Controversioal Changes to Monk

[dezzmont]

The complaints about Bootshine are sorta the exact point I am making. Thematics and mechanics are often actually pretty clearly linked and pretending they are some opposing, or non-complementary elements, is very silly, when in reality thematics exist to heighten appeal and sell you on what is happening mechanically, and make it actually something the average person will care about. This is something any game designer worth their salt cares about a lot: If your themematic elements, sound design, visual design, and mechanics aren't working all towards the same goal, you screwed up. You don't 'sacrifice mechanics to do good thematics.' None are 'lower priority' than the other, because they are all part of the same package that creates a game's "Gamefeel."

Heck, there are games that experiment with deliberately screwing this up to make the experience unpleasant or offputting. Cruelty Squad immediately comes to mind, and its weapons actively feel... upsetting to use due to their animations and sounds not really matching how they 'should.'

Bootshine spam is a perfect example because it is both a mechanical and almost the same thing mechanically as just spamming Fell Cleave, but with some extra wiggling on the flank, two buttons, and some weaving sometimes. It isn't exactly the same, but its mechanical function is pretty much the same. You hit a button to activate a mode that lets you spam your best attack for a bit. Burst Phase ability, very common among the jobs. Why is Fell Cleave loved and Bootshine Spam bad? Because its on an ability that doesn't feel good to spam, because its already part of your rotation and its animation is... not designed to be a capstone ability.

If PB instead let monks suddenly smash a totally seperate ability that was... IDK... a Kenshiro style infinite punch smackdown where every attack came with a little mini explosion, ending with a bigger one... would the job be functionally different? No. Would it be better and more popular and feel at least somewhat better? We can ask Automation Queen on that one: Yes! Even though the MCH rework is kinda not great at the very least playing MCH doesn't feel totally limp.

Don't get me wrong at all: you don't need to make a job literally everyone will like playing at high level, or ignore the mechanical crunch and sweep it under the rug with good visual and sound design, and making the rotation have a 'big meme button to release the dopamine' (I think MCH being kinda 'meh' is what happens when you just focus on making sure a job has a ton of "Release Dopamine" buttons, and hopefully whatever comes for Monk is going to be mechanically interesting). But you definitely need some of that "Final Fantasy Polish" where your going through your rotation sweating as you approach THAT MOMENT of it, the REASON you are playing that job.