Required Class/Rank failed - Can we have Optimal Rank and Favoured Class back?

[ellohwell]

Even Yoshida said it would be easier to balance with the Required system.

He said that because he knew everyone would lap it up despite it making no sense as a reason. I already enumerated the reasons why this point is invalid a million times over in this thread.

An optimal system that scales down according to class is by definition self-balancing anyway. So even if materia didn't screw balance all to hell by itself, there wouldn't be validity to the claim anyway.

It's a facile conclusion to say optimal was imbalanced, and by extension, that required is more balanced.

[ellohwell]

While I think these sorts of restrictions are silly, I would be mostly okay with it if we had some sort of appearance system to counteract the loss of character appearance customizability (is that a word?).

But then that's basically just the Optimal system without any of the intelligent design involved... lol

But, yeah, I agree, at least it satisfies the RP community, which solves one of the numerous problems with restrictive rank and level system.

[Nakiamiie]

Wow. If they have to resort to slapping restrictions on everything to create goals for people, they need to try harder. I don't mean this like "oh SE sucks" I mean this like "wearing gear isn't a worthwhile goal".

There are more important things you could be doing than fussing over gear which is basically all just the same anyway. Besides, I could have all R50s and completed every quest and beat every boss and still change weapons and end up naked.

As for the balance issue, I can put one materia on a robe and make it better than full plate so maybe "balance" isn't such a good soap box to use to convey your message.



"too bad"

That's exactly right. It's just plain bad.

I totally agree with ellohwell on this issue.
Keep your goal-oriented content for things really prestigious, not everyday gear.

[Answa]

We do! You still have your dated gear, amirite?

[Nakiamiie]

An optimal system that scales down according to class is by definition self-balancing anyway.

I just wanted to point that out, it really important to understand this point in order to understand why we support optimal level (and favoured class by extension).

Also, people's main reason for not liking the optimal is to stop looking at other players wearing gear above their level... well, we could say the same about players wearing gears BELOW their level.
In that case, you why aren't you fighting for having and upper level cap too? It wouldn't make sense right? Because the lower level gear balances itself by not being optimal in stats for the higher level player. Well, that's EXACTLY what the optimal level did with gear above your level, it was balancing it out.
For example, with the optimal level, I was able to wear my new armours 2 level sooner and it gave me the SAME stats as the gear I'd been wearing for 5 levels already. So, why stick with that old gear when my new one would get better by itself when leveling up the two remaining levels?

[Jennestia]

I just wanted to point that out, it really important to understand this point in order to understand why we support optimal level (and favoured class by extension).

Also, people's main reason for not liking the optimal is to stop looking at other players wearing gear above their level...

I've never seen this as a main argument against it -- What I have seen as an argument against it is because it is actually silly being able to wear absolutely anything at anytime, the main people who were absolutely for this system are RPers because they could make their character look how they wanted, stats aside -- On a game level, Yoshida even agreed it would be too hard to balance that and content, especially dropped gear.

Required Level - Easier to balance.

Optimal Level - You need to create an algorithm to scale every single stat accordingly, including make it give "zero" stats, which makes it more complicated than it needs to be, which is also why they did the color change system the way they did for now. Remember, he took over a mess of a game and has to fix it, he even stated the calculations for Protect and Shell for example were needlessly complex.

In order to fix things in game development, it's not a crime to simplify the foundation.

[mysterytaru]

Here's another point for the whiners like gifthorse to ponder. Why has thread, or the last thread on this, managed to last as long as it has? It's a null point because the system as it was is not coming back. Period. It has already been declared and decided as a fixed point by Yoshi. Crying about it won't change it now. He's stated his position on this. I'm done with this thread because you're never gonna get it through your QQing brains that Tanaka's game is dead and the remnants are carefully being cut away with every update. The game is better for it. Either suck it up, or quit. Good day.

[Alerith]

Elohwell is just butthurt he can't wear red cobalt on his level 1 woodworking class.

[Tiraelina]

I've never seen this as a main argument against it -- What I have seen as an argument against it is because it is actually silly being able to wear absolutely anything at anytime, the main people who were absolutely for this system are RPers because they could make their character look how they wanted, stats aside -- On a game level, Yoshida even agreed it would be too hard to balance that and content, especially dropped gear.

Required Level - Easier to balance.

Optimal Level - You need to create an algorithm to scale every single stat accordingly, including make it give "zero" stats, which makes it more complicated than it needs to be, which is also why they did the color change system the way they did for now. Remember, he took over a mess of a game and has to fix it, he even stated the calculations for Protect and Shell for example were needlessly complex.

In order to fix things in game development, it's not a crime to simplify the foundation.

You sound like Blizzard making everything out to be way more overcomplicated than it is in reality. All new gear is already following a scale that has already been established to make it in the first place.

Elohwell is just butthurt he can't wear red cobalt on his level 1 woodworking class.

If you took a moment to stop trolling you would see the problems with lower level gear and the gaps if you want to keep using the same type. There's absolutely nothing to fill in the 10 level gaps without using an entirely different type of gear which is really bad game design.

The entire system feels like we only have a small fraction of items that should be there.

[Dreamer]

It doesn't have to be complicated.

More than three levels below, you receive 0 stat benefit from the item.
3 levels below: 25% stat benefit.
2 levels below: 50% stat benefit.
1 level below: 75% stat benefit.
At level and above: 100% stat benefit.

If an item doesn't favor your class, there's an additional 25% penalty added on top of the above. I can't imagine this would be that hard to implement, and it shouldn't mess up balance. If the itemization is done right, At three levels below you're better off wearing another item, while at one level below the new item is better.