Post by Ood on Sept 17, 2013 10:43:04 GMT -5
Shortly after starting the game, I posted some initial impressions here:
grid12.proboards.com/thread/166/feedback-suggestions
Much of what that thread is talking about is out of date (vp/gs are gone, we now have items and such), but on the whole my feelings about the actual game haven't changed a whole lot over the past four-plus months.
That being said, I'm here posting my thoughts on the current state of the game, and what I think is good, alright, and bad, while giving some suggestions for improvement along the way.
Feedback
The Good:
Gameplay.
As before, gameplay is simple and easy, jump in find a target, and go for it. Controls (with the exception of nu-zuum), graphics, scale, controls, and other basic necessities are still solid, and after many months of play I don't find myself wanting much more from the basics of the game.
The tanks.
Overall, there is a quite fantastic variety of tanks that can be played; snipers, tanks, crowd control, healers, AA, ground specialists, sappers, scouts, they're all there, with plenty of room for more. By now we've sort of all figured out which we like the best and have stuck with it, but there is still plenty of room to switch around and play multiple different tanks within a matter of minutes.
Drop scheme.
While some of the actual rates for drops need to be hammered out further, for the most part (with the exception perhaps of region-bosses) the way drops are given out is excellent for everyone. Old players are mostly guaranteed a drop, newer players get one if they're clever. No having to deal a certain amount of damage to get a chance at a drop, if you see it die you get loot.
The Okay - a.k.a. Mixed Feelings:
Balance.
The game's still being developed, balance will come I know that.
The 'Grid'.
I get that the game is called Grid 12, but the ultra-organized enemy layout eventually gives way to monotony. Killing one specific structure is virtually the same as killing the same specific structure at any other location. Sometimes I like this if I want to just go out and mindlessly kill things (it's what really got me into Realm and the Godlands). Other times, however, I want some variety. why can't the small circular structure and the small quadrilateral structure occupy the same 'gridspace' so that I have to figure out the best angle to take out each without dieing (which is something that the Godlands in Realm also gave). The organization is nice at times, but other times I want something more interesting, without necessarily adding significant levels of danger.
My feelings about the Grid are virtually the same as when I made my first feedback post. The problem here is making something very static (a Grid-system) into something that can be much more dynamic. So far this isn't the case, we now have convoys (which are terribly fun to chase through enemy territory [something dynamic]) but they are for the most part a separate entity from the Grid.
Convoys.
While there might be multiple ways to kill some Convoys, they mostly fall into the same trap that the Grid does. They don't change. A Ladybug today is the same as a Ladybug tomorrow (and might even be in the exact same place). A PBD on this route is the same as one on that route if both routes are cleared. Without something that can vary, convoys are just high-powered structures that move along a set path.
The Bad:
Trading.
At the time of posting this, the game is Merchant 12, not Grid 12. Who can log in enough times to increase their buy offers by 0.001 coins to beat out the other guy? In theory, the trading setup isn't all bad, it lets people buy things while not online, and it's anonymous thus (hopefully) eliminating bots in the future. However as the game grows I can see bots being setup to buy/sell while changing their offers by 0.000...001 (there is no limit to how small you can increase an offer if the total is above 0.0001). Then you could say 'but what use would it be?' Bots buy/sell until they achieve a sizeable stack of coins (which will be purchased with $), then sell the account for $ on the black market.
Grind12.
Hinted at in above points, the game as it stands is not dynamic. There's nothing to promote replayability aside from getting more/better loot. There's no variation in play (with the sole exception of scouting) and eventually gameplay becomes redundant to the point of boredom.
Suggestions
Increase 'Dynamic' reduce 'Static'.
Things on the roadmap like 'Giant Fortresses', 'Air Patrols', 'Ground Patrols', 'Hunter Killer Squad' all would help in the way of making the game more dynamic. Additionally, add structures that affect other structures, let convoys wander a little, add a 'dungeon/minigame', etc. Things that take your mind away from 'clear this convoy path/region', and make killing things more involved than: it's a ___ I kill it by standing in front of it shooting, then running away when my health is getting low to recover (GCT are perhaps the only structure that this isn't the main strategy for).
Rethink Trading
I don't know how to make it satisfactory, unfortunately, but in my opinion the trade system needs a rework into something that frustrates less, and will in the end favor actual people, not bots.
Add a high risk/reward tank
As you have previously stated, grid can get slightly boring and monotonous for a veteran player, simply because they have mastered everything that appears with any regularity to the point where unless they are pathetically stupid, they can survive indefinitely without ever being put in any real danger. Although the main solution to this is dynamic, changing, outside-the-box content, a high risk/reward tank would also do wonders IMO. To anyone wondering what I'm going on about, I'll use realm's pre-pet and pre-range buff melee classes. Mastered everything at a staff's distance? Play warrior, and deal far more damage at the cost of having everything a lot harder to dodge and react to. Although there's no dodging in grid, this can still be done to a large extent with clever tank design, be it leaving gaping shield holes in your tanks, giving it 'weak spots' to be protected (and for the record, the hornet doesn't count. Its crazy range and 2 potent defensive triggers mean that it is still very hard to die with that tank, even if you are taking substantial fire), giving it a particularly weird shield/weapon configuration (a nice example would be the old peacekeeper; it kept its guns on one side, and its good shields on the other. I order to kill anything with that tank, you had to know how to rotate and avoid fire well), or just a plain old glass cannon if you wanna keep things simpler (coughscorpioncough). Seriously, even if it would have to be the lvl20 tank, it would make a world of difference in terms of gameplay.
I like your suggestion QL so I'm putting it here also.
Overall, thanks for the game, Rob & Tim. There are some major issues, but also a whole heck of a lot that's done extremely well. I'll be playing for a long time yet.
-Ood
grid12.proboards.com/thread/166/feedback-suggestions
Much of what that thread is talking about is out of date (vp/gs are gone, we now have items and such), but on the whole my feelings about the actual game haven't changed a whole lot over the past four-plus months.
That being said, I'm here posting my thoughts on the current state of the game, and what I think is good, alright, and bad, while giving some suggestions for improvement along the way.
Feedback
The Good:
Gameplay.
As before, gameplay is simple and easy, jump in find a target, and go for it. Controls (with the exception of nu-zuum), graphics, scale, controls, and other basic necessities are still solid, and after many months of play I don't find myself wanting much more from the basics of the game.
The tanks.
Overall, there is a quite fantastic variety of tanks that can be played; snipers, tanks, crowd control, healers, AA, ground specialists, sappers, scouts, they're all there, with plenty of room for more. By now we've sort of all figured out which we like the best and have stuck with it, but there is still plenty of room to switch around and play multiple different tanks within a matter of minutes.
Drop scheme.
While some of the actual rates for drops need to be hammered out further, for the most part (with the exception perhaps of region-bosses) the way drops are given out is excellent for everyone. Old players are mostly guaranteed a drop, newer players get one if they're clever. No having to deal a certain amount of damage to get a chance at a drop, if you see it die you get loot.
The Okay - a.k.a. Mixed Feelings:
Balance.
The game's still being developed, balance will come I know that.
I get that the game is called Grid 12, but the ultra-organized enemy layout eventually gives way to monotony. Killing one specific structure is virtually the same as killing the same specific structure at any other location. Sometimes I like this if I want to just go out and mindlessly kill things (it's what really got me into Realm and the Godlands). Other times, however, I want some variety. why can't the small circular structure and the small quadrilateral structure occupy the same 'gridspace' so that I have to figure out the best angle to take out each without dieing (which is something that the Godlands in Realm also gave). The organization is nice at times, but other times I want something more interesting, without necessarily adding significant levels of danger.
My feelings about the Grid are virtually the same as when I made my first feedback post. The problem here is making something very static (a Grid-system) into something that can be much more dynamic. So far this isn't the case, we now have convoys (which are terribly fun to chase through enemy territory [something dynamic]) but they are for the most part a separate entity from the Grid.
Convoys.
While there might be multiple ways to kill some Convoys, they mostly fall into the same trap that the Grid does. They don't change. A Ladybug today is the same as a Ladybug tomorrow (and might even be in the exact same place). A PBD on this route is the same as one on that route if both routes are cleared. Without something that can vary, convoys are just high-powered structures that move along a set path.
The Bad:
Trading.
At the time of posting this, the game is Merchant 12, not Grid 12. Who can log in enough times to increase their buy offers by 0.001 coins to beat out the other guy? In theory, the trading setup isn't all bad, it lets people buy things while not online, and it's anonymous thus (hopefully) eliminating bots in the future. However as the game grows I can see bots being setup to buy/sell while changing their offers by 0.000...001 (there is no limit to how small you can increase an offer if the total is above 0.0001). Then you could say 'but what use would it be?' Bots buy/sell until they achieve a sizeable stack of coins (which will be purchased with $), then sell the account for $ on the black market.
Grind12.
Hinted at in above points, the game as it stands is not dynamic. There's nothing to promote replayability aside from getting more/better loot. There's no variation in play (with the sole exception of scouting) and eventually gameplay becomes redundant to the point of boredom.
Suggestions
Increase 'Dynamic' reduce 'Static'.
Things on the roadmap like 'Giant Fortresses', 'Air Patrols', 'Ground Patrols', 'Hunter Killer Squad' all would help in the way of making the game more dynamic. Additionally, add structures that affect other structures, let convoys wander a little, add a 'dungeon/minigame', etc. Things that take your mind away from 'clear this convoy path/region', and make killing things more involved than: it's a ___ I kill it by standing in front of it shooting, then running away when my health is getting low to recover (GCT are perhaps the only structure that this isn't the main strategy for).
Rethink Trading
I don't know how to make it satisfactory, unfortunately, but in my opinion the trade system needs a rework into something that frustrates less, and will in the end favor actual people, not bots.
Add a high risk/reward tank
As you have previously stated, grid can get slightly boring and monotonous for a veteran player, simply because they have mastered everything that appears with any regularity to the point where unless they are pathetically stupid, they can survive indefinitely without ever being put in any real danger. Although the main solution to this is dynamic, changing, outside-the-box content, a high risk/reward tank would also do wonders IMO. To anyone wondering what I'm going on about, I'll use realm's pre-pet and pre-range buff melee classes. Mastered everything at a staff's distance? Play warrior, and deal far more damage at the cost of having everything a lot harder to dodge and react to. Although there's no dodging in grid, this can still be done to a large extent with clever tank design, be it leaving gaping shield holes in your tanks, giving it 'weak spots' to be protected (and for the record, the hornet doesn't count. Its crazy range and 2 potent defensive triggers mean that it is still very hard to die with that tank, even if you are taking substantial fire), giving it a particularly weird shield/weapon configuration (a nice example would be the old peacekeeper; it kept its guns on one side, and its good shields on the other. I order to kill anything with that tank, you had to know how to rotate and avoid fire well), or just a plain old glass cannon if you wanna keep things simpler (coughscorpioncough). Seriously, even if it would have to be the lvl20 tank, it would make a world of difference in terms of gameplay.
I like your suggestion QL so I'm putting it here also.
Overall, thanks for the game, Rob & Tim. There are some major issues, but also a whole heck of a lot that's done extremely well. I'll be playing for a long time yet.
-Ood
)
