Playing this single game is a tragedy. | Forums

[Sircowdog1]

But again, TD is not a solo game. It is a co-op game that you can play solo. However, being able to play it solo does not mean you can complete every single activity on your own. And when you play solo, you have to accept that you will encounter situations where you are not going to be able to beat the content..

I'm not sure I fully agree with this, but it does contain a lot of truth. However, the only content in the game right now that literally can not be done solo are the two raids. Every other piece of content can, and has been completed by a solo player.

Does it require extreme levels of optimization, skill, and practice? Yes. And would it also be MUCH easier to complete with a group? Yes.

This is where I think the game has real problems: The disparity in the amount of time and effort required to complete content between solo and group play. IMO, groups in this game are a crutch that makes it seem FAR easier than the game actually is. Groups make the game a cakewalk. Even the "hardest" content in the game (Legendary/Raids) becomes almost stupidly easy when you have multiple people who are halfway competent with decent builds.

If I thought the devs were capable of it, I would be making more threads about this disparity. But we all know they're not capable of striking a better balance, so it's up to the individual solo player to accept that they're in for an uphill battle in order to complete content. But at the same time, a solo player is also going to be, on average, much better at the game than someone who only plays in a group.

Take that for what it's worth. Some people only care about clearing content in any way possible. They'll get bored more quickly because "the game is too easy", even though all they've done the entire time is get carried by their team. Meanwhile, a good solo player will still be getting hundreds of hours of fun out of the game.

[V4MPiR1]

This right here is the best explanation to RNG. It's really pretty simple to understand and I am not sure how so many seem to have trouble wrapping their head around it, seeming thinking the game "hates" them, whilst favoring others. It's not like anything is rigged. It's just chance -- like any other game of chance.

That would be true if by 'RNG' we were colloquially referring to 'Uniformly Distributed RNG'. However, that is not what is employed here. The following, is.

It isn't RNG. It's BIASED/WEIGHTED RNG. This means that individual outcomes have varying occurrence probabilities, and therefore do not have a 'uniform distribution'. It is employed any time there is intent to suppress specific outcomes while not negating them as potential. In colloquial terms, "The system is rigged, but will deceive oblivious individuals into believing it is fair". One might claim as a rebuttal to this that because a subset (Biased/Weighted RNG) inherently belongs to its respective category (RNG), it can be identified as such. This would be misleading. The reason is that when one non-specifically refers to 'RNG', they are, in fact, colloquially referring to 'Uniformly Distributed RNG', another subset, separate and distinct from 'Biased/Weighted RNG'.

Let us demonstrate this with an example. Unaware to you, I write a number between one and ten on a piece of paper. I then flip that piece of paper over and place it down on the table. I then ask you to pick a number between one and ten. In this scenario, any qualifying answer you provide has a probability of 0.1 (one in ten chance) of matching up with whatever number I wrote on said piece of paper. This is 'Uniformly Distributed RNG'. Conversely, if I were to pick the number for you under a bias (p1 = 0.9, p2 = 0.02, p3 = 0.019999, p4 = 0.01, p5 = 0.01, p6 = 0.01, p7 = 0.01, p8 = 0.01, p9 = 0.01, p10 = 0.000001), then a match with the number on the piece of paper would occur nine out of 10 times the written number was a one, and one out of one million times the written number was a ten. This is 'Biased/Weighted RNG'.

This is applied to game loot in that desired outcomes are assigned the lowest probabilities in the bias.

[tcarlisle2012]

I'll agree with the OP. It is a tragedy to play this game single..... if one has a poor build and/or poor set of tactics.

Anyone that plays this game and feels solo play is "impossible" needs to really take a step back and learn about builds and tactics a lot more.

Yes, you will need to use weapons and gear that wouldn't be your preference and fit your desired play style. But every but of this game is solo-able except the parts they said from day one won't be -- the raids. Everything else, if one cannot conquer it, one is attempting content that is above one's build or skill.

[III_Hammer_III]

I'm not sure I fully agree with this, but it does contain a lot of truth. However, the only content in the game right now that literally can not be done solo are the two raids. Every other piece of content can, and has been completed by a solo player.

Does it require extreme levels of optimization, skill, and practice? Yes. And would it also be MUCH easier to complete with a group? Yes.

Just as a clarification, I was speaking in general terms. Sure, there are many players that can complete all content solo but for raids, but I am willing to bet the majority (if not the overwhelming majority) are not able to complete legendaries solo.

If I thought the devs were capable of it, I would be making more threads about this disparity. But we all know they're not capable of striking a better balance, .

That is an unfair statement. Again, the game, at its core, is a co-op game, and that's what the devs' main focus is.I am not going to fault them for that.

[retro1236]

I got 100 crates of heroic

I don't even know what that is, crates of heroic? And I play only on heroic/legendary..
Play legendary for higher rolls. Crates almost never give you good stuff, open world/mission/bounties/summit/raid drops does from time to time.

[Oatiecrumble]

I don't think i have EVER got anything good from leveling caches.....but hey, some will say it's just "RNG"

[AIBot46]

Just call for backup, someone like me will be happy to jump in and help you out. Let us know what kind of gear you're looking for and we'll drop it for you because nothing is going to improve our build, anyways. If I'm helping someone, I'll just drop anything that has good rolls and let them see if they want it (people seem to be quiet these days for some reason). With 3 people helping you, not only are there more NPC's (aka drop chances), but it's 3x more drops on top of that over solo because there's 3 other players getting drops and looking for the gear you want.

[Aced_100]

I believe there are variables that can make the game unplayable and unusable for some players to play solo content at harder content. RNG being part of that.
RNG is not the same for all. Nor is it fair. Some players can get endless good drops all day for months. Meanwhile, some players don't ever see good items. Devs have stated this is by design. Some get rewarded and others get punished.

Yes, some days I get all rubbish, like I can open twenty chests looking for a decent pair of Providence Defense gloves and not even get one pair of gloves of any kind, the other day I got four pairs of PD gloves, go figure.

[Sircowdog1]

Just as a clarification, I was speaking in general terms. Sure, there are many players that can complete all content solo but for raids, but I am willing to bet the majority (if not the overwhelming majority) are not able to complete legendaries solo.

Replace "not able to complete" with "not willing to do what's needed to complete", and I'd agree.

I like to think I'm a fairly competent and veteran solo player, and I still haven't finished a solo legendary. Not because I can't. But because honestly I just don't want to spend the hours to learn all the cheese and the time repeating failures until I learn all the quirks. The whole thing of having to restart the entire mission is only a minor inconvenience at the heroic level, but beyond my tolerance of annoyance at the legendary setting, where enemies are all aimbots.

It's just not an enjoyable experience, even if it's possible.

I REALLY wish they'd change it from one death to a reinforcement system. For instance, Instead if a single death, which disproportionately punishes solo players, they changed it to a limited number of deaths. Say...5 total deaths per teammate. That way it's fair no matter how many people you bring. A solo player has 5 chances. A team has more chances, but also more opportunities to lose chances if someone is playing badly.

That is an unfair statement. Again, the game, at its core, is a co-op game, and that's what the devs' main focus is.I am not going to fault them for that.

Where is it stated in any official capacity that The Division 2 is primarily a co-op game?

If I had to guess, I'd say a vast majority of the time players spend in the game is done solo. Even players who enjoy groups spend some amount of time farming solo.

And I don't fault them for focusing on a particular aspect of the game. But I do fault them for doing so atvthe expense and neglect of other parts. Solo is at least still a viable playstyle for the most part. It works. PVP has been virtually abandoned by Massive, with only token adjustments or tweaks to the balance, and no new content at all.

If Division 3 ever becomes a thing, and it's a "co-op" experience, then ot damn well better steer clear of other forms of gameplay so as not to mislead players.

[III_Hammer_III]

Replace "not able to complete" with "not willing to do what's needed to complete", and I'd agree.

Why would I do that?

I like to think I'm a fairly competent and veteran solo player, and I still haven't finished a solo legendary.

So it is all about you.

Not because I can't. But because honestly I just don't want to spend the hours to learn all the cheese and the time repeating failures until I learn all the quirks. The whole thing of having to restart the entire mission is only a minor inconvenience at the heroic level, but beyond my tolerance of annoyance at the legendary setting, where enemies are all aimbots.

Well, you can't tell you can until you actually do it, so...

Where is it stated in any official capacity that The Division 2 is primarily a co-op game?

If you can't tell by game mechanics, it's been posted here before. You can look it up.