Tue Mar 26, 2013 11:34 am
Sudden Death
In this feature, level editors would have the ability to enable sudden death for their maps in case of ties. Ties are kind of unsatisfactory to me. Ties often come about after a round of epic fighting, so I think it would be much more entertaining to continue the battles in the heat and intensity of Sudden Death.
The potential con to this feature is that sometimes ties are seen as a victory to less skilled teams who accept that they cannot secure a win but can still prevent their enemies from winning. To combat this, perhaps a poll could be initiated by players to NOT continue with the Sudden Death mode.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
- This feature would only be compatible with team maps. While ties occasionally exist in FFA modes, I think playing out sudden death in those modes would be much more awkward.
DETAILS:
- If a tie occurs:
--- The scores would be shown like the normal end of a game, but there would be red text at the top of the screen declaring that Sudden Death mode has been activated.
--- A break period of 10 seconds would visibly count down to allow players to comprehend what's about to happen. All ships would return to their spawn points, but the existing map would remain preserved.
--- The red banner would also list, in a smaller font underneath, the amount of time in the mode and the score teams need to reach. Ideally, times would be <3min. and a point cap of n+1 (where n is the tied score), but these options could be modified by the level editor. Point cap OR timer could be disabled if the level editor so desires, but one is required. This freedom allows for Sudden Death modes similar to basketball (no point cap, play until time runs out) or football (no timer, play until first score).
--- When Sudden Death mode is active, a timer and point cap detail will be present in the bottom right screen, replacing the regular game timer. (If the mode is Nexus, the corresponding timer will still exist.) Again, that timer will be in red text.
--- A thin red line will also border the screen, indicating to newcomers that Sudden Death mode is active. (The timer will also indicate that, but I think a red border will be more apparent.)
--- Following the elapse of the timer, or reach of the point cap, the game will end. For simplicity's sake I don't think multiple overtimes should be allowed, therefore if it's still a tie then that will count.
- Editing in the level editor:
--- Options will be available in the level parameters menu. There will be two entries, one for timer and one for point cap. These entries will only be visible if Sudden Death is first toggled ON.
--- One entry is time and can be set in increments of 15 seconds. After 5 minutes, that increment widens to 1 minute. There is no maximum and the minimum is 15 seconds. Also in the setting is a "disable" option.
--- One entry is point cap and can be set in increments of 1 point (duh). There is no maximum and the minimum is 1 point. Also in the setting is a "disable" option.
- The subtleties:
--- If there are multiple teams in the mode, the teams not involved in the tie can still rack up points for their team, potentially leading to a victory. (Let me know what you think of this particular feature -- it may be better to only allow teams that got the tie to play for victory. In this case, the non-involved teams could still prevent others from winning but could not win themselves.)
--- Sudden Death should not exist if the tied score is 0 - 0. In most cases, if a score remains at 0 - 0 then the map is either broken or flawed and it should not be extended into overtime. (Again, I'm happy to hear feedback on this.)
Thoughts? As always, I'm open to suggestions or criticisms.
The potential con to this feature is that sometimes ties are seen as a victory to less skilled teams who accept that they cannot secure a win but can still prevent their enemies from winning. To combat this, perhaps a poll could be initiated by players to NOT continue with the Sudden Death mode.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
- This feature would only be compatible with team maps. While ties occasionally exist in FFA modes, I think playing out sudden death in those modes would be much more awkward.
DETAILS:
- If a tie occurs:
--- The scores would be shown like the normal end of a game, but there would be red text at the top of the screen declaring that Sudden Death mode has been activated.
--- A break period of 10 seconds would visibly count down to allow players to comprehend what's about to happen. All ships would return to their spawn points, but the existing map would remain preserved.
--- The red banner would also list, in a smaller font underneath, the amount of time in the mode and the score teams need to reach. Ideally, times would be <3min. and a point cap of n+1 (where n is the tied score), but these options could be modified by the level editor. Point cap OR timer could be disabled if the level editor so desires, but one is required. This freedom allows for Sudden Death modes similar to basketball (no point cap, play until time runs out) or football (no timer, play until first score).
--- When Sudden Death mode is active, a timer and point cap detail will be present in the bottom right screen, replacing the regular game timer. (If the mode is Nexus, the corresponding timer will still exist.) Again, that timer will be in red text.
--- A thin red line will also border the screen, indicating to newcomers that Sudden Death mode is active. (The timer will also indicate that, but I think a red border will be more apparent.)
--- Following the elapse of the timer, or reach of the point cap, the game will end. For simplicity's sake I don't think multiple overtimes should be allowed, therefore if it's still a tie then that will count.
- Editing in the level editor:
--- Options will be available in the level parameters menu. There will be two entries, one for timer and one for point cap. These entries will only be visible if Sudden Death is first toggled ON.
--- One entry is time and can be set in increments of 15 seconds. After 5 minutes, that increment widens to 1 minute. There is no maximum and the minimum is 15 seconds. Also in the setting is a "disable" option.
--- One entry is point cap and can be set in increments of 1 point (duh). There is no maximum and the minimum is 1 point. Also in the setting is a "disable" option.
- The subtleties:
--- If there are multiple teams in the mode, the teams not involved in the tie can still rack up points for their team, potentially leading to a victory. (Let me know what you think of this particular feature -- it may be better to only allow teams that got the tie to play for victory. In this case, the non-involved teams could still prevent others from winning but could not win themselves.)
--- Sudden Death should not exist if the tied score is 0 - 0. In most cases, if a score remains at 0 - 0 then the map is either broken or flawed and it should not be extended into overtime. (Again, I'm happy to hear feedback on this.)
Thoughts? As always, I'm open to suggestions or criticisms.