Pikeman Archive
Thread: Read and Weep, HOLOCRON Official stance on melee
Raph Koster on balance in SWG:
"On the other hand, we're just plain giving up on the issue of melee combat. A good ranged guy is always gonna take a good close quarters guy, and there's no getting past that. Yes, we've innvested a fair amount of time in vibroblades and stun poles and what have you, and there's skills to learn for melee, motioan captured moves, and all sorts of goodness. But really, we already know the min-maxers won't use that stuff. So it's there for those whose self-image really calls for it."
Complete post:
http://www.kanga.nu/archives/MUD-Dev-L/2001Q4/msg01048.php
Since this message is dated from December, 2001 I would HOPE that Holocron has changed his mind on this. I would be very dissapointed if this is his current opinion on the matter.
Perhaps, our represntative should inquire about this..
I totally agree, I don't think that a melee person should win most the battles with a ranged opponent. I want this game to be pretty realistic, and I don't expect someone weilding a huge axe (or whatnot), and running down a man with a rifle, andcoming out unscathed,in real life, so I don't want to see it in the game.
BUT!!! I report what is said by the players, not what I think should happen.
Khrim...
Let me clarify. This statement is two years old. Obviously this is no longer the position of the designers. This post doesn't mention the date, and makes the implication that this is a current newsworthy statement that indicates that the designers are anti-melee. The post is not constructive, and is very obviously flame-bait, i.e. trolling.
He made the exact same post in every melee profession's forum, as well as a few others. If this isn't trolling, I don't know what is.
Shrei wrote:
Let me clarify. This statement is two years old. Obviously this is no longer the position of the designers.
You're right thatstatementwas madealmost 2 years ago, however here is a post that is more recent.This was posted 8/12/2003 only 2 days ago.
In one on one PvP combat in an open area, don't bring a knife to a gunfight. There's no other way to put it.
In closed quarters, it isn't quite as cleara scenario.
I think anyone who has had mixed meleers and ranged folks in a group knows that meleers do indeed have a good role to play. But in head-to-head one-on-onePvP, there's no getting past the fact that melee vs blaster is a mismatch in favor of the blaster in most areas in the game.
IMHO, this doesn't mean that melee is not worth having in the game. People enjoy it, people do well at it, and they want it in the game. It's just hard to get past the fundamental fact that blasters are a superior weapon at a distance.
-Raph Koster, Creative Director
This quote came from a thread titled.
Q-3PO, why are Brawling Professions even in SWG?
http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/board/message?board.id=Development&message.id=297297#M297297