Why is there never balance?

A11Eur0

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Apr 2005

W/

Quote:
Originally Posted by wilebill View Post
GW2 will have NO customizability or support for originality in skill sets.
Fixed 123456

Reezen

Pre-Searing Cadet

Join Date: Apr 2010

I don't think one needs to be a genius to understand why GW is impossible to balance.

I mean, you have 10 professions, multiclassing and 1300 skills in total - it is pretty much impossible to balance this.


The only 2 reasonable ways to deal with it are:

1) Throw away multiclassing and like 1000 skills.
2) Make a fresh, new game.

A-net gone for no.2. GW1 is a lost cause really, so they left some little team to do housekeeping for the more major stuff like improving the classes that do not carry weapons of mass destruction in their pockets to carry those as well, so that they won't feel left out.

Morphy

Morphy

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Nov 2009

The Netherlands

Not going to keep up with that anymore

R/

You can make a balanced meta and nuke the rest around it. That works. You can then try to make really minor differences between skills to fill the other 900 skills. I personally don't think you can fill those 1000 what is it but it's definitely possible to come close to it.

X CDH X

Academy Page

Join Date: Jul 2008

UK

nEo

Mo/E

Just wondering why there is always one HUGE update where people are always gonna be complaining about skills being OP - I'd have thought changes on a few OP / in need of improvement skills would be far better.

I also kinda thought Mesmer wasn't really in need of a PVP update - A 'SKILLED' Mesmer would likely own whatever he is built to oppose - Anti Caster / Anti Melee. Now it seems like some of the skills have been crazily buffed. Seems like mesmer can be used by any spammer noob to own people...

MithranArkanere

MithranArkanere

Underworld Spelunker

Join Date: Nov 2006

wikipedia.org/wiki/Vigo

Heraldos de la Llama Oscura [HLO]

E/

It's just a matter of mathematics.
Combinatorics and set theory.
We have mane professions, and many skills.
So, to completely balance the game, all possible combinations should be as close to the average as possible, and none over the average.
But that's too hard with so many possible combinations, so builds appear in the distribution in 'spikes' that go far from the average , and people equip those spikes.

They learned from the mistake, and that's why, while still having many, many combinations, GW2 has not as many as GW, and more limited, to make balance easier.

gremlin

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Oct 2006

GWAR

Me/Mo

Quote:
Originally Posted by QueenofDeath View Post
Master of Magic game is a great example of why imbalance is more fun than balance. It's the best strategic/tactical fantasy game around still after 16 years. Balance causes things to be the same it's like two forces of the same power coming against one another when things are balanced there's no fun in watching that. But you put up a stronger force vs a weaker one and people pay 1000's of dollars to go watch it....WWF wrestling, lopsided football teams, basketball, baseball an on an on. People enjoy imbalance not equality or balance which becomes boring as two brick walls facing one another.
Hey I got that game and your right its still a lot of fun to play.

I am less interested in balancing the game than making it interesting and fun to play.
Part of that fun is trying to make use of unusual skill combinations and finding uses for underpowered or little used skills.

As long as every overpowered skill or killer build has its achilles heel I am happy.
Rock Paper Scissors is the way to go one is as powerful as the next, devastating in some circumstances but totally useless in others.

Balance ? you can keep it if it means boredom and stagnation.

headlesshobbs

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Apr 2006

For the original poster, balance is set when one class has figured out how to make use of the best builds and abuse dominance over the system, thus coming out on top each and every single time. Re-balancing the builds helps change up the system and keeps things fresh. I do like to see what you can come up with when you reshuffle the deck every now and then.

Zebideedee

Zebideedee

Jungle Guide

Join Date: Sep 2007

55?? 57' 0" N / 3?? 12' 0" W

N/Me

There never should be balance imho, if all professions were perfectly balanced, it would be stalemate city.