What would be the best way to keep players retention?

[Puma]

On 12/15/2020 at 8:39 PM, Infinitum said:

Yeah I'm with you 100%. But on the same token the early game has to be reinvigorated also.  I like the new I27 TFs for that.

Just out of curiosity, why?  I mean, there is a LOT more early and mid game content via contacts, etc. than there is end game content. Im not disagreeing, but I don't think there's a real lack of early game content. Heck...before shutdown they did entire revamps of Atlas and Mercy Island, and gave us all of Preatoria.  They added contacts in Steel, Talos, etc.  

 

Perhaps a nice compromise might be more SSA style approach?  Arcs or contacts who span the game and offer missions through out your entire career. 

 

If it came to story development, in my opinion the EASIEST way to advance things for all levels right now would be to start delving into the Battalion storyline via new zones, but those zones are just Battalion versions of our own zones so you don't need to do a ton of zone creation: just some cosmetic detailing.  Think of Recluse's Victory vs Atlas Park, only with Battalion having taken over.   Have it start by adding Battalion "invasions" that occur regularly in Khalisti Wharf.  Have these purposefully be "tough" and have incarnate powers not work in Khalisti, for some "reason" you'll learn about in the storyline. Have Protean be the one contact in Khalisti, and his only mission just "unlocks" the Battalion controlled zones I mentioned above via a "time travel" version of the Tunnel system.   Have those Battalion zones inhabited by Battalion enemies on the streets who are levelless, similar to what we see in Rikti and Nemesis and Zombie invasions, and a small set of contacts.  Have the concept be that the Battalion invaded, and were able to somehow end the ability of earth's heroes to tap into the well, and then took over.  The Dream Doctor used Protean to save you, sending you to the future to avoid the "wipe" where heroes lost their powers.  Your hero is now trying to lead a resistance by restoring heroes to the world.  Because they have limited the ability to tap into the well, incarnate powers in the early zones don't work, but because you missed "the wipe" you are still left all of your normal powers. Have any door missions scale based on your level.  They could be true 1-50 zones.  As you make your way through the zones (say there's six of them: Battalion Atlas, Battalion Mercy, Battalion Talos, Battalion Cap Au Diable, Battalion Peregrine, and Battalion Grandville) you get access to a your incarnate powers one at a time because you're restoring access to the well and building up a resistance to Battalion.  Hell, maybe the story would be you're learning how to becoming a NEW well for heroes to tap in to.  

 

Anyway, my point is you could focus on working it around the mechanics of invasions which aren't level specific, and make them "co-op" zones for Red and Blue players trying to overthrow the Battalion together. You'd get a lot of bang for the buck with that approach and wrap up the storyline introduced by the Incarnate system.  It would give new content to all levels interested in trying it, too.  

 

And yes, I know full well that none of the above is not "easy", but  I think it's probably the best bang for the buck given our limited resources. 

Edited December 17, 2020 by Puma

[Monos King]

30 minutes ago, Puma said:

Perhaps a nice compromise might be more SSA style approach?  Arcs or contacts who span the game and offer missions through out your entire career. 

+1

[Darmian]

3 hours ago, Puma said:

I mean, there is a LOT more early and mid game content via contacts, etc. than there is end game content.

There's a fair amount of that content that is "go here and defeat the things".  Now, let's be honest, it's all mostly "go here and defeat the things", it's just how well the sleight of hand is done to disguise that and give us a decent story.  Sadly a good chunk of the early/mid does not do this.  And that's why Piecemeal's work is resonating so well IMO, it DOES give story.

 

Not aimed at you, @Puma, but you mentioned it.  For this player the entire Battalion thing as originally planned needs to die in a ditch by itself and the very idea rethought and taken in a different direction by the HC devs.  And Dream Doctor minced and fired into the sun. Deus ex machina NPCs are death to player agency.  Rant over.