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Dirtside PvP looks like it could use a transfusion...
shadowfirefly00
Member Posts: 1,026 Arc User
Some ideas worthy of consideration have been put forward by marc8219. Now, while those reflect mainly on scoring and the idea of a dedicated rep track, it occurs to me that the actual boots-on-the-ground experience could use at least one proverbial shot in the arm. Looking elsewhere in the gaming space has turned up in my opinion some things that can be adopted to do just that; while I've mentioned some earlier in other threads, now seemed as good a time as any to try and collect them in one place for the convenient consideration of the community.
*dynamic objectives (Section 8; Section 8: Prejudice)
Twist mostly for capture-and-hold maps. Every so often an optional objective (picked at random from a list) crops up on the map that one team can complete for bonus points; conversely, the OPFOR can act to, depending on the objective, simply deny those points or get them for themselves. Example: a high-ranking officer from one team has survived the shoot-down of their transport and is making his/her way to a friendly base. That team gets the bonus points for a successful escort; conversely, the OPFOR gets the bonus if they pull off the assassination.
*comm hack (Ghost Recon: Phantoms)
Possible condition for any map or scenario. Enemy assets are not revealed on the minimap unless you or an ally have eyes on them; however, when you incapacitate an enemy player there is a window of opportunity (the respawn timer) in which their comm network can be TRIBBLE to temporarily reveal all of their team's positions. Mechanics-wise, this means you have to approach and interact with the downed player - a channeled process which can be interrupted (see: closing rifts in Mirror Invasion).
*Interrogation (The Last of Us)
A CTF variant, with the flags being replaced by data caches. The twist? The enemy's cache is hidden, and the only way to reveal (i.e. spawn) it is to assemble X number of code segments. How do you get those? By interrogating other players - an action which uses the mechanic described above for comm hack; indeed, that condition could be in effect here, meaning that when you approach an incapacitated enemy you have to choose whether to hack or interrogate them (it's not possible to do both). Once the cache is revealed (note that this only happens when the other team has acquired the requisite code segments, meaning it's impossible to set up and defend it in advance), someone has to crack it (another interaction which takes several seconds and can be interrupted) and carry a copy of the data to an exfil point; first team to do so Y times wins. Note that yes, it is possible for both caches to be exposed or compromised at the same time - capturing the 'flag' here doesn't require yours to be safe; and that returning the 'flag' here means downing the carrier and purging his/her copy of the data (yet another interaction).
*Frontline (Frontlines: Fuel of War)
That game's signature adversarial mode. The map is set out with a capture point (base) at each end, and point pairs spread evenly between the two, as shown in this example (using it s reference, the points are named from left to right: Red, Alpha (1&2), Beta (1&2), Gamma (1&2), Blue). At kickoff, all points are locked except for Beta. If, for example, Red team takes the Beta pair, the Gamma pair unlocks for capture; but if Blue takes Beta from them, they're pushed back to Alpha. To win, you have to capture the single point in the enemy base - in the map above, Red has to control Gamma to 'unlock' that point.
*Kill Confirmed (CoD: BO2 and subsequent iterations)
Basic team battle with the following caveat: when downed, players drop a tag which persists for about a minute (see: the buffs found in the Solonae ground zone) or until collected. This tag, when collected by any enemy player, counts towards the team score (first to collect X tags wins); conversely, an ally may do so to deny that opportunity.
Aside from changing up the actual experience, all of these feed nicely into marc8219's notional rep track and present new possibilities for accolades...
*dynamic objectives (Section 8; Section 8: Prejudice)
Twist mostly for capture-and-hold maps. Every so often an optional objective (picked at random from a list) crops up on the map that one team can complete for bonus points; conversely, the OPFOR can act to, depending on the objective, simply deny those points or get them for themselves. Example: a high-ranking officer from one team has survived the shoot-down of their transport and is making his/her way to a friendly base. That team gets the bonus points for a successful escort; conversely, the OPFOR gets the bonus if they pull off the assassination.
*comm hack (Ghost Recon: Phantoms)
Possible condition for any map or scenario. Enemy assets are not revealed on the minimap unless you or an ally have eyes on them; however, when you incapacitate an enemy player there is a window of opportunity (the respawn timer) in which their comm network can be TRIBBLE to temporarily reveal all of their team's positions. Mechanics-wise, this means you have to approach and interact with the downed player - a channeled process which can be interrupted (see: closing rifts in Mirror Invasion).
*Interrogation (The Last of Us)
A CTF variant, with the flags being replaced by data caches. The twist? The enemy's cache is hidden, and the only way to reveal (i.e. spawn) it is to assemble X number of code segments. How do you get those? By interrogating other players - an action which uses the mechanic described above for comm hack; indeed, that condition could be in effect here, meaning that when you approach an incapacitated enemy you have to choose whether to hack or interrogate them (it's not possible to do both). Once the cache is revealed (note that this only happens when the other team has acquired the requisite code segments, meaning it's impossible to set up and defend it in advance), someone has to crack it (another interaction which takes several seconds and can be interrupted) and carry a copy of the data to an exfil point; first team to do so Y times wins. Note that yes, it is possible for both caches to be exposed or compromised at the same time - capturing the 'flag' here doesn't require yours to be safe; and that returning the 'flag' here means downing the carrier and purging his/her copy of the data (yet another interaction).
*Frontline (Frontlines: Fuel of War)
That game's signature adversarial mode. The map is set out with a capture point (base) at each end, and point pairs spread evenly between the two, as shown in this example (using it s reference, the points are named from left to right: Red, Alpha (1&2), Beta (1&2), Gamma (1&2), Blue). At kickoff, all points are locked except for Beta. If, for example, Red team takes the Beta pair, the Gamma pair unlocks for capture; but if Blue takes Beta from them, they're pushed back to Alpha. To win, you have to capture the single point in the enemy base - in the map above, Red has to control Gamma to 'unlock' that point.
*Kill Confirmed (CoD: BO2 and subsequent iterations)
Basic team battle with the following caveat: when downed, players drop a tag which persists for about a minute (see: the buffs found in the Solonae ground zone) or until collected. This tag, when collected by any enemy player, counts towards the team score (first to collect X tags wins); conversely, an ally may do so to deny that opportunity.
Aside from changing up the actual experience, all of these feed nicely into marc8219's notional rep track and present new possibilities for accolades...
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