Nick said himself that the Sprites are going to be used in conjunction with the lab.
My biggest concern is if we will be able to name our sprites.

Back when the GH update brought us the lab, I had a feeling this is the direction it would ultimately lead. I know there are strong mixed feelings about this one, but I am excited to see a new mechanic being added to the game. I also hope, however, that this means we'll have some new, harder content coming with the sprites that will necessitate their use.

That's going to be a very tough decision.

In any case, I'm excited to have something new added to the game. I'm interested in how customizable they will be. And how big. I imagine they won't take up much screen space.

After reading the description of Battle Sprites, I am starting to see this as a good addition. However, there is one big issue: the game is already easy. In order to justify adding even more dakka to a Knight's arsenal, the game difficulty needs to go up. Likewise, the thought of having four knights each with their own sprite may have a rather negative impact on game performance. Hopefully these issues will be properly ironed out before their release.

Sounds interesting. Seems kinda like dem pokemons. But my biggest questions are: Will these "battle sprites" be used in PvP?" Like LD or would an entire new PvP be for these?

Although these seem like a nice concept and all. I seriously hope these guys cannot be used in Lockdown. All people will do is just use the Defense Buff Cat and just continue with their polaris spam.

You do realize that if these are equippable in PVP. People will have an even greater advantage against others. (not that they don't already, but clearly they'll abuse it even more harder than they already do.) it will just be completely unfair, and PVP will just be ridiculous and even more people will hate playing it. It's just going to become a war of, "OH, YOU CAN'T BEAT ME WITH MY BUFF SPRITE. I'M BETTER THAN YOU"

I'm not dissing it. just putting it out there to be aware of what it might turn into.

Well it all depends, if it is available for LD, the party sprites will buff/debuff team/opposing team.

@Nick "- The use of sprites in the Coliseum is still up for debate, though we're only going to include them where it makes sense (not Blast Network)."

It seems as if you have more plans for PvP other than BN and LD :o

Will we be able to give our Sprites costumes, etc, etc? The idea of having them all snug in a nice warm furry jacket is too irresistable

One question; how exactly would we "equip" a sprite?

Would there be a new slot dedicated to sprites? If so, will it be open? Or will it need some kind of upgrade?

MEW! :D

This is rather hilarious for some reason.

Can I ask, how will we equip these? Would we get some new slot? Would we use a weapon/trinket slot? Would we equip them at all? I'm kinda puzzled right now. @_@

Here's another question: in addition to customization and leveling, is there going to be a UV-style element to them? I'm thinking along the lines of what's already in game: ASI, CTR, dmg/status resistance, etc.?

I call the dragon!

Will Sprite names clash like Knight names?
For example a player can't have the same name for a sprite as another player?

And I say hey

But in all respect, some people are doing barrel rolls right now.

You are a god amongst men for making that comment. As well as various other things you have done, like make this game.

I like how Torchlight 2 implemented pets. Maybe this could be similar? They help in battle automatically (if you want them to be aggressive), but if they run out of health they run away for a while to recover and as such can't help you. They also slowly recover over time. Maybe that's an option aside from them being invulnerable?
Anyway... these three pets very much seem to reflect the Striker/Guardian/Recon play styles, even though those three classes are only available in Lockdown.
... interesting.

@Nick

My biggest concern its the "battle" i mean.

the pet will attack ONLY when the owner attacks or they will attack whenever they want?

because if they attack whenever they want then they look an enemy i will find that pretty annoying because that sometimes its a trouble in groups when you kinda have some kind of control of the situation its kinda like "im freezing this kill first the trojan before they melt" so if the pet go and attack the frozen enemy before a knight wouldo do the job, melting the trojan and making a big trouble for the group THATS its what worries me for a battling pet. also that can make some knights lazy running around while the pet hits the stuff.

So Nick. Pets attack only when the owner do ( PLEASE PLEASE MAKE THEM ONLY ATTACK WHEN THE OWNER DO AND TO THE SAME TARGET AS THE OWNER MIXING THEIR POWER WITH THE OWNER) or they attack at their free will?

Three different play-styles

• Swords
• Guns
• Bombs

Re: Everyone wanting the game harder with the Sprites addition

That runs counter to what the devs have been doing for the past several months. Also, I'd make the arguments that they didn't make the game easier more than they made it more reasonable. Let's face it, there's a pretty harsh limitation on strategy in this game, it boils down to "hit things" "hit things and inflict status", and "inflict status". Most battles come down to "Hit, hit, hit, shield, hit hit, shield" and little else from that.

The way the update makes it sound, the Sprites allow for skills like you would see in other MMOs, which suddenly allows for a greater depth of strategy. It doesn't necessarily mean bosses will be easier, it just means that you can say, fight Vanaduke in a way that isn't "One person with Frost Bomb, Three people with Argent Peacemakers, Win Boss."

Let's face it, variety is kind of a hard thing to do in Spiral Knights as it presently stands, and if you don't have the right gear, bosses and Danger Missions are an exercise in frustration unless you're in the top percentage of SK Players. Sprites allows for some actual strategy and teamwork that goes beyond the limited amount that exists so far....or at least potentially do, based on what we've read.

Also, come on, let the difficulty be segregated. Shadow Lairs and Danger Missions do exist, after all. I'm sure more Danger Missions will come into play, and if there's a new major boss, you can bet there'll be a Shadow Lair version of it.

I know this is kind of a cop out answer, but if the game's become too easy for you, it might be best to take a break? Or maybe devise some self-imposed challenges to keep it interesting?

...Whew, that's a lot of words. I'm good at those!