that Allow for Tactical Use:  the maps should be designed such that tactical advantages could be gained through proper positioning and line of sight.  Bridges, uneven terrain, pillars and more provide ample opportunities for this.  As a personal opinion, I would stray from environmental hazards such as fire or moving obstacles but even these additions could be viable if implemented with care and precision.
  3. Don't be Afraid of Blanket Buffs/Debuffs:  Trion has already shown a willingness to apply arbitrary buffs and debuffs to various aspects of PvP to bring the game into relative balance.  The same should apply here: if healing is too high, then put a blanket, percentage reduction on healing while in Arena.  If damage is too high, then put a blanket, percentage decrease on it instead.  If damage is too low, then put a blanket, percentage decrease on health pools or increase on damage output.  In other words, level the playing field across the board.  Given the fact we would be using equalized gear, this should be even easier to manage.
  4. Be Willing to Separate Ability Use in PvE and PvP:  As with the above point, Trion has also shown a willingness to separate how abilities work in PvE versus PvP.  There are countless examples of this such as an inability to use blinks while carrying sourcestone in Whitefall Steppes or adjusting Chloromancer heals in PvP to allow them to be competitive given their offensive healing system.
  5. Hammer Out and Fine Tune Your Diminishing Returns System:  Currently the diminishing returns system in Rift is a bit clunky.  There's no real clear division between "schools" of crowd control and the entire system itself seems quite "random".  This is especially apparent in larger-scale PvP such as Conquest where I'll try to knock that Warrior away from my Marksman only to find him immune to my knock back for no apparent reason.
  6. Run Rift Arena in "Seasons" and Award Titles, Mounts, Costumes and Other Fluff as Rewards:  Since we will be equalizing gear, working with blanket buffs/debuffs and are willing to separate PvE from PvP in terms of ability usage if needed, then the seasons of Arena in Rift themselves needn't adhere to any patch schedule or coincide with the release of any PvE content.  You can simply have "seasons" of Arena whenever you'd like and end them, with ample notice, whenever you'd like.
  7. Allow for Cross-Faction Arena Teams:  As has been demonstrated on more than one occasion, Trion is perfectly willing to knock down the barrier between Guardian and Defiant.  Allowing Guardians and Defiants to form teams together opens the available player pool immensely and pushes Rift even further down the necessary path of moving away from the same, tired and old two-faction rivalry.
With these seven points realized, I strongly believe that Rift Arena could provide the high-end, competitive PvP that this game is missing.  Further, I know given Trion's extensive track record on rapid hotfixes and ridiculously aggressive content releases that they would be swift and precise in nipping any blatant imbalances in the proverbial bud.  From a lore perspective, the entire system could feel right at home under the guise of a proving grounds for Ascended where the victors are sent forth to champion the cause of defeating those who would unmake Telara itself.

What are your thoughts?  Do you feel the lack of truly competitive PvP in Rift is a roadblock to future growth?  How would you implement competitive PvP in Rift?