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PD -> A More Holistic Approach to Balance (10/9/2011 1:36:31)
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I'll try to be simple yet thorough with my language on this.
Holistic does not mean Holy, or anything religious. Below is the definition of holistic:
quote:
1. Characterized by comprehension of the parts of something as intimately interconnected and explicable only by reference to the whole
2. Characterized by the treatment of the whole person, taking into account mental and social factors, rather than just the physical symptoms of a disease
So you see, Holistic is the accounting of not just the simple rudimentary, but rather accounting not anything, but everything. I stress this because it seems that the every Poster fails to account for every factor. Balance can't be seen as separates. It must be taken on wholly and attacked and analyzed by looking into multiple factors. In short terms, our understanding of game balance is not correct. It hasn't been, and unless we take account for all factors, then we will fail. We must account for everything that goes into a build; The Stats, the weapons, the equipment, the skills, the math behind them, and the opponent's specs as well. Trying to say that classes are not balanced because they always win is not holistic approaching the problem. It is the exact opposite. You fail to account for the reason they are winning. Is it because of the numbers? Is it because of you? Is it because of luck factors? The problem of making the classes balanced cannot be done by only focusing on one part and slapping that as a way to get things done.
Now let me go over something. Balance in a game by itself means a state of conditions when the numbers line up and agree with the standards of the game in every single aspect. You cannot achieve that without taking into account of everything.
Now if you are told that Overpowered is when a build wins 95% of the time... they have no clue what they are talking about. They do not know what balance is, nor do they know how to fix it, and what the definition of significant balance terms are. A win rate does not reflect your skill. It does not reflect your build's power nor does it reflect how much money you spend on the game. It does not indicate yourself and/or your build being overpowered nor underpowered. It tells you nothing about balance logistics.
Overpowered is when you look at something, put it side-by-side to it's respective standard of it's level and reference, and see that the specific thing in question goes above said standard. Here is a more clear example of what I talk about...
If a standard in ED were that level 33 Varium primaries on average will get 33 Base damage with 26 Base stats and 8 enhancements, then you have 3 things to take care of...
1. Damage; If a level 33 varium weapon had less than 33 base damage, then it would be underpowered because it is under standard. If it has more than 33 base damage, then it is overpowered because it defies and exceeds standards of that level and reference.
2. Base Stats: If a weapon had less than 26 Base stats, it is underpowered because it's stats are not up with standards. If it has more than 26 base stats, then it is overpowered.
3. Enhancements: If it has more than 8 enhancements, then it is overpowered. If it is not, then it has less enhancements than the standard.
To solve a problem holistically... allow me to share an example... Let's say we're to test if a certain build is overpowered. We would first evaluate it's most basic makings: It's stats. How to the stats work with the skills? If the standards of skill power do not agree with a skill's power when put in play, then based on our conclusion, we know something is wrong. And then we look at how the stats work with their passives, as well as their moves such as strike. If we see that it too defies what should be the normal (again, a standard), then we know something is wrong. If it wins a lot, that does not give us a conclusion as the result of a battle is purely in the air due to multiple factors with first strike, damage rolls, defense rolls, luck factors, split-second decisions, and more. We must also consider any factors that the opponent's specs as well as actions did to affect the battle result as well. What one expects is not what they are to experience.
To analyze a build holistically, you do the same. You ask yourself these questions: What are the numbers behind the build? What are the stats behind it, and what is the relation between the Skills and stats and back, and forth. What stats must be allocated to gain such numbers? What number of skill points and stats must the user allocate to a certain area to get a certain degree of power? How does it fare against other kinds of builds, and other kinds of classes? How do luck factors account into it? What are the equipment pieces used, and how are they used? Asking those questions is a start to finding more universal and permanent answers.
The true way to balance ED is to establish a standard over all aspects. And the correct standards are not to be decided, but arrived at. The decisions should not be chosen. Rather, they too should be arrived at. There should not be "choices" of what to do or how to do something. Because ED lacks standards, all balance is left up to interpretations to seek what is and is not overpowered. People try to use stories and win rates to try to make a balance point... That is a dangerous way to do things. Balance based on faith and experience becomes subjective and backfires. It is not the universal and permanent solution, so therefore it will fail because it is based on nothing and had no agreed universal meaning nor authority. The story of what faith does is quite the trite one; We argue with each other and refuse to even try to come with a consensus of what to do.
Balance is meant to be a universal and non-subjective language that has no arguments nor deviating interpretations. True balance should not take decisions beyond evaluating it to standards and getting a conclusion from that. And even those are not subjective, as they are based off of a standard. They are as simple as can be. Like Chemistry, Physics, Calculus, Geometry and Mathematics, they are based on real hard evidence and proof, as well as complex series of formulas and numbers that go into a simple move. The true correct answer and is not chosen but rather arrived to, because there only is one true answer set (Unless the question itself has an error). analyzing a balance problem through any other means than with mathematical holistic methods do not give us an agreeable reference point and are up for interpretation and debate.
And because balance is the holistic approach to solving the game's problems through evaluating the numbers, so too should the balance follow the laws of math. Not on conjecture. Not on faith. Not on experience. Not on greed. Not on selfishness. Not on economic "rights" and "not haves". With numbers. The way it's supposed to be done.
Merged into the Balance Discussions thread. Anything related to balance belongs here. Please do not make additional threads about balance. ~Mecha
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