Quinn duffy's 5 year plan and War Spoil Extravaganza

Jump back to quoted post10 Sep 2015, 14:14 PMHirmetrium

My problem with war spoils is that you have no way to positively influence the drops and what you get. In addition, we were promised changes to improve it - instead they have added a million more things, which never drop because we constantly get duplicates.

Nobody likes grinding - everybody likes a target. The old system provided that - the new system doesn't. It's a proper carrot on stick solution, and when your USF and one of the most playable late game commanders is paid for/unlockable... it kills enjoyment.

And then you have duplicates - they are completely useless. You can't use them to "reroll" or have a second shot at the RNG or a trade for another war spoils drop, or exchange them into ingame currency...

Which brings me to my next point - does anybody remember or play Advance wars? Commanders were earned in their challenge or pre-requsite mission, then bought with currency you had to earn through multiple matches. The basic commanders were very good (unlike say, the US forces, some of the Soviet ones). COH2 could of done so, so much better with a system like this. Cheap little intel bulletins, more expensive ones, skins, topped off with Commanders requiring lots of currency. Command and Conquer Generals, a game centered around unique styling of an existing faction, gave you all of them from the start.

The current system is microtransaction/partly pay to win based, which puts a bad taste in players mouths, and it isn't fun to use or exciting to see the (duplicate) rewards.

British forces highlights the problem further - three of the commanders, one of which contains three wholy unique units (air landing officer, medics, crocodile churchill) and a fourth soft unit (PIAT commandos who swap guns) with another having unique infantry section with AT rifles, are locked behind a paywall. That's a lot of content to lock up, especially after just springing for the game. Getting three basic ones buying the game sucks compared to the number OKW and Soviets had on release. Why not just include them in the price of it?

More than fixing war spoils, we need new commanders and an overhaul for the existing ones. The content system is starved (which is why it gives you nothing) and desperately needs new commanders in it. Some of the existing ones need reworking to be... useful. Or even fun. Then people will be excited for the drops.

The last nail in the coffin is Relic's recent description of the system - "progression" - there is nothing "progressive" about war spoils. It's a slot machine. Playing the lottery is more fun. I don't understand the insistence of making us all chronic gamblers.

I respect and like Duffy a lot - I was completely sold when he originally described bulletins to me. But the design of war spoils is one of the most awful, addictive, terrible mechanics I've seen in an RTS or almost any game to date. I didn't sign up to play Diablo. I signed up to blow my opponent up, and recently Relic are stopping me from using a churchill crocodile to do that.

People say "just pay for them omg!" - Yeah, I thought I did, ONCE, when I preordered the British forces. I wasn't anticipating having to pay again to get some of the iconic units I used in COH1 again in COH2.

If Relic are going to keep war spoils I wish they would hurry up and make COH2 free to play. That's clearly what it's geared towards.

Jump back to quoted post10 Sep 2015, 23:50 PMFrencho

And here I am sitting with 5 Ostruppen commanders and about 4 faster Jagditger dispatch bulletins (That has to be an inside joke).

Buying a commander just to have it dropped for free a couple of games later is a slap to the face, but hey it could be sweetened by:

Giving us something to do with the massive fuckton of duplicate bulletins, skins, commander we currently have.
Exchange them, trade them or craft 3 items into 1 one and so on; I'm slowly but surely reaching the 1000 cap with over 700 items...

That would please most of us.

Jump back to quoted post10 Sep 2015, 22:50 PMDonnieChan

"with different war spoils i surely would have won that match"

---no one ever---

Jump back to quoted post11 Sep 2015, 04:49 AMDr. Green Thumb

There is no point to XP. I mean, it's just an "amount I've played this game" tracker, which you can do by looking at the person's steam ID. Why not display the opponent's 1v1 rank or something useful.

Jump back to quoted post11 Sep 2015, 04:49 AMDr. Green Thumb

I have over 300 hours in CoH2, mostly 1v1, and I have never received a commander. Just dumb bulletins for units I never use. I don't mind so much but the duplicates thing has to go. I loved in the beginning you just unlocked things through XP.

There is no point to XP. I mean, it's just an "amount I've played this game" tracker, which you can do by looking at the person's steam ID. Why not display the opponent's 1v1 rank or something useful.