Why do we need a new gear set each episode?

[Pyroxius]

Having a different combat skill for each episode already is weird, it discourages the grind and makes it feel a little pointless, I can however see gowers argument saying this lvls the playing field for each player each time new content gets released. My issue however is with the armor set. Why are they locked to an episode? Gear hardly seems to impact the game anyway...

The whole atuning thing is simply unfun, and frankly extremely tedious game design. I dont mind lvling combat up, what I do mind however is replacing my gear each time I go to a new zone. Gear should be game wide. It feels bad to have litterly useless gear and go from being decked out in cool equipment to that being useless in the new episode.

Its so bad, I think this could be one of the main reasons people will quit the game. Please consider removing the attuning and seperate gear for each episode. Its just not fun.

[Nemesis Primez]

your beating a dead horse, people will not understand here till the devs put a mini boss in each episode or if they start with just one depending where the put the boss at, most likely the episode played the least, then people will come to your conclusion about weapon and armor. Imagine being lv300+ or lv400+ in the most fun episode then the mini boss is in least popular. You better grind to what ever the minimum is to even get a chance to hit the mini boss.

This game is force by devs and community just stick to that role. This game is not about just staying in one episode, (if your a free player, didn't paid for other episode), because remember yall say you be going back and forth. Well some people don't want to gather ingredient's for alchemy, it's easier to buy from npc or just buy the pots outright. So no content for those player because again they don't want to mindlessly just build a record for carpal tunnel. Yall rebuttal is do it either way or this game ain't for you.

If you remove fighting and just stick to purely grinding other skill, then you are just grinding for a cape of achievement.

so again I see both side here but at the end just beating a dead horse, either grind or wait till devs actually put content that forces you to have gear in each episode so that it will be WORTH IT.

[Celdinumbra]

This is possibly one of the worst "leveling" mechanics that i seen in any game really. I would be willing to look the other way if the combat was interesting, engaging, or at least different for each chapter but its the same uninspired auto-hit mess that you have to repeat for every new chapter. I would imagine that this might become interesting once (if) they add faction and chapter skills as well as some actual combat content besides the "4 monsters in a room" thing that we have now.

[ap10]

My beefs with the combat system are having a separate set of gear for each episode and there being no sense of character building or progression. All of the combat skills are one dimensional and none of them relate to each other in any way. You essentially have a separate character build for each episode.

[Pyroxius]

Messaggio originale di Zen607:

TLDR: It's to force all players to be on equal footing when a new episode releases.:rl2shrug:

I understand, but its just simply not fun. That goes at the price of making the game feel useless to play in the first place. Because any combat you do in a certain episode doesnt carry over. So why would I care about the combat in the first place?

Atleast the other skills are somewhat unique. With some exceptions. They feel different to use and I get you cannot do woodcutting in a mine.

But in each episode, I swing the same looking weapons. Its EXACTLY the same thing. Also theres lvl scaling in the game, so technically everyone always begins on the same footing since mobs for veteran players will simply be harder then mobs for new players. So That argument is just false.

there is simply no reason for this to exist other then the fact they cannot change it now because they are to far into the cycle. Its just a objectively bad system.

[idracones]

its not exciting at all disappointment in a way if it gave a small health bounes it be a little better, ike plus 1 for every 25 lvs from previous

[Shimizu]

This. I get the "different combat skill per zone" thing and can get on board with that, but the gear thing is infuriating. Worsened by the strict inventory limits. If it at least let you keep everything equipped and swap them it would be a bit better, but seriously grinding to level 30+ dying more often than not each fight because you've yet to loot a decent weapon after level 2, just sucks. And then you go to the next zone and do it again. Probably main thing that's putting me off continuing to play.

[Pyroxius]

Messaggio originale di Shimizu:

This. I get the "different combat skill per zone" thing and can get on board with that, but the gear thing is infuriating. Worsened by the strict inventory limits. If it at least let you keep everything equipped and swap them it would be a bit better, but seriously grinding to level 30+ dying more often than not each fight because you've yet to loot a decent weapon after level 2, just sucks. And then you go to the next zone and do it again. Probably main thing that's putting me off continuing to play.

Same, I am currently playing till POE2 is ready, if they would change the combat and the episode system I would go hard at brighter shores but currently its just not worth it.

[Pink]

I can tolerate multiple combat skills for now but the foraging/gathering ones are atrocious. I hope Episode 5 isn’t bringing in another.

[Omega Haxors]

Messaggio originale di MortarNMetal:

Messaggio originale di Eventide:

They already talked about this in a news post..
Essentially the reason for it is so you don't have to grind in order to play later episodes. They used the example of this way you don't need to be level 100+ combat to play episode 4.

You already have to grind in order to play later episodes lol. This excuse is so dishonest.

It's not really a grind, you can get to the next chapter before even fully completing the tutorial (level 20) for each skill in the current chapter. The only time it kind of sucks is when you're putting too much time into a single profession and not trying them all out equally.

[BEF]

I just don't see what multiple combat skills are reinforcing in a gameplay loop other than padding out time between quest. Even main story quests need minimal grind, side quests don't, and saying to grind the same skill minus an icon and name change isn't adding anything to the experience.

The way it's currently implemented there might as well not be a combat skill. The only thing that really changes is the amount of silver and xp you get per mob but it's not meaningful in any way. The only thing it is currently doing is gating side quests.

I don't think it's bad design just bad implementation. There are multiple ways to make it work but it's all focused around providing purpose and meaning behind a combat skill.

I'll use OSRS as an example. Not because I want OSRS 2.0 but because these games are as similar as they are different.

OSRS to me had a core gameplay focus on exploration and adventure. Combat in that game fed into that in multiple ways, unlocking quests, farming key items, along certain areas possible to be explored, and with static levels and equipment had meaning as it meant if I was struggling with a certain area I could come back later while stronger and not struggle or not even have to deal woth aggro at all if strong enough as well as creating those big milestones to strive for. Brighter Shores is only checking the quest block and thus becomes arbitrary in the process as if it is just stats determining whether or not a boss that you can only fight once is relevant it becomes a check box not something dynamic or meaningful in how the player engages with the game world.

Foraging and Gathering is another example of this. Foraging and gathering work almost the exact same and arguably could be combined to a single skill with a greater amount of milestones. Breaking them apart for the sake of episodes doesn't seem to be providing any addition meaning or substance to the skills other than again as a gate to certain quests and features.

As I've played I have greatly enjoyed questing more than any other aspect and thus I assume is intended as the core gameplay loop. But I would argue is too focused and has relegated skilling to nothing more than a check box to be ticked off to get to the good parts. But this is just me for some mindlessly hacking away at an xp bar and watching numbers increase seems to be more than enough mental stimulation for them. I don't mean that in a bad way dopamine is a he'll of a drug and I relate however it only gets me so far.

I beleive that Gower is competent and pushed the leader board to try to mitigate this to some extent and give an additional extraneous goal. But this is one that only caters to certain types and will probably only be met with middling success for a short term.

Ultimately I think there are core flaws in the current itteration that I beleive Gower and his team recognize and are trying to address in a way that doesn't detract from those that have invested time in other areas or in combat itself or so I hope anyway.