News: Higby Ama on reddit

[LoopbackZero]

Originally Posted by Furber

I think we owe a HUGE round of applause to Higby for such dedication, he was answering questions for about 6 hours!

He's still going.
http://www.reddit.com/user/las0m

[Hamma]

Originally Posted by Hamma

I've posted a news update and an article for those who do not want to brave Reddit

http://www.planetside-universe.com/n...mmary-2723.htm

Just fixed the links..

[noxious]

Originally Posted by BorisBlade

But since there really is no specializing because there is no limit on certs, why couldnt you just be every kind of infiltrator in one? Is there some mechanic that actually makes us specialize that we dont know about yet? Continually saying we specialize when so far everything else we know says that we dont really do that, is confusing and can be very misleading (unintentional as it may be).

Would love for some clarification on this cause i personally love specializing and hate plain simplistic unlocks that function without limits for customization.

It's not that hard to envision how the system probably works: the items you select for your loadout modify how the class functions. EX, equip a sniper rifle as your primary weapon and you can only cloak for N seconds and you remain M% visible. On the other hand, if you put a knife in your primary weapon slot, then you can cloak indefinitely and are almost totally invisible.

[KrazeyVIII]

I just got home from work and went from six to midnight when I saw that the AMA was up!

[Bags]

On headshots: No way. Sniper rifles will be pretty powerful. 3-4 hits without headshots.

2) How close does a vehicle have to be in order to receive the Sunderer's repair benefit?

5 meters

3) Can a vehicle be under the effect of multiple Sunderers (i.e. does the repair benefit stack?)

Nope
5) How survivable is a Galaxy relative to other vehicles, like a Tank?

It's the most survivable vehicle, more so than tanks.

6) Is the sunderer intended to repair on the move?

Currently it's repairing on the move and we're seeing how that feels, definitely subject to change.

1) Other than sniping and scouting, what value do Infiltrators bring to a fire team? In other words, why I would want one in my heavy infantry squad?

They'll be able to hack terminals for you so you can resupply behind enemy lines, they'll also be able to lay down explosives and other subterfuge elements to cause havoc.

2) Can infiltrators capture/hack significantly faster?

Capture no, hack yes. Right now infiltrators are the hacking class.


4) Can light assault give more than one box of ammo? How often? Does it persist until picked up/destroyed/death or does it last a set period of time like BF3?

it lasts until it runs out and you can only have one out at a time. We're still deciding if Light Assault is the place for this ability.


5) Is there a medical box like the ammo box that Medics put out? We didn't see healing mechanic clearly in the videos.

Medic Healing is active using a healing gun.

7) Can Engineers deploy repair/healing/ammo dispensers?

Nope

10) Do engineer mines count as the "Explosive" slot for Engineers, or is it like BF3 where they sacrifice their repair tool for mines?

They'll have a dedicated grenade slot and a explosive slot. Right now mines are part of a ACE tool and you can take anything with you on it, that'll probably change.

11) Can any class spot? How is spotting intended to work?

Yes, any class can spot, but how well they spot and how many people radially that they share their spot with will probably end up being something that infiltrators have certs to increase.

12) Will darklight make a return to counter infiltration suits?

Yes, but in the form of scopes / darklight flashlights on weapons, rather than implants.

[Furber]

My god, he is still going at it. What a badass!

[Brusi]

Originally Posted by Redshift

The thing i'm not sure about is the single empire per server, i mean the idea is nice, but they know (and even admitted it there) that we'll just make extra f2p accounts for other empires. It's just making us have more passwords to remember and wasting our time switching, seems pointless

Increasing their chances of additional premium payment. I'll probably pay for xpboosters/premium status/cash shop items on at least 3 of my accounts...

such a sucker...

[Malorn]

Higby is truly amazing. I'm going to buy that man many rounds of liquor either at PAX Prime or Fan Faire, whichever comes first. Maybe both.

[Malorn]

Originally Posted by Bags

5) How survivable is a Galaxy relative to other vehicles, like a Tank?

It's the most survivable vehicle, more so than tanks.

From the Nanite Vehicles webcast Sunderers are 4x as strong as a tank, wonder if this means Galaxies are more survivable than a Sunderer...

[Eyeklops]

"Will darklight make a return to counter infiltration suits?
Yes, but in the form of scopes / darklight flashlights on weapons, rather than implants.

Darklight flashlights FTW!

[Purple]

Originally Posted by Eyeklops

"Will darklight make a return to counter infiltration suits?
Yes, but in the form of scopes / darklight flashlights on weapons, rather than implants.

Darklight flashlights FTW!

i know what im going to always have on my gun.

[Skitrel]

10 hours and still responding, like a boss.

Higby deserves a payrise.

[Whalenator]

Originally Posted by Eyeklops

Darklight flashlights FTW!

Gah, my eyes won't focus right!
...and your clothes... they look so dusty!

[Bags]

Squad Leader

1) Do Squad Leaders get a spawn beacon similar to BF2142 that the squad leader can put down/pick up that allows a specific location to be the spawn point for the squad instead of spawning on the squad leader? This was a rather cool feature of BF2142 and allowed the squad leader freedom to move out and attack and not hide in a corner protecting the squad spawn.

Right now you can squad spawn on the squad leader, or if he's speced for it on any member of the squad. We don't have a beacon although it's been discussed.

2) How does squad size affect Squad-spawn rate? To put it another way, why would I have a squad of 10 instead of 5 squads of 2? The squad of 10 has 1 leader and therefore 1 spawn point, while 5 squads of 2 has 5 spawn points and appears more resilient and harder to wipe out. Do you scale the spawn rate of squad-spawn with the size of the squad to encourage larger squads?

Squad leader -> spawn point isn't necessary 1-to-1. You'll want to be in a larger squad for several reasons, shared experience, etc.

3) Other than squad spawn, what other benefits do squad leaders provide?

enhanced spotting and squad bonuses are two things, we have some other tricks up our sleeves which I don't want to get into quite yet...

5) Are there waypoint systems like PS1 where squad leaders can mark targets and objectives?

Yes

6) Can squad leaders draw on the map like PS1?

We'll probably add this.

Resources

1) How are resources accumulated & distributed to individuals?

You'll earn resources both as divedends on your empire territory holdings as well as personal rewards

3) In what ways are you encouraging players to go after resources as significant objectives?

personal benefits, you are going to want plenty of resources to buy vehicles, grenades, med kits, etc.

4) Can players stockpile a lot of resources or will we always be on the hunt?

there will be a cap to resource pools, ideally you won't ever feel like you have more than enough resources.

5) How many different resources are there in PS2?

4

6) Do empires have different resource needs from other empires?

You'll need all the same resources but you'll put them towards different things, for instance, what may be for air vehicles on one empire is used for ground vehicles on the other.

7) How often to resources despawn and shift around the continent?

Right now they're static and predictable, a certain region will be a hot sector because it's sitting on some sick resources

Outfits

1) Will outfits have a resource bank that can be used by players to buy things like Galaxies for outfit use?

Not currently

2) If there's an outfit bank, is there a 'free tax' that is used to generate resources for that bank? 3) Can outfits enforce a uniform for each class/vehicle to ensure the outfit has a professional and distinct look?

This is definitely something we want to do.

4) Can outfits upload custom logos or have custom skins through the station store?

We've discussed this but haven't really locked down if it'll be possible. I hope so, it seems awesome.

Territory Control

1) How do you plan on addressing the "rich get richer" problem where as an empire gains more territory and resources, they gain more power over the other empires?

this is a tough problem to solve.

2) We saw outposts in the GDC gameplay - are those outposts the capture points for an entire territory?

yep, for smaller regions that type of outpost would be the capture point, for larger regions its full facilities.

3) How are territories captured?

by capturing the outpost or facility on the region.

Empires

1) What sort of empire population incentives exist to encourage us to play on under-populated empires?

Resource and experience boosts

2) Do empire-specific benefits transfer to common pool vehicles. For example, are NC common pool vehicles tougher, TR faster, VS more maneuverable, etc?

Nope, they're pretty comparable. You can attach different things per empire, though. Notably ES weapon attachments.

Continents

1) Do continents have unique benefits provided to empires?

Not in the same way as PS1

2) Do continents have different resource abundancies?

Yes

3) Is Indar a small continent, relatively speaking? Will others be bigger?

Indar is our current max-size continent.

4) Will we be seeing Cyssor make a return at some point in the future?

I think so.

5) Please tell me Ceryshen is on the list...

won't be a launch continent, but it's on our list =)

6) What incentives do I have to fight on one continent vs another?

It'll just depend on where the fight is, what type of resources you want to go after, where they're available. You might also be really interested in something like tank combat and certain continents might work way better for that than others.

Servers

1) Will there be one "Server" like EVE with many different continents to fight on, or will we see the traditional server-based communities in other MMOs?

It will be setup like traditional MMO "shards".

2) How will you keep fights intense throught the day through changes in population through prime time, late night, early morning, etc.

We'll spool up fewer server generated missions with lower population. I'm hoping what will happen is there will be fewer simultaneous battles, but the battles will be just as intense.

Facility Questions

1) You said the bio lab was an "Infantry capture point" in the GDC video - what did you mean by that?

There is a huge infantry only map inside the dome of the biolab.

2) How many different facility types are there for PS2?

Right now we're building 3 full scale facilities. Each tech plant will have unique elements and layouts, though.

3) What sort of things can be upgraded on facilities?

At ship we won't have customizable facilities, but post launch....

4) How many different capture points exist within facilities?

5-7

5) Do facilities provide unique benefits? Can you provide an example?

Tech plant allows you to spawn Galaxies.

Business Questions 2) How many smedbux for the squirrel nuts statue?

Hah, man I love that Squirrel nuts statue. I'm going to see if TRay will make a hood ornament, fo real.

WHEW!!!

[nathanebht]

Thanks for the answers Higby!

- Light Assault - quick strike commando type unit
- Heavy Assault - strong anti-vehicle or anti-infantry troop
- Engineer - combat deployables and vehicle support
- Medic - keeps you from being a blood smear on the ground
- Infiltrator - sneaky sniper / gadgeteer with cloaking suit
- M.A:X - large mechanized battle suit suitable for anti-air, anti-vehicle and anti-infantry depending on loadout


So now I have a much better picture of Engineer and Infiltrator. Medic and MAX seem pretty straight forward. Light Assault is the only class that can fly.

Heavy Assault if I need to take out vehicles or lots of infantry? Why would I pick Heavy Assault over a MAX?