In previous and coming updates, PvE changed by adding new events (e.g. scarlet) and improving old events (e.g. bosses in coming update). These changes are good and I believe it enhanced the overall gameplay experience for most players. The coming update will increase the difficulty and make some currently existed bosses more challenging. These are good improvements and I would like to say thank you to Anet for all these.
However, based on the experience from the previous events, I believe these events can actually do more than just adding bunch of mobs on the world and asks players to kill them. The most significant part they can improve is the outcome of the event. Currently, not matter we successfully finished an event or not, there will not be any changes. For example, Scarlet is so kind to Tyria that no matter the player successfully defeat her force or not, they will leave the map without any impact. I bet the coming Teq event will be more or less the same, the map will back to peaceful not matter the dragon was defeated or not. This shows the world not really living at all!! I still remember in GW2 manifesto, Ree Soesbee said:
“As a structure, the MMO has lost the ability to make the player feel like a hero. Everybody around you is doing the same thing you are doing. The boss you just killed respawns ten minutes later. It doesn’t care that I’m there.”
Isn’t this sounds similar to the boss we have now? The only difference I found in GW2 is that most bosses does not spawn 10 mins later but a few hours. Scarlet came event 3-4 hours and sometime player went to that map just for the sake of farming. Teq came to the shore and stand there for about 15mins before leaving. There are not much difference no matter we successfully defeated those bosses including Claw, Shatter, Maw, Wurm, Fire Sharman. Neither the player nor the boss care about the world, the boss will leave eventually and players only care about loots.
As the next update is going to make bosses more challenging, I suggest later updates should include event chains that punish players if these events were not successfully finished. What I mean punish is that if boss fight or scarlet events were not successful, there may be impact on the world. Including minor or major punishment.
For minor punishment events, this may be designed like the introduction of Southsun Cove. Players need to clears events and a tough boss at the end. During the event, we may include:
*maps occupied by related monsters (scarlet, branded creature from shatterer, underworld creature from SB, etc)
*NPCs retreat from maps occupied by world boss (or their minion)
*reduction in resources node from occupied map
*boss event will only return once the event from occupied map (players can no longer get nice boss chest)
If more maps were occupied (e.g. 3 maps occupied in same area such as Ascalon, Kryta), major punishment events kicks in, these may include:
*increase the amount/strengthen of trash mob in those area because the world boss has been strengthen.
*All NPC vendor selling price and BLTP transaction fee increase slightly because their vendors cannot do business in those area.
*WP stop functioning in those area because they were contested.
*Dungeons cannot gain access because NPCs were not able to do their research/task in those maps.
The currently Tyria is large and beautiful but empty. I guess these events can encourage players to go to different parts of Tyria but not only focused on those events that include a chest. However, the impact of these punishment event may be different in terms of the population of server. I hope my humble opinion can create some constructive discussion and inspires Anet game designers on how to improve the game.
(edited by OnlyFate.8549)
