Good to talk to you again.

I am completely underwhelmed by the contents of this update. I’ll echo the general comment that the developers seem to be focusing on pushing monetizeable content as quickly as possible rather than fixing issues. On the plus side...the new maps and bots do look cool, even if they maintain their level of merciless grinding needed to attain them. So well done on that. I am also looking forward to battle rewards....the proverbial bone pixonic is throwing its angry customers to try and keep them engaged. So thanks for that as well.

Now for some criticism. I’ll try to stay constructive...but rest assured I hope I’m conveying how’s strongly I (and the rest of the community save for the top...wealthiest... 3%) feels.

1.) to call this attempt at balancing the shocktrain half hearted would be generous. Team death match has been turned into laser tag. The game has literally been turned into “those with shocktrains vs those without”. Have you personally witnessed a match with 25 shocktrains between the two teams? Its game play for simpletons. read the myriad of comments available that was submitted on the test server about the gun, almost no one liked it. You released it anyway. The only constructive thing I can suggest is to remove it from the game entirely. Simply put...it’s so imbalanced there is not a proper adjective for it....and it’s proloferation in champion league has very nearly ruined this game. Way more so than dash bots ever would have. The only place this goes is when everyone eventually has shocktrains...which will turn this game into a robot version of bouncy laser tag chaos. When it reaches that point...I assure you this paying customer will quit.

2.) major major bugs remain unaddressed. The kumiho toe dig, shocktrains going through walls, and the plasma weapons bug where they pass through a bot when it’s near a wall remain prevalent issues. Please...fix them.

3.). The most major issue remains the lack of player choice. You have simultaneously exposed the majority of the player base to being forced to play 3 grand squads with 20 shocktrains...then force us to play in the match modes that make them by far the most effective. I’m almost convinced that this move was designed to sell specters...because in beacon modes the specters underperforming and as a result underselling.

You look at the most prevelant cash clans and their hangers have at best two specters apiece. They didn’t wholesale their dashbots for specters like I’m guessing pixonic accountants hoped they would. So now we’re being forced into game modes where they’re most effective! Especially with 600 bucks wort of fully leveled shocktrains on them

I am a paying customer. My hanger is not worth thousands like your highest paying customers, but I spend money on this game at the rate I’m sure most of your customers that generate revenue for you do. I can assure you if something is not done by 3.8 to address the issue of being able to experience the game in a way that is enjoyable for me with more frequency than random chance...you are going to loose me. You almost lost me this last time. Why in the world would I play a game I literally have a random chance of enjoying? It has to stop man. It just does.

Thanks so much for your time...and good luck moderating the angry horde. Fight the good fight!

Has pixonic ever considered how far an actual public apology would go? While I recognize there is a break there are several pilots below (who I have verified actually run them) said they’d gladly just return their shocktrains or put them into mothballs if pixonic would address the issue.

These weapons have and continue to be an absolute plague on the game. They make Team Deathmatch virtually unplayable. Their damage is overwhelming. Their unload is instaneous. They make it impossible to run in groups. They make it useless to even try to use cover intelligently and because of this they have become ubiquitous with the cash clans.

It’s pretty clear that pixonic is not run by idiots. So I wil accept no explanation revolving around the fact that they didn’t know that this would happen to the game play. Even with intelligent play and team work it was possible to counter dash bots and their release was borderline disastrous as well. hell im not even looking for a response revolving around what we all know is obvious that the weapon was clearly created to generate revenue. I want to hear someone from the development team or pixonic leadership express that they’ve heard the feedback and offer a detailed explanation or an apology.

But there are many players out there who are loosing patience because they perceive that pixonic just doesn’t give a crap. It’s hard not to have that perspective when not one word of sincere response to the community has been offered on this issue. I would encourage pixonic....please do not go down this road again, you have your money now. Don’t paint yourself into s corner creating a weapon that allows such a small portion of the player base to have such a huge impact on everyone else’s ability to play that they just want to quit. It will ultimately result in your player base thinning out. Please, please consider this. Thanks for your time.

While I don’t condone the behavior you’re talking about I totally understand people’s anger. Please see my long comment towards the top of this thread on what Piconic might consider doing to abate the absolute PR nightmare the release of this weapon has caused.

Since the shock train was so poorly thought out in its initial execution it’s difficult to come up with anything constructive to say about it other than to scrap it entirely.

That being said a NERF who’s stated purpose is to “give you a little extra time to get to cover” doesn’t really seem to be an honest attempt on the part of Pixonic to balance the system given that the entire point of the weapon is to be able to do damage to people behind cover. It’s not impractical but virtually impossible to intelligently use cover that’s at least 100m away from your next closest ally especially on tight maps.

Though I sincerely doubt it given their history of ignoring these types of issues when they paint themselves into a corner with this kind of heavily disruptive content that they can not undo due to the cash clans having invested heavily....

if the developers were interested in some constructive suggestions it seems like a fair balancing act for the weapon would be to reduce its range to 350-400m This would force shocktrain pilots to close in on their targets a bit to expose themselves to damage. Every system should have an advantage and a draw back.

Right now the only other thing that can counter shocktrains are pin/tulumbas, trident, or other shocktrains. Perhaps so,etching else that the developers would consider would be to buff those systems?

Thanks

First, awesome job for the well reasoned response. Also, huge shout out to the mod. Lord knows if he’s privy to any of the millions pixonic is dragging in per year, it’s a pittance not on par with super extravagant New Year’s Eve parties.....

If you read down the thread I’ve posted in the comments that an apology or at least some recognition from pixonic leadership would go a long way towards quelling the PR nightmare.

That being said I’ll say simply.......of course War Robots is intended to be Pashto win. That’s absolutely obvious. Now I will say, pixonic is extremely in-artful about it. Their approach is not subtle, or even very well thought out. If I was to make my own pay to win game, I would try to do it with a bit more subtlety. I will honestly chalk this up to pixonic being completely inept when it comes to behavioral economic. Fine. That’s a tough subject.

Pixonic is never going to be willing to have a productive conversation about changing the matchmaking system because....yes of course it’s that way. It’s designed to generate revenue and allow people who pay tons of money to have a distinct advantage. Let’s just all admit it to ourselves and one another. War Robots is pay to win. Everything pixonic does it geared towards that end.

Once we’ve done that, perhaps we can have a more productive conversation. You referenced EA earlier. They and other large console developers have learned to talk the fine line between pay to win and “pay to disrupt the whole community to the point where if you don’t pay you can barely function”. They skirt that line masterfully. Shocktrains are evidence that Pixonic walks that line with all the subletey of a Nordic death metal band. So....perhaps we can suggest that we as a community are ok with people paying money to get a distinct atdavtage, but urge pixonic to adjust the model so that the premium content is slightly less insanely priced, and slightly less than a bazillion percent better than the free to play content. That would be a massive step in the right direction. Pixonic still gets paid for their efforts, and the customer base doesn’t feel screwed over.

Thoughts?

Something else I would ask you to beg pixonic leadership to consider.

They really don’t need to make every....single.....danged......aspect of the game driven to insidiously generate revenue.

I was literally just reminded of this as I bounced into a Team Deathmatch round on Shenzhen.....which is so insanely frustrating it literally compelled me to stop...put the game down (stop spending money to speak the only language they’re capable of understanding) and post this.

It’s clear to any free thinking person that forcing us into playing random game modes is to make it nearly impossible to structure a hanger around a single play style unless you

1.)spend a ton of money on multiple hanger decks

Or

2.) spend a ton of money on premium content that’s so powerful that it doesn’t really even matter.

“It’s impossible to make matches with multiple game modes available blah blah blah. Whatever. It’s BS. You have 9 million players with a daily player base of several hundred thousand. The math doesn’t work out. I’m a little more emotional about this one because I’m just so....tired....of playing TDM. you’re messing with something fundamental about the enjoyment, which is the simple basis of the nature of the gameplay itself. That needs to be addressed immediately. Like now. Like in the next update or sooner. If there is anything that’s going to make me walk away from the game and make me stop spending money!its this. I very nearly quit when I found out I was being forced to play these slow...bowing game modes.

If you just focus on generating revenue with the content and give the players back just a teensy weensy bit of freedom to Taylor their experience, this would also be something they could do to continue raking in cash and still have this game be something people want to play.

https://youtu.be/oHaQWuS6pCE

Manni Gaming latest video. Watch 2:40 to 4:50 or so. Couldnt have said it better myself. Should be pretty telling when people who make serious money off of featuring war robots content have those kinds of things to say.

Promise this is my last word on the subject. The dead horse is officially beaten. Thanks for the discussion man. Looking forward to more in the future.

Hey there mr. mod. Good to talk to you again. After dropping into a TDM match
(which alone makes me want to quit war robots)

and leaving the match early after it met my criteria for the only way I’ll leave a match early (reds drop in with more than 9 shocktrains in tdm)

It dawned on me that it’s possible tdm was roped in with the beacon modes and were all being forced to play it because that’s the only mode where this bot really shines, and since the cash clans are all cashed out on dash bots, they need a way to move this thing.

Before I lay into pixonic more, I want to say that I’m genuinely shock(train)ed, pleased and hopeful that pixonic made a genuine attempt to balance the spectre. It has actual downsides. But that’s why they’re not selling it and why I’m guessing we’re all forced into game modes.

In the beacon modes it’s a force for sure, but it’s lack of durability and short stealth duration without being able to play shocktrain peekaboo then retreat makes it good at defending beacons only and not pressing them. Even in that role, it’s really got one jump and fire cycle if it’s landing zone is predictable where other players are congregating....like say......a beacon. It’s why you never see the cash clans run them in the beacon modes, but they sit in the multiple hanger decks for when TDM comes up. If I’m honest I think that sucks. Now not only do I have to play tdm when I don’t want to at all, I have to play the shocktrain peekaboo version of tdm. I spend on the game, but I’m totally unwilling to drop an entire paycheck on my hanger, so people in my position (90 odd percent of your players) leave a tdm drop like I do. It’s rare that I finish an entire tdm match with two complete squads.

This needs to be fixed immediately or many people including me, who represents an actual revenue stream for pixonic, are just straight going to quit. I’m honest with you man I’m almost over it. I’m begging you please pass on to the developers that 3.7 needs to include a way to increase the way players have freedom to experience this game.

Thanks again