PlanetSide 2 Explains New Advancement System, Veteran Players Raise Concerns
Veteran PlanetSide 2 players will soon get some new toys to play with, offering extra flexibility in their builds and a new way to advance beyond Battle Rank 100, replacing the old system which simply increased max BR to 120. Of course, with any new addition to the game, people are complaining about it -- though in this case, much of the rancor is coming from those who would benefit from the changes.
On a livestream yesterday, the PS2 devs revealed the Advanced Specialization Program, or ASP. Once you reach BR 100, you'll be able to unlock ASP by either being a member or spending 10,000 certs. That "resets" your BR to 1 (though you don't lose any progress) and gives you an ASP point. You'll earn additional ASP points at BRs 25, 50, 75, and 100.
ASP points unlock perks that let you reduce nanite costs of vehicles or give soldiers the ability to equip gear in that normally couldn't be used by that class. For a good summary of the system and all it offers, check out this post on the PS2 forums.
The problem that some are seeing is that new PS2 players -- who already face a steep uphill climb in terms of accumulating perks and gear -- will be at a further disadvantage against players who have unlocked complex build options via ASP. Those newbies will face a long road to BR 100 and ASP perks if they want to play on an equal playing field against veterans using ASP. Even if that's not an issue, there are the usual concerns about how ASP will affect existing class balance by giving classes access to weapons they've never had before.
Looking over various threads on the PlanetSide subreddit, it's the veteran BR 120 players who are leading the anti-ASP crusade, concerned that it will make it difficult to attract and keep new players. It's an odd reversal from what we usually see in an online game, where long-time players usually want everything for themselves and bristle at the notion of a company going out of its way to attract new players. Maybe that's something Daybreak Game Company will need to think about before going live with ASP.
UPDATE: It looks like the PS2 devs are reacting to the feedback and already looking to pull some of the "most contentious" parts of ASP:
Going to pull back the Infil Carbines and Heavy Assault LMGs from the Prestige lineup. Those seem to be the two most contentious additions. #planetside2
— Wrel (@WrelPlays) March 30, 2018
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About the Author
Jason Winter is a veteran gaming journalist, he brings a wide range of experience to MMOBomb, including two years with Beckett Media where he served as the editor of the leading gaming magazine Massive Online Gamer. He has also written professionally for several gaming websites.
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And another thing that seems to be lost on vets who should know better is that nothing is ever carved in stone. If something rolls out and ends up being OP, there's nothing stopping the devs from removing that option and refunding the ASP point. It would not be the first, second, third, forth....tenth time they've done that. One of the most exciting thing about Planetside for me is that it has never, will never, be "out of Beta". It is a game of change where you either adapt or wash-out.
And finally, a lot of the hand wringing over New Player Experience comes from a previous dev stream where they said that is being actively worked on. Many in our community don't understand the concept of parallel development and so they equate this news as "forsaking one for the other" rather than "showing off what's ready to be shown (ASP and new Empire Specific Weapons) and not showing off that which needs more work (New Player Experience rework)."
Finally, I know that sensationalism sells, and if it bleeds it leads, but you might want to think about writing a story about D0ku: A talented community member / modeler submits well-made weapon assets through Daybreak's Player Studio program (weapons are NOT a category for submission) and Daybreak goes out of their way to introduce those weapons into the game with full animations, sound design, and interesting empire specific traits. It may not be as sexy as "everyone is mad", but the idea of a game company working with its community members to add engaging content is a story worth telling.