by Jeff Woleslagle on Jul 02, 2009
Loading... is the premier daily MMORPG news and commentary newsletter, only from Ten Ton Hammer.
Skill-based versus level-based - which character development system offers more opportunity for long-term fun? A level-based game guarantees you some progress for your time, while skill-based games typically allow you a better chance at coming out on top in any given encounter. A look at where we're at on the skill vs. level spectrum and where we're going in the coming months in today's Loading... Skill vs. Level!
geeked, Ten Ton Hammer's semi-weekly webcomic by Bill Murphy, puts a satirical spin on MMO news and computer culture. Check out the latest comic: geeked: "Critical Hit to the Ego"
You vote with what you view at Ten Ton Hammer, and the result is the Ten Ton Pulse (What is The Pulse?).
Here's today's top 5 Pulse results for today:
World of Warcraft EverQuest 2 (UP 2) Aion Age of Conan (UP 1) Champions Online (down 3)Biggest Movers this week :
EverQuest 2 (UP 10 to #12) Guild Wars (down 8 to #19) Jumpgate Evolution (down 5 to #17) Recent MMO Releases 6/16 - EverQuest 2 GU 52 6/24 - Age of Conan Update 5: Gangs of Tarantia 6/25 - WAR "Land of the Dead" 6/30 - City of Heroes Issue 15: Anniversary 6/30 - Lord of the Rings Online Book 8Important Dates
7/3 - 7/5 - Aion Beta Event #3 7/23 - 7/26 - San Diego Comic Con '09 Upcoming Releases Late July - FFXI "Moogle Kupo d'Etat" Addon (release date) 8/25 - CrimeCraft (release date) 9/1 - Champions Online (release date) 9/22 - Aion (release date) Early 2010 - APBWhich offers players more opportunity for long-term fun: a skill-based or level-based character development system? That's the conversation we're touching off today, starting with a new premium article featuring a full harvest of dev and player quotes and a new geeked comic.
As in most debates of this kind, the jargon doesn't serve us very well. Obviously you have to have skill to do well in a level-based game, and skill-based games all have measures of prestige and power that serve just as well as levels do (such as the equipment you're able to carry or the powerful ship you're able to fly). Nonetheless, fundamental differences between these systems exist, and to me the biggest difference is the disparity between new characters and mature characters. Levels are ultimately a restriction on your potential, whereas in a skill-based game, in any given encounter you have a chance, however slim, of coming out on top.
Here's what I mean. In World of Warcraft, you don't have a prayer as a level one facing off against a level 80 decked out in purple gear. When players are all on a similar level and equipment wavelength, i.e. arenas and raids, WoW becomes a skill-based game. But take a game like CrimeCraft, in whichich I spent some good quality time with yesterday, a new character does have a chance against a veteran character. CrimeCraft does use levels, another example of how easily things get muddled in this debate but, using my "in any given encounter" operational definition above, I'd put it squarely in the skill-based category. That level 50 might be wearing better armor and carrying a rocket launcher, but if you get the drop on him, well, a point-blank shotgun blast to the head knows no level.
CrimeCraft Senior Designer Mike Donatelli proudly noted that the whole game was balanced so that a level one character could kill a level 50. So long as there's a good reason to keep leveling, I like this. Many game designers might disagree, but to me it's not our soloing mightiness but our soloing fragility that ultimately makes online games into more cooperative, truly social experiences.
Though I personally think a skill-based game offers more opportunities for social involvement - no game can beat the skill-based (or maybe "knowledge"-base) EVE Online for massive scale battles and corporate intrigue - obviously both models are viable. The trick for a level-based game is to constantly assure players that they're powerful and unique despite all the level-based evidence to the opposite. Games that rely solely on levels for character development may mandate that you spend a certain amount of time grinding quests, mobs, and instances, but at least you're guaranteed something for your time. The trick for a skill-based game is to provide plenty of reasons and rewards to keep playing past the initial skill gap without cheapening the abilities developed later in the game. These games should always provide players some basic direction on what their options are, lest players start to drown in the sandbox.
But really, it comes down to playstyle. What's your preference? What's the prevailing preference of gamers these days? Tell me in the Loading... forum, or feel free to email me!
Shayalyn's Epic Thread of the Day6 new MMOG hand-crafted articles today! 10 in July! 775 in 2009!
New MMOG Articles At Ten Ton Hammer Today
Exclusive Articles:
Gangland Gankage - A CrimeCraft Hands-On PreviewHot Content - Or, what I took a fancy to:
Gangland Gankage - A CrimeCraft Hands-On Preview Champions Online Power Set Interview – Telekinesis, Force, and Telepathy Exclusive Aion Screenshots - The Asmodian Tour: Part II Age of Conan Game Update 5 Funcom Interview Ten Ton Hammer E3 2009 Awards EVE Online: Sins of a Solar Spymaster #17: The Archive of Tears Aion Archetype Preview - The Warrior Ultimate Soccer Boss Prize Pack Giveaway WonderKing Beta Key Giveaway geeked: "Critical Hit to the Ego"Thanks for visiting the Ten Ton Hammer network!
-Jeff "Ethec" Woleslagle and the Ten Ton Hammer team