AI Teamups

simonsez

Hey, can we stop with this nonsense of putting AOE attacks in most of the PvE nodes? Yeah, I get it, you want to make sure we eat health packs like skittles, but when I see 3 supernovas and 3 godlike powers in the 10 active nodes, it feels like you're way overdoing it. Especially when these are self-damaging attacks, for which the AI doesn't pay any penalty, since sustained play isn't a consideration for the AI.

fmftint

the worst part about it, they are hard coded where it wont change with various teams used

tanis3303

Agreed, I've had about enough of the Supernova team ups already. I had forgotten how irritating they were.

Malcrof

I didn't know until today that goons generate team up

Esheris

I took 3* Magneto in a few of those nodes to get rid of the Teamup tiles...thinking I was smart. They still got Supernova off just because TU's keep falling from the sky for them. You can't stop the Ai's luck. >.<

optimus2861

And in PVP this week, we were treated to 2* Storm Level 150 Wind Storm team-ups. Those were sure fun to eat right when you think you've got the match won.

These kind of AI team-ups don't feel fun at all. They feel like the AI pulling a, "HAHA! NO EASY WIN FOR YOU!" rabbit out of its hat. Or some other orifice. They need to die a very fast & merciless death.

CaptainFreaky

simonsez wrote:

Hey, can we stop with this nonsense of putting AOE attacks in most of the PvE nodes? Yeah, I get it, you want to make sure we eat health packs like skittles, but when I see 3 supernovas and 3 godlike powers in the 10 active nodes, it feels like you're way overdoing it. Especially when these are self-damaging attacks, for which the AI doesn't pay any penalty, since sustained play isn't a consideration for the AI.

Yep - see my similar reply to Simonsez's comment here: viewtopic.php?style=1&f=7&t=29607&start=120#p360205

I think it's totally about them fine tuning (eg looking to increase) their ARPDAU.
For those not familiar, read the background story from last year here: http://venturebeat.com/tag/demiurge-studios/

Punisher5784

I've seen more Supernova the past 2-weeks than my entire year playing MPQ.. it's out of control.

Unknown

I think they need to just select 5 boring, non controversial teamups like Psychic Knife and never change from that list. Sometimes TUs are absolutely useless for the other side and other times you get Supernova, or worse yet something like Escape Plan that gets relatively little power from max covers (AI's version always does at least the maximum possible direct damage).

stowaway

I'm one of those people who wish environment tiles would come back. . . but. . .

I'd like to see a complete reevaluation of which abilities can be allowed as teamups. Huge AoE nukes are a problem. Also a problem are countdown tiles that aren't tied to an enemy team member who can be stunned or downed.

CaptainFreaky

CaptainFreaky wrote:

simonsez wrote:

Hey, can we stop with this nonsense of putting AOE attacks in most of the PvE nodes? Yeah, I get it, you want to make sure we eat health packs like skittles, but when I see 3 supernovas and 3 godlike powers in the 10 active nodes, it feels like you're way overdoing it. Especially when these are self-damaging attacks, for which the AI doesn't pay any penalty, since sustained play isn't a consideration for the AI.

Yep - see my similar reply to Simonsez's comment here: viewtopic.php?style=1&f=7&t=29607&start=120#p360205

I think it's totally about them fine tuning (eg looking to increase) their ARPDAU.
For those not familiar, read the background story from last year here: http://venturebeat.com/tag/demiurge-studios/

To add to my previous post, I think that DDQ has resulted in a slight decrease in Cover/Token Purchases. Since 3* covers can be earned once a day as long as you already have at least one for the character, there is less incentive to "take a chance" on buying a token or directly purchasing a cover if you can (eventually) get one in DDQ. So, if funding from Cover Packs is not growing at quite the rate they once were before DDQ, then Demiurge needs to make up the funding gap somewhere else. There's always roster slots of course, but they're already releasing new characters at such a rate that they can't put them out much faster. Doing things like weekly boosted characters and making 2* characters essential in PVE clearly is being done to incite roster expansion and increase revenue from roster slot purchases.

But that only goes so far. So, I suspect they are turning increasingly to Health Packs as a growing revenue source, and things like Sentry Supernova TU's are one of many results. Higher health leading to longer matches (with resulting increased chance of taking an enemy ability to the face) is another outcome. Overscaled PVE is another thing that probably isn't going away anytime soon.

TLDR - Tired of Supernova TU's? Well, sadly, DDQ may be to blame.

MarvelMan

stowaway wrote:

I'm one of those people who wish environment tiles would come back. . . but. . .

I'd like to see a complete reevaluation of which abilities can be allowed as teamups. Huge AoE nukes are a problem. Also a problem are countdown tiles that aren't tied to an enemy team member who can be stunned or downed.

I actually liked the previous version where if you killed one member of the team the TU countdown would vanish. That just makes sense to me: youve disrupted the "team" so their TU is gone.

TxMoose

stowaway wrote:

I'm one of those people who wish environment tiles would come back. . . but. . .

I'd like to see a complete reevaluation of which abilities can be allowed as teamups. Huge AoE nukes are a problem. Also a problem are countdown tiles that aren't tied to an enemy team member who can be stunned or downed.

yes, grocket's and starlord's I've had issues getting to before - and those can hurt. an mnmags red would suck too since you only get one shot at it. I would love if those were tweaked to be more manageable.

with the AI's persistence in targeting TUs, the aoe nukes are very concerning - rotp, cts, kk's, rag's, sentry, etc. I'd happily give up the ones I have to make sure they don't get it either. I hardly ever use them, so it wouldn't hurt me much.

CrookedKnight

Punisher5784 wrote:

I've seen more Supernova the past 2-weeks than my entire year playing MPQ.. it's out of control.

That's because until two weeks ago the AI was blocked from using Sentry powers as teamups. Something changed in early May and I am not a fan.

sinnerjfl

CrookedKnight wrote:

That's because until two weeks ago the AI was blocked from using Sentry powers as teamups. Something changed in early May and I am not a fan.

"Team-Up diversity" is the new buzzword we'll be hearing from now on. It was boring not eating 2300 dmg AOE's to the face vs goons.

xellessanova

CrookedKnight wrote:

Punisher5784 wrote:

I've seen more Supernova the past 2-weeks than my entire year playing MPQ.. it's out of control.

That's because until two weeks ago the AI was blocked from using Sentry powers as teamups. Something changed in early May and I am not a fan.

In the patch after August 2014, Sentry and Juggernaut TU were removed from the AI Team-ups. At some point after R75 Supernova came back. I put in a ticket asking about this but have not received a response from Customer Service yet; it is possible that when new character Team-Ups were enabled, Sentry was re-added by accident.

The most brutal beatdown I received actually came at the hands of a Bewilder TU. I was fighting Hood/Loki/GThor and was close to having enough Black AP to knock out Hood and Loki - whoops, no, Bewilder. Then I had no AP. Then I had no team.

Esheris

How about they just get rid of enemy TU's?

There are already enough damaging things happening in matches like the often lucky enemy cascades, high health/damage scaled PvE matches, and AP feeders.

Azoic

I literally just commented to my alliance about how there has been a crazy increase in AI aoe TUs. I was nova'd three times, a windstorm, sonic boom, and whaled twice today already.

Remove enemy TUs sounds like a good idea. Impossible to deny TU tiles a whole match anyways, and then on feeders, movers focus on TUs while betting free ap from goons to use? Such cheap mechanics

Buret0

CaptainFreaky wrote:

simonsez wrote:

Hey, can we stop with this nonsense of putting AOE attacks in most of the PvE nodes? Yeah, I get it, you want to make sure we eat health packs like skittles, but when I see 3 supernovas and 3 godlike powers in the 10 active nodes, it feels like you're way overdoing it. Especially when these are self-damaging attacks, for which the AI doesn't pay any penalty, since sustained play isn't a consideration for the AI.

Yep - see my similar reply to Simonsez's comment here: viewtopic.php?style=1&f=7&t=29607&start=120#p360205

I think it's totally about them fine tuning (eg looking to increase) their ARPDAU.
For those not familiar, read the background story from last year here: http://venturebeat.com/tag/demiurge-studios/

What happened to part IV of that story?

Unknown

If you see supernova as the TU, back out and add Sentry to your team and the AI will be forced to take a different TU.

Pongie

I think the AI needs these AOE team ups. Without it, players can hide behind invisible characters and the AI can't touch them.