Best Of
Re: Mega Dungeons
Overall having these mega dungeons be something you go back to again and again, reaching deeper and deeper as you level up is something pretty epic IMO. So starting with level 5 it can pretty much go up to level 50, if the dungeon itself is big enough to have that many areas.
I like that
Blip
1
Re: [NA] Suspect | Mercenary | PvX | Competitive & Social | 18+ | Alpha/Beta/Launch
Can't wait to loot that bad boy!
Re: QoL for Grouping. (Suggestion)
With the group size Ashes has, this kind of thing would probably be more useful than in other games with smaller groups.
So yeah, I think this is a good suggestion.
So yeah, I think this is a good suggestion.
Noaani
1
Re: [NA] Suspect | Mercenary | PvX | Competitive & Social | 18+ | Alpha/Beta/Launch
Awesome gameplay today! Looking forward to our large group of A2 testers enjoying this content and more. Come join us!
Gruntag
2
Re: Vassal resentment
Ludullu_(NiKr) wrote: »And Steven saying "well, just go change your node" goes directly against his desire for people to have allegiances to nodes that are somehow stronger than guild allegiances.
Oh hey, a contradiction!
I have a whole collection of these...
Noaani
2
Re: [Feedback Request] Alpha Two Citadel of the Steel Bloom & Firebrand Preview | August Livestream
Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Citadel of the Steel Bloom & Firebrand Preview?
What I liked:
- the dragon breath was probably one of my favorite highlights of the whole stream. The effects of the breath looked so good!
- the large-scale boss fight was great!
- the dragon entrance animations and model was awesome!
- dragon animations were pretty clean and clear to the players!
- the Dragon Boss minion's spawn animation (where they fell like meteorites) was amazing!
- the gruesome environment details were a nice touch for mature audiences, I want to see more!
What could be improved (buckle in....)
I felt the citadel was lackluster, and frankly- a little disappointing for a dungeon...
-- The mobs, other than the golem, all looked too similar (they had minimal distinction between their presentation). I understand they are fire/lava baddies, but their models need to be more distinct, and their animations and move-sets need to make them visually unique- otherwise, they appear to be blobs of lava dudes mindlessly fighting the players- which is dull and boring. We've seen this a million times. (see image for reference)
-- The objectives of the Citadel seemed so 'dry'.
" Go to place X and kill Y "
Why aren't there any dungeon puzzles? hidden chests that players need to find? Jumping puzzles to utilize the verticality of the map/world and show off the dungeon design? It's 2024, I think we can get more creative than just killing X things in a dungeon. Most modern MMORPGs have that in an open-world cave.
Even the "guard" objective, with the queen spirit ( I think?), seemed so basic and boring. The bad guys just spawned out of the perimeter and mindlessly ran into the players. There were no avoidable mechanics, and little context as to why we needed to protect the spirit and ignore the giant evil-looking demon creature. And there was hardly any build-up that seemed meaningful. At the very least the bad guys could have made a better entrance, like they did with the dragon boss.
MASSIVE PVE (Raid boss fights) suggestion:
Please. PLease. PLEASE! Make the status effects on the players more identifiable. Even though they are nice little icons by the health bars, I am NOT focusing on THAT during combat. Can't we use effects and animations to signify status-effects like: Tripped, stunned, bleeding, burning, frozen, etc.? Many MOBAs already do this as a baseline since combat pacing is so fast, and people aren't always tracking their eyes back and forth across their monitors, constantly, for status information (especially if you are a support class).
Finally (maybe nitpicking here), Why doesn't the boss Dragon displace users? Why isn't the environment/setting playing a role in the battle? Seems pretty underwhelming that there's very little risk to fighting a Dragon in the OPEN FIELD, where you can't be trapped or hindered. It also doesn't allow players to use verticality to their advantage/disadvantage. There's fall risk to climbing up, but protects you from sneak attacks (PVP), etc. Why can't the dragon (upon entry) create a gigantic crater, where you fight? or how about the landing impact generates giant pillars of fire that trap the players into a fire colosseum of some sort? that would be so much more exciting than...."dragon fly in. dragon land and sits there waiting to be attacked...people attack it in the open...dragon then does moves..."
Overall, the update was nice. I would rate it a 6.5/10. There were moments of greatness (especially during the dragon fight), but there were many (more than usual) moments where I felt like the quality was rushed just to make it onto the stream. And because of this, it seemed very lackluster or even boring. These moments are not up to the quality I know the Intrepid team is capable of producing- especially if you have witnessed all the past streams as I have. I think when players think of modern dungeons, they expect more than just kill objectives. Adding a few puzzles or search quests would elevate and diversify the experiences, and would keep players engaged and cooperating outside of JUST combat. It would incentivize player parties to invite not just combat-skilled players, but perhaps other players that provide critical thinking, puzzle-solving, and perhaps mobility-skilled players etc.
Hopefully this feedback was constructive. I tried not to be overly "negative" but I believe the feedback is fair and hopefully it improves the game, somehow. Cheers. Keep up the great work, and thank you for keeping us updated!
-G
Glizzzii
5
Dragon Raid Boss
Hey AOC community!
Just watched the latest live stream for August and felt the need to voice my opinion on it. Hopefully I hear what you all have to say as well.
First let me give the good, and then I will follow it up with the bad.
The boss looked great. I loved the cinematics and music score. I know some people disliked the background music, but I honestly thought it was fine. I also would like to say that the mechanics weren't half bad for an Alpha 2, level 25 raid boss. I think they could have added a couple of minor details to make the mechanics a little more engaging, but aside from that I was pleased. I guess you could also say I was a fan of the location and citadel.
As for the bad.........
Everything in this category ties into one concept, and that is "Immersion". When I play a game as largely scaled as AOC wants to be, I expect me to be immersed into the world. I understand this is Alpha, but I am here feeding my opinion in hopes that someone will hear it. Make me, the player, WANT to fight this boss. Make me REMEMBER him as I lay my sword into his belly. Make this story leading up to his final blow something I won't forget. I recently finished an ASMON video, and he hit the nail on the head. Make him talk to me in a voice over right before we battle. Bring his lore into the boss fight. (This might include more visuals). I just felt like despite the fight lasting too long, I wasn't enveloped into it. I want the excitement of going into a fight as grand as this and feeling the HYPE. To me, that just wasn't provided in the 45-minute gameplay I just witnessed. Immersion is what kept me playing World of Warcraft for 2 years straight. I had a connection to those boss battles and still remember them to this day.
Again, I completely understand it is Alpha gameplay and this is a lower-level raid boss.... But it's still a raid boss. And according to Steven, this will be an "End of Alpha 2 raid boss". I hope the community uses this discussion to voice their own opinions because world bosses and raiding are the essence of what makes MMO's the greatest genre of gaming.
Thanks.
Just watched the latest live stream for August and felt the need to voice my opinion on it. Hopefully I hear what you all have to say as well.
First let me give the good, and then I will follow it up with the bad.
The boss looked great. I loved the cinematics and music score. I know some people disliked the background music, but I honestly thought it was fine. I also would like to say that the mechanics weren't half bad for an Alpha 2, level 25 raid boss. I think they could have added a couple of minor details to make the mechanics a little more engaging, but aside from that I was pleased. I guess you could also say I was a fan of the location and citadel.
As for the bad.........
Everything in this category ties into one concept, and that is "Immersion". When I play a game as largely scaled as AOC wants to be, I expect me to be immersed into the world. I understand this is Alpha, but I am here feeding my opinion in hopes that someone will hear it. Make me, the player, WANT to fight this boss. Make me REMEMBER him as I lay my sword into his belly. Make this story leading up to his final blow something I won't forget. I recently finished an ASMON video, and he hit the nail on the head. Make him talk to me in a voice over right before we battle. Bring his lore into the boss fight. (This might include more visuals). I just felt like despite the fight lasting too long, I wasn't enveloped into it. I want the excitement of going into a fight as grand as this and feeling the HYPE. To me, that just wasn't provided in the 45-minute gameplay I just witnessed. Immersion is what kept me playing World of Warcraft for 2 years straight. I had a connection to those boss battles and still remember them to this day.
Again, I completely understand it is Alpha gameplay and this is a lower-level raid boss.... But it's still a raid boss. And according to Steven, this will be an "End of Alpha 2 raid boss". I hope the community uses this discussion to voice their own opinions because world bosses and raiding are the essence of what makes MMO's the greatest genre of gaming.
Thanks.
Re: Dragon Raid Boss
Well everyone has different needs for immersion, i think. For me I don't need a boss to talk or have significantly good lore to be immersive, what i remember are epic fights, the people I did it with and often a reward someone or I get, I remember killing Valakas in Lineage 2 and getting his legendary raid boss drop, the amazing "Necklace Of Valakas" I remember killing Tequatl the Sunless and getting an Ascended Weapon Box drop, I remember my guilds reaction, and how much fun we had. And when the fights are epic and taking down this HUGE monster of a boss, which can fully be left to be, just that- a monster, there is no need to give it a voice. But ofc that is just me, and everyone has different wants and needs, I am sure there will be a great variety of content and a bit for everyone
Naibres
2
Re: [Feedback Request] Alpha Two Citadel of the Steel Bloom & Firebrand Preview | August Livestream
I like the visuals. I appreciate you guys going for a more mature theme, and not shying away from the dark and grisly side of medieval conflict. Can't wait to see what that zone looks like when it's finished.How do you feel about the Citadel of the Steel Bloom & Firebrand Preview?
Firebrand was pretty good. I loved the raw aesthetics of it, everything from the model to the animations and VFX were on point. Most of my gripes are down to polish -- shockwaves should make your character stagger, big attacks should send players flying if they get hit, and most importantly; the boss is in desperate need of visual feedback for taking damage. The entire fight it looked like he didn't even notice he was being attacked. Have him flinch and toss his head in annoyance, have his scales get scorched up and damaged as the fight goes on, give him a limp when he hits 1/4 health -- look at the Monster Hunter series for a masterclass on visual damage feedback.
To be honest, not much really appealed to me in the preview. It looked pretty boiler plate. Go here, kill things, defend this. It would be cool to see more interactivity throughout the zone -- barricaded chokepoints you have to break through, traps, a chance for random ambushes, destructable walls that reveal hidden treasure, etc. etc.What excites you about playing and interacting within the Citadel, its enemies, and Firebrand?
Visual clutter remains my biggest worry for the game in general. It's impossible to have a visceral, animation-driven combat system when said animations are constantly hidden behind an opaque wall of spell effects and UI elements -- especially in close quarters with large numbers of players and enemies. I understand the VFX still need to be tuned and the interface will be customizable, but the clutter has been an issue for years and we're getting very close to having players in the actual game. I think it would be a good idea to put some time into getting that sorted out sooner rather than later.Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Citadel of the Steel Bloom & Firebrand Preview?
Solmyr
1