Gameplay: "Crater" Zone / Sector

ConsPark · 2012-06-21, 06:26 AM

Disclaimer: I'm short on ideas for exact details, so I'm presenting this as a general idea for discussion.

If you've ever played the MMORTS Shattered Galaxy, you may remember a sector at the center of the world map referred to as "crater".

Much like PS2, the world map in SG was divided into sectors. Control of sectors meant that after your faction "completed the war" by gaining a certain number of points, your faction was awarded uranium based on how much territory it controlled. Crater, at the center of the map, was worth the most out of all of these sectors.

Crater helped to break up the normal randomness of battles in SG. It was a high-value sector and thus a high-value target. Taking it with your regiment, typically being outnumbered two to one or more, was a presitgious thing on top of benefiting your faction as a whole. It also gave a faction a goal beyond "hey guys let's wander the map til we find a battle."

I think a similar idea may lend itself well in PS2. Perhaps this sector at the center of the map offers a large amount of every resource, or a percentage bonus to all resource gains for your faction. Perhaps it could feature a lockout timer. Once a faction controls Crater, it is theirs for 24 hours until it's open to attack again. Prior to that, it can serve as a Sanctuary-like staging area for pushes into the rest of the continent.

Thoughts? Flames? Cookies, or maybe pie?

Toppopia · 2012-06-21, 06:38 AM

I think the centre of the continent that has been shown to us has a base, so it would be cool if this base was the largest of everything on the map. Would be awesome.

WiFiN · 2012-06-21, 10:08 AM

Pretty good idea.
Though I don't like the lockout system at all. I find it stupid that some area should be articially locked from recap. I guess there should be NPC defence measures like turrets that aid the empire that just captured the base for a set amount of time.
This way there won't be such situations when there is anempty base and no one can attack it just because it's "locked".

Dacrim · 2012-06-21, 10:42 AM

Originally Posted by WiFiN

Pretty good idea.
Though I don't like the lockout system at all. I find it stupid that some area should be articially locked from recap. I guess there should be NPC defence measures like turrets that aid the empire that just captured the base for a set amount of time.
This way there won't be such situations when there is anempty base and no one can attack it just because it's "locked".

I like the idea of locking it for a specified time. this prevents outfits from logging on at some inconvenient time and taking the base when no ones paying attention.

I think this is overall a good idea

The Degenatron · 2012-06-21, 10:46 AM

Good news, this was already in Planetside 1 in the form of Searhus:

And in one of the interviews with Higby, he mentioned a "lava continent", plus some of the released screen shots show geothermal activity. So it is a safe bet that this continent will make a comeback in PS2. I'll look for the interview where Higby mentioned the lava map.

Found it:

Start at the 4:20 mark.

Also notable in this video:

4:32 - Freudian slip: "the other two empires are evil..."
5:00 - As the player steps outside you see a drop-pod come down on the other side of some buildings but you see the conc wave come off it, and as soon as it land a Mosquito swoops in an strafes it, followed by a Scythe who's shooting the Mosquito down. Every time I watch these videos I get all giddy inside.

ConsPark · 2012-06-21, 08:18 PM

I suggested a lockout to prevent Crater being the sole focus for entire outfits or factions. Instead of "Hey guys, let's get online and try to take Crater" it's "Hey guys, Crater is locked for three hours, let's grab some outposts to make use of that bonus when we take it". In retro, 24 hours does seem somewhat lengthy - between four and six hours seems more sane, but that topic's still wide open.

We could also bring up what sort of aesthetic Crater might have. Is it simply a more massive version of, say, a biodome? Or perhaps it's a large base suspended inside a volcano or actual crater. Maybe it's even an early iteration of cave combat ala PS1.

Degenatron: That wasn't just a Freudian slip - Higby was right. :P

Having played hardly any PS1 I didn't know about Searhus, but yeah that's the general idea right there. You also aren't the only one who gets giddy watching that - in fact I've watched TotalBiscuit's E3 PS2 stream footage at least three times now.

WVoneseven · 2012-06-22, 09:44 AM

PS2 focuses on stations around the map... there are 9 of these on indar (ironically one is an amp station in a massive crater). These spots are going to be the biggest and most popular areas of combat.

Solidblock · 2012-06-22, 10:20 AM

I think it would be an awesome idea. Especially if whoever controlled the zone got a world bonus of 5% extra XP, just like a bonus in WoW when you capture the towers in Hellfire Peninsula

Knotz · 2012-06-22, 10:41 AM

It doesn't have to be a crater, maybe on one of the continents the huge central hub is actually a city with capture spots in factories/gov buildings/religious buildings/schools/hospitals and each of these cap points give benefits like.. maybe the hospital cap point gives medics 50% faster healing/revive, the religious building gives idk... maybe the cloak lasts longer or whatever, factories give more res plus engineers do something faster? idk the benefits are debatable... what matters is that this city would be extremely beneficial to whichever empire has it.