Bocek Bow Analysis [updated]
TL;DR: The bow is too quiet, does too much damage, and has tactical advantages that profoundly imbalance gameplay. [Note: Having put in more hours and games with the bow, I'm reposting with edits.] ...
Forum Discussion
@nebwise I really admire your ability to critically analyse the situation. Many other posts here are very simplistic and either boil down to raw emotion or in the case of the defense to "get good, noob". Everything you state is 100% true, and everyone with a hint of honesty will admit this. Sure, everyone likes to be strong in games and kill as many enemies as possible to be the last one standing, and as such is offended if one attacks the weapon which enables one to do so, but the bow ist in its current state just to much.
Simply spoken "One feels the need to use the bow for consistent wins", which is crucial to climb in ranked. The reasons for this are perfectly explained, even with a solid understanding of how game mechanics work with one another in a real situation, not on paper.
Just one little thing I would love to see differently, how to adress the balancing issue. Three screws would be needed to be turned in my opinion.
1) A nerf to headshotdmg is the right choice, but 70 on body is way to much, too. For example 55 body and 95 headshot could be a better way to bring in the bow into the meta with the advantage to get more shots our before needing to react.
2) At least some sort of vertical and horizontal adjustments in realistic combat distances, in this state it is nearly hitscan. This includes a way higher spread while jumping and hipfiring, just as charge rifle it is dead-precise at the moment, as well as the need of the normal skillset to snipe (bulletdrop, predicition of movement, etc.) for longer ranges. This would make the shotgun hopup useful, since it gives an actual addition to the bow (shortrange-usage).
3) And for the last part the magazine-problem... Something to force you to take a break from bringing havoc to the field. One way would be something mechanical as a quiver which needs to be filled or a drum magazine at the side (which would have the need of new models, so ... meh).
Another already inplemented mechanic is the charge mechanic of the sentinel. So while standing still and not aiming one can charge up the power and each shot draws energy with a passive reduction. One could even integrate this energy in the damage, so the bow would be a weapon which gets weaker the longer the engagement goes on and one has to decide when the right time to "power up" again is. This charging does some sort of noise, so at least in close range encounters a team has the possibilty to be prepared without taking away the long range sneaky-stuff. And with this "charged arrows" as excuse the arrows could soundwise redesigned to integrate effects like a crackling while flying and a discharge when hitting (with some sort of hit-pushback for the one being hit).
There are really many ways to change things, but I believe some things should be done before mid-season to further improve on the gameplay then. No need to test 45days which was alrady known after pre-testing.
- @Laminiae Thank you. I've been designing stuff for the better part of two decades, and definitely appreciate your appreciation 😉.
I like the "charged arrows" idea. This being an "arcade-y" syfy-type game, the IRL characteristics of bow-fire probably don't matter much. I definitely agree that the "screws need to be turned" a bit: the crux here is a central unsolved UX problem of tactical oppression. Adding a setup cost for high bow damage would be a cool solution.
A "clip limit" without a new model shouldn't be too big of a hassle. HZD clearly shows that quiver limits work just fine without rendering a physical quiver, rack, or "clip" of arrows while in FPV. HZD also has better, more informative sci-fi bow-fire sounds.
Respawn are clearly cognizant of these types of issues: they designed their "rail-gun" with a warning shot, and ended up aggressively constraining it's clip size and damage potential.
I suspect those currently in charge of bow design rollout are too married to an original concept. At some point, they'll have to give ground: they can keep the tactical advantages or the damage, but not both.
Either way, this quiet bow is disruptive to the overall experience (it's got everyone I play with on edge, and threatening to quit). I really hope they issue a proper fix before mid-season. It's apparent that AL doesn't accommodate robust stealth or cover-fire mechanics compared to others like Deus Ex, and many 3rd-person shooters.Agree with almost everything nebwise. It just got a deserved nerf, I don't think it's enough but only have 1 match under my belt with that change.
I like the quiver idea. As you point out, it's endless magazine is a huge benefit over the other sniper and marksman weapons.
It shoots way too flat. It's a bow, if the damage is still going to remain as high as it is, then at the least needs slower speed and more arc.
The fire rate is too high with it's damage output.
It's quiet, but that's the idea with a bow. But to make up for that tactical advantage, it should be much less powerful than conventional arms in other areas (damage, ROF, projectile speed).
I've used it quite a lot Season 9 since it was so powerful.
- @Gator762FMJ Yeah, "quiet" is an essential part of most folks concepts of a bow. That doesn't mean it fits AL gameplay. Good ideas often don't work IRL. How any of us feel about how bows should sound is irrelevant to whether or not near-silent weapons fit the AL meta.
No-one can completely predict how the Bocek works within the complex space formed by game mechanics and emergent player behavior. We can simply observe, and the current consensus is that playing against the Bocek royally sucks.
I know it makes me, and my squad-mates, anxious and on-edge. A big part of that is that the bow is too quiet. I know the bow is "broken" because I hit 2k on day one with Valkyrie, and can observe what happens to my squad when we get pushed with bow-fire.
There's no "making-up" for that emotional and cognitive collateral that comes with an effectively-silent weapon. It is what it is, and you balance it by adding more feedback: signals that clue other players as to when/where the shots are coming from.
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