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How to make Elite difficulty actually elite
laughinxan
Posts: 623 Arc User
Note: Don't say "stop using minmax builds", ever, in this thread. This isn't about the game being to easy from that, it's from being to easy on the highest difficulties even with a weaker build. This is about making the highest settings actually require the player be good at the game and use strategy.
One of the annoying things I notice in CO is how it tends to get easier at higher levels. While it's understandable, since we get more powers and we can begin to layer our defenses, one silly snag is that many times mobs are almost harmless, even on the highest setting to some builds.
I'm not asking to boost the base difficulty of the game, as normal is clearly designed for casuals and could remain such, but higher difficulties just don't scale up quite enough. When they do, they only increase the length of the fight, but don't really make them any more difficult. This is where my idea's come in.
On higher settings introduce attacks that are not used on lower settings, that can debuff the player if the mob using them aren't dealt with. A regeneration player shouldn't be able to, litterally stand in the middle of some henchmen and watch for a few minutes in some cases. Every group in this game seems to lack any kind of debuffs or buffs that make defeating priority enemies in a solid order or using AoE's that important. Right now AoE's are only used to kill things faster, not kill things because those things are a threat.
I remember when viper's henchmen were introduced, and they were somewhat difficult, it made destroying them a priority. Why doesn't every mob have things that we can't ignore? So for elite mode, instead of just upping the health bar or damage, actually add attacks that debuff things like dodge/avoidence or damage resistances to most mobs besides just viper. It wouldn't have to be to much, but enough to make downing the mobs using them a priority, such that ignoring them for a few seconds could pose a problem. Heck i'd say that should be done on anything higher then normal, then make it less forgiving on elite. Elite shouldn't be something casuals excel on, in fact most casual players don't care to play on the highest difficulty settings in any game.
Another idea was for anothe way to scale the difficulty up; increase the number of enemies and actually make them run for reinforcements if they feel outmatched.
One of the annoying things I notice in CO is how it tends to get easier at higher levels. While it's understandable, since we get more powers and we can begin to layer our defenses, one silly snag is that many times mobs are almost harmless, even on the highest setting to some builds.
I'm not asking to boost the base difficulty of the game, as normal is clearly designed for casuals and could remain such, but higher difficulties just don't scale up quite enough. When they do, they only increase the length of the fight, but don't really make them any more difficult. This is where my idea's come in.
On higher settings introduce attacks that are not used on lower settings, that can debuff the player if the mob using them aren't dealt with. A regeneration player shouldn't be able to, litterally stand in the middle of some henchmen and watch for a few minutes in some cases. Every group in this game seems to lack any kind of debuffs or buffs that make defeating priority enemies in a solid order or using AoE's that important. Right now AoE's are only used to kill things faster, not kill things because those things are a threat.
I remember when viper's henchmen were introduced, and they were somewhat difficult, it made destroying them a priority. Why doesn't every mob have things that we can't ignore? So for elite mode, instead of just upping the health bar or damage, actually add attacks that debuff things like dodge/avoidence or damage resistances to most mobs besides just viper. It wouldn't have to be to much, but enough to make downing the mobs using them a priority, such that ignoring them for a few seconds could pose a problem. Heck i'd say that should be done on anything higher then normal, then make it less forgiving on elite. Elite shouldn't be something casuals excel on, in fact most casual players don't care to play on the highest difficulty settings in any game.
Another idea was for anothe way to scale the difficulty up; increase the number of enemies and actually make them run for reinforcements if they feel outmatched.
Post edited by laughinxan on
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This was one of the things I felt CoH did right (eventually).
They had a team scaling feature that spawned enemies based on how many you thought you could handle. You could go as high as 4 levels higher than you were, and scaled the spawns for a team of 8 (meaning the game spawned enemies as though a full team was with you).
You could also decide if you wanted to fight Archvillains at full strength or scale them down to Elite bosses (because not everyone could handle an AV by themselves).
Something like that would be nice here.
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And playing by myself since Aug 2009
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Ahh your very welcome, I like to see people screaming we can't kill statue!, Or ah no yellow bubble! And also like to eat someone say "Every contents very easy even in elite mode".
I generally only play on hard at most (that I select) but often find the normal setting more difficult at times, like it scales for me. I definitely find that at times I need to use strategy, and sometimes I can run whole missions just using 1 Ranged AoE one shot kills, they even group up for me, or stand in a line when Im using my Force character. It seems to try scale with my mood, if that makes sense. Im not sure how it works.
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Actually.. no they won't. The mobs in PvP actually are more homogenous than some of the mobs in PvE...sometimes I think the person who made them just said "Okay, give everyone the exact same powers..."
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I'm not sure about the running away thing. Had enough of that in COX, i.e mobs running half clear across the map sometimes never coming back for no reason a bit too often. But if they manage the AI and keep it working where they actually go get reinforcements, that would be cool in a way.
The rest is very good suggestions IMO.
I always wondered why Viper seem like the only group that seemed to have at least one mob that one might want to get rid of pronto. The rest seemed mostly normal range power shooting things.
I think Feral prisoners, the purple gang enforcers and LTs, zombies (when they finally close in), some of the werewolves, some of the vamps, those crazy looking critters wit hthe big mouth in Vibora bay, and some Sov. Sons have melee. The rest seems to be mostly range, oh and the manimal bears. I think some like the Gorilla and elk have melee attacks but when I encounter them they seem to prefer to back peddle to range distance and throw a spear here and there and the elk does his charge thing every so often. Not very challenging and lot of the mob don't seem to be very aggressive with attacks. Although a lot better than that flee AI mechanism. that they had in COX that is for sure IMO.