What does "significance of gear" mean?

[Cavadus]

Under the "inventory" paragraph: http://community.defiance.com/en/201...e-game-update/

Inventory
Our inventory interface needs serious improvement. Our current interface has a large number of loadouts and limited inventory space that makes it difficult to make decisions quickly and leap right back into the game. We’re making incremental improvements to this interface as we improve the significance of gear resulting in a much smoother process.

What does this mean? As a shooter the game is light on RPG elements; gear is much more significant than EGO. And that's fine. One of the best things this game has going for it is that there are literally none of the stereotypical bull **** barriers between newbs and vets that a traditional RPG has.

I kind of figured the charged blades were a harbinger of bad design choices as the rarity dictates the damage. No other weapon is like that. At first I attributed this choice to the lack of attached weapon skills but the above comment worries me. Then combine that with all starting, pre-order, and Ark Hunter Rewards weapons being nerfed.

Why was this gulf between newer and older characters even opened to begin with? Why force that into the game now?

We're not going to be moving down the path towards traditional RPG power scaling are we? Because, to be frank, that sucks and is just lazy game design. It's archaic. It would make me stop playing this game. It's fine that some people like it but I absolutely abhor it. It's the primary contributing factor to my absolute love of the idea of MMOs but my complete disdain for their execution thus far. I just can't enjoy games like that anymore.

Someone please reassure me that this is not what's implied by comments mentioning the significance of gear.

[Arsenic_Touch]

The charge blade rarity was not a bad design choice, not by a long shot. Just because you do not like that element in games do not make them bad design choices. You also don't like story content. You don't like progression. So it's understandable and I hope they pay no mind to posts like this. The game needs direction and the current direction isn't working.

[Cavadus]

I'm not interested in playing a themepark RPG. I'm sorry that offends you.

[joseph021775]

I would not mind some RPG elements mainly due to being a big fan of RPGs (tabletop and video games). But we need nothing on the scale of ME1, I'd enjoy more appearance customization just so we don't have so many that look a like. Also I'd be open to a more streamlined load out system and one that allowed you to use more of your perks, as it stands now loud outs 4 and 5 are pretty much just weapons I use just for various pursuits.

[Lollie]

If they add progression to THIS game they might as well close the servers down now.

Lack of gear progression is the ONLY thing this game has going for it to make it unique.

Who is sailing this thing

[BJWyler]

I have to agree with Arsenic here. While I enjoy the fact that there is no gear progression in the game, like more traditional RPGs, I do find the gear system to be somewhat lacking. At this point the only real reason to have a Legendary is just to complete the EGO pursuit. To me, finally getting a Legendary out of a lockbox should elicit more feeling than just a "oh, another item to salvage."

That doesn't mean we need to add a bonafide gear progression system in the game, but there should be at least some significant difference between the color levels of the gear, and I mean more than just some random, and often useless, bonus perk. We already have that with the slightly increasing power levels of the shields and grenades. At the very least, I would like to see a system where I can upgrade my gear to the next color level and be able to choose the bonus perks of orange items.

I would also like to see more loadout slots made available too, just so I can have more specific loadouts for certain situations (like the various PvP maps) without having to fiddle with switching out powers and perks each time.

[Xaearth]

The charge blade rarity was not a bad design choice, not by a long shot. Just because you do not like that element in games do not make them bad design choices. You also don't like story content. You don't like progression. So it's understandable and I hope they pay no mind to posts like this. The game needs direction and the current direction isn't working.

...
If they add progression across the board, it will kill this game.

The economy is just too broken to support anything that would make the rich more powerful than the average player.

If there was any hope that they could fix the economy, maybe that sentiment might have merit.
But the economy has been broken since just after launch, and they've only ever managed to make it worse.

[Arsenic_Touch]

...
If they add progression across the board, it will kill this game.

The economy is just too broken to support anything that would make the rich more powerful than the average player.

If there was any hope that they could fix the economy, maybe that sentiment might have merit.
But the economy has been broken since just after launch, and they've only ever managed to make it worse.

Hardly. The economy is irrelevant. They can add progression without making it vertical. They've already said they're revamping how the weapon skills are.

This current static system does not work, especially when it doesn't have stat priority and the majority of weapons are obsolete or have terrible stat rolls.

The slight change in guns based on rarity present in the charge blades + the slight change in guns purchased at rep vendors is a step in the right direction and they need to expand on the concept. They can do this along with the weapon skill revamp they have in mind without breaking the game.

[Atticus Batman]

Hardly. The economy is irrelevant. They can add progression without making it vertical. They've already said they're revamping how the weapon skills are.

This current static system does not work, especially when it doesn't have stat priority and the majority of weapons are obsolete or have terrible stat rolls.

The slight change in guns based on rarity present in the charge blades + the slight change in guns purchased at rep vendors is a step in the right direction and they need to expand on the concept. They can do this along with the weapon skill revamp they have in mind without breaking the game.

Alright DIAGONAL it is!!!!!!!!!!!! Anyway I love everyone being on par with each other but something does need to be changed. Not sure it's making high lvl stuff better since that would just make PvP impossible for lots of new or casual players and PvP is NOT the core of the game anyway. PvE is!!!

[Xaearth]

Hardly. The economy is irrelevant. They can add progression without making it vertical. They've already said they're revamping how the weapon skills are.

This current static system does not work, especially when it doesn't have stat priority and the majority of weapons are obsolete or have terrible stat rolls.

The slight change in guns based on rarity present in the charge blades + the slight change in guns purchased at rep vendors is a step in the right direction and they need to expand on the concept. They can do this along with the weapon skill revamp they have in mind without breaking the game.

You're making no sense.

You say they can make progression matter without making it vertical while lobbying for more vertical progression.

Furthermore you're really going to double-down on the ability of the dev team to add "not-really-vertical-but-more-vertical-than-it-is-now" styled progression without breaking the game?

I'm sorry, but I cannot process these statements together. They literally contradict each other no matter which way my brain processes them.

I get that the current loot generation system is horrible. We all do.

But doing a 180 is not going to help this game. They need to fix the system so that loot that isn't inherently designed to be junk (whites, some greens) is never auto-junk, yes.

Directly relating the rarity of your weapon to character performance rather than luxury features is not the way to fix the problem.

Getting rid of crap rolls, especially ones that shouldn't exist in the first place (practically half the list of possible bonuses for BMGs), is another matter entirely.