We've Been Using Two Methods To Measure A Player's Skill, How About A New More Efficient Way?

[--Q--FrenchAussie]

Before I begin, I'd like to quickly add that this method of measure is not currently available in the stats but I really wish it was! Alright so here's the deal.

 

The mastery rank level and the amount of hours played through Warframe are the only two quick and easy ways to get a general presumption of a player's skill. It is not very accurate and a lot of players complain about how this does not state a player's knowledge on the game. Now, let me introduce you to my new and improved quick glance to decide if a player is generally good.

 

The amount of formas you have used! Yes, you heard me right and let me explain to you why I think that this should be in the stats of a player.

 

The beautiful thing about forma is it is easy to slot on. BUT, you have to put in a huge amount of effort to forma a weapon to its full capacity (usually around 5 or 6 forma and that's with all elemental damage mods on + raw damage with no status. This is a general build by the way).

 

Now here's the exciting part about this. We all complain about Draco, we all generally hear Draco and hate the guy who said it, yes. When we count the amounts of formas a player has used, it doesn't matter whether he's played Draco or not. Because the amount of formas he's used, if they are really high, means that he's either played Void Missions to get the forma (hence, not just draco alone) or payed it with plat.

 

Now I know what you're thinking, 'he could also just sell items to get his plat'. Well that's a cute story, but the thing is that no matter how many items you sell and how much plat you get, you will NEVER be able to forma a high amount with just that in a short amount of time (say a month). If he/she tries to rush it, he WILL be buying plat!

 

So why is this even important in the measure of a skill's player? Because if you've been doing that, you've already won me over! No regrets, no second guesses! You are the player I will choose to do an Elite mission like a Nightmare Raid! Because that tells me that you are experimenting with your weapons and that you are keen to improve! You're trying to find builds that suits you as a player! Which is awesome! If you are that guy that has a lot of forma used with a relatively short amount of time played in Warframe, thumbs up to you sir! It probably means you have a high MR.

 

Don't get the wrong idea though, I'm not saying that having a high MR on its own is a good thing. Only with the amount of formas used and the high MR are you considered a good player in my book. If this stat is ever introduced, I will never glance at the amount of hours a player has played Warframe ever again!

 

That's all I have to say. Feel free to let me know what your thoughts are on this!

[AdunSaveMe]

I've played almost a thousand hours on this account. I have numerous weapons, warframes and mods. I'm not the greatest player imaginable, but I'm certainly not bad. But I've used maybe a few dozen formae overall.

 

Why? Because I don't always have the time or desire to farm, and they take a full day to build.

 

Should I be left out of missions just because of this? Is that fair?

 

 

This is a great way to split the community further, and it's not really any more accurate than mastery rank, which, by the way, isn't accurate either, at least past a particular level. I've been sitting on a full affinity bar for mastery for almost a year now.

Edited July 29, 2015 by AdunSaveMe

[--Q--FrenchAussie]

I've played almost a thousand hours on this account. I have numerous weapons, warframe and mods. I'm not the greatest player imaginable, but I'm certainly not bad. But I've used maybe a few dozen formae overall.

 

Why? Because I don't always have the time or desire to farm, and they take a full day to build.

 

Should I be left out of missions just because of this? Is that fair?

 

 

This is a great way to split the community further, and it's not really any more accurate than mastery rank.

Honestly, if you don't forma you're missing out. There's not much else to say about this.

[Kamachi]

Lame.
I don't get this obsession with "skill."

"Oh look! I have a higher number beside my skill stat than you! HAHA YOU'RE A NOOB LELELELEL I'M BETTER THAN YOU LELELEL"

The above is usually what results from things like this, besides the "skill" of a player will be determined by how you measure it and some people will regard certain measurements as more important than others and vice versa.

It's nothing but a bragging right and do we really need more immature behaviour on MMO's?
 

[----AncientHunter----]

interesting  thread and i (❤) it

 

 

Accept the idea > ✔ <

[Larsurus]

So you want the guy with 1 forma on 100 weapons instead of the guy with 6 forma on 7 weapons?

[--Q--FrenchAussie]

Lame.

I don't get this obsession with "skill."

"Oh look! I have a higher number beside my skill stat than you! HAHA YOU'RE A NOOB LELELELEL I'M BETTER THAN YOU LELELEL"

The above is usually what results from things like this, besides the "skill" of a player will be determined by how you measure it and some people will regard certain measurements as more important than others and vice versa.

It's nothing but a bragging right and do we really need more immature behaviour on MMO's?

 

Let's be realistic, do you really think people will stop looking at stats before they recruit someone for a very hard mission? No, they will check out the player and see if he's worth joining. Some games are just not meant for some players and I think the community needs to stop taking it personally. You cannot be invited to difficult games if you haven't made an effort!

[-Kryptyk-]

I read one sentence and was like... dafuq?  This is even more inefficient as the current mastery rank... Here, let's judge skill by an extra trip to sechura.... gg.  game over.  you all are masters now.  

.

.

.

.

.

no.

[----AncientHunter----]

first of ALL i call all new blood Tennos as NEBIES not Noobs .. Skills and abilitys are major for all kind play styles 

 

 

its a ☠ of u think ur the only great player around

[-Kryptyk-]

interesting  thread and i (❤) it

 

 

Accept the idea > ✔ <

biased.

[AdunSaveMe]

Honestly, if you don't forma you're missing out. There's not much else to say about this.

But I do forma. I just don't do it constantly on every single weapon ever.

[Kamachi]

So you want the guy with 1 forma on 100 weapons instead of the guy with 6 forma on 7 weapons?

^ This.

[Zagrax]

Going to disagree. I've got some 2.2k steam hours, but I only forma the set of weapons and frames that I really use. My grakata (now my prisma), my detron (now the mara) and my galatine, which only really needed 1 forma. My carrier needed like 2. Forma used is really a poor determination of player skill. The void hands out forma like candy (I've literally gotten 6 forma on a t1 defense before) and getting into draco runs is stupid easy to forma something 5-6 times. 

[Acaelus]

...

I feel as though this is appropriate here:

 

Also it seems really silly. Just because a player has used 100 forma's, doesn't mean they've done it on something useful, or that they'll even be using it in the mission. Besides there's little difference between someone that used 15~ forma's on the right frame and weapons but has 200,000,000+ exp on those items and someone that used 2,000 forma's on random crap that they wont be bringing on the mission.

 

This literally just adds up to the exact same problem of using mastery rank and hours played, just because someone has a lot doesn't make it an accurate measurement of anything.

 

You want to know an even better way to accurately measure a players skill? Play with them, and measure their skill, in an actual gameplay scenario. If the person is doing horribly then don't invite them again, if they're doing well then add them and invite them again in future.

Besides everyone keeps acting as if there's some magical barrier that prevents them from telling a player how to do something so that said player can actually be of use to the group instead of telling them "Oh you don't have enough of arbitrary number Y to party with us, because we can't teach players to do this content. It requires at least 150 forma's to complete!".

[Habba]

That idea is kinda neat . But wouldn't it be better , to just See the amount of formas on her/his current gear ? You know it doesn't really matter if Mr 7 , if , for example , his/her saryn has been farma'd 3 times , it probably is a very specific build . But just seeing in the stats the overall used forma would be kinda interesting .

[alfaomega04]

Don't like it.

 

Goes back to xp farming. I would rather have someone who went through phobos adding a forma here or there than have someone who sat in draco inside a bubble and got 6 forma on their weapon in six runs. 

 

Also, if someone likes a very specific type of loadout and are extremely good with it, it would basically put them at the bottom of this new "skill pyramid". 

 

Best way I've found to gather an experienced party for the longer runs is to require corrosive projection as anyone going into the highest endless missions is already running this anyway. 

[Zagrax]

However, in addition to the weapons rank in the team UI, it'd be neat to see forma stars or something, so if I see a 5-6 star boltor prime or something, at least I know they brought a weapon that can carry their weight.

[AdunSaveMe]

It's nothing but a bragging right and do we really need more immature behaviour on MMO's?

lf5m nm LoR 55k forma score link achievement

However, in addition to the weapons rank in the team UI, it'd be neat to see forma stars or something, so if I see a 5-6 star boltor prime or something, at least I know they brought a weapon that can carry their weight.

And then have people kicked, left out or blacklisted because the host doesn't agree with their weapon or amount of formae? That's not a very good idea either. Especially when forma count isn't the ultimate decider.

[--Q--FrenchAussie]

...

I feel as though this is appropriate here:

 

Also it seems really silly. Just because a player has used 100 forma's, doesn't mean they've done it on something useful, or that they'll even be using it in the mission. Besides there's little difference between someone that used 15~ forma's on the right frame and weapons but has 200,000,000+ exp on those items and someone that used 2,000 forma's on random crap that they wont be bringing on the mission.

 

This literally just adds up to the exact same problem of using mastery rank and hours played, just because someone has a lot doesn't make it an accurate measurement of anything.

 

You want to know an even better way to accurately measure a players skill? Play with them, and measure their skill, in an actual gameplay scenario. If the person is doing horribly then don't invite them again, if they're doing well then add them and invite them again in future.

Besides everyone keeps acting as if there's some magical barrier that prevents them from telling a player how to do something so that said player can actually be of use to the group instead of telling them "Oh you don't have enough of arbitrary number Y to party with us, because we can't teach players to do this content. It requires at least 150 forma's to complete!".

You're telling me that I won't be looking at MR at all if he has high forma?? Let's be realistic! Everyone will notice a player with a few weapons leveled and a huge amount of forma used. That's shown in the equipment tab!

[EagleHawkz25]

I have seen somewhere on forum that people measure someone  skill by seeing his / her cipher solved number

Edited July 29, 2015 by EagleHawkz25

[AdunSaveMe]

So wait, if I used all my forma on one weapon to change a polarity to D and back again a hundred times and filled the slots with things like hush, you'd choose me over the guy who used three formae to put in his own favourite mod loadout?

[[DE]Artarrwen]

So why is this even important in the measure of a skill's player? Because if you've been doing that, you've already won me over! No regrets, no second guesses! You are the player I will choose to do an Elite mission like a Nightmare Raid! Because that tells me that you are experimenting with your weapons and that you are keen to improve! You're trying to find builds that suits you as a player! Which is awesome! If you are that guy that has a lot of forma used with a relatively short amount of time played in Warframe, thumbs up to you sir! It probably means you have a high MR.

Or I just went to warframe builder and copied a popular build without much thought because somebody told me to.

 

If you are that guy that has a lot of forma used with a relatively short amount of time played in Warframe, thumbs up to you sir! It probably means you have a high MR

Or I just got power leveled on Draco because, again, I was told to.

There is no correlation between forma and player's skill, much less causation.

 

[(PSN)IIIDevoidIII]

I feel this is an even worse indicator compared to hours played, but who can really tell?

Can we do kills? No, because kills can be farmed in low level missions like candy, and is the guy who CC's the entire enemy platoon, rounds them up, and gets them to be sitting ducks for the rest of his team, not skillful?

Mastery Rank? Nope, already determined that this is a terrible measurement, no need to repeat the reasons.

Forma? Heck no. This is as good a measure as kills. This may help determine power, but skill? I wouldn't entirely mind an indicator next to a weapon name displaying forma amounts, but I'd also mind having standards on forma usage.

I don't need to forma most of my frames, and that's just how it is.

Mod rating? Again, about as good as kills.

Hours played? About the best indicator there is. Time builds experience, whether good or bad, and presents itself in map knowledge, familiarity of mechanics, general understanding of the game and how it is played.

I probably say this a lot in these forums, but The Last of Us does a lot of things right, and one of the things it does right is determine player level by how many matches they've played in multiplayer It isn't perfect, but you'll generally see the higher leveled ones at the top of the board, and the lower leveled ones at the bottom.

All this level means is time played. There is near no change in power once you are around level 24, so a level 50 can be generally determined as less skillful than a level 150, and it almost always shows in the scoreboard.

Basically, if you want a rough way to determine player skill their hours played is what you want to look at.

The meta of what is noob versus what is established/veteran/pro is something the community would need to learn the trends of. A 30d player is probably as skillful as a 50d player.

That's a long time to learn mechanics.

This is one of the reasons there is a rough time requirement for GotL. It is our best indicator to determine if this person is knowledgeable at a glance.

Employers tend to not care at how many places you worked, and more so how long you worked there.

A man who has been teaching for 40 years is likely better at teaching than a person recently graduated.

It's a natural trend we see everywhere and we can apply here.

[Cydro_]

Honestly, there is no real use to mastery rank in it's current state, and I don't see a single solution that will be accurate/non-exploitable. All my friends and I use it for is to brag/race, and that's just messing around as friends ;3

Edited July 29, 2015 by Cydro_

[Xico.xide]

If this stat is ever introduced, I will never glance at the amount of hours a player has played Warframe ever again!

I thought you wanted a "more accurate interpretation" of how good a player is (even though the idea you presented doesn't show any imo). 

The fact that you say you'll never look at how long that person has played ever, tells me you'd rather choose a recent player

who has only

• • played for about 3 weeks
  • forma'd about 26 of his weapons (atleast) once
  • forma'd atleast 1-2 of his warframes once
  • doesn't know all the mechanics of the game
  • doesn't have very many rare/good mods
  • doesn't help teammates very much
  • Is Rank 6

instead of the player who

•  

  • has played 400+ hours
  • only forma'd 1% of his/her entire inventory
  • has actual good mods (example: Virulent Scourge + Voltaic Strike)
  • actually knows what he/she is doing and knows the all mechanics
  • helps out teammates
  • is Rank 15

Edited July 29, 2015 by Xicio