- Tempus Irae
- |
- Honorable Member
After reading this...
"Marksmanship: The defining factor of competitive FPS"
It wasn't always that way. Early FPS' like Doom and Quake had auto-aim and no mouse aim.
Got to this
2. The vector assist, or bullet magnetism as many like to call it, was dramatically boosted from the previous game. This allowed players who were so bad at aiming that they still missed their shots to hit their opponent anyway. The easiest example could be seen in the swipe snipe, which could yield a headshot even if you missed by a yard. Rockets became homing weapons, and hitting with the BR was essentially as easy as keeping your reticule within 3 feet of the opponent's player model.
When all was said and done, these two "features" allowed people who had never even touched an FPS game before to aim just as well as a seasoned pro. And just like that, bad players started topping the scoreboard.
And I agree with that, who can't?
Imagine that there was an opponent that you couldn't possibly beat. He lands his shots much better than you ever could, dodges far too unpredictably for your tiny brain to react. Then imagine that there was a weapon that could nullify all of that and allow you to kill that player who you would otherwise lose against in a truly level playing field.
I actually encounter this situation often in Halo CE, except on a smaller scale, as in the enemy only nullifies my abilities temporarily, via a rocket launcher or fuel rod gun.
First-person cowardice: The frail argument that shooting shouldn't be important
In a recent thread, a point was attempted that would make any decent FPS player laugh so hard it hurt his sides. I did just that.
Essentially, it was argued that Halo 2 was a skill-based FPS despite marksmanship not being important. What was deemed "skillful" in this game was "using cramped maps to your advantage" and "waiting for a weapon respawn"
lolwat.
Gimme a direct quote.
When it does, it's no longer a first-person shooter, but a first-person battle to see who the biggest coward is.
Very, very well put.
A Baddie in Beast's Clothing: The illusion of skill
Ahaha, I love it already.
Halo 2 essentially provides an illusion of skill. The most obvious of this on the Xbox version is the ranking system. Any decent FPS player who has ever played Halo 2 knows it is far from skill-based. Yet for some stupid reason known only to God and the developers, they decided to slap some falsified epeen onto the game's matchmaking system. In a game where skill means nothing, ranks breeded pretentiousness. Players who wouldn't be able to hold a candle to even the most casual UT player suddenly believed that earning a high rank in the noob's paradise made them God's gift to FPS.
The illusion applied on a subconscious level as well. A gladiatorial-style multiplayer, announcer and all, praising players for being cowards. I'll be the first to admit that killing four players simultaneously with an explosion feels pretty cool, even if I know I did it cheaply. But when the announcer lets forth a grizzly testament to your prowess, suddenly a bad player feels like he has skill. This, layered on with a numbered scoreboard that allowed bad players to proudly display all of their kills that they wouldn't have otherwise earned if the game didn't practically hand them over for free, essentially provided bad FPS players with a haven to retreat to.
At last, a player who would constantly ride the bottom of the scoreboard in a game where skill was required could now venture into a world where he could play with his genitals tucked firmly between his legs and believe he's good.
(An enormously eloquent paragraph was created in response to the finale of this glorious finale to a glorious essay, but the author felt it still could not describe his feelings. Needless to say, fireworks were involved.)
[Edited on 07.03.2011 8:27 PM PDT]