Ever been one-shot killed by a sniper Zed?

[You Kissed a Boy and Liked It]

I haven't. In fact, these guys are more annoying mosquitoes than the hidden menace they're meant to be. They seem to be toting high-velocity spud rifles, are programmed with "troll A.I." (they just sting the player and fly off laughing) <i>and</i> they're so dumb that they return to the same perches, time and time again, until the player cannot but kill them eventually, not matter how scrubby their sniping skills.

I really think these guys, in particular, need a buff and probably their A.I. pathing reworked. They should do more damage overall, have head-shot kill capability and should have far more random and varied patterns.

As is stands, sniper Zeds are just annoyances and far from threatening. Unless a player is well injured, they cannot kill you. I've been shot by snipers umpteenth times, but killed by them only once or twice. Worse yet, being shot by them is almost desirable, as it reveals their location -- the very opposite of what a sniper should do! I've actually stood in that church (near the emplacement gun) while a player scoped the snipers and I didn't die, just acted like a decoy! they completely ruin the mood of the game; taking it from spooky zombie shooter to more of a 'Gears of War' arcade-y poops and giggles shooter.

Poor enemy design here. I don't know how they made it past beta testing in their current state. Were sniper Zeds in the last games? I don't recall them being there...

Oh. And finally: How can the snipers see the player before the players even expose themselves? The net effect being, you can often hear (or see) snipers targeting you before you're even in danger of actually being shot (read: pin pricked)! lel

[Gameo]

Zed?
lol.. isn't that what we kill on killing floor?

[You Kissed a Boy and Liked It]

Zed, zombie, deadite, shambling corpse, FPS gamer... whatever.

Point is, I don't think snipers can kill the player, only finish off wounded players, and only when the player has so little health that most any attack would kill them anyway.

Dumb.

[Gameo]

It does seem like they sissified the game a little bit compared to the old ones..
Added a splash of gore but made it easier?

Maybe it's just me or the fact I beat them both previously... but it just seems easier and more 'noob' friendly.. espeically the ridiculously OP kick.

[Sir Bearsly B Bearington]

try playing on sniper elite difficulty, the sections featuring snipers quickly become some of the hardest parts of the game

[Meturoido]

Originally posted by Gameo:

It does seem like they sissified the game a little bit compared to the old ones..
Added a splash of gore but made it easier?

Maybe it's just me or the fact I beat them both previously... but it just seems easier and more 'noob' friendly.. espeically the ridiculously OP kick.

Play it on Sniper Elite. Throw in Elite enemy numbers if you are feeling daring.

[You Kissed a Boy and Liked It]

Originally posted by Gameo:

It does seem like they sissified the game a little bit compared to the old ones..
Added a splash of gore but made it easier?

Maybe it's just me or the fact I beat them both previously... but it just seems easier and more 'noob' friendly.. espeically the ridiculously OP kick.

Yep. It's like they thought the flying body parts would distract people from the removed mechanics, nerfed environmental interactivity, oddly balanced weaponry and overall hand-holding feel of proceedings.

They should patch in a "hardcore" mode with enemies whose damage-dealing potential more represents the attacks they're using against you and fix some of the dumb stuff, like the aforementioned dopey sniper scripts and pathing.

The game still has that NZA feel, but the core gameplay, when one gets down to it, smacks of 'Gen Wii' syndrome -- appealing to the wider, casual audience, at the game's expense.

Originally posted by Dr David D Davidson:

try playing on sniper elite difficulty, the sections featuring snipers quickly become some of the hardest parts of the game

I never play with anything but Eilte difficulty (what's the point of sniping if not with the entrained mechanics ative?) and x2 enemy count (in single-player; 3~4 in 2-player).

But, for me, the game seems very easy. Sure, I die. But that's mostly from walking into situations I was unaware of or just killing my self by accident. I feel like I could do a 'kicks-only run', with the exception of snipers and bosses, which isn't a good indication of game challenge.

Originally posted by Ōkami:

Play it on Sniper Elite. Throw in Elite enemy numbers if you are feeling daring.

That's the very definition of 'artifical difficulty'. More enemies is fun, to a point. But scores more shamblers just means more repetition, not more challenge per se. If the shamblers had more menacing varieties - grenade-throwers, runners, suiciders that didn't stop to let the player escape the blast range - or snipers head-shot kill potential, more might = better. But as the game stands ATM -- nope.

[Meturoido]

Originally posted by Mannschaft In Your Gob:

That's the very definition of 'artifical difficulty'.

lol!! whatever....

[You Kissed a Boy and Liked It]

Originally posted by Ōkami:

Originally posted by Mannschaft In Your Gob:

That's the very definition of 'artifical difficulty'.

lol!! whatever....

More =/= harder when said 'more' is just more fodder. Couple that with the fact that ammo supply is plentiful, if not infinite in many areas (infinite in Horde), then more on-screen enemies makes little difference to the overall game difficulty. And if they only spawn repeatedly (as distinct from come in larger groups), it's even less of a challenge increase.

If 'more' meant high health, more damage-dealing potential, less ammo, weaker kicks, faster shamblers etc... then you'd be right (and not just trolling).

[Dakks]

I'm not sure I would want Zombie Snipers do be able to do a one hit kill. They rarely travel alone, and can appear in packs of up to 6 at once. Not to mention, you've got zombies on the ground to worry about as well. What are you supposed to do when you're busy fighting zombies and you don't notice a sniper has entered the fray? They only take about 3 seconds before firing off after landing and then they zoom away again.

Why on earth would you want a zombie sniper to one-shot kill you, the only way you could kill them first is if you had prior knowledge to where and when they spawn which would make a first-time playthrough (and any playthrough with Sniper Elite difficulty) an absolute nightmare. 3 shots to kill the player is fine. Let's not forget there is absolutely no cover system as well. If anything needs a buff it is Skeletons and Flaming Zombies.

[PocketYoda]

I like it as it is difficulty wise.

[You Kissed a Boy and Liked It]

^ You're reading too little into what I'm suggesting.

If the snipers were to be given one-shot kill capabilities, this would naturally be balanced. For example:

- there could be less of sniper zombies
- they could be limited to head-shot kills only in certain circumstances (like, if the player has their back tuned to them or is prone)
- their appearance could be made so as not to clash too much with other ground-based enemies' presence
- their dead-eye cheesiness could be removed and their shot selection more reserved and circumspect (their current ability to hit the exposed player 100% of the time, irrespective of whether stationary or moving, is asinine in the extreme, anyway)
- once shot (not killed), they could lose their mojo and their aim become errant...

It doesn't take that much ingenuity to balance these enemies. Anything is better than the annoying insect they are now. Even from a logical standpoint -- how come their rifles are so much weaker than the players'? What can't they be a genuine threat beyond beng annoyinng to hit because of their robotic, laser-like accuracy? Shouldn't the game feel more rewarding and not just cosset the player?

3 shots to kill the player is fine

If it were, there would be no sniping / sniper rifles ever used in war, much less video games made about the use of said weaponry.

[You Kissed a Boy and Liked It]

Originally posted by DanteYoda:

I like it as it is difficulty wise.

That's good, and I don't want it any more difficult for you. I want it more challenging for me and others like me who want the experience enhanced because Achievements and gold bars don't mean diddly squat to us.

As such, I'd only want this for a special mode -- e.g., 'Hardcore mode". That way you could still SG your 'final solution' all the way to Berling and I / we could enjoy the exhilaration of being shot at with result.

[Nejco]

They can instakill you? It feels like it's always 2 shot. I play on Sniper Elite.

[Mister Torgue Flexington]

Originally posted by SSD4L C.A.T. Nejc:

They can instakill you? It feels like it's always 2 shot. I play on Sniper Elite.

that's where you take cover, so that they can miss their shots

[You Kissed a Boy and Liked It]

Originally posted by SSD4L C.A.T. Nejc:

They can instakill you? It feels like it's always 2 shot. I play on Sniper Elite.

No -- they cannot kill you from full health from a single shot as the player can them.

Elite "difficulty" is not a difficulty setting per se; it's just the sniper rifle mechanics mode. That is, in Elite, you get the full effects from heart rate fluctuations (which themselves aren't much, given how low your heart remains irrespective of actions and how quickly it recovers -- 90~100bpm is the highest I've seen and, comparatively, I get to 170~180 (mid 30s) during anaerobic exercise and it takes minutes for me to return to a resting heart rate... and no zombies are chasing me at the gym! The other difficulty settings are little more than 'simple modes' for scope rifle play for those who want to see the X-ray slow-mo without having to aim very well.

I have noticed no significant damage-dealing, speed or intelligence increase from enemies on Elite difficulty versus the other settings. Playing on anything but Elite is effectively turning the game into God Mode / L4D. ...which NZAT arguably already is, anyway.