Some possible remedies for For Honor. | Forums

[WarriorAaron123]

With the suffering community, I have always had some high hopes and still do. I believe this game has some legendary potential. I believe this game has the potential to be Ubisoft's best game even. But I believe I have a few ideas to at least help smooth over the game and make it more satisfying. However, I totally respect Ubisoft's intentions as to their route but would not want them to possibly blunder without at least offering my insight.

As of recent, a major debate has started due to planning for a second blackout (to those who aren't aware, this is a temporary period with players not playing the game as a sort of protest). I disagree with the idea of this blackout as it has no reasoning like the first, which was addressed to Ubisoft for problems at the time. I believe in the new idea circulating of a whiteout, the opposite of a blackout. This game will not survive if those who still genuinely care about the game do not put minds together and let the more "cancerous" counterparts of the community have domain. Therefore a positive white out would probably turn some opinions in the right direction, with a uncommonly large player base being as positive as possible.

I, personally, have not had many connection issues. True, I do get disconnected sometimes. I also do believe that peer-to-peer servers were a sort of shortcut. I do believe at some point that dedicated servers should be added. Until then, I am patient.

Now on to balancing. This is the first time I have ever got so involved in the development of a fighting game such as this. Overall, I think Ubisoft should have refined the game a bit more. However, it does seem they are rectifying the problem, at least attempting to, whether they truly care or not. What I am fearful for is that it may be too late.

Warden - They have had a lot of problems, from virtually nonpunishable shoulder bashing to an instant-kill drop attack glitch, which all have been solved as of so far. I believe this character has achieved as perfect of a balance as they may get. The only problem they seem to have is the almost guaranteed area attack, although it may be needed as a finisher, I just believe it shouldn't kill someone at the max regenerated health like currently.

Conqueror - The initial complaint for them are shield bashing spam which is the only moderate offensive for what is supposed to be a defensive character (of which to me seems very effective to keep distance and use charged heavies). The main fix I believe Conqueror may need is a slightly less shield heal.

Peacekeeper - She has always been a problem from release. Thankfully, the community and Ubisoft alike have dealt harshly with her abuse. Majoring in light attack spam, the only thing she needs fixed is here "zone flick" spam that was supposed to be stopped beforehand.

Lawbringer - He has been a pretty fair character, somewhat believed to be under-powered on release. The only balance I believe he may need is a more punishable shove, whether making it drain stamina or more easily dodged.

Centurion - Centurion is a fearsome character. What is especially feared is his ability to punish in a group situation, especially with multiple of his kind. I believe the major cure for this, though, would be to adjust his punch. I believe he should not have a guaranteed knockdown with a charged heavy pin, and it should either drain more stamina or even slightly damage himself as he is hitting some pretty heavy armor, even with a caestus. It also shouldn't have such good tracking as I think a dodge back should cause a miss.
His area attack is also probably too efficient. If determined needed, I think it should do less damage.

Raider - They are a pretty overall balanced character, even from release. The main problem with a raider was the possibility of an unblockable area spam. However, this now drains stamina severely.

Warlord - Warlord is a very good defensive character like conqueror. My major concern for him is his very effective edging, as he easily can toss you off a cliff in any direction. I believe a way to balance that is the ability to break off his grab at some point in the middle of it as well as a chance at a counter guard break. I don't think his armored heavy attack is a problem as he would not have an opening attack.

Berserker - I don't see berserkers having too many problems. My major concern and only real concern is the continuous light-heavy or heavy-light combinations. I believe this should either drain more stamina or be limited to so many attacks.

Valkyrie - Honestly, I hate the Valkyrie for one thing and that is her sweep. Like centurion's punch, I think her sweep should be avoided with one dodge back, not two or a dodge roll. And for those who say this would cause her problems, I have been able to defeat opponents without as she as other openers like her shield bash. As a buff, though, I think her shield pin, the dodge-punish, should be more easily achieved. Light attack do not seem to be too much of a problem either as she can get them off fast but they are not nearly as rewarding as they were for peacekeeper.

Kensei - Kensei upon release was a good starter but a very ineffective character for those familiar with them. They did not have many openers, as their combinations were hard to achieve. That has been recently fixed as they can now start off their combination finishers more easily. They now seem more balanced.

Shugoki - Shugoki has been somewhat of a problem as peacekeeper. He used to have a charge that would knock down opponents, granting a guaranteed heavy if used correctly. He also has some other ridiculous abilities such as an unblockable charged heavy and a health-regenerating grab. The knock down has already been fixed. In balancing terms, he needs the unblockable charged heavy as it is practically his only opener. The thing which needs to be balanced is he grab, the Demon's embrace. First, it probably should only do the equivalent damage he does regularly instead of instantly killing his opponent when at low health. Either that should be done or the grab, I believe, should be completely remodeled to were it should not help or harm him.

Orochi - Orochi is a moderately skilled based character. The major problem I believe is their area attack. Unlike warden, if you regenerate your health as far as possible, this still can finish you. I believe this should still exist, only weaker, so this doesn't do more than a bar of health.

Nobushi - Nobushi is probably the most efficient mix-up character outside of the two new DLC characters. She has everything from tricky side strikes to a possibly spammed bleed effect that has about a 33% guess. However, for those familiar with her, she isn't so seemingly overpowered. In fact, her player base is only a very small percent of the total. The best balance for her I believe is to slow her moves down slightly so they are a bit more predictable.

Shinobi - Like centurion's punch, I think the shinobi's imbalance comes from their kick. Instead of making it more easily dodgeable, however, I think the armor should be eliminated. The worry for them is that if this is done, they would have nothing. Contrary to that, I believe them to not punish so easily, as a skilled shinobi player is capable of taking most of any characters health with one combination by using the kick. It should be high-risk high-reward as shinobi is mean't to be a more fragile character. Plus they introduce new elements such as their ranged attack which have already been balanced to be more fair as it isn't nearly as easily punished as before.

These things I think would do greatly for the game. I am sure many would disagree but remember that this is only my opinion from observations I have made while playing with the game and it's elements.

[UbiNoty]

Thanks for the time and thought you put into this! You've covered a tonnn of stuff here and I'm more than happy to pass it over to the team. But just out of curiosity, if you had to pick your top three critical issues that you think need addressing - which would they be?

[WarriorAaron123]

Thanks for the time and thought you put into this! You've covered a tonnn of stuff here and I'm more than happy to pass it over to the team. But just out of curiosity, if you had to pick your top three critical issues that you think need addressing - which would they be?

To be honest, I didn't really expect a response from just about anybody, much less someone associated with the game itself. This is very pleasing and I appreciate the time.

Two major concerns which I somewhat addressed in my previous post was the two new characters, centurion and shinobi. Being somewhat new to the game, they are a fresh thought, however, those who own the season pass (including myself) have become moderately familiar with them. I do believe it may take more time to properly adjust them but I think the most problematic elements present and very apparent with little experience are Centurion's punch and Shinobi's kick. I would personally love to "main" Centurion sometime in the future, as he is an awesome character in terms of looks and moveset. However, I have purposely tried to teach myself other combinations without use of the punch as it very effective at extending punishment such as backing someone into a corner and practically locking them in. As formerly stated, I think increased reaction time (making it more dodgeable), increased stamina usage (which I didn't really address but think is an obvious fixture), and possibly even the centurion sustaining minor damage per hit, as even with protection of armor, this would still be realistically discomforting to bash someone with heavy armor. For shinobi, it is virtually the same thing except their "hyper armor" seems to be more problematic (although increased reaction may be a good fix even though I think my other solution more efficient). Most would complain that this would make too fragile but this is already a swift move and can also be taken as a 50% chance as the first dodge can lead into a guard break instead. If it becomes too much of a problem, I say an increase in speed would further balance this. Shinobi has some very punishing combinations, but as they have the lowest health currently, seems proper. The kick, however, leads into a very good opportunity for this with little risk as I have seen a skilled shinobi player drain a character's health down past half, including more enduring characters. True, this requires a level of skill above something such a shugoki's charged hit which can do a similar amount, but others do not have the opportunity to even do such, therefore, achieving balance. Other than that, I would love to enjoy these characters when they don't seem quite as dirty to play, as I have achieved at least first reputation for every character, and enjoy them all thoroughly.

Another major issue I think you may have some but obviously not total control is the player base. The "toxic" players of the community, those who are manipulating the game and others in a negative way, are starting to become the majority. As before mentioned, a whiteout (players coming online in mass and being as positive as possible, even if for a short period) would be a nice boost for the community. I despise that it may seem that I am stooping to a low but I believe that a sponsored whiteout may be a beneficial (and possibly necessary) lift to the game's player base. I think maybe something like an hour that if people play, a boost can be obtain would be a good idea. However, I feel bad as you have done many things such as offer champion status for previous problems. Another way I believe you could support us would be to regulate negative players, some to such harsh extents as permanent bans (which as of yet, I have not heard of such measures, just temporary bans). This is mainly a problem that the community can solve, but sponsoring from you would surely help, even if you just put your word in.

Again, thank you for the time. If you have more questions, I would happily oblige a reply as soon as possible (as I am going on a trip from this Friday to the next in an area with few internet spots). I would love to see some changes that may even be inspired by mine and other's feedback. All we can ask is that you try.

[Draghmar]

Nobushi - Nobushi is probably the most efficient mix-up character outside of the two new DLC characters. She has everything from tricky side strikes to a possibly spammed bleed effect that has about a 33% guess. However, for those familiar with her, she isn't so seemingly overpowered. In fact, her player base is only a very small percent of the total. The best balance for her I believe is to slow her moves down slightly so they are a bit more predictable.

Even though I really appreciate your work here I think you should play a little bit more because this one sentence shows that you don't have enough data. I play Nobushi and the one thing I fear the most is that my attacks are so easily parried. Yes, not only blocked but parried. Heavy, light, dodge light, dodge heavy - all of them. I don't even use top light anymore. And add to that she has very poor dodge and issues with guard changing.

[Danioku]

Valkyrie - Honestly, I hate the Valkyrie for one thing and that is her sweep. Like centurion's punch, I think her sweep should be avoided with one dodge back, not two or a dodge roll. And for those who say this would cause her problems, I have been able to defeat opponents without as she as other openers like her shield bash. As a buff, though, I think her shield pin, the dodge-punish, should be more easily achieved. Light attack do not seem to be too much of a problem either as she can get them off fast but they are not nearly as rewarding as they were for peacekeeper.

You can avoid her sweep dodging back already (even on reaction) and you still have the time for punish her. Recovery time on sweep is one of the longest in the game.

You just have to be carefull and wait the sweep animation cause, if you just dodge, she can GB instead and, in this case, you will not be able to tech it.

[kanuzira]

Lawbringer - He has been a pretty fair character, somewhat believed to be under-powered on release. The only balance I believe he may need is a more punishable shove, whether making it drain stamina or more easily dodged.

He still needs a buff. he is slow as hell and gets parried all the time if you want to do a combo. His attacks are basic and his attack patterns easy to read since it is only 2 things he can do. The guy needs extra speed and a moveset increase. His shove is the most easily dodged attack in the whole game and can be GB'd from it into a free heavy, if that is not enough punish for you i dont know what is.

[Mia.Nora]

Conqueror - The initial complaint for them are shield bashing spam which is the only moderate offensive for what is supposed to be a defensive character (of which to me seems very effective to keep distance and use charged heavies). The main fix I believe Conqueror may need is a slightly less shield heal.

So you fix one of the worst heroes in the game by nerfing him?

Clearly a lot of thought went into this

[Jarl.Felix]

So you fix one of the worst heroes in the game by nerfing him?

Clearly a lot of thought went into this

Yeah, I laughed too here )

I wonder how he got this "briliant" idea .. !

[Draghmar]

Hey, come on. Don't laugh because it's discouraging and he did put quite an effort to write this. [yes, I'm serious]

[Herbstlicht]

Hmm. Honestly, this stuff is interesting. Not to be mean or so, but I guess the op is of "average" skill level, thus seeing the game different then some of us. People even parry PK or Orochi top light now on console, take Nobushi - she gets parried constantly. So slowing down the game even more would be rather bad in my opinion.
Here we would be at a point where a decent training mode would show people how to counter some of this stuff - it would really, really help people out.
But even with a large part of the community maybe not agreeing in many of those changes (me included), we should keep our eyes open for the concerns of the more casual players as well.
Personally, I hope the upcoming Samurai buffs really push those heros in a way, one can say some of those still left behind could get a similiar treatment.
We need more complete heroes with strong and diverse movesets.