New gameplay idea: 3rd team member as Coordinator/Operator

[NeoSuperior]

After watching the new video and seeing the empty space in both spy and merc team, I have come up with an idea to make gameplay more interesting (this idea is supposed to represent an alternative gameplay mode and is not supposed to replace the classic one)

How about both teams get a 3rd member that is not really participating in the game, but instead watches from the sideline, coordinating their team, giving information, etc. I mean in Splinter Cell Singeplayer for example, Fisher had Lambert and Grim to help him. And also the mercs aren't just some little guards that wander around, screaming at teenagers who are spraying graffiti. They are also a well-coordinated rich company that is not keen on doing blunders at their job.



Spy Operator (name subject to change):

-has (a windowed) first person vision of both spies. Vision of a spy is lost temporally if he is tazed or charged at by a merc(s).

-has a map of the area where he can see the positions of both spies and "spy-bulleted" mercs

-Spy Cam vision & control (can only be activated for one spy at a time): The operator can take control of a sticky cam after the spy shoots it, leaving the spy mobile to do objectives etc. while the Operator can take care of the merc. This ability can be used an unlimited amount of times.

-SPECIAL ABILITY System Hack (max 2 uses per match, 10 seconds duration, 45 seconds cooldown): Takes over the control of all passive defenses temporaly. Mercs passing passive defenses will be shown on the spies' and the operator's radars/map. Spies passing passive defenses at that time are not shown on mercs' & coordinator's radars/map. During the duration of this ability, no objective locks can be activated.
         This ability does NOT affect:
        -currently active objective locks
        -lights, lamps and any other kinds of light sources

-SPECIAL ABILITY 2 System Bypass (only 1 use per match): The operator is able to bypass all locked systems at once, making the spy able to hack them even if the alert is still ongoing, however this ability can only be used once, as it only worked as a "surpise" and the mercs will have counter-measures ready for the next time.




Merc Coordinator (name subject to change):

-has (a windowed) first person vision of both mercs. Vision of a merc is temporally lost, if he is tazed (longer if HSed) or runs through a chaffed area.

-has a map of the area where he can see the positions of both mercs, "spy-trapped" spies and running spies who carry a disc.

-Merc Camnet vision & control: The coordinator can use the camnet the same way as the mercs, giving mercs, who usually use camnet, an extra slot, since they don't need the camnet anymore. This ability can be used an unlimited amount of times.

-SPECIAL ABILITY High Voltage (max 2 uses per match, 10 seconds duration, 45 seconds cooldown): Boosts all electrical light sources to an extreme brightness, that makes spies that are near lightsources very easily spottable. At the same time, due to the high brightness everywhere, the mercs become less sensititve against flashbangs for a short time.

-SPECIAL ABILITY 2 Smoke Extractor (only 1 use per match, 3 seconds duration): It is known that mercs have to be adaptable. Instead of using the Smoke Extractor against a fire, the coordinator modifies it to use it against the smoke granades and sticky cams of the spies. It creates a very strong air current that instantly draws in all smoke in the buildings. The air current is so strong that it even disperses the smoke outdoors. During the duration of this ability, any kind of smoke is instantly drawn into ventilators and is rendered useless (this also applies to smoke from sticky cams). However to reach such a strong air current and sustain it long enough to have a visible effect, the ventilators have to work over their capacities and are severly damaged after using this ability, which makes it impossible to use it again.




Well guys this is my idea. In my opinion somehow only bringing "combat & stealth" into SvM is not enough. After all it is supposed to be science-fiction! There is supposed to be some kind of Cyber-war going on in the background. Things like W-Lan will be even more used in the future and things like additional (up-to-date) information by their superiors or collegues for both spies and merc should be a given, so I wanted to push the game a little bit in that direction with this idea.

Of course i know that even if you guys would take this idea, I wouldn't see anything of it in the next 2-3 years, but I still think this would be an interesting concept to talk about (espacially since it's so quiet on these forums lately).


So go ahead and discuss!

[frvge]

You're not the first to state the idea of a coordinator, but it's definitely one of the best worked-out scenarios. Good job! I like it, but I don't see it becoming reality any time soon.

[tigaer]

But would this really be fun...?

[frvge]

Good point there. However, some people like a more support role. We'll see.

[Cronky]

I like the idea here. I've always been interested in gameplay things like this. I'm still waiting for a game to do this on a like... RTS/FPS style game. Like how I'm imagining that game Eve Online is going to work with Dust 514.

The only problem I have with it is if this 3rd member has too little to actually do and interact with in a tangible way. The "special abilities" seem like the only thing worth while, and those are limited (in your idea). Perhaps if they recharged instead of being a set amount.

Perhaps also if there were more options, and they had to pick their "gadgets" themselves. Balance would come with cooldown times. You could have 4 drastic abilities, but if they take 3 minutes (or more) to recharge then you couldn't spam it.

It would suck if you blew your special abilities within the first 5 minutes of a round, not even in a stupid way. You then get to be a security guard watching cameras the whole time.

"There's a Merc in that room"
"Now he's in another room"
"Oh, now both Mercs are in your room"
"You should probably run"

The only thing fun about that is if the Spies were blind and dumb. :P

So in the end, I'd personally like to see more emphasis on their abilities, as that is what would make the person feel useful/have fun.

[NeoSuperior]

yea... while the Operator could have fun controlling the stickycams and making mercs sleep, the Coordinator would have only the camnet to watch through. It's a bit boring for the 3rd merc player. But well... we have a lot of time to find a solution to that  :)

[Cronky]

It also depends on what the objective is. I can't really think of anything that would require the need of even more coordination (maybe Spy Vs Spy... Disk hunt kind of objective?), but that would also make more worthwhile.

Or even something completely out there. Imagine a mode where the maps you go to aren't vacant. NPC's in the level have routines. Spies are given a description of one NPC in the level. Mercs only know that someone, somewhere is gonna be killed. The operator/coordinator would then have a bigger role, trying to locate the NPC that is targeted.

[Savior20061]

Good point there. However, some people like a more support role. We'll see.

I'd prefer being a coordinator for the spies, as opposed to being capped in the ass like I was in CT.

[SheikTheGeek]

It also depends on what the objective is. I can't really think of anything that would require the need of even more coordination (maybe Spy Vs Spy... Disk hunt kind of objective?), but that would also make more worthwhile.

Or even something completely out there. Imagine a mode where the maps you go to aren't vacant. NPC's in the level have routines. Spies are given a description of one NPC in the level. Mercs only know that someone, somewhere is gonna be killed. The operator/coordinator would then have a bigger role, trying to locate the NPC that is targeted.

I think Hitman's Contracts Mode stole your idea, lol.

[Cronky]

I think Hitman's Contracts Mode stole your idea, lol.

...God ...Damnit... I'm genuinely surprised at how closely that follows what I was getting at. Still.. Not cool Sheik. I wanted at least a few more months of believing I was creative. :P

[SheikTheGeek]

I think Hitman's Contracts Mode stole your idea, lol.

...God ...Damnit... I'm genuinely surprised at how closely that follows what I was getting at. Still.. Not cool Sheik. I wanted at least a few more months of believing I was creative. :P

xD  Well, you can always try to settle out of a court for some quick cash on your idea.  ;)