(Opinion) Why NRS caused the polarizing customization crisis.

[NothingPersonal]

Seems like it could work out. I dont think nrs wants to bother balancing it all or maybe it conflicts with the DLC specials they plan to sell and separating the player base avoids pay2win situation

To me, this looks more like a scumbag move to saw dough then the "fear of pay2win" situations. Let's be adults here.

 

[Gamer68]

This is kinda turning into a train wreck. Going to be fun being stuck with 2 given variations of THIS character, while THAT character has 4 or 5 lol.

Imagine if they end up fucking over new characters like Geras by only giving them 2 variations, but Scorpion ends up having 5 simply because he's Boon's main.

 

[Deleted member 5032]

I want to know who at NRS keeps pussyfooting around the idea of variations. They need to either fully embrace a variation system and make sure it’s usable by all of their customers, or they need to fuck off and release full characters.

Injustice 2 had plenty of specials that should have been normal moves, but they were regulated to gear moves, and some characters were totally gimped because of this. I have no doubt that MK11 is going to do the same thing.

Just think of all the time and money they dumped into this variation system. Why not take the extra step to ensure it would be tournament viable and not split the player base? They still have the preset variations, so players who don’t like to customize don’t have to mess with it.

Everything about this release has just been...off. The release date is so soon after the initial announcement that we were all thrown off a bit. The conflicting information about variations kept us all confused. The lack of character reveals kept us frustrated. I hope NRS did a better job designing the game than they are doing of promoting it, because they are actively sapping the hype right out of my brain. Right now I’m getting “Marvel vs Capcom Infinite” vibes, and that makes me nervous about the future of the game.

 

[Professor Oak]

I don't know how people expect:

- Release at the end of the month
- None of them broken or op*
- Custom variations balanced*
- A complete and playable game
- Competitive viability

at the very same time.

The two starred Id give time after release, the rest is reasonable. What I deleted is just you bringing up idiotic peoples issues.

 

[MK9]

Stop thinking the beta was what you will get. If you think the scorpion or kabal you played on the beta is the same character you will play on the final build you dumb

 

[TaserFace007]

Stop thinking the beta was what you will get. If you think the scorpion or kabal you played on the beta is the same character you will play on the final build you dumb

Of course they're not going to be the same, but the beta release of a game should be a decent example of the final version you're going to receive. Given that the customization option was one of the biggest aspects of that beta, it shouldn't be relegated to such a secondary status in the final game.

 

[Orochi]

Of course they're not going to be the same, but the beta release of a game should be a decent example of the final version you're going to receive. Given that the customization option was one of the biggest aspects of that beta, it shouldn't be relegated to such a secondary status in the final game.

Well keep in mind that we got access to the casual matchmaking of the game, so customization would be a big part of it. I'm sure you can still customize your moves in the final version for casual matches.

 

[Pterodactyl]

Why didn’t they think to just have two seperate ranked modes

 

[Professor Oak]

Is it too much to ask that we know what the pre made variations are? Can anyone confirm the ones in the beta were merely placeholders?

 

[Kroaken]

I don't know how people expect:

- Release at the end of the month
- All their characters in
- None of them broken or op
- Custom variations balanced
- Interesting and unique characters
- A complete and playable game
- Competitive viability

at the very same time.

1.) They chose the release date, not us.
2.) This is a moot point, whoever is in was decided forever ago.
3.) There's always something stronger that something else, this is inevitable - custom or not.
4.) Again, idk what this has to do with anything.
5.) See 1 and 4.
6.) I mean... As much as any other nrs title has been competitively viable.

 

[Orochi]

Is it too much to ask that we know what the pre made variations are? Can anyone confirm the ones in the beta were merely placeholders?

I think they were incomplete. Ed boon said in an interview they wanted to have all of the abilities throughout the presets and I'm pretty sure some weren't in them, remember this was an old build. Of course they could've not gone for that.

This is the quote from the interview:

"Across those three – that will be the character’s entire moveset?"

"Yeah. We don’t want to leave stuff out, so I imagine that’ll be the base three, and they’ll encompass all of what that character can possibly do."

 

[PLAYING TO WIN]

I am starting to see hints of dlc moves. Pay 2 win? uhhh ohhhhh

 

[Xelz]

They have said many, MANY times, including a interview with Boom at the release event, that the pre-sets will cover ALL the moves for the characters. I do not think there is a reason to doubt what they said... but I guess you never know... still they HAVE confirmed many times that this is the case.

I hope this is true, but then they also said some characters may have 2 variations. And it doesn't seem possible to cover any of the revealed move lists in just 2 variations. So which NRS statement is accurate? We just don't know right now.

 

[Deleted member 5032]

I don't know how people expect:

- Release at the end of the month
- All their characters in
- None of them broken or op
- Custom variations balanced
- Interesting and unique characters
- A complete and playable game
- Competitive viability

at the very same time.

That’s how it worked for 30 years before developers started releasing unfinished games and just patching them.

 

[Xelz]

All I know is that before I played the game, I was against custom variations for tournaments. Pretty much for the same reasons people are against them now. But after actually playing the game, the kustom variation system is really well done and very fun. It also adds a layer of strategy. Yes some characters are only gonna use their best moves if they don’t have many, but there were a coulle characters in the Beta that multiple custom variations were very good, like Baraka for instance. Only character I really played that only had a couple good variation moves was Scorpion.

I agree with P2W, if custom variations were never planned to be used in tournaments, that should have been EXPLICITLY clear AND 100% should have been reiterated by NRS before the stress test and beta. Also, it’s just odd that the kombat kasts are all about custom variation moves. Literally 16 bit always says “I gave him/her” when talking about their variation moves.

Yep, I was in the same boat. I had assumed custom moves would be like the broken stuff in I2, and it turned out the customization system was well thought out. Could some of the moves used some balancing tweaks? Sure, but nothing major or unusual for a beta, and I'd argue that bigger balancing changes are needed to some character base moves (*cough* Scorpion needs a safe base combo string *cough*)

 

[Lt. Boxy Angelman]

I have a dream in life: to finish writing my book(s) and turn its universe into a fighting game like they did with Persona 4 Arena.
If I succeed, I'm immediately hiring @PLAYING TO WIN as my head of public relations, to make sure some dumb shit like this doesn't happen to me and kill the boners of all those who would battle in my arenas.

Because if they really sat on their hands with this just so it didn't impact preorders and the hype going into the beta, and they've been showing us nothing but custom builds for a game where customization isn't legal in competition...that's preeeeetty fucked up.

 

[PLAYING TO WIN]

I have a dream in life: to finish writing my book(s) and turn its universe into a fighting game like they did with Persona 4 Arena.
If I succeed, I'm immediately hiring @PLAYING TO WIN as my head of public relations, to make sure some dumb shit like this doesn't happen to me and kill the boners of all those who would battle in my arenas.

Because if they really sat on their hands with this just so it didn't impact preorders and the hype going into the beta, and they've been showing us nothing but custom builds for a game where customization isn't legal in competition...that's preeeeetty fucked up.

I’ll do it for free lol

 

[GLoRToR]

1.) They chose the release date, not us.

That's not how it works.
Deadlines are set by the board not the development team and the board isn't friendly about it usually, unless it's before 2008 and you're called Blizzard.

2.) This is a moot point, whoever is in was decided forever ago.
3.) There's always something stronger that something else, this is inevitable - custom or not.
4.) Again, idk what this has to do with anything.
5.) See 1 and 4.
6.) I mean... As much as any other nrs title has been competitively viable.

That’s how it worked for 30 years before developers started releasing unfinished games and just patching them.

We also used to not have internet in our pockets and we had to be at a specific location to receive a phone call.
This is how it works now.
This is why they make the decisions they make.

-----

Also, I'm not saying we can bury the concept of custom variations in tournament play.
I'm saying there are a number of reasons why it's not happening yet.
It might later.

OR who knows if enough people whine about it on Twatter, you might make it happen and we'll all suffer for it and half of the vocal people will abandon the game anyway, leaving us with the flustercluck that they whined out for us.

Keep trying, might work.

 

[Kroaken]

That's not how it works.
Deadlines are set by the board not the development team and the board isn't friendly about it usually, unless it's before 2008 and you're called Blizzard.

That still doesn't put the "expectation" or deadline on us, the consumer. Which was part of your original point.

 

[NothingPersonal]

Imagine if they end up fucking over new characters like Geras by only giving them 2 variations, but Scorpion ends up having 5 simply because he's Boon's main.

Geras's adding/reducing time move alone takes 3 slots. He's gonna have more than three for sure.

 

[GLoRToR]

That still doesn't put the "expectation" or deadline on us, the consumer. Which was part of your original point.

Okay, try to wrap your mind around this concept.

Developers are hard pressed by something called a deadline, set by the people who they owe tons of money to.
This affects the consumer because whether you like it or not, you are one of the people who give the money back that was given to the developers, and something called profit that's the original reason the people who gave the money, gave the money. Let's call them investors.

The deadline affects you because they need you to pay the money by the time the investors expect it, so the expectation is, by proxy, also on you.

If the devs give you a game where you can play custom variations or without custom variations and you choose which, more of you are likely to buy the game than if only one or the other is true about the game.

Currently, there is going to be a mode in which you can use custom variations and fight people who use them, and one where you cannot.

They would STILL have such different modes even if they decided to allow custom variations in tournament play, because options are good.

 

[trufenix]

hey, just so you guys know, when there isn't a beta next game or it only goes out to like, sonic fox, dynasty and max. . . don't be surprised, alright?

 

[Kroaken]

Okay, try to wrap your mind around this concept.

Developers are hard pressed by something called a deadline, set by the people who they owe tons of money to.
This affects the consumer because whether you like it or not, you are one of the people who give the money back that was given to the developers, and something called profit that's the original reason the people who gave the money, gave the money. Let's call them investors.

The deadline affects you because they need you to pay the money by the time the investors expect it, so the expectation is, by proxy, also on you.

If the devs give you a game where you can play custom variations or without custom variations and you choose which, more of you are likely to buy the game than if only one or the other is true about the game.

Currently, there is going to be a mode in which you can use custom variations and fight people who use them, and one where you cannot.

They would STILL have such different modes even if they decided to allow custom variations in tournament play, because options are good.

Thank you for explaining what is already obvious.
I, like many others, have already pre-ordered and given my part of a return on the initial investment.

For clarity, what is your stance on all of this?

 

[Rathalos]

It's been a day and I'm still in disbelief this is the route they choose to go.
Absolutely the worst decision they could have made for the game.

 

[kantboy-2]

hey, just so you guys know, when there isn't a beta next game or it only goes out to like, sonic fox, dynasty and max. . . don't be surprised, alright?

After paying upfront and doing QA work for free, I think people have the right to complain about something not being to their liking.

Also don't forget to prepay that DLC that you know nothing about except the first character so you can play it a week before the other players who don't plan to preorder without knowing what they're paying for.