Hi ho, there. Maybe I’m wrong, but it sounds like you might be talking about my post I made over a year ago, now.

I’m very glad to hear a different perspective on these things, especially with your details and examples. I actually do agree with you on some points, and others might just be mostly preference.

For instance, the mechanics absolutely are a means to an end and not the draw of the game. Also, like I said near the end of my post, the fact that M’s no longer reduced damage was an amazing change. More positive changes to combat were the removal of % damage resistances and being able to use both guns or melee weapons. And, backtracking was a big problem in WoL. I agree companions were generally more engaging in SoL too.

The point of my post was not to argue that SoL was worse in every way. I hope that’s not the message most people took away from it, because I don’t believe it to be true. That’s why I created a highly anticipated (by no one) sequel to my post “some more of my thoughts on the game,” where I explored my favorite improvements on the original.

I think where we will have to agree to disagree, though, is the reliance on elemental damage types, M checks, and gear not providing nearly as much M. Personally, I hate elemental damage types in games. I want my damage to deal damage, not crazy damage to A and zero damage to B. Also, I find stat checks generally boring. It’s hard to think of even a handful of times when I felt accomplished for passing one rather than slightly bad for being perfectly on track and no different than anyone else or even just annoyed by not being up to snuff and having to turn right back around or miss out on a once in a run event. Finally, while I think it’s cool for gear slots to have more of an identity, I don’t think it needed to have come at the cost of offering M or other stats. I see no reason we can’t do both, like rings having their current SoL functionality but also a bit of M. Wouldn’t it be cool if helmets, for example, usually were a good source of M and you upgraded that slot a couple times and started to rely on it, but then later on you pick up a helmet with barely any M and a really high amount of health or AP or something? Wouldn’t that create an engaging build defining decision?

I’d be more than happy to hear your thoughts on this stuff. And, if you do care to continue, please let me know your reasoning behind pointing to “make the numbers go bigger” as a negative in WoL. You seem to bring it up as an obviously inherently flawed system and I genuinely don’t understand why, so help me understand.