First off, I would like to thank the developers for making a such a great game. That said, I do have issue with the only gameplay mode.
One thing that really detracts from Killing Floor as a survival horror in my opinion is it's very structured gameplay. After exactly X specimens you will have exactly Y time to buy weapons before the next of Z waves begins. There are no surprises, you know how it's all going to play out.
This has made me consider a few things, but mainly, what would work best to change this structured gameplay and give it a more suspenseful and survival feel. So, here are a few of my ideas:
1. Make a mode that has no indications of wave length, wave number, trading time, etc. This small addition would work wonders for me, not knowing when the patriarch will come, when a wave will end, how much time exactly I will have to sprint to the trader before the next wave starts, how many waves there are going to be, etc... This sort of "Mystery" mode would add a lot of suspense to the game for me.
2. Make a fully supported mode that has no trader. This one is actually more complicated than it sounds. I mean more than just remove the trader (like the mutator). This idea would mainly involve changing the ammo/weapon drop system. Maybe even as far as making weapon/ammo drops separate for each player. That way each player's chance of finding specific things could scale with their perk (as opposed to a reduced cost). A berserker would have a better chance of finding a chainsaw and a commando a better chance of finding a bullpup, etc...
This would add a lot more of the fighting for survival feel to the game for me. Rather than your performance determining your cash, it determines your chances of ammo/weapon/armor spawns, and it makes it feel like you are earning it by having to search it out and find it rather than walking to the local gun shop and having all the weapons and ammo you want handed to you. It also achieves the goal of keeping the players moving, and would conceptually be even more strict, forcing them to do a lot of moving during the waves to find more of their limited ammunition.
I'm not sure if weapon/ammo/armor spawns that only individual players can see and pickup is possible in this engine, but I know it is possible in UT3.
New lines for the trader informing the players that she's "all out of guns" or the like would help the feel as well.
3. I think an option might be fun where the trader opens up (and the timer for the next wave starts) when there are say a dozen specimens left, rather than none. I could definitely also see that being a horrible idea though if for example those last 10 specimens consist of a couple fleshpounds. At the same point though, it's a lot more fun to run to the trader when you're gunning down specimens while doing so.
Well, those are a few of my main ideas addressing my concerns. I love the gameplay at it's core, shooting specimens, cutting them down with an axe, welding doors, etc... But I can't help but get the feeling I'm playing in some sort of paintball arena (Zombie Simulator 3000!) playing under a structured and safe set of rules in the current game mode.
Knowing the exact number of specimens I need to kill, exactly when they will come, exactly how often they will come, and knowing after I kill all of them in a wave I will have all the guns and ammo I want just starts to feel hollow to me. I feel more like I'm playing a gameplay test mode used to test weapon and perk balance rather than an actual gameplay mode.
On a somewhat related note, I like the ability to specialize characters using the perk system, but I don't necessarily like how final it is. For example, once I hit level 5 commando, I can never be a level 4 commando again. I am forever "burdened" by being better than I was before. I know that sounds like a strange complaint, but the finality and permanence of getting a level in a perk just doesn't sit right with me. Perhaps reaching a level of a perk should give you the ability to choose any level of that level OR lower in the perk. This way you could do things like organize a level 0 normal game with your friends, or a level 3 hard game, etc... I really think this is something that needs to be implemented.
One thing that really detracts from Killing Floor as a survival horror in my opinion is it's very structured gameplay. After exactly X specimens you will have exactly Y time to buy weapons before the next of Z waves begins. There are no surprises, you know how it's all going to play out.
This has made me consider a few things, but mainly, what would work best to change this structured gameplay and give it a more suspenseful and survival feel. So, here are a few of my ideas:
1. Make a mode that has no indications of wave length, wave number, trading time, etc. This small addition would work wonders for me, not knowing when the patriarch will come, when a wave will end, how much time exactly I will have to sprint to the trader before the next wave starts, how many waves there are going to be, etc... This sort of "Mystery" mode would add a lot of suspense to the game for me.
2. Make a fully supported mode that has no trader. This one is actually more complicated than it sounds. I mean more than just remove the trader (like the mutator). This idea would mainly involve changing the ammo/weapon drop system. Maybe even as far as making weapon/ammo drops separate for each player. That way each player's chance of finding specific things could scale with their perk (as opposed to a reduced cost). A berserker would have a better chance of finding a chainsaw and a commando a better chance of finding a bullpup, etc...
This would add a lot more of the fighting for survival feel to the game for me. Rather than your performance determining your cash, it determines your chances of ammo/weapon/armor spawns, and it makes it feel like you are earning it by having to search it out and find it rather than walking to the local gun shop and having all the weapons and ammo you want handed to you. It also achieves the goal of keeping the players moving, and would conceptually be even more strict, forcing them to do a lot of moving during the waves to find more of their limited ammunition.
I'm not sure if weapon/ammo/armor spawns that only individual players can see and pickup is possible in this engine, but I know it is possible in UT3.
New lines for the trader informing the players that she's "all out of guns" or the like would help the feel as well.
3. I think an option might be fun where the trader opens up (and the timer for the next wave starts) when there are say a dozen specimens left, rather than none. I could definitely also see that being a horrible idea though if for example those last 10 specimens consist of a couple fleshpounds. At the same point though, it's a lot more fun to run to the trader when you're gunning down specimens while doing so.
Well, those are a few of my main ideas addressing my concerns. I love the gameplay at it's core, shooting specimens, cutting them down with an axe, welding doors, etc... But I can't help but get the feeling I'm playing in some sort of paintball arena (Zombie Simulator 3000!) playing under a structured and safe set of rules in the current game mode.
Knowing the exact number of specimens I need to kill, exactly when they will come, exactly how often they will come, and knowing after I kill all of them in a wave I will have all the guns and ammo I want just starts to feel hollow to me. I feel more like I'm playing a gameplay test mode used to test weapon and perk balance rather than an actual gameplay mode.
On a somewhat related note, I like the ability to specialize characters using the perk system, but I don't necessarily like how final it is. For example, once I hit level 5 commando, I can never be a level 4 commando again. I am forever "burdened" by being better than I was before. I know that sounds like a strange complaint, but the finality and permanence of getting a level in a perk just doesn't sit right with me. Perhaps reaching a level of a perk should give you the ability to choose any level of that level OR lower in the perk. This way you could do things like organize a level 0 normal game with your friends, or a level 3 hard game, etc... I really think this is something that needs to be implemented.
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