Idea: Allowing Spectators in Dungeons

[Azzi]

I think this is a great idea. I ran events with my ls in 1.0 and we often had a situation of people having to sit out. It wasn't so bad with primal battles, but dungeon raids took much longer, especially when we was learning the dungeon and used up the full time limit. It wasn't always fair on the people who had to sit out and people would get bored and do something else, and rightly so. This idea keeps them involved, genius

[carlosx]

i know this is going to help the over all game and increment the "immersion" to a decent level.

but there are mistakes on the passed games of SE they for sure dont want to make it again like RDM NIN Dynamics Sky

this why i like the Game structure oriented to make full pt sets totaly need to workout the performance of boss like Garuda ifrit mogle, where full pt on Right Set-up is need and no leech is allowed

i mentioned RDM and NIN as a mistake cos: SE passed 10years trying to rebalance this jobs and they still un-finish lol

this why a Icon job as rdm dont come on the launch they need time to see how spells workout and run many simulations
as i see on the Alpha Dugenons are more interactive and they dificulty is fun but at the same time, still keep they "magic"

also i have a idea for SE about balance Instances,

make some Roaming mobs like Sentinels and add variable timers to then to walk run or stan on diference positions this make people workout Tactics undergoing because have same sets of mobs on same place every-time is bored
just add some variables to make it interesting
also add Hard-mode to the instances, and a quest inside on Extreme mode

ty

[SidRheingold]

Roaming mobs might possibly lead to problems though, when fallen party members have to return to the entrance and run back to the party.

That being said, the spectator idea is wonderful! Many good ideas in this thread.

[Laraul]

Considering that more time is often spent trying to form groups for instanced dungeons than playing thru them, I don't see the appeal. It sounds neat. But it's an MMO with tons to keep people busy. So people are more likely to craft or exp then watch another group play thru a dungeon that you are unable to participate in.

Spectators wouldn't be able to see party chat either. Without a way to communicate with the group or know what they are saying to each other, it seems kind of silly. You'd watch and have no idea what the plan of attack is.

[Kirito]

Oh and another part to add to this idea. Spectators cannot walk through walls or barriers. If the actual team hasn't released a barrier, spectators have to wait till they do to cross it. If all the party members have died and all went to the entrance then all spectators should be prompt to see if they also want to go to the entrance or stay where they are. (since mobs eventually do respawn so it may eventually be a good fight). And finally once the dungeon is finished the spectators have about 10 seconds to leave on there own, run around or chat before they are forced out of the dungeon. (This also prevents spectators from looking at areas before the group went there and give them a heads up.)

[Pseudopsia]

I'll add first part as is. 2nd part I'll modify like this because I don't think any free exploration should be allowed to figure out dungeon secrets: Once all party members leave dungeon the remaining spectators will be locked in place, notified they will be removed from instance after X seconds and can leave on their own during this time.

[Kirito]

I'll add first part as is. 2nd part I'll modify like this because I don't think any free exploration should be allowed to figure out dungeon secrets: Once all party members leave dungeon the remaining spectators will be locked in place, notified they will be removed from instance after X seconds and can leave on their own during this time.

Ok sounds good.

[OdynKorsai]

I actually really like the idea of this. I remember many times running dungeons or even primal fights with linkshell mates and having to sit out for long periods of time while members cycle in and out. Yes it's true that we often sat and crafted or did other things, but this would add an interesting alternative. I think it would be great to give the party leader control on who can/cannot spectate, just as if he were inviting into the party itself. Perhaps limit the number of viewers available so it doesn't become too excessive, and maybe make it so that once the instance has already started no more spectators can be added. This would eliminate any annoyance on the party leader during the actual instance. As far as how it would be viewable... I personally picture it like many FPS games do after you die and you're waiting to spawn. See the game the same way the people running it. Allow the spectators to view one of the available party members. So say I'm a CNJ/WHM, I could view from the party healer's standpoint and get that perspective. No free floating camera or ability to move, so no real way to cheat or anything. Give the player the ability to toggle through available party members so if they want to they can change views and get different perspectives. As far as battle log and other UI aspects being visible to spectators... I think some are a given. The Map obviously would help so the spectators can also see the layout while running through dungeons. Battle Log I could argue either way as on or off... Perhaps add options in an individuals menu. What to allow/disallow while being spectated? Map on/off, Battle Log on/off, Action Bar(s) on/off etc?

Anyway... looking forward to seeing how this thread progresses and all the interesting ideas that are being thrown out

[KaiTBF]

mananana
I personally picture it like many FPS games do after you die and you're waiting to spawn. See the game the same way the people running it. Allow the spectators to view one of the available party members. So say I'm a CNJ/WHM, I could view from the party healer's standpoint and get that perspective. No free floating camera or ability to move, so no real way to cheat or anything. Give the player the ability to toggle through available party members so if they want to they can change views and get different perspectives.

yadayada

I agree, this method is simple, straightforward, and hard to abuse.

[Pseudopsia]

As far as battle log and other UI aspects being visible to spectators... I think some are a given. The Map obviously would help so the spectators can also see the layout while running through dungeons. Battle Log I could argue either way as on or off... Perhaps add options in an individuals menu. What to allow/disallow while being spectated? Map on/off, Battle Log on/off, Action Bar(s) on/off etc?

I don't see map as being prevented from viewing it. However, if the map is being filled in as the party explores the spectator should be limited to exactly what the party can view.

Viewing battle log and action bar first needs to be granted permission by the party leader. I'm not sure of the benefit of having fine controls for the individual party members if I'm understanding that correctly. I might need clarification.

If individual party member toggles battle log off while party leader grants it on then will the spectator see monster actions against this person? Will actions of this party member against the monster be hidden? Will this lead to confusion of the spectators for seeing partial logs? Is this to prevent the use of spectators using log parser on individuals that don't want their dps exposed?

I may understand why an individual will want to hide their action bars. It gives away their configuration and how they play the game. E.g. They may be an awesome clicker, however still receive flak from the purists. I would think this should be off by default. Am I understanding this one correctly? I know I can add this.

I think it would be great to give the party leader control on who can/cannot spectate, just as if he were inviting into the party itself. Perhaps limit the number of viewers available so it doesn't become too excessive, and maybe make it so that once the instance has already started no more spectators can be added.

I'll add the setting to further limit the viewers, however I think this should only be used when auto accept is turned on. By default party leader can manage each spectator requests individually. If party leader doesn't want more spectator requests the party leader can turn on auto decline or leave it to manage them individually just ignoring the requests.