Game News Removing the level cap would unbalance Fallout 3

[DarkUnderlord]

Tags: Fallout 3

"<a href="http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2009/07/17/bethesda-further-level-cap-increases-could-unbalance-fallout-3/">In an email interview with Jeff Gardiner regarding August 3rd's release of the next Fallout 3 DLC, Mothership Zeta</a>":
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<blockquote>I asked if it would even be possible to increase the level cap from its current 30 (as set by "Broken Steel.") Specifically, if the stat caps¹ were boosted beyond 10 and skill caps were boosted beyond 100, would the game system simply break?
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Clearly it's not the first time Gardiner has had the question, but his reaction was a bit more focused:
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<blockquote>"I know from the outside this seems like a fairly simple proposition, but doing this could unbalance the game in a variety of ways."</blockquote></blockquote>
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MOMMY I WANT BIGGER NUMBERS. WHY CAN'T I HAVE BIGGER NUMBERS MOMMY?
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¹That's not the level cap he's asking about.
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Spotted @ <a href="http://www.rpgwatch.com">RPGWatch</a>

 

[Luzur]

what is it with console players and thjeir lust for higher levels and achievements?

 

[JarlFrank]

If your life is doomed to stay at the bottom, you're trying to reach the top in games.

Or they just get bored once they've run out of rewards. WHAT I DON'T GET BETTER WEAPONS AND HIGHER LEVELS ANYMORE? SHIT GAME! SHIT SHIT SHIT, I WANT BETTER STUFF THAN WHAT I ALREADY HAVE! BETTEEEEEERRRR!!!

 

[Avu]

It's the same lust for ladder ranking on garena where they use custom kicks to screw up games just to win. It doesn't make them better players, they don't get anything from it, people still know they are pathetic scum, they know themselves they are pathetic scum yet they do it all the same... I call it big numbers addiction.

 

[Kingston]

The game is superbly balanced right now, so this is definitely the right decision.

 

[Uz0rnaem]

If you make a munchkin game, it'll attract munchkin gamers. Just let them have their infinite levels, it's not like an invincible, superhuman player character would break immersion/balance any more than all the powergamer bullshit that's already in the game.

 

[MetalCraze]

Fallout 3 had balance?
No matter your stats you still kick everyone's ass with huge guns - I don't know about which balance the Beth guy's bullshitting about.

 

[Turok]

what is it with console players and thjeir lust for higher levels and achievements?

Looks like you never see someone try to kill a WEAPON monster on final fantasy :D


Ayer vi un cangrejo de pantano, creaturas extrañas muy extrañas... :D

 

[DriacKin]

Ya know, I'm not a Bioware fan and I didn't even really like BG1 all that much...
But, the more I see this kind of shit, the more I appreciate how the BG1 level cap was at 7.

 

[Luzur]

what is it with console players and thjeir lust for higher levels and achievements?

Looks like you never see someone try to kill a WEAPON monster on final fantasy :D


Ayer vi un cangrejo de pantano, creaturas extrañas muy extrañas... :D

no, since i dont like any Final Fantasy that came out after FF3 on SNES.

 

[Drakron]

But, the more I see this kind of shit, the more I appreciate how the BG1 level cap was at 7.

Actually no.

BG1 had a XP cap since classes did not had the same XP requirement to advance a level.

Also TotSC raised the XP cap as I recall a Thief could reach lv 10 with the expansion (Thief class is the one with the lowest XP requirement to advance a level).

 

[Jaesun]

The game is superbly balanced right now, so this is definitely the right decision.

Indeed.

 

[hal900x]

Way to generalize about folks who dislike caps. Adding levels, the process of choosing how to enhance and develop my character as it grows, is one of the funnest things for me in an RPG. Don't just assume it's a console-kiddie powerlust thing. I hate level caps because it removes that aspect of the game once you've hit the cap.

All this talk about balance...why don't you just balance the game's available xp with the challenge and length of the game? Seems like caps are just a shortcut to compensate for lazy development to me.

 

[Shannow]

The arbitrary skill caps were crap from the beginning. Beth managed to fuck up the quite solid system FO2 had. Just to make FailOut resemble Oblivion even more.

 

[Lurkar]

As easy as it is to shit on Bethesda when they ask for it, I think they actually are making the right move here in not removing the caps.

 

[thesheeep]

A level cap isn't anything bad as long as you don't reach it like 50% through the game.

I haven't finished F3 nor any DLC for it, so I can't really say anything about it in this game.

All I know is that, if you go solo through ToEE, and play without any mods, you will be very pissed to have your level capped.

 

[Shannow]

A level cap isn't anything bad as long as you don't reach it like 50% through the game.

I haven't finished F3 nor any DLC for it, so I can't really say anything about it in this game.

All I know is that, if you go solo through ToEE, and play without any mods, you will be very pissed to have your level capped.

If you play nothing but the main quest in FO3 you might cap near the end. I capped 40% into my game and only explored around 30-40% of the map... Anyway, you can cap the "important" combat skills even earlier.
And in defense of ToEE: If you don't play the game as it was intended, what do you expect?

 

[thesheeep]

If you play nothing but the main quest in FO3 you might cap near the end. I capped 40% into my game and only explored around 30-40% of the map... Anyway, you can cap the "important" combat skills even earlier.

Well, as expected, then

And in defense of ToEE: If you don't play the game as it was intended, what do you expect?

If the game is not intended to be soloed, then don't make it possible. It is possible, therefore it must either be intended or a bug. And I somehow doubt that it is a bug

 

[Shannow]

And I somehow doubt that it is a bug

In a Troika game, never! :D

 

[Luzur]

meh, im just awaiting the Meatspin DLC.

 

[obediah]

Their concern about stat caps is a riot, but does give credence to their balancing concerns being genuine. The impact and distribution of stats in FO3 is so squashed - the diversity offered by Bethesda's 1-10 was captured in 4-6 on the Black Isle scale.

 

[TwinkieGorilla]

why the fuck do Bethie fangirls or consoletards need stats or levels anyway? all they do in this fucking game is play dress up, house and lol-larping anyway.

 

[Texas Red]

Way to generalize about folks who dislike caps. Adding levels, the process of choosing how to enhance and develop my character as it grows, is one of the funnest things for me in an RPG. Don't just assume it's a console-kiddie powerlust thing. I hate level caps because it removes that aspect of the game once you've hit the cap.

Except in FO 3 nothing matters. Leaving the vault you can immediately handle a dozen raiders. Get a machine gun and some armor and you can kill an Enclave unit.

 

[Hoaxmetal]

Well, F3 and DLCs are unbalancing themselves quite nicely.
Also it's not that hard just to download cap increasing plugin.

 

[Hümmelgümpf]

Also it's not that hard just to download cap increasing plugin.

Can't do it on the target platform.