Reading the HoF/turtling thread sparked a question in my head. First off, I was just imagining how cool it would be to have Quake-like indoor play meshed with Tribes' outdoor aspect. So in that case, some people would look forward to actually attacking/defending generators and ending turtle situations.
This raises an interesting question which I don't really know what the answer is: What makes Quake's indoor play so much more fun than Tribes'? Here are a few guesses on my part (keep in mind I will be only referring to T1) on why indoor Tribes doesn't work:
1) Weapons. What are the feasible weapons you can use indoors? Discs, grenade launcher, mortar, plasma. Secondary to those choices are chaingun, blaster, ELF. Let's inspect the primary weapons. Discs are very powerful but end up doing too much damage to yourself to be used in close quarters. Their rate of fire is something to be left outdoors. The grenade launcher is all about spam, although it is a cool weapon to use around corners. Mortars are the same as grenade launchers, and we all know how annoying it is when you're spammed with these. Last but not least is the plasma gun, which is the only promising indoor weapon out of the primary choices. Its rate of fire is ideal, but, it is too weak. Against another shielded light you'd have lots of trouble. Against a shielded heavy you'd die trying.
2) Maps. The basic design behind Tribes' indoor maps lend to hallways that are too small, entrances that are too small, rooms that are too small, and passages that are too complex. Mix this with inappropriate weapons and all of a sudden you have a giant spamfest with no finesse in the gameplay. The larger indoor maps in T2 tried to change this, but it didn't work. They still sucked.
3) Shield pack. This is the pack that throws all indoor play off balance. Suddenly you have a second bar of life that is always constantly regenerating. To a skilled player this is almost like invulnerability. Imagine playing a game of Quake where all players could snag an invulnerability powerup at the same time. It wouldn't be fun. Add in to the mix the dynamic fact that heavies using shield pack have much more shield than a light, making it futile to assault a base as a light.
4) Foot speed. In Tribes the strongest move the slowest, the weakest move the fastest. In Quake there is no such distinction. Indoor fighting using a heavy is basically sit and shoot and hope to maim. A light is marginally better but it is still difficult to dodge shots. Quake has lots more finesse, and I attribute it to foot speed. You're able to dodge shots quickly while jumping and shooting all the way through. It's a much more exciting game that way.
What it comes down to is this: The fundamental aspect behind Tribes (teamplay and its balancing issues) does not lend to fun indoor gameplay. This is evident in mods such as D&D and Siege. Quake is much more fun indoors because of one fact: All players are created equal.
What I am saying (to the developers aka THRAX) is, I think you guys should really investigate why Quake is so successful even though most of its gameplay is indoors. If you take what is successful in that arena and combine it with what you already know with Tribes' outdoor aspect, you will have quite a gem on your hands.
This raises an interesting question which I don't really know what the answer is: What makes Quake's indoor play so much more fun than Tribes'? Here are a few guesses on my part (keep in mind I will be only referring to T1) on why indoor Tribes doesn't work:
1) Weapons. What are the feasible weapons you can use indoors? Discs, grenade launcher, mortar, plasma. Secondary to those choices are chaingun, blaster, ELF. Let's inspect the primary weapons. Discs are very powerful but end up doing too much damage to yourself to be used in close quarters. Their rate of fire is something to be left outdoors. The grenade launcher is all about spam, although it is a cool weapon to use around corners. Mortars are the same as grenade launchers, and we all know how annoying it is when you're spammed with these. Last but not least is the plasma gun, which is the only promising indoor weapon out of the primary choices. Its rate of fire is ideal, but, it is too weak. Against another shielded light you'd have lots of trouble. Against a shielded heavy you'd die trying.
2) Maps. The basic design behind Tribes' indoor maps lend to hallways that are too small, entrances that are too small, rooms that are too small, and passages that are too complex. Mix this with inappropriate weapons and all of a sudden you have a giant spamfest with no finesse in the gameplay. The larger indoor maps in T2 tried to change this, but it didn't work. They still sucked.
3) Shield pack. This is the pack that throws all indoor play off balance. Suddenly you have a second bar of life that is always constantly regenerating. To a skilled player this is almost like invulnerability. Imagine playing a game of Quake where all players could snag an invulnerability powerup at the same time. It wouldn't be fun. Add in to the mix the dynamic fact that heavies using shield pack have much more shield than a light, making it futile to assault a base as a light.
4) Foot speed. In Tribes the strongest move the slowest, the weakest move the fastest. In Quake there is no such distinction. Indoor fighting using a heavy is basically sit and shoot and hope to maim. A light is marginally better but it is still difficult to dodge shots. Quake has lots more finesse, and I attribute it to foot speed. You're able to dodge shots quickly while jumping and shooting all the way through. It's a much more exciting game that way.
What it comes down to is this: The fundamental aspect behind Tribes (teamplay and its balancing issues) does not lend to fun indoor gameplay. This is evident in mods such as D&D and Siege. Quake is much more fun indoors because of one fact: All players are created equal.
What I am saying (to the developers aka THRAX) is, I think you guys should really investigate why Quake is so successful even though most of its gameplay is indoors. If you take what is successful in that arena and combine it with what you already know with Tribes' outdoor aspect, you will have quite a gem on your hands.