Topic

Skill Specialization & Working Together?

So far, I'm loving the game, and see a huge amount of potential in it. One room I see for improvement is skill specialization. Right now, I feel as if everything can learn every skill. It's great for a beta, but I feel for launch more skills, or possibly longer skills learning times would improve the game. 

For example, my Glitch could specialize in mining, getting as many mining levels as possible and some tinkering to repair my picks. A new area opens up deep in the caverns, so deep that it's pitch black. Without a certain item (firefly lantern or something), the entire UI disappears and that Glitch is literally navigating in the dark. It just so happens that a Glitch specializing in engineering or advanced tinkering can build this firefly lantern. I could just buy the firefly lantern, or have this other Glitch accompany me down into the caverns in a group, sharing items and experience from mining in return for the help (maybe through a new group feature which automatically does these things). This new cavern could contain a rare new ore that's needed in some road projects, a special vendor with a new, stronger pick, or a rare hidden treasure. This would make exploring more fun by creating obstacles that need to be overcome to access some streets, make collaboration between Glitch's important to progressing in the game and getting access to cool areas, and make my Glitch feel more special for filling a certain niche that the world needs to progress.

What do you guys think?

Posted 17 months ago by Garbara Subscriber! | Permalink

Replies

  • I'm a newbie, so I may have this all wrong, but it seems strange to me that skills are learned simply by selecting them and then waiting a set amount of time (during which time you don't even have to be in the world).  To me it would seem more fun and worthwhile if you had to do something related to the skill while you were learning it, like petting 20 pigs while you were learning Animal Husbandry I.  In other words, having to spend in-world time related to the skill in order to master it.

    And of course the higher the skill level the more challenging and time consuming the tasks required to learn it.
    Posted 17 months ago by Hawkwell Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Garbara, this is actually akin to one of my ideas. Though you put it more descriptively. Your idea, though, with dark areas needing to be lit sounds cool. I'm sure this is on your brain too, but there should be tons of Get X to Access Y elements a la games like Super Metroid, Zelda, etc.

    I refer to these as platforming mainstays, and even though they've 'already been done,' I have yet to see an MMO implement them. The nature of an economic element to share these 'Get X' items could create interesting interactions. I believe it would feed into more innovation as well.

    EDIT:

    Forgot to write to Hawkwell, but yeah, I thought as you do at first. But now, I like how it works. What you'll notice too, is that after you learn a skill, they immediately give you a quest that forces you to implement it. So what you're talking about is kinda there already.
    Posted 17 months ago by Mr. Dawgg Subscriber! | Permalink
  • you also have to make a certain number of recipes to unock other recipes.
    Posted 17 months ago by striatic Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Actually, that could be very fun.

    What if there were three or so uber skills, at the top of some skills chains (mining, tinkering, gardening, whatever), but you could only have one uber skill at a time?  (Will make more sense once unlearning is implemented, so you would be able to switch.)  Then there could be some special quests you could only do with one of each gathered together?  Or goodies that can only be made by collaborating.

    Also, +1 to skill learning requiring some in-game work in addition to the time.  I know a few of them do already, but it's only a few.  I think every skill should require a little dirty work.
    Posted 17 months ago by larky lion Subscriber! | Permalink
  • Well as with what Striatic mentioned and what I mentioned, there kinda already is dirty work. I think they want skills to work how they're working now. You do the dirty work *after* learning the skill. Which kinda makes sense? Doesn't it? At any job, a guy will give you the quick run-down of how to do it. Then you try it, and fail, or marginally succeed, and as you do it more, the better you get at it. 

    'Uber' skills do sound cool. In fact, I kinda thought of MiningIII&IV as 'Uber.' After seeing how much favor people have on the leader boards, I realize I was way off track. Swapping 'Uber' skills (respec'ing that is) should be in the game, but at high cost. 
    Posted 17 months ago by Mr. Dawgg Subscriber! | Permalink
  • +1 to what Hawkwell said - having to do something related to a skill whilst you're learning it.

    We kinda have this for some skills already, but it's very much a soft 'earning' process... ie you need to have the preceding skill plus maybe spend an emblem. As larky lion says, I'd really like to have to do some dirty work.

    As striatic says, we're kinda conditioned to expect this already... using items that unlock recipes after a certain amount of use. So I doubt we'd see a revolt if something like this was implemented :-)

    And I like Garbara's original suggestion... anything that encourages collaboration is a good move in my book.
    Posted 17 months ago by Snazzlefrazz Subscriber! | Permalink