And that hole's name is Hypocrisy. Allow me to elaborate.
In a conversation in a [url=https://www.bungie.net/en/Forums/Post/246906880?sort=0&page=0&path=1]TTK thread[/url] the other day the usual things came up:
Supposed benefits of lower TTK including better 1v2+ moments which led to a teamshooting conversation.
Firstly let me explain how lower TTK doesn't help 1v2+ engagements.
Although TTK can include abilities it is most widely associated with Weapon kill times.
Weapon TTK by itself mainly only means anything in a 1v1.
Making everything equal; Player (gun)skill, weapon damage, line of sight, etc...
A 1v2 with those parameters the "1" is [u]always[/u] going to lose in a straight out gunfight.
What gives the "1" a chance and creates those moments people want is [u]thumbskill[/u]. Movement, map awareness, abilities. TTK has nothing to do with those therefore has nothing to do with overcoming a 1v2+. People don't talk about Gunskill with these moments. They talk about everything they did to survive and take people out. Most times with a 1HK weapon.
Lowering TTK does not 'help' gunskill so much that it will change these engagements.
The exception is when the skill gap of the '1' and '2' is so wide that it's essentially a curb stomp.
Then in another part of the thread larger map design was brought up claiming it would [u]solve[/u] teamshooting.
So I made the statement: "[b]Larger maps will encourage flanking. Which is also teamshooting.
Is flanking somehow a more acceptable form of teamshooting?[/b]"
And the answer I got was: "[b]If the whole team flanks then no, but then they're still walking as a group rather than covering more ground so the end result will still be the same[/b]."
Me: " [b]That's kind of hypocritical though. Either it's teamshooting or it's not. How can their be OK ways and not OK ways[/b]."
Person: "[b]If one person flanks then it's not teamshooting. If the majority of the team is, then it's teamshooting[/b]."
Wait what? Sooo one kind of teamshooting is ok and another isn't? Riiiiight.
So I offered this:
"[b]Think of a giant V formation. 1 person at the point and 2 at the tips spread out. What's the difference when both of them shoot the 1 person together vs if they were closer together or clumped? The answer is nothing[/b]."
You can't conveniently define teamshooting as the [u]whole[/u] team and leave flanking alone.
People just want 1v2+ engagements to be easier NOT more viable. These moments can and do happen in D2 it's just harder. I imagine after September when shotguns are more available we'll see more 'moments'. But again TTK doesn't matter with a shotgun. However, if the TTK is lowered it will only hurt the shotgun rusher.
This brings to light the hypocrisy and selfishness of this whole debate IMO.
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The only issue I have high TTK in Destiny 2 is the extreme emphasis on movement. Movement options are exactly why Hunters are so prevalent in the crucible at this time. The only thing lower TTK would achieve would be a greater instance of trades taking place when a flank goes south(subsequently reducing the “flight over fight” phenomenon that is so common right now). A greater number of trades(even under team fire, when you obviously got the jump on an opponent, would also reduce the experience of constantly being collapsed on following a “pick”. I’m not a major proponent of drastic TTK reduction, but I do see the drawback of having high TTK when movement options are so wide spread. It’s not uncommon to experience a lot of slow paced, passive, campy engagements that end in a player who was obviously out of position slip away with no recourse for bad habits. Put all of these issues together with the pretty substantial reduction of in-air-accuracy, and you have a game where the dominate play style is clumping up in lanes, teamshooting and avoiding 1v1 encounters at all cost. I think Bungie saw the team focused popularity of Trials of Osiris as an indicator that players enjoyed (or otherwise would potentially enjoy) gameplay that resembles overwatch rather than Halo or COD. Currently I feel that to be able to even be able to PLAY quick play, I have to approach the game with the same level of intensity that I had to, in the highest level of competition in D1(Trials). It’s simply not fun, and ends up being stressful for players at all levels of skill. I don’t have the silver bullet solution on how to fix it, but something needs to happen before massive lag creeps in due to SBMM and low player counts kill the remaining player base after content drought sets in mid summer.