Hello everyone (or G'day as we say in Australia).
I've been tied to this game in one form or another for quite some time, not necessarily from the beginning but for long enough to form a fairly informed opinion. After spending a considerable length of time in the forums (remaining anonymous) I thought now would be an alright time to share such opinions on a couple of matters, so get ready for the obligatory essay length post.
The game itself.Thought I'd start with this one. I really like the feel of Fonline 2238, the brutality of it has always and will hopefully continue to be one of the main reasons I have stuck to it. It's a game of perseverance and sometimes struggle which is in my eyes the perfect embodiment of the Fallout world itself.
However.
There are a couple of aspects that I see as downsides or at least fall-backs to the entire experience. Some may or may not agree with me as this is all just my opinion.
Crafting, Professions, Alts etc.I really do like the crafting aspects of Fonline, sometimes the quantities feel a bit iffy (a disproportionate amount of time is spent making throwing knives which does not really compare to simply going out and killing Yakuza for them) but otherwise the option to stay out of conflicts and obtain items a 'cleaner' way is appreciated. What I think would benefit the game and prevent the creation of an absurd amount of alts would be to make the skill requirements for the ranks of professions and individual items obtainable for someone who has created a 'combat ape'.
What I mean is that crafting skills could somehow be made separate from combat skills so that characters could invest in both sides without disadvantaging one or the other. Like I said before this is just a suggestion; I have almost no idea if such a thing is possible with the boundaries created by the vanilla game. I just think it would be a useful addition and a possible solution to people feeling that there characters either have to be great crafters or great fighters.
Factions.I understand such a thing has been discussed and even been noted as something that would be expanded in future updates. Thought I would just share my thoughts on the topic, outlining what I would like to see this area develop into.
I think that factions should play an integral part of the game. Reputation should not simply amount to 'I've become a slaver, I'll just wait a couple of days till my rep is neutral enough with those sworn again slavery till I can walk up to them just like I could before'. In my eyes it would be a positive boon if reputation was almost unmendable to the point where people would think twice before committing crimes like thievery or bombing. Of course the rewards of doing said actions would have to be balanced with the consequences since a great part of Fonline is the ability to be almost any character you want.
It would be swell if the factions were more actively engaging as well - as opposed to becoming a citizen of Vault City and having nothing more to do then sit around and make chems because of it. Remember when being a slaver in the vanilla game meant that you were able to participate in 'slaving runs', rounding up Tribals and being allowed to keep their weapons. It would be great if every faction had their own version of that event. Maybe if you were a Raider you have the option to participate in raids where you ransack and plunder a town on a randomly generated map with your Raider brethren. Or on the another side of the spectrum; The Brotherhood of Steel could send you along with a squadron into the city where you would set about exterminating The Unity and Remnants of the Master's Army. Not only would such events be fun but they could also give rewards in various forms along with pleasing people who enjoy the role playing aspect of Fonline.
That's all I can think of for now. Thanks for reading an ungodly amount of text. I apologise in advance for any confusing wording of improper syntax, I'm 16 and I've got a habit of being frightfully verbose
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