What would you change or add in a City of Heroes sequel?

[Disruptor]

Quote

More granularity in body sliders, so we could make characters with Popeye arms or thunder thighs (examples)

 

One of my favorite things about Champions Online. I made a Kangaroo hero w/ giant feet, long legs, huge thighs but tiny t-rex arms and very small upper body. In terms of powerset I made him a kicking machine.

[UltraAlt]

On 11/7/2022 at 5:21 AM, Disruptor said:

Bored in the early morning and this came across my mind as I was contemplating respecing for the 100th time.

 

I've been back for a good while now and I've /respec'd less than 5 times. I'm not even sure I've /respec'd more than 3 times. That's total and not on any one character. I haven't /respec'd any character more than once.

I would ask why "100th time" but that's a different thread topic.

 

On 11/7/2022 at 5:21 AM, Disruptor said:

Different types of tiers for respecing.

 

uh?

I'm confused by the title of your thread.

 

We saw the first sequel in CoV, which brought us bases, new archetypes, and the option of life as a villain.

The 2nd sequel was GR, which brought graphic improvements, a dystopian, and alignment changes.

 

So I guess we are in the space with what is going on rampantly in comics now - retconning.

Yeah, kind of bored with retconning for the 100th time.

 

It does seem pretty clear that there is a good number of players that would like to see a sequel to City of Heroes where they started with all their powers unlocked and they just had pick what they wanted out of the list, slot, and enhance. Maybe not even need to purchase or slot enhancements other than procs for SFX or minor alternate damage type. Maybe get all the incarnates unlocked as well. No street level fighting. Only battles on the cosmic level.

 

I would always like to see a City of Jack Kirby Giants, but I think that would work best with limited interaction with other players and, of course, destructible buildings and terrain

 

 

 

 

... some of this mixed in of course ...

 

 

Kaiju PVP!

[Disruptor]

Quote

I would ask why "100th time" but that's a different thread topic.

exaggeration

 

Quote

uh?

I'm confused by the title of your thread.

 

"What would you change or add in a City of Heroes sequel?"

 

feels pretty straight forward to me, everyone else gets it

 

 

Edited November 8, 2022 by Disruptor

[MistressOhm]

No, I'm confused as well, why would changing up the respec process require a -sequel-?   I mean, is the entire game so hardcoded around the respec that it'd require an entirely new iteration to change it? 

 

Yes, thread title is misleading.  

[Oubliette_Red]

A new game engine.

 

Adding anything to the Cryptic game engine is just putting lipstick on a pig.

 

[Disruptor]

Quote

why would changing up the respec process require a -sequel-?

nobody said that, this thread is a hypothetical of what YOU would add or want in a sequel. I would want different tiered respec system.

 

plenty of other people got the thread, its a for fun general discussion topic. What would you want in a CoH sequal? I started off the thread with what I would want, its not hard. What would you want?

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 8, 2022 by Disruptor

[TheZag]

Super vehicles.  The people need to arrive in style.  All we have right now is the invisible jet,  and we cant find where it was parked.

 

[TheOtherTed]

17 minutes ago, TheZag said:

Super vehicles.

 

Or just vehicles.  Heck, my 1940s era private eye would be ecstatic if he could just hail a cab.

[TheZag]

Of course drivable vehicles would include pursuit and escape missions with vehicle mounted weapons and vehicle hp.  After they rob the bank you have to chase their escape vehicle and then defeat the villain.

 

[MistressOhm]

1 hour ago, Krimson said:

I joke about this in the current game because a Honda Civic has a top speed of 137mph, faster than every super-powered being out there. The reason villains don't use cars to escape is that car would win every single time. 😄

 

Always funny when you run across cops in Faultline, hauling Lost out of a sedan.  

 

I had a villain on Live, more of a Rogue even before morality switching was a thing, whose use of Kinetic speed boost along with the Prestige powerslide was RP'd as her astride a turbocharged Hayabusa.  200+ mph in the real world... but CoV never let her go more than 80mph. >.>

[Random Axis]

I'd want something like the zone events in Guild Wars 2. They have a kind of decision tree to them where there's an initial event in the zone, but how the players handled it determined how the event progressed. For example bandits would attack a local farm and the players not dealing with it lead to the zone's minor town being attacked and then the major one (they never take over or destroy the town of course, so players can still quest. There are just more bandit mobs running around.) On the other hand, defeating the bandits pushes them back to a camp and then their main hideout. 

[DougGraves]

Change powers in sets so the important choice is using them not, not picking them.

 

CoH was designed with the idea that you did not get all of your powers.  You would choose some from your powerset but not get all of them.  So they were balanced against each other.  An auto RES power is weaker than a toggle RES power to balance out the END cost of the toggle.

The problem is that you pick both and need to use both.

 

I would change that so the choice is on use.  The auto RES would be much more powerful.  A tanker could solo with just the auto RES on.  The toggle would be the extra RES for tougher situations like teaming.

 

You would not have a set like Dark that needs to turn on every toggle to be good and have the massive END drain.  Instead you would have auto powers that gave you the "default" for your powerset and then you would turn on toggles (or click powers) situationally.

[Zect]

This game is so full of failures, flaws, limitations and letdowns, it’s easier to list what to keep rather than what to change.

 

There are exactly three things CoX does well, and which deserve to live on in a sequel. They are 1) the character creator, 2) the IO system, and 3) the casual pug culture. Each of these has its issues, yes, but broadly they are each strong enough to make a game worth playing.

 

Everything else, and I mean everything - everything else gets completely revamped.

[Neiska]

Less "do X or else" mechanics, and less rock-paper-scissors.

More solo friendly, in respect to the classes and activities. Some ATs or powersets can be quite a chore to level up alone.

More politically neutral, with regards to the storylines and characters.

Less nerfing of things just because they are popular.

More fixing old problems and less focusing on the new shiny.

Better balancing/niche of ATs/Powersets. Overall, it is quite good but there are still things that stand out, especially on certain ATs.

[Player2]

• Damageable environments so we can break through walls (or those damned invincible tree tops in Perez Park).
• Vehicles, including drivable cars and motorcycles from which some or all powers can be used from, as well as more zone transit ideas (hailing a cab was mentioned previously).
• A powers system that gave more control over both the look and function of powers.
  • For example, give players a generic blast set with the 9 tiers of powers and some basic function (base damage as well as single target, cone, AOE, PBAoE, etc) baked in, but then give the players option to choose damage type and secondary effects (including bonus damage/DoT, confuse, -DEF, hold, immobilize, KB, KD, -RES, self-heal, stun, etc).  So if you want to make an attack that looks like fire but deals ice damage and lowers target's resistance, BOOM!  Make it.  You want tranq bullets?  Take a gun attack and have it deal toxic damage and slow the target.  You'd still have a core AT powerset build to give people a structure that helps prevent self-gimping, but a lot more creative ideas could be realized.

[LegionAlpha]

On 11/7/2022 at 3:00 PM, Greycat said:

Fingers for my characters.

 

 

And toes. Calliente is needed for the CoH2. Does awesome body mods. 

[twozerofoxtrot]

5 minutes ago, LegionAlpha said:

Calliente is needed for the CoH2.

[Player2]

Ooh, ooh...  better vocalizations.  We don't exactly have much right now beyond when jumping and that generic vocalization with taunt, but I'm thinking just two or three generic sets of basic vocalizations for things like jumping, taunting, shouting, a couple cries of pain for getting hit, and maybe a death cry; and like my suggestion above a couple of customization options to alter those basic noises for each character by modifying pitch and tone (maybe reverb too).  Like 3 voices (male, female, and something more monstrous) with 2 or 3 sliders to add a little more personality to each individual.

 

Oh, and one more thing:  animated faces!  I want to see eyes blink (and close when characters die), and maybe open mouth for things like breathing fire, sonic attacks, or when making those vocalizations mentioned above.

 

Edited November 18, 2022 by Player2

[Glacier Peak]

Mech! I want a giant robot as a power set! Get in and fight like an [Insert any mecha cartoon or anime series in the last 40 years]!

[biostem]

6 hours ago, Glacier Peak said:

Mech! I want a giant robot as a power set! Get in and fight like an [Insert any mecha cartoon or anime series in the last 40 years]!

Rather than a "Mech" set, I would prefer some sort of "integrated weaponry" ranged blast set.  For good measure, make sure to include organic and magical-looking options, to cover as many concepts as possible...

[mrdeeds7]

The nemesis system concept from Champions

[Go0gleplex]

One of the things I had been excited about reading the cover print back when CoH first came out was that literally any Mob victim could pop a quest or quest string.  I mean answer honestly, how many folks go out of their way to rescue the mob civi's from green or grey level bad guys? Maybe one of those rescued folks run up with a random mission along with their thanks for being saved...something they heard from the folks assaulting them or reason they were under assault.  It would be a nice surprise and encourage more non-mission heroics IMO.  More mission choices from contacts would be appreciated as well. It seems like I get the same missions from multiple contacts within a zone at times...which is a real drag. 

[Ulysses Dare]

On 11/19/2022 at 1:06 PM, mrdeeds7 said:

The nemesis system concept from Champions

CO's nemesis system mated with the customization we have with AE would be awesome.

[DreadShinobi]

On 11/8/2022 at 7:38 AM, MistressOhm said:

No, I'm confused as well, why would changing up the respec process require a -sequel-?   I mean, is the entire game so hardcoded around the respec that it'd require an entirely new iteration to change it? 

 

Yes, thread title is misleading.  

 

Case in point. Much of what is desired can be patched into the game without a second thought about a 'CoH2' and most mentions of a 'CoH2' break down into unreasonable and not what is actually desired. As a volunteer based development team, the above then comes down to time available, priorities, and the balance of feedback/suggestions vs what the current developers actually *feel* like doing.

[Techwright]

On 11/8/2022 at 11:58 AM, TheOtherTed said:

Or just vehicles.  Heck, my 1940s era private eye would be ecstatic if he could just hail a cab.

Does this mean we can get day jobs as Uber drivers?  I mean, you don't want to hire just any old cabbie to take you to the Super Secretman Cave.

 

I'm not sure that I'm not going to be saying something that hasn't been in snippets of my conversations all the way back to the original game, but here goes:

1. Overhaul the look of the city.  More a blend of architectural style of the last 150 years, and definitely less Brutalism (I am not a fan).  Completely redesign Skyway, and the road patterns have to make sense.  I've been pitching ethnic sections to the city (Little Italy, Chinatown, Czech Village, etc.) since back in the OP.  Some of the NPCs could tie into the themed areas, such as putting the Tsoo into a southeast Asia neighborhood, or the Warriors hanging out in the Greek streets.

2. Ditch the machines that exchange salvage for temporary power and defense boosts.  This is a city and the concept is cutting away from a prime opportunity.  Convert the salvage into a script currency of some kind, recognized by shop keepers all over the city, and use it in coffee & donut shops or bodegas, at hot dog stands and automats (vending restaurant) to buy consumables that will give you a brief boost (no more than an hour).  This will give a richer, integrated experience to the city, and probably help those doing roll play.  There should probably be special care given to drinks from the bar, though.  Too many at a time, and you begin to have negative effects.  Same with sugar. The guy camping the ice cream shop should experience an energy burst then a severe crash at some point in combat.

3. More elites hitting the streets.  I'm thinking like Hogger in WoW.  Now I'm not saying a big announcement with a 20 minutes fight, like the Nemesis zone invasions, but an elite leader either camping a spot or occasionally appearing and moving around.  Either way, with an elite escort.  For example, Dreck appearing among the masses in the Freaktown at the back of Crey's Folly for a time, or Chernobog on Skulls business moving from building to building in Perez Park,  He goes in and disappears for  a short time, then he exists and moves to the next building.  All under elite guard.  Add another layer and street sweep looking for clues as to where someone is holed up / moving.  Sweep enough, and it triggers the target's appearance.

4. Speaking of street sweeping, I'd like the option to do a Null the Gull switch from telling NPCs "you con gray to me" to having every street villain always seen as within color range of me.  Sure, it might be blue or green, but make it at least a bit of a challenge (voluntarily) moving through the streets.

5.  Really pie-in-the-sky here, but breakable everything within instanced missions.  My tank would love to put his fist through a wall where a goon leans against it on the other side.  Also of interest would be missions were you are not permitted to cut loose.  You'll have to fight a bit more  discretely if you don't want the brownstone on the historic preservation list to have its walls punched out.