PVPlab

In a traditional MMO players often stand toe to toe, dealing damage whilst trying to mitigate the damage of their opponent. Stargate Worlds is not going to be like that, if you picture the “Hollywood style” combat seen in the show you’ll have a much better idea of what it will be like in the game.

Combat will be primarily ranged and as with other MMO’s will use different abilities. Such attacks may include a burst shot, single shot and aimed shot. There will be a melee ability with all classes, but probably not something you want to engage on, at least as a first option. All depends on the tactics though. Melee combat can be a viable option with combination of stealth.

The emphasis on combat in SGW will be to use tactics. Choosing a weapon will no longer be about which has the most DPS (Damage per Second) but will depend more on what you want to do with it. Nor will the outcome of the combat be determined from the hit points of a given player. Taking cover behind objects, using suppressing fire to pin down the enemy and flanking maneuvers to flush them out will all be good tactics. The key to successful combat is likely to be utilizing cover and terrain to protect your team and gain an advantage over the enemy.

To this end, players will have the ability to crouch and move while crouched. Explosives, whether strategically placed in an ambush, used to cover a retreat, or lobbed at an entrenched enemy will be a key part of combat. Players may even be able to destroy some of the play environment, to remove cover or make it, but most likely the environment is mostly indestructible. Trees and that sort of stuff will stand no matter how big explosives you attach to them. How these tactics could work in a possible combat scenario is given here.

Cover will likely play the most important role in combat as both players and mobs will be able to take cover. Mobs will attempt to flank and flush out players and players will be trying to do the same thing to mobs. A player will use cover to diminish the damage he is getting (possibly a buff) and to break line of sight.

The battlefield will not be nearly as friendly as in a traditional MMO. In that sense it will feel a little like a first person shooter, but players will not be nearly as squishy! However engaging in certain behavior will probably result in a short death. This includes, standing around with a shoot me sign, running straight towards an enemy with a fully loaded P90 or drawing the aggro of every enemy and attempting to ‘tank’ them. Even though players will be able to engage in hand to hand combat, in most circumstances this would not be a good idea. In fact enemy fire will be so lethal that even low level players pose a danger to high level players, if engaged without using cover and maneuver.

Groups will add a whole other dimension to combat. Being able to tactically coordinate with your squad-mates will be a key strategy to defeat enemies. A robust command and control interface will enable the squad leader to coordinate attacks or, if necessary, a retreat. If a squad of 4 is really working well together, they may be able to set up an ambush and successfully bring down an enemy group of 15! There won’t be friendly fire, although whether that includes damage from explosives and whether you can actually shoot at your teammates (and do no damage) has not been released.

In terms of what the various classes bring to a combat group, there is little information, and most is focused on the human classes. Both the archaeologist and scientist will certainly have their own combat utility. In addition to the battlefield emplacements that the scientist can build and the misdirection that the archaeologist can wangle, other abilities may include; being able to spot hidden enemies or those at a distance, shield technologies and other sorts of counter-measures. These advanced technologies will add to the tactical repertoire of a team or even make these classes capable soloists.

Healing

It is said, that All classes in SGW will be able to heal at least somewhat. Healing in SGW is a little more of an intimate activity than in other MMOs. Healing in SGW happens in close proximity of the healer. A player can’t stand back out of the combat area and kind of magically wave a hand and heal. It is more up-close in person. The healing classes actually have to get into battle. They have to use cover, they have to use line of sight blockers. The heals are interruptible. It incorporates the healing dynamic into the combat and the field of battle. It is also on the players themselves to come closer to these classes that can heal. Healing in SGW is somewhat a dangerous activity outside of any aggro management.

Artificial Intelligence

The mobs in Stargate Worlds have been stated to be smarter than in your average MMO. CME has designed an AI that will give enemy MOBs abilities much like a human opponent. They are going to engage in tactics and gameplay similar in that to what the player will be doing. Players will no longer be able to just ‘pull’ all the MOBs in an area to one spot to kill them.

Mobs will have different responses depending on the actions of the player. For example the position of the mobs enemies will make a significant difference in how the mob reacts. Mobs will function as a real world enemy, and wont just sit there as you shoot them with your P90. This will make for excellent replayability, particularly in end-game encounters. If you take cover, depending on the AI package the mob has, it might try to come looking for you, try to flank you, or even stay at place waiting to pop you when you stick up your head.

Twitch vs Turned Based

Many MMO’s often have their combat categorized as turn-based whereas FPS’s tend be termed twitch based. In an MMO environment where a shard is being accessed by many more people than in a FPS, there are a number of potential problems with a twitch-based environment. Issues with hardware, bandwidth and connections may end up penalizing many users in this sort of combat environment. This is why CME have not decided to go with a purely twitch based combat system.

However players will not be pausing and unpausing combat as they take turns to shoot at each other. The developers are currently working out how to reach a balance, maintaining fast paced combat with the feel of the show, while avoiding most of the issues surrounding latency. They are confident that while not being strictly twitch based, it will feel like real time.

Damage Types

There are various attack types and various mitigations to different attack types. The finer mechanics of these systems are still unknown.

Targeting

Stargate Worlds will use a targeting system typical of other MMORPGs. Players will be able to target their opponent through keyboard targeting and target lock. Target lock will allow a player to use certain abilities whilst they are on the move. There will be no specific hit locations, so the players will have just one ‘health’ to monitor.

Range and Accuracy

The effective range in the game will be around 30 meters, give or take. Different weapons have different ranges. Scopes may be able to lengthen that range and sharpen the accuracy, as well some other items and skills. The accuracy of a player will be dependent of his/her movement and his/her target movement. For example, running will lessen their accuracy, while making themselves harder to hit and the conversely. Also, the players current posture will factor into the accuracy.