Obsidious's Bomb review
sam, 07/14/2012 - 12:05
First off, let me state that all simulations were done on Tier 1 gates, since I don't have access to any of the lower tiers, and I'm not gonna go through the effort of gaining access to them (Although I did use the C42 mission to test ISB).
So I'm gonna pen down a few thoughts on what I liked and issues I found, and then do a full, overall rundown:
Likes:
- Still very party friendly. The lack of any major flash is nice, and the knock back is small enough that I really don't find it all that disruptive.
- Shards lack expanding ring. This is good for PvP.
- The 'No shard" zone (The one that nick mentioned in where the shards won't spawn if they're too close to a wall or chasm), feels fair, and with the right skill, can still get them to work to a degree. That said, it might take some extra time to figure out if this is trully solid or not
- Feels MUCH easier to get into than the current RSS, but there's still some need for placement. Just that you don't have to against something that's constantly moving. More on this later.
Issues:
- Timing of the shard detonation needs to be lowered a tad. As is, certain monsters, such as scuttle bots and slimes, that get hit by the initial blast move out of the shards blast radius before they go. This'll also help appeal more to other bombers that are used to the original RSS (Not they would entirely care what the final version), and give it better viability in PvP.
- Increase the range of the higher star version a bit. I agree with a few (Rawrcake) that the range of the original RSS is a bit wacked out, but the 4* and 5* I do feel need a slight range buff in where they land. Currently, NItro and DBB outrange the bomb, and although it's decent on kiting. Still not entirely sure about this, but one of the appeals was it's range; having the range tweaked in between the current version and RSS/Nitro/DBB should help. Also, I realize the increased range would expand the circle, there by making it more difficult to hit with the ring, so I might propose on adjusting the shard explosion radius or shard numbers if t hat's the case.
Now to my overall the bomb. Now I while I couldn't do this via t3, I honestly still had a lot of fun running around and using this bomb. The feeling was just much more satisfactory to me as a bomber, and like I stated before, it simply easier for me to get into. Now for the most part, I realize that some bombers like this bomb for the challange and, but generally speaking, about ALL of the good weapons in SK are easy to pick up, but more trickier to master in some ways (More so than some); old RSS is the exception I feel.
That's probably one of the other things that stands out about it; the difficulty curve is just much higher. Also, regarding the risk/reward saying about the bomb, let me just point something out: Bombs in GENERAL are risk/rewards. In the more hectic fights like arenas and dangers mission, you have to identify when you should or shouldn't charge your bomb, and where to and when to place it. Some bombs have more tweaked risks, like the vortex series' slower movement, but that's fair and easy to understand, both from a dev and player standpoint. The old RSS's risk/reward is, well, kinda awkward to be honest, especially considering it was never intended (Or designed properly) to fully clip all the shards into a single target.
With that said, right now I think the mechanic is fine, just that the stated variables need tweaking to make it for practical as well as fun.
sam, 07/14/2012 - 19:45
#2
Yeah I really agree with this
Yeah I really agree with this post as well. Especially the stuff aquajag pointed out above.
sam, 07/14/2012 - 21:27
#3
More to add
@Aquajag: Hmmm, to each their own I suppose.
Anyway, I've done some more extensive testing, and managed to work my way into Tier 2 with a friend. The result brought about a lot more data and information about he bomb, and solidified a few thoughts about it. Here's a rundown.
- Duo-sharding (Where you and a another player both use shard bombs) can be incredibly batshit fun if you do it right, and colorful too. This is a double-edged sword though. While useful for punting certain monsters about in a sequence (Had a blast in Tier 1 before entering tier 2), be warned things can get little more chaotic for obvious reasons. It also got old just as we were reach JK, but anything does that if you're only just doing that.
- I've stated that the minimum radius was fair, which it still seems to be to me, but it's also INCREDIBLY finicky, especially in pathways with a width of only 3 squares. Sometimes the all the shards will spawn with the initial blast placed on the edge of the wall/chasm, other times it doesn't, all considering I haven't moved an inch. This is most likely because bomb placing is never on a dime; the bomb may shift a teensey bit. Recommend lowering the minimum spawn radius just a tad to give breathing room.
- Explosion Overlapping. A lot of times it's hella tricky to tell if the monster between my bomb's shards are getting hit by both explosions or not; at times it seems they really need to be exactly in the middle for this to happen, which is a bit impractical. One of the things that seems appealing about this bomb is getting overlapping explosion for the extra damage, but it's difficult to tell if that happening or not; though from a standpoint it doesn't seem to be, at least with none stationary monsters.
As it stands, I feel the bomb is going in the right direction, and certainly fun, but it's also just a TAD under my radar for the "most bang for my buck" saying. I've always seen bombing with various styles; some like being able to quick spam, and a possibly a few, like me, want to make the most out of a single, well placed bomb. Let me tell, I've actually used nitro in parties and I've gotten smart to the point that I've rarely been told to switch bombs (Although I Irontech would be a more reasonable choice if it had the proper buffs). I like to think that all bombs can stand on a line between being good at spammy and effective on single time placement, and right now the shards go into the former.
I disagree with the people saying it's easier than RSS to get into. I loved RSS very quickly! I will miss it forever.
but I agree with the rest of what you're saying. It is fun in it's own way, even though slow. I noticed the radius too and thought it kinda stank for a 5* bomb. My concern is that if the radius was increased, then the shards would be too spread out to do reasonable damage when getting swarmed. Their radius would need to be increased as well.
I especially agree that the lack of screen disruption is AWESOME. This bomb doesn't have the major "Big Splosions" effect that bombs have and that I love, but the multitude of "SNAPS!" that occur when it goes off makes up for that. Feels powerful, without earning crazy hate from fellow players.