I want to hear from non PS1 players what do you think of PS2

[Qwan]

Im a PS1 Vet, I come on to PSU and see alot of vets complaining about whats wrong with PS2 and how it needs this and that. In this thread Id like to hear from some of the new generation guys who never played PS1, what do you guys think of PS2 so far, lets hear some likes and dislikes.

P.S. Duke please give them a chance to speak before you start drilling into them like some old war vet. (You should get that checked out) :D

[Hamma]

Yes! I'd love to hear some new players thoughts.

Let's try and keep this thread to new players only - hopefully they read it before collecting their beta key and leaving. :lol:

[FireWater]

Well here is my background, and you guys tell me if I qualify or not.

I'm 30, I've been playing PC games competitively for 14 years now. I have a pretty significant competitive background, (CAL I CS, Top teams in NS1, top BF2 team, pro team for ET:QW 20id). I also technically have some Planetside 1 experience, as I did buy the original with all the game discs back during release. I was recently heavily involved in the Firefall beta, but dropped that game after the release. I had some intriguing posts that wound up gotten me a trip to Red 5 stuidos to see the game. However, about 6 months after that, they made some serious changes to the game that it is not engaging to me anymore. So now I moved on to PS2.

However, much as Hamma said in his critique video of PS2 release, the FPS mechanics were absolutely terrible in PS1, and the whole MMO thing was not enough to draw me in. So I didn't sub. I tried it again a few years ago (around 2009), and I still came to the same conclusion.

With that said,

I do believe that PS2 is going in the right direction in terms of game mechanics. It feels like a modern FPS should in my opinion. The weapons are pretty responsive, locational damage and a general feel that I am actually a player in a large war, not just a 32 man server.

I feel that as of right now the factions are pretty balanced. Really if I die in game, I usually feel that I got outplayed or outsmarted, and that I can learn something from the conflict. That to me is a lot of fun. SOE has done a great job of keeping me engaged, and making things fun for the most part.

I do have some criticism though.

I believe that the current spawn system rewards numbers over skill. I would like to see a system that would penalize players that spawn spawn spawn spawn and keep flooding a point basically winning outnumbering.

I think a system that would support that is that the longer a player is alive, the quicker they spawn in. Make like a cap, like 5 minutes or so. The quicker you die in that 5 minute window, the longer it would take for you to spawn in (spawning at warp gate would always be available), allowing for both defenders and attackers to experience more of an ebb and flow during battle.

I agree with Hamma that there isn't enough to engage a new player. That mission system would be perfect for that.

Honestly, I would love to see a little more background information on all the factions, right now it just seems like an excuse to blast each other. Which is all fine and good, but I would like to see like a cinematic explaining a little more in depth the rivalry between the factions, perhaps some key leaders that lead the original conflict.

Since this title is a F2P MMO/FPS, I actually would like to see more of the MMO part, meaning having some more social areas. ESPECIALLY since SOE wants to sell skins, AND since there is no 3rd person view (i.e. I can't see my own skin).

Social would work out for new players. I think it would be beneifical to allow high ranking players squad up with newer players to complete some missions in game. Reward the high ranking mentors with extra Certs or resources (or even skins), and the new players experience in the game learning how to do certain things and not feel so overwhelmed.

Social areas could act as recruitment areas, and/or trashtalking areas. My thought would be like simulating these forums, in game and in real time.

That I think is the main thing missing from PS2. Encouraging new players, who bring their friends who bring their friends etc... is never a bad thing. We want to make sure these players have fun experiences, so that they will stick around.

[Dragonskin]

This will be a long post. Sorry...

I'm new to Planetside. I've been in beta for a little over 2 weeks.I have probably logged a couple hundred hours.

Just a little background about myself... I'm 29 and I have been playing FPS games since Quake, Unreal, Rainbow Six days and actually ran a small Rainbow Six clan back in high school (1998-1999) haha. I have played the COD series, almost every Battlefield game created (except 2142), all of the Halo series and MAG on the PS3 for like 6 months straight. So FPS games are nothing new to me and I wanted to put that out there because around these parts people love to spout their PS1 credintials like it was the only FPS around and everyone else is stupid.

I'm also new to these forums and it's amazing the dedication that Hamma has to the Planetside universe and these game. Levelcap renewed my interest in Planetside 2 with all of his new guides he has posted and the SOE coverage so I was happy to get into the beta and try this beast out for myself.

So, like I said I have been playing for 2 weeks or so and LOVE this game. It's going to make me regret not playing PS1... like I regret not playing DAoC before Warhammer. This game has crazy potential and MAG/BF Series are my favorite FPS games of all time and PS2 takes it to a completely new level. So much so that I am trying to get my guild into PS2 for launch because we are a bunch of PvP nuts and have a long history in MMORPG games, so it would be nice to come over to FPS again. The guild is called Mixed Martial Arts and Crafts, not sure how many people will actually know the name outside of the MMORPG scene.

So impressions of the game itself. It's good. It needs work. I personally find the grenade bug both frustrating and hilarious at the same time and it worries me that something that should be so simple is still in the game after the last patch and with 3 weeks to go till launch. I'm worried that the game will release too early and kill potential first impressions. I've been through some extremely rocky starts.. played vanguard: Saga of heroes from beta to 1 year after release... so I know all about paying to beta a game that was release way.. way too early. I also have Warhammer and SWTOR as games that clearly could have used more time before they were released... I fear SOE is pulling another Vanguard here. Vanguard was in a worse state, but when you think about it... PS2 doesn't really seem to have a clear direction yet. They keep making sweeping changes... like allowing sunderers to be spawned everywhere.. yea they are implementing AMS restrictions, but we already had tons of sunderers running around.. now we have even more.

From a team play perspective I think lightnings are designed against the team play design. 1 tank that can be completely controlled by 1 person and with such a low cost that people can spawn them over and over unless they keep getting themselves into bad situations.. it seems like all vehicles are too cheap resource wise at the moment. I know the game is supposed to focus on all kinds of battles, but it seems too easy to pop out tons of tanks.

I must have come in after the AA change, but the severe lack of air vehicles and the ease of which to kill air vehicles seems wrong. Only 96 certs for a nemisis AA rocket launcher... but 480 certs for the lasher? That makes zero sense to me. I know values can change, but with 3 weeks till launch I would hope to start seeing launch values rolling out.

I would love to see Amerish and I hope we can soon. Indar seems like they rushed a lot of it out. There needs to be more areas like the Crown. Esamir is cool and seems to be better designed, but the whole area is snow covered and kinda makes it bland after awhile. I find myself going back to Indar just because I like the scenery better.

Also having come from other siege type games... Warhammer, Aion and Guild Wars 2... the bases all seem very bleh to me. The Biolabs are fairly cool, but the outposts seem way too easy to take and there doesn't seem to be a real reason to take anything other than capping exp. I know you get resources.. but at the current state you seem to get too many too fast even if you don't have a lot of bases. I generally dislike base trading and this game seems to promote it. 500 exp for capping a zone when it's way easier to let some one have it and come back to recap it then it is to defend it... seems wrong.

So basically I see 2 things going on. You have the people that want to base trade running the outside of Indar just farming the easy exp that is fairly low risk. Then you have the people that just want to endlessly kill other people that are all hitting the Crown 24/7. Personally to me the endless Crown battle seems more like how this game should be... more bases need to constantly contested and have some reason to be contested. I came here to kill people and while you can get some decent fights occasionally be going to the other bases... nothing promotes the constant war like the Crown does.

So in the end I think this game as it stands right now needs to worked on a lot more before release. I think the Devs are scrambling trying to get some ends to meet, but it's not going to be enough to make the game have the polish and structure that they need to have at launch. They need a couple more months to iron out exactly how things should work, how they will direct the flow of combat, how they will make bases worth defending and maybe increasing option to allow them to be defended... like the engie turrets they were talking about that might be able to drop down on vacant turrent spots... it just needs a lot of polish. That's without addressing the simple bugs like grenades blowing up at your location instead of the location they appear to travel to... or bugs like the laser sight not emitting a laser (which gameplay wise is low impacting, but appearance wise it's huge) I bought the laser sight and was dissappointed that I couldn't see a laser... in BF3 you can see the laser hitting the target across the map.. i was hoping for something more.

Game needs to bake longer before the masses consume it. Right now all SOE is going to do is give people food poisoning and deture them from what the game could be in a few more months. F2P or not.. .it's a hard thing to over come bad first impressions. Look at Brink (yes, sadly I bought that game)....

[PoisonTaco]

Only played PS1 like two weeks before the PS2 beta started. I'll take a jab at this.

Planetside 2 has some issues, I'm sure we're all aware. Even with its flaws I'm having more fun in Planetside 2 than I've had in any other shooter since Battlefield 2142. It's a fun game to play where the shooting mechanics feel solid, the weapons have hit that nice sweet spot and the very nature of Planetside 2 ensure that something different will happen every time. Yeah I've fought over Allatum 50 times or more now, but each time is different. There's enemies coming from a different angle, sometimes it's a two way, sometimes it's a three way. Sometimes you see groups of people pull air, or park a Sundy, or fly a Galaxy overhead. Given how open the game is and how many options you have it makes for different scenarios every time you play.

I really like how distinct each of the three factions are. In my brief time in Planetside 1, they had different tanks, though somehow on TR I could pull a Magrider from tech plants, and I didn't see much difference other than color. In PS2 each faction has their own distinct silhouettes and even sounds. When a Reaver flies overhead, I know it's a Reaver. I don't need to look up and see that, I can hear it. When I'm hearing gunfire I can tell the difference between TR, NC and VS. I like how they stand our visually. I think all three factions look cool, even the Vanu with their purple.

Another little thing I really like is that when your weapon is running out of ammo in a clip, your gun sounds different. Like if you're TR or NC and your gun has 4/30 bullets, the next four shots sound different. It's a more hollow sound. I think it's neat and I can tell if I'm running out of ammo without having to glance at my HUD. Speaking of HUD I really like the centralized mode. I don't like the default layout because all the info I need, such as my health, ammo and energy are all off in the corner. The centralized mode lets me focus my attention on the action and it's easy to see when I can pop my shield, what my health is at and so on. I like the big glowing waypoints that squad leaders can put down. Very easy to spot.

What I don't like is the constant back and forth balance between air and AA. Either air is too powerful and they dominate everything, or AA is too good. SOE should make it so that the higher up you are, the less effective AA is. For example a Galaxy or Liberator at 1000m should be safe from AA on the ground. The tradoff would be that if a Liberator is making a bombing run, if they're at 1000m it's harder for them to hit anything on the ground. They could get lower but that makes them vulnerable to burster and skyguard fire. This would make fighters much more essential for clearing the skies.

All in all, Planetside 2 is really fun to play. It's got some problems, but nothing that can't be fixed. I'm not too worried about release because it's just going to be three continents with the store turned on. The game is going to continue to grow and expand. PS2 does a lot of little things right, from the gunplay, the visuals and the sounds. Great game and will be even better to build a community in.

[Bee]

I've played pretty extensively with what little free time I have.

And the game frustrates me to no end. I don't even know why I still play it sometimes.

Well, I do know. It's because the game delivers tiny glimpses of fun. Stand-offs at the Crown, running base to base coordinating with friends of mine, getting the drop on someone with a Reaver.

But the other 90% is spent entirely chasing those good moments. I play the game almost exclusively for the infantry combat. I've never been a ground vehicles guy, I find them to be slow tin-can death traps. And the Infantry combat is clunky and awkward. It has all the mechanics of a modern FPS, but the player movement and animations are not fluid whatsoever. This leads to firefights feeling chaotic and stressful.

Infiltrators, for whatever crazy reason have shotguns. The one class that is supposed to avoid confrontation instead gets to de-cloak and One hit kill a group of unsuspecting people. Mainly me. Over and over again. I had to turn up all my settings at the expense of frame rate just to hopefully spot one. It hasn't worked yet.

And then there's the entire issue of progression. I'm sacrificing myself to repair vehicles, heal teammates and drop ammo for everyone. I watch my XP grow and my Cert points gain. And then I realize...what am I doing this for?

Cert points allow me to upgrade my guns. But for what reason? The infantry combat is so underwhelming and frustrating. I could throw it in to the Reaver, but Anti-air is everywhere. So in the end I feel like I'm just throwing cert points around and seeing zero improvement in my game, despite minor improvements in my guns accuracy.


I see so much potential in this game, which is why I keep coming back. But all I've experienced so far is tank columns, zerg rushing and being zerg rushed. And although those things are epic in scale, there is little reward to being a part of them. Bases come and go quickly, large firefights are often tilted toward one side and death is everywhere.

I will continue to play, to try and find a niche I can enjoy. After all, the game is free and there is fun to be had. But lately I've logged off very quickly after meandering around a map constantly re-deploying just to try and find one fun battle to be a part of.

[Rahabib]

I am new to PS - never played PS1.

I am competitive FPS player, coming from CS, DODS, ETQW, COD4, UT, etc.

First off, the weapons feel pretty good to me. There are minor issues I see here and there but overall I like the feel of the infantry.

Since I come from infantry style games, I am not a huge fan of vehicles in the game - Its the major reason i could never get into games like battlefield etc. The reason is that it inbalances the game - it takes multiple people to take out one person in a vehicle, tank spam is pretty bad in this game - it will take 2-3 people to take out one tank and thats IF they have the right class to counter them. Its tactically possible for infantry to counter tanks, but its not a 1:1 thing. I understand that in the big picture it should be that way, but with resources so cheap to buy tanks etc. Its not deterrant to kill a tank because they are going to come right back with another tank. Same with flyers, although the flyers arent as big a threat to infantry.

Unlocking feels about right - but I know thats probably all going to change. I like that there are a lot of things to unlock, but you can do well just with the starting stuff. Thats a big compliment from me because I generally hate unlocking in games!

The scope of the game is both a plus and negative. Its a plus because there is a lot to do in the game. Its a negative because its far too common to roll up on a base thats a ghost town - free caps. its bonus because its feels epic in scope. Its a negative because there really is no way to "win" because once you log off, everything you have done will be "erased" - so unless you spend all day logged in, you wont really be able to experience a full lockdown unless its a mad zerg. Also, there is no real balance - the team who has the most logged in generally do all the pushing. XP bonuses aside, its kinda boring being on the defensive most of the time. Also, at least at this stage - the game isn't really geared toward full competitive teams because there are not virtual/locked areas to pit one team against another - its a minor thing but one that would be nice to see in the future - matches. Also flipping a base seems to take too long. I know they want you stay and defend but rarely do the enemy come back, once you cleared a base of all enemies, the timer should go faster.

Apart from those issues, the game feels like its good. For the most part I feel the factions are equal. I probably will stick with this game for a while to come - but mainly because there isnt really anything else coming out that I like :P

[ringring]

Good responses guys, love it.
@poisontaco .. if as TR you could pull a magrider in PS1 it was probably a all-access vehicles weekend or event, it wasn't the norm.

You all (non ps1 players). When you hear the vets talking about 'the meta game' what do you think?

[FireWater]

I think that PS1 is not PS2 and the other way around. PS2's meta game would be better off if resources actually mattered, and spawns aren't so spammy.

Make the players think about how best to behave with their limited resources.

[Dragonskin]

I think that PS1 is not PS2 and the other way around. PS2's meta game would be better off if resources actually mattered, and spawns aren't so spammy.

Make the players think about how best to behave with their limited resources.

Right, that is part of what I said too. Resources are useless at the moment. You get too much too fast unless you play completely idiotic you can afford anything you want vehicle wise whenever you want it. It's annoying to me that I can pop out a lightning or magrider all the time, but it takes me forever to get a new gun. I feel like there should be some kind of grind to afford the vehicles.. I know that people like to drive vehicles and some people that is all they want to do, but let them cert into that game play style.. don't offer it out the gate. If someone wants to be a galaxy pilot all the time.. let them choose to become that by giving them reasons to spend certs and resources on that.. maybe allow galaxies to be cheaper the more certs you spend into reducing their cost and respawn time. Something needs to regulate the vehicles in my opinion. I like the idea that you have people that are just bad ass tank drivers or galaxy pilots that everyone knows.. not just everyone and their mother's dog can be one with almost equal effectiveness any time they want.

Something needs to change to the bases to make them worth defending too. It can't seriously be intential for the trading to be going on, but there is no reason to defend something. You know the enemy will take it back from you and in 10-15 minutes you will be able to take it right back because they will be off killing some other base you just left or the enemy just left. The crown is so special at the moment because it's defendable. You can have lasting battles there they FEEL meaningful. I keep gravitating to the Crown myself because it's the only place that feels like there is something worth taking and holding.

So really to change both of those 2 things you need to make vehicles cost more.. which means people might actually defend bases more so that they can ensure their faction can pop more vehicles.

It's part of the reason that Guild Wars 2 actually works so well.. there are clear cut supply lines to all the bases. If you are cut off from those supply lines then you will lose territory. Things in Guild Wars 2 cost a decent amount to build which they use supply (unique WvW only currency) to build and can only be obtained from supply depots or bases that have been fed supply from those depots.

SOE can take a look at Guild Wars 2 to see how they can shift gameplay. It doesn't need to be exactly like Guild Wars, but it can point them in a direction of directing combat flow and helping to regulate seige weapons vs cost which is basically what all the vehicles are.

[Rolfski]

Background:
I never made it past PS1 trial when it came out so not really a veteran. At the time I found it too boring, too much down time.

General gaming experience:
All genres since the mid nineties on a casual level, never joined a squad. In this genre I have played many titles in between the COD and Eve Online sides of the spectrum.

PS 2 engagement:
Joined beta in sept, played average 10 hours a week in multiple factions on multiple servers, most of the time in an outfit. Fairly active at the forums, subscribed to a few YouTube channels.

Beta impressions so far

Positive:
- Epic scale: This game has more Battlefield moments then any Battlefield title
- Enormous potential: Tons of ways to make this game even more epic over time
- F2P, not P2W
- Excellent responsiveness of the devs, quite unique I must say
- Core mechanics are already good
- Excellent team play, for the first time in my life I actively joined a squad/outfit

Negative/needs work (besides the obvious bugs/balancing/optimization stuff):
- Lacks guidance/direction, easy to get bored if you don't know what you are supposed to be doing.
- Not fun if you have an hour to spare and want to do some casual lone wolfing.
- Persistent map changing all the time: lacks feeling of accomplishment.
- Needs much more immersion (sound, fx, weapon/vehicle handling, animations, etc.)
- Lack of metagame/strategic level play

Overall:
Current game is already good. Needs a lot of work to make it great though. Going head-to-head with the upcoming tripple A titles (why the heck would you that with a F2P game?), I'm a bit worried if they will make it in time to the level of polish that is needed to keep new players interested in these busy months.

[psijaka]

Never played PS1, absolutely love PS2.

I'll post why later; off to work.

[Dagron]

Never played PS1, the first time i heard of it was when someone said they knew of an FPS with hundreds of players in the same map, but it was dead... so i didn't bother looking for it.

Anyway, my opinion of PS2:

(...)
Beta impressions so far

Positive:
- Epic scale: This game has more Battlefield moments then any Battlefield title
- Enormous potential: Tons of ways to make this game even more epic over time
(...)
- Core mechanics are already good
- Excellent team play, for the first time in my life I actively joined a squad/outfit

Negative/needs work (besides the obvious bugs/balancing/optimization stuff):
- Lacks guidance/direction, easy to get bored if you don't know what you are supposed to be doing.
(...)
- Persistent map changing all the time: lacks feeling of accomplishment.
- Needs much more immersion (sound, fx, weapon/vehicle handling, animations, etc.)
- Lack of metagame/strategic level play

Overall:
(...)
Needs a lot of work to make it great (...) I'm a bit worried if they will make it in time to the level of polish that is needed to keep new players interested in these busy months.

I make your words mine.

I love the potential, but until there is any meta game implemented we can't really say much. Without it the game is just another FPS with a big map and a big population. It's ok, even a lot of fun sometimes, but most of the time we lack direction and any feel of accomplishment.

To me lone wolfing isn't as bad as some people say they feel it is, but i usually lone wolf to try and help my side win, not just to get kills. I try to sneak cap objectives or to lure enemies away from them so that others can move in more easily, that kind of stuff. That said, having a purpose is my fun, and i get bored in a group as often as while alone because we're playing to capture territories just because we want territories, and they switch hands so easily and often that it's hard to care about holding them. There is no big picture yet.

edit: It may have sounded like i don't like PS2, but all i'm saying is that we still haven't seen what the game is about, just it's basic mechanics. That's the reason why the announced launch date bothered me so much, we don't even have a clue if the meta game will work at all and even if it somewhat works, i'm betting that's one of the things that takes the longest to reveal most of it's aspects.

[Rahabib]

Maybe its just me, but the metagame could easily be fixed, but it seems that Sony is just dragging their feet about it.

Again - no experience in PS1 or have any idea how it worked.


Influence needs to go much faster when all enemies have cleared out.
Certs for flipping a base should be based on time spent before the flip. Show up at the last second - 500xp. Do all the hard work clearing out everyone etc. - 500xp. I have seen people flying sythes just waiting for flips between zones.
Hex system is ok for me. I have no idea how the lattice system works, but generally I see battles between 3 or 4 areas at a time and very rarely are they undefended, but maybe thats just me. It would be nice to have an alarm notification for zones that the user can turn off in the GUI so you are aware of it. So again, I think the hex system works.
Vehicle spam is a problem for me. I would love to see tanks cost more and sunderers cost more. I would also like to see a system where vehicles etc. cost more the further you are from the warpgate, and have tech plants reduce the penalty (not remove it). I think that would go a long way to seeing more infantry and people saving up for galaxies etc.
I think that spawn timers for sunderers and galaxies should also be increased so that base spawners are more used, giving the defenders a better chance to defend and battles taking longer.
I have not seen a lock down, but it would be nice that once all major bases are held by one faction on a continent, a timer starts and once that timer expires the continent is reset and the faction that locked it down gets 1000xp. This goes for all who have characters in the server not just those logged in. Or maybe just those who logged in in the last 24 hours. That way you dont have to camp in warpgate.
I think that if a faction has more than 25% more people on a continent, that either they should not be able to allow any more people to log in (a bit harsh but would solve the issue), or everthing costs more or spawn timers are increased. Giving XP bonuses to the other factions isnt a working solution.

These are all easily implemented solutions and adds something to the metagame (reaching for lockdowns).

Bonus - I would like to see a selection of small maps for outfit vrs outfit matches, practices, etc. as well. I guess this would be like a virtural reality where its controlled and does not affect the persistent continents. If Sony really wanted to make a bit of money, they could monitize outfits. So LEADERS must be subscribing members, you get a free outfit chat channel (so you dont need TS, Vent, etc.) an in game accessible web page to post news and events, and you can launch virtual reality simulations for practices or for matches. If you dont pay, you can squad up the way you do now but no simulations etc. I would just love to have a simulated environment.

[Skepsiis]

I hope some of the ps2 devs read this feedback. I think it is great. And coming from what i assume will be the demographic that will form the large majority of their player base (as a pose to the minority of ps1 vets).

I played ps1 for years so my opinion on the game doesnt count here but i find it very interesting that some of your problems with the current ps2 and proposed solutions are almost exactly the same as how those issues were handled in planetside 1 and it baffles me why these have not been carried over into the sequel.

Things like a spawn time penalty if you die a lot in a short amount of time or variable xp rewarded for base captures based on contribution.

[Qwan]

Nice to hear alot of input thanks guys, I do hear alot of people saying meta game. To me this is what make PS1 and PS2 interesting, it leaves the meta game up to the player. For example the meta game or the win is when you actually take a base that you planned on taking when you first put together the squad. You guys have to remember this is not a FPS its a FPSMMO, meta game is the goal that is set by the leaders when they start a squad, whether its to support the zerg or take certain bases to turn the tide of the battle. From the moment players log on and jump into the frey to the time they have taken the base. For example in my outfit we select a certain night to log in, we squad or platoon up and the leaders set the goal for the evenings events. Now in PS1 it was to lock continents and maintain those locks for the benifit of the over all population. This was taken away since the removel of linked bases, In PS1 if you didnt have a tech plant then you couldnt select tanks at the spawn points. The meta for tonight is to support the zerg going to Hossin, protect the tech plant to ensure we had access to vehciles to win the battle. Sometimes it would be smaller misison to take away base benifits from the enemy by blowing a gen to a linked base.

So the meta that alot of players are looking for really starts when they log in and ask there outfit " so whats the goal tonight guys". If you guys find a good outfit, examples would be M.A.P/TNGC, or Azures Twighlight. These outfits are mission oriented, so once you log in join a squad there is usually a misison going on, or about to start. You could run solo, and I guess there really is no meta because you just go were the zerg takes you. But by joining an outfit with good leaders who know how to run ops, could give you a very clear picture of what the objective is and how there going to do it. Once the mission is complete I believe you will get the sence of completion, but as we all know in PlanetSide there is so much more to do.

So for alot of guys looking for that meta, just join an outfit, run missions and I think you will find what your looking for. PlanetSide is a ever evolving game, there will never be a Meta, but there is a mission and by finding the right people and working together you will find a sence of accomplishment.

[Qwan]

I hope some of the ps2 devs read this feedback. I think it is great. And coming from what i assume will be the demographic that will form the large majority of their player base (as a pose to the minority of ps1 vets).

I played ps1 for years so my opinion on the game doesnt count here but i find it very interesting that some of your problems with the current ps2 and proposed solutions are almost exactly the same as how those issues were handled in planetside 1 and it baffles me why these have not been carried over into the sequel.

Things like a spawn time penalty if you die a lot in a short amount of time or variable xp rewarded for base captures based on contribution.

I have to agree with you here, alot of the issues in PS2 were in PS1 and were solved but werent brought over to PS2 now those same issues are popping up again. I think there getting lost in there efforts to make PS2 so different there missing the answer, which is right in front of them. You know the old adedge we learn from our mistakes, is not being applied here.

[Dagron]

About meta game, the problem is that an outfit leader can decide to send his troops somewhere and that assault may be fun, but it's still pointless. Game mechanics to encourage action might not be essential, but they're still important to keep things interesting.
I'm not talking specifically about getting a bonus to some stat or making some money, it can be anything: be it money, or denying a road to the enemy, or having access to different vehicles, or the ability to shut down and maybe even take control of an enemy warpgate... anything that would give your side an advantage.

Would you still want to lock down a continent if it gave your empire no benefits? Definitely! But tell me it wouldn't be much more exciting if it had an actual strategic value instead of just being worth bragging points? ;)

[ringring]

About meta game, the problem is that an outfit leader can decide to send his troops somewhere and that assault may be fun, but it's still pointless. Game mechanics to encourage action might not be essential, but they're still important to keep things interesting.
I'm not talking specifically about getting a bonus to some stat or making some money, it can be anything: be it money, or denying a road to the enemy, or having access to different vehicles, or the ability to shut down and maybe even take control of an enemy warpgate... anything that would give your side an advantage.

Would you still want to lock down a continent if it gave your empire no benefits? Definitely! But tell me it wouldn't be much more exciting if it had an actual strategic value instead of just being worth bragging points? ;)
Yes, that's true. But it's not the complete story and I'm sorry but I'm going to have to reference PS1 here.

PS1 did have 'benefits' that empires gained when they locked down a continent. The best example of how that changed the approach to the game was the TR and Oshur.

The benefit a locked Oshur gave was that is activated vehicle rapair points in bases. I don't how it started but the entire TR empire across all servers decided that it would be a point of honour that Oshur would be perpetually painted red. The outcome was that in NC or VS started a base hack on Oshur the TR would respond with extreme violence.

The other thing that kept things fresh was the concept of home continents. If your home continent was attacked you would be bound to go and defend it for fear of being sanc locked/foothold locked.

Both of these thing worked together strategically ... so you would think whether it was wise for you empire to take a certain action if you feared that it would indirectly cause an attack on Oshur or your home cont ..... I don't thin I explained it very well. :(

[Dagron]

No, that wasn't the complete story. I was just painting a very broad picture.

[Dragonskin]

I think it would be cool if bases were upgradeable. Like being able to put out more turrets, make them have more defense or higher hit points and do more damage. Even the outposts should be able to be upgraded. Maybe able to build walls and turrets around them... allow the players to turn them into mini-fortresses.

Make bases also worth defending. Have Biolabs or Tech plants generate more resources. Make the outposts and stuff not generate anything, but to make sure there is a reason to take them. Make some system of you have to hold outposts around a Biolab or Tech Plant before you can take the Biolab or Tech Plant at all.. I don't know, but some way to make the grid more like a progression path. The way it is now it seems like outposts help because they have portals to the bigger bases, but you aren't required to take them.. it just helps some.

I don't know but right now bases aren't very defense friendly and there doesn't seem to be much of a reason to want to defend them. That is probably my biggest gripe about PS2 at the moment. Coming from Warhammer and Guild Wars 2... games that gave real progression paths to holding objectives and valid reasons to defend those... this game just seems lacking. Which is why I gravitate to the crown and surrounding territories.

[MrBloodworth]

I think it would be cool if bases were upgradeable.

http://wiki.planetsidesyndicate.com/index.php?title=Phalanx

[Dragonskin]

http://wiki.planetsidesyndicate.com/index.php?title=Phalanx

So another thing that Planetside 1 had that Planetside 2 is lacking... I heard Higby talking about something might come in the future in Levelcap's interview I think.. but would be nice if it was in prior to launch.

[MrBloodworth]

The list of what is lacking...is long, my new to Planetside friend. But, I suppose this is not the thread for that.

Continue on.

[Illtempered]

Most constructive thread evar...and I love these new guys.

Edit to say: This is not sarcasm, and it's sad I have to qualify my post like that. We, as vets, can become quite jaded. There are things I miss a lot about PS1, but I still have hope it can be easily remedied.

[VaderShake]

Backround: 38 years old, Playing video games since Pong 1978, owned just about every console ever made (until X360 - PS3) started PC games on an Apple 2C early 80's. The last 10 years I have pretty much been a Battlefield player (aside from some other great games) but BF was my thing......until being lied to by DICE/EA and given the steaming pile that is BF3.

Ok...PS2 thoughts..I will be brief and bigger picture focused..

As an FPS experience it is solid and can be and has been improved since beta started. The meta game is basically not installed yet IMO, once we see the commander features and see how players embrace them we will see how this comes together. Even in beta form is has made me forget about 10 years and 10,000+ hours of playing the Battlefield franchise. You cannot get this expirience in another FPS.

Final points and perspective...

I've been gaming a long time, the industry has gone down hill in the last 7 years IMO, that said PlanetSide 2 is a benchmark game in FPS history point blank.The shear size, scale, and the aspirations of the dev team (if they follow though) set this apart from most other games out there and there is no FPS even close. I think we as gamers/customers need to see this is probably the future of developing games, no longer having them 100% finished out of the can but rather have them progress with the customer base for longer periods of time and be highly customizable. We have seen this with expansion packs but now PS2 will be a long term constantly updated game being able to turn on a dime if need be to keep customers/players happy, playing, and paying $$$.

To the PS1 vets...

I know your frustrated about things in PS1 not making it to PS2....I just went through this with DICE/EA....but there was 1 major difference....the DICE team lied point blank to it's long time customers about BF3 and what it was going to be and would not even entertain it's customers feedback about ideals and changes. So far I have seen stellar interaction with the SOE dev team and they are at least saying everything is on the table for the most part and they have a long term plan to give the players what they want, but it will take time. PS1 vets I hope you give them a little time, I know if DICE would have delivered and said they will get BF stuff into BF3 I would have given them more time to get the game I wanted....unfoutunatley DICE/EA would not even listen to their customers.

I hope you stick around PS1 vets, it would be great for you to guide the new players and shorten the learning curve for them while helping to craft a game we can all enjoy for the next 5-8 years, make some new friends, have some laughs, and kill the VS and TR haha.

[Qwan]

About meta game, the problem is that an outfit leader can decide to send his troops somewhere and that assault may be fun, but it's still pointless. Game mechanics to encourage action might not be essential, but they're still important to keep things interesting.
I'm not talking specifically about getting a bonus to some stat or making some money, it can be anything: be it money, or denying a road to the enemy, or having access to different vehicles, or the ability to shut down and maybe even take control of an enemy warpgate... anything that would give your side an advantage.

Would you still want to lock down a continent if it gave your empire no benefits? Definitely! But tell me it wouldn't be much more exciting if it had an actual strategic value instead of just being worth bragging points? ;)

Well that was the thing with linked bases and locked continents. With linked bases simply blowing a gen would change the tide of battle dramatically. And dont get me wrong you would usually have to hold that blown gen, in the mean time the zerg is taking advantage of the opportunity and pushing in on the enemy. I think this concept should be brough back along with resources also connected to bases. Like I stated some of the old wasnt that bad, and alot of the new is nice as well.

@VaderShake we PS1 vets may complain and whine but were not going anywere. The heart of the game is still there, Its just the way we did buisness is no longer fesible (hope I spelled that right). Tactics have changed alot, when we played it was to make a difference, now you just move with the zerg or play whack a mole with back hacked bases because some cloaker thinks its funny. But we know from past experience with PS1, that changes are coming and the way were playing now will not be the same 6 months to a year from now.

See you on the ground gentlemen.

[james]

I have been playing fps for about a decade now everything from Bf, to cod, to tf2 and so on. I never did play ps1.

The meta game is one of my major issues with the game, base fights end up in way to many meat grinders, and spawn camping. That is basically the strat for this game meat grinder into the base then spawn camp the defenders. That needs to be fixed otherwise the major battles are going to get boring quick.

The level of teamwork system is great, but almost to much its rarely that fun to play ps2 without an outfit. Its very hard to jump in a random squad and get everyone to work together to a certain extent.
Performance is rubbish.

The game-play is above average, but when it really comes down it the shooting is nothing better than a run of the mill fps, the biggest thing it has going for it is scale, and that was incredible well done.

Having a sub model to does bring some concerns, that there will be major elitism in the community and the community will shun the f2p/new players. Also the risk of the game turning into p2w.

PS2 has a ton of pontial, but it needs a ton of work, game play needs to be tightened up, teamwork aspects need to be improved, and the meta game needs a fix.
The major concern is that many f2p players will hop in, and not fully enjoy the game, as you need a group of friends to experience the game as it meant to be, plus lack of polish, and other issues. These will make it interesting if it can have mass appeal.

[VaderShake]

@VaderShake we PS1 vets may complain and whine but were not going anywere. The heart of the game is still there, Its just the way we did buisness is no longer fesible (hope I spelled that right). Tactics have changed alot, when we played it was to make a difference, now you just move with the zerg or play whack a mole with back hacked bases because some cloaker thinks its funny. But we know from past experience with PS1, that changes are coming and the way were playing now will not be the same 6 months to a year from now.

I hope so Qwan, I do know that a ton of Battlefield vets dropped BF3 like a hot rock and won't go back. There are about a dozen of them I regularly played with who are currently in the PS2 beta and looking forward to years of gameplay in PS2.

[Kaldamar]

Background: I'm 31 years old and have been gaming in different forms since I was five. I played Team Fortress since it was just a mod for Quake and my first FPS was Wolfenstein 3D. Been on and off in gaming for a while, playing all sorts of titles. Never been a Call of Duty or Battlefield fan. You could say that I've been a casual FPSer for the past three or four years. Also, I've only been playing PS2 since Friday or so.

You could say I'm more or less the demographic of a game like this. The PS1 vets who are going to play have likely already been captured and more casual gamer types usually aren't into an experience like this. That leaves people like me, the casual FPSer.

Now, my thoughts on the matter...

Let's start with the cons...

Certification Points: At first I found it a little difficult to be able to accumulate points at enough of a rate to be able to afford much beyond the initial 1 or 4 expenditures. 240 certs per second tier weapon seemed so far beyond my reach that I figured I'd be into the game for a day or two, then would probably end up giving up like with most PvP. I'm terrible at it. Of course, I found my solution, but that'll be mentioned further on.

Vehicles: The flight is tricky, to say the least, and even I haven't tried flying again since the first few times I tried and ended up slamming the last one into a tower by accident. It doesn't seem overly intuitive to me and it could feel a little more solid in the controls. Maybe it's just me. The AA everywhere doesn't help at all either and it makes it intimidating to try and fly others around when you're inexperienced. Ground vehicles feel pretty good and I love the Quad, I really do. However, there are a LOT of tanks everywhere and it gets a little difficult to do anything when there's twenty in one location looking for your head.

Every Weapon Needs New Certs: This just seems like an artificial method to extend the person's play time. Reaching for the next shiny apple on the tree doesn't always work as well as developers hope, because you start to feel like Sisyphus after a while. You roll that boulder up the hill...which then rolls back down and you start again. Too much repetition can nab the OCDs, but most people will just end up pissy.

Stop Running Into My Line of Fire: Seriously. I'm discharging my weapon. Strafing so your head is filling my sights and accidentally killing you, thus earning ME a warning on the screen, does not make me want to revive you.

There's a few other little beefs here and there, balancing and what not, but nothing really worth going on about.

For the Pros, I think the best place I can start is with a story.

When I started, I took a 'normal FPS' attitude to things and I was clumsy. I got slaughtered pretty consistently and actually got kind of frustrated with it. Then something happened...I put down the game, basically figured I wouldn't go back and that was that. Then I came back the next day because I found myself wanting to find a reason to like it. There was something about the game that really pulled me in. So I went back in, determined to do that.

Then I started playing Medic. A matter of hours after I started playing the medic, I ended up in The Crown after a hot drop there and found a rather massive fire fight in progress. I was actually quite impressed because there had to be over a hundred people involved when my previous experiences usually looked like 10v10. Determined to help out, I went to the south western ridge and started healing. Explosions were all over, team mates were getting killed so I'd revive them and people were actually saying thanks and started running over to me when they needed a heal or just holding their ground and waiting for me to heal them as I patrolled. Those who died just waited for me to revive them because I'd get there within a few seconds. And right then, I actually felt like I was doing something constructive and helping out, even though I couldn't head shot people or get a tonne of kills (though I've gotten better now at the rifle). It also made me the certification points that I had been lamenting not being able to acquire. I've found a bunch more situations like that, constantly in fact, and they've not been boring to me, because each situation seems a little different, even if the location isn't.

I haven't fiddled around with Outfits and what not yet. I don't have anyone on my friends list. I didn't even know what Planetside was until I happened to see it on Sony's page when I was playing around with EQ2. I've been playing by myself without really knowing anyone, which is exactly what people are going to be doing when they try the game for the first time. For me, that was sold for me right there. For others, their mileage may vary.

I think they have a rather solid base to work from and that things will probably be balanced and get better from here. Either way, I'll be coming back because now I know what Planetside is and I like it.

[Fear The Amish]

lol i know this isn't a recruitment thread but for you new people anyone looking for an outfit check out either the recruitment forums here or on the official ones. There are ALOT of good outfits out there and most will gladly teach you the ropes because the vast majority of players coming into this game will be new. Personally Xen of Onslaught is a Vanu outfit based out of East NA and i personally promise if you are a new player we will offer you a fun time and a great learning experience. I have to say the difference between playing solo and running with an outfit is like the difference between night and day. Both are fun but they are fun in different ways personally i like outfits because they offer a chance for MASSIVE battles almost constantly.

[Dagron]

Shamelessly recruiting more mindslaves, alien scum? Looking forward to liberating the world of your overlords! You can thank us once Auraxis is ours and your minds clear. :D

[Qwan]

I hope so Qwan, I do know that a ton of Battlefield vets dropped BF3 like a hot rock and won't go back. There are about a dozen of them I regularly played with who are currently in the PS2 beta and looking forward to years of gameplay in PS2.

We still play BF3 quite a bit in my gaming community, not all of us have keys just yet. We mostly play on thursday and small sessions during the weekend.

I would just like to reiterate to some of the new guys check out an outfit, there really not hard to find and its a totally different way of playing the game. I think this way will give alot of gamers a clearer veiw of what PS is about. Hopefully hamma will leave this thread open and I enjoy reading what alot of the new guys think of the game so far, so please feel free to post your likes and dislikes so far. Thanks guys

[LastManStanding]

Well I never played PS1 and up until a year ago I hadn't even really dabbled much with multiplayer games (I was more into offline open-world games like Stalker, Oblivion and Fallout 3).

As soon as I saw PS2 though I knew this was something that was going to appeal to me and I was lucky enough to get into the beta fairly early on so I've been playing since late August / early September.

I've played it a lot and have definitely been enjoying it and am impressed with what the developers have been able to achieve. At the same time I'm not completely obsessed with it like I thought I would be.

I think the reasons for that are partly down to the fact that the tug-of-war battle for territory isn't as meaningful as I had imagined it would be. Territory changes hands too quickly so there's rarely a real sense of accomplishment when you claim it.

At the same time it's also no fun at all to sit around at a largely uncontested base for long periods of time waiting to capture it. That's one of my biggest complaints right now.

I've read some people talking about possible capture the flag mechanics being added in for some bases, and I think that could work well. I also like the look of the new base layouts for the Amerish map and I'm curious to see how the metagame aspects work when they are introduced (having not played PS1 I don't have a clear sense for whether this will be meaningful for me or not).

Overall I certainly see myself playing PS2 for a long period of time, but whether it's going to be the kind of game that will completely absorb me or just be something that I dabble with when the mood takes me remains to be seen.

[psijaka]

Finally getting around to posting my thoughts on PS2. My experience of PS1 was limited to watching a few clips on Youtube; enough to make me apply for the PS2 Beta. I've been playing fairly intensively for several weeks now, well worth the 10 month wait for an invite.

LIKES

- Epic scale of the game. 7km square maps! Compare that to your typical COD map.

- Truely MMO. No more 5v5 TDM for me. Some of the bigger encounters are foxtrotting awesome!

- Continuous warfare. Have played for up to 6 hours in one session (to 0430 am); a great sense of continuity. Makes your average COD or BF match look like child's play; utterly irrelevant.

- Sense of loyalty to your Empire. I fully intended to give all 3 an equal try, but somehow I feel like a traitor if I'm fighting against the NC. I love the feeling of being part of something bigger.

- Indar scenery. Spectacular yet somehow perfectly believable.

- Classes seem to fit well together, and each has it's place, even the support classes. I've enjoyed playing all of them, as circumstances dictate.

- Hex system on Indar. Like the complexity of this, and think that there is a lot of potential for a well organised squad to play strategically.

- Recoil. At last, an FPS that has got this right! The recoil is significant, but it has a predictable upwards trend, allowing a good player to compensate. Much better than random spread (BF, Firefall) or laser like accuracy (COD Black Ops Skorpion).

- Sniping. I'm not a habitual sniper, usually preferring to hunt them down, but I have enjoyed sniping in PS2. Just the right amount of sway and bullet drop to make it a challenge at long range.

- Variety of Base types to capture. From single point outposts up to major bases with several control points; shield generators etc. Calls for a variety of tactics. A bit too much duplication of each type though.

- Lot's more to come! Amerish just around the corner, and I'm sure that we'll see a lot more content in due course.

- And of course, it really does appear to be Free 2 Play!

DISLIKES

- Esamir. Dreary scenery fit only for tanks. Too few bases; hex system very much a dumbed down version of that on Indar.

- Resource system a bit broken. Most players look at the map and just go where the action is, without thought of resource generation. A few will think more strategically; I'm more interested in capturing territory with a strategic position, rather than considering the resource gain.

- Tanks are too all powerful. No fun at all being on the receiving end as infantry. Perhaps a longer respawn timer needed.

- Emphasis on K/D. WTF? I thought that this was an objective based team game. K/D is just so COD. Score per minute should be the primary measure of performance, for those that actually care.

- UI a bit crude; especially when it comes to spending certs. Some kind of interactive tree diagram would be an improvement; even Battlefield Play4Free had a better UI for unlocks.

[fishywishy]

I love everything except i often have no idea what im supposed to do for capping. I play infil most of the time and dont feel overwhelmed by the vehicles. Joined my 1st squad last night and had a blast. I need to find a noob friendly outfit now

[WaryWizard]

7km square maps!

64sqkm actually. Don't hate me.

I never played Planetside 1, and I never played too many FPS games in general. I played COD when it was still a WW2 game on Xbox, and I also played Halo a lot, but only really in single player. The first multiplayer FPS I played was COD4, and I didn't really like it much. After that I mainly played Halo and a couple random FPSs. Most of my gaming experience has been in 4x games(even though I suck) and RPG games. I also played quite a few RTSs. I found out about Planetside(probably within a year of release) when I visited my cousin's house, and I would watch him play it. I probably would've played it, if I had a computer that could play games. After that, I didn't really hear much about the game. Last December, I was looking for the game me and my friend could play. I searched around for the name of the game my cousin played, and discovered that PS2 was coming out. I then signed up for Beta, and made an account on here. I am very interested in this game, because of the potential I see. It is missing a few things, but beta is beta and unfinished.
Once they add a good enough reason for the fighting(owning Base A makes Tanks cheaper), or making resources useful(I liked it more when they had names) it will have more purpose.I bought alpha squad(for the SC and guns of course), and the game could do with some newb support. I knew the basics from checking this forum out, but it still took me over a week to figure out the chat commands. Then again I didn't really neeed to use much other than /tell. I've been zerging around mostly,but think I'll try teaming up more often. Not sure what else I could say other than Do better than you are currently doing, and try not to screw it up. Good jorb so far though.

[KALUHS]

As a TRIBES vet, I know how u guys feel comparing ps1 to ps2, sadly Hi-Rez has murdered my favorite game of all time with TRIBES Ascend. They ignored all the vets and milked the name, long story short ModernsTribesField:4

PS2 on the other hand is not losing 95% of its content unlike other prequels. SOE seems to be doing a good job with the constant updates, very quick reaction to certain issues compared to other companies. Im use to waiting months for a patch or update. They also seem to be in touch with alot of the community which is a good thing and hope it stays that way.

As for the gameplay
-im not happy with air atm, AA is just brutal! (constantly bitchin about this)
-Being a TRIBES vet, u can assume my favorite class is the assault for the jetpacks (if LA could skii, i'd jizz)
-there doesn't seem to be any strong objective for controlling any bases besides for the resources. It seems like Certs>Resources and so i just spend my time attacking the crown for mass kill/EXP
-the c4 bug is pissing me the f off constantly
-cert tree needs work
-optimization needs work
-voice chat needs work, mostly every1 sounds like shit
-so far so good, its in beta and showing good progress.

some things i like to see
-Squad members waypoints, id like to know where every member of my squad is located at all time
-jet like aircraft (all aircraft seem to work like helicopters)

[Kaldamar]

I would just like to reiterate to some of the new guys check out an outfit, there really not hard to find and its a totally different way of playing the game. I think this way will give alot of gamers a clearer veiw of what PS is about. Hopefully hamma will leave this thread open and I enjoy reading what alot of the new guys think of the game so far, so please feel free to post your likes and dislikes so far. Thanks guys

To be honest, I'd be hard pressed to really want to get an Outfit right now. I'm getting a lot out of roving around on my own and joining battles where I find them. Not to mention, I've already got to see the bias a few times of PS1 players basically scoffing at those who are not 'vets' or, if you look around at a few of the forums, this cloud of bitterness that appears to surround a lot of the PS2 stuff ("Why isn't this like PS1? It was good enough that way!"). Those who hate everything that PS2 is doing, the elitists who think free to play stuff always fail or the ones who seemingly WANT the next game to fail completely all tend to offer a pretty negative aspect. Maybe once the game launches, those people will crawl back into their holes, but it's definitely turning into a 'Con' for me going deeper into the play.

[Qwan]

To be honest, I'd be hard pressed to really want to get an Outfit right now. I'm getting a lot out of roving around on my own and joining battles where I find them. Not to mention, I've already got to see the bias a few times of PS1 players basically scoffing at those who are not 'vets' or, if you look around at a few of the forums, this cloud of bitterness that appears to surround a lot of the PS2 stuff ("Why isn't this like PS1? It was good enough that way!"). Those who hate everything that PS2 is doing, the elitists who think free to play stuff always fail or the ones who seemingly WANT the next game to fail completely all tend to offer a pretty negative aspect. Maybe once the game launches, those people will crawl back into their holes, but it's definitely turning into a 'Con' for me going deeper into the play.

Well if roving on your own is giving you what you want then by all means keep it up. Im just suggesting to some of the new guys, that if they join an outfit they will have just as much fun, and maybe even more fun then just roaming around solo.

Vets arent scofing at anyone, yes there are some things from PS1 they would like to see emplimented in PS2, but believe me they dont want to see it fail. I tell you right now well do what we always do adapt and overcome. As a PS1 vet myself it started out as a buggy, crashy, laggy beast, but over the years gamers learned to work with that and make the game still playable. But this thread aint about that its about new comers and what they like and dont like. Soooo what is your take on PS2.

[Crator]

the ones who seemingly WANT the next game to fail completely all tend to offer a pretty negative aspect.

I do not think any PS1 vet that is actively discussing things on the forums WANTS PS2 to fail. That's silly. If that were the case they would just not talk on the forums at all. Really wish you non-PS1 vets would stop assuming things you know nothing about. Ask questions, we like to talk about it, but don't assume.

[Kaldamar]

Vets arent scofing at anyone, yes there are some things from PS1 they would like to see emplimented in PS2, but believe me they dont want to see it fail. I tell you right now well do what we always do adapt and overcome. As a PS1 vet myself it started out as a buggy, crashy, laggy beast, but over the years gamers learned to work with that and make the game still playable. But this thread aint about that its about new comers and what they like and dont like. Soooo what is your take on PS2.

I actually did post already. *chuckles* Last post of the second page. I actually really like it and feel like I want to keep playing. But my post goes into better detail.

I do not think any PS1 vet that is actively discussing things on the forums WANTS PS2 to fail. That's silly. If that were the case they would just not talk on the forums at all. Really wish you non-PS1 vets would stop assuming things you know nothing about. Ask questions, we like to talk about it, but don't assume.

Sorry, by that part I wasn't actually referring specifically to the PS1 players. More just to people who are insanely negative and how often they crop up in places like the official forums. Most seem to be pretty nice people and that's great. A little exhausted today and could have been much clearer. Not attempting to attack anyone at all.

[Crator]

Sorry, by that part I wasn't actually referring specifically to the PS1 players. More just to people who are insanely negative and how often they crop up in places like the official forums. Most seem to be pretty nice people and that's great. A little exhausted today and could have been much clearer. Not attempting to attack anyone at all.

Whoever it may be, if they can't discuss things with reason and constructive thoughts then just ignore them.

[VaderShake]

I've already got to see the bias a few times of PS1 players basically scoffing at those who are not 'vets' or, if you look around at a few of the forums, this cloud of bitterness that appears to surround a lot of the PS2 stuff ("Why isn't this like PS1? It was good enough that way!"). Those who hate everything that PS2 is doing, the elitists who think free to play stuff always fail or the ones who seemingly WANT the next game to fail completely all tend to offer a pretty negative aspect. Maybe once the game launches, those people will crawl back into their holes, but it's definitely turning into a 'Con' for me going deeper into the play.

Kaldamar, brings up a good point for the vets regarding "new" PS players. I would only caution the PS1 vets that lumping players into a category because they played COD or BF is a slippery slope. For some of us it's not our first rodeo and "we get it" right out of the box but we are not going to limit ourselves to tactics we never used or tried in PS1 simply because we never played it.

I saw this happen with the Project Reality mod for BF2, the dedicated PR guys would actually run people out of there game for not "playing the right way" even though there was nothing noticably negative about the results of how people were playing, in fact the more aggressive less tactical players would push the line hard and force the tactical guys back, which they did not like because they would have to try something else which made them uncomforatable instead of moving like molasses and over thinking the battle. Don't get me wrong tactics are great,teamwork is awesome, but sometimes someone just needs to charge the machine gun nest hard.

I think PS2 is so unique because of the size and the shear numbers in the fight that there is room for both type of players and everyone in between. I think the COD, BF, and other FPS players that come in will find they are ok on there own but once they experience a few massive battles with team work going on they will realize there is a healthy balance in there somewhere and most likely gravitate to the teamwork because there is nothing better than a group of people achieving something together and nothing more comforting than knowing you did not fail alone.

[Qwan]

Kaldamar, brings up a good point for the vets regarding "new" PS players. I would only caution the PS1 vets that lumping players into a category because they played COD or BF is a slippery slope. For some of us it's not our first rodeo and "we get it" right out of the box but we are not going to limit ourselves to tactics we never used or tried in PS1 simply because we never played it.

I saw this happen with the Project Reality mod for BF2, the dedicated PR guys would actually run people out of there game for not "playing the right way" even though there was nothing noticably negative about the results of how people were playing, in fact the more aggressive less tactical players would push the line hard and force the tactical guys back, which they did not like because they would have to try something else which made them uncomforatable instead of moving like molasses and over thinking the battle. Don't get me wrong tactics are great,teamwork is awesome, but sometimes someone just needs to charge the machine gun nest hard.

I think PS2 is so unique because of the size and the shear numbers in the fight that there is room for both type of players and everyone in between. I think the COD, BF, and other FPS players that come in will find they are ok on there own but once they experience a few massive battles with team work going on they will realize there is a healthy balance in there somewhere and most likely gravitate to the teamwork because there is nothing better than a group of people achieving something together and nothing more comforting than knowing you did not fail alone.

Well im just going to put this out there shake man, M.A.P. is recruiting, and so are alot of good outfits out there in all three factions. I have to say personally I havent seen anyone treating BF or CoD players like second class citizens. So far we have recruited about 8 or 9 new guys who never played PS1 and they log in quite often looking to run missions and have a good time. Now I have noticed that gamers who join squads play with a solo mentallity, not listening to the squad leader and not moving with the squad (these are mostly random squads). And they get dropped from the squad, this solo activity while in a squad is a BF/CoD mentallity, it just wont work in a squad in PS, I would suggest they stay solo if there going to do that. In random squads in PS2 if your going to join a squad dont be on the other side of the map fighting, you should at least be in the general area. Also here's a suggestion look at the make up of your squad, if it needs more medic's or engineers, or heavy's, then consider switching over. Just for some of the new guys if your going to join a squad with an active squad leader your gonna have to follow instructions.

[psijaka]

64sqkm actually. Don't hate me.

I stand corrected! :)

[Stormhall]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E20z928GjoE

This sums it up for me.

[MrBloodworth]

Stormhall, are you a user that has never played PS previously?

[Stormhall]

Stormhall, are you a user that has never played PS previously?

I have never previously played Planetside but I have played a much too similar game called Mars War (or Welkin 4591) and I agree with most of what TB says especially about continent control and the sight progression certs.

[MrBloodworth]

Ok, just checking.

As a vet posting that video would have been outside the conversation limit's :) I find it warming that a new user can align with most vets feelings. I Recall "Mars War", "Welkin 4591". I hear they had some interesting refinements on Planetside, especially in terms of base design.

[VaderShake]

Well im just going to put this out there shake man, M.A.P. is recruiting, and so are alot of good outfits out there in all three factions.

This is another area for new players stumbling in that might not understand what "outfits" are because they are used to hearing the word "clan". I would not change "outfit" to clan but perhaps a tutorial could be added to help people understand the whole "outfit" thing.

Also in regards to recruiting, the guys I have been playing BF with for 10 years have been discussing whether or not to join a larger outfit. We were accustom to having 8-16 people on a team in BF which is about 1/4-1/3 of the side and being able to really impact the battle....with only 64 players in game. PS2 is much much larger and we realize while we are proving a tough bunch in skirmishes or helping a larger force we are to few to really make a sustainable impact.

I think we will ultimately join an outfit but we might not right away instead opting learn our niche as a group and then find some billigerent, non-politically correct, hellions who are dead set on taking territory and killing everything in sight who have an outfit and yet won't get pissed off if you just decide to take a night off and try and have some fun horsing around. :D

[Qwan]

Cool Cool I feel ya VaderShake. But I can sometimes feel why some would want to go solo, in PS1 you received xp for being in a squad and being in that squad when taking a base. Now there is no insentive to join a squad, you make the same amount of xp whether you in a squad or not. If you were a squad leader this was how you made your CR or Command rank xp. But all that is out the window now, which is cool.

Quick question for some of you new guys, do you think there should be separate xp for Squad leaders and Platoon leader when a base is taken. This xp won’t go toward your regular xp, but toward your Command xp. In PS1 you had two ranks BR (Battle Rank) and CR (Command Rank) as you advanced to command rank you gained access to map drawings and command chat, and the beautiful most destructive weapon in the game the ominous orbital strike.

[VaderShake]

Quick question for some of you new guys, do you think there should be separate xp for Squad leaders and Platoon leader when a base is taken. This xp won’t go toward your regular xp, but toward your Command xp. In PS1 you had two ranks BR (Battle Rank) and CR (Command Rank) as you advanced to command rank you gained access to map drawings and command chat, and the beautiful most destructive weapon in the game the ominous orbital strike.

I would have no problem with that but is seems with the current cert system they are letting people spend certs on command assets like a spawn beacon or orbital strike, which will most likely rank restricted. I can see it both ways and see it eing abused in both ways as well. It's kind of a chicken or the egg thing. Get the tools then lead or lead then get the tools.

However, I think I am probably the last person to have an opinion on this because if you find me leading a squad it's most likely over a cliff in a sunderer. :D

[Qwan]

LMAO that’s like me flying a gal, I volunteered to fly the gal to the fight. I was told, we were going to foot it. :huh: no love for the wanna be gal pilot.

[MrBloodworth]

Foot it? really....

[FireWater]

It seems that a lot of players from other games seem to agree. I definitely think PS2 will be a success, I would love to see those social areas added.

[Captain1nsaneo]

The only thing I'm hearing in my mind while reading this thread is: "These guys are going to LOVE this game when it gets finished." Almost all of the complaints I see about mechanics in here will be addressed if the solutions are carried over from PS1 and I can't wait for you guys to experience it. The issue with territory control will open up when we get a decent number of conts up and running. Vehicle/infantry fights will change when EMP nades and empire specific anti-vehicle weapons are put in. When common pool weapons are re-added into the game infantry fights will change up as well. When infiltrators and MAXs get spruced up you guys are going to have a blast. You're going to have more fun in buggies than should be legally allowed. When the base systems get their deserved love you'll end up with something better than just an awesome fight. You guys will get stories. Planetside produces more and better stories than any other FPS out there and when things get put together you will not be able to shut up about it. You guys are going to love it.

I'm no longer thinking of November being the release date for the game. It's the day that it goes into open beta and the cash store opens.

[Fear The Amish]

Couple of things for the newer members don't listen to some of the toxin spewer vet's we aren't all like that =) i am a PS1 vet that LOVED CoD MW1 and BF1942-BF2142. I have been waiting years for another experience like PS and this one is looking like its gonna deliver. Even if it doesn't bring everything i liked about PS1 it already has more then enough to put it ahead of BLOPS2 and BF3, And the shooter experience from those games WILL give you a leg up on the arthritic grumpy vets.

[Qwan]

Well after this weekend I can say PS2 is looking good. Had alot of fun on Amerish and hoping they get those warp gates up soon. I see my GPA dropping because Ive negleted my studies to play some PS2. PS2 is gonna be a blast, I think now they should get some TV commercials for advertisement and I bet this game will go threw the roof.

[Dragonskin]

Cool Cool I feel ya VaderShake. But I can sometimes feel why some would want to go solo, in PS1 you received xp for being in a squad and being in that squad when taking a base. Now there is no insentive to join a squad, you make the same amount of xp whether you in a squad or not. If you were a squad leader this was how you made your CR or Command rank xp. But all that is out the window now, which is cool.

Quick question for some of you new guys, do you think there should be separate xp for Squad leaders and Platoon leader when a base is taken. This xp won’t go toward your regular xp, but toward your Command xp. In PS1 you had two ranks BR (Battle Rank) and CR (Command Rank) as you advanced to command rank you gained access to map drawings and command chat, and the beautiful most destructive weapon in the game the ominous orbital strike.

Well you do get more exp for being in a squad and you would notice that immediately if you play a support role like Combat Medic or Engineer. Being in a squad grants you bonus exp for all actions that benefit your squad. So like if I repair a MAX outside my squad I might get 10exp per repair tick. A MAX in my squad would give me 15exp per repair tick. Same for ammo or healing. You get more exp for helping your squad than assisting people outside your squad.

One thing that I noticed that was new with Amerish going live is that you get exp now for spotting regardless of which class you are. If you spot a target and your squad takes them down you get bonus squad exp for that too now.

I'm torn on the separate exp thing. Part of me likes that you have to dedicate yourself to leading currently if you want to get all those perks.. but then part of me thinks they should be able to ugrade their class and weapons without sacrificing their leadership skills. Kinda like how a Galaxy pilot or EFF pilot has to dedicate themselves to their vehicle if they want to primarily run those vehicles... if you separate things you start getting a problem of where to draw the line.

Oh and this last patch with Amerish has fixed a lot of my previous complaints. Now there is a reason to protect bases because of the defense exp. Amerish's base design and overall layout has a nice flow for battles. I was extremely impressed with how well the map turned out compared to Esamir and Indar.

Now they just need to make resources more meaningful.. I still feel you get way too much too fast.

[Qwan]

@Dragonskin Good looks on the xp for extra things you do in squad been in beta all this time and didnt even notice that. I thought they were just all the same. I have noticed that the ams spawn xp has been dropped to 2 but with the range bubble implimented, it balances out pretty good.

Im liking the new xp pay out for the different size bases to, it looking real good. Like I said its starting to look real nice on PS.

[SQLOwns]

I'll keep this short and sweet. I never played PS1 unfortunately, but have spent several hours playing the PS2 beta. Here are some of my thoughts. I can go into more detail if needed, but wanted to save everyone some time. :)

Likes

1) Amount of players on the map. Very impressive.
2) Size and variation of continents, bases, etc. More to come. :)
3) 3 sides to choose from, not just 2. :)
4) Like the visual style and sound.
5) Business model.


Dislikes

1) I'm not impressed with the gunplay. Coming from games like CoD, BF, UT, and Tribes, I feel the actual aiming and gunning is more clunky. I have friends who feel this same way.
2) Base capture mechanics.
3) Bugs, bugs, and more bugs. Hopefully they fix them. :)
4) Performance issues. This is a big one.
5) Takes too long to get into battle. I understand that this isn't CoD, but there are times when it takes several minutes for me to just see an enemy. I'm not sure how long the casuals are going to put up with this. The continents look gorgeous, but after you run around in them a few times you just want to shoot something.
6) Business model.

Overall, the good news is all of my dislikes can be fixed. Hopefully by release? I know I mentioned the business model under both, that is because I like it, but I fear it will be detrimental to the game if SOE doesn't implement it correctly.

-SQLOwns

[sylphaen]

5) Takes too long to get into battle. I understand that this isn't CoD, but there are times when it takes several minutes for me to just see an enemy. I'm not sure how long the casuals are going to put up with this. The continents look gorgeous, but after you run around in them a few times you just want to shoot something.

This will solve itself as you understand the game better and learn to read combat flow (and it should be even easier when they will improve combat structure, the map and its feedback mechanisms).

Essentially:
1. Learn to understand and read the map (I mean to actually think about where the fight currently is and how you suspect it will evolve so you understand where to be in 1-2 minutes, not where you should be now)

2. Do not waste your hotdrop cooldown on a bad fight i.e. ask around where a good fight is or try to guess from reading the map correctly

3. I assume you play solo so use certs to lower cooldowns on personal fast transport vehicles (eg. bringing the quad cooldown to 1-2 minutes will make you feel there is no timer to move around). Of course, planes are faster.

4. Join a group transport about to leave for an active border territory. It's a bit risky but it can work out well.

5. know someone. Ask your friiend where to go when you log on.


Unfortunately, this is not an easy problem to solve for beginners since most of the solutions come from experience of the game.

[Rolfski]

3. I assume you play solo so use certs to lower cooldowns on personal fast transport vehicles (eg. bringing the quad cooldown to 1-2 minutes will make you feel there is no timer to move around). Of course, planes are faster.

4. Join a group transport about to leave for an active border territory. It's a bit risky but it can work out well.

It might actually be a good idea to save up your first certs for a mobile spawn point on the Sunderer (AMS)
Weather you play lone wolf or with a few friends, this allows you to move from battle to battle while staying in the action all the time as you bring in your own spawn point. Also, you get XP for every player spawning at your Sunderer, which is a nice bonus.

[Qwan]

@SQLOwns Just so you know man, PS2 is going to be evolving and a lot of the bugs will be fixed and things will be improved over time. The thing you will notice about Planetside is that better handle of weapons and equipment are usually top priority as well as vehicle up grades and stuff like that. So as you play the game in the months to come you will start to see Planetside evolve into a better and better game.

[Smaugy]

Never played PS1, absolutely love PS2.


I totally agree with that.
It's like a real war. When you are not online, people are still fighting, gaining and losing facilities. You also can basically do anything you want. Go in a small skirmish, or go in a big fight for a bio lab with a platoon, or lone wolf into small bases. This game makes tons of different choices you can make. Unlike other shooter games where it is just like capture this point, that that, then this. The certification system is also great because it makes a reason for the player to play more and get better gear. SOE is very community based and will fix any bug that is reported to them. Every weapon, vehicle, and empire is balanced. It also is great that it is F2P. I like everything about this game. I also never played PS1. I discovered PS2 from a youtuber called Paulsoaresjr.

[Qwan]

Believe me Smaugy its only going to get better.

[Valcron]

Likes

The game engine and the art is excellent

Dislikes

I didn't sign up to play Battlefield 4, sorry this is nothing more than that with bigger maps. The game is nothing like PS1, PS1 takes a shit all over this mess right now.