Jost Amman

And I'm telling you that since this is about personal perception, the fact you're trying to showcase your own point of view as the "truth", by also gauging other players' supposed preferences, that is simply preposterous. As I said, speak for yourself and try not to deflect by saying my reply is "stereotypical". To sum it up: you think that competitive gaming is the best way to balance 7D2D, instead I think it should also take into account the "fun factor" and role playing. We simply disagree and let's leave it at that. Thanks.

When people start using "WE" when they express their own opinions, it means their argument is not so strong as they think. Just express your opinion for yourself. Don't try to make it look like you're backed by a huge crowd all agreeing with your ideas. I could tell you, for example, that I believe also that many will agree that you can find a lot of reasons to continue playing even after other people think they've won.

There you go!

I agree, but, again, not a perk/skill problem per se. Ask @Gazz, AFAIK the game is balanced (spreadsheets and all) around the default difficulty level. Yes, but people play RP online, SAMP for example and many other games Still. It is my opinion.

I understand that the trader impacts the game heavily, at least IF you decide to use it, but as far as I understand your critique is mostly against that and not against how the attribute and skill tree is right now. I mean, it's not like it's perfect and can surely be improved, but all in all, IMO the current skill tree can work as long as you don't come from a biased position by having played other popular games that made a different choice on skills. Also, important to note, is that you're asking for balance, but you play at a level and with setting that are way out of the standard the game is balanced on. That means that whatever TFP do to refine and improve balance, you'll never be satisfied because you already play the game outside the "normal" parameters. Probably that would also be an error, since pure role playing is not good for a computer based game. By "role playing" in 7D2D, I mean: "creating a background for your character, in your mind, that you can then translate into attributes, skills and items/weapons you use". Some people, like Joel, go to the extremes of RP and REALLY role-play their character! For example, if you're playing someone who is fearful of dogs, then you won't allow yourself to fight them, and instead you'll always run away when you meet dogs in the game!

Your entire problem is with the Trader it seems, which I can agree with to some extent, but TFP have been saying for some time that traders will need to be balanced and refined, so it's a non issue for an alpha game. Now, can you take away the "trader factor", and tell me again how you would balance better the role playing part of the attribute/skill trees, assuming that the trader issue will be addressed in the future?

Sorry, I don't play CoD-like games, so I can't really fully understand your comparison. I can tell you this, however : most people who're worried about 7D2D balance have provided arguments that simply don't fit, because they're all coming from a "class system" point of view. 7D2D provides an attribute/skill system that could be considered a "soft" class system. By that I mean that, when you play SP, if you're specializing mainly in one tree you're probably playing it wrong IMO. How many times I've seen people bashing the bow because they can't use it in every situation... so what? Get a gun and put a few points in it, and you're golden man! You could even use weapons, with good results, without putting ANY points in their attributes/perks. In any case, when you play SP, you not only can, but SHOULD be more like a MacGyver guy and put at least three levels in several attributes other than your main one.

Ok, why not balance the role-playing experience? I don’t understand, are you really opposed to trader that not giving you hundreds and thousands of ammo and greandes on the very first day? Yes, I agree on balancing the role playing part even more than it is. Have you got any ideas on how to do it? I don't understand why you're suddenly talking about traders: did I mention traders in any way, shape or form? I forgot, this has been a long discussion... I don't understand where the "imaginary" comes from... are you saying that stealth is completely broken? In that case, I suggest you file a bug report detailing what isn't working and how the steps to replicate the problem. Tks.

No, it's called R O L E P L A Y N G (I spelled it clearly since it's a very revolutionary new concept which has just hit the game industry).

Which is exactly what I was saying, man! If after "winning" you can keep playing, then you're playing a survival sandbox experience with a story, not an adventure game with an ending. But what does this anything to do with "game balance" lol?? I forgot how we got here!

I said committed and experienced player!

As I said, some people find efficiency fun. Others, like me, find even unbalanced and awkward challenges fun. You may think that killing a Boss monster is your win. For me, "winning" is (e.g.) building a nice base with all comforts where I can "rest" at the end of the day. If you're talking about official win conditions of a game, then you should also add that the game ends after you win. If it doesn't end, then it's a sandbox survival experience, not an adventure game which ends when your story ends. But we're just splitting hairs here, it's evident that the definition of balance is not the same between me and others, so it's pointless to keep arguing on this I guess.

I understand where you're coming from, but hear me for a moment. From what I understand, all that analysis is based on two premises: Two (or more) opposing "forces" that should, theoretically, be human players The goal of the game is to win IMO, this is the reason why that paper doesn't fit in this case (7D2D SP), specifically because: The AI, however good faatal can make it, can't even begin to compete with a committed and experienced player. It can be a fun challenge, sure, but has nothing to do with the level of challenge you get in a (e.g.) PvP game. That's why I don't think the PvE can represent something you'll never be able to overcome if you don't choose the most efficient tree in the game. The other aspect where that model doesn't work, IMO, is that this is a sandbox survival game. As long as you're surviving, YOU ARE winning. I would also add that in this case, you are already winning when you are having fun with the play style you chose. So, all in all, this come down to how you approach this game: using a less efficient perk tree, for you, is self-deception, for other types of players is just "having fun". I hope you understand that I'm not bashing in any way that author/article, that guy is very smart and has good points. I just think they don't apply to my 7D2D SP game experience and the way I see "balance". Oh, also, about "balance"... I see that you talk about balance when applied toward having "the same efficiency". My point of view, is that balance should also be focused on the specific play style you choose. Example: if you want to play as a hunter/archer/trapper, then you'll want to have fun with stealth kills, tracking and surviving in the wild. If you're a brawler, you'll want to be able to brawl your way into POIs and drink beer to get tougher and use cool knuckle dusters. Every role you play must be balanced to be unique and fun! That's the kind of balance we need and like.

Seems to me, that doesn't apply to the way I play: all of that is about balancing two opposed players, not about a single player adventuring in a sandbox survival game world.

That probably depends on your definition of "valid". Example: maybe for some, a valid choice must be something efficient and as good as any other choice. For others, like me, it's a valid choice if it provides me with a different and fun new way to play the game, even if, compared to other play styles, it may seem under powered.

I'd also add that this is exactly the example of asymmetrical balanced gameplay. The fun is purposefully found in NOT playing in the most efficient way.

I think modders that have done overhaul mods (big ones) should get early access to new Alphas independently of the Stream Weekend. They're not streamers, but IMO they contribute to the game's success as much, if not even more, than the big streamers.

I would subscribe... if I had a YouTube account or cared for a ScrewTube account at all.

My gosh! They have NO IDEA what crazy world they're being forced into! Yeah, they're probably playing 7D2D and thinking... "That's NOT how you craft a stone axe!!"

I don't think it works that way... if you log in from Germany into your own Steam account, and you already bought the game, you should be able to download it and play it anyway you want. Am I right? The only thing you can't do is buying in Germany a game with your account created in Ukraine.

Actually this is very useful, thanks! I missed the night stream and when I got to Twitch I could only find a short 20 mins video.

Yes. But nobody has yet been able to develop the Teddy Bear mod... oh, well, I guess that's like talking about sci-fi.

No news post on Steam??

They could add skeletons to the church/cemetery POI...