Revert/Revamp New Player Experience

[AriGiga]

I would like to preface this by stating that I have not reached past level 6 in the game ever, and level 4 currently. I do not know if my current complaints apply in the late game or not, though I am assuming not.

And so for a bit of backstory, I used to play this game a lot when I was 14-15, around 2009-2010. I was a severe altoholic, making a ton of characters across as many servers as I could, because I had 0 attention span and wanted to try all the things all the time. As such most of my playtime was on Korthos Island. Even in that tutorial section there was a lot to enjoy. Fights were genuinely challenging, you didn't have much HP, and the right loot could make a significant difference in your effectiveness. I remember getting a set of +1 Scalemail, no other enchantments, just the enhancement, out of the chest in the secret passage the Sahuagin pops out of on the quest to get the scroll out of the storehouse. And that was a godsend. 1. It looked way cooler than the Battleworn Breastplate, and 2. I was taking a lot fewer hits with it on. I also remember what a game-changer the quest reward weapons for killing Jacoby Drexelhand were. An entire extra damage die against monstrous humanoids(like Sahuagin)? That was insane!

Compare that now with how the current early game works.
I have a ridiculous amount of HP to start with, a bonus to hit that doesn't seem to actually line up with my modifiers(how is a level 1 getting +11 to hit on some rolls fresh out of the caves???), and enemies struggle to hit me more than I should expect with my AC. Indeed, the underlying tabletop mechanics may as well not exist for as much success as I am guaranteed. I am effectively invincible, steamrolling everything just by spamming left click. Loot is thrown at my feet constantly, and it all has enhancement and 2 random enchantments. I don't truly earn anything and I don't feel anything other than slightly less boredom than when I clicked play a few minutes prior.

Everything that used to make the game engaging for a new player is gone. There's no challenge, you don't feel like you earned loot and it's both stupid powerful and simultaneously lacking impact to the player. The only reason to turn the game on at all is because I have no strong desire to do anything and it'll at least kill an hour. What used to leave a strong impression due to its unique mechanics and gameplay style is now just a massive nothing burger in the mind.

Please, just... make the early game a challenge again.

 

[hanul]

I would like to preface this by stating that I have not reached past level 6 in the game ever, and level 4 currently. I do not know if my current complaints apply in the late game or not, though I am assuming not.

And so for a bit of backstory, I used to play this game a lot when I was 14-15, around 2009-2010. I was a severe altoholic, making a ton of characters across as many servers as I could, because I had 0 attention span and wanted to try all the things all the time. As such most of my playtime was on Korthos Island. Even in that tutorial section there was a lot to enjoy. Fights were genuinely challenging, you didn't have much HP, and the right loot could make a significant difference in your effectiveness. I remember getting a set of +1 Scalemail, no other enchantments, just the enhancement, out of the chest in the secret passage the Sahuagin pops out of on the quest to get the scroll out of the storehouse. And that was a godsend. 1. It looked way cooler than the Battleworn Breastplate, and 2. I was taking a lot fewer hits with it on. I also remember what a game-changer the quest reward weapons for killing Jacoby Drexelhand were. An entire extra damage die against monstrous humanoids(like Sahuagin)? That was insane!

Compare that now with how the current early game works.
I have a ridiculous amount of HP to start with, a bonus to hit that doesn't seem to actually line up with my modifiers(how is a level 1 getting +11 to hit on some rolls fresh out of the caves???), and enemies struggle to hit me more than I should expect with my AC. Indeed, the underlying tabletop mechanics may as well not exist for as much success as I am guaranteed. I am effectively invincible, steamrolling everything just by spamming left click. Loot is thrown at my feet constantly, and it all has enhancement and 2 random enchantments. I don't truly earn anything and I don't feel anything other than slightly less boredom than when I clicked play a few minutes prior.

Everything that used to make the game engaging for a new player is gone. There's no challenge, you don't feel like you earned loot and it's both stupid powerful and simultaneously lacking impact to the player. The only reason to turn the game on at all is because I have no strong desire to do anything and it'll at least kill an hour. What used to leave a strong impression due to its unique mechanics and gameplay style is now just a massive nothing burger in the mind.

Please, just... make the early game a challenge again.

That is because you already know all the quests.
I died once in korthos island, the quest to the left after entering the wilderness, to a sonic trap ( I was helping someone who died so did not give much attention) in the hc8.
And as a fighter I got hit a lot in the first quest at the village, did not die, but got like 20 hp with no healing nor potions available playing hard or elite, I don't know, alone, ofc.
In regards to the loot, if you are a new player, you may not know neither what you need to complete the next quest packs or free to play quests nor even what is better to choose or not in a general way.

 

[AriGiga]

I knew all the quests back then too before too long, it wasn't this ridiculously easy. I had to fight carefully. You also mention playing hard or elite... the difficulties a free-to-play player(as anyone new will be) can't actually play without beating the instance on normal first. And why would they repeat it? And not knowing what loot to pick doesn't make a WHOLE lot of difference when it's all ridiculously powerful, and I don't even think that's a problem most people will have. It's pretty easy to read and say "I'm not a caster I don't need this, I don't have the proficiency for this, and this has more damage"

 

[hanul]

I knew all the quests back then too before too long, it wasn't this ridiculously easy. I had to fight carefully. You also mention playing hard or elite... the difficulties a free-to-play player(as anyone new will be) can't actually play without beating the instance on normal first. And why would they repeat it? And not knowing what loot to pick doesn't make a WHOLE lot of difference when it's all ridiculously powerful, and I don't even think that's a problem most people will have. It's pretty easy to read and say "I'm not a caster I don't need this, I don't have the proficiency for this, and this has more damage"

Precisely people who are not subbed will get in groups which do the quests very fast so when choosing items they will tend to choose them very fast making mistakes. Also in regards to sets and the equipment tetris, you do need to read and to take into account your character details as well as knowing the terminology.
In regards to difficulty, yes, normal and hard difficulties are kinda too easy. I would not mind if they set hard as normal and reaper as elite instead and getting rid of casual. (this would benefit free to play players and some would say detrimental to vips)

 

[AriGiga]

Who's grouping up in the early game that has virtually no players and doesn't need it because everything's too easy?

 

[hanul]

Who's grouping up in the early game that has virtually no players and doesn't need it because everything's too easy?

You already said that new players tend to be free to play players and therefore they would need to repeat all quests multiple times, that is one reason to group. In the hc they are grouping always.
In live servers, it depends on the server. Some have lots of groups like Orien, Argonessen, others have barely "any".

 

[AriGiga]

I did not say that, not once. I said that they'd have to repeat them to get to higher difficulty levels which they have no reason to do because they can follow the atrociously easy "normal" quests as far as they wish.

 

[hanul]

I did not say that, not once. I said that they'd have to repeat them to get to higher difficulty levels which they have no reason to do because they can follow the atrociously easy "normal" quests as far as they wish.

That's dependent on each individual player. Repeating them affords favor which gives ddo coins and reputation with the factions of the game (getting feats and other things), and also experience plus more items which can be sold for platinum.

I also played more than one decade ago, I think in 2010 approximately and probably was more difficult back then, but so was worse my internet and computer, graphics etc so can't tell. Equipment in my inventory only had +1 at level 4 and no enchantments of any kind except some korthos gear. Had got 197 favor points, and 0 ddo coins (guess maybe you could not get ddo coins by favor or the favor would give much less ddo coins). Only reached level 4 with enough experience to reach level 5.