I’m a PC pred main on steam, i’ve been playing off and on semi-casually for 100+ hours gameplay. I am by no means the authority on how a predator should play the game, what the meta is, nor am i even remotely interested in defining the game in terms of what is viable and what isn’t.
the following tid-bits are things i’ve been thinking about in regards to potential gameplay changes, suggestions purely for the sake of having more stuff to use in game…
Stuff, half-assed thoughts and ideas that i honestly think would be ‘neat’ if they were added to the current formula of PHG
feel free to disregard, comment, lambast, critique, cringe at, shrug, or otherwise interact with these in whatever way you see fit
Ideas thus far:
Expanding the predator Target Isolation function into a Tertiary class-specific function… imagine each predator (or even FT) getting it’s own specific class ability tied to a button that is innate to the class chosen.
Example : Hunter (or maybe scout) gets Target Isolation, Berserker gets a War Cry that maybe shakes/disrupts FT aim inside a certain radius?
…Maybe Dante gets a free Triple Knife exploit on cooldown. Lending some credence to his ‘Beast Mode’ nickname.
A Predator class that weaponizes Vocal Mimicry,
E.G. A Banshee type predator with an ability that can blind/deafen an FT with a reliably usable ability…
I realize we already have that with the ground slam ability, but the value of that maneuver is more weighted towards it’s damage rather than it’s ambush ability.
There is a flash bang effect that also occurs when a Predator is forced into Second Wind, Valued purely for it’s assistance in letting the Predator escape and not usable in an offensive capacity.
The War Club/Hook also does minor flash-bang effect to FT, but the short duration makes it less useful than our other examples. Very short lived shock & awe.
A direct hit with the thrown Combi-stick also has a short-lived flash bang effect. This short lived effect is lessened in value because of the skill that is sometimes necessary to land a hit at distance… And again, you’re really not going to be throwing the combi-stick for the disorientation, You’re going to be throwing it for the sizeable damage it does on hit.
I believe it would be nice to have a predator with the option to disorient/deafen an FT, either as a singular ranged function on cool down to mask the Pred’s movements, or as a more close range means to throw off aim or further extend the surprise-factor of an ambush.
There are PC fireteam out there with staggeringly good skill at aiming, with awareness and experience under their belt. It can be very difficult to get the drop on them and engage them in close range, limiting ‘surprise’ factor against them… Sometimes the only way to deal with someone who’s savvy about incoming threats is to engage them at range, which is limiting in gameplay variety.
Having a means to cover one’s approach by means of distraction to such dangerous FT would help shake things up in favor of those preds who like to get really close to their prey before attacking.
BLOOD TRAILS
predators leave them
why don’t FT leave brightly colored (yet rapidly fading) blood streaks that can be seen in Thermal? If not for the tracking value, but for the ‘oh that’s realism’ factor?
Bullet physics
I hardly expect this to be implemented, but I’d totally dig realistic bullet physics (and not hitscan), FT having to compensate for bullet drop at long distances (Maybe not in the case of some sniper rifles)
The only weapons with Arcing trajectories in the FT’s arsenal (that i know of anyway) are the grenades, either hand-held, underslung launched, or from the PDL
Two of the more reliable ranged options for Predator have to deal with gravity, (Combi-stick & Hunting Bow)… I’d actually like the plasma shots from the Plascaster to have a subtle arcing trajectory… then again, plasma doesn’t behave like bullets.
Predator retrieving his broken mask.
…Not in the sense that it would give him his vision modes back, That shit got busted, but in the sense that the Predator has an honorable obligation to his equipment.
…Does he risk going back for his lost mask for the potential honor points (XP bonus)?
…Insult to injury! The FT could run over and pick up the Mask, getting a Veritanium/XP Bonus, and preventing the Predator from getting it back until the FT in question is downed.
A Pred perk that shortens the duration for a Pred to be completely invisible after standing still.
Predator and FT Both should have access to a ‘dodge’ function, Say, tapping the sprint key allows you to quickly throw yourself in a certain direction on a short cool down.
Which segways into my next arbitrary thought : FT being able to trap the Pred by body blocking… This is an existing thing. A human, whom weighs substantially less than a Pred… Can bring that monumental bulk to a dead stop by standing in a doorway.
Pred ‘Dodge’ manuever would be similar to a shoulder barge in a specific direction, allowing them to temporarily pass through the FT’s collision box and allow them to very temporarily arrest the FT’s camera with a stun/jerking motion.
Pred should be able to use this offensively during melee engagements with FT to throw them off, maybe break FT Parry spam combos, or just delay the inevitable deluge of gunfire.
Counter point, the FT should be able to dodge cancel out of parry-stunning a pred. Not necessarily enabling them to go ham on the Pred, but enable them to clear distance… enabling the Parry to be used more like it’s original function : To hold off the Predator’s combo in an ambush long enough for his teammates to come help.
Range Finders
FT have range measured out in meters to their various objective waypoints and their spotting markers… This is useful.
…Why don’t the Pred have distance to their scanned opponents measured out in Meters too?
The distance at which a predator becomes completely invisible, even while moving, is 50 meters. I have yet to come to an understanding how far away that is because I’ve never played FT.
‘Ammunition types’
Originally a thought in regards to maybe giving the Predator different types of Arrows to shoot with the Bow, exploding arrows, fire arrows, bleeding arrows… arrows that ‘split’ in mid flight, producing multiple projectiles.
Maybe city-hunter gauntlet could get some alternative projectiles to shoot… Smoke screen projectiles!
Could also be extended to the FT
Hollow-point bullets that do massive damage up close but less farther away?
Armor piercing rounds that do consistent damage to most types of targets, but produce more recoil?
I honestly believe the smart disc could be rebalanced into a different but still useful weapon.
Rather than a directly piloted remote death drone, I would rather it behave more like it does in AVP2010: A laser-guided projectile that travels quickly and reliably to where it is aimed at, and then ricochets back to it’s owner in short order.
Maybe have it deal less damage… Additional balancing would be present in the lessening reliability at range… The longer it spends travelling to a target over greater distances, the less likely follow-up strikes becomes… and the more opportunity the FT has to maybe trace it back to it’s sender based on it’s current trajectory…
However, it would be far more devastating at closer ranges… as the travel time would be shorter, and hence the possibility for follow up strikes would increase.
…The Predator could maybe also be allowed to move while the disc is travelling to it’s destination? Running the risk of course of the disc getting stuck on intervening obstacles or accidentally interrupting/redirecting the guidance laser.
These have been my random brain fart thoughts and i hope maybe it provides some ideas to the devs.