Suggestions for the next big overhaul of the game (suggestions for the possibility of going F2P, weekly modes, rewards, and automated community events

[Rebel2131]

Hello, First off I’d like to say that I love this game to pieces and would love to see it grow and flourish.
I am very keen to hear why you think this is either a bad, good or irrelevant idea in the long term for the health of the game and community. I would also very much like to hear people thoughts on specifically the automated community driven events.



Going F2P

With that in mind I’d like to begin with probably the biggest hot button topic issue, namely the possibility of the game going F2P. Now the reason for that is twofold:

• More people will have access to the game so that means more people can purchase in game store content if they would like to try out different weapons, etc. which will support Tripwire financially.
• 
  
• Growing the player base which is currently most likely in slow decline.

Now I just want to briefly cover the above, namely that the game is long past its prime sales and I believe this move may be a potential influx of new blood and in turn financial growth for the game and the developer.



I bought the game, so what do I get as a reward for purchasing it and being a loyal fan and supporter?

For everybody who has already purchased the game I suggest they get some unique armor sets like people who were in the Early Access received the Horzine Mark 7 Armor bundle and 9 mm color pistols.

I Honestly think that a bunch of unique or already added characters may be a good idea as well and a couple of weapon/gear skins would be sufficient.



New weekly modes and additional rewards



I have two new modes in mind and the possibility of adding a build your own weekly with mutations type of mode similar to the one used in SC2.



The two modes that I think would be interesting to see as a weekly condition are as follows:

Corrupted blood event– When Zeds die on the ground, that location is now tainted and will either slow and possibly deal small amount of damage to the player when they pass through it, making the players have to switch locations and be more mobile on the overall maps. This could be done in a different manner than blood, enemies could drop small mines or something else entirely. This is just a brief suggestion and scenario to propose a weekly mode of this type.



Invisibile zeds- All Zeds are invisible, making the necessity of having a commando player be extremely important. I personally believe that similar game mode types should be added making the player at the very least experiment with the different classes.



This one is pretty much self-explanatory.Moving on to the next one.



Build your own Weekly challenge


So, what’s the point of this you ask? This will add the challenge that so many of the KF2 veterans would like to try to beat, I have encountered several Hell on Earth players who simply wish to try out an additional challenge in the game.
An example scenario would be to let’s say selecting bobble head zeds with headshot only +explosives

You can make them as easy or as hard as you’d like.



What do I get for completing these outside of bragging rights and a possible achievement?

With that in mind I think having an option to add two or more weekly modes in one should include a massive dosh value and possibly a unique hard to get character or weapon skins.



Automated community driven events.



With the introduction of community driven events the players should vote and rate some of the maps and weapon skins/weapons in the workshop and have them added annually or once every two months in the game. This way we are getting more and more content to play with the developers having to do the minimal amount of work such as achievements, collectibles and simply adding them to the game client.



So, as we all know we cannot expect miracles from the Tripwire devs and I’m sure they would love to give us as much content as we can possibly handle, they are only human. With this suggestion the aim is to not rush them and have them safely work on their big events and updates while the community fills the empty gap between events, giving you more reason to play and enjoy the game!

Clearing all your daililes reward – additional daily mission or a straight up random skin/dosh crate?

Additionally, as a small bonus suggestion I’d like to suggest that having this as a possible reward will definitely be a motivator for people to log in daily and try their hand at getting a new skin.



I am very interested in hearing what you and Tripwire if they ever stumble upon this thread think and whether or not this is a good or bad list of suggestions.

 

[Aleflippy]

-Going F2P would definitely benefit the game. It helped TF2 a lot and it didn't even need it at the time. So why not KF2? Of course, fresh blood would probably hinder the veterans in most teams... in the beginning at least. But it would probably be great in the long run. Which would serve as a reward for the early players by itself.

-"Corrupted Blood" is a good idea on paper, but what about bosses...? All of them require you and your team to keep moving. Same goes for larger teams, which spawns more zeds. You'd take damage continuously by the end of the game then...?

-"Invisible zeds" have a similar problem in my opinion... Either you have no commando and it's pretty much impossible. Or you have a commando and it's merely inconvenient.

-Giving a bigger role to the community is an absolute must. It would allow for content added even outside official updates. I think we would all benefit from it. And not only maps or skins... I think we should give them tools to allow for new guns, new modes etc. It could be client-based, and thus : avoid cheating with overpowered weapons online. Which brings me to your "build-a-weekly" idea, which reminds me slightly of the Sandbox mod from KF1.

 

[infntnub]

KF never went F2P and that leads me to think that is a path KF2 will also not take.

I mean, come on.. KF still has a normal list price on steam of $19.99 [lol?].

I agree though, it would benefit the game overall. I don't even care if they give people who paid for the game any special cosmetics - it would be nice to know the game will grow its playerbase some.

 

[Aleflippy]

KF never went F2P and that leads me to think that is a path KF2 will also not take.

I mean, come on.. KF still has a normal list price on steam of $19.99 [lol?].

I agree though, it would benefit the game overall. I don't even care if they give people who paid for the game any special cosmetics - it would be nice to know the game will grow its playerbase some.

Then again...Team Fortress Classic never did either, yet TF2 did.

I think the first game didn't have the same appeal, nor the same player base. So it shouldn't serve as basis that the game can become F2P or not.

 

[s5yn3t]

As long as it doesnt become what TF2 became.... just look at that mess.

 

[infntnub]

fair points - like i said, i'm in favor of F2P for the game I just don't see it coming.

 

[Aleflippy]

You're quite correct, but I'd argue it has more to do with the updates that followed rather than the F2P model.

You just have to look at the numbers of cheaters you can find in a server nowadays to see that Valve obviously don't give a **** anymore.

And then well...Yeah. Some weapons got unnecessary changes while some others broke the meta. The addition of official servers made the custom ones redundant (even though most of them were mad fun). Plus simply put, we're speaking of a twelve years old game !

It's even a miracle it's still easy to find players.

 

[infntnub]

@sYn if by a mess you mean amazing - then yes. TF2 is an absolute blast, even after a decade. KF2 can only hope..

 

[mrnok14l]

I like the idea of F2P in co-op games -- even for the sake of F2P.

And if total F2P is too much, why not partial/limited F2P?



Limited players are "Fresh Meats" versus paid players are "Pros"

Fresh Meats

• Fresh Meats have full access to every map and event, including seasonal achievement albeit progression as well as item drops are held-back slash reserved that requires going pro (buying the game) to unlock/redeem.
• Fresh Meats have full access to the Dosh Vault albeit the earn rate of Vault Dosh is reduced to 25%.
• Fresh Meats have access to all weapon below tier-4 (weapon upgrade is unrestricted), including DLC weapon should the concept persisted.
• Fresh Meats have access to all perks but leveling is capped at 15, progression beyond said cap is held-back/reserved.
• Given Prestige requiring max level, prestiging is out of the question for Fresh Meats.

Pros

• Full access, including DLC weapon should the concept abandoned.

Necessary Adjustment

• Backend upgrade to hold "excessive" data from F2P players.
• Implement Battlepass to serve the game's long-term finance.
• Ditto, major upgrade to the cosmetic system so cosmetic items actually worth the cost and alluring.
• Rework weapon upgrade system, so that it's more practical.

 

[Yoshiro]

Currently we have no plans to take KF 2 (or any Tripwire title) F2P. Among the things required to do so is a major UI overhaul to support such systems which is one of the things currently outside of the scope of the current teams working on it.

That isn't to say we are not looking at ways to expand the game to new players, but we are looking at ways to do that with the resources the team has.

 

[Aleflippy]

@infntnub that's a big "meh" from me. Between the team for five snipers, the high number of cheaters and the people who can't play seriously for two seconds, it's honestly hard to find a decent match nowadays.

And as a medic main, that's even worse. People feel invincible while you heal them so they rush into a sentry nest and die miserably. Meanwhile, they never give a **** about protecting you.

I could understand that while the game was still young, then when the game turned F2P (you gotta learn right?), but now it's truly becoming ridiculous. I can hop back into the game months after not touching it and still do alright. So what's their problem really?

 

[Aleflippy]

I believe someone one or even two years ago already made that point and at that time I was against it. The game was still going strong, both in updates and players, so I thought it would be redundant or even hinder the game (again, it's normal that people have to learn, but when you have to be the teacher it can be annoying).

But as of now? That would be better than nothing. Clearly.

 

[Aleflippy]

Let us agree to disagree. Gameplay should NEVER be impacted for the sake of F2Ps, even when not talking about competitive gameplay.

Maybe we should, however, have a perk rotation? Like, let's say every week we get a selection of four perks that can be chosen. Your progress is saved in-between weeks, so whenever the gunslinger (for example) comes back in the rotation, you are on the same level as when you left out. That way, you won't be less efficient than a "pro player". You'll just have to wait until your favourite perk comes back (unless you "buy" it, including with in-game money...Could bring a new use to the Dosh vault !)

We could also imagine having a similar "weapon rotation", but that include every available tier. Let's say for the firebug, you'd get access to a T1-T2-T3-T4-T5 weapon... and just ONE for each tier. Again, to allow them to make a certain choice and try out different weapon. Even then might prove to be controversial however...Since some weapons are clearly better than others. So even I am not sold on that idea.

Limiting the level cap is an absolute no-no too. This would prevent F2Ps from accessing Hell on Earth, as even a good player would struggle to complete a playthrough without some much-needed skills.

...

Oooooor we could just make the game full free-to-play and simply increase the XP and dosh received by people who bought the game. I mean, having full teams back again would already be a nice gift don't you think?

 

[Aleflippy]

Ain't gonna lie, the fact that whenever we speak of a problem or suggestion, it ends up being shelved due to "resources" is not making me reassured about the state of the game. I obviously ain't got a clue about what happens behind-the-scene, and I have no more experience as a game designer/developer/insert-other-gaming-related-job than last time...

YET, might I argue that it would be better to save said resources to put it to good use? Even if we have to skip an update or two ! I'm perfectly aware that you cannot simply get more resources out of thin air, but it would be wise not to waste them either.

That the DLCs sales were disappointing is not news I'm happy for. I was the first to complain about the prices, but it ends up impacting us all. So there's no reason to rejoice really. Still, sometimes you have to dare just a lil' bit more to spark gold.

What I'm saying is that maybe it would be worth it to allow some extra resources to turn the game into a F2P as it would inject some fresh blood into the game...Granting more resources in the long run.

But again, I suppose you have all these ideas in mind. So I don't really know and I can merely trust that you'll take the good decisions.


If I could sum it up, I'd just say that most of the vets would probably be fine with skipping an update in order to get something bigger.

 

[infntnub]

I think we're looking at different things when discussing TF2 here.

TF2 is amazing - it's a top 10 on steam charts 24/7 for over a decade. That is a goal any game and dev team should aspire to achieve.

The team compositions are very derpy, especially in CTF - you'll find no argument here lol.

I don't main anything, which is another thing i love about the game. It's easy to be decent with all the classes and have fun with them. Of course, many people do main something specific and reach a greater level of skill as a result [I'm sure you're a great medic if you've mained that class for a few years]. So many options in that game along with the way the classes play with different loadouts [rifle sniper vs bow sniper for example].

TF2 is an example of the F2P model extending a game's life by 5+ years [and still going] I assume - which is why I say it would be a great goal for a dev team like TWI to try to follow.

 

[infntnub]

KF2 is pretty polished and just about anyone likes to blow off steam killing zombies/undead/zeds in those types of games. F2P should be a no-brainer in the near future. We'll see if TWI agrees though.

 

[s5yn3t]

TF2 was amazing.

But with its recent changes of implementing half assed competitive system and turning pubs into a casual competitive matches, switched the game's mentality for the worst.
Everyone always salty, tryharding without having any fun in the process.

Top 10 steam charts.... News flash chief: about 80% of the "users" counted in that steam chart are bots.... trading bots or other kind running the game 24/7.
The actual player number is much much lower... wouldn't be surprised if the bots would vanish and the game would be in the same territory of consecutive player numbers as kf2 in it's good day.

And doesn't help when valve put a bolt on it when they had to go full steam ahead to finish off alyx, while tf2 gets infected by aimbots and lagfested auto stabbing spies that kill you from 4 meters.

The game is a huge mess right now, extended life time just to get worse with time.

 

[infntnub]

Lol.. I haven't had someone call me "chief" in a conversation since junior high.

Take what you want from the Steamcharts - I use it to indicate how easy it is to find a populated game/sell items on the market.

Something was done around 2017 or 2018 that knocked a lot of the bot servers offline and the playerbase counts dropped into the high 30k's for avg - still an impressive achievement.

Say what you will, but you'll hardly ever wait more than 5 seconds to join a nearly full server in any gamemode and it's almost always people you have never seen on a server before so there's a great amount of real players still going strong in the game.

We're probably going to get locked up on this topic for the TF2 discussion but I'll just add this (lol):
- melee range was always a joke in TF2 and it's worse with demoknights than spies any day
- the spinning aimbot hackers are almost always kicked immediately after their first killstreak [the community polices itself decently, at least]
- some people definately do lag, i guess it's people with weak CPU's who are just playing because it's free [a laggy scout is enough to drive a person insane! lol]

** and no, CPU isn't a typo

 

[s5yn3t]

You didn't understand the lag i ment.
I didnt mean lag in traditional sense of having ping over 200 or having trash cpu that can't handle a game.
I mean a deliberate lag that is caused by the cheat, that forces cheating person's hitbox to lag waaaay behind the actual player model position, which makes that player almost impossible to kill.

It's a known hack at this point, but its not used as often as your typical aimbot.

And yeh the whole aimbot thing... players in that server are sometimes powerless when there's multiple aimboters in the team and they deliberately F2 to votekick, so you're forced to search for another server that might be filled by trash people vs the one you've already played on.

And also with the whole not waiting for long?
Yeh... if you connect solo then your wait time at worst can be 2 minutes...... But try connect with a squad, it can take 10 sometimes 20 min to connect to a server... which at that point sometimes is half dead to begin with.

 

[Barot8]

Steam charts always over report Valve games high which I tend to think are cooked and slanted numbers. Yes CS go has a ton of players. Does that number always remain that high? Doubtful. Same for TF2 and Portal 2, L4d (which has been a dead game for a long time, and Half-Life. Do people run bots in some of these games? Possibly. I think the only accurate number on Valve's own games that is probably closest to correct numbers is the number of players for Artifact, their failed card game.