Anyone out there like me who is "on the fence" about buying PS at release?

[Seabass03]

I just can't explain why PS doesn't grab me like I thought it would but it doesn't. Each day I try to approach it with no expectations and enjoy it for what it is but something gets in the way. Do the constant disconnects bother me? Not really. Does the occasional lag effecting my gameplay annoy me? Nope. Do people not wanting to be organized and being jerks about a base cap (tker's) get me down? Not that much. So, what is it?

I think I want more depth. I know people have been saying this for over a month but I just wanted to express my opinion. Maybe an expansion would add just enough cool features to make paying $13 a month more valid? I am 100% positive the devs could/will add what I feel is needed, but before release? Not likely.

I am not looking for a flame war but just a thread to discuss what could possibly be added or might be added (rumors mostly) before the 19th. Thanks

[MilitantB0B]

In my opinion, this game is a great first person shooter. It is also my opinion that it is a few steps away from a good MMO game. So, those looking for a good MMO will be more on the fence then those looking for a good FPS. I came in search of a FPS so I am pretty happy with it. :D

[Seabass03]

Agreed, good points. Maybe it is just the fact that we will be paying for MMO substance but in my opinion not really getting as much as we pay for. The funny thing? Money is not the issue with me...$12 or $13 = lunch today. So, maybe I am just too hard to satisfy, oh well.

[simba]

I agree, it needs more depth, I think sea battles would add very much depth, and that would take a while if they add it (which they prolly will).
Yes, this is a mmofps but still, I think it needs more depth.

[Irnbru]

i don't think i can justify paying $13 a month for this game, even though it is fun, there are times when i just get bored of it and have to give ti a rest for a few days :rolleyes:

[Seabass03]

Don't get me wrong either, I plan on leaving work in 1.5 hours and going home to play. I expect to have a good time and maybe along with my outfit can accomplish something and get a good feeling about the game again.

[AcidCat]

Originally posted by Seabass03
Maybe it is just the fact that we will be paying for MMO substance but in my opinion not really getting as much as we pay for. The funny thing? Money is not the issue with me...$12 or $13 = lunch today. .

Yep, I agree. Looking at it objectively, I do not think there is deep enough content to justify that fee. But at the same time, if I'm still having fun with the game by the time it hits shelves, I'll probably get it and pay - because 12 bucks a month is just pocket change really.

I'm definitely not bored of the game yet, I still look forward to playing each night.

But I agree the game needs more depth if its going to keep players paying for more than a couple months.

[PR24]

I love the game and the team based things it requires to make it fun and successful. However I am worried the release is too soon because there are still way too many bugs that need to be taken care of. I still crashed to desktop 4 times last night in the matter of 3 hours of playing. That imo is total BS.

However I am a moron so I will buy it and play it on release day :|

[PapaRoach]

I am on the fence becuz I still havent got enuf money to buy a new computer to play this game so intill I do I wont be killing anything on planetside witch kinda ticks me off but without the high system specs the game wouldnt be as epic as it is atm so intill I can get the money I am on the fence.

Peace
PapaRoach

[OneManArmy]

well maybe there needs to be some "final objective" to the game. Because honestly why else have you played every other game? because there was some "final objective" no matter for how brief or how small, every game has some point that calls for you to reach it.

Maybe planetside needs one, no matter how impossible it is to obtain. for the perfect example I keep playing curve ball everyday. why? to get to level 9. Personally I think that there isn't a level 9 but I don't know that for a fact so I keep playing it in hopes to reach it.

Planetside is a great FPS in my mind but It lacks what every other FPS has, a victory condition. hell even in Counter-Strike technically you keep playing the same maps over and over agin and the game never really ends but after every round you either get "victory" or "defeat" thus you have obtained a "final objective" even if it is for but a brief moment while the round or map resets....

[IDgaf]

To the best of my knowledge it's theoretically possible for one side to 'own' Auraxizs and thus win the game.

However the odds of this happening as so high as to make it's likelihood negligible.

Guess you have to rustle up a few thousand clanmates to all log on at once.

[Cyanide]

A week ago i was going to buy this game 100%. Since then, i've strayed closer and closer to not wanting to buy it. Each subsiquent patch since the latice was introduced has made the game worse and worse in my opinion. I get lower fps now, i get more lag now, i get more CTDs now, the voiceIP system is not usefull because it crashes so many people, therefore finding an all voice capable squad is next to impossible. I really hope the devs get their asses in gear and stop releasing patches that add 2 bugs for every one they fix. Otherwise, i'm not buying this game.

[TimberWolf2K]

PlanetSide is like Socks...no more like Under arm Deodorant, its great as a gift but you wouldn�t buy it yourself.

I donno what it is but PS just doesn�t seem like a Solid FPS, moving around is FAR too slow, jerky and "like sloshing through mud"

I dislike the CoF system, CoFs are great in close combat games like CS but PS has HUGE maps, if your outside of a base trying to shoot the guards on the walls you can go through a full clip of ammo and maybe make contact 3 or 4 times.

The mouse support is god awful, after a few hours of play my wrist is aching, the look speed with infantry is so slow you need to move your mouse a full mouse mats distance to turn around 180o

Ground vehicle handling is pretty nasty too, If my AMS rolls down a freaking hill and explodes 1 more time....

Vehicles are almost pointless for 1 of 2 reasons
1) If your base is under attack, you cant buy a new vehicle (9/10 under attack means hack in process) if you want a new vehicle you need to go to the next base and then ride it alll the way back to the battle *cough* boring timesink *cough*

2) The only place you can buy vehicles is a base (see point 1) there needs to be Neutral vehicle bays scattered around the place (like towers)

The world as it stands is FAR too big for the number of players on it, the lattice helped this problem allot but you can still hack a base without so much as a bullet being spent, 15 mins without a fight = Boring

There are huge balance issues that Need to be addressed. 1 just off the top of my head would be maxes, the TR max being the bigged joke of all, after the "Nerf" I have seen twice as many "Anti Vehicle" maxes running around.. why? because they can own infantry AND vehicles now "Hurray!" FIX IT!

Infs are almost useless, I don�t even need dark light to see them anymore, you can spot them literally a mile off. They should be 100% invisible 100% of the time

Medics are useless, noone hold still to be healed and no one wants rezzed.

Soldier armor needs to be rethought, going from agile to reinforced isn�t much of an upgrade (for 3 certs you would expect more) 150 armor gets eaten through just as fast as 100, not all of the armor is even used when your under attack, I guy with a cycler took me from 100hp 150armor to 0hp 94armor. IMO you shouldn�t take any hp damage until you have 0 armor *cough* like a Max *cough*

There are allot of stupid niggles and flaws in PS. most can be fixed but I donno about some of the major ones

As it stands PS is more frustrating than Fun

/Rant off

I want PS to be cool but it needs more work, lets hope they get it done before the 19th

[Euroclydon]

Originally posted by OneManArmy
for the perfect example I keep playing curve ball everyday. why? to get to level 9. Personally I think that there isn't a level 9 but I don't know that for a fact so I keep playing it in hopes to reach it.

There is a level 9. :D

Had a lucky game one day. I don't play that one all the time though since there's a bunch of other good flash games to play at www.addictinggames.com :)

[Dovieye]

Why dont they have say 50 levels 40 and up require speacial Defence and attack moves to score points. making them almost possible but still achieveable.

There should be heaps more options through the infantry ground troops. Making them in time faster and just as stron as maxs.

Heaps more options such like in infantry so you can really mix it up. some people want to focus on killing a certain thing and dont like the stlye they get to use. such as weopons, speed, stealth or what ever takes there stlye.

This huge war and all they can com up with is a few different characters to choose from.

Maybe in a couple of months there can be technogoy advances giving upgrades to various items even better max's not to replace the old but to add a new stlye. some mini mechs anything its a big world.

I havnt played beta so I dont have a glue really.

But I will be at the shops for my copy and pay the online fee because it has to be done. But this 15 dollars you talk of is 30 australian the same price as a full Dialup account with unlimited downloads emails, webspace, and all the other crap. Thats where I cant see justifications.

[r3d]

For eveyone bitching about the 12/13$ pay to play price.
Like any of your comps could host a game as big a PS, with 5000 people on it, with no to little lag.(Talking about release NOT beta, cause beta is laggy but deal with it)

Ide gladly pay money to play a game as fun as PS, its something Ive been waiting for, for along time. Most MMORPGS suck alot, disscluding EQ and AO(and maybe DAoC ;] ) But a MMOFPS? Thats pure genious.

I :love: PS
I :love: PSU

[Cairo]

I think it boils down to what type of a gamer you are and what type of gaming background you have:

Are you more MMORPG or FPS oriented?

Personally I come from a long history of FPS games with a splash of MMORPG's (UO, DAOC, and beta shadowbane are it). The niche market that Planetside is carving out matches everything i could ever expect from a game.

What I like about FPS's:
-Instant Action
- Equal Playing field
- Can play for 5 minutes or 5 hours and enjoy it throughout

What I like about MMO's:
- Community feeling
- Thousands of players on at once
- HUGE enviroments to explore, no "map changes" every X minutes

Planetside is a perfect mix of these things, but it's clearly not for everybody and is definately groundbreaking bringing 2 types of gamers together (sucessfully or not is to be found).

What MMORPG players may dislike about PS:
- No real feeling of accomplishment. Yes you can attain BR 20 and CR 5, but theres no tangible difference. It's not a treadmill that takes you 6 months and you can say "whew, it took a while, but i did it"
- Some people like equipment hunting for their characters (I personally did), here the equipment isn't hard to obtain (its free!). You can't show off the cool gear it took you 2 hours of camping to get.
- More action oriented, less community feeling than RPG's. You don't spend hours camping mobs and chit chatting. This is an FPS, you shoot, you die, and come back for more with little more than a "heh that was fun", or some misc. strategy talk.

What FPS players may dislike about PS:
- It's very tribes like (futuristic FPS). Personally I never got into tribes, but did try them and found them OK. I was a real Counterstrike freak, and CS and PS are very different games. You can't pull an AWP stand and kill the whole team. Some people are very attatched to their particular FPS's. Counterstrike, Unreal, what have you.
- It is an MMO. Some people don't like thousands of people at once and prefer a comfortable set max of a couple dozen people. Also, people may be turned off by the travel time inherent in MMO games. The worlds are expansive and take time to travel across. Some people want their enemies easy to get to right away and start blasting.

I may be off base, but that's how i see it. It may not be for you, but it certainly is for me. If you do decide to play, I welcome more people openly, but don't play it if you have something you enjoy more. Don't force yourself to like a game.

[r3d]

Indeed
PS is for me too
Thats why I dont mind paying

[Warborn]

If PlanetSide were not going to have a team working on it after it goes live to add more content and more long-term goals (hopefully more Outfit perks, to let you have a team goal) then no, I wouldn't buy it, as no, there would be not enough to justify the fee.

As it happens, though, PS will have a team working on it after release, and there will be additional content to be added. Therefore, yes, I will buy, I will pay, and I will look forward to the things that will be added to it in the future.


However, I will say this: If you find yourself getting bored with PS, find a good Outfit, and join it. PS isn't too much fun if you are a wannabe Rambo, but when you've got a squad and you're working as a team, it's awesome. You're not going to have fun if you are a lonely grunt among strangers, not working toward any goal, just out to kill and be killed.

[Zarparchior]

You want to know what really makes me not want to buy this game? I get gunned down FAST when a lot of people are present... Regardless of what empire I'm on or what armor/weapons they/I are using. I've died instantly to a single VS with a Lasher when I was in a MAX suit. I've died instantly in Reinforced on VS when I had cycler (looted) and some NC in agile right next to me killed me with Gauss.

The biggest pisser is is that I had the jump on all of them. I'm not quite sure about hit prediction in this game... but something needs to be fixed. Dying in 1.5 seconds when in a MAX with full armor and health from a SINGLE PERSON who was not using AV weaponary or the Decimator is simply not right. No one I know seems to be complaining about this... so I don't know what to do.

If it get's fixed fairly soon, this game will have me down as a loyal subscriber...

And if they maybe get Voice IP working regularily. :p

[AcidCat]

Originally posted by Warborn
PS isn't too much fun if you are a wannabe Rambo, but when you've got a squad and you're working as a team, it's awesome. You're not going to have fun if you are a lonely grunt among strangers, not working toward any goal, just out to kill and be killed.


Well put.

[Baphomet]

Honestly, first few days of beta- actually, no, i forgot, they fucked everythign up the first few days of beta.. better yet, First few times I played, it was pretty fun, and I wouldve said yes. However, they have consistantly fucked something up every patch. The graphics are *NOT* as good as the alpha screenshots we've all grown to love. The FPS has gotten gradually worse with each consecutive patch (to the point where I can no longer play around a base, still worth it to dick around in the wilderness for 13$ a month? you decide), and I certainly dont have a lacking system. The lattice system is wonderful on paper, but in practice, the lag is still too bad for the gameplay to be even 75% effective during those big battles. Not to mention the fact that after you gain a comfortable br12 and cr1 or cr2, you sorta run out of things to do. Everything is getting nerfed contantly because everyone cries when they get killed, and on top of it all you have jerkoffs like ZProtoss running enormous Cross-Empire wars (TR and NC vs. VS). In my opinion, the developers have displayed a lack of abillity to handle a project with such scope. Same goes for the community. The maturity of the general gaming populous is too low to handle this game, Open Beta has made this painfully clear. Based on all this, i'd have to say no. They just haven't pulled it off yet.

ps: Been in two outfits, and its definately the way to go. Probably wouldnt be HALF as fun without it. Teamspeak doesnt hurt either, as VoiceIP crashed most people to desktop, anyway.

[Doppler]

Man is it just me or is this whole post a rag session. I'm not entirely lucid right now due to only two hours of sleep. (the one thing I honestly can blame on the PS devs. :D I'll try and answer your gripes in order.

The graphics arnt that great for the req's/as pretty as in the screen shots-
Well no #$%^ sherlock. I mean seriously if I was a game designer whould I want to post screenshots/promo material with the low end low resolution computers or the best of the best. Secondly the requirements are what they are so your system can deal with the all the objects/people that are going to be on the screen at any given time, not to make the enviroments look pretty. (although IMHO they look pretty tight) I mean for god's sake both CS and EQ (the two games this seems to get compared to) look like ass, and EQ has a pretty insane sys requirement for what it looks like too. (most likely for the same reason)

I'm sick oh how quick I die in configuration X even though I should be godlike-
Get over it. While not strictly simulating war a lot of truisms are represented. One of which is fire fights are hell, bullets are cheap and so are lives. I swear if you really think your going to be able to wade through enemies like your playing return to castle wolfindoom you may want to find another game. Also get a lvl 2 medic with you and an engie and your good to go.

CTD and other bugs-
I dont want to sound like a fanboy with this post I will concede that the game has problems, I personaly dont CTD much but I know others do for whatever reason. Almost every game I own has beetween my computer and itself CTD on me at least once. I blame video cards but that's a difrent post. UO has been out YEARS and it still is buggy. Ditto on DAOC. EQ, anmd any other game you'd care to mention. TO those that swear by HL being the holy grail two words. Wall hack. Anyone who whines about the speed the devs take with fixing bugs doesnt cut code ever.

Price-
13$ a Month? Please, i spend more then that a month on socks. And get a hell of a lot more enjoyment out of PS. (not that socks arnt cool and all)

Since this post has begun to ramble I'll hit the good as well as the bad. This game is fun, I'm an old school tribes junky. So for me this game is like coming home. Find a good squad or a couple of them, load up and head off to kick ass.

[Baphomet]

Originally posted by Doppler
[B]Man is it just me or is this whole post a rag session. I'm not entirely lucid right now due to only two hours of sleep. (the one thing I honestly can blame on the PS devs. :D I'll try and answer your gripes in order.

Sorry, just you. I, and I would be willing to bet many of the others, was posting legitimate concerns I have having beta tested the game, not baseless gripes.

The graphics arnt that great for the req's/as pretty as in the screen shots-
Well no #$%^ sherlock. I mean seriously if I was a game designer whould I want to post screenshots/promo material with the low end low resolution computers or the best of the best. Secondly the requirements are what they are so your system can deal with the all the objects/people that are going to be on the screen at any given time, not to make the enviroments look pretty. (although IMHO they look pretty tight) I mean for god's sake both CS and EQ (the two games this seems to get compared to) look like ass, and EQ has a pretty insane sys requirement for what it looks like too. (most likely for the same reason)

My system far surpasses the requirements, and it still runs like shit with low settings. Note that it didnt do this at the begining of open beta, and even the server population at the time was the same at both the good times and the now shitty times (~2400 people). And concerning the screenshots, what I mean to say is, even with HIGH res, HIGH detail levels, you DO NOT get the same result. In fact, you cannot achieve the same results. They might as well have photoshopped it, same thing in principle.

I'm sick oh how quick I die in configuration X even though I should be godlike-
Get over it. While not strictly simulating war a lot of truisms are represented. One of which is fire fights are hell, bullets are cheap and so are lives. I swear if you really think your going to be able to wade through enemies like your playing return to castle wolfindoom you may want to find another game. Also get a lvl 2 medic with you and an engie and your good to go.

Cant speak much for this one, i've had no balance gripes.

CTD and other bugs-
I dont want to sound like a fanboy with this post I will concede that the game has problems, I personaly dont CTD much but I know others do for whatever reason. Almost every game I own has beetween my computer and itself CTD on me at least once. I blame video cards but that's a difrent post. UO has been out YEARS and it still is buggy. Ditto on DAOC. EQ, anmd any other game you'd care to mention. TO those that swear by HL being the holy grail two words. Wall hack. Anyone who whines about the speed the devs take with fixing bugs doesnt cut code ever.

Regarding the video card thing, I was involved with quite a lengthy (6+ page) thread where we tried to determine the common denominator among those afflicted with the dreaded fps disease, and came to no result. Intel and AMD, ATI and nVidia, old drivers and new, WinXP and Win2k. Hope they squash this one before release, could be a baaaad thing to have mentioned in a review.


Price-
13$ a Month? Please, i spend more then that a month on socks. And get a hell of a lot more enjoyment out of PS. (not that socks arnt cool and all)


I think the issue is that you are not getting 13$ worth, not that 13$ is a lot of money.

[Doppler]

I think the issue is that you are not getting 13$ worth, not that 13$ is a lot of money.

I see your side of the issue and I understand your pain but then again you have to consider what is going into this game. You have all the production time, (several years worth) the marketing, the servers the bandwidth, the tech support, the programers who track down bug fixes, the ones who handle new content (neocron tried having them be the same team, didnt go so well) the administrative, all the little fringe things that go with keeping the staff. Plus you have the required profit to keep your CEO and board happy. Now dont get me wrong I'm not saying SOE doesnt make money hand over fist, but saying your not gonna get your monies worth seems a little extreme. Especialy considering your average night out at the movies will end up costing you aroudn 20 bucks (gas plus snacks plus ticket, the average varies especialy if your paying for a date) for maybe 3 hours worth of entertainment. For 13 bucks i'd probly end up playing PS about 3-6 hours a night, I'm that kind of addict. So for me at least it's more then a fair trade, but that is going to be an individual decision, sorry if i came across as a dick. Seems everyone just wants to point out flaws in a game that at least for the time being is free.

[Baphomet]

Originally posted by Doppler
I see your side of the issue and I understand your pain but then again you have to consider what is going into this game. You have all the production time, (several years worth) the marketing, the servers the bandwidth, the tech support, the programers who track down bug fixes, the ones who handle new content (neocron tried having them be the same team, didnt go so well) the administrative, all the little fringe things that go with keeping the staff. Plus you have the required profit to keep your CEO and board happy. Now dont get me wrong I'm not saying SOE doesnt make money hand over fist, but saying your not gonna get your monies worth seems a little extreme. Especialy considering your average night out at the movies will end up costing you aroudn 20 bucks (gas plus snacks plus ticket, the average varies especialy if your paying for a date) for maybe 3 hours worth of entertainment. For 13 bucks i'd probly end up playing PS about 3-6 hours a night, I'm that kind of addict. So for me at least it's more then a fair trade, but that is going to be an individual decision

I see your point, an MMO anything cannot run without a subscription. What I question is the validity of a subscription to a game that doesnt offer a tremendous amount of depth. As far as post release patches go, how many tweaks and fixes can they really produce to justify monthly payment? After even 3-5 hours a night, I bet before a month is even up it will start to get somewhat lackluster. This, of course, is entirely dependent upon the individual. But I agree. 13$ is not a tremendous fee to pay by any means, considering the costs involved.

sorry if i came across as a dick. Seems everyone just wants to point out flaws in a game that at least for the time being is free.

Likewise. It's uncommonly easy for me to come across as an asshole, i'm too used to reading the damn official beta boards! It's almost depressing how many smacktards can accumulate and fester in one place :rolleyes: I vastly prefer the PSU forums (better people), but I dont really have a choice in the matter when it comes to checking for updates regarding when the beta server will be back up :o

[Cairo]

While I'm not trying to play down the CTD/lag/disconnecting problems that it appears some people have and some people don't, all I can say about those kinds of issues is that GENERALLY (not always so please don't think it's the final word), when games are in beta and on their way to gold, very shortly before the gold edition is sent to the manufacturers, the code is cleaned up of "junk" (no longer used subsets, non implemented 'idea' stuff, etc.) and this greatly increases stability at launch.

[Baphomet]

Originally posted by Cairo
While I'm not trying to play down the CTD/lag/disconnecting problems that it appears some people have and some people don't, all I can say about those kinds of issues is that GENERALLY (not always so please don't think it's the final word), when games are in beta and on their way to gold, very shortly before the gold edition is sent to the manufacturers, the code is cleaned up of "junk" (no longer used subsets, non implemented 'idea' stuff, etc.) and this greatly increases stability at launch.

I genuinely hope so for the games sake. Does sound about right though. I've kind of lost interest in the game already, so I guess im not "on the post" anymore ;p.

[Peanut]

I love planetside, but plan on waiting a month or three before I buy the game. With all the CTDs, etc., I don't wish to pay money to continue beta-testing the game. :p Figure in a month or three, they'll have a decent number of bugs worked out.