Rework of vehicle requisition system, and vehicle type frequency | Forums

[funkygrunt017]

I would like to bring attention to a core game mechanics in this game which breaks realism, immersion, and game background. The mechanics in question would be the rebel vehicle requisition system, and vehicle appearance frequency (rate at which players encounter different vehicles). These changes are mostly in response to the 3rd and 4th difficulties, where realism is a bit more of a expectation.


Vehicle Frequency
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Firstly I will break down why I believe vehicle frequency is completely out of whack. It is understandable that military/drug cartels would request plenty of armored transports such as Humvee's, and SUV's. The main issue here is helicopters. First lets go over the prices of helicopters based off basic internet quotes.

MH-6 little bird (unarmed version) - estimated market 3.6-4.5 Million

AH-6 little bird (armed version) - estimate market 3.9 - 4.7 million

Blackbird - estimated market 5-6 million

AH-64 Apache - estimated market price 30-60 Million (giving a larger bracket here due to many variations, and other possible choices)


I want to also bring attention to the fact this is MARKET value, which in tern also refers to a legal sale, and recorded sale. Which would mean, prices for the location would most likely be higher due to increased risk for the companies selling.

Think about how many millions of dollars you just shot down today alone in Bolivia. Think of how painful it is for a country like Bolivia to lose 15 million in helicopters after 1 base attack.....These numbers are astounding, and when logically thought through, would quickly stop their military from sending them in on these missions.

Helicopters NEED to be reduced in harder difficulties, as their encounters are pretty much a death sentence, and since player expect a more realistic feel to the mode, logic alone would prevent these kinds of tactics from a country like Bolivia.
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Rebel Vehicle Requisition system
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Oh boi......The second I saw this feature I was excited, I wouldn't be forced to steal cars from civilians.....And could blend in with Unidad forces...But boy did this system start to bother me. I will outline the most prevalent issues with the system....


- Instantaneous appearance
Cons: gimmicky escape tactic, breaks immersion and realism

Suggested Fix:
Add in a 30s timer before the vehicle spawns on higher difficulties. It would be more appropriate for the player to see the vehicle come to them, but that will take to long for a fix.

- No ability to chose what vehicle type
Cons: Player feels pigeon holed into one play style. Leads to abuse of helicopters, player has to search for armored cars to properly handle convoys.

Suggested Fix:
Add in a menu, such as the one when you give squad orders, with different vehicle options. Simple right? maybe a design overlook on devs part.


- Overuse of helicopters
Cons: Reduces scale of world, player gets access to areas to quickly, player can avoid all map dangers besides SAM missiles (which are a joke in current state).

Suggested Fix:
Player has to spend resources based on what vehicle is requested.

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Share your thoughts, More will be added based on your input. I will also be adding more vehicles into the first section when I have more time, currently helicopters are my main concern.

[rikakiah]

While I largely agree, I think the gameplay value of the plethora of vehicles outweighs your first point. Sometimes fun>realism. Also, it's a Viper (descendant of the Cobra), not Apache.

As to the instant spawn, 100% agree. There was another game where you tossed a smoke grenade to call in a ride. That feature would be amazing, along with a wait time for it to fly in (would keep them from dropping in unusable places like directly against a house, too).

As for vehicle selection, put it on the loadout screen, much like your drone selection--set it there and then you can change it whenever. This would give room (since it's a list like weapon choices) for whatever vehicles are available. They could also add ways to get different ones of each type--being able to get a minigun little bird or Blackhawk with door guns would be worth any questline or whatever.

No on using resources to call them. Again, fun outweighs realism here, even on Extreme.

[rikakiah]

Semi-related, SAM targeting should get better at higher altitudes and have a dead zone close to the ground. This would make straight shot flying more of a risk and reward pilots who can trim treetops.

[funkygrunt017]

While I largely agree, I think the gameplay value of the plethora of vehicles outweighs your first point. Sometimes fun>realism. Also, it's a Viper (descendant of the Cobra), not Apache.

As to the instant spawn, 100% agree. There was another game where you tossed a smoke grenade to call in a ride. That feature would be amazing, along with a wait time for it to fly in (would keep them from dropping in unusable places like directly against a house, too).

As for vehicle selection, put it on the loadout screen, much like your drone selection--set it there and then you can change it whenever. This would give room (since it's a list like weapon choices) for whatever vehicles are available. They could also add ways to get different ones of each type--being able to get a minigun little bird or Blackhawk with door guns would be worth any questline or whatever.

No on using resources to call them. Again, fun outweighs realism here, even on Extreme.

The cobra was the lowest price point, around 30 mil, although some variants go as high as 70 mil (longbow).

Fun is a very lose word. As well as a flexible one. Spaming helicopters rides is not as fun to some, due to the lack of thought going into flying in a straight line for 4 mins. Not to mention Variability in travel is a massive factor to the experience. Repeatedly doing the same thing NEGATIVELY impacts player experience. I THINK most players would enjoy having trade offs(Reasonable ones of course) for using ground vehics over air.

[Dwirathz]

Talking about real budgets in a game... come on. Haha this makes me laugh.

I agree with the other things though, except the cost for calling things in. Already made my own thread about the fact that you can't choose your ride, which I would call a problem. Haha.
If you have problems with convoys just use EMP, makes it too easy.

[larsad]

While I largely disagree with the whole cost of vehicle argument and don't mind the frequency of helicopters in the game (it is a video game after all), I do agree with the vehicle request system needing an overhaul.

Like others have suggested above I would like having an option on the loadout screen to select which vehicle would spawn, (as you do with the drone). I would also suggest unlocking 9 different vehicles (as there are 9 upgrade nodes anyway), ranging from a motorcycle to the minibus via SUV's, Turreted SUV's, armoured SUV's, Unidad Buggies, and finally the helicopter, maybe even the large Unidad chopper with miniguns.

With this system you can also spawn in vehicles you have purchased or unlocked. Because to be honest, nobody is ever going to be using an unlocked vehicle when it only spawns at one specific rally point in the starting area.

I also think the idea of having to use resources to spawn in vehicles is good. It could be progressively more expensive for the higher "level" vehicles, and helicopters should be expensive enough that you put some consideration into it before spawning one in.