Ranked (match-making) vs Unranked (classic lobby system)

This debate has been all the rage recently after the EGM article has made it clear that Slant Six is implementing both match-making with parties for Ranked games, and the classic SOCOM lobby system for unranked games. While both still track stats separately (like Resistance) there is a problem with this approach that I don't think has been recognized by many people, and is something I made a thread about on the playstation.com boards with my possible solution:

If you haven't had a chance to check out my audio discussion with Hellman from yesterday, one of the things that have been bugging us is that we are afraid that the majority of people won't take Unranked games (using the classic lobby system) seriously. Because games like Resistance have shown, even with having separate stats for Ranked and Unranked, people just generally only try and play the game properly in ranked games. And we all know by now that you can only play a ranked game if you use the match making/party system.

Well a way that might fix this is if each player has a stats page that combines their stats from Ranked and Unranked games. And I know that personally, any time I went to play a Custom game on Resistance, even though there are stats tracked for it I felt like I was wasting my time and should be playing a Ranked game. But if there is a page where I could view my combined stats then when I decide to play using the classic lobby system I won't feel like I'm wasting my time because either way those stats end up on my combined stats page.

So thats how I think it can be improved. As much as people complain, I highly doubt we will ever have the ability to play a ranked match through the classic lobby system again, so this is the solution to the whole issue. And to be honest, I hated the way SOCOM 3 did that, it made the lobby system that much more cluttered and really just made finding games a more complicated and less enjoyable experience than SOCOM 2 where everything you did (with the exception of respawn) counted.

Which is another point I want to add. I believe respawn games should not be included in the 'Combined Stats' page that I'm pushing for. This way, if people do want to mess around/practice without worrying about their stats, they can play respawn, making the whole Confrontation experience feel like the SOCOM 2 days.

My audio discussion with Hellman...

Right Click and Save As (or even better, if you add the RSS feed link at the bottom of the page to your RSS reader with an embedded player, like NetVibes.com, you can play the file right in your window).

This is a little discussion I had with playstation.com user/poster and a good friend of mine, Hellman, about Confrontation and some things that have been on our minds.

This is NOT a podcast, but I'm not going to pretend like this isn't a sign of things to come. As you can see from the file name, I am testing the waters...

Something coming tonight... (I hope!)

I probably shouldn't post this because every time I get too enthusiastic about something it doesn't work out. But tonight I'm planning on trying something new with the blog.

P.S. No, this is not about new Confrontation info. But I hope you'll enjoy it none the less.

P.P.S. If it doesn't work out, then just forget I ever made this post. kthxbye

New map pack released for SOCOM 3/CA...for FREE

This came out of no where. Map Pack 3, which wasn't even announced until now, has been released for SOCOM 3/CA, and includes Crossroads, Fishhook, Frostfire and Guidance.

And on top of that, ALL previously released map packs are now free!

I finally had a chance to read the EGM cover story, and...

Incredible!

Joe Rybicki did an amazing job writing that 10-page piece. It details a lot of new stuff about the game and at the same time does a great job at proving to me that this is in fact the SOCOM game we've been waiting for. From the sounds of things, SCE and Slant Six did a lot of research into what made SOCOM 1/2 great, and what the hardcore fans want out of a new one, while still being able to introduce new, innovative, features that only help to evolve the experience rather than change it.

Some of these new things that really stand out for me are;

• The chat system - if you're playing with your clan, voice chat will be open for your clan only, but you can still hit L2 to talk to everyone on the team, and proximity chat is in full effect for your team AND enemies (so if an enemy is close by and you're chatting, they will hear it). This is something I've discussed in the past and I'm so glad it's being implemented.
• The handling of snipers in this no-fog experience - since its explained quite clearly that there is no fog in the updated Crossroads, instead of snipers taking over the map they have introduced a ton of new areas for cover on the ground. This way, snipers will really only be effective from above, and not at street-level (ie: no more proning on the street at the spawn and waiting for people to run around the corner with no place to hide). Also, this will create epic sniping battles between rooftops.
• The expanded Crossroads - what initially seemed like an afterthought actually has me kind of excited to try out 32 player rooms on expanded maps. For the expanded version of Crossroads, the outer ring introduces a new tower and a couple of interesting spawn points, while still keeping the layout intimate and close-quarters.
  
• The sprint - initially the idea of changing something about the gameplay scared me. But the way the sprint is explained actually makes it sound like a necessity and something that will fit perfectly into SOCOM. You can't just run around the entire map mowing down enemies. First of all, you can't shoot while running and when you are finished a sprint your character has a few seconds where he needs to bring his gun back in a firing position, a precious few seconds that you wouldn't have if an enemies rounds a corner right in front of you as you are in mid-sprint.
• The party system - First of all, the classic lobby setup is still present, thank god, but the way they are handling ranked matches with parties seems like a great addition to me. It sounds very much like Resistance, where you will create a party and the game will then go through a match-making process to place you into a ranked match. And this is really only essential to improve your entire clan ranking. Both Ranked and Unranked games have their own set of statistics, so even if you only want to stick with 'Unranked', you will still be privy to all of the statistical data that would be recorded from a Ranked match.
  

I know there is more I'm excited about, but those are the main new points from the article that really have me looking forward to this game.

Honestly, after reading the article there really isn't much I can complain about. I guess the one thing I'm not too hot on is the return of Control Points, which I always felt was a mode that never seemed to 'fit' into the SOCOM universe, and honestly wasn't very fun to play.

Anyways, this issue is a must buy. In addition to the 10 page article there are some great screen shots showing how they've expanded Crossroads, great shots of the new map 'Urban Wasteland' (a working title which I hope they change to something that sounds like a SOCOM map), and great gameplay shots as well. I didn't see any of traditional 3rd-person mode, but they made it clear that traditional 3rd-person is STILL IN THE GAME. So don't worry.

P.S. And I almost forgot, remember that topic that Joe made about a month ago where some of our replies would make it into the magazine? Well, my comment is in there as well as a few others. I don't want to spoil who else though, so you better pick up the issue to see if your comment was chosen!

EGM article - Main points

There is a great topic on the playstation.com boards which details a ton of new information from the EGM article. Keep in mind that I'm still treating this as speculation until my own issue arrives. And even though these are the main points, you'll still want to pick up the EGM issue to read the entire 10 page piece, as well as the 15 new screen shots.

Anyways, enjoy:

GAMEPLAY

-You can roll or underhand a grenade with real physics

-You can lean your guy with the six-axis instead of the d-pad

-There is proximity chat

-Your clan can talk via open chat, but you can L2 to chat to everyone on your team. Or if you have proximity chat then you chat with who ever is around you.

-Audio has changed. Sounds around a corner sound muffled.

-There is now a run/sprint mode. You can run/sprint but you can’t shoot and your gun will not be accurate after running. So basically just use this too avoid snipers.

-Tilt with the six-axis can be tweaked for sensitivity

-There are exploding barrels and cars.

-View distance is big, so no more fog like SOCOM 2

-Smoke looks dark gray

-They talk about the 3rd person view. They said because the new widescreen TVs have a different ratio, there was too much space on each side of the classic view.

-"Sony's Seth Luisi says, "Because it was more centered towards 4:3 TVs, and now going to 16:9, we have a lot more area off to the sides."

-You can go up on roofs

GAME SETUP & INFO

-Crossroads is bigger than the original

-They are bringing back a new game mode. "Elimination" its like SOCOM 2, kill the whole other team or take a draw

-Crossroads (ps3) has an extra outer ring that the ps2 didn't have. There are two towers now.

-Confrontation is 32 players but you can make smaller maps for 16 players total.

-Improved clan support

-Ranked matches are automated. If you want to set up your own room with specifics (no grenades, etc) it won’t be ranked. This stops cheaters and rank ups.

-"You can no longer set up a match exactly defined to your team’s exact strengths and create a honeypot to raise your clan ranking. For your clan to have a global ranking you now have to be a rounded team with good strategies for dealing with all the maps. Now, you can build all the custom games you want - the room system is still there, which I know is really important to SOCOM fans. You can do all your clan tryouts and training in those rooms, and even playing within those games aggregates different stats, because we track a lot of information about the player. But it doesn't directly go into the global clan ladder." –Seth Luisi

-There will be 7 maps total at launch. All maps will be based in North Africa

-There is an underground map that has a collapse parttriggered by the enemy

-Clan support will be available on socom.com where the leader can change their clan, add players etc.

-There will be a party system so your clan will join the same game.

-The other map that is shown in the article is called URBAN WASTELAND it takes place around a high rise hotel, but it mentions you have access to just the first few stories. It has an underground tunnel network and has some bridges and stuff. There is a multileveled parking garage. This is the same one that was shown in previous screenshots released on the web.

MISC DETAILS

-They are planning on having a new headset for SOCOM.

-It also shows the online numbers of the SOCOM franchise aswell as 2 screenshots from SOCOM 1 & 2

-THERE WILL BE A CLOSED BETA. I think it said they will seekpeople out through SOCOM.com

-Closed beta going on "right now or May"

-Open beta after that.

SOCOM Confrontation private beta test on the way

Seth Luisi has made a new blog post at the official Playstation blog. At the end of it comes some very interesting information:

P.S. We are looking for a select few to provide early feedback on SOCOM: Confrontation in an upcoming Private Beta test. Only the top contributors at the Official SOCOM Blog will be selected. We are on the look out for people who have intense knowledge of all the previous SOCOM games and can also demonstrate their leadership in the Message Boards and Comments section. More details soon.

Very nice!

There is now another reason to get involved and add to the community if you haven't already.