Guide [Issue 47] Assault: Best Gift from Devs'

[Vikingsrallentando 3,058]

A glimpse of the latest battle mode named Assault was gifted upon us for the holiday season. Now that the mode has been removed, we can only begin to reflect on its impact and its ingenuity. My colleague sonofchrysalis3 has already reviewed its good and bad aspects while in the moment. I’d like to expand on his points within the same platform of spotting the positives and negatives, but with a more reflective and predictive state of mind by means of which to review, along with some refuted/refutable concepts to be discussed.
 

You can argue among yourselves as to what update given during or just after the holiday events is the best, but before you do, let us look at some Positive Points in reflection of how the mode operates.
 
Role Specificity
 
Unlike traditional team battles, Assault is very black and white; you either attack or defend. There is no middle ground between roles like there is in other team battles. CTF and CP modes (not as much for TDM) can have frequent role changes within the heat of battle. You might be attacking, infiltrating the enemy base and being continuously knocked down to a point where you are forced to join the defensive forces. In Assault, there is no flip flopping from offense to defense based on how, when, or where the enemy is attacking from. Your team’s goal and action is more streamlined and less complicated, which should be a relieving thing.
 
I don’t mean to explain this in a way that degrades the other battle modes. I understand people genuinely love playing CTF and CP and appreciate their current status, but after considering what those modes entail, you have to ponder the effort it takes comparatively with this new mode. I love the thrill of taking a flag or point from the enemy, but there is extra baggage along with what it took to do accomplish the task. Assault is more simplistic; you prevent a capture, or you strive for capture, without worrying about your role. You can deduce your own preference when and if Assault returns.
 
True Teamwork
 
 A consensus between SOC3’s article and I’s is called for! In order for a team to win an Assault match, each player has to work for the common goal, generally without there being distractions. If you can imagine a match with everyone 100% focused on the task, you might find true teamwork.
 
As was the theme of the last point, roles are clear and cut. This allows for more effective allocation of work among a team, who otherwise would be split between different roles. The mode is on two extremes of a spectrum; full attack or full defense. The tactics reflect them most essentially. Players know how to use their weapons (wow who would have thought) and can allocate their efforts to heed to the tactics. You may have observed a team with nearly full defense in a CTF before, they are tough.  Surely this can transfer over to Assault quite easily.
 
e-Sports?
 
Aside from predicting the modes return to the game, couldn’t its potential be used in grouped competition? This proposal coming from an almost habitual XP player, certain formats might be interesting. I don’t think Hard would fit the bill, but Medium and Light may. E-Sport participants know what true teamwork is and are capable of redefining it in an Assault Match.
 
I’m more comfortable with this thought than predicting the mode become an absolute hit. I have previously been associated with e-Sports, whether it be in a clan or commentating; though years ago, I may be out of touch. But I’ve always thought what cannot be done in a general server with strangers can be done with a group of close friends who understand the task and can perform their duties to exponential levels. Certainly anyone who would be interested in Assault would want to watch it played by the best of the best. I digress, leaving it up to you, e-sporters, whether you believe the mode is a viable medium of competition.
 
There is much to consider moving forward, but it wouldn’t be a compare and contrast article without some Negative Points associated with the mode and where it lacks certainty.

 

Fight for Flags – Sabotage?
 
I want to test the limits of this discussion as it’s been assumed that a clash for the flag is sabotage, or in some way more harmful to a team than the inactivity of a player for example. I don’t deny that a dispute over who should bear the flag is a draw back in the case of the red team, but I don’t think it is as bad as its made out to be (I am trying to keep you thinking about the mode, y’know).

This is a common occurrence in CTF already, but understandably exacerbated by the task of the red team. Madness is an example, already highlighted, but it’s unlike other maps in terms of flag placement geographically. In the New Year map, the flag point was in the red team's own base, and being the only objective of the team, lead to a lot of pushing for the chance to take the flag. It was also in the open, leaving tanks pushing for the flag as easy targets for the blue team, so when being pushed, or pushing yourself, both you and your teammate were easily destroyable, being a detriment to your team.
 
I point that out because it’s a struggle within a team, generally acted with the motivation to better ones score, rather than conspiracy to prevent the participant’s team from gaining points in order to help the opposition. In the event that it can be proven true, when the player is taking the flag and preventing it from an attempted capture, then I see it as true sabotage. Let me show you what I mean within the context of the rules.
 

 

“2.1.5. Sabotage — Any acts or omissions aimed at creating obstructions for the team where the User is a member, including in CTF, TDM and CP modes, fighting against the team of which you are a member (intentional selection of weak equipment, frequent pauses, inactivity or intentional failure to comply with map’s or game mode’s requirements, imitation of issues with internet connection), damaging/destroying an ally’s tank, fighting in the interest of the opponent’s team (conspiracy);”

 

 
Although it doesn’t list ASL for obvious reasons, as long as one is taking the flag downfield to the blue base to capture, they are following the action required to win. When someone takes the flag and hides in a corner, or you actively block the player with the flag, they/you are sabotaging the team effort. An issue no less, which contradicts the point of the mode, but not technically sabotage. I suspect that with more adaptation to the mode, people automatically step aside for those more worthy of the flag. Hopefully.
 
Lack of movement/Predictability
 
There is a seemingly underestimated defect that occurs by accident or on purpose. You only have so many routes from which to carry a flag to victory; but when those routes are used consecutively, it becomes more degrading to the offense than changing it up. Not that this isn’t an issue in CTF, but it’s even worse because the opposition bases its action on where the enemy is coming from.
 
Coincidentally, this could lead to poor action from the blue side as well. When you sit in the same sniping spot after every respawn, the enemy is going to know just how to approach you. And believe it or not, the name of the game for the blue team is to control as much of the map as possible. You may have thought that because there is a castle wall around the point that is all you have to defend. Hopefully you saw that it is also beneficial for the team to deploy players in the middle between buildings to inhibit the opposition’s effort.
 
You genuinely have to remain open to variance. When I saw players who lacked that willingness, they didn’t perform as well as those who were.
 
Funds? No, the Map
 
I don’t play for funds, thus I don’t want to go there. Since I do have some two cents about maps, I would rather influence the debate on whether or not the mode is suitable for other maps. Is it possible to put it on every map? Yes, but on some, it generally won’t work. It would work best on maps that have similar advantages for the red team and similar defensive advantages to the map we saw the mode displayed on.
 
Silence and Noise are easier names to throw out, as there is distinct differences in height, but I mean, could you play a Rio ASL and still get a good amount of enjoyment from it? I think it’s entirely possible. I don’t think it’s where the mode would be at its most potential. An interesting thought for the future of the mode. I would be most enthusiastic about the addition of maps that suit the mode better.
 

What to take away?
 
Like with any new activity; the good sticks with you, and so does the bad. But fear not, the mode is only meant to enhance gameplay positively. Disregarding the impact Assault would leave you on the short side of a new direction for the way we attack and defend. ASL ranks high on the list of favorable gifts (excluding the festive billboards and discounts) added soon after the introduction to a new year. It certainly should on yours too.

 

 

Do you think ASL gameplay was as good as I thought it was? What did I get wrong? Please continue the discussion of Assault

Thanks for reading; hope you enjoyed.

Edited July 24, 2017 by Vikingsrallentando

[Rico_Viking_9000 942]

Excellent story.

[DragonOfStorms 2,706]

Great job! Well written article.

[Podey_the_Buster 87]

Nice!

[bossman161 276]

I hope ASL is brought back I loved it.

[marc.jp_44 20,837]

Nice but I disliked ASL tbh. It's more than just sabotage for getting the flag. It's also when people on your team shoot you to flip you or block the entrances to shoot you. The only thing I actually liked, was going up top and Shafting there, no one really knew about that spot but it's great! PauliasDaOne made a vid with shafting there.

[BSG-62 512]

Loved the map: it was great. But if a bunch of people multed on the defense team, it was all over. If no-one bothered to attack (which happened a lot), it was plain boring.

[Mr.Optimistic 440]

plz  bring back ASL it was a new type of game mode maps were filled with ASL if it would be back i feel very happy

[awsmeplayer 59]

Not bad...+ you get 40k crystals :)

Nice work

[MellifluousMortality 21]

you get 40k crystals :)

False.

I'm afraid Mr. Toluene has been misleading you.