declined Hopper in Increased Gold Drop - Rate Events

[DestrotankAI9 1,513]

Hey guys and gals,

I would like to make a suggestion to fix an obvious problem that is certain to rear its ugly head in future special events - Hoppers overdrive in special gold events.

Ever since Hoppers introduction I believe we have either had "explosive" gold events (such as Christmas and New Year) or we had events such as the Juggernaut - only mode. But we haven't seen what will happen with Hopper in "normal" gold drop events such as the one we had last year for April Fools day. We will have quite a few of these events coming up for Valentine's Day, Iron Days and April Fool's Day no doubt.

While Hoppers overdrive does not give it a particular advantage in "explosive" golds events, if golds drop in the normal way we will have exactly the same situation as before with Mammoth in explosive gold events - Hopper will be the ONLY viable hull, and everyone will either use Hopper or be unable to get golds in these events, such will be the massive advantage from its jumping and stunning overdrive.

Now obviously Hoppers overdrive should not be changed permanently - in regular gameplay - just for the purpose of these one - off events, and in order to balance it you would have to remove its jumping ability altogether - which is obviously not a viable solution. So, I propose 3 alternative solutions:

1) In special gold events, make it clear in the forum and in-game announcement that Hoppers overdrive will operate differently. In these events, make it that Hopper does not jump, it simply stuns and applies the burn effect to all tanks around it, but without the jumping component. This will still allow Hopper to be very viable, in fact perhaps even still the best choice - as it has a powerful instant stun and still has its ability to easily get on top of tanks, combined with its fast speed. But it will at least not jump, so other hulls will have some chance to get golds.

2) Disable all hull overdrives in non-explosive gold events. This is a possible solution - make it like PRO battles with overdrives disabled. This will give all hulls a chance to get golds, but it may be slightly less exciting and certain hulls such as Dictator will now have the advantage.

3) Make everyone's hull Hopper within the event - of the same modification level as their normal equipment and with their hull augment applicable to Hopper. This is another possible solution, but it would get a bit boring perhaps to have everyone using Hopper for all events - much less variety than these special DM modes have had in the past.

Overall either of these 3 options would be vastly superior to doing nothing. Without some changes (JUST for the special modes, that do not apply to the normal game) Hopper will totally dominate and ruin all non-explosive gold events in the future. My personal choice would be the first option - I think this would keep the "feel" of the normal game and the variety of different overdrives as we have had in gold events in the last year, while giving everyone a chance. However option 2) could also be fine.

Post your thoughts, and I thank you for your consideration of this suggestion.

Destrotank

[Spy 14,901]

Declined.

Overdrives are part of the game and they cannot be changed or removed just for a period of time just because it is easier to catch gold boxes with them. Every hull in the game has a unique advantage which could be used to catch gold boxes, like Wasp's N2-Bomb, Hunter's Electromagnetic Pulse and Mammoth's Overdrive - AT-field.

[Alsar 619]

@DestrotankAI9 you arent the only one who have suggest to disable of the Hopper or the Hopper OD from the special map events with gold box i believe most people might agree with you because its a no skill gold box stealer this hull but you dont have choice with the hopper right now you are forced to use that hull if you want to take gold boxes. But as i said a lot of times in the past i believe its better we have like same equipment in the battle like in the past with Hopper rail or the jgr one. But i still agree with you about the thing of Hopper OD to be disabled from the special map events.

[DestrotankAI9 1,513]

1 hour ago, Spy said:

Declined.

Overdrives are part of the game and they cannot be changed or removed just for a period of time just because it is easier to catch gold boxes with them. Every hull in the game has a unique advantage which could be used to catch gold boxes, like Wasp's N2-Bomb, Hunter's Electromagnetic Pulse and Mammoth's Overdrive - AT-field.

I'm very surprised that you think this is a bad idea - I think it is quite obvious that something is going to have to be done, just like it was for Mammoth when Mammoth totally destroyed explosive gold events some time ago before it was changed.

Hoppers jump ability can not be removed, so the only option is to have slightly different setting for non - explosive gold maps. This isn't too much of a stretch because the special gold drop maps already have special settings - for instance in the past we have had maps where everyone is Juggernaut or everyone is Hopper.

It is totally irrelevant to mention that other hulls have overdrives which give advantages when it comes to catching golds - do you seriously think in a 20x gold map with non-explosive golds that it won't be just the same situation as with Mammoth before? You are an intelligent guy - surely this is quite obvious to you. There will be a half the players using Hopper and those players will be pretty much the only ones getting any golds, just as it was with Mammoth before - that is quite obviously the way it is going to be. By the time any golds are ready to drop there will be one of the 8+ Hoppers that have overdrive ready, at any time.  Either you equip Hopper or these events will be useless - and that is a great shame considering how much fun and how indeed every hull did have a chance before.

Something like what I propose here will have to be done, unless the devs really intend for only Hoppers to catch golds in these events.

[Spy 14,901]

1 minute ago, DestrotankAI9 said:

I'm very surprised that you think this is a bad idea - I think it is quite obvious that something is going to have to be done, just like it was for Mammoth when Mammoth totally destroyed explosive gold events some time ago before it was changed.

Hoppers hop ability can not be removed, so the only option is to have slightly different setting for non - explosive gold maps. This isn't too much of a stretch because the special gold drop maps already have special settings - for instance in the past we have had maps where everyone is Juggernaut or everyone is Hopper.

It is totally irrelevant to mention that other hulls have overdrives which give advantages when it comes to catching golds - do you seriously think in a 20x gold map with non-explosive golds that it won't be just the same situation as with Mammoth before? You are an intelligent guy - surely this is quite obvious to you. There will be a half the players using Hopper and those players will be pretty much the only ones getting any golds, just as it was with Mammoth before - that is quite obviously the way it is going to be. Either you equip Hopper or these events will be useless - and that is a great shame considering how much fun and how indeed every hull did have a chance before.

Something like what I propose here will have to be done, unless the devs really intend for only Hoppers to catch golds in these events.

To be fair, something has to be done about Hopper's overdrive in general as it is extremely overpowered in so many situations. However, nerfing Hopper's overdrive in certain events would not be fair to the players who use Hopper regularly, because as I explained above, other overdrives can also come in handy for catching gold boxes.

[DestrotankAI9 1,513]

13 minutes ago, Spy said:

To be fair, something has to be done about Hopper's overdrive in general as it is extremely overpowered in so many situations. However, nerfing Hopper's overdrive in certain events would not be fair to the players who use Hopper regularly, because as I explained above, other overdrives can also come in handy for catching gold boxes.

Hopper needs to be adjusted in terms of balance, yes absolutely - the overdrive is overpowered in regular gameplay. But in terms of catching non - explosive golds, it is the regular jump ability that is the problem and that will be totally dominant over the other overdrives no matter how else the overdrive is nerfed - and Hopper's jump ability can not be removed.

I made several suggestions including that all overdrives could be disabled in these events just as in PRO battles - so this would not be unfair to Hopper players as you say - everyone will be on a level playing field. I also suggested that the overdrive could have all other components, such as the instant stun and fire effects without the jump in this mode - again this would not be unfair to Hopper players because the instant stun + fire effect, combined with Hoppers speed and ability to climb on top of hulls would still leave it very powerful for catching golds, even without the jumping ability. None of my suggestions would be unfair to Hopper users, on the contrary leaving things as they are would be very unfair to anyone who does not equip Hopper.

As I say, if the developers intend for only Hoppers to catch golds in these events - then so be it. Just like with Mammoth before the changes. But I can guarantee there will be a massive number of complaints in every event, and the only option from now on in these modes will be to use Hopper. I have no problem doing that if I need to - I fully intend to get Hopper myself. But this will make these events very dull, with only one viable hull.

I'm pointing out an obvious future problem ahead of time, and trying to suggest some solutions to the issue which would be fair to all players - including Hopper users. I'm surprised that you don't at least agree with me that there will be a problem if nothing is done. Mark my words, there certainly will be a huge problem and a massive number of complaints coming the developers way on the next gold event, and all events in future if special settings for Hopper are not implemented.

[SONIC-BOOM 326]

24 minutes ago, DestrotankAI9 said:

Hopper needs to be adjusted in terms of balance, yes absolutely - the overdrive is overpowered in regular gameplay. But in terms of catching non - explosive golds, it is the regular jump ability that is the problem and that will be totally dominant over the other overdrives no matter how else the overdrive is nerfed - and Hopper's jump ability can not be removed.

I made several suggestions including that all overdrives could be disabled in these events just as in PRO battles - so this would not be unfair to Hopper players as you say - everyone will be on a level playing field. I also suggested that the overdrive could have all other components, such as the instant stun and fire effects without the jump in this mode - again this would not be unfair to Hopper players because the instant stun + fire effect, combined with Hoppers speed and ability to climb on top of hulls would still leave it very powerful for catching golds, even without the jumping ability. None of my suggestions would be unfair to Hopper users, on the contrary leaving things as they are would be very unfair to anyone who does not equip Hopper.

As I say, if the developers intend for only Hoppers to catch golds in these events - then so be it. Just like with Mammoth before the changes. But I can guarantee there will be a massive number of complaints in every event, and the only option from now on in these modes will be to use Hopper. I have no problem doing that if I need to - I fully intend to get Hopper myself. But this will make these events very dull, with only one viable hull.

I'm pointing out an obvious future problem ahead of time, and trying to suggest some solutions to the issue which would be fair to all players - including Hopper users. I'm surprised that you don't at least agree with me that there will be a problem if nothing is done. Mark my words, there certainly will be a huge problem and a massive number of complaints coming the developers way on the next gold event, and all events in future if special settings for Hopper are not implemented.

My special setting for the FLYING HACK would be to see it self destruct every 10 secs in all modes. 

 

[DestrotankAI9 1,513]

15 minutes ago, SONIC-BOOM said:

My special setting for the FLYING HACK would be to see it self destruct every 10 secs in all modes. 

 

Well I must say you are consistent lol. It would be amusing if you got Hopper XT in your next Ultra Container 

I am quite sure in terms of balance, a balance patch for Hopper will be coming any time soon. I can think of some suggestions myself which would hopefully leave Hopper relatively balanced in terms of standard gameplay with other Hulls.

However I made this topic for the specific reason that no nerf other than removing Hopper's jump will prevent it from being totally overpowered specifically in special gold events, and of course that will never be removed - nor should it be. So a special treatment will be required in order to fix this issue, beyond any nerfs to Hoppers power in regular battles.

[W4R 170]

Why waste your life running around for a pitence of 1000 crystals( 3 batteries in shop terms)....

However-- The more I see hopper's and other stupid flying tanks( except ares), the more I leave the game, and spend less and less.... Which only speeds up the demise of tanki...There is no adavantage of spending  real money in tanki, so I say my dosh now.. 

I'm 100 euro's a month better off now( spread over several accounts).. So well done Tanki-- talk about shooting yourself in the foot-- well I guess they like to play Russian roulette with the future of the game.....

 

[Tokamak 1,021]

A few suggestions to mitigate its potency

- Increases radius effect of overdrives that can counteract hopper (wasp, hunter).

- make the hopper overdrive impossible to be activated under Titan's dome, or just kill the jump when under ennemi dome

Make the goldbox drop zone a "no fly zone" :D

[alkyng 3,081]

I think the things must be done in general not in a special events or for a period of time. I mean it's not a logical to change some of the game mechanics for a special event then return it to what it was. Hopper must be nerfed, though I want it to be deleted.

[alkyng 3,081]

33 minutes ago, krish123_super said:

what if : hopper is changed to Hercules 

and its overdrive is reworked to escape fast with stun and heat but not jump 

is it a good idea ...can u tell me to post it has a separate topic ? 

@Spy  sorry for pinging so many times , i wont mention anymore ..this is last

Hopper still have "Ignore tanks" hack, that mean if it pushed you something, it will come across you like if there is a lag. You can test it and try to push a hopper, you will notice that you couldn't as something will happen like a lag to make him across over you. And by your suggestion to make it faster instead of jumping, this will nerf the ability more but with the more speed it will allow it to "Ignore tanks" more easily. So no difference in general

[wolverine848 13,097]

45 minutes ago, asem.harbi said:

Hopper still have "Ignore tanks" hack, that mean if it pushed you something, it will come across you like if there is a lag. You can test it and try to push a hopper, you will notice that you couldn't as something will happen like a lag to make him across over you. And by your suggestion to make it faster instead of jumping, this will nerf the ability more but with the more speed it will allow it to "Ignore tanks" more easily. So no difference in general

Yup.   One "slid" right over top of my Dictator to score a goal - no jump.  Just drove right over me.  Pathetic.

[wolverine848 13,097]

5 hours ago, DestrotankAI9 said:

I am quite sure in terms of balance, a balance patch for Hopper will be coming any time soon.

It took them 2+ years to "tweak" hornet OD.  What makes you think "soon" is the word that should be applied?

[Cabos 212]

11 hours ago, DestrotankAI9 said:

I'm very surprised that you think this is a bad idea - I think it is quite obvious that something is going to have to be done, just like it was for Mammoth when Mammoth totally destroyed explosive gold events some time ago before it was changed.

Hoppers jump ability can not be removed, so the only option is to have slightly different setting for non - explosive gold maps. This isn't too much of a stretch because the special gold drop maps already have special settings - for instance in the past we have had maps where everyone is Juggernaut or everyone is Hopper.

It is totally irrelevant to mention that other hulls have overdrives which give advantages when it comes to catching golds - do you seriously think in a 20x gold map with non-explosive golds that it won't be just the same situation as with Mammoth before? You are an intelligent guy - surely this is quite obvious to you. There will be a half the players using Hopper and those players will be pretty much the only ones getting any golds, just as it was with Mammoth before - that is quite obviously the way it is going to be. By the time any golds are ready to drop there will be one of the 8+ Hoppers that have overdrive ready, at any time.  Either you equip Hopper or these events will be useless - and that is a great shame considering how much fun and how indeed every hull did have a chance before.

Something like what I propose here will have to be done, unless the devs really intend for only Hoppers to catch golds in these events.

Spy never said that this is a bad idea, please don't assume that if he declines something, he thinks its a bad idea. Besides, I would also disagree with you. Hopper is available to everyone, so if you think it's overpowered, you could just buy it yourself. No one is saying you can't. I have been in a lot of of Race for Golds with my friends, and of course a lot of people took Hopper. I still got quite a lot of golds (with Hornet Magnum), and the the Hoppers didn't get any more than I did. Once a Hopper jumps, you can use Hunter OD to stun them, or you could use Hornet OD and kill them one-shot. There are lots of different ways to counter Hopper OD, and removing ODs in battles would technically be a removal of update. 

[Tanker-Arthur 2,971]

Just now, wolverine848 said:

It took them 2+ years to "tweak" hornet OD.  What makes you think "soon" is the word that should be applied?

Well, everyone practically agrees Hopper's overdrive is seriously overpowered. If the developers know what's best for the game and it's players, they should nerf it within a few months, at most.

Also, I honestly thought Hornet's OD wasn't very overpowered for the last two years. Sure, it was strong, but it was easily avoidable and survivable. You weren't stunned or anything and you are free to use a repair kit or your own overdrive to easily counter Hornet's OD. Honestly, It just "became" overpowered after the overdrives for Mammoth and Titan were nerfed - Mammoth losing it's invincibility and Titan losing it's healing effect. It's probably why the developers took a while to change it because it wasn't that big of a problem at the time.

[DestrotankAI9 1,513]

Thanks for the feedback on the ideas everyone :) (Ideas as I did propose 3 possible solutions).

12 hours ago, asem.harbi said:

I think the things must be done in general not in a special events or for a period of time. I mean it's not a logical to change some of the game mechanics for a special event then return it to what it was. Hopper must be nerfed, though I want it to be deleted.

Good point - as you and perhaps Spy alluded to. Perhaps idea 1) then with an altered Hopper overdrive is not good because this would be too confusing to players. However in this case then I think idea 2) with PRO battle settings with no overdrives would be a viable solution.

2 hours ago, yyang_tanki said:

Spy never said that this is a bad idea, please don't assume that if he declines something, he thinks its a bad idea. Besides, I would also disagree with you. Hopper is available to everyone, so if you think it's overpowered, you could just buy it yourself. No one is saying you can't. I have been in a lot of of Race for Golds with my friends, and of course a lot of people took Hopper. I still got quite a lot of golds (with Hornet Magnum), and the the Hoppers didn't get any more than I did. Once a Hopper jumps, you can use Hunter OD to stun them, or you could use Hornet OD and kill them one-shot. There are lots of different ways to counter Hopper OD, and removing ODs in battles would technically be a removal of update. 

Perhaps my choice of words was wrong, saying that this meant Spy thought it was a bad idea. However as for the rest of what you say here I have to firmly disagree. Hopper will be overpowered in these special gold events to the point that there will be no point in using anything else, or no point in bothering with these events at all unless you are using Hopper. This is exactly the same situation as we had before with Mammoth and it was no fun for anyone - sure anyone can get Hopper, and I can get Hopper but you shouldn't be forced to - everyone's equipment should be viable. The developers have shown that they DON'T want a situation where only one hull is viable in these special events - because that was the case with Mammoth in explosive gold events and they made changes so that Mammoth was no longer the only hull worth using.

The situation with Hopper is different because of the fundamental characteristics of the Hopper overdrive, with its jumping ability. Unless there are some very creative changes, there is no real way to balance it with other hulls in such events. So some kind of special rules (and those can be rules we already have in PRO battles such as no overdrives) will have to be applied to maintain the fun and balance in these events.

 

12 hours ago, Tokamak said:

A few suggestions to mitigate its potency

- Increases radius effect of overdrives that can counteract hopper (wasp, hunter).

- make the hopper overdrive impossible to be activated under Titan's dome, or just kill the jump when under ennemi dome

Make the goldbox drop zone a "no fly zone" :D

Now these are some interesting ideas! Perhaps it is possible to make some changes to make Hopper "balanced" with other hulls for gold drops in general. The idea of a "no fly zone" in the radius around a gold drop area is a possibility - however unless this was very large Hoppers can still sit on the high ground, jump and glide down to catch golds that drop lower in the map. Hunter and wasp range overdrive range increases (particularly Hunter) could be useful in terms of balancing those overdrives with Hopper in general, however if they were too large of course those hulls could become overpowered.

In general however I think some specific nerfs to other aspects of Hopper's overdrive to balance it in general play would be best - and to have no overdrives in special modes. I think this would be the fairest and most viable solution all round.

[DestrotankAI9 1,513]

So taking into account the feedback, I think idea 2) would be the best solution - to have PRO battle settings with no overdrives in "non-explosive" gold drop modes (having overdrives is fine in "explosive" gold events is fine, as they are more balanced there). This is something that we already have in the game - there is an option in PRO battles to play with overdrives deactivated, and this is simply have that PRO battle setting applied to these special modes for the sake of balance - so that it is fair for everyone. The precedent for this is already set - we have had a special XP/BP mode, a mode where everyone is Juggernaut and a mode where everyone is Hopper, so this is not something that would go too far from the norm.

Having a hull that can jump vertically upwards is almost impossible to balance with other hulls for these modes - no matter how it is nerfed, unless some very creative changes can be applied. We haven't to my knowledge had a "regular golds" event since the introduction of Hopper such as the one we had for April Fools' Day last year - mark my words if such an event takes place without any changes, it WILL be dominated by one hull only. You can talk all you like about other overdrives being useful for getting golds and how you can beat Hoppers occasionally on gold catching, I am very sure you will see the reality of what I'm talking about should no changes be made. It will, I can guarantee, be just the same situation as it was with Mammoth - with half the players using Hopper, and it being so difficult for anyone else to catch golds playing on the special map is a waste of time. Of course, this will lead to a massive number of complaints.

I made this suggestion as I'm trying to help Tanki be a balanced and fun game for all players - thanks for taking it into consideration anyhow. Gold events are hardly the most important part of the game, but some changes will need to be made to address this problem, that will be certain.

[wolverine848 13,097]

7 hours ago, Tanker-Arthur said:

You weren't stunned or anything and you are free to use a repair kit or your own overdrive to easily counter Hornet's OD.

How could you use a RK when you were one-shot killed?

[Tanker-Arthur 2,971]

1 hour ago, wolverine848 said:

How could you use a RK when you were one-shot killed?

Because not everyone uses double damage with the overdrive. Usually, the repair kit helps you survive one extra Thunder hit (for example) in order to drive to safety.

Hornets have the lowest health in the game, so unless they were using a protection module against my turret, it's relatively easy to hide behind buildings and snipe them off before they can shoot you. Either that, or just hide in general and wait till said Hornet retargets to another enemy, than pop out and shoot them.

Unlike Hopper, Hornet's overdrive allows it's enemies to still fight back. Whether or not they get one-shot depends on their remaining health and the hull they are using. The only turrets that have the guaranteed potential (with the double damage effect) to one-shot medium hulls with Hornet's overdrive are Shaft, Magnum, and Railgun's Large Caliber Rounds alt. Most players I saw either used Railgun with some other alt (most notably Round Stabilization for some reason), or used one of the short-ranged turrets with Hornet. Shafts themselves are easy to avoid, and Magnums are inaccurate and easy to dodge, provided they are firing at you from a large distance.

 

[wolverine848 13,097]

6 hours ago, Tanker-Arthur said:

Because not everyone uses double damage with the overdrive. Usually, the repair kit helps you survive one extra Thunder hit (for example) in order to drive to safety.

Hornets have the lowest health in the game, so unless they were using a protection module against my turret, it's relatively easy to hide behind buildings and snipe them off before they can shoot you. Either that, or just hide in general and wait till said Hornet retargets to another enemy, than pop out and shoot them.

Unlike Hopper, Hornet's overdrive allows it's enemies to still fight back. Whether or not they get one-shot depends on their remaining health and the hull they are using. The only turrets that have the guaranteed potential (with the double damage effect) to one-shot medium hulls with Hornet's overdrive are Shaft, Magnum, and Railgun's Large Caliber Rounds alt. Most players I saw either used Railgun with some other alt (most notably Round Stabilization for some reason), or used one of the short-ranged turrets with Hornet. Shafts themselves are easy to avoid, and Magnums are inaccurate and easy to dodge, provided they are firing at you from a large distance.

 

Before hoppers came around hornets were running amok one-shotting targets up to medium hull with Magnum or LCR rail and DD.  Of course they would use DD when hitting shift - almost a waste of the OD if they don't. IMO > 75% of the hornet players combined DD with their OD.

And the majority of those in upper ranks also used Defender, so the "weak" hornet was not nearly as easy to kill as some suggest.  I think the introduction of Hopper has made a lot of players forget just how effective hornet was.  The emergence of a super-OP hull like Hopper should not diminish the OP-ness of what hornet was.  It it WAS more effective back before it was changed to have only 10 seconds of god_mode-on.

[Cabos 212]

On 1/23/2021 at 3:26 AM, Tanker-Arthur said:

Hornets have the lowest health in the game

Wrong, Hornets have ONE of the lowest health in the game, Hornets do not have the lowest health. All light hulls have the same amount of health, same with the other categories.

[yellowghetto 3,206]

On 1/21/2021 at 4:18 PM, DestrotankAI9 said:

Hey guys and gals,

I would like to make a suggestion to fix an obvious problem that is certain to rear its ugly head in future special events - Hoppers overdrive in special gold events.

Ever since Hoppers introduction I believe we have either had "explosive" gold events (such as Christmas and New Year) or we had events such as the Juggernaut - only mode. But we haven't seen what will happen with Hopper in "normal" gold drop events such as the one we had last year for April Fools day. We will have quite a few of these events coming up for Valentine's Day, Iron Days and April Fool's Day no doubt.

While Hoppers overdrive does not give it a particular advantage in "explosive" golds events, if golds drop in the normal way we will have exactly the same situation as before with Mammoth in explosive gold events - Hopper will be the ONLY viable hull, and everyone will either use Hopper or be unable to get golds in these events, such will be the massive advantage from its jumping and stunning overdrive.

Now obviously Hoppers overdrive should not be changed permanently - in regular gameplay - just for the purpose of these one - off events, and in order to balance it you would have to remove its jumping ability altogether - which is obviously not a viable solution. So, I propose 3 alternative solutions:

1) In special gold events, make it clear in the forum and in-game announcement that Hoppers overdrive will operate differently. In these events, make it that Hopper does not jump, it simply stuns and applies the burn effect to all tanks around it, but without the jumping component. This will still allow Hopper to be very viable, in fact perhaps even still the best choice - as it has a powerful instant stun and still has its ability to easily get on top of tanks, combined with its fast speed. But it will at least not jump, so other hulls will have some chance to get golds.

2) Disable all hull overdrives in non-explosive gold events. This is a possible solution - make it like PRO battles with overdrives disabled. This will give all hulls a chance to get golds, but it may be slightly less exciting and certain hulls such as Dictator will now have the advantage.

3) Make everyone's hull Hopper within the event - of the same modification level as their normal equipment and with their hull augment applicable to Hopper. This is another possible solution, but it would get a bit boring perhaps to have everyone using Hopper for all events - much less variety than these special DM modes have had in the past.

Overall either of these 3 options would be vastly superior to doing nothing. Without some changes (JUST for the special modes, that do not apply to the normal game) Hopper will totally dominate and ruin all non-explosive gold events in the future. My personal choice would be the first option - I think this would keep the "feel" of the normal game and the variety of different overdrives as we have had in gold events in the last year, while giving everyone a chance. However option 2) could also be fine.

Post your thoughts, and I thank you for your consideration of this suggestion.

Destrotank

what your idea should've been from the beginning (even though it is hopeless and even I do not agree) is to completely disable overdrives during golds :)