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Gameplay Discussion / Economic Balance (in theory)
« on: Feb 14, 2018, 02:49 PM »
=Queue Novel=
So in my time playing A3Wasteland I've run into a lot of folks who complain because the players that play the most, typically end up very heavily armed. They end up with top tier attack choppers/jets/tanks and can pretty much steam roll any new player on the server.
Before I started modifying my own server, I played around with the source files provided by groups likes Fractured Gaming and Dark Vault and there's one thing I noticed about pretty much all of the source files I looked through; lack of economic balance.
Everything was dirt cheap, and rewards were very high. This means anybody could join in fresh to the server, locate a gun store, buy some AT and go wipe out a heavy armor shipment and run away with a months worth a couple hundred thousand $ which in turn bought a $20,000 helo/tank which then provides (if they can actually fly) virtually an unlimited financial supply.
So how do you solve this? How do you level the playing field for everybody so that dedicated players that play regularly are still rewarded, but not to the extent that your server becomes a breeding ground for trolls everywhere?
Economic Balance (have I mentioned this concept yet?)
I spent a few hours running through the storeconfig.cfg and managing all of the costs of everything based on quality/benefit. So a short range CQC scope won't be nearly as expensive as a long range scope, nor a 5.56 nearly as expensive as a .338 and so on; same is applicable to vehicles in the sense of being armed/unarmed armored/unarmored which is equally applicable to aircraft/helos with much consideration given to the advantage that aircraft/helos give to a player on the battlefield, so aircraft/heavy armor is much more realistically expensive.
I'm still in the process of implementing this balance, so it's far from perfect. But now, players will no longer be able to afford top tier gear/weaponry/vehicles/armor/air by simply completing one heavy money shipment. Instead, they've now got incentive to continue doing missions; especially if they enjoy hunting other players.
This forces all players equally to seek out the missions. Additionally, "sugar daddy" (why, just why?) hasn't been altered any because the sugar daddy balance though not enough to buy you armors and such, it's a very significant amount in terms of purchasing gear/equipment that could be vital to the success of a players progression if they manage to take out a sugar daddy.
Economic Balance breeds caution, because now players have to earn their toys and if they want to keep them, they'll need to play strategically. You won't find anybody endlessly trolling weak players because well, honestly, they wont' be able to afford too. The longer you loiter, the more at risk you are of loosing that really expensive toy.
With each player's bank account limit set to a point where they can buy a single one of the most expensive item on the list, and still have enough to start fresh should they die, they'll find themselves having to start over.
This balance ran off a lot of people that just wanted to be spoon fed their toys, those seeking immediate gratification. But it also as a result ran off the trolls (coincidence?) and the player experience is SO much more intense. Just testing things out I nearly browned my shorts at the sound of an attack helo approaching because I couldn't afford any AA, and I was stuck with little cover beyond a little rock; talk about an adrenaline rush.
Add in a more hostile AI system at more than the default snails speed and you've got a real challenge. You've got a tiny window to lock on and take out air hostiles because they're not just chuggin along like they just burned down some dank chiba. They're moving with conviction. An HVT carrying $150k by an escorted helo isn't just going to mosey along begging you to shoot them, they're going to be alert, they're going to be aware, and if you don't play it right, they're going to wreck you.
I've spent the past two weeks studying how A3Wasteland was built and I'm mind blown at the fact I used to hate A3Wasteland (even previous versions) but it turns out that it wasn't A3Wastelands fault. It was the server owners that configured the files and just left 99% of the settings at default.
With the system I'm working on, it makes everything feel earned. It gives a player a sense of satisfaction when they can actually afford that upgrade that they wanted (usually they're favorites). And they're going to play in a way that they can hang onto those upgrades as long as possible (strategy).
This balance greatly promotes team play, as you can no longer build an army of one with an endless supply of lethal supports as long as you can make it to a vehicle vendor. No, now a single player can either save for that top tier jet/chopper and pray to jebus that he doesn't loose it seconds after purchasing it, or they can play in a more conservative manner and focus on less expensive equipment that would enable them to continue saving.
Since the bank limit per player only permits a single funding of the most expensive vehicle in the balance, (which is an EXTREMELY significant balance for players not interested in flying/blowing shit up with tanks). Players are forced to either team play, or start a stash house and store external funds. As you can imagine, this brings an all new level of tension to play when you consider that if somebody discovers your stash, you could be out whatever you saved.
Yes, this has become a novel; but I'm excited about this. Because I feel like A3Wasteland has been underappreciated for a very long time. Players like me (former realism/semi-realism) who didn't see the point in jumping into a game where everybody was equal and it just felt like a glorified Battlefield1-2-3-4....One. Players like me want a reason to come back to the server, a genuine reason that goes beyond "I'ma go pwn some noobs". I want to log in and feel I have something to accomplish in the time I've got to play.
Maybe I'm a pilot, so I want that REALLY expensive jet/helo.
Maybe I'm a commander, so I really want some armor.
Or maybe I'm that smart dude that just saves all his money for a virtually unlimited supply of gear/weapons.
Whatever the play style, each player will feel they're playing for a purpose, and I'm excited to share that.
I've got a lot of modifications & implementations to make, but I'll be sure to share it once it's functional.
I'll be calling it A3W: RENEGADE, because it will be unlike anything we've experienced before (at least me).
Maybe this has all been done before, and I just need to get out more xP. Whatever, I'm excited.
Thanks for A3Wasteland, it's hands down the best foundation out there.
Sincerely,
CSG-Preacher
So in my time playing A3Wasteland I've run into a lot of folks who complain because the players that play the most, typically end up very heavily armed. They end up with top tier attack choppers/jets/tanks and can pretty much steam roll any new player on the server.
Before I started modifying my own server, I played around with the source files provided by groups likes Fractured Gaming and Dark Vault and there's one thing I noticed about pretty much all of the source files I looked through; lack of economic balance.
Everything was dirt cheap, and rewards were very high. This means anybody could join in fresh to the server, locate a gun store, buy some AT and go wipe out a heavy armor shipment and run away with a months worth a couple hundred thousand $ which in turn bought a $20,000 helo/tank which then provides (if they can actually fly) virtually an unlimited financial supply.
So how do you solve this? How do you level the playing field for everybody so that dedicated players that play regularly are still rewarded, but not to the extent that your server becomes a breeding ground for trolls everywhere?
Economic Balance (have I mentioned this concept yet?)
I spent a few hours running through the storeconfig.cfg and managing all of the costs of everything based on quality/benefit. So a short range CQC scope won't be nearly as expensive as a long range scope, nor a 5.56 nearly as expensive as a .338 and so on; same is applicable to vehicles in the sense of being armed/unarmed armored/unarmored which is equally applicable to aircraft/helos with much consideration given to the advantage that aircraft/helos give to a player on the battlefield, so aircraft/heavy armor is much more realistically expensive.
I'm still in the process of implementing this balance, so it's far from perfect. But now, players will no longer be able to afford top tier gear/weaponry/vehicles/armor/air by simply completing one heavy money shipment. Instead, they've now got incentive to continue doing missions; especially if they enjoy hunting other players.
This forces all players equally to seek out the missions. Additionally, "sugar daddy" (why, just why?) hasn't been altered any because the sugar daddy balance though not enough to buy you armors and such, it's a very significant amount in terms of purchasing gear/equipment that could be vital to the success of a players progression if they manage to take out a sugar daddy.
Economic Balance breeds caution, because now players have to earn their toys and if they want to keep them, they'll need to play strategically. You won't find anybody endlessly trolling weak players because well, honestly, they wont' be able to afford too. The longer you loiter, the more at risk you are of loosing that really expensive toy.
With each player's bank account limit set to a point where they can buy a single one of the most expensive item on the list, and still have enough to start fresh should they die, they'll find themselves having to start over.
This balance ran off a lot of people that just wanted to be spoon fed their toys, those seeking immediate gratification. But it also as a result ran off the trolls (coincidence?) and the player experience is SO much more intense. Just testing things out I nearly browned my shorts at the sound of an attack helo approaching because I couldn't afford any AA, and I was stuck with little cover beyond a little rock; talk about an adrenaline rush.
Add in a more hostile AI system at more than the default snails speed and you've got a real challenge. You've got a tiny window to lock on and take out air hostiles because they're not just chuggin along like they just burned down some dank chiba. They're moving with conviction. An HVT carrying $150k by an escorted helo isn't just going to mosey along begging you to shoot them, they're going to be alert, they're going to be aware, and if you don't play it right, they're going to wreck you.
I've spent the past two weeks studying how A3Wasteland was built and I'm mind blown at the fact I used to hate A3Wasteland (even previous versions) but it turns out that it wasn't A3Wastelands fault. It was the server owners that configured the files and just left 99% of the settings at default.
With the system I'm working on, it makes everything feel earned. It gives a player a sense of satisfaction when they can actually afford that upgrade that they wanted (usually they're favorites). And they're going to play in a way that they can hang onto those upgrades as long as possible (strategy).
This balance greatly promotes team play, as you can no longer build an army of one with an endless supply of lethal supports as long as you can make it to a vehicle vendor. No, now a single player can either save for that top tier jet/chopper and pray to jebus that he doesn't loose it seconds after purchasing it, or they can play in a more conservative manner and focus on less expensive equipment that would enable them to continue saving.
Since the bank limit per player only permits a single funding of the most expensive vehicle in the balance, (which is an EXTREMELY significant balance for players not interested in flying/blowing shit up with tanks). Players are forced to either team play, or start a stash house and store external funds. As you can imagine, this brings an all new level of tension to play when you consider that if somebody discovers your stash, you could be out whatever you saved.
Yes, this has become a novel; but I'm excited about this. Because I feel like A3Wasteland has been underappreciated for a very long time. Players like me (former realism/semi-realism) who didn't see the point in jumping into a game where everybody was equal and it just felt like a glorified Battlefield1-2-3-4....One. Players like me want a reason to come back to the server, a genuine reason that goes beyond "I'ma go pwn some noobs". I want to log in and feel I have something to accomplish in the time I've got to play.
Maybe I'm a pilot, so I want that REALLY expensive jet/helo.
Maybe I'm a commander, so I really want some armor.
Or maybe I'm that smart dude that just saves all his money for a virtually unlimited supply of gear/weapons.
Whatever the play style, each player will feel they're playing for a purpose, and I'm excited to share that.
I've got a lot of modifications & implementations to make, but I'll be sure to share it once it's functional.
I'll be calling it A3W: RENEGADE, because it will be unlike anything we've experienced before (at least me).
Maybe this has all been done before, and I just need to get out more xP. Whatever, I'm excited.
Thanks for A3Wasteland, it's hands down the best foundation out there.
Sincerely,
CSG-Preacher