Avalanche… I really like your idea. What you’re going for with the rework for base defense and building is great, the drills, furnace and chemical lab are neat ideas and they should stay.
HOWEVER…
The progression path for building and general gameplay, now, makes no sense and we need to change it.
For the record, I am on board with experimental & special ammo requiring exotic materials. I think that’s great and it gives purpose to base defense, which felt largely unimportant previously. What I am not a fan of is how that’s affected exploration and scavenging for materials, taking down rivals, and playing the general game. Overall, since these changes, these aspects of the game feel largely pointless.
For example, “Resistance Wooden Gate” now requires steal and phosphorous. But… not… Wood? I’m trying to understand, what sense does this make? Moreover, what this leads to is a reduction in importance on scavenging and exploration, and to much focus on investment into base building. Additionally, why can I conquer a FNIX base (the first one you encounter during the quest-line) only to turn around to find out I cannot build with any of the wood, steal and concrete I’ve gathered for the first couple hours of the game, because basic walls, gates and pylons require these new, special, exotic materials that are only obtained through base defense?… So the player, spends 2-5 hours exploring and taking in the entire introduction of the game. Then after they conquer their first base and establish their own. Then has to defend a base, with no defenses, because they cant even build a wood wall, without phosphorous, only obtained through the activity they’re being guided into? So the wood just automagically appears out of nowhere?
I’m just saying, I’m 100% on board with experimental modules, ammo, and equipment having the requirement of exotic materials. Which are obtained from drills, chem labs, and furnaces. But I do not agree with how that has affected general base building and overall progression throughout the game.
Moreover, I am also concerned how none of these new or exotic materials seem to drop or can be obtained from destroying rivals and high level machines, salvaging experimental weapons, exploring military bunkers and destroying / conquering FNIX bases. I feel like it’s in the games best interest, to add these materials to the loot and reward tables across all aspects of the game, which would have the positive effect of more seamlessly integrating base building to the overall scope, theme, and atmosphere of the game.
With all this being said. Please consider re-balancing the progression paths for building and make them more consistent with what build piece’s are actually called and please introduce more ways for the player to obtain these exotic materials. Whether that be by rewarding them for exploring and scavenging back packs, boxes and other containers, taking down rivals, conquering FNIX bases, and playing the general game instead of funnel forcing everyone into base defense, as not every single player is going to enjoy that gameplay loop. Players want to be able to have various options available to them and play the game how they want, for escapism, instead of feeling forced down a single lane of progression and gameplay.
Proposed re-balance (just examples and not all inclusive, or definitive)
Security Fence Pylon
Current Requirements - 6 Lead / 5 Phosphorous
Proposed Change - 6 Lead / 5 Steel
Resistance High Reinforced Pylon
Current Requirements - 6 Steel / 5 Phosphorous
Proposed Change - 6 Steel / 2 Concrete / 2 Titanium
Soviet Concrete Wall
Current Requirements - 8 Concrete / 5 Refined Aluminum Alloy / 5 Phosphorous
Proposed Change - 8 Concrete / 4 Steel / 2 Titanium
Resistance Wooden Gate
Current Requirements - 12 Steel / 10 Phosphorous
Proposed Change - 12 Steel / 10 Wood
Soviet Reinforced Pylon
Current Requirements - 5 Phosphorous / 2 Titanium
Proposed Change - 5 Concrete / 2 Steel / 2 Titanium
Soviet Reinforced Wall
Current Requirements - 5 Phosphorous / 2 Titanium
Proposed Change - 10 Concrete / 4 Steel / 4 Titanium
Soviet Reinforced Gate
Current Requirements - 5 Phosphorous / 2 Titanium
Proposed Change - 10 Concrete / 4 Steel / 4 Titanium
Resistance High Reinforced Wall
Current Requirements - 5 Phosphorous / 6 Steel
Proposed Change - 6 Steel / 2 Concrete / 2 Titanium
Security Fence
Current Requirements - 6 Lead / 5 Phosphorous
Proposed Change - 6 Lead / 5 Steel
Soviet Concrete Pylon
Current Requirements - 1 Refined Aluminum Alloy / 8 Concrete / 5 Phosphorous
Proposed Change - 8 Concrete / 5 Steel
Long story short. Across the board, remove “exotic materials” from building pieces for base building. It’s extremely awkward to have them here, it feels like an unnecessary obstacle especially when first starting out, or doing NG+, and importantly it’s not rewarding to the player since these items are not readily available, or earned outside of base defense. It’s also problematic because it’s a large, arbitrary gate keep for players who actually WANT to engage with this gameplay loop. As aforementioned, as soon as the player encounters their first FNIX base during the campaign. It’s extremely unsatisfying to spend the entire start of the game, exploring and gathering materials, building yourself up, conquer your first base, and be excited to take it over and build your own, only to be stone walled from crafting even BASIC wooden defenses because those assets are locked behind an exotic material that quiet frankly doesn’t even make sense to have as a requirement.
To reiterate, completely on board with exotic materials as a requirement for things like experimental ammo. But I think for the overall health and progression of the game, these new materials do not fit into the building requirements for base defense. They make progression feel extremely awkward. Not only that, the player needs more avenues and paths to collect these materials outside of base defense. Whether they’re added to the loot tables as rare drops from chests inside of bunkers and caves, they’re rare drops from high level machines and rivals, they can be salvaged from experimental weapons etc. There needs to be more paths of progression than JUST base defense.
Lastly, because of the steep requirements for some crafting recipes (like adrenaline) that are dependent on these new exotic materials. Please also consider removing the cap for defenses. For example, turrets and other categorically offensive assets have a hard limit of 5, please increase it to 10 or remove the cap entirely. Same is true for traps, like spikes walls, and spike floors, or decoys. Increase their cap, or remove the cap entirely. You gave us this LARGE grid to build on but we cant use it to it’s full extent, because the cap on the amount assets we can deploy is to strict.
Edit:
Spelling & Grammar & General Clarity. Re-worded some sentences and paragraphs, but the overall message conveyed is the same, but should be easier to read now.
** Additional thought**
I had another thing come to mind in regards to this as I pondered on it a bit longer. However, is more or less just reinforcing and repeating points I’ve already made previously.
Another aspect for how this is overall reductive to the experience of Gen Zero. Avalanche, you have this huge, beautifully crafted, very in-depth world, and it feels like the changes to base defense take away from that. The changes feel like they encourage the player to lock themselves away inside of their base instead of feeling enticed to explore, diving through abandoned military bunkers and caves, taking down rivals, salvaging and scavenging items and materials, or using their base as an FOB or manufacturing depot for experimental ammo and modules etc.
