Why I think PVE servers and Arena are bad for the game

Balancing choice I'd like to see:

any balance choice that removes the need to be accurate with deadly effect. Remove the advantage of the mouse. Thumbsticks simply don't have the resolution to compete.

PVP vs PVE is an issue of detection. I watch the streamers hop server to server to find a PVP situation. It's not that common. Yes, a boat parked at a fort invites the fight. if you're harder to spot, you'll be easier to hide. it's an issue of sloop getting romped on by galleon. Sloop less visible, galleon more visible, etc...

If you balance the game by making it much harder to kill a real player, and balance the ability to sink a boat, you can affect the draw on PVE V PVP.
I'd like to see the fight come to cutlass combat more than the sniper.

I'd like to see a better balance across the ships. Solo slooping is hard and survival can be tweaked. Perhaps more speed into the wind and slower sinking as a solo. not same as Duo Sloop.
The challenge of solo slooping is that players how like to play alone are the ones often calling for PVE only choice. Find a way to balance the solo experience. Kraken is well balance solo, kill 3 tentacles and your out. Sloop is already a tank compared to the brig.

Instead of PVE only environments, find a better way than current alliances to support little guy v big guy problems. In an alliance, you can not see your friends being attacked. Develop a comms system allowing alerts "sound the alarm" to ask for help from your alliance in a battle. A Parott could come flying over "Aargh, we're being attacked AArrrgh" simply message and flashing on the map that you're being attacked and need help. We never all sail in a party chat. 2-4 boats 8+ people doing different things in party doesn't work.

@sprungnickel427
A PvE/PvP server and a crossplay thread rolled up into one now, doubling up now I see.

These things are the underlying forces prompting the call for Arena and PVE servers in the first place. the Battle Royal meta is a boring. lots of choices, SoT should not be a BR game.

This mode ISN'T Battle Royal. If you took a small amount of time to see the released info on this, you would know this. Its far from seperating the servers, its literally a compact version of the normal mode.

@nabberwar link, I read a lot of this, watched every vid form Joe, Nothing has been shared. All conjecture. link pls

@sprungnickel427

Nov 11, 2018  /  News

Sea Of Thieves new competitive PvP mode The Arena announced for early 2019

Sea of Thieves players who prefer to trawl the high seas looking to quench their blood-lust over a nautical jaunt are in luck with 2019's free update.

The Arena | The Sea of Thieves Wiki

The Arena was a competitive game mode hosted by the Sea Dogs within The Glorious Sea Dog Tavern in the world of Sea of Thieves. In a Preview Event on January 27, 2022, Rare announced their...

Nov 11, 2018  /  News

Sea of Thieves announces The Arena

Rare have announced that they're bringing a competitive mode called The Arena to Sea of Thieves.

Literally googled "Sea of Thieves Arena" first four links available.

Edit:

Executive producer Joe Neate says that it’ll start as a “condensed, shorter session,” of the game, focused on treasure hunting, but that it will grow and develop like the base game’s been doing based on community feedback.

It isn't coming Feb 6th, by the way. Feb 6th is QoL changes and another "fun little thing to do."

I think Rare are being very careful about how they introduce a separate kind of mode. No it isn't Battle Royale and no it isn't "PvP servers." It is a short competitive play session.

They know the center of the game is always going to be the core adventure that they have been cultivating. This idea that the player base will split feels like it's based on this thought that The Arena is going to become the entire game for some people. I just don't think that's the case. I don't think The Arena will have so much in it that it constitutes as the entire game for anyone. That is speculating, but its based on the things they've already said about the game.

I'm Pirate Legend, Athena 10 and I do not forsee myself abandoning the Adventure Mode for The Arena although I do see myself having fun with The Arena. Devs have been talking it up to be this high adrenaline, high intensity gameplay and if it is like that then I know that I'll feel fatigued after some time and want to spend time in the main world. I predict that this will be the natural habit for a lot of people too.

On top of that, there are going to be those updates like Cursed Sails and Forsaken Shores with content that you'll only be able to access through the normal adventure. Like the devs have said - the main game will continue to grow as The Arena grows too.

I trust Rare know how to handle this. I think they care too much to implement anything that would take away from what they want this game to be.

I dunno if the new modes attract new people they may just want to test the other modes too..
Could also take out the extremes and give them something more of their likes..

For me balancing would be lowering the spawnrates of popup pve encounters and improving loading times but keep the pvp as it is its exciting and fun.

I really liked how the game was last summer or before the start of this monster event.. it was more relaxed and fun adventure with crew or solo to catch and sell chicken :")

I'm going to reference Fortnite. I played it before they added the Battle Royale side to the game. I had fun playing it. However, they added the BR side of the game without any lead up, warning, or announcement prior to it's release. The major point that they made is that the BR side was free. The original intent of the game was not free. This not only split the player based, the development team for the now, Save The World side of the game was completely moved to make content for BR. BR took off becoming so widely known that most people assumed the game was only for BR. It is only now that the BR craze is slowing down that the STW side of the game is getting regular updates and attention.

I do not know if the same will happen to SoT. Will having the buy the game make all the difference between people making Arena the "actual side of the game?" I am worried. I do not want to be a Chest of Sorrow, but I don't want to lose the game that was originally envisioned. We sail together, not against each other.

@nabberwar other than shorter and condensed and focused on treasure there is nothing but hope and conjecture in your links. exactly as I suspected. You have nothing there.
The ADD 15 min Battle Royal world gaming lives in today is driving this condensed effort to give you a quick hit fix. One of the challenges of SoT is the length of time it takes to play. Adoption skyrocketed when in November the Frequency of PVE events was turned up 500%. Arena is going to address those with little time or short attention spans.

The "journey" is being killed off.

@je0rgie-p0rgie All Of it relates to attention span. There maybe enough players to split the base on Arena and Adventure side. We've not seen numbers period. Microsoft and Rare haven't shared this. I suspect there are enough.

You are correct about the constant action. I found before the November update that the game was dragging and the simple increase in PVE frequency made a huge difference.

I hope they find a balance to crossplay with the Feb 6th update. My concerns are expressed and maybe Rare already has answers.

@darkjedirebel написал в Why I think PVE servers and Arena are bad for the game:

@unpossibear Problem is people for the most part don't "sail together"
Most of the time in this game (especially lately) people troll. What happened to Dr. Disrespect in 3 days of streaming this game is a perfect example of the experience most players (pve and new players) outside the hardcore pvp players experience. He left because people wouldn't leave him alone to figure out the game. People constantly trying to get their "10 seconds of fame" His quote. I don't see him coming back until Arena at the very least. People like that bring fans to the game. Markiplier, H2O Delirious, Jacksepticeye and all the other gamers and streamers that tried it out only to abandon it after an average 3 sessions. Private Servers and Arena will hopefully bring these people back. Had they been able to be on servers with their own groups they might still be here. Summit 1G is doing a great job promoting SOT but he is only really giving one angle of a game. A game with potential to create all sorts of mini games and scenarios within the game. The game will grow with more options for gameplay styles.

stop putting your "5 coins private servers" in every message on a forum.
Dude really you prob new to this game but we see this posts crying about "pve/private/xbox only" servers since lunch and Rare make it clear there will be NO servers like this.
If Doc wanna play and learn from game he can play 1-2 sessions not on stream with Summit or any other streamer who playing SoT and learn tips from them/ or he can read tips on a forum or google/youtube it.
So stop putting like those servers are problem why he left - he left bcoz he didn't like it. He prefer fast games with pvp and probably 1 thing that you mention right that arena mode is for him but yet again not some private servers !

@sprungnickel427
First, I will say I may have come off as hostile, not my intentions. However, real talk time, what do you have as evidence that this will be Battle Royale? At the very least, I have a quote from Joe Neate, but what is there showing this will be Battle Royale?

At the very least, this is could be deathmatch, not Battle Royale. Battle Royale implies dropped within a zone (seas) with nothing, no weapons or ammo. We can probably assume, your ship will still spawn with supplies. You will also have your starter weapons. Battle Royale also implies once a person is eliminated, they are gone for good. What we don't know is if a ship sinks, will it be removed from the arena?

I think its safe to say we both have conjecture, you know as much as I do. Probably once more information is released we may get some answers. I honestly don't think it will be Battle Royale, with what little we do know.

@je0rgie-p0rgie said in Why I think PVE servers and Arena are bad for the game:

The Arena will allow this to be an option for streamers and for people who want constant action.

Same should be a true and allowed for pirates wanting to relax and have fun on the sea with family and friends. Who do not want to be constantly chased, sunk, bullied, and cursed worse than by a sailor.

Finally, Rare is connecting The Arena and Adventure Mode together in a way that encourages players to play both. All cosmetics will transfer between the two game modes and the fourth trading company, The Sea Dogs, will count toward one of the three factions need to obtain Pirate Legend. There will be incentives to play both and that's the idea.

Why our fellow brothers and sisters out there also need a part of the sea for them. What I like to call The Alliance mode, a more friendly PvE focused experience, would do the exactly the same for them and the whole game like you said here.

I apologize for the novel but I think The Arena will significantly help the game rather than hurt it.

No need to apologize. Love reading your post no matter how long they are. I can write long ones myself.

@darkjedirebel написал в Why I think PVE servers and Arena are bad for the game:

@nefrit-od nice bait LOL

Nice answer lol

@nabberwar said in Why I think PVE servers and Arena are bad for the game:

@sprungnickel427
First, I will say I may have come off as hostile, not my intentions. However, real talk time, what do you have as evidence that this will be Battle Royale? At the very least, I have a quote from Joe Neate, but what is there showing this will be Battle Royale?

At the very least, this is could be deathmatch, not Battle Royale. Battle Royale implies dropped within a zone (seas) with nothing, no weapons or ammo. We can probably assume, your ship will still spawn with supplies. You will also have your starter weapons. Battle Royale also implies once a person is eliminated, they are gone for good. What we don't know is if a ship sinks, will it be removed from the arena?

I think its safe to say we both have conjecture, you know as much as I do. Probably once more information is released we may get some answers. I honestly don't think it will be Battle Royale, with what little we do know.

The Title Arena suggests a closed space in which to battle Gladiator style perhaps. It's all conjecture. Any time you put a bunch of people in a small space with tools to kill each other, it becomes a last man standing thing. It has to end somehow.

@sprungnickel427
We could be arguing semantics at this point, what are the major differences between Arena/Deathmatch (the game type) and Battle Royale? First major difference, Battle Royale implies spawning in with nothing, neither weapons nor ammo. I think we can both agree "The Arena" we will spawn with stuff. So thats one strike against this not being Battle Royale. The second major difference is the concept of Last man standing, we just don't know if once a ship is sunk, its removed. Thats something we both don't know with what information we have.

Arena (gametype) can be last one standing and not be battle royale. For example Team Fortress 2 Arena. First team to eliminate the others full roster won. This was long before Battle Royale became popular, maybe even before it was a game concept. Whats even the earliest Battle Royale Game?

Any time you put a bunch of people in a small space with tools to kill each other, it becomes a last man standing thing. It has to end somehow.

This brings up another point, we don't know how this game mode will end. Is it last one standing? Is it who can collect more gold by a certain timeframe? Just more things we don't really know.

At the end of the day, and Rare announces this is Battle Royale, I will more then happily eat my words. Feel free to message me, to remind me of this promise. However, with what little we know, this sounds more like its little own unique "treasure hunt fight thing" game mode. Anything but Battle Royale.

I am willing to admit I'm wrong, but I don't think I am wrong on this.