Praise For The Praiseworthy

[Wyrd42]

It occurs to me, amidst the many rantings and ravings, some sane, others less so, that we sometimes fail to tell the developers what we DO like.  It is my hope that this thread can be used to comment on the positive aspects we would like to keep around or see more of.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a firm believer in constructive criticism, but only commenting on the downsides leaves the artists and programmers flailing to find bits that nobody bothered to rant about.

 

I've only been playing for about a month, so this is my first big update.  While there were aspects I dislike, I absolutely love the hives.  Their design, mixing deformed organics growing through the structure of a twisted wreck, evokes Gigeresque nightmares.  Before this, I never really saw the infested as a faction in its own right.  Now, we can truly experience the infestation.  I would love to see more of this, more growths in infestation missions, and maybe a variety of mission where we have to hunt down and destroy the heart of an outbreak in ways reminiscent of the current hives.

 

Phorid.  His design, his intent and character, make for an interesting boss.  My only real problem is that he is currently the only infestation boss.  Give us more!  Give us deformities that twist and writhe, standing on the precipice of insanity, waiting to push us in!  If you want the infestation to seem intelligent, we need more examples of it in game.  Without looking up story elements in the forum, they seem mindlessly destructive, essentially a zombie army interested only in spreading their infection as far and wide as possible.

 

For older stuff, I love the sheer variety of frame's, mods' and through them, playstyles, really helps to make this a viable game, well deserving of our little contributions--when we can manage them, at least.  I'd like to see more of the story interwoven with the game.  As far as I'm concerned, if it is apart from the game, it isn't part of the game.  It might as well be fanfiction*.  Please, in your efforts to refine the mechanics of the game, remember the aesthetics and concepts that help it be more than just a game.

 

I hope that's positive enough.  I know I have other thoughts on the matter, and a rather lengthy suggestion on realism coagulating in the dark recesses of my mind, but right now, nothing is coming forth.

 

*Which, admittedly, I read a lot of.

[bejuizb]

Very astutely put. Let me try to alleviate a few "observations" about this game's community: people tend to form judgments based on their very first glance. Or they simply parrot. The negative to positive thread is overwhelming, and I have to commend you for making one.

[Letter13]

A well thought out and written post.

 

I too would like to see more story involving the infested and the Technocyte plague. And I definitely love the Hive missions and the mystery/lore surrounding Alad V branching off into biotech.

[Wyrd42]

To add something I didn't think of earlier, I'd like to say that I like the appearance of the corrupted drone, and applaud it as a needed addition to the too melee focused infestation.  Mechanically speaking, I loathe it, but that can be fixed.  The appearance and intent are well executed.  

 

I would like to see more flying units, preferably something more organic in appearance.  If you want to make it clear that whatever it is is a naturally occurring flying creature, you could always add a non infested version on any of the worlds with non ship/station missions.  

 

I also feel a unit with a ranged attack would help balance out some of their exploitable weaknesses.  My suggestion is something that appears like a porcupine that runs to a spot, hunkers down, and starts flicking the spines at us.  This helps to maintain the organic theme of the infestation and makes the new unit a valuable addition to the game, not just a new skin on an old program.

 

Edit: 

 

A suggestion for the infested drones:  Instead of making them do a set amount of damage, make the damage cumulative, i.e. the longer you stay in them the more damage they do.  This fits with the game mechanics that show that the Tenno are dependent on processed environmental air.  Since they have a limited amount of time they can safely seal their frames off from their environment, this could represent the filters having more and more difficulty coping with the toxic clouds, a condition that could clear over time spent in clear air.

Edited June 23, 2014 by Wyrd42

[Tigercloud]

Good topic. Here's my addition to it.

 

I think DE has almost arrived at perfect balance (such as it exists) for Volt, Ember, and Banshee. While everyone makes suggestions based on how they'd like to see their favorite frame tweaked, from many people's observations Volt is the gold standard for a balanced frame. The electric shield change, which honestly I thought wasn't enough at the time, has basically rounded out Volt and polished all the edges. He is now equipped with two reliable stuns, an excellent utility skill in speed which also helps melee builds, and electric shield which is an excellent tactical finisher allowing both defense and offense.

 

I wouldn't go so far as to say that Banshee and Ember are as balanced as Volt, but they are really close. Banshee's Silence change took what has long been a useless skill and at least made it worth slotting, while the toggle change on Soundquake makes it an extremely effective CC tool. Ember's only weak point at the moment is Fire Blast, which needs some tweaking, but the synergy of her fire skills with Accelerant allows her to use her direct damage abilities into high tier missions, while giving her a useful CC tool. A small change to Fire Blast, perhaps a tweak to World on Fire, and she's good to go too.

 

I think it really needs to be recognized that DE has more or less succeeded in completely balancing some frames, and that's important; it gives us a frame of reference around which to balance the rest of the Warframes. From there, the game can grow. Anyways, I want to applaud DE for the work they've done in this regard, particularly when the changes were unpopular with the community. The Nova and Trinity changes were much needed, and I've been having a great time playing Trinity for the first time. Personally I think she's still a bit too powerful of a frame, but that's just me. Her toolset is AMAZING.

[reltats]

Phorid.  His design, his intent and character, make for an interesting boss.  My only real problem is that he is currently the only infestation boss.

 

 

>.>

<.<

>.>

 

Did Lephantis stop being infested when I wasn't looking?

Hes hidden behind a key, which you have to use other keys to get the golem nav coordinates for. So its understandable to never play/forget him

Edited June 23, 2014 by reltats

[Renegade343]

Yes, there are quite a few things that DE has done well on Warframe (the art, some events, some weaponry/Warframe etc.), and some that DE would need to improve on (weapon re-balancing, RNG etc.). The thing is to strike a balance between the two, and think critically about each aspect in the game. 

[Hearthwin]

Honestly. Despite everyone hating on RNG. I REALLY LOVE IT. I LOVE NOT KNOWING WHAT I'M GONNA GET. I LOVE THAT I HAVE TO DO IT OVER AND OVER TO GET SOMETHING! I really want the game to be a bit more random. Mods are fine, but it would be really cool if you were playing and all of a sudden you see a purple orb and its something besides an Oberon part. THE RNG IS GREAT! KEEP IT UP!

[reltats]

Honestly. Despite everyone hating on RNG. I REALLY LOVE IT. I LOVE NOT KNOWING WHAT I'M GONNA GET. I LOVE THAT I HAVE TO DO IT OVER AND OVER TO GET SOMETHING! I really want the game to be a bit more random. Mods are fine, but it would be really cool if you were playing and all of a sudden you see a purple orb and its something besides an Oberon part. THE RNG IS GREAT! KEEP IT UP!

 

If done right RNG can be great. This is in "loot porn" games when this is the case.

At the moment Warframe is not loot porn. It would be interesting to see it become loot porn (if done right)