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  1. Default Re: Balancing classes


    Balance is acknowledging the unique characteristics of each class.

    I played a game called PristonTale before Maplestory and I really liked their balance system. The archer had the most attacking range, ran faster than other classes, and also was the most naturally powerful. Unfortunately, their HP was pomegranate (easily die in one hit) and they had absolutely no defensive skills. Yet still, their entire skill window focused on pure attacking. Naturally, partying was encouraged due to each classes' severe pros and cons and thus each person "balanced" each other out (i.e. an archer's dps with a bishop's support). But that's the fun factor to me. It's knowing that no matter why you picked a class for its extreme pros, it has pretty severe cons as well.

    It sounds extreme but that's what class balancing is to me. Instead, we have things like Mercedes which is the epitome of Warrior meets Archer meets Thief.

    In other words, "balancing" would also mean classes complement each other in party situations.

  2. Default Re: Balancing classes


    Unless there's another 'Big Bang' type patch at some point I doubt we'll ever see anything close to proper balance. Making new classes > buffing old classes > nerfing new classes and then releasing more new classes seems to be the way to make the most money, seeing as how many people instantly flock to new classes and gear them up/buy them untradeable NX clothes. I think one of the problems with balance in MapleStory is that pretty much every class is capable of doing everything, perhaps with the exception of certain melee classes soloing Pink Bean (due to the DR statues). If all classes had a set function and were required to work together it'd work a lot better.

    Though then there's the issue of smaller/dead servers struggling again because there isn't enough class diversity and certain things are impossible due to everyone being a Phantom or Mercedes because they're capable of doing absolutely everything alone.

  3. Default Re: Balancing classes


    whoever said this should just leave maplestory.

    i miss when classes were more pronounced, like when archers had very little HP, when assassins had the only flash jump and dodge rate skills, etc.
    (and we had the ONLY hurricane-like skill, and it was an amazing thing to see a bowmaster or a marksman class)

    now it's just an amalgamation of skills in which kills off the less popular classes because they aren't good enough compared to these "heroes"
    and then there's phantom.

  4. Default Re: Balancing classes


    Set some standards. Only warriors are tanky and mostly have high damage to make up for lack of mobility. Mercedes get potentiable infinite arrows, but other archers can't get any bonus thanks to soul arrow canceling out atk arrows. Then there's bullets and throwing stars.

    Back to classes having their own qualities, or in this case, limits. Demon slayers, despite being warriors, are even greater tanks, far more powerful, have more mobility than theives and healing capabilities that exceed bishops. If they don't stop mashing more and more into classes, making each stronger than the last and then revamping others to catch up, the entire game will rot. Just stop somewhere and start diversifying the gameplay. Maybe more skill-based challenges; JQs being useful for more than zak prequests, PVP more efficient than grinding and so on. Anyways, I'm getting off topic--it's about just the classes, not the entire game. They just need to stop trying to top every last class and focus on giving them unique qualities rather than blurring everything that isn't the top two or three classes together.

    EDIT: @Pink Bean reminded me; Phantoms. That is all.

  5. Default Re: Balancing classes


    Basically, if you're playing for most DPS, You want the fastest attackers, mainly because of the damage cap.
    The only way I see this getting partially balanced, is if there was a lower cap for fast attacking skills (Hurricane/Rapid fire etc.)

    Now you may think, "Oh, make the slow hitting classes hit faster so they can be on par with the Hurricane using classes", Well I really don't see a warrior being able to hit 10+ times a second.

  6. Default Re: Balancing classes


    This game became more solo-orientated and thus, the balance and revamps we get are for these classes to be able to solo effectively.

    In the old Maple, classes had actual roles in a party and it was unthinkable that a single party, let alone one person, could take on bosses with relative ease. Before 4th job, expeditions were serious business and it took a lot of active people fulfilling their roles in the expedition for it to actually succeed.

    Now with 4th job, potential, Big Bang, and several revamps later, unique roles have vanished and the new aim of the game is to be able to solo.

    Old maple videos were guilds and expeditions trying to take down a single boss and it was usually down to the wire and it took a lot of editing because the runs would take hours; new maple videos have 1 person completely slaughtering a poor boss that offers absolutely no challenge to the player: the bosses may as well be sitting there and doing nothing while we can watch an unedited 30 second, over-glorified, self-indulgent, uber-funded player that pops out streams of giant numbers in less than a second.

    It's the reason why rush/mob control and mobility that was unique to a couple classes are now found in almost every class. It's the reason why surviveability is a universal standard rather than a unique thing. It's the reason why useful party skills can be found on equipment, thus eliminating the need of specific classes in a party. It's the reason why bosses are becoming instanced so that every single person can boss at will and not wait for other people. It's the reason why newer classes just seem to have everything going for them (and why older classes are becoming much like them). It's the reason why party quests require less and less people and even less class variety.

    The list can go on... but almost every single patch that comes up always seems to keep that "so you can solo better" mentality behind it...

    This game is getting pretty self-centered. >;/

  7. Default Re: Balancing classes


    Balance should be features to each character that makes them more efficient in certain situations. Like Mages being resistant to magic attack and weak to weapon attack, making them best for fighting against magic-type monsters. Paladins being strongest against single target and having best defense, DrK's having best mobility and vitality, and heroes being in between and such. Such sthing doesn't exist here because

    1 - There are not enough game mechanics to support this.
    2 - Players start crying the moment their chars seem to be "weaker".

  8. Default Re: Balancing classes


    I'd like a little more variety in my classes. It seems like most classes have some variant on Flash Jump, Final Attack etc. (Or you're Phantom and have everything).

    That is one of the few things I really do miss about MS pre-BB, is that classes were more or less unique. Sure, some had similar roles, but they all did different things. It was particularly obvious in the Guild PQ.

    Now it just feels like all classes have is DPS. Unlike other MMO's where you have Tanks, Support/Damage Mitigation, Pure Support/Heal, Ranged DPS, Melee DPS, etc. all classes in MS just try to compete for having the highest range! I don't really change my gameplay at all from a Dark Knight or hell, a Bishop. It's just, attack (based on # of targets) until buffs run out, buff, repeat.

    Zakum is kind of a good example for another thing. The Elemental Weakness system is really just pointless at this point. I don't really have to worry about the resistances, or anything. None of those matter to classes like Mercedes and Phantom with their fancy Bio-element attacks and what-have-you.

    I dunno. I just miss people yelling at me for hitting the wrong arms. But really, I don't think balancing is the direction they need to go. I'd really like jobs to have specific rolls again.

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