Now before you get the pitchforks let me say my piece. I have played just about every mmo that I could with fishing in it as I really enjoy taking up the role of a provider and love to fish irl. Sadly as the time has passed more and more games have gone really hard on creating elaborate systems to make sure fishing is not botted to oblivion. These systems can be fun for a time, but after a couple hundred hours I just dont want to do it anymore. This is not just the mini games fault so let me explain.
In games like Albion Online or Mortal Online 2, you have to play a mini-game to catch fish. The valuable ones are often found in contested zones where you can lose everything upon death. Ashes of Creation is only dropping materials, but fish are classified as such, so in general, you'll be looking over your shoulder for PvP while fishing. Having to also play a mini-game in these zones feels like too much, and I don't care for it.
On the flip side, players using AFK fishing won't be as safe, making them prime targets for those looking to score easy kills. This promotes active engagement from players to deal with PvP, while not holding them hostage to a repetitive mini-game just to catch standard fish.
In most games, fishing becomes less impactful after the first month of a release or expansion. In Ashes, I hope we can break fishing into different parts to create progression that adds value to what we catch, even with an AFK fishing option.
First, regions should feature unique fish that correspond to regional recipes. For example, a special oil made from fish in a desert river or a hearty meal made from ocean fish. This creates local specialties that can be exported to other areas for profit.
Next, we could break "sports fishing" (using ArcheAge as a model) into two parts. The first would be standard ArcheAge fishing, where players search for seagulls or feeding frenzies to catch large, valuable fish through a mini-game. The second type would be "mob fishing," where special bait is used to spawn valuable monsters to kill or tame, based on local wildlife. These monsters would offer good experience, loot, and an engaging challenge, allowing fishers to spawn fights for themselves and their friends.
This gives us three types of fishing: AFK fishing, active mini-game fishing, and mob fishing.
- AFK fishing would yield farm fish, bulk-processed materials, and region-specific materials for local recipes. It would be the primary method for leveling fishing skills.
- Active (sports) fishing would provide rare materials, region-specific materials, rare farm fish, and trophy catches. This would be where high-value materials come from, including materials for mob fishing.
- Mob fishing would focus on adventurer experience, rare material drops, monster tames/eggs, and potentially unique boss fights. This content is more group-oriented, allowing fishers to lead fishing trips that spawn monsters ranging from soloable to world boss level. Whether this is RNG-based or uses crafted recipes, both could be tested to see which feels better.
Anyway I could ramble on this topic for hours so I'll end it there. Let me know what Ya'll think!
Edit:
For afk fishing I would propose add fishing nodes (in fishable water) every 30 yards or so that have a finite amount of fish. The land management system will most likely cover this. You will need to move, and the more people fishing your spot the faster you will need to move. What I want is not to have to constantly play a mini game for the basic fish every 10 seconds. let me take my hands off the keyboard and chill for a few minutes assuming the fishing node is full. I would say it takes 5 to 10 minutes to fish out one of these areas by yourself.
