Planetside 2 Catch-All

Bear wrote:

There were several tweets from Smedley yesterday basically saying that they were aware of the hackers, they have multiple ways to deal with them and that people were being banned.

I've played SOE games for 12+ years, and consider myself a fan of the company. That said, their record for actually dealing with hackers is horrible. While some of the high profile stuff will undoubtedly get dealt with in short order, if you want to play Planetside 2 you should plan on seeing this kind of crap on a regular basis forever.

Had a great night last night! 40 cert points in 25 min. Got to love the zerg spawning on Sundy's. I also had a 20+ kill streak going on in my Scyth while that Sundy was deployed.

Started playing this game a few days ago, and I was a bit frustrated at first. Just about any time I went up against someone, I died... very quickly. I have learned a few things though. There is a lot of need for support type loadouts in this game. This morning I got up to 50 certs with my Vanu character, bought the Sunderer's deploy ability, and just played with that a bit. Took me a few days to get to 50, took me an hour or two (barely engaging in combat), to make about 25 of it back up just from people spawning for my truck. I was also switching between engie and medic, tossing ammo packs, and fixing stuff or people respectively.

I really suck at the combat on this game though. By the time I've processed that someone is shooting at me, I'm normally dead before I realize where they are.

So I gave this a fair shake yesterday and I gotta say the lack of feedback is very disorienting. Tried to play Infiltrator/sniper and was attempting to shoot some guys from far out, but I had no feedback on whether or not I was hitting them and if I was missing where my shots were going. If they're running it seems like one needs to lead the shot a bit but again I can't if I'm hitting or not.

Also it doesn't appear that this game is optimized well at all. My machine that can run most other games pretty well is dying trying to keep 30fps in low settings. Doesn't make for a fun experience. I saw some INI tweaks that I'm going to give a shot at, but it's pretty silly in my opinion.

And I still don't get capturing buildings and such. I get that some bases have a hub room where some people can sit to build a meter, but not all buildings have this. I remember this one from last night where I could tell via the icons that it wasn't our building so I went in to try to capture it, but couldn't find any hub room to capture it with. Is it just accessory to a nearby main base? Not clear at all.

I want to like this game and have fun with it, but it keeps getting in the way. (Much like Mechwarrior Online, but that's another thread :p)

Was really struggling to get any kills, ever, until I finally bought a scope (just a 3.4x one, nothing fancy) for my primary machine gun on my Heavy kit.

I knew it would help me, but WOW did it help. It was such a significant boost in my ability to actually shoot people that I bought a grip to help stabilize against recoil even more. Also picked up some basic upgrades (the cheapie ones, I didn't have the cert points for more) for my armor, like boosted health, etc.

Now I'm properly able to provide support as a Heavy, which makes me happy.

Farscry wrote:

Also picked up some basic upgrades (the cheapie ones, I didn't have the cert points for more) for my armor, like boosted health, etc.

Just don't do what I did: Buy the armor upgrade and then forget to equip it in my loadouts.

Also note that the Armor, Shield and Explosive resistance upgrades are mutually exclusive.

In my case, the game was GPU-limited. Reducing the resolution one notch and reducing the "Render Quality" from 100 to 85 (as suggested by a dev) boosted my FPS by 10-20 each.

Prepare to be lame at the game for a while -- I certainly am. I did participate in a successful massive tank assault last night where I racked up a bunch of good kills, but I get the impression that TR and VS are much more better organized than NC, which is frustrating. Outfit night is Tuesday, so hopefully that improves my experience.

Valmorian wrote:
Farscry wrote:

Also picked up some basic upgrades (the cheapie ones, I didn't have the cert points for more) for my armor, like boosted health, etc.

Just don't do what I did: Buy the armor upgrade and then forget to equip it in my loadouts. :P

Oh, I did that too. Fortunately the lack of a scope was quickly apparent.

Valmorian wrote:

Also note that the Armor, Shield and Explosive resistance upgrades are mutually exclusive.

Yeah, I learned that the hard way too. At least I only spent 1 cert point on each before learning my lesson! (If I'm remembering it right)

Are vehicle zoom/ammo upgrades present in any vehicle in which you find yourself, or only for vehicles you spawn? I've found their presence in vehicle turrets to be remarkably fickle.

Ugh, the choice of weapon scopes is dizzying. A separate 3.4x and 4x? Really?

Archangel wrote:

Are vehicle zoom/ammo upgrades present in any vehicle in which you find yourself, or only for vehicles you spawn? I've found their presence in vehicle turrets to be remarkably fickle.

Your upgrades only apply to vehicles that you spawn. And of course, don't forget to equip the upgrades in your loadout.

Datyedyeguy wrote:

Tried to play Infiltrator/sniper and was attempting to shoot some guys from far out, but I had no feedback on whether or not I was hitting them and if I was missing where my shots were going. If they're running it seems like one needs to lead the shot a bit but again I can't if I'm hitting or not.

When you score a hit, you should see 4 red diagonal lines in your crosshairs. If you don't see it blink, you're not hitting anything. If you really want to test it out to make sure you can hit stuff, hop into a vehicle with a turret. Eventually you'll hit something, and you'll have added protection while you're working it out. Here's a pic I found online, though it's a bit hard to see in the pic.
IMAGE(http://c15213273.r73.cf2.rackcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/PlanetSide2-2012-11-21-12-36-17-56.png)

Datyedyeguy wrote:

And I still don't get capturing buildings and such. I get that some bases have a hub room where some people can sit to build a meter, but not all buildings have this. I remember this one from last night where I could tell via the icons that it wasn't our building so I went in to try to capture it, but couldn't find any hub room to capture it with. Is it just accessory to a nearby main base? Not clear at all.

I'm still getting the hang of captures, but the one thing I can tell you is that there are typically a few nodes within a base, labelled [A], [B], and [C]. If the brackets around the letter are bright green, your team has already capped that node. If it's a different color, you haven't capped it yet. These nodes seem to be involved in capping an entire base, but not sure if that's all there is to it, especially with the domes. All you have to do to cap, is be within like 10-20 meters of the node, which is really just being in the room with it.

Itsatrap wrote:
Archangel wrote:

Are vehicle zoom/ammo upgrades present in any vehicle in which you find yourself, or only for vehicles you spawn? I've found their presence in vehicle turrets to be remarkably fickle.

Your upgrades only apply to vehicles that you spawn. And of course, don't forget to equip the upgrades in your loadout.

From what I've seen, your upgrades apply to vehicles you spawned. Players who hop in and use turrets in that vehicle, will only be able to use the upgrades you purchased. If you hop into a vehicle whose owner has it tricked out, you'll have access to whatever upgrades they have purchased. Which is why it appears fickle, it's just that you're hopping in random vehicles where some players have upgraded, and some haven't.

Well, I fired up Planetside tonight.

I dropped into a battle and died about 20 times without even knowing where the fire was coming from. Then I spawned somewhere else to join an assault on a base. As a medic, I figured I could support the attack. But, unfortunately, I don't think that the healing gun (3) actually does anything because it just shoots a beam of green light and doesn't really give you any feedback on if you're actually healing someone. I suppose the green beam is feedback, but only rarely (maybe 3 times) did I get XP for healing. So, I don't know if I was really healing anyone or not. Then, I died about 20 more times.

As a first experience, it was not fun. At all. Honestly, I may not fire it up again. How could they release a game with not even a screen telling you the controls?

Happy more folks are giving this a shot. Be sure to jump on vent when you play, new players will be able to learn much faster when playing as a squad.

Tamren wrote:

Yes we would be happy to give you the into tour, since the game doesn't do that itself.

Cool, thanks. I'll definitely get on vent next time.

Tamren wrote:

You should see a green-white circle of dots that fill up as yo heal and repair stuff. This is considered "support xp" and you don't get it when you are attacking an enemy zone. You DO get it when you defend a friendly zone however. This was done by the devs to discourage farming, attacking teams don't get extra xp beyond kills until they succeed and capture a zone. The exception to this is if you fight in a squad, squad and platoon repairs/heals give credit anywhere.

Ok, that makes sense. I did see the white circle, but only a couple of times. I also got XP a couple of times, so those must have been squad mates that I healed. So, while I was on the attack, I was still healing with the green beam, but not getting XP for it? Kind of dissuades people from playing the medic, but I see why that had to do it that way to prevent farming.

Datyedyeguy wrote:

So I gave this a fair shake yesterday and I gotta say the lack of feedback is very disorienting. Tried to play Infiltrator/sniper and was attempting to shoot some guys from far out, but I had no feedback on whether or not I was hitting them and if I was missing where my shots were going. If they're running it seems like one needs to lead the shot a bit but again I can't if I'm hitting or not.

Also it doesn't appear that this game is optimized well at all. My machine that can run most other games pretty well is dying trying to keep 30fps in low settings. Doesn't make for a fun experience. I saw some INI tweaks that I'm going to give a shot at, but it's pretty silly in my opinion.

And I still don't get capturing buildings and such. I get that some bases have a hub room where some people can sit to build a meter, but not all buildings have this. I remember this one from last night where I could tell via the icons that it wasn't our building so I went in to try to capture it, but couldn't find any hub room to capture it with. Is it just accessory to a nearby main base? Not clear at all.

I want to like this game and have fun with it, but it keeps getting in the way. (Much like Mechwarrior Online, but that's another thread :p)

It actually tells you when you hit someone with a bullet. At no point does the game tell you this but it does. When your crosshairs blink red while firing that means your hitting the target. Not knowing this can make certain parts of the game impossible.

Tamren wrote:

This is considered "support xp" and you don't get it when you are attacking an enemy zone. You DO get it when you defend a friendly zone however. This was done by the devs to discourage farming, attacking teams don't get extra xp beyond kills until they succeed and capture a zone.

I don't know where you're getting this from. I play medic almost exclusively and the only time I don't get XP for healing & reviving is when the damage was inflicted by friendly fire.

PWAlessi wrote:

But, unfortunately, I don't think that the healing gun (3) actually does anything because it just shoots a beam of green light and doesn't really give you any feedback on if you're actually healing someone

Took me a bit to figure this one out (maybe you already have). It will automatically show the health bar over friendlies who need to be healed. If they're at full health, there's no health bar and no point in zapping them.

edit: I'm also pretty sure I've gotten healing XP on the attack.

gewy wrote:
PWAlessi wrote:

But, unfortunately, I don't think that the healing gun (3) actually does anything because it just shoots a beam of green light and doesn't really give you any feedback on if you're actually healing someone

Took me a bit to figure this one out (maybe you already have). It will automatically show the health bar over friendlies who need to be healed. If they're at full health, there's no health bar and no point in zapping them.

edit: I'm also pretty sure I've gotten healing XP on the attack.

There's not only no point in healing them, I think you can't heal them. I thought something was broken, or I had to "reload" the weapon I was healing with...it was weird. I'd aim and try to heal and nothing would happen. I'm used to overhealing on TF2

I'm sure I'm just not used to the game yet, but I find it difficult to recognize who's on my team, who's not on my team, who needs healing, etc.

And, I crash. A lot. Like after every other death, and I die a lot. Latest drivers, turning off everything I can think of and just running the game, but I CTD three or four times an hour.

Yes we would be happy to give you the intro tour, since the game doesn't do that itself.

It seems to be possible to spawn a vehicle for a squadmate then spawn a second one a ride that yourself. When you spawn a second vehicle the first one doesn't vanish (usually) but instead it just sits there until the timer runs out and it deconstructs. Since it doesn't have an owner anyone can come up and use it and it becomes theirs. At least I think that's how it works. I have commandeered abandoned vehicles a few times this way.

I don't think that the healing gun (3) actually does anything because it just shoots a beam of green light and doesn't really give you any feedback on if you're actually healing someone.

You should see a green-white circle of dots that fill up as yo heal and repair stuff. This is considered "support xp" and you don't get it when you are attacking an enemy zone. You DO get it when you defend a friendly zone however. This was done by the devs to discourage farming, attacking teams don't get extra xp beyond kills until they succeed and capture a zone. The exception to this is if you fight in a squad, squad and platoon repairs/heals give credit anywhere.

I figured out that vehicle ammo rearming with a sunderer also works this way. You can rearm people in a friendly zone and you get XP for rearming anyone. In an enemy zone this only applies to platoon/squad members.

sithload wrote:

I'm sure I'm just not used to the game yet, but I find it difficult to recognize who's on my team, who's not on my team, who needs healing, etc.

I can't tell the difference between my teammates and enemies at all. Not even a little. Everyone is the same color and looks exactly the same. It seemed like enemies didn't have name tags above them, but in a tight space with like 100 dudes, there are a ton of name tags so everyone looks like they have a tag even if they're an enemy.

Oh yeah, they should mention that there is friendly fire too...especially since you can't tell friendlies from enemies. I was shooting friendlies left and right. I'm sure they appreciated that.

Elycion wrote:
Tamren wrote:

This is considered "support xp" and you don't get it when you are attacking an enemy zone. You DO get it when you defend a friendly zone however. This was done by the devs to discourage farming, attacking teams don't get extra xp beyond kills until they succeed and capture a zone.

I don't know where you're getting this from. I play medic almost exclusively and the only time I don't get XP for healing & reviving is when the damage was inflicted by friendly fire.

Hmm... I think I will need to test this a bit more. I don't play medic that often but I spend more than half my time as an engineer and I don't get the offensive xp.

Also the healing/repair system has been a bit buggy of late. Every now and then I repair my vehicle instantly and don't get any xp. As in the hp bar shoots from 20% to 100%. Same with healing.

Alright... Just started this game. Watched the tutorial and am now ready to play. Was suggested to begin in a squad so where are we all going? Is the http://quantumdawn.enjin.com still our 'clan'?

You eventually learn to pick out the enemies from friendlies. Until then, don't put yourself in situations where it's likely to be an issue (aforementioned nametag scrums). Stick to lighter skirmishes where a nametag over a head will be instantly discernable. Or go infiltrator, where you'll be able to zoom in to an enemy to check out his uniform, or cloak and walk right up to him for the same result. Also make sure your gamma isn't too low, and try to stick to daytime fighting.

Planetside 2 doesn't hold your hand for a lot of things, it expects you to learn through experimentation (and failure) a lot of the time. I actually find this a very refreshing change of pace from the Call of Duties and Battlefields of the world, where everything is gamified for your pleasure. Planetside feels a lot more sim-like, and as such, feels a lot more genuine.

Perhaps you can't identify that target in the distance, and maybe you're worried you'll be shooting a friendly if you pull the trigger? I love that feeling of not knowing! It feels very real, and very satisfying in ways I haven't felt in an FPS before.

Redwing wrote:

Perhaps you can't identify that target in the distance, and maybe you're worried you'll be shooting a friendly if you pull the trigger? I love that feeling of not knowing! It feels very real, and very satisfying in ways I haven't felt in an FPS before.

Spoilered to avoid ruining things for Redwing

Spoiler:

Want to know if you are aiming at a friendly? Hit Q. Everytime you might be aiming at a friendly. Hit Q. If its friendly, you get a context sensitive menu, letting you send a message to the friendly. Hostile? Then you call out a warning, and the enemy (probably) gets a tag on them, so they show up for everyone nearby, for a short while. If the hostile dies after you Q-tag them, you can get a spotting Exp bonus. Seriously, wear that Q key out, use it early, use it often, use it all the time.

Ohhhh yeah. From the beta to the real firefight. Ammo is LIVE and the guns are HOT.

My fibre-optic-sharp, laser-sighted DEATH MACHINE.

IMAGE(http://i866.photobucket.com/albums/ab221/Strangeblades/Capture-16-1.jpg)

And her two companions. The first is her dirt-churner, rolling garbage-eater.

IMAGE(http://i866.photobucket.com/albums/ab221/Strangeblades/Capturee-1.jpg)

The second is her high-flying, nose-diving, ground-crashing, sniper-friendly jetter.

IMAGE(http://i866.photobucket.com/albums/ab221/Strangeblades/Capturew-1.jpg)

Game patched today. No notes given but it made me redownload the client and all the asset files so something must have changed.

Unfortunately the game is running a lot worse, and they managed to mess up the character select screen somehow. And after I logged in the game was very unstable compared to last night.

IMAGE(http://cloud.steampowered.com/ugc/885218947537797537/2F33F96ADC6C49D839B3A4C1EC354F9DC5D5416C/)

Ever wonder why you sometimes get attacked by snipers you can't see? This is why. That squad marker is a vanu soldier, but so far away he doesn't get displayed by the game. At least not without magnification. The game is pretty bad about loading in people in any sane fashion. The bigger the battle the worse it gets. In truly massive battles you might not be able to see people more than 20 feet away!

IMAGE(http://cloud.steampowered.com/ugc/885218947537776236/EDDEED7F76F866CCA7D837F60579F2FBAEFF794E/)

And this is the view down my 12x magnification scope on the same guy. I could land a hit at this distance but I have never seen an enemy from this far away before. Generally speaking if it's just one guy running around in the middle of nowhere you won't notice him. And when you get into a conflict large enough to be called a "battle" the rendering gets a little finicky and won't display people like this.

IMAGE(http://cloud.steampowered.com/ugc/885218947537779253/96D2BADAA4477B7AF23354A811D02F5C4BB2BAA4/)

When the render distance isn't pitching a fit this about how far away you SHOULD be able to see infantry.

I don't know what that little patch did tonight but I was fighting at Mekala and rendering distance was down to about 10m. Absolutely unplayable. I'm starting to think they're going to have to thin the servers because you can't be in a firefight with an enemy you can't see.

The way the game is "supposed" to be played is lots of platoons and squads fighting over territory all over the map. What usually happens is people roll around in large zergs that crash into each other. It doesn't help that you can't figure out where friendly forces are at, it only shows them on the map if you get really close. I guess they did that to prevent cheating but it makes finding the fight really difficult without a squad.

Once you are in a squad though you ARE the fight, and you can go wherever you please.

I think the problem is that the tech plants have become invaluable and therefore that's where all the combat is. They unintentionally funneled a majority of the combat to three bases.

Combine that with the fact that there's basically only two doors to get in make it a veritable meat grinder.

Bear wrote:

I think the problem is that the tech plants have become invaluable and therefore that's where all the combat is. They unintentionally funneled a majority of the combat to three bases.

Combine that with the fact that there's basically only two doors to get in make it a veritable meat grinder.

There is a fix for that.