button bloat

[caffe_macchiato]

i justed wanted to tell SquareEnix that im happy your guys are working on this. my ideal class has 4-6 buttons for single target rotation, 1-2 for aoe, 1-2 cooldowns and the rest for other stuff like mount, role actions etc.

This is the only video game I’ve seen besides WoW that requires 20+ buttons just to kill something. It’s time for MMOs to break from WoW’s clutches. It’s 20 years old.

Many people love the 1-2-3 system because it provides a false sense of activity. You’re still pressing a static rotation, but your finger is in a slightly different spot. If people want that kind of combat, that’s fine, but many other games do it better.

The alternative is to make an engaging context-dependent combat system. Mechanics are more complicated because your rotation depends on the current state or location of the boss. That is far more complicated to implement, but perhaps we can reach a compromise. PvP has a context-dependent system and it works well. Perhaps PvE mechanics can become faster and require more mobility in exchange for auto-combo abilities?

Change is inconvenient and many people will love to stick to WoW’s system for the next 20 years (let’s make it last for 40). But if you’ve bought any game in 2022, you’d realize that something is missing and 1-2-3 just isn’t cutting it anymore.

[Averax]

snip

I...don't think you've ever played wow if you think it takes over 20 buttons to kill something there. They do more with less because of the 1.5 sec gcd, they have virtually no OGCD attacks. Over there the primary style is resource management, pooling and spending efficiently.

1-2-3 is a product of this game, wow has never done that.

Aside from a few exceptions, you don't have a whole lot of actual rotational buttons over there, a lot of your other buttons end up being utility. Stuns, roots, snares, buffs, non-damage debuffs, interrupts, movement abilities, and the like. I think some of the more rotationally bloated specs i've played have been unholy DK and affliction warlock... oh and holy priest. Holy priest has sooo many buttons.

[Zorvan]

This is the only video game I’ve seen besides WoW that requires 20+ buttons just to kill something. It’s time for MMOs to break from WoW’s clutches. It’s 20 years old.

Many people love the 1-2-3 system because it provides a false sense of activity. You’re still pressing a static rotation, but your finger is in a slightly different spot. If people want that kind of combat, that’s fine, but many other games do it better.

The alternative is to make an engaging context-dependent combat system. Mechanics are more complicated because your rotation depends on the current state or location of the boss. That is far more complicated to implement, but perhaps we can reach a compromise. PvP has a context-dependent system and it works well. Perhaps PvE mechanics can become faster and require more mobility in exchange for auto-combo abilities?

Change is inconvenient and many people will love to stick to WoW’s system for the next 20 years (let’s make it last for 40). But if you’ve bought any game in 2022, you’d realize that something is missing and 1-2-3 just isn’t cutting it anymore.

Everquest and Everquest II would melt your brain then.