Gameplay: Sanctuary Redux

[Carbon Copied]

First off apologies for the wall of text I'll try flesh it out later with pictures and drawings if there's reasonable discussion or warrant to.

I know there's no confirmation of sanctuaries or if they will be implemented however with the hex adjacency and continent locking in future updates - maybe we're closer to sanctuaries making a return.

So this is my take on the sanctuary landscape and implementation. Taking what they were in (the game that shalt not be named) originally and building on what they could become in this game.

Sanctuaries are the faction hub and as it stands at the moment there's doesn't feel alot of social side to the game; I don't think that warp gates give that feeling of somewhere where en mass organization takes place (yes we use them as thats all we currently have) and that places that congregate people and allow them to meet to assemble before a warp gate break out.

Outfit installations: been mention of people "owning bases" in a few of the interview videos but for some reason that doesn't (to me at least) translate well into a contested game environment - I'd like to see this implemented as something along the lines of "Outfit halls" that can be “bought” by an outfit and placed on the Sanctuary area (using a currency of resources/certs/outfit points?). Within the outfit owned halls you can have all number of hologram displays on view for people to see all kinds of stats from most captured bases, top killer of the week style leader board and the "honours and awards" they might have achieved etc. These can be freely wandered by anyone of the same faction and each outfit hall would have it’s own hologram decal on display as the contested bases display the controlling faction's decal (with the default being the NC symbol).
These are plotted and vary on the size of the outfit and are placed in a specific "outfit hall" area that is gridded - the potential to have all sorts of upgrades from the ability to pull vehicles to take through the warp gate rather than using the sanctuary terminals - right over to purely cosmetic upgrades like being able to have an outfit decal on display outside the building.

However these should not be purely SC things... Outfit installations use "outfit points" to buy and upgrade (maintain?!) - these are accrued through active members and are only built up per online player (stops alts being recruited for padding) with which officers/leaders etc. can then use these points to purchase the installation upgrades.

Warp gate: goes without saying this takes you to the faction's first stepping stone continent (in the event of continent lockout) and allows access to any faction controlled warp gate front line or continent.

NPCs: I’ve mentioned before that I don't think NPC's need to be in the contested zones but in a sanctuary I think it would make the world come alive and faction “point of being there” more believable. Ranging from scripted scientists working on nano-tech machines to possibly NPCs that give outfit leaders/officers the mission system. As well as unique "characters" for each faction that act as the Store Vendor NPC which brings us to...

Store vendor NPC: Ok dangerous and probably controversial suggestion but I'll put it out there - I've never liked how you can just instantly "buy into" a more powerful/different gun anytime and anywhere. For example A2A rocket pods came in and everyone was getting screwed by them so seemingly everyone ran out to buy A2A rocket pods either to counter the A2A or just because they saw it as a "get rich quick" move. My suggestion would be that SC transactions would take place at these vendor npcs located in Sanctuary and at sales terminals in each off sanctuary continent (obviously this flips to the controlling faction’s terminal on a lock) to try and promote the player bringing the right kit to the party; striking that balance between inconveniencing but not totally punishing for it - the dilemma of "I can abandon the fight and get my quick kill solution" or "I can think about how I'm playing and counter this obstacle with a change of game style for the attack/defence".

Now certing into weapons doesn't change as thats something earned in the contested zone and done through the equipment terminals anyway so you could still choose this option at equipment terminals. I just think this could improve the potential player mentality thats out there of knee-jerking (and this is coming from a subscribed and SC purchasing player). I'm not against the buying of weapons as I do it myself however I think the way it's done and sometimes affecting player mindset could be changed.

Like I say: controversial suggestion!

Sanctuary district clusters: reflecting the faction lore and influences

NC utilitarian and a mixture of nanite system and rugged purpose built yet technically capable building structures.

VS have a distinct mix where you can see the Vanu influence on NS buildings: maybe some form of vanu "cathedral" based on their background with Cleric/Inquisitor style NPCs telling and demanding you to denounce the human “deficiencies”?

TR Imposing buildings with big hologram propaganda and guards on every street corner or hovering cameras over head that give that feeling of big brother in a main central control room.

Tech buildings having animated robots building NS tanks (not actually building but just on animations) - things like that.

Seamless Training Area: no zoning you literally walk through a shielded 2 way barrier and it reconstructs you (as if just out of the equipment terminal or teleporter) as the VR characters are spawned with the ability for everything unlocked in that area without the need to zone from a continent. High barriers stopping infantry hopping over with force fields extending to the top of the skybox to prevent vehicles entering and exiting the main warp and training areas.

Third person: The ability to go third person while only in sanctuaries (not on the contested continents). I don't know why but it feels right to be in third person while exploring these kind of city-hubs maybe because its very RPG in itself but I think it allows you to gather your bearings when you're moving about.
Have a feeling that this would need careful testing as I can see this getting hacked to be used in a contested world.

E-Sports: now I have no interest in E-sports but I think that the sanctuary redux would be a great place to have as a central hub where teams can setup challenges of the same faction, act as a hub for challenging other faction teams that could take place in an instanced zone of the VR area (why not it's already there with the basics in place) and then later maybe more instances are added. Teams are also in a one stop place to practice tactics with the newly sectioned off old-new VR area.

I know some of these things are border-lining MMORPG - which PS2 is not, however I think certain aspects and qualities you find in an MMORPG go a long way to immersing you deeper into the PS2 universe. I also know that these are not a priority without continent locking or the hex-adjacency system in place yet - however if they re-made it into the game to be used I think theres some ideas and potential features to be considered.
Then again I might just be fantasizing about a moot point.

[Phantomdestiny]

i most certainly agree but i would also add a command center to the sanctuary with an interactive command table/map for outfit leaders or tacticians to plan battles or continental assault when they had the planetary lattice and even more if they add the ocean + seamless travel latter on .


Imagine 20 general and a field commander planning an amphibious assault to indar from the sanctuary then having an aircraft carrier , 2 destroyers and 50 amphibious vehicles land on the beaches of indar while a perfect artillery barrage is shelling the north of the beach .

[Carbon Copied]

I think the seamless travel between continents is a long way off considering we don't have working warp gates yet; but I know what you mean - I'm just not too sure about the whole seamless travel between continents in general personally. It'd almost be like continental chaos of the hex system with too much "sandbox" (different topic though).

I assume with the commander console you mean something like Natural Selection style where you jump in the command seat and effectively direct the battle from the top down? Not so sure that these would work as something that were in the city hub as although you're right it does sound good - you're effectively taking people out the battle. I think there needs to be a separate mechanic in the contested world that facilitates the "commander console" for platoons etc. if this is even required above platoon leader.

My view is that the Sanctuaries are a place to re-organise, take a break from and bring more of a community/social outside the contested zones - I'm not talking about minigames or anything stupid but just somewhere that brings abit more of that suspension of disbelief.

[Phantomdestiny]

i do see the sanctuaries as a place to reorganise and socialised in places such as the outfit hall , a center announcement plaza maybe ? , the warpgates themselves in the sanc .

I would also love to have a factory complex mechanic where "extremely rare" vehicles are produced with finite resources such as the bastion. Vehicles that take real time to make and that have huge impact should be made at the warpgate and then have to travel to the necessary destination

[Greenthy]

Sanctuaries will only truely be usefull if we go to more continents and the link between these continents is through continents (PS1 style).
Otherwise why not load up at the current warpgates / towers / tech plants / bio labs (/ interlink facilities)