Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Some thoughts on WvW and nameless invaders

frestonfreston Member UncommonPosts: 503

As you are well aware of, while fighting in WvW you wont be able to see the name of the character opposing you (you can in structured pvp, at least it shows in the videos). Youll be able to see "green invader" , "red invader" or whatever. The rationale for this is that it captures more the feeling of a mass battle in which you fight  a horde of faceless enemy soldiers, as opposed to the more ritualized, duelistic nature of structured pvp, in which individual reputation plays a large part. Server turnover and the fact that you wont face the same enemies again in a possibly months is another argument  used to justify this. No problem for me. Fighting an enemy with no name does add a certain  warlike feeling to the whole situation, but i suspect there maybe another reason of a more technical nature.

If you remove names, you remove the necessity to correctly depict your enemy. If we are going to have 500 people dishing it out in the same instance, one of the limiting factors could be the amount of data your internet connection can handle (this is just especulation on  my part).  Perhaps the blonde piggytailed female norn thief with red armor you are fighting is a norn and a thief,.....and male , dressed in green and with an enormous beard. Perhaps your internet is only transmiting ...norn... thief...armed with bow and your pc is randomly generating the rest. It could save for a lot of data transmission and perhaps make those battle possibles without too much lag and it could explain the necessity of not allowing you to identify the player.

Please bear with me, this is just speculation and i have no technical savvy, so this could well be a load of BS, but i find the idea intriguing. It it were true, i wouldnt mind it too much if it made the whole thing work more smoothly.

 

«13

Comments

  • ArawulfArawulf Guest WriterMember UncommonPosts: 597

    Yeah, I get why they said you can't see names but I still would rather see them.  I want to know the punk that just jacked me so I can hunt him down in retaliation!

  • AdalwulffAdalwulff Member, Newbie CommonPosts: 1,152

    We dont need to see the names. Because....

    -Once less thing to cause lag.

    -What would you do with knowing the enemys name, excpet try to flame him on some forums somewhere. Immature.

    -One less thing to distract you.

    image
  • mazutmazut Member UncommonPosts: 988

    Finally, I would be able to sit in the bushes and wait for my prey! Great

  • Billr00Billr00 Member UncommonPosts: 135

    Originally posted by mazut

    Finally, I would be able to sit in the bushes and wait for my prey! Great

     Oh no .. you'll still probably have Red Invader Over your head like a big "I'm over here, come kill me" sign lol

  • mazutmazut Member UncommonPosts: 988

    Originally posted by Billr00

    Originally posted by mazut

    Finally, I would be able to sit in the bushes and wait for my prey! Great

     Oh no .. you'll still probably have Red Invader Over your head like a big "I'm over here, come kill me" sign lol

    Thought there wont be any signs, that sux :/

     

  • VolkonVolkon Member UncommonPosts: 3,748

    I prefer not seeing the names... it actually adds to the lore of being in the Mists against these... things... that look like us but aren't us.

    Oderint, dum metuant.

  • VolkonVolkon Member UncommonPosts: 3,748

    Yikes, doubled myself.

    Oderint, dum metuant.

  • Master10KMaster10K Member Posts: 3,065

    Originally posted by Billr00

    Originally posted by mazut

    Finally, I would be able to sit in the bushes and wait for my prey! Great

     Oh no .. you'll still probably have Red Invader Over your head like a big "I'm over here, come kill me" sign lol

    Actually Mazut can do just that with the Ranger. Just hit "Camoflage" and you'll be stealthed, indefinitely, until you move.

     

    As for the "<colour> Invader" nameplates, I doubt it has anything to do with lag. Heck, they allow you to see everyone (in the immediate vicinity) on the map, so I doubt showing someone's name would mean a thing. Apaprt from the "faceless enemy" reason, I think the other reason ArenaNet did this was to prevent people from opposing servers, meeting up and finding someway to exploit the system. No idea how it can be exploited though. Can't really kill trade, because then you'll have to keep repairing armour.

    image

  • IPolygonIPolygon Member UncommonPosts: 707

    I think it is there to prevent flaming and ganking specific players. Some people don't pvp, because they don't like the frontal aspect of pvp in general.

  • DannyGloverDannyGlover Member Posts: 1,277

    can you mark targets with icons over their heads?

    I sit on a man's back, choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am very sorry for him and wish to ease his lot by all possible means - except by getting off his back.

  • RivalenRivalen Member Posts: 503

    I know why they decided to do this, from a developer's point of view it makes alot of sense, specially since names can be duplicated in other servers...

    With that said, WvWvW will be mostly a community built part of the game and being a DAOC / Warhammer player i can tell you that a major part of this kind of gameplay is to learn to despise some oponents and respect others.

    I sincerely hope they allow names to be displayed.

  • PhaedricPhaedric Member Posts: 18

    You know, I really didn't like the no name thing at first but then they gave  reasons on the reddit AMA and I have to agree at least about accessibility.But also they brought up the point I hadn't figured of  an unifying  US vs Them scenario and then  the facelessness of the enemy sort of made sense because you know the names of your comrades but not the enemy and that is good for server comraderie I think.  It would be better even, if they included the server name, if,of course,  the servers have unique names.

  • AdalwulffAdalwulff Member, Newbie CommonPosts: 1,152

    Originally posted by Phaedric

    You know, I really didn't like the no name thing at first but then they gave  reasons on the reddit AMA and I have to agree at least about accessibility.But also they brought up the point I hadn't figured of  an unifying  US vs Them scenario and then  the facelessness of the enemy sort of made sense because you know the names of your comrades but not the enemy and that is good for server comraderie I think.  It would be better even, if they included the server name, if,of course,  the servers have unique names.

    I was just about to say this.

    If a player is there to prove his epeen is bigger, then they are almost worthless as a team player and they will probably have no server pride.

    Community serves the end-game, and since PvP in GW2 is not about progression, we need a strong server community to keep going.

    image
  • komobokomobo Member Posts: 144

    I'm not a fan of the nameless policy at all. I would very much like to see the name of who i am fighting: see who just totally outplayed me, get the aha-moment "oh i fought that person in an epic battle yesterday, I need to stay on top of my game", and just generally recognizing enemy players by name while out on the battlefield, etc.

     

    At least they should make it an option to toggle it on/off - preferably keybindable so one can toggle it during massive battles.

    * Waves at Pushkina *

  • CallinCallin Member Posts: 99

    I like it for the fact that someone could not switch over to the opposing factions server and harrass someone. Wether they be a bad player or a good player or a just down right rude one.

  • BadSpockBadSpock Member UncommonPosts: 7,979

    PvP is going to be personal and ranked and leader boards and stats and teams and legends...

    on the eSport instanced PvP side.

    The WvW is actually the "casual" PvP side of GW2, and the nameless enemies fit very well into that scheme.

    You don't know who you are fighting, dehumanizing the enemy and thusly (because it is still just a game) making it more approachable.

    Most of us are so used to multiplayer and PvP where you can see the other person's name and they can see yours... pretty easy to think that it will be a lot less personal and more casual without names doesn't it?

     

  • Loke666Loke666 Member EpicPosts: 21,441

    I think the floating names are a huge immersion killer anyways. They were needed in older MMOs because the graphics werent good enough for you to recognize your friends anyways.

    I don´t really like the invader thing either, I would prefer no name at all on the enemies and a red, green or blue cloak to show which side they are on. 

  • Master10KMaster10K Member Posts: 3,065

    Originally posted by komobo

    I'm not a fan of the nameless policy at all. I would very much like to see the name of who i am fighting: see who just totally outplayed me, get the aha-moment "oh i fought that person in an epic battle yesterday, I need to stay on top of my game", and just generally recognizing enemy players by name while out on the battlefield, etc.

     

    At least they should make it an option to toggle it on/off - preferably keybindable so one can toggle it during massive battles.

    No thanks. What you're suggesting will likely create some bad blood amongst the playerbase, with gankers harrassing specific targets. The fact that you can see the Guild's [tags] is good enough. That way maybe even some "Guild Wars" will come about. image

    image

  • PilnkplonkPilnkplonk Member Posts: 1,532

    I really don't like this. I'd like to know the names of my enemies. It creates personal rivalries and better sense of persistence.

    As for people saying "you don't need to know your enemies names because you'd abuse them" that's just silly and completely false as anyone who played WAR or DAoC can testify. In fact usually you'd have better relations with your enemies, because hey they're doing what they're supposed to be doing, than with your incompetent cowardly allies.

    In the WAR server forums I was in there was nothing but mutual respect and friendly bantering between the factions. In fact, it was not uncommon to congratulate your enemies when you lost for providing you with great play.

    Remember, this is  basically RvR, not FFA PvP like Darkfall or even WoW PvP servers. I'm not sure people who are supporting this ever played WAR or DAoC. It's a completely different ballgame, I tell you.

  • Master10KMaster10K Member Posts: 3,065

    Originally posted by Loke666

    I think the floating names are a huge immersion killer anyways. They were needed in older MMOs because the graphics werent good enough for you to recognize your friends anyways.

    I don´t really like the invader thing either, I would prefer no name at all on the enemies and a red, green or blue cloak to show which side they are on. 

    Same here, I also don't like the nameplates because during large encounters, it looks like a mess of words. However I think the main reason ArenaNet have to do it is because people on your server are allowed to use their own custom dyes on their armour, with only the enemy showing up in server colours.

    image

  • komobokomobo Member Posts: 144

    To be honest, I don't understand the "but they'll be harrassing and stalking us" argument.

    I'm sure most of us are grown-ups and capable of going "*shrug* just a little kid desperately crying for attention" and not let the actions of douchebag dictate our emotional state of mind - if that won't do, the solution is not farther away than a simple /ignore.

     

    With nameless enemies, i might as well be fighting npc for all i care.

    * Waves at Pushkina *

  • komobokomobo Member Posts: 144

    Originally posted by Master10K

    Originally posted by komobo

    I'm not a fan of the nameless policy at all. I would very much like to see the name of who i am fighting: see who just totally outplayed me, get the aha-moment "oh i fought that person in an epic battle yesterday, I need to stay on top of my game", and just generally recognizing enemy players by name while out on the battlefield, etc.

     

    At least they should make it an option to toggle it on/off - preferably keybindable so one can toggle it during massive battles.

    No thanks. What you're suggesting will likely create some bad blood amongst the playerbase, with gankers harrassing specific targets. The fact that you can see the Guild's [tags] is good enough. That way maybe even some "Guild Wars" will come about. image

    There will be "bad blood" between players regardless. Now entire server populations will participate in ridiculing the oppossing fractions who suffered an agonizing defeat in the last WvW. Guilds will be taking turns at naming calling and daily rivalries will be the main dish on servers and even cross-servers.

     

    Humans are creative like that...

    * Waves at Pushkina *

  • Shroom_MageShroom_Mage Member UncommonPosts: 863

    I kind of like seeing enemies names, but it isn't really a big deal to me. I'd just much rather see <Server Name> <Profession Name> than <Team Color> Invader. It's possible that the servers weren't totally named and organized yet, and they wanted to make it more obvious for the press what was going on. I don't think anyone could choose their server yet because all of the videos I saw were from the perspective of the Red Team. Maybe they'll show your server name at launch. Hopefully. It will certainly help with server reputations. Very nice that they show your guild, though.

    I also didn't notice anyone wearing team colors. It looks like your dyes will show up to the other teams. I think would have noticed if there was a wave of green coming down the hill.

    "Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." -Dr. Seuss

  • PoufPouf Member Posts: 341

    I'm surprise noone mentionned teamplay, I often play with a friend of mine , and if GW2 is about strategy and CC more than heal/tank/dps . then knowing who your friend CC while you try to destroy someone else could be problematic if everyone is called "RED target" anyone have any info on that..

     

    I don't care THAT MUCH not knowing my opponent name, but please let us have a way to make a differences between opponents at least during a fight

     

    I dont see myself in the middle of a fight saying : attack the nightelf wearing the bigb blue axe and the red shirt and brown pants  not the one with the big blue axe and the green pants

  • GilcroixGilcroix Member UncommonPosts: 262

    Originally posted by Master10K

    Originally posted by Billr00

    Originally posted by mazut

    Finally, I would be able to sit in the bushes and wait for my prey! Great

     Oh no .. you'll still probably have Red Invader Over your head like a big "I'm over here, come kill me" sign lol

    Actually Mazut can do just that with the Ranger. Just hit "Camoflage" and you'll be stealthed, indefinitely, until you move.

     

    As for the " Invader" nameplates, I doubt it has anything to do with lag. Heck, they allow you to see everyone (in the immediate vicinity) on the map, so I doubt showing someone's name would mean a thing. Apaprt from the "faceless enemy" reason, I think the other reason ArenaNet did this was to prevent people from opposing servers, meeting up and finding someway to exploit the system. No idea how it can be exploited though. Can't really kill trade, because then you'll have to keep repairing armour.


     Not sure you can still camoflage. Looking at the press beta videos , this skill is no longer in utilities. The only place i am still seeing it is in traits. Wilderness survival - Hide in plain sight - appy camoflage at 25% health.

     

Sign In or Register to comment.