Prestigeing in PS

[nomotog]

Prestigeing is something that MW dose. (Don't run away yet!) After you level to max level, you have the option to restart at level one and you get a little star or marker to show that you made it to max level and flipped back. As I understand it, it's a mechanism to keep people advancing without having to widen the gap of new to old player and to keep rotating the levels of the players so that you don't have everyone at max level.

Do you think PS could benefit from a system like this? Something where reaching max level (maybe overall level or spiting it by skill tree) you can trade your experience for a little mark or a new skin (something neat) and start over again.

Thoughts?

[Crator]

Could work. Really depends though on how long it will take to reach max level. And in PS2, we aren't really talking just level, we are talking max skill (involves the skill tree) which I'm not even certain if you can equate it the same way. <shrug>

[Senyu]

Have to be something cool for trading in levels for something

[Xyntech]

Didn't they say they were planning for it to take at least a year for a player to unlock every skill tree that the game launched with on a single character? Maybe it shouldn't reset the entire character, just whichever single skill tree you chose.

If you reset your tank tree, you get a new tank skin. Reset your infiltrator tree, get a new infiltrator skin, etc.

I know a lot of players get bored with their high level characters and so they start a new character to level up again. A lot of other players are completionists and like to unlock everything. I think this could be a good thing.

[Crator]

Perfect idea Xyntech.

[Lonehunter]

As I understand it, it's a mechanism to keep people advancing without having to widen the gap of new to old player
How are you not widening the gap? You still have some indication that you prestiged and once where higher level. Unless you're actually resetting your level just like in CoD, which with the skills system and the time it takes to unlock things, is very unlikely in PS2.

Also, in Call of Duty, someone level 70 can totally woop someone that is level 1. Better perks, better guns, better attachments, all kinds of stuff that can ensure the lower level guy has NO chance. Planetside's philosophy has always been to keep players equal in power. A level 1 guy may not have access to as much stuff as a max level, but he can still beat him.


Do you think PS could benefit from a system like this? Something where reaching max level (maybe overall level or spiting it by skill tree) you can trade your experience for a little mark or a new skin (something neat) and start over again.
That mark or skin has to be good enough for people to sacrifice what they've been working for. Vehicle/weapon improvements, abilities, all kinds of stuff we doing even know what it is yet. But that stuff, is supposed to be the motivation for playing the game. Swapping it with a mark or skin doesn't seam like it would fit.


Closing statement, I don't think it would fit in Planetside2

[CutterJohn]

Planetside's philosophy has always been to keep players equal in power. A level 1 guy may not have access to as much stuff as a max level, but he can still beat him.

No, its been to have a particular weapon perform the same regardless of who holds it, and to keep things sorta close. Though they jumped ship on the first with things like the advanced medic/hacking/engy certs, not seen as a big deal since its non combat I guess, and obviously the second is true due to implants, veteran rewards, command tools, and the very nice advantage have having decent tools for most situations rather than decent tools for one situation.

The level one can beat the max level. Till Pshield flips on. Or they meet outside that one specific situation where the level 1 is competent, and the level 20/30/40 has the certs necessary to be viable in that new circumstance.

Sorry, but the difference between a newb and vet in PS was probably about the same as in CoD. Vets had some massive advantages.

[Crator]

^^^ True, but it doesn't take long to get a few BRs under your belt.

[Xyntech]

How are you not widening the gap? You still have some indication that you prestiged and once where higher level. Unless you're actually resetting your level just like in CoD, which with the skills system and the time it takes to unlock things, is very unlikely in PS2.

It would be an option, not mandatory. It doesn't matter how long it takes, some people will play enough that they will be happy to earn the same thing a dozen times over.

Also, in Call of Duty, someone level 70 can totally woop someone that is level 1. Better perks, better guns, better attachments, all kinds of stuff that can ensure the lower level guy has NO chance. Planetside's philosophy has always been to keep players equal in power. A level 1 guy may not have access to as much stuff as a max level, but he can still beat him.

I don't think anyone's talking about game balance or upgrades vs sidegrades, just the ability to start over and get some sort of cosmetic indicator to show that you already got to the maximum level and started over. The reward shouldn't be some new piece of equipment that affects gameplay.

That mark or skin has to be good enough for people to sacrifice what they've been working for. Vehicle/weapon improvements, abilities, all kinds of stuff we doing even know what it is yet. But that stuff, is supposed to be the motivation for playing the game. Swapping it with a mark or skin doesn't seam like it would fit.

A lot of players like to start over. This gives them some incentive to do it with the same character if they want the recognition and the cosmetic. I would hope that the reward was cool, but quite frankly it could be a little smiley face next to your name and a lot of people would go for it. Would this really hurt the game?

Nobody would be forced to reset. With my previous idea from the other post, you wouldn't even need to reset everything all at once. Keep your other sidegrades while you re earn the one tree.

I can't understand the opposition to something that you wouldn't have to participate in. If your argument was about how it would take away some development time to work on the new skins, I could see your point, but aside from that I'm stumped.

[Lonehunter]

Sorry, but the difference between a newb and vet in PS was probably about the same as in CoD. Vets had some massive advantages.
It may be objective in PS (mainly just in the later years) but it is no where close to the imbalance of Call of Duty. Better kill streaks like blackbirds, guns with higher dmg/accuracy/rate of fire. When my group of buds gets into a game with an enemy team all under level 30, half of them usually end up leaving because we farm them with Blackbirds, Choppers, etc. They just can't beat better guns and killstreaks.



Edit: Xyn, I apologize, you've made me a flip flopper. I guess there really is no problem with it being in the game, I just don't like it myself (which is no reason not to include it for others)

[Crator]

I would hope that the reward was cool, but quite frankly it could be a little smiley face next to your name and a lot of people would go for it. Would this really hurt the game?

A "Retired <Insert Cert Tree>" tag on your character with the exposed API to it in the database. So we can write some code to pull that in to a stats website/app. Plus, some sort of in-game indicator on your character, or perhaps summary window of your character (if they have that).

[Xyntech]

Edit: Xyn, I appologize, you've made me a flip flopper. I guess there really is no problem with it being in the game, I just don't like it myself (which is no reason not to include it for others)

It's cool. Nothing wrong with voicing dislike of an idea you don't find interesting. I just bang my head against the wall at some of the negativity that pops up on the forums at times.

[nomotog]

What if it was a mechanic upgrade rather then a cosmetic one?

[Mastachief]

Dont like the idea, i dont feel it has a place in a persistent mmofps

[Lonehunter]

As long as it doesn't effect gameplay I don't see anything wrong with it. It will take a long time to reach max lvl, or the max in a certain skill tree. But if someone does want to do it over again I don't see why we should prevent them, keeps them paying money to SOE too.

[Bravix]

It was my understanding that it would take at least a year to max out simply ONE of the starting cert trees, let alone the entire bulk of them.

Doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. MW there is only one straight line, PS2 is different.

[Lonehunter]

Yeah in CoD you can get a few prestige levels in a few months. In PS2 I imagine it'll take over a year just to get one.

[BorisBlade]

look if you wanna re-level and give up things just so you can get em again all for the purpose of inflating your e-peen, while not gettin any advantage over others, then go for it. I dont care. If its just cosmetic for those who feel the need to compensate by getting some special icon or name in a videogame, then let em have it. Keeps em playin and payin and allowin more content for me to be created. If it gives em any actual advantage at all, then hell no.

Plus PS takes alot more time to level up, so its not quite the same, prob not worth doing. But again, as long as its cosmetic, its fine by me, i wont use it tho.

[Raymac]

look if you wanna re-level and give up things just so you can get em again all for the purpose of inflating your e-peen, while not gettin any advantage over others, then go for it. I dont care. If its just cosmetic for those who feel the need to compensate by getting some special icon or name in a videogame, then let em have it. Keeps em playin and payin and allowin more content for me to be created. If it gives em any actual advantage at all, then hell no.

That's pretty much how I feel about it too. If people want to gimp themselves just to they can get the satisfaction of dinging again and getting a cool little icon next to their name, then I say have at it. I don't think you need to offer any incentive beyond that, and I really don't think they should.

[Marth Koopa]

When I hit the max level, I want to keep everything I earned, not start over.

Keep your CoD crap out of my PlanetSide

[EASyEightyEight]

When I hit the max level, I want to keep everything I earned, not start over.

Keep your CoD crap out of my PlanetSide

The concept totally mentioned this should be mandatory.

Lrn2read, bro.

[Captain1nsaneo]

As a completionist I find Prestige abhorrent as it requires me to start from 0 again. No, I don't have a choice, I must reset. I don't want to reset but if I don't reset then I've not finished it have I? I like each one of my kills to go to something which is why I regularly use weapons in CoD that I don't like and aren't the best. When I finish off a weapon I dislike I don't want to have to go back to it and do it all over again just because I maxed my rank and need to start again now. The part of my brain that thinks long term just strangles the fun out of filling up bars.

[Marth Koopa]

The concept totally mentioned this should be mandatory.

Lrn2read, bro.

Every one of these ideas include some sort of thing you get for "prestieging". I don't want to be left out of these just because I want to keep all my stuff forever.

[Xyntech]

What if you just got a T-shirt skin that read: "I'm a douchebag who threw away all of my unlocks and all I got was this lousy shirt"?

[TacosWLove]

Hell NO! You prestige in MW and BF because YOU HAVE NOTHING ELSE TO DO! You play the same maps over and over and with the same hiding spots and crappy tactics in your damn little puny map!

Planetside should have troves and troves of skillz, merits and rewards built in. Just the mentions of prestige makes me wanna puke! PLEASE FOR THE LUV OF BUDDHA DO NOT PUT THIS IN PLANETSIDE! YES IM MAD!

[Raymac]

Sounds like what it comes down to is trying to appease both the ding addicts and the OCD completionists. Not sure that's going to be possible, so somebody will end up unhappy.

[Lonehunter]

People wouldn't prestige as often as those in Call of Duty. But once the game is out for a few years, people reach the lvl/skill cap and don't want to advance anything else. It only makes sense to give them the option to start over and get some little badge, then start a whole new character.

[Graywolves]

Prestige is just a way to get people to play the game twice as long without actually providing more content.

[Xyntech]

Prestige is just a way to get people to play the game twice as long without actually providing more content.

Yeah, I hope they wouldn't do it as a way to skip out on new content. Still, someone who plays the game 40+ hours a week is going to be pretty hard to accommodate a constant stream of new content for. A couple impossibly hard to get things wouldn't be a bad idea as long as they don't take a lot of time to implement and don't affect game balance.

What if you could unlock the same cosmetics or skins or rewards without giving up your unlockables, but it took twice as long to get them that way? Would that be a happy middle ground?

[IceyCold]

Still, someone who plays the game 40+ hours a week is going to be pretty hard to accommodate a constant stream of new content for.

Pssst...

The new content is the people to shoot.

[Xyntech]

Pssst...

The new content is the people to shoot.

Yeah, shooters have that advantage, but they aren't adding in an insanely long and involved series of unlock trees for nothing. It's to add an engaging element of progress and advancement so that you always have that next thing to earn in addition to the constant stream of bodies to shoot.

If that's their goal, then accommodating the people with no lives would only be logical. They are obviously putting a lot of time into the game, providing a lot of people with another enemy to shoot at or ally to fight alongside, so why not encourage those dedicated, lifeless players to stick around?

[Talek Krell]

The key to it is that it takes set amounts of time to level though. Leaving your job and grinding 24/7 won't help that much because you still have to wait for the skills to raise. Eve made the model work nicely. A steady trickle of new content provides enough skills that I don't think anyone can ever actually max out.

[Xyntech]

I haven't ever gotten around to playing Eve. I just assumed that everyone would level at a similar rate, but that heavy players would still gain quite a bit of an advantage, while more average players only had a small advantage.

I guess it gets handled in a bit of a curve? The more you play, the less leveling return you get for your effort, but it still is a small bit more than if you didn't play quite as much?

I guess if balanced appropriately with the flow of new content, this would be easy to prevent anyone from ever gaining access to absolutely everything. Individuals may get to the current cap on an individual skill tree, but have a bunch of other trees to start working on until more content is added to their tree of choice.

I would rather see a system like this than a prestige system, although I still have no inherent objections to prestige. It just isn't the most ideal solution.

[Talek Krell]

It's actually a diminishing return on training time, since training is separate from playing. The higher you go into a skill tree and into the individual skills the longer the skills take to train. In Eve's case there's a pretty large pool of skills that take months to fully train the last level or two.