[Dev Request] Enhancements to Frontlines and Matchmaking
[Increase Secure and Slaughter to level 60 cap]
With the introduction of level 60 Seal Rock, Secure and Slaughter modes have been dead for a long time. Frontlines could use some variety and a way to bring these modes back, as some have previously requested, would be to increase their level cap to 60.
[Frontlines Playlist]
Another way to bring these older modes back would be a "playlist" queue through duty finder. This would be similar to the "Strike Playlist" in Destiny. You queue for "Frontlines Playlist" and the duty finder server would run games cycled through all 3 Frontlines modes. Once a Seal Rock match is completed, the game prompts you if you would like to stay in the playlist. If so, you return back to the world queued in duty finder again with priority to be placed in the next match while it fills out the rest of the match roster (if any players choose not to remain in the playlist.) Then it will begin the next match in Secure and then once more in Slaughter if you chose to stay in the playlist again, then cycle back to Seal Rock. This would also allow players to keep playing matches consecutively by choosing to stay in the playlist and eliminate 30 min-1 hour queues. Obviously there would be longer queues to get into the playlist itself but once you were in, there would be more non-stop action rather than the constant 10-15 minutes of fun, 40+ minutes of waiting. One of the biggest impediments to players getting into Frontlines is the long queues. If you were able to play matches consecutively with less waiting I think more players would have a desire to participate in Frontlines.
[Queue as Free Agent]
The greatest factor in high queue times is the disparity in population between GC's. Maelstrom (at least on my data center) has the highest population, and therefore the worst queues, while Immortal Flames have the shortest queues and the lowest population. If you allowed a solo player to queue as a "free agent" as an option through duty finder for Frontlines it would place them in queue with the GC in most need of players to fill a match. Players queued as free agents would not earn win total credit for their GC related achievements if they won a match in another GC (maybe still allow credit towards ADS mount?) but this would be the trade-off for shorter queue times. Optional whether dev's wish to allow premades to queue as free agents. You can make up whatever crazy lore reason you want for this, no one plays PVP for the lore, they play it for the action.
[New Frontlines Modes]
In future development of new frontlines modes, please focus on making 24vs24 matches instead of 24v24v24 matches and eliminate GC based PVP. Three-way game modes make it nearly impossible to win if one GC decides to ignore the team currently in first place in favor of endlessly fighting the one in 2nd or 3rd the entire match over some grudge or general stupidity. This kind of behavior seems to happen a lot and is very frustrating.
24 vs 24 capture the flag or bombing run style matches would grant each side equal chance of victory rather than subjecting them to the possibility that a third team would act against even their own self interests by only focusing one GC the entire match, essentially fighting for 2nd place.