@ajarcher21 said in Can someone help me understand, please?:
I have 3 questions that I've asked in several threads but haven't received an answer for:
- Everyone complaints that the voyages are just fetch quests and there should be other types of mission.
What type of mission wouldn't be a fetch quest? Isn't "go sink X ships" a "go find X ships and bring me proof you sunk them"?
A Fetch Quest is by nature a Quest where you're sent to do a Task and Return with a Token that you then Trade back to the Quest Giver for the Reward.
Now strictly speaking I'd say there are 3 Types of Quest.
Gold Hoarder / Puzzle Quest
Mystic / Kill Quest
Merchant / Fetch Quest
Still., given all three require you to return with Tokens (Chest, Skill, Animal, Crate) to receive a Reward for doing it... technically speaking they're slightly different variations of Fetch Quests.
Transport / Trade Quests. These are similar to Fetch Quests, but they're a Point A to Point B., however they're encouraging you to travel to new Areas rather than hanging around the same Quest Giver.
Escort Quests. These like a Transport Quest are again typically Point A to B., however with these usually you need to engage in Combat and the lack of Control over whom you're Escorting is what add the Challenge / Frustration (depends on how good the AI is., I wouldn't recommend these for Sea of Thieves at present :p)
Breadcrumb Quests. These are typically Multi-Part Quests, where the Completion of each Part leads you to the next quest... they're quite good for either Lore or Unlocks., where you slowly build the Story / Object that you receive as part of figuring out each step. I'd say having these for earning your Reputation Titles would go a long way to making them feel like they have a bit more weight and circumstance rather than "Oh just purchase from the Customisation Store for 0g"
Exploration Quest. These would actually work exceptionally well given the Theme of Sea of Thieves., as basically that encourage discovering landmarks, new areas, secrets, etc.
In a way these do technically exist because Lore Books do randomly spawn., but they're very unsatisfying to collect because the ones you discover aren't written down in a journal … and what would make them feel more alive is if they gave clues to Rare / Legendary Treasure, Cosmetics, etc. associated with that particular Pirate and Lore (which as a note we fight against as they're all the Skeleton Captains).
Competitive Challenge Quests., again this is another that would be excellent for Sea of Thieves where instead of a Crew having a Random Voyage... 2-3 Crews received the SAME Voyage., thus it comes down to whoever can Solve the Clues, Find the Reward and then keep it Safe to get it back that receives the Rewards. Sure, it's still technically a Fetch Quest; but one that plays into the Competitive aspect of the Game.
Variety though isn't really the key issue here., what is that Higher Reputation Missions don't really become any more Difficult, Challenging or Complex... rather they just add more that take longer.
I'm actually at the stage (Level 20) where., if I have any more Maps which it looks like the next Reputation Level will unlock... I'll actually not have enough time each Session to actually complete them before I have to log-off; as I can only really play for an 1-2hrs every couple of days. Sure, having Persistence between Sessions would help... but it doesn't change the underlying problem; that ultimately there really isn't any point to doing them if all it unlocks is More of the Same., but I'll cover this in my response to progression.
- A lot of people complaint the game has no "real progression" and that everything is purely cosmetic. What is "real progression"? Buying a shirt is bad, but buying a shirt that makes your numbers higher is ok?
Progression should always be meaningful for the Player.
Sure an easy way to do this is via simply providing Bigger Numbers... but here' an interesting fact about Power Progression as a Design Mechanic.
Primarily it's a means of essentially forcing the Player to go on a Quest., as essentially the High-Level Areas are "Invisible Walls" for all intended purpose, intended for you to get absolutely slaughtered until you're Strong enough (as the Story Dictates) to allow you to pass through. It's a way of drip feeding content, while also making the player have a tangible "Progression" of getting Stronger through their Journey.
Now in a Single Player RPG, this is fine... as well the story is limited and linear.
Yet in a Multiplayer RPG, especially when talking about PVP this can actually lead to some ridiculous Power Creep. Fine tuning with this approach to Progression, is difficult and more often than not actually requires constant rebalancing.. especially as the old Content no longer needs you to go on a 30-50hr Quest to Complete but instead can be a nice brisk 10hr as the latest expansion provides another 10-20hrs of Linear Story to follow. Still this tends not to help how ridiculous numbers can get.
Still, if we look at another approach... for example The Legend of Zelda titles., well they gate your progression an entirely different way. Instead in order to unlock the End Boss., you have to beat each Elemental Temple; that Temple is always Themed requiring a Specific Item which provides a new Form of Gameplay to Beat.
Like the Hookshot, Bow, Metal Boots, Mirror Shield, etc. technically there is "Power" Progression in the form of upgrades for more Ammo, Magic, Health... but none of that is necessary to actually beat the game.
Rather the Items you need to Beat the Boss are in the Temples that in turn require specific Items to Complete., which change the Gameplay and how you Approach them.
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Sea of Thieves should have two forms of progression here.
1 / Degradation & Durability … this is quite a simple concept.
Let's say you have 5 Levels of Degradation: New, Good, Average, Poor, Busted.
Over usage., your degradation increases making said equipment / weapon less useful but not useless.
You then have 5 Grades (Crude, Standard, Good, Exceptional, Legendary) that provide increased Durability (lower degradation speed) … well this provides the same basic concept as "Power" without taking away the initial "Equal Standing"., rather it ends up more a case of Sustain.
On top of this you might purchase multiples of the same Weapon, Spade, etc. to offset how you always Respawn with "Crude" Gear.
2 / Each Rank of Reputation unlocks a new "Feature" of a given piece of equipment., this is something that provide a new gameplay element for said Tool.
Say for example the Spade might initially just be able to dig., but the upgrades could allow it to Resonate (for sound based puzzles / inflict disorientation hitting enemies like other pirates), another could add a Pick to allow you Climb Walls, Boat Hulls or Break Locks, another could be a Cantilever Handle (Crowbar) that allows you to move Rocks or Break through False Walls or Divot Holes in Boats you Board.
These are just suggestions I'm essentially making up off the top-of-my-head rather than putting any thought into it... but there's a lot that could be done with this approach, that as you Rank up Reputation., you unlock more interesting, involved and fun new tools to approach the game. This isn't adding "Power" but instead providing Options.
And this would actually bring meaning to "Dressing Down" to fool an enemy into believing you're a Scrub., because you would be deliberately handicapping yourself specifically to give said impression … it's a Choice Risk, for the Reward of other Players falling for the Trap of potentially an Easy Kill.
It's the same concept of running a Ferox as a Rainbow Laser Boat... it's a hilarious troll because you're deliberately fitting against it's Bonus' in order to lull opponents into thinking you're an idiot; before sitting there is a Dual-ASB Tank and simply outlasting them while you still have enough DPS to take them down. (and in Style!)
As it stands, dressing down really doesn't mean anything besides maybe you're lazy., you don't like any of the cosmetics or you just happen to prefer running around in your underwear.
Persistence also is frankly an absolute must for the game.
The concept of a Single-Purchase Unlock is … well just terrible.
We should have a reason to be permanently broke and always seeking to acquire more Gold., that should be in the sense of building multiple items to have "Spares" (as noted in the 1st Progression Suggestion) and obviously the ability to loot said items to either resell or keep for yourself., adds risk to the combatants. Still more than this because it gives a real purpose for Gold.
Mind I'd also argue that we need even a simple Merchant Trade System, for "Safe" and "Reliable" Income... but also more chance of Ships having Loot aboard.
- Probably my biggest doubt, dedicated to the so called spawncampers and other assorted "grievers" I am yet to encounter but read so much about in here: If the game is boring and doesn't have stuff you like why do you keep playing it? Really honest question, why spend hours sitting in a place waiting for someone who may or may not show up just to prevent them from doing something with nothing to gain for yourselves? That's the worst job ever, it's like not being paid to guard a piece of desert with no fences. The same goes to the brig voters and loot dumpers, what's the point of that?
I can't speak for people who engage in this., it's somewhat a bit too Anarchistic on the Seas right now for my liking. Everyone seems far too dang bloodthirsty … but then again it could just be my luck.
Heck yesterday... Docked up at port, almost right next to another boat.
Figured given they didn't immediately shoot us, that they might actually be friendly.
Immediately after we anchored up, they leapt of the boat and tried to board us; Guns blazing... I did ask them "What's the point you're just going to die?" as I handed in our Chickens; they never answered... they died, and for their trouble I provides the present of a Gunpowder Barrel (no point in wasting Cannonballs).
Anyhow they respawned and rather than fixing their boat they immediately tried to kill us again... and promptly visited the Ferry for the second time in as many minutes.
I turn around to go back to the boat to see another Sloop pass us full speed... think "Ah, maybe they decided to give us a wide birth... or they've decided to go somewhere else."
In any case I ran back to the boat to prepare the Cannons (can never be too careful) … turned out one of the girls on the boat had jumped off while we weren't looking as they passed us and hit us with an Gunpowder Barrel; this threw both myself and my friend off the boat... she landed on the beach with a chest; so handed it in, I landed a few ft away from the culprit, and despite having a clear shot (that registered) and shooting first... both with blunderbuss; somehow she survived my shot while he shot instakilled me.
(I wish I was recording as it was some Grade-A BS)
I then respawned on the boat., hear my friend say "Someone's on the Boat" (she'd grabbed another chest and just run to hand it in) … I spawned, turn around just enough to notice her on the Stairs getting a facefull of buckshot and a girlish giggle when she did it.
Overall we didn't actually really lose much from it., what I think irritated both us about it is we'd just got done dealing with one set of people who refused to say hello and just tried to gank us... only to have a second set all bubbly jump us a second later.
Frankly the whole play Session felt a lot like the Game just had it in for us., from the lowest dice roll rewards, lack of loot on islands and shipwrecks; to every damn ship we came across instantly making a B-Line for us and trying to Sink us.
No, Hello. No, Nothing... Just Shoot First. Gunboat Politics.
I mean on the one hand situations like that are obviously cool and emergent., but at the same time deeply frustrating as you never have any respite.
You have to be permanently on-edge and I was talking to my friend about this episode afterwards., saying how there seems to be a growing sentiment of those who "want" to be Friendly but just don't bother anymore and instead just Shoot On-Sight.
Yet the thing is, all that does is encourage and escalate this attitude.
It frustrates me there's no way to tell if a Ship is Aggressive or not.
Like in Eve Online., you know there's certain areas of Low-Sec that you're guaranteed to be Shot-on-Sight... you know the Corporations and Alliances who are just that kind of Player... you have both Friendlies and Enemies that are always about.
You're not always on Edge. Cautious, sure. Yet not on Edge.
Where-as at the moment Sea of Thieves (at least in my experience) is like walking into Luton with a Sandwich Board that reads "Allah likes Boys" … and I've checked my boat... it doesn't have any nasty slogans on the side. It doesn't have an offensive paintjob.
There are no Bullseyes on it.
I mean think about it... ultimately what did that duo actually get out of their behaviour? Maybe 250g worth of loot; I dunno maybe not even that. Think all we had left was a Seamen's Chest and Foul Skull... hardly prizes to be lauded.
Heck the Gunpowder Barrel would've reaped them a bigger reward handing it in to the Merchant.
And that's the thing... like if they'd been stalking us for a while., they KNEW we had a decent haul and rolled up when we first docked; then Bravo, and Well Played.
Yet for all they knew (and I'd checked the Horizon as we docked) … we'd been there a while and were completely empty. Heck neither of us were visible on the boat when they passed, we could've been purchasing stuff in the Outpost.
In which point they'd have sunk and empty boat... because...?
We don't get anything for kills or sinking other ships. Seriously, not even any Commendations... or on the Achievement / Leaderboard Tracker. There's no dropped Items / Loot as the Boat simply disappears within a few seconds after it sinks and we didn't have many supplies anyway; not that they appeared to check, seemed more focused on kills.
It's stuff like that which makes me just confused.
