Bad gameplay design

I use to be a complete noob. I logged over hundreds of hours and through the help of following guides, I'm finally starting to complete endgame content, but the more I do so, the more I'm noticing some glaring flaws and bad game design. I wanted to point these out so that hopefully they get fixed in PoE2, just as like they said about revamping the socket system. Lastly, before I begin, I'd like to note that it is a possibility this is just with my build, a flicker strike, but I doubt it, as the same core gems used to empower your main damaging ability is likely used across many builds.

So here it is. I have to use a total of 3, or 4 abilities to boost my damage before using my main attack ability on the boss. Why? Why can't we just have one empower ability? I think it is fair to say that that is the better game design, regarding using a side ability to empower your main attack ability should just be one.

The two I wanted to point out to directly are totems, and curses. I have to cast 3 times, or 4, if I have Whispers of Doom. Imagine if there were say, 2 more generic empowering side abilities that I can utilize. The build even has open sockets, so if there ever were, it would in actually put them in, totaling a 4-6 casts before I attack the boss.

I think it is reasonable to say that the gameplay is designed on 3 main skills. Your damaging ability. Your empower support for your main ability on bosses, and a movement skill to dodge boss mechanics. There use to even be the problem of single and multitarget long ago I think, but AoE has been so easily acquired that nobody really notices it anymore because I use to remember having 2 main skills back long ago. They've also made the sacrifice of single target damage loss to incorporate AoE very soft, so that you wouldn't hurt your build that much.

However, this is not the case with the current buffs of curses and totems. You must use them to buff your damage, otherwise you're hurting your total damage a lot. It's clear that the current totem buffs are a gimmick. They're not supposed to exist, and curses are actually the one and only empower support ability. Dual curses was a good idea too, but not in the sense that you had to cast both of them. That would be a return to bad design. Hextouch fixed this, but why was it so heavily nerfed? Probably because stacking curses was too easily acquired. The solution would have been to make it harder to incorporate in your build, like removing Hextouch altogether and putting it back into a unique item that requires investment in the build.

But I don't think we need to go back. I like having easy accessible curses. That's not the heart of the problem. It's the gameplay. It's having to cast both curses because Hextouch is unusable. Having to choose between double casting or using Hextouch for quality of life gameplay is bad design. There should only be one curse easily available to you, or multiple curses in full effect. One possible solution now, is perhaps a gem that grabs all buffs and debuffs and simply throws them in one cast, or possibly a more out of the box thinking, a new cast mechanic that allows you to have a queue of skills on one hotkey, linking a sequence of abilities.

There's a few other mechanics that I would like to bring up with too, like CWDT setups, who moot the point of guard skills(because they're often used) which are supposed to be your defensive abilities for bosses. Though this does bring into question what a guard skill, and a movement skill serves for gameplay in terms of boss fights. Then there's also instant cast left click abilities. Curses, buffs, or other buffs/defenses are all tied to these weird CWDT, left click, or other weird mechanics that aren't there to serve the purpose of the core gameplay of main damage ability, movement, empower/support, and maybe guard skills.

But last and final point, I think it is reasonable to say that the reason I love PoE is not because of its gameplay. No doubt the weird mechanics I pointed to above take away from it, but that I love PoE because of its truly complex and unique builds. I assume we all love it for the that reason, but it doesn't have to come at the cost of these weird gameplay mechanics. I think automating gameplay is the true heart of PoE. You create your build, and you simply watch it go, with as seamless gameplay as possible. No need, or fewer need to use movement abilities, or anything outside your main ability, honestly, almost like farming mobile games(not that they're good). Though PoE is torn between two worlds, of that kind of gameplay, which is mapping, and bossing, which is in the other direction of having your build not matter as much(or at all, if you're following a guide), and your gameplay is all the difference.

In any case, I believe I have addressed some core issues. I hope these issues are addressed in PoE2. I want my complex and fun builds, spending several hours in theorycrafting before I even start my character, but I don't think it has to come at the cost of weird and gimmick quad-casting support abilities.

What do you think? Are these issues just my build? What is PoE at its core? Is it a theorycrafting game, or an action based game? Should we cut down on buffs and debuffs, or at least make them easier to cast and streamline?

"

You create your build, and you simply watch it go, with as seamless gameplay as possible

So, you want the game to play itself for you?

"

So, you want the game to play itself for you?

Maybe not completely. That's not for me to decide for us, but personally, I don't think it would be awful. Think of it like having a built in bot to run maps for you. Would that be bad? It might be, but I think we can all understand why someone would want that, instead of having to hold right click.

"

poe626190 wrote:

Think of it like having a built in bot to run maps for you. Would that be bad?

WTF!? Of course it would.

I clearly do not get the sarcasm/humor of this thread. I'll see myself out.

"

Phrazz wrote:

"

poe626190 wrote:

Think of it like having a built in bot to run maps for you. Would that be bad?

WTF!? Of course it would.

I clearly do not get the sarcasm/humor of this thread. I'll see myself out.

You missed the point. It's about refinement, and a bot has many positive things it can do that we should adopt. We may not need full botting, where you literally walk away from your computer, but simplifying the gameplay to only actions that matter is the point here. Do you want to play with having to cast 2 curses as mandatory for all builds? What about limiting every single orb to a maximum stack of 1? How about requiring spells to only be allowed to cast with wands, requiring melee users to weapon swap every time they fight a boss, then switch back to a melee weapon? What about removing every single AoE support gem and requiring players to use weapon swaps for one for single target, and one for mobbing?

These are a reduction in the quality of life of the gameplay. There exists still, a lot of mechanics like these that can be improved.

A quick glance at the skilltree and other available options like skill- & supportgems, gear, ascendancies and whatnot should tell you everything you need to know about the general direction of this game.

Its all about choices you make. Good and bad ones.

Its pretty much the polar opposite of what you want.

"

poe626190 wrote:

You missed the point.

A MAJOR part of what makes PoE great, is the problem-solving part. The planning. The building. Dumbing the game down to just killing monsters, where every problem was being solved by the game, would kill the game faster than fast. You CAN automate a lot of things, but you have to progress and solve problems to get there. GETTING there IS the game, not being there.