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Hey everyone, [HWK]Vanashinkaku here!
With Ascension, we created some really awesome systems. We've watched a lot of people play and we've collected a ton of data on how people have been building their mechs. We've taken this data and have been iterating on those designs based on how we've seen them effect gameplay.
We've talked before about the removal of vertical progression from Mech Progression and the re-balance to Pilot Progression. These things were critical in order for us to create the most balanced game we can. By removing Tuning Points, we are now able to deliver an extremely strong mech not just to a high level player, but to a new player as well. One of the biggest weaknesses of the old system was that new players were punished for having a weaker mech than someone who was max level and max mech rank. This new system puts a much larger emphasis on the skill of the player, rather than time played and optimal upgrades.
One question we've seen asked multiple times on the forums is: "Why not just give us all 30 points at the beginning_" We explored that option and here's why we ended up deciding against it.
[*]In order to make the points meaningful, we have to make the effects pretty large. This makes balancing mechs very difficult when trying to take all tuning variations into account. This also makes it difficult for players to identify what a mech is capable of when spotted on the battlefield.
[*]People often come up with what can be perceived as “Optimal Builds” for each class. Mostly everyone who keeps track will follow that same build and people who build differently may perform worse because of it. By removing tuning points, we can define the role of each mech and players will be able to have a much more balanced experience.
[*]We want people to enjoy the game and be able to jump straight in and have fun. For that reason, people often forget to use their points. This becomes more apparent when players have many mechs in their garage. When this happens, they are basically penalized for not using them or for forgetting.
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Another change we have been wanting to make is in regards to the current Time-To-Kill (TTK). TTK has been a hot topic of conversation for a long time and something we've been adjusting internally. We eventually came to the conclusion that engagements lasted far too long and for the most part felt extremely unrewarding. We believe the main reason for this was our large health pools.
When battling another player 1-on-1, we agree that maneuvering and dancing around is fun. However, the longer this lasts the more opportunity there is for another player to come and affect the outcome of the fight. This doesn't feel rewarding for either players involved in the 1-on-1 because it prevents them from having any closure for their duel.
Another disadvantage of high health is that it minimizes the importance of strategic placement, flanking and smart decision making. It's a disappointing experience when you attempt to outsmart your competition only to have the enemy simply escape due to his high health.
Before I go into the numbers behind the new TTK balance, let's take a look at "Effective Health."
The Effective Health of a mech is its potential health given through other means outside of armor itself. There are many things that contribute to your Effective Health, including movement speed, dodging, abilities etc. We've all faced a powerful Scout Pilot who is able to clean up an entire team and then run away without breaking a sweat. This is because their high mobility more than makes up for their lack of armor, giving them an Effective Health that is extremely high.
This issue also leads to balance problems. Light mechs are supposed to be glass cannons, but with their high Effective Health there really isn't anything "glass" about them. Not only are they the fastest mechs in the game, they can also be granted far too much armor using Tuning Points.
This is why we see a lot of Light mechs being played in the current version of HAWKEN, more so than most other classes in the game. We really want to see more high-level play involving Medium and Heavy class mechs while still keeping Light mechs as a viable option in competitive combat. In order to accomplish this, we have significantly lowered the Time-To-Kill in HAWKEN.
So what does lowering the Time-To-Kill mean_ Well, here are a few bullet points!
[*]Mech Armor Heavily Reduced
[*]Sustain Damage Increased
[*]Burst Damage Re-Balanced
[*]Heat Generation Lowered Overall
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Essentially, the faster a mech is and/or the more potential burst damage output it has, the less armor the mech will have! With these new balance changes, one mistake can easily destroy that dominating Scout pilot without them getting more than a few shots off. Positioning, timing and map awareness will be far more valuable in this new environment and we look forward to seeing how combat will develop and evolve.
So, without further ado, here's our collection of statistics for the upcoming patch. Enjoy!
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