Re: Some new interview with Matt Higby + character customization
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I suspect that the first +5% in any given attribute for a given weapon or vehicle might take a day or two to train, while the last +1% might take a month. Sure the vet will have an edge, but 5% one way or the other isn't going to matter all that much when they get the drop on you, stick the muzzle of their Heavy Assault weapon against your kidney, and hold down the trigger. Burnt hamburger either way.
Remember: classes! We might not all have access to the Wasp out of the gate, but I suspect anyone will be able to get a Mosquito (for example) by simply respawning as a pilot.
I'm going to guess that the root of these skill trees will be the basic gear everyone starts off with for each class. Each piece of gear will have various stats attached to it that can be leveled up (probably at a small percent at a time, like 1%). Each piece of gear will have specialty variations that can be unlocked. Mosquito->Wasp for example. And that specialty gear will have it's batch of attributes and unlocks.
At the top of a given piece of equipment's various skill tracks, there might even be Prestige Skills that are strictly visual. "Gold AK-47" style. Or getting that last skill might switch on that particular visual tweak automatically. Imagine seeing a mossy flying around with a gold 12mm, gold engines, gold wings, gold hull plating, and so on. Maxed out weapon damage, speed, maneuverability, and durability. You'll know at a glance that this pilot has invested A Lot Of Time in this craft. Might want to pick your fights elsewhere.
Gold is pretty clearly NOT what we'll see, but I think you get the idea. It's more likely going to be similar to the color progressions we've already seen in PS for battle rank. The basic stuff might be empire-color-1, while the maxed out gear could be solid empire-color-two. Purple/Black, Blue/Yellow, Red/Black. Or whatever.
The armor in the screen shots we've seen all looked pretty beat up. Imagine that the more beat up the armor looks, the tougher it is. Someone with a spotless suit is clearly a newb. That guy with duct tape holding his chest plate on? He's gonna take a couple extra rounds to put down. And he's spent a lot of time as a soldier.
Weapon unlocks might be stuff like x2 sight, x4 sight, night vision scope, all of which replace Ye Olde Irone Sightse. Expanded magazines that are visually different from the norm (clip, drum, belt). Gussied up butt stocks to represent reduced recoil...
And on and on.
I'm stoked.
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