Ideas to bring more Newbies in

[omnomnom]

1. Starting Gun

 

In the last item set you started with Pulse laser, a lvl 2 gun. Then it was in fact, the highest DPS bouncing gun in the game. Now you start with Pea Shooter, and Pulse Laser or Gamma Ray, while still strong guns, are still outclassed by Positron Gun in DPS. Now Positron Gun is a signature yes, but if you made Warbirds and Javelins start with Gamma Ray at least maybe it'd make it easier on the newbies.

 

Of course you could then say, "But Gamma Ray is a mere 2 kills away in EXP!" Well, thats true, but we have money to consider as well. What if a newbie didn't save all their cash, and did something like buy Inertial Damper? Now they get to wait longer. Oh, but then you say, "I'll just give the newbie free money!" Well ok so you do, but does that mean you ignore this balance idea instead? Its either that or they get into a flag game, where kills are much easier. And that doesn't happen all the time.

 

Basically, I am saying the starting gun is, at least in one way, worst then it used to be. Pulse Laser used to be both strong and efficient; while it hasn't been entirely nerfed from that status there is now signatures that may very well do better, like Trap Laser and Positron Gun, or Sharppinger in center. Not to mention you don't in fact start with Pulse Laser, but Pea Shooter, whose lower DPS doesn't exactly help a stock ship, who has little else to fall back on anyway (compared to fully built ships). I know, "Starter Kit", you say... as if that answers everything, and newbies are obviously only lacking in skill because of it. However, I disagree; I think DPS is a better fallback for a newbie, who is assumingly not as good at playing Hyperspace anyway. I think DPS is like the base defense of your ship: the easiest thing to fall back on, for I think it is the most skill less thing to rely on, and therefore, the most highest likelihood of getting a kill in. Movement takes more then one button if you wish to not fly in a straight line, guns take only 1 button to use.

 

2. Obtaining Repels and Bursts

 

I think one of the keys to successful rushing, especially in a small ship with low energy (like newbies), is Repels and Bursts. It used to be, in the item set before current, that at the lower requirement of 75 EXP, and after obtaining $7500, you would be able to obtain the item which would give you repels and bursts. Now, it is $15000 and 1600 exp. The problem here is that this essential mount for adequate rushing, once possibly 13 or so kills away (and maybe someone's free money giveaway), is now at least 160 kills off.

 

What if we had newbies who could rush however...? Instead of handing them a single repel with the newbie mount, get rid of the protect mount (has no bursts anyway) and, for example, put the Defense Mount in its place, with the same price, and the same amount of exp, as the current Protect Mount.

 

There are no "stronger repels" or "stronger bursts" at the signature level here. Once a newbie gets their hands on this mount, they should be capable of being at least half-decent. And their lower exp in the balancing system would even help compensate for the rest, right?

 

Or just make newbie mount have a free burst too, without changing anything else. Even that may help (although 2 repels and bursts would probably help better). If we want to promote rushing, how about we lower the EXP requirement. Unless you have another plan that makes newbies rush...

 

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Basically, what am I trying to say? That game mechanics may be part of keeping newbies in. Before we decide its always the community's fault, lets look at the facts: the game. Make it easier to gun and allow newbies to actually rush. Perhaps that would help keep more newbies in the game, or at least, those who stick around long enough to figure out how to buy a ship.

[Cheese]

yeah, thats just what the zone needs

more idiots abusing broken game mechanics

[spittnacid]

Aside from cheese's remark, this is an excellent post