Greycat

(Note, this is specifically "what you first see stepping in Blueside." Redside, you're dropped almost in front of the Arbiter and it's obvious you should talk to him.) So there you are. You create a character, pick hero (because it's city of heroes, of course) and whether you do a tutorial or not, you get dropped in Atlas Park. What do you see? This. Granted, without some of the messages on the side, but that's irrelevant. You're faced with a flight of stairs and a bland dialog box telling you to do stuff. Where is this find contact thing? Where is Matthew Habashy? You then get a followup of a second box telling you you can mark yourself as needing help, nothing, or a helper (and does anyone actually pay attention to those colors?) So what do you do? I mean, head up the stairs (you probably see other people up there,) but then what? This - is an awful experience. Also, if you go looking for Matthew Habashy, is he at the top of the stairs? No, that's Ms. Liberty. This guy has to be obvious, right? Is he? The gold thing over his head isn't even visible, he's WAAAAAAAY in the distance there - and if you actually read the opening dialog box and want to try the origin contacts, you have to go hunting. I'd say we need to fix this. First, move Matthew. Put him at *least* in that front corner. (Yes, I'm aware of the phasing thing with his wife. Move her with him.) Make him visible. Second, change that opening dialog box. Make it more like a mission (or AE contact) dialog box. Have his picture in the corner. "Hello, I'm Matthew Habashy. I could use your help. Come up the stairs and see me, I can help you start your heroic journey." Not "find this other dialog box in another window." He should have an option as well that basically starts a mission - "Would you rather start with your Origin contact? They have short missions based on the origin you've chosen for your character." If you pick yes, you get an arrow on your map (and directions to follow it) taking you first to City Hall, then to the contact. Matthew should also be the initial "getting started help resource" and it should be obvious to go to him. A "You have questions?" going to a new page with him with things like - "How do I get new contacts?" "Well, when you finish a story arc from a contact, they'll often introduce you to a few other people. Or you can use the Find Contact window" - with *screenshots* of where to find it and what it does. "How do I get to other places" pointing the new player (again, with a mission door indicator) to the tram station. "How do I make my abilities stronger" going to the vendor and/or giving an explanation of enhancements - not the invention system, though that can be mentioned later, this is just "This is what they look like and this is what they do, here's how you use them." Even things like "How do I join/start a supergroup" (walking you to the registrar) and "how do I find things to do / get more help" - the last describing how to use the Help channel, in game help (itself probably needing more revamping) and linking to both the wiki and the forums for more detailed information. Heck, I'd even throw in "What's a DFB," since a new person will see that advertised, and maybe a list of really common acronyms - yes, they change, but some just haven't. (This should all probably be visible with some sort of radio to Matthew, too... though that might play merry hell with the contact window.) Last, an option in options that says "ok, I've done this before and don't need all of Matthew's help." You can still see the help options by walking up and clicking on him, you just wont' get all the dialogs and such. Again, you can do the same thing with the arbiter redside, but I think it's more obvious red and goldsides with who you have to talk to first.

I'm getting some of what you're saying on "A vet is making the choice for them," but ... I only sort of half agree on that, and I still hold that the new player doesn't *know* what the choices really are (and they're kind of who we're concentrating on here.) If a vet says "You're new, get in the farm and get to 50" (essentially, doubt they're using the exact words,) well, that kind of fits perceptions from other games - and that is making the choice for them. But they still don't *know* that COH doesn't "begin at endgame" like so many other games. They aren't being given that information. They've got contacts - hey, that guy over there has a coin over their head - though they're a good jog from the starting area, blueside, it's easy to miss Habashy, and you don't see the old origin contacts since they're in the lower level of City Hall. That information is not immediately obvious. Honestly, as someone who makes new alts, the new character experience kind of sucks, since you have a ton of "just frigging click to get this out of my way" windows thrown at you, and that *really* needs to be streamlined. Next bit, I think you focused way too much on the term "AE babies." It doesn't matter the level that someone new gets PL'd to - and I also didn't say that the majority of people in farms are new players. Hell, *I* get farmed - but then again, I'm also doing it with knowledge that, for instance, I *hate* playing a VEAT to 24 just to essentially be told "Everything you've done to now doesn't matter, you MUST RESPEC NOW." (just on top of the annoyance of having to take the time right then to do it. You can't pick another power, you must respec before you do anything else.) I just get PL'd into the mid-20s, do the respec, and *then* consider my character to be starting out. Also, it's not just "not knowing something," it's the very obvious "not knowing pretty much ANYTHING other than what the inside of a farm looks like." Last, I'm not sure where you're seeing me advocating removing an option of any sort, so... I'm not anti-farming. I'll do it myself on occasion. I'm more anti-uninformedness... I suppose. (Shortening the reply because the conversation's sparked a suggestion idea, so...)

Awww, looks like @herotu is having a temper tantrum. Poor lit'l guy. Otherwise he really hates having level ranges showing when you go to the trains/ferries. Only place? Ignoring raids and Ouro'ing, you've got PI, the Shard, RWZ (there *is* more to do there than the MSR,) Dark Astoria, Grandville (obviously redside, but still) and some of the contacts from Cim that open up - there is stuff out there. Could there be more? Absolutely. I won't turn down more content - honestly at any level range. But there *is* more to do. Even if you're just looking at repeatables like the newspaper/radio, they exist in those same zones - they're just a contact instead.

Cutting out a bunch of this to focus here. New people are "choosing" to do this because of the cultures of *other* games where "the game begins at (insert end level here, and move it every major expansion.)" Where you *must* raid and do dungeons to get the Super Slashy Sword of Slashiness +3 (because you're a noob if you only have +2, why are you even IN the game?) so they can get on the NEXT "dungeon" and get the Shiny Helmet of Bonkery which they'll need for the NEXT raid, hope you get lucky on the drop (and that Steve over there doesn't see it because "GIMME THAT THAT SHOULD BE MINE!") ... and in general people aren't telling them otherwise. And frankly that we're often *saying* "Eh, do DFB with 2xp and you'll get levels" like that's what everyone needs *right away.* Can you really call it a choice they're making when the new person *doesn't know what the actual choice is?* As far as why it's anyone's business? There's a reason some people (not me) use "AE babies" as a near-curse word. (Phrase. Whatever.) Because they get to 50, they get to the more difficult groups where stuff's phasing, draining, teleporting around before holding them, have 5 minute stuns, can see through stealth, savages defenses... and they're asking what these colored round things that drop are and how to use them. Or how to get out of Atlas Park. They don't know that if you play the Hollows, Faultline or Croatoa (for instance) that hey, they're all related stories, and if you do them *all* you get bonus merits - or what merits are, for that matter. (Other than some vague "buy converters and sell them on the market" without much info on THAT.) And it's not just "playing the game, getting introduced to the lore and getting powers." Even DFB has you *meeting* people and seeing other powers and getting some idea of how things can work together, as opposed to sitting at the door while someone runs into a cave and sets a bunch of stuff on fire. I can't think of the last farm I was in that wasn't among friends that had more conversation than "wait here," "mobs coming" and "reset." Certainly not "Are you new?" Maybe the occasional "nice costume/bio." Honestly, it's not even saying farming itself is bad - if someone saw someone new and said "You know what, sure, I'll farm you - to 20, don't get a 2xp booster because you'll miss out on getting cash, at 20 you'll probably have enough powers for things to be 'interesting to play,' and you'll have content you can do - Posi, Yin, Faultline (well, half of it,) even a costume mission" - I don't think anyone (ok, someone would, but far fewer) would complain. Heck, even a "New players SG" to help guide them along and such, including guaranteeing running these things. (One of those "if I had the time and energy....") They'd *meet* people - which, Idunno, would make the rest of the trip to 50 more interesting and fun? - and not just be dropped off at 50 with a bunch of salvage and stuff in their inventory they have no clue about. (And no INF because... 2xp booster.) After that? Yes, they have the information - at least more of it - to tell if they just want to get rushed to 50 (maybe raids are just their thing,) or to some other level because they found stuff in *that* range fun, or not at all. And they have people to talk about it *with* that they met doing other stuff before having a "full" character dropped on them to figure out without experiencing anything... and having people get frustrated with them because the team's waiting 10 minutes for them to figure out what a "cim" is they're supposed to "itf" at and how they get there.

Whenever you go to a train or ferry, it'll have the level range for that zone right after the name.

I generally don't "build." Make sure I have enough endurance to keep going, make sure what I need recharges often enough (Phantom Army being the most notorious for that for me,) after that it's mostly "that looks interesting." I'll catalyze stuff after 50, generally (going to superiors.) For me, quite a bit of what gets slotted is almost part of the character's story, as I'll lean on this or that as needed as I level both in power picks and slotting.

Right. You're 44. FF is 30-40. Go to Perigrene.

It doesn't show other players performance already. Just yours. There's no reason to worry about this.

http://www.cityofheroes.ca/about_freedom/freedom_faq.html You can still see some of this, at least, and some of what was restricted to paid subs. Going Rogue was still on the old sub model, introduced side switching, etc. well before Freedom. (Still remember some debates over "So, they have Infamy... so how are the markets going to work? They'll be three now? And they'll have to have the grey alignments running stuff between them?" which was just overly complicated and a bit annoying - and helped lead to the merging of the markets. )

... You may mean "paying" there, given most of the system was locked behind having a sub. >.>

Fun read, all 'round. Thanks folks - always good to see you!

The game *is* easy to continue playing. As far as "homework to play the game," *every* game from Tic Tac Toe or checkers on up means you have to learn *something.* And then build on what you've learned. Whether it's "Oh, if I move this piece here, I can prepare to jump multiple pieces of the other guy's" in checkers, "If I play this card first and hold off on that other one, I can pull off a really neat combo" in any number of CCGs (Magic, Pokemon, Sorcery, whatever,) or "Slotting *this* is actually more helpful over here" in COH. Expecting to play a game without learning anything - including how this is *not* WoW or Destiny or some other game - isn't realistic. (And as far as "20 or 30 more," it's just as likely to have most of us age out as it is for hardware to just not really support it any more short of some really hardcore retro guy running their own server saying "Gramps used to run this game" on... Holotwitch or YouBrainshare or whatever's running then. So saying "it won't last another 20 years" with or without conditions? *shrug* )

Aside from "You really don't need to be defense capped or perma-whatevered" ... I'd generally point *to* the individual AT forums for build ideas. But if you want to play with builds, the two things I'd point out are: 1. Mids. (Has its own subforum.) Much cheaper to move play enhancements around in a builder before committing to something, and 2. While you *are* playing around and experimenting, remember the rule of 5. You can only have 5 (active - 6th or beyond won't do anything, but you won't be stopped from placing something that gives it) of a percentage of something in set bonuses. (In other words, you can have 5 "3.5% noodle defense" set bonuses from any combination of sets stacking. A sixth won't add anything. A "2% noodle defense" will, a "3.5 mozzarella defense" will.)

I'd say the only thing close to "failure" here for those new folks is the lack of anything saying "We're different from other MMOs - we start at 1, not 50." But that in itself is a long conversation. We don't really go for "gear" - yes, we have enhancements, but you don't have to fight other players for them in a need/greed roll, you don't need "the best" to be able to do anything, etc. Nobody's running DPS meters on you. There's absolutely no reason to rush to 50. The vets know this. But the vets also often know "I can't stand MM's 'til I have all their pets and I want to skip everything in between." Or "This character has THESE powersets fit them, but I've played them already and just want to get them kitted out." Or "The content I like is in the 20s-30s, I just want to get there." And so.. PL/Farm/DFBDFBDFB 'til then - but we're doing that as a (hopefully) informed decision. Someone new isn't going to know why so many people are doing this and is going to likely assume it's like 'everywhere else' and everything before top-level is just filler. You can *try* to catch them in Help or whatever if they ask, sure. I know I've seen the occasional "new player looking for PL" and told them if they want to actually experience the game, don't PL, find some mission teams instead, but that's if *they* say something and someone catches it to let them know.

Distinctive, sure. But, how many people are excited to get a (say) teleport set? Besides. Slotting-wise, I don't see why these should be restricted to "just rezzes" (if that kind of category exists.) We have healing, we have accurate healing (some of which does damage as I'm recalling.) I might not mind a more damage/effect focused extra accurate-healing set, or *a* set or two that focus on both health and endurance recovery. But past that, this many sets I'd honestly just see diluting the drop pool.

Well, some of the various Corvette and Camaro models are pretty good. Absolutely hated the "beak" on the final FIrebird generation. Actually really liked the Beretta back in the day, fun car to drive, and some of the Bonnevilles, too. Never tried farming them...

I heard something about maintenance, having seen a few zones (talos, PD) with multiple instances.

It (and the other P2W attacks) are also unaffected by the Rage crash in Super Strength, as it's not "your" power. (And takes long enough that you're not "doing nothing" during said crash for very long.)

The "impossible to target" won't be helped with that, generally, since the game can only draw so many critters. You will either need to be at the edge of the mass of people in the bowl, or find something like a lore or Mastermind pet to target through.

You're aware that any "organizing" you do is only saved locally, right... switch systems (say from a desktop to a laptop, or getting a new system) and it's lost. So, hope you kept the file synced between systems that kept that order.

... but written completely in Resistance-speak.

The dots won't get smaller. There's a limit to how many it will show. On one test, I made *many more* than 160 (16 "pages" x 10 characters per page.) It maxes out at 20 "dots." But what you will see is that past that it starts to skip - "Character page 1" to "Character page 3," etc. as you go dot to dot. That said, it *does* scroll to the selected "dot" already. Small area for the dot, but it does do that already. (Note, yes, this was on a test, so nobody start complaining about names at seeing that... unless you were *really* wanting aldka1234.) Personally, I wouldn't want to log out to the "last played" character - aside from the impression I get that it wouldn't really know, it's a little odd apparently as to what's shown (or showable) on the character select screen vs in game. Might be wrong about that, though. Honestly, though, the entire character screen needs revamping. The search by name/powerset/AT is helpful (and where I'll usually just find the character if I'm looking for one - I've got quite a few alts myself,) but an overhaul to allow things like filtering by level, or SG, or being able to pull in extra info to show on an "info" tab (some people want to see things like iNF that I think would just clutter things up, personally) are common requests.

This post was running steamy mist, I think. 😉

... so to repeat the question, are you sure you're not just teaming with Snarky? 😉

It's a "feature," yeah. (And yes, I find it annoying.) It's the "modern" control scheme. You can pick between classic, modern... think two others... just a sec, I'll find it. Classic gives the old behaviour. (Though I seem to recall that switching these resets everything, if you have custom binds.) Classic has "Rotate camera" set to "Middle mouse button." Modern has "Quick look" set to "Middle mouse button," which I believe is the view that snaps back.