06-20-2003, 02:14 PM
Hi,
Is it possible and also desirable to balance 3 / 5 / 7 character classes perfectly in a game like Diablo?
I don't think that "perfect" balance is possible or desirable. It is not possible because there will always be the individual preference issue. Even if all the classes were balanced in some theoretical sense, there will always be people who prefer and play better in one style or another. It is not desirable because players should have the choice to make the game harder or easier. One can always make the game (somewhat) harder by adopting self imposed restrictions. Choice of class should be a consideration in that decision.
However, I do think that it is both possible and desirable to balance the classes within a reasonable degree. If one imagines a difficulty scale, the hardest class should be about twice as hard as the easiest. Admittedly, such a difficulty scale would be greatly warped by equipment. It would still be good to make the "power" of the least difficult class with the greatest equipment possible no more than twice that of the most difficult class with run of the mill equipment. That would mean balancing the gear as well as the classes, and that is a bigger shortcoming in D2 than it was in D1.
Finally, the game should be balanced in terms of the character versus the monsters. Achieving high level should be difficult because the monsters are difficult even for an optimal character with ideal gear played by an excellent player. Even better would be to have the monsters be difficult for a party of such characters. And that is a balance that Buzzard has consistently failed to achieve.
--Pete
Is it possible and also desirable to balance 3 / 5 / 7 character classes perfectly in a game like Diablo?
I don't think that "perfect" balance is possible or desirable. It is not possible because there will always be the individual preference issue. Even if all the classes were balanced in some theoretical sense, there will always be people who prefer and play better in one style or another. It is not desirable because players should have the choice to make the game harder or easier. One can always make the game (somewhat) harder by adopting self imposed restrictions. Choice of class should be a consideration in that decision.
However, I do think that it is both possible and desirable to balance the classes within a reasonable degree. If one imagines a difficulty scale, the hardest class should be about twice as hard as the easiest. Admittedly, such a difficulty scale would be greatly warped by equipment. It would still be good to make the "power" of the least difficult class with the greatest equipment possible no more than twice that of the most difficult class with run of the mill equipment. That would mean balancing the gear as well as the classes, and that is a bigger shortcoming in D2 than it was in D1.
Finally, the game should be balanced in terms of the character versus the monsters. Achieving high level should be difficult because the monsters are difficult even for an optimal character with ideal gear played by an excellent player. Even better would be to have the monsters be difficult for a party of such characters. And that is a balance that Buzzard has consistently failed to achieve.
--Pete
How big was the aquarium in Noah's ark?