Faster Than Light | Probably the most terrifying sector 3 ship I've ever seen |
- Probably the most terrifying sector 3 ship I've ever seen
- Phew, got em. Now we're safe!
- Mods aside, do you prefer to play on PC or iPad?
- I have no idea why I keep coming back to this game, despite the fact I have a distaste for heavily luck-based games.
| Probably the most terrifying sector 3 ship I've ever seen Posted: 04 Dec 2020 01:49 PM PST
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| Posted: 04 Dec 2020 05:47 PM PST
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| Mods aside, do you prefer to play on PC or iPad? Posted: 04 Dec 2020 04:33 PM PST | ||
| Posted: 04 Dec 2020 11:00 PM PST (1) TL;DR: I'm dropping vanilla FTL. RNG is a serious bitch, and a combat system relying on luck aged poorly for me, making me sometimes wish the game's core combat gameplay (or the wepaons system) was more oriented towards skillful play instead of luck.Also not mentioned in this post, I'm aware me playing almost exclusively on hard also contributes to this problem, but I think my point still stands. (2) The core combat gameplay, on an average ship, inherently revolves around luck. Both yours and the enemies' weapons have a 90-45% chance to hit, depending on the ship's powered engine level. On average you'll have decent luck and your shots won't miss too often, but when they do, it's infuriating. (3) Why the ever-living hell do my weapons keep missing, even though I'm aiming at their engines and pilot? I don't really have any other tools or systems at my disposal? Am I supposed to keep firing until my luck eventually reverts to normal and my guns finally hit? (4) The unfortunate answer, is yes. (5) The problem with doing that is you're depending on another layer of luck: Will the enemies miss a lot too? If not I'm forced to take damage, unless my shields are strong enough (which isn't the case in most fights.) And- oh crap! They shot down my weapons! Now I have to go repair it as quickly as possible to start firing aga- a breach in the engine room?!? Fine! I'll send my pilot to fix it, since it's out of commission anyway! Aaaaaaaand my shields are down. I'm a sitting duck now, great. It'll take a damn miracle to get out of this one. Okay I finally fixed my shields and engines, but hull is at critica- oh god they fired a missile. Please miss please miss please mi- \missile pierces shields* *Opens menu and either restart, or quit.** (6) Fortunately there are ways to alleviate bad luck in this game, including but not limited to Defense Drones, Cloaking, Boarding, Hacking, and mind control. However that's either if you start with one or several of said systems, or purchase them. Theoretically, I could easily address my own concerns by solely sticking to ships that have those systems, and the answer to that would technically be yes. But what if I choose not to play ships with those systems, because of a challenge, or an achievement, or because I'm playing random? If I play said ship, problem from previous paragraph is not resolved. (7) Bringing us back to playing a ship with just weapons as it's only means of attack, I am forced to endure the mercy of RNG again. With luck-based combat like FTL, it's not a matter of IF you'll get unlucky and weapons start missing when needed; it's a matter of WHEN. Such scenarios can feel like you're banging your head against a brick wall. One time my weapons and drones would refuse to hit anything for 3 runs in a row. I wish I was kidding. (8) I personally wish the game had a more skill-based combat. Quick disclaimer before I continue, I am NOT saying this game is pure luck. There is definitely skill involved in this game. You have to command and manage your crew, micro your power, make impactful decisions with secondary systems, and try not to make stupid mistakes. However this does not stop luck from preceding skill in this game, and this is why I'm about to state why I wish this game had a different combat system: If the game had a combat system more akin to Cosmoteer for reference, it would be a perfect game for me. (9) Cosmoteer is a sandbox space-fighting game, that has a similar combat system as FTL. You can turn on & off various systems, and target specific parts of the enemy ship. However there's more. Unlike FTL, you don't dodge attacks with chance. Instead you can command the movement of the ship (or ships!) itself, allowing you to shoot from a distance, charge into the enemy for CQC (close quarter combat,) or maneuver to a tactical position for a variety of reasons, ranging from forcing allocation of hits to less important parts, or aligning your weapons, or avoiding the enemy's field of attack, and so on. Cosmoteer's combat all boils down to: How well do you control your ship, and how efficiently built are your ship designs. (10) There are other core differences between Cosmoteer and FTL, but again my primary focus is on their combat. I know many will disagree with me on a different combat system for FTL, but that's okay. I understand there definitely is an appeal to this kind of combat for certain people, and I admittedly can say it's fun. But personally this RNG-based combat system has aged poorly for me, and makes it difficult for me to stay with this game. Creating mods for this game is fun though. (11) What about the difficulty? I think FTL being a difficult game is absolutely fine, especially since it's a roguelike. As for enemy ships, I think it's fine that they're randomly generated, sometimes overpowered, I have a glutton for punishment, but FTL isn't filling me that itch anymore, because the weapon's reliance on luck to hit or miss an enemy ship, instead of skill. (12) In conclusion, I'm going to drop vanilla FTL for a while. Luck-based combat gameplay pisses me off to unhealthy levels, making me wish it had a different combat system that's more skill-oriented without mandating the need of secondary systems to alleviate or eliminate bad luck. It also aged poorly for me, thus no longer properly filling that itch for punishing games in a way I wanted. Outside of it's flawed combat system, it has a lot going for it, but its sad that such a game that initially compelled me into soaking hundreds of hours into it has aged poorly and bitterly in my mouth. If FTL is a food, it would be a sweet, tasty chocolate with a terrible but addicting bitter core, and each subsequent consumption weakens the sweet taste, eventually leaving nothing but bitter chocolate in the tongue. [link] [comments] |
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