Locking of the Balance Discussion forum

[Crayfish]

Just wanted to speak a little on the locking of the balance discussion forum.
I do understand ZeP's reasons for closing the forum, it wasn't doing the job it was originally intended for, but I think it is still an important place for the playing community and the development of FAF.
The fact that it became a totally open space where any player can give their own opinion - suggestion - vision of how the game should play, rather than giving feedback on official changes, is actually a good thing.
Firstly because discussions always move beyond whatever suggestion is being made, into a much wider debate that often brings up many more salient points and elements of the game that helps inform everyone's position. I've learned a huge amount about just playing the game, factional strengths, unit roles etc that have come out of often rash and outright misguided balance suggestions.
Secondly, the very best ideas for future balance changes of the game come out of this kind of community wide debate. While there should be a central - final authority in implementing the actual direction the balance changes take, there should still be a grass roots level forum where all the knowledge and insight of the community at large can be harvested. No single person, or group of top players, however experienced and knowledgeable, can match the specific insight and creative vision of the open forum. I'm sure everyone here has been enriched by the debate that goes on in the forums, had their mind changed on things they felt strongly about by other perspectives or been exposed to fresh ideas that simply never occurred to them in the first place. Even GPG themselves used feedback from the community consensus and specific individuals who offered specialized insight into areas like economy.
Thirdly, player just simply need a space like this for mental hygiene, to get things off their chests about things that bother them, as a creative space to discuss hypotheticals and perhaps come up with mod ideas that don't fit into the official patched version of the game.

Its good that ZeP now has a proper forum to do the job of testing the official revision balance changes, and this is very important, but I think it is still very worthwhile to also have a separate open forum for free debate to take place, and Im sure others feel the same way.

[Ze_PilOt]

The bottom of your message is "it has importance for the balancing of FA".

The thing is : I barely read it. So it's very unlikely that it has any influence.

Also some people were mixing up that forum with something official. Now that there is an official one, I really don't need them to think they are even remotely linked.

Maybe it will be re-open later, but not until 3615 release.

[Batmansrueckkehr]

is there any revision history? i mean what changes have been implemented when?
Is there any log of changes?
when there happens a balance change, when will the unit db be updated?

[Ze_PilOt]

All the changes are posted in the appropriate thread. They are cumulatives. If they are in that thread, it's mean that they are active in the current mod version.
That's all I can give, as the changes can go from 2-3 a week to 2-3 a day. I won't make an unitDB or a sensitive change log as it will take me more time to do it than the changes themselves.

This is a balance testing, so, except it to change after each game (almost).

[FunkOff]

All the changes are posted in the appropriate thread. They are cumulatives. If they are in that thread, it's mean that they are active in the current mod version.

There's a small error:

Code: Select all

- Selen proto cannon buff to 92.

Selen is Seraphim T1 scout. I think you meant the siren? That's the Cybran T2 cruiser.

[Ze_PilOt]

Indeed.

[AdmiralZeech]

At the risk of opening a can of eDrama (so maybe it's better to leave it unsaid), I would curious to know the following:
* Who are the people making the final decision on balance? ZeP, and any others?
* What are those peoples' vision for the future?
eg. - Fix major problems (but leave everything else alone.)
- The above and also make unused units viable.
- The above and also change economy/engineers/massfabs.
- The above and also change inter-tier relationships.
etc. etc.

I'd like to know how the decision makers are evaluation potential changes:
"If it's not broke then leave it alone" vs. "If it's an improvement, then we might as well do it."

But yeah, such a statement will inevitably start the fires of drama burning, so maybe not.
I'm also curious as to how and why "the balance team totally failed"

[Ze_PilOt]

- There was a balance team that I wasn't managing.
Barely nothing was done with it (only testing the mercy fixes)

- Then I re-took control over it. We came with the gunship/scout changes of the current mod, but nothing more.

Fact is, for broken/useless unit/late game, I need much more testers, so it's why it opened to anyone now.

And yes, I will take the final decision about it. And yes, I will listen to anybody with any good argument (read : Someone that tested it in real game situation, with replays, ....).
That doesn't mean I will follow any advice either.

[Batmansrueckkehr]

All the changes are posted in the appropriate thread. They are cumulatives. If they are in that thread, it's mean that they are active in the current mod version.

There's a small error:

Code: Select all

- Selen proto cannon buff to 92.

Selen is Seraphim T1 scout. I think you meant the siren? That's the Cybran T2 cruiser.

nice, can u give me the link to those appropriate threads? i mean what were the changes from 3610 to 3614?

[Ze_PilOt]

There are not concerning 3614. The 3614 changes are in the wiki.