Should the kraken be redesigned?

I think the catch here is that a kraken fight as a whole is overly cliche.

That said I would agree with you.

I think what made meg work as an experience is the sense of uncertainty that comes from a shark attack. You get the music/water rushing sound that tells you stuffs hitting the fan, you look around panicked but still only catch glimpses until its in your face eating you.

The Kraken and my limited experience with it almost feels like the world boss that wasn't. If they wanted to ride the cliche out (which would be fine) they really needed to give it that over the top 'umph' factor and make it a force that ruled the seas.

I think 'uncertainty' in itself is a big selling point for this game as a whole. They need to apply that to the Kraken as well as the variety in behaviors that Meg got. Take this on the fly rework for example:

Your sailing along full speed when suddenly things go deadly quiet and your ship slams to a stop like someone dropped the anchor the ship groaning and creaking.(Variety one...your ship gets let go or a lone tentacle investigates your ship before growing bored and letting you go) A slight pause for suspense before music similar to the red zone(maybe build to something more action oriented as things progress).

Now here is where things can really differ. Maybe throw in a few tentacles that are actually the ones holding your ship stationary. If you don't move fast enough to get all of them they will replace themselves. Throw in some cliche tentacle swipes and player grabs(speed it up a bit as well as keep them below the sea until they attack...none of that tentacles waving around in the air like they just don't care, we want action.)

Now add in the head. At the height of the music lets get the head out of the water and have it roar into the faces of your crew. Smashing down on the deck you now have to watch your footing so you don't get eaten. Give it what for and it slumps down onto the deck and slips ragdoll style back into the sea as things normalize.

Throw in some tentacle attack variations, some exploratory non hostile movements for differing personalities to the beast, maybe one that just grabs a crew member and eats them and then lets the ship go.

Point is...there are islands named after this thing...bones of this thing litter the world like a dang war took place against it...it should be king/queen of this place...right now its just one of those arm flailing tube guys you see waving at car dealerships.

@blindnev said in Should the kraken be redesigned?:

I'm sure many others agree that the kraken is not implemented that well. The megalodon feels so much better in my opinion.
When he pops out of the water and starts chasing me, it feels more fun. It adds something to my gameplay instead of just stopping me and saying "stay here for a bit".

Anyway, a few points I would like to make:

The kraken's rooting mechanic: It feels like a time waster since it simply roots you in place. I think it would be much better if the tentacles grabbed the ship and you had to kill them in order to be released and continue moving.

The kraken's body: At least for me, the terrifying thing about the kraken isn't his tentacles, but his head and big mouth that are right below the ship. Imagine if the megalodon was just a fin that bites your ship sometimes.

The fight itself: The water goes black, the ship stops moving and the tentacles show up. Then, you simply kill them while they roar at you or something. Most of them are just passive as well.
I find it kind of boring to be honest. Especially when you don't see the creature itself.

There needs to be a part where the kraken's head comes out of the water and you need to shoot it. Think of it as a "phase" after you kill enough tentacles.

So yeah, this is something I see whenever I play with others on a galleon: When the megadolon shows up, people are trying to figure out his intentions and if they should attack. Everyone is watching him and you can see the tension.
With the kraken however, everyone goes "come on really?", since they just want it to go away so they can continue with whatever they were doing.

I agree, Kraken either needs a buff to make the fight more intense, or it needs to be redesigned to make the fight more intense...

I always imagined a panicky chaos like in POTC... Boy was i disappointed. xD

I think the tentacles should at least whip the deck to try and harm the crew occasionally, as well as slam the side of the ship sometimes to create holes...

And if three tentacles wrap around the ship, the ship instantly and brutally gets pulled underwater... So you should always try to destroy the tentacles wrapping the ship, to prevent that from happening.

A fight like this could easily be as intense and fun as a megalodon fight, maybe more intense and more fun. :3

Would also give players a reason to truly fear the kraken, and encourage players to keep their ship fully stocked with supplies. xD

The kraken is possibly the most pathetic part of this game. It's lazy design and construction only underscores the level of quality that we can expect from Rare.

...that is unless they rebuild it entirely. Only then will I recant this statement.

@william-flint

My answer to why I solo has and always been this:

I value those who could have killed me but didn't over those assigned not to kill me.

To me playing solo maximizes the uncertainty. If you are with a crew worthy of the name then there is never a moment when you aren't in control.

If we take things like the Kraken and Meg and anything that comes after and put every player in that sense of uncertainty then getting out alive will become the reward.