Hello,
Below are my thoughts on the Destiny Beta so far, but first a little background. I started FPS in 2002 with the SOCOM franchise and have played all SOCOM games. While in college, I played a lot of HALO with friends and even attended two MLG events in Orlando, FL. Additionally, I enjoyed MAG, Shadow Run and currently DUST 514. The only Call of Duty games I liked were the WWII ones.
*EDIT - I am playing the Beta on PS3 and if I like it enough, will buy PS4 and the game in September
[b][u]Party Size[/u][/b]
I do not know if the current size of a 3 person fireteam for PVE and 6 person fireteam for PVP will be the same in the launch of the game but I don’t care for it. For me, videogames are social and it seems that the messaging from Bungie is that Destiny is a social game – however this small party size really limits how many friends a person can play with. I really hope party size increases.
[b][u]Health Regeneration[/u][/b]
…Is too fast. You can get an enemy down to the red and all they have to do is turn a corner, pause, and then they are back at full health. I am not suggesting it takes 60 seconds to get back to full health but maybe somewhere in the 1 to 5 more seconds would be nice.
[b][u]Supers[/u][/b]
1) Need a better visualization that a player is capable of using their super. Besides the Hunter “glowing” when they have the” golden gun” out I am not even sure I can tell other players are capable of using their super. I feel it would be advantageous for Bungie to add a visual indication that a person is able to use their super, a subtle “warning” if you will to the enemy that a player is capable of using their super.
2) It would be nice if there was a gamemode with Supers turned off. While they can be fun and “game changing” they can also be very unbalanced and cheap. I know everyone has their own opinion and views, I just feel it would be beneficial to have a gamemode with no Supers for those that like playing without them and relying on communication and FPS skills rather than an “easy button” for a quick kill.
[b][u]Leveling Up[/u][/b]
I enjoy this MMO aspect of the game. However, it seems very elementary and basic. As a character levels up, they are basically just getting better, not more diversified. Characters are not becoming more unique, they simple get better skills or attributes, there’s little diversification.
[b][u]Cut Scenes[/u][/b]
Not a big deal, but seems odd when a fireteam is doing something together and then they go to a cut scene and each player is alone and hearing the same thing. At the start of a Crucible match, each player is uniquely shown, why can this not be done for the cut scenes also?
[b][u]Matchmaking[/u][/b]
…Has occasionally split our group of six up onto opposing teams. This is lame and annoying.
[b][u]Statistics[/u][/b]
Although I like the bar graph ascetically, I am a fan on numbers and specifics. Example: It would be nice to know that a player has 100 "hit points" and that each shot with a hand cannon does 25 points of damage and each body shot with a sniper rifle does 75 points of damage.
[b][u]Bugs[/u][/b]
1) During a crucible match, I inspected a player during the match and when I went back to the game screen, my HUD was gone. After the match, we went to the tower and nothing was displaying. I believe this can be seen at the end of my third night live stream.
2) I get disconnected a lot during PVE play, less so during PVP but it still happens.
3) I received the following error codes many times each: centipede, bee, and caterpillar
[b][u]Question[/u][/b]
Will there be a version of Forge from HALO in Destiny for customized Crucible matches and maps? That would be amazing and something that I could see providing a lot of content and longevity to the game.
Over all, the Beta has been a fun experience. My primary concerns are that party size is too limiting and stymie’s social gaming; MMO style leveling is rudimentary; and that after a few months of PVP and shooting aliens in PVE, the game would become stale. I like the concept and as a HALO fan, enjoy what Bungie has done with Destiny, but as a person who does not play a lot of different games but rather sticks to one game at a time, it is difficult for me to see how this can be a game that lasts a year or two or even Bungie’s perceived 10.
I will continue to play the beta when I can and follow all the information coming out about the game and hope for some optimistic news that leads me to believe that this will be a game that can fulfill my interests as a social gamer --- as I have a circle of friends that I play FPS with, some of which I have been playing with since I started in 2002 :)
~Stryker
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http://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post?id=66508817