LucasMS
LucasMS
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- LucasMS
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@AlwaysInAGoodShape said:
My feedback for Windows of Opportunity is that changing this perk is a massive mistake.
Of course the Devs go off based on pick-rate and see a perk that is picked a lot. This datapoint can make it easily be mistaken for an overpowered perk. However, I want to make the case that Windows of Opportunity is UNIQUELY justified in being left as a highly picked perk that should not be touched, now, and in the future.
DBDs UNIQUE CHALLENGES
Due to DBD being an assymetrical game, it brings unique challenges with it that other games don't bring; As it has 2 separate factions (killer and survivor), it also introduces 2 uniquely separate learning curves to learning both sides.
My argument is that, due to the nature of DBD's design, this means that beginner survivors will severely struggle compared to beginner killers, where as, as time goes and and both become more experienced, survivors start gaining the upper hand:
(Graph showing power levels as y-axis based on play time as x-axis)https://us.v-cdn.net/6030815/uploads/R8SWXM57GUZ8/image.png
This difference in learning curve is rather easily explained by the random map generation and how killers and survivors interact with that differently in terms of difficulty. Where as its way easier for a beginner killer to simply follow a survivor in a map they don't know, than it is for a survivor to to navigate over a dozen of maps with random generation, where they have to navigate the map efficiently while running mostly looking backwards.
This single phenomenon creates the biggest learning gap between killer and survivors, leading to killer stomps at lower levels, and an overall less balanced game.
The period it takes to learn so many configurations of randomly generated maps among a sea of dozens can take a significant amount of hours played that a large sizeable portion of the players base doesn't have.
And what perk has helped this large portion of the playerbase overcome this unequal learning curve? It's Windows of Opportunity, easily accessible on a cheap survivor that has been saving the learner playerbase.
As windows of opportunity has helped newer players partially overcome the massive learning curve, it has not pushed survivor strength to any new level of over-the top strength: Everything that Windows of Opportunity gives, experienced players and SWFs already get for free; Comms and Map knowledge can completely replace Windows of Opportunity, hence why this perk starts to significantly lose value for teams and veterans.
This creates the following effect:https://us.v-cdn.net/6030815/uploads/CAH39AWUZQQR/image.png
Windows helps push lower level survivor gameplay into more balanced games, in the area where survivors struggle most. Due to a large portion of the playerbase being permanent learners due to the brutal nature of learning randomized map configuration in such a sizeable amount of maps, therefore the pick-rate will always be required to be high. That is not a sign of overpoweredness. It's a sign of its success, as a learners perk that helps overcome one of DBD's oldest problems; the unequal learning curve caused by its asym nature.
My argument here is that, nerfing Windows of Opportunity will lead to a less well balanced game, harming survivors in the wrong places, based on data without the comprehension of why its picked exactly so often; This perk UNEQUELY doesn't reflect how "overpowered" it is, but is directly correlated with the brutal learning curve of the sizeable map pool of random generated maps. And with more maps being added, Windows of Opportunity is going to play an ever more increasingly important role, which makes the current nerf that more tragic. Should there ever have only been 1 map in DBD, then the pickrate of this perk would be severely lower, and this key point is very important to be understood by the devs. Because the Devs need to understand that WoO plays a Unique role in solving one of DBD's oldest issues, and is therefore UNIQUELY justified in being frequently picked, and should not be changed, now, or in the future.
To give an idea of what an overpowered perk would look like, you would have to look at a perk like Shoulder the Burden, Sprint Burst, etc. that DOES boost maximum survivor strength, leading to the following effect:https://us.v-cdn.net/6030815/uploads/HPPX4KLV7ZGL/image.png
Such perks should be eligible for nerfs, as, as you can see, it increases the maximum gap between the killer's maximum power and survivor's maximum power at high levels of play.
My argument is that for proper balancing, we should try to ultimately align the red and blue line for a perfectly healthy game. And I hope I've helped conceptualize why nerfing Windows of Opportunity would undermine that exact goal and hurt overall game balance, and why making that decision based on high pickrate would simply be a mistake.This is a very good analysis, and the devs need to rethink this. I believe they’ll be reluctant to revert the perk changes, even with all the feedback, so we should try to get them to at least modify Windows of Opportunity and Five Moves Ahead so that the aura-reading effects remain constant. These effects shouldn't share a cooldown with the faster vaulting (from WoO) or the pallet-dropping mechanic (from FMH); that way, using both perks together could at least replicate the current effect of Windows of Opportunity, just as the patch notes suggested. With the nerfs as they stand, where both perks have cooldowns that disable aura reading along with the other effects, there is no way to actually achieve the constant aura-reading effect that Windows of Opportunity currently provides.
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@Crowman said:
https://forums.bhvr.com/dead-by-daylight/discussion/comment/4117636#Comment_4117636
Because you're comparing apples to oranges here. Plus it is unfair to say that Pain Res didn't get nerfed at all. Dead Man's Switch got a heavy nerf that removes the synergy between the two perks.
Pain Res has seen several nerfs over the years and one of the reasons it is still used today is that killers do not have many good options for gen regression. You would see that in the killer perk updates the devs are buffing other options for gen regression.
Meanwhile WoO completely crowds out design space for aura reading of windows and pallets because it's always on.
The point of this update is for a meta shakeup. In order for WoO to be substituted with other options, it needs to do less. In order for killers to substitute pain res with other options, there needs to be better alternatives. And with the removal of working with Dead Man's there will be reason to consider other options.
Ah, I see, now I understand which side of the argument you're on. The point is, they nerfed both perks while promising the effect could still be achieved, yet it can't be. I suggested that the aura reading shouldn't deactivate during the cooldown; that way, they could keep the changes while forcing anyone who wants the old effect to waste two perk slots. Regarding freeing up space for other perks, they had already done exactly that with Five Moves Ahead; the perks were similar, but FMA offered an extra benefit alongside the downside of the cooldown, making it the choice for some players, especially veterans, over WoO. But now, WoO will be essentially useless, because a 10% vault speed boost is negligible when paired with a 30-second cooldown, it’s unlikely to trigger at a crucial moment. That’s why keeping the aura reading active at all times would be the way to give the perk some real value.
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@Crowman said:
https://forums.bhvr.com/dead-by-daylight/discussion/comment/4117607#Comment_4117607
If this was the case, the perk wouldn't have high usage in high mmr. It does have high usage in MMR. Knowing where resources are in chase is huge and something that veteran players will utilize far better than new players. The perk deserves it nerf, because it needs to be bought down so we can hopefully have a more diverse perk meta.
If we're talking about high-MMR usage, why weren't other perks like Pain Resonance, which has a nearly 30% pick rate and was recently revealed as the most-used Killer perk across all regions, or other regression perks, affected by these changes? This nerf was just an arbitrary, mandatory decision on their part; you know that WoO doesn't impact matches anywhere near the extent that other perks do. You can't even really tell if a Survivor has Windows of Opportunity equipped until the post-game screen because it doesn't directly impact the Killer's gameplay, there's a huge difference between finding resources and knowing how to use them.
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@Crowman said:
WoO isn't a new player perk. It is one of the most used perks across MMR bands. It pretty much removes thinking while in chase for veteran players. The perk deserves the nerf it is getting.
Ironically, the survivors who are already highly skilled are the ones who benefit the least from this perk. Experienced and competitive teams are already communicating which pallets have been used, so they don't really need the additional information.
The perk's real value has always been for the players who struggle more: solo queue survivors, newer players, and those still learning the game. In other words, it was helping exactly the group of players who needed that extra assistance the most.
Because of that, I don't think the Devs should look at its high pick rate and assume that something went wrong with the balance. If anything, the popularity of this perk demonstrates that it was addressing a genuine problem within DBD. It helped reduce one of the game's oldest issues: the huge difference in the learning curve between killers and survivors. Its high usage is much more a sign of how useful it was for the players who needed it than evidence that the perk was inherently too strong.
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The nerf to Windows of Opportunity is a change made for no good reason. The perk was never overpowered; it is being changed simply because it is widely used. This change will primarily impact new players, and the way it was announced is misleading: even when combining it with Five Moves Ahead, you cannot achieve the original effect. Both perks have cooldowns that disable aura reading, and the reason people chose Windows over Five Moves Ahead was precisely the constant aura reading.
Ideally, these changes should be reverted, as they only disadvantage beginner survivors and solo Q; Windows has always been a comfort perk rather than a game-changing one requiring such a massive nerf. If you are determined to keep these changes, you should at least modify both perks so that the aura-reading component doesn't go on cooldown alongside the faster vaulting and pallet-dropping effects; that way, the claim made in the patch notes—that the old effect is still achievable—would actually be true.
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The nerf to Windows of Opportunity is a change made for no good reason. The perk was never overpowered; it is being changed simply because it is widely used. This change will primarily impact new players, and the way it was announced is misleading: even when combining it with Five Moves Ahead, you cannot achieve the original effect. Both perks have cooldowns that disable aura reading, and the reason people chose Windows over Five Moves Ahead was precisely the constant aura reading. Ideally, these changes should be reverted, as they only disadvantage beginner survivors and solo Q; Windows has always been a comfort perk rather than a game-changing one requiring such a massive nerf. If you are determined to keep these changes, you should at least modify both perks so that the aura-reading component doesn't go on cooldown alongside the faster vaulting and pallet-dropping effects; that way, the claim made in the patch notes—that the old effect is still achievable—would actually be true.