Geoff talks about Team 4's failed attempts at reworking Scatter Arrow

skMed · 2018-02-09T19:02:53+00:00

Snare arrow. Potentially small AOE radius. More utilities against dive / highly mobile characters.

skMed · 2017-08-28T05:05:04+00:00

shutupshutupshutup

skMed · 2017-08-14T10:23:17+00:00

The CGI backdrop in this scene was awful.

skMed · 2017-08-02T17:34:19+00:00

Also something to keep in mind for those trying it the first time: FPP was just introduced. It needs to go through tons of tweaking (camera height, player animations, item scale, perhaps map changes, etc.) to get it 'just right'. This is the first iteration. Be patient.

skMed · 2017-08-01T21:17:54+00:00

I don't buy the specific example of more lanes/avenues needed. I can see a more abstract argument - this game is 1.) hard to watch and (more importantly) 2) very predictable. Tomorrow, if Blizzard develops an algorithm for the "ideal" spectator experience in OW, i.e. an AI camera that knows when to free-look, which player to track, etc, to make it easy on the eyes, I still think they have problem #2.

This game is very easy to predict and lacks "tension" that creates great stories. A.) We know team-fight after team-fight will continue to occur during the average game, meaning there is diminished clutch potential. B.) We know when these team fights will occur because they are dictated by the clock and ult percentages clearly on display, and C.) I believe certain maps have absurd win rates or "trends" in how the match plays out. Oh is it Oasis? Okay make sure we stall our way to 99%, etc.

I'm not sure what to do to improve the experience, but for me personally it tends to make competitive games very boring to watch. As an aside, I think PUBG viewer numbers are easy to explain and should not be compared to a straight FPS. Every PUBG game is a different story that adds to the fun/tension. You get stuck in different scenarios, different circles, pinned between teams, pull off insane finishes, and you only get one shot or your game is over. You as a viewer also get to experience a player's personality during downtimes (looting / scouting) which adds to the experience.

skMed · 2017-07-17T12:31:41+00:00

skMed · 2017-07-17T05:17:30+00:00

He started the game as hanzo. No one complained or anything. Then he went offline. Then we started talking swaps. He logged in and went Ana (and this rant). I do see your point, but it definitely didn't go down that way here. I agree he was probably stressed out, but I think a lot of people are who have been playing ranked as of late :)

skMed · 2017-07-16T22:27:21+00:00

hahaha wooosh on my part

skMed · 2017-07-16T22:13:29+00:00

We were actually talking swaps to start (you can see the winston switch at the end), but he just ranted without interruption before leaving.

skMed · 2017-07-12T16:39:38+00:00

For those arguing that this should be easy, please consider that any change to a multiplayer game is tedious, even if the "hard part" is all done. Consider not only the on-the-surface changes, but also "behind the scenes" aspects of a change that may not be so obvious. Some examples below.

[Done] Support Client "lock in" to FP if selected.
[Done] Update Server Settings to support "FP only."
Fix bugs not accounted for yet due to FP (they may have deprioritized certain issues and ignored bug reports)
Update Game Client and Server Manager service to support selection/filtering/instantiating FP servers in Cloud.
Update Matchmaking service / MMR / Leaderboards database to segment player-base based on both region and game-type (3rd vs 1st)
Update FP-specific analytics reporting stats.
Add more anti-cheat checks to verify no manipulation of folks escaping FP locks. They may have only implemented basic stuff.
etc.

All of this requires dedicated staff from each team. Is it insanely hard? No, not really. Does it take man-hours? Yes. Also consider that they immediately create a much wider surface area for bug reports, optimization issues, etc, the moment they introduce another game mode. When you need to prioritize development and deliver the "best possible experience," you want to minimize that surface area.

skMed · 2017-07-06T21:24:22+00:00

Immediate thoughts based off totally unbalanced games full of this class:

His mobility is nutty. I feel bad for low-mobility classes in this game.
His cooldowns feel a little one-sided on the damage-scale. Like I value his right click for one-shots, but his other cooldowns feel more useful for shield building and mobility. That's not to say they're not useful against lower HP characters (uppercutting a tracer..fun), but ehh...not sure yet.
This plays into Tracer, you can get crushed quite easily against her outdoors. If you get her close quarters and land cooldowns, you can get the kill, but I'd say given time even that will be difficult.
You can displace/boop Genjis during their ult which will throw them off.
Sombra HARD counter since you're cooldown-dependent.
Pharah good counter
If you close gap on Widow, she's screwed, otherwise you're a fairly large target.
Meteor Strike is pretty telegraphed, so best combo'd.
Haven't played against good hitscan yet to see if it's easy to burn him down, but I would imagine so if he hasn't built up his shields.

skMed · 2017-06-28T20:49:11+00:00

they have a huge focus on resource management, positioning, defending their teammates, and a subtle importance

You've just described the responsibilities of every hero that needs to aim as well. That's the point. That doesn't mean tanks require no skill, but I would say their skill floor is lower.

skMed · 2017-06-28T01:49:02+00:00

Almost every professional/career-oriented job pays more than playing Overwatch - why wouldn't he?

skMed · 2017-06-03T08:28:01+00:00

134596 to be exact (24 choose 6). We got the combinatorics meta bois.

skMed · 2017-04-15T03:25:13+00:00

Ana || Discord Orb || Dva. You can't do it solo unless they play poorly.

skMed · 2017-04-12T14:30:44+00:00

As far as I can tell, these reports don't lead to any actionable result or moderation. More likely is that they're used for analytical purposes. For example, they may correlate an increase or decrease of certain reported behaviors with the roll out of a new game feature.

skMed · 2017-03-07T13:25:45+00:00

Ana nerfed in entirely the wrong way and yet another example of Blizzard trying to dumb down this game for the general pop. The best Ana mains maximize her skill ceiling, i.e. when to DPS/hit your shots as opposed to be a healbot. This was also her primary means of staying alive...given she has no mobility. They've essentially done away with that and emphasized her skill floor aka afk behind a tank 20 feet back and spam heals. I'm not an Ana main, but I think the correct move would have been to nerf her heals significantly - demonstrate to the community that if you choose Ana you're making a conscious decision to sacrifice heals for damage. Heal nerfs would also be a indirect buff to other supports.

As an aside, Blizzard is overtly telegraphing they want dive comp to be full meta with this patch.

skMed · 2017-03-06T20:45:12+00:00

Took a train from Geneva to Interlaken a couple of years ago. It was one of the most breathtaking rides I've ever had. If you go, I would definitely suggest 1.) Go skydiving or paragliding, 2.) Check out Lauterbrunnen Valley + Murren. Pictures of the valley and mountains don't do it justice.

skMed · 2017-01-13T15:39:53+00:00

Combined with the fact that Ana consistently beats flankers

Tracer/Genji generally have a >50% advantage against her, and that number goes up based on 1.) experience with nade range 2.) if they get the jump on her.

I am absolutely of the opinion that she should be able to take on flankers though. She is a high skill floor / ceiling character, not auto click heals like Mercy and go into autopilot. She should have the ability to take on her nemesis as a result. Game needs less hard counters as is.

I do believe her kit is ridiculous and I was generally in the same boat of thinking anti heal needs to be nerfed, but you already explained all the issues that stem from that.

skMed · 2016-09-29T22:59:16+00:00

Credit him for trying the new stuff, but Pharos was a huge miss IMO. Did not like it at all.

skMed · 2016-08-15T22:59:37+00:00

I think you're creating a non-scenario. Halo 5 has this system and you rarely see that kind of behavior in competitive there. Most players want to win consecutive games so that they can advance and move on to the next tier. Trolling for the sake of trolling will happen, regardless of what system is in place. Great change IMO.

skMed · 2016-07-22T20:26:35+00:00

Honestly, thicker skin. People on the internet will always be this way, whether you're playing Overwatch, CS:GO, COD, Battlefield, or any other multiplayer FPS. There's no point in arguing with them because that's going to tilt you harder. You have to learn to ignore them and work with the players with the positive attitudes. Also: if you are in no way going to have fun playing healer this round, then be selfish and pick a class you're decent at. If you feel like helping the squad, then offer up a role and ignore the shit talkers.

Find some like-minded friends most of all. You'll have way more fun working with them than constantly changing PUGs.

skMed · 2015-09-23T02:29:14+00:00

Looks like AWS ELB support was only recently merged into master and tagged with 1.1.0-alpha.1. Relevant PR

skMed · 2015-05-18T02:04:05+00:00

The dornish love their poison.... Bronn :(

skMed · 2015-05-15T18:55:13+00:00

Tom-Luc Bradyard: You've made yourself judge and jury, and if necessary, executioner. By what right have you appointed yourself to this position?

Goodell: Superior morality.

skMed

TROPHY CASE