Luridis

And here I was, on permenant ignore and then... well I guess not. I suspect that people don't live up to your expectations, wherever it is you happen to put yourself.

That depends on the implementation. Sometimes they're implemented as a DPS warrior of sorts, ranged or melee, like NWN/D&D. They aren't as defensive as warriors, but they have a few natural spells and a light pet. In D:OS they're implemented as pure ranged DPS + utility. In WoW, the closest class is the hunter and in DAoC they were called Druids, as the buffer/healer/caster for the same race was the Warden, or at least I think that's how it went. In Elder Scrolls they were like assassins or something before they dumped the class system. Or really any of them that used stealth and archery. Might and Magic had something called an Archer, but it wasn't really the same. They had spells too, but they could wear non-natural armor and their spells were arcane. You could think of them as utility + ranged nukers. But, that's they closest that franchise had to rangers. Here in Texas, they're an elite branch of the State Police that hunts down more dangerous criminal types. :D So, woodsman warrior who typically uses stealth and is usually given the option of sword or bow specialization, sometimes with a pet and/or natural magic. They're loved in PnP settings because of their hunting, tracking and general survival non-combat capabilities. They have creative ways of keeping the party alive in deep and hostile wilderness.

Translates... I am infallible. You are all stupid. You don't understand me... because you are stupid. You, all of you, have mental problems. I'm going to make stuff up out of the blue, and accuse you of doing just this! No one can post anything to my satisfaction because... well then I wouldn't have someone to put down and thus prove myself superior.

Glad I'm not the only one seeing the problems with the ranger. Biggest gripe: How are they supposed to be used? What role? How are pets supposed to engage? The bear is obvious, but what about the lion, wolf, boar? Do I move these like I would a rogue? And the other two, are these just supposed to be parked near the ranged or something? I'd rather not have a pet and have it function like the D:OS ranger, or have pets and have it function like the NWN2 ranger. Thus far it feels like they're handing me a fish head and saying this will help... How?

Finding myself with the exact same frustration I had initially: Rangers aren't very good. To be honest, I'm not sure how they expect us to play them, I mean as in how we're supposed to be using them. Nothing but the bear appears to be viable. All pets engage in the front line but can't handle front line damage, except maybe the bear. I don't know, perhaps I am doing it wrong. If there was at least some indication: Use this like a rogue, use this like a warrior... and well there are no ranged ones. I'll go back to a druid later, I had no trouble figuring out what to do with them.

A lot of these issues are the lack of a reasonable faction system (which has steadily devolved since Daggerfall). You don't have to force a set protagonist if you can differentiate a few variables: is a member of X, rank in X, is X public/private/known to this individual? Modders have been able to mitigate psychic guards and a fair amount of other NPC issues, so the problem is that BGS isn't interested in doing that work, not that the design itself necessitates it. Another factor is the fans. Having choices and consequences "limits" gameplay, and a fair number of people hate that (from what I've seen in forum posts). So BGS has to choose to make one side or the other happy, and they seem to keep deciding against the RPG contingent. Though as far as the "leader of an organization" trope goes, I wouldn't mind that whole concept getting tossed, or becoming much less common. I don't know if devs are trying to satisfy a power fantasy itch or what, but it rarely makes sense to me that an active character would become a faction leader. Even disregarding the silliness of petty fetch quests, there's the problem of an adventurer having the time, experience, and inclination to sit at a desk and manage an organization. I don't see why they can't just stop at "you've become a respected member of the faction" and leave it at that. That's precisely why people make the "catering to casuals" argument. It really is impossible to know how true that is overall, but it is fair to see how one could make such an argument.

Yep, and I even forgot to take equipment into consideration. I've seen vids of developers doing balance adjustments and they use huge spreadsheets with lots of formula calculating results across levels, equipment and even encounter types. And, really, I think max level is where you'll see the greatest evening out.

Are they using aggro links in this game? There are places in MMOs, like raids where there will be one or two guys walking between groups. If you attack them, just they come. However, if you attack either group and the "link" is still standing, you get both groups no matter what you try. I'll have to look for this myself when I fire it up later.

That video was hysterical... but good info, I'm probably going to fire up my beta again. Huge number of changes since my last play. During the video he walked right up and opened the chest and my thought was, "Is he really gonna... yep, you'll regret that sort of thing fairly quickly."

As a matter of fact, I'd be willing to bet that within a decade we see "free consoles" hit the market. Consoles with "free" games. Well, until you try them 5 times and then each play after that charges a quarter to your credit card. Companies like EA would like nothing more than to turn your living room into a pay-per-play arcade.

That's precisely what the free-to-play movement is trying to program into you. Why? Because they make much more money by wearing down your self-control and hitting you with a ridiculous charge for some trite in game material precisely when you aren't likely to be very resistive. This is how people end up dropping hundreds of dollars on a FTP game. You can have more fun and even get free drinks with that at a casino. It's all very creepy and I'd rather pay $40 for a complete product.

PrimeJunta, Okay, first a disclaimer, I haven't played beta in several months. About your comparison of Fighter vs Monk, is this only at one level? Is it at max level? The reason I ask is because they're likely shooting for overall balance, not equality at specific levels. That would be hugely difficult to do in any RPG, much less one with this many classes. Edit: They could also be shooting for more DPS on the monk, but less tanky.

Yea, I'm surprised at the lack of scouting in single player RPGs. MMO's have been doing this for years, even if you're not playing a stealthy, just standing close enough to see and looking for "outrunners" and what have you is useful. Ever played WoW? Fought solo with Knolls or Murlocs? Yep, careful pulling and distancing is part of it. Same thing for "curmodgeons" in Hibernia in DAoC.

I'm personally inclined to think that if they don't include summons for wizards then they find them to be viable without that ability, or more likely overpowered with it.

Now he's ignoring me, but several posts back he said he had done so already. And I quote... = On ignore, irrelevant. But, just as I said person feeds on conflict. Seems just having a thread about an idea makes certain psychological profiles go into neurotic episodes. They just cant stand there being a thread they dont like. That first bit is again, projection of his own condition on another. The second bit is a fabrication, as I never said anything about liking or disliking the thread. (Read: Diversion) And they get so whacked that after a few starting brainfarts they just go into full repeat mode, just to create enough garbage posts , because they really dont care why or what, its not like they have actual counter arguments or points, just dislike and they just want it all to stoooopp... Desperation breeds nonsensical statements that include vulgarity, or as near as he thinks he can get away with. It's not about care or not, he will twist it into whatever makes him appear to be correct. This is why I don't think he's 12, as was suggested. I see calculating behind his statements. Ive been watching that same dumb behavior online for dozen years now, so you might wanna imagine how slick and smart and stealthy such geniouses look to me. Again, everyone who doesn't live up to his standards is dumb, stupid or insert whatever word works here. That last bit is yet another reinforcement of his ego, as everyone is below him. This is a sad thing to see really... I'm not angry at all with him, I pity people like this because it's so rare that they can come out of this.

He's not hysterical, I'm reasonably certain he suffers from a personality disorder. He goes off on people for posting anything he personally can't find relevance in. He's combative and loves to accuse others of the behavior he himself is clearly exhibiting. IMO anyone who lives with or around him is put into positions where they "can't do anything right" as far as he's concerned. There clearly appears to be an ego problem that is deep rooted, as anyone who's thinking isn't 100% aligned with his is "stupid". You can't ever make peace with a person like this because their every move is specifically designed to prevent that as attacking other people is how they reflect their own superiority to themselves. That's why I posted something that showed well designed combat animations. Even though I do know it is an action game and not 100% aligned with what he was looking for, most people asking a similar question would have seen it and said, "Yea, like that only for the purpose I am talking about." Instead, he attacked... which highlights my point. You can't do anything correctly as far as he is concerned, no one can, they're all lesser creatures. Prediction: I now get attacked and accused of all kinds of things, assuming I'm not on ignore, which I doubt because a person like this need to feed that beast of an ego. But of course, that may come through proxy as well.

Actually, I think most of you missed the point of my question. This guy is feeling low, or at least it appears that way to me, and is reaching out. I was/am simply trying to give him a chance to be heard, because sometimes that's all it takes to make those kind of dark thoughts go away. And now I come back to a circus... My guess is that he's not going to post anymore in this thread. Mittani, eat your heart out.

This is the first I have heard about this and it's really damn interesting. So many times this kind of person makes me exclaim WTF?! Sure, I get a lil grumpy from time to time, but this type of person goes off like you insulted their deceased mother if you criticism something they're into. Well, someone actually did a scientific study on the behavior, and it explains a lot.

Why, precisely, is it that you're lonely? This is not me poking fun or being facetious, absolutely serious actually.

I linked it up to point out what it is... real time animations of the attacks, blocks, etc. And, hit or miss based on actual collision detection. The only western RPG I've seen do this, well that I have personal experience with is Legends of Aetherius, it was a Steam early access game that has since been abandoned by it's developers.

I'll just leave this here for you. No, it's not an argument thing.

Probably has to do with the shallow nature of it. How do NPCs know what my conjuration or enchanting skill is? How do they know I am in the Dark Brotherhood when it's a super secret society that kills you if you reveal its secrets? Why are they telling me they don't like those clunky two handed weapons either while they're wearing an iron greatsword on their back? Imagine if people passed Frodo on the road to Mordor and said, "Hey, I heard that you're carrying that horrid weapon of the enemy to Mt. Doom to destroy it... Good man!" <- That's what the writing in Skyrim is like. Which is why I really do wonder if the writer(s) finished highschool, or have read any sort of literature at all. Probably my biggest pet peeve in the game is this little gem: What have you got for sale?

There's plenty reason. Not having enough time. There's simply too many games in a backlog, why keep adding to it? At least you might get around to drinking that cup of coffee. If nothing else, it might just keep a developer or artists' seat in an office. Well, we hope...

LOL Well, you know David Firth didn't think his stuff would get any attention due to its edginess. No, no, that's dark, bizarre and disturbing... yea. Notch and Flappy Bird too! You just never know what's going to create the World of Warcraft effect.

Well, at least your avatar fits... I see you do love your own barking.