PoE needs a difficulty factor setting

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Snorkle_uk wrote:

its called alching maps,

and what do you do when you have no Alchs, or maps?

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sry mate but normal difficulty is so painfully easy it verges on pathetic if you know what you are doing.

new players usually don't know what they are doing, Snorkle.
back in January (13), I got destroyed by Brutus, Merveil, Fidelitas, the Bandits, Vaal, and just about any monster in Act 3 up to - and including - Piety.
a lot more than once.

I take it you just picked up the game and went all the way to HC Act 3 Merciless (or Act 2 Merciless in Closed Beta) on your first go, right?

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Anyone who has difficulty getting a character to level 90 in a softcore league needs an education in the game, not a slider that lets them win while still being bad.

this is just insulting.
I never got to level 90.
almost 2k hours and counting.
perhaps because I don't no-life enough, insist on playing mostly solo and take the full brunt of RNG right to the face, don't master the art of flip/scam trade, or all of the above.

so I just gave up trying and became an Altoholic.
casual questing is a lot more fun, than just grinding your sanity off, while facing gear-checks you know passing isn't a function of anything you do.
a roll of the dice. that's what decides if you pass or not.

a slider doesn't "let you win".
a slider is there to hit you harder when you think you can take it.
how you and Scrotie still see it as a bad thing, is beyond me.

RNG didn't gate Toraja from me in MXL, so I happily went in and got my ass kicked in seconds.
And then I eventually came back and won. Yes, Judgement Day amulet in hand.
Please tell me what a Palace Map, Vaal Temple or Alluring Abyss look like, because fuck my life I'll never see them with my own eyes.
My luck stopped at Shipyard and Shrine, and no I didn't get there solo.

So yeah risk/reward isn't going to happen, but maybe a slider will allow me to have some challenge. Maybe reach that level 90 despite being bad and sucking in dis much hardcore game, huh Snorkle?

Don't know if that was your intention, but your post and wording disgust me.

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johnKeys wrote:

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Snorkle_uk wrote:

its called alching maps,

and what do you do when you have no Alchs, or maps?

Seppuku.

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Grumlum wrote:

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GeorgAnatoly wrote:

solo play matters to the noob which is who a difficulty slider should be aimed to help.

Newbies don´t need a difficulty slider. They need proper education on how this game works.

I´d say the game, especially in the beginning (normal difficulty), is super easy for anyone who knows the basic mechanics.

Difficulty sliders are the wrong approach to fix the "issues". They would only delay the need to learn until later in the game. A proper tutorial/manual would more than fix the issues of new players having a rough start.

At the same time, yes, for all non-newbies it would just be another way to min/max their efficiency and find the best exploitive setting. And I think there´s already enough other, more important stuff in the pipeline that´s waiting to be handled. (graphical client performance, trading system, etc.)

I've thought about this too, the tutorial solution, but I still think you're asking too much of the noob especially as there isn't enough information in terms of damage numbers or explicitly stated damage types. After running through the EVE online tutorial I was still completely lost but an EVE vet would probably look at me like a retard just like we might the noob here. I can't help but think you're asking too much of the noob who wonders why he keeps dying in level 3 chamber of sins to come to the conclusion himself that his lightning resists are too low. Same with the vaal ruins for example with the chaos/physical damage that comes across as a spell and that isn't easily understood by the noob. There are numerous examples of this which I fear would just frustrate and cause the noob to leave the game before giving himself a chance to learn so he could have fun. A slider would make that transition a little easier and allow him the opportunity to get the gear to help him handle it.

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GeorgAnatoly wrote:

Spoiler

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Grumlum wrote:

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GeorgAnatoly wrote:

solo play matters to the noob which is who a difficulty slider should be aimed to help.

Newbies don´t need a difficulty slider. They need proper education on how this game works.

I´d say the game, especially in the beginning (normal difficulty), is super easy for anyone who knows the basic mechanics.

Difficulty sliders are the wrong approach to fix the "issues". They would only delay the need to learn until later in the game. A proper tutorial/manual would more than fix the issues of new players having a rough start.

At the same time, yes, for all non-newbies it would just be another way to min/max their efficiency and find the best exploitive setting. And I think there´s already enough other, more important stuff in the pipeline that´s waiting to be handled. (graphical client performance, trading system, etc.)

I've thought about this too, the tutorial solution, but I still think you're asking too much of the noob especially as there isn't enough information in terms of damage numbers or explicitly stated damage types. After running through the EVE online tutorial I was still completely lost but an EVE vet would probably look at me like a retard just like we might the noob here. I can't help but think you're asking too much of the noob who wonders why he keeps dying in level 3 chamber of sins to come to the conclusion himself that his lightning resists are too low. Same with the vaal ruins for example with the chaos/physical damage that comes across as a spell and that isn't easily understood by the noob. There are numerous examples of this which I fear would just frustrate and cause the nood to leave the game before giving himself a chance to learn so he could have fun. A slider would make that transition a little easier and allow him the opportunity to get the gear to help him handle it.

To clarify my former statement : I didn´t mean that the new player is supposed to find all this out by himself. This is the current state of things, and what causes so many problems/frustration, a very complicated game that doesn´t give you the slightest hint at how it works. THIS needs to be adressed and changed, and then there will be no need for a difficulty slider.

So, by saying "new players need proper education", I was stating that there´s need for better comprehensive material provided by the makers.

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Grumlum wrote:

To clarify my former statement : I didn´t mean that the new player is supposed to find all this out by himself. This is the current state of things, and what causes so many problems/frustration, a very complicated game that doesn´t give you the slightest hint at how it works. THIS needs to be adressed and changed, and then there will be no need for a difficulty slider.

So, by saying "new players need proper education", I was stating that there´s need for better comprehensive material provided by the makers.

Right, ya I definitely agree there.

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johnKeys wrote:

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Snorkle_uk wrote:

Anyone who has difficulty getting a character to level 90 in a softcore league needs an education in the game, not a slider that lets them win while still being bad.

this is just insulting.
I never got to level 90.
almost 2k hours and counting.
perhaps because I don't no-life enough, insist on playing mostly solo and take the full brunt of RNG right to the face, don't master the art of flip/scam trade, or all of the above.

Or maybe you spend too much time in the forums bitching about things that don't need to be fixed.

Level 93, 1-3hrs every other day.

Try playing, it helps you level.

I for one would love a difficulty slider. It would make leveling new characters more challenging and interesting. Same with those otherwise useless 66 maps the game insists on dropping. With difficult mods and the slider at max they might actually be fun to do.

The only issues arise when you tie rewards to that difficulty. A slider without such a reward tie would still be beneficial, both to new and current players.

Sure it'll take longer to level a new character, but if it poses a challenge and gives areas a more distinct personality in normal by turning it up it'll be more fun and less of a chore for the first 40 levels.

For new players it might give them more time to get comfortable with the mechanics of the game, though trial and error is to be expected. A video tutorial series, or any tutorial at all for that matter would probably do more than a slider though.

I'd be willing to bet, that if there were higher lvl static maps, then there would be less of a need for a difficulty slider, or no need at all for one. I've mentioned higher lvl static maps several times on these forums, to no avail (in particular, after the Dominus release as well as the Sacrifice of the Vaal). It seems they are holding off on that until they get Act 4...and in the mean time they keep tossing in more "drop maps", new areas of low lvl maps to farm so you can do Queen Atziri, race events, leagues, etc. to try and satisfy/distract the community as best they feel they can at the moment. Unfortunately, the results of having an incomplete game is evident, by the forum posts, both here and on the web in general.

Incomplete game? I don't follow. Unless you're talking about the trade system. Than I agree.

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SL4Y3R wrote:

As an example, in d3, you play the easiest highest difficulty you can. You don't play the one you can do, but barely. The benefits are non existent. You play what is the most efficient. This is the problem with difficulty sliders, and why I'm against them being implemented with anything *easier than how it is now*

No, you play the one you like the most. For you maybe, it's the most efficient one, but please, do not present your own opinion as a fact, once again. So please edit all those "you" to "I".

By easier I assume you mean non-RNG gated content, which can be easier if done poorly, but that's not an argument at all.

Anyway, it is easy now, I'm the best example out there, my map drops sucked since I've started playing, I've bought so many maps to get to the 98th level, and do you want to know how? The easy way - trade.
We have the easier way, it's just not about killing monsters but playing the economy.

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ScrotieMcB wrote:

Because difficulty sliders are 0% risk-reward, and 100% gearcheck-reward. You don't set the difficulty level to something which challenges you, you set it to the highest setting which still manages to be piss easy for you.

Same thing with Scrotie, presenting his own opinion as a fact.

I'd vote for gear check (because that's what PoE is) over luck any day, but that's just me and my own opinion, which gambling addicts oppose with their shitty arguments.

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ScrotieMcB wrote:

I'd consider something more along the lines of:

• XP gain is now split evenly among nearby party members instead of granting the full amount to each (ex: 4 players get 25% each, instead of all 3 players getting 100%).
• Item rarity increased by 25% per additional player (max 125% more).
• Pack density for non-unique monsters increased by 40% per additional player (max 200% more).
• Non-unique monster life increased by 40% per additional player (max 200% more).
• Non-unique monster XP gain increased by 15% per additional player (max 75% more).
• Unique monster life increased by 100% per additional player (max 500% more).
• Unique monster attack, cast, and move speed increased by 10% per additional player (max 50% more).
• Unique monster quantity of item drops increased by 40% per additional player (max 200% more).
• Unique monster XP gain increased by 80% per additional player (max 400% more).
• Unique monster AI altered to change targets between various party members more often during combat.

With this written, I can safely say that you have no idea about the high level mapping in PoE (when death is costly, either by time or money). You are absolutely clueless in that area.

Those lines of yours would not change the mapping mentality as it is now, brainless map clearing with boss skipping.
With that bonus IIR which is just ridiculous considering how map rotations work, but since that is completely against solo play, I really have no idea why it's not here already. Yes, even that experience gain change wouldn't change the effectiveness of map rotations, in 6 player party it would mean the same experience as solo, but with the extra IIR and safety in numbers. Except if you mean 40% more monsters per additional player, then the solo play is completely screwed, just like it is now, but with the extra IIR for the groups.
The increased life suggestion would just promote ranged characters, we really need that right?

The unique monsters changes... Traditional grouping would be all about boss skipping even more than it is now.
Of course that those shitty-weak bosses would not be skipped, but all those that pose a threat to the experience loss or the character transfer to Standard is not worth the trouble. The extra experience? You do realize the amount of the boss increased experience in that unique map is 10000%? And judging by my experience, the experience gain from bosses is non-existent usually, however this 10k increase might be noticeable. Your max 400% more is unnoticeable, completely worthless.
IIQ bonus? Yeah, more scrolls and transmutes, definitely worth the trouble. In 100%+ IIQ maps with high MF the only thing you get more are rares which are in 95%+ cases an instant vendor items. Often there are those that could be sold for ~5, but in Standard, that is also instant vendor.
It's just more trash and more RNG.
Not to mention the amount of time it would take to kill bosses with 500% more life, with the Courtyard map and it's boss triggering bullshit (which is still not fixed!!! same as Palace disconnects) with 25k DPS it took more than 10 minutes to take them down, without moving, with constant attacking. I can't even imagine the 500% increase even with significantly more DPS.
TLDR; bosses skipped, not worth it.