10-09-2007, 05:06 AM
In AC1, bipeds were definitely the easiest to use. RJs were pretty good too, and I know this because my most competitive MOA design was a RJ. I don't really know how Quads fared then because I was too ignorant to even care about Quads back then. As for the tanks, yeah they most probably didn't stand a chance now that I think of it. Blades ripped them to shreds aside from them not having anything to guard against missiles other than the core's MG Response (assuming the core did have CAMS in the first place).
In AC2, bipeds and RJs are still particularly good. At least in AA, bipeds have some of the lowest turning speeds in the game. It was a good move in my opinion, as it gave bipeds a distinct disadvantage. Quads look good to me so far (or maybe I should say "Quad," as only one Quad leg part seems to be attractive). And with GL available to them, are definitely up there with bipeds in this game (assuming GL is legal. Is it?). Tanks also seem very viable, at least on paper. They have excellent turning speed with an excellent turn-booster available for added security. The newly introduced OB also allows them to move away from those that try to get behind them. Decoys and CAMS also work great. And again, with GL on the back of a tank, everything will be a-okay. I'm just not sure how effective armor is in AA though. So on paper, based on my limited AA experience, those four leg types seem viable, although there simply aren't enough options for tanks and quads as there are for bipeds. In AC2, OB was king. In AA though, the newly introduced discharge heat really toned OB down.
AC3 was the game that got me hooked to AC. It introduced one part that changed AC forever (at least in my opinion): THE HOWITZER. Yep. Because of that part, I haven't equipped blades on my ACs since. It was like a foreshadowing of things to come. The presence of OP-Intensify hampered my (and several other people's) growth.
Now SL was the game where I stopped being a noob. I really LEARNED the game for the first time because for so long, I had been playing AC only paying attention to the weight of a part and the maximum capacity of my legs. This time, I learned what ALL the stats did. I finally learned to design properly. I hadn't been going to AC forums yet when I was getting good with SL so things took time but I still grew at a steady pace. I was really happy with the addition of left hand rifles but when I used them, I merely tapped onto the circle button every once in a while and didn't get the most of it. Eventually, maitreya, whom I was playing against, started shooting both his right and left guns simultaneously at me and I got totally owned. We instinctively new then that that was the direction to take with SL. And with OB heat not being as big a deal as in AA, it was obvious that OB was king once again. Bipeds were obviously the best choice in this game. Some RJs were also top-tier too. I hadn't been playing with Quads yet back then so I can't really comment. Tanks... well they were viable if one had the necessary OB jousting skills (and having LOTS of armor of course). So... yeah in SL, you had these auto-staples: 008 core, hadro arms, biped/rj legs, SRA02 fcs, Dual rifles/MG-800. It was probably not the most balanced of the AC games but it was definitely one of the most fun for me.
Now Nexus... wow it probably had even more auto-staple parts than SL. CICADA2, E2/UA, XS arms, DINGO2/COUGAR2/LHT, Dual Wyrm/Dual M2, Dual Missile+extenions/Dual GLL. Yep. That pretty much constitutes all the useful external parts in Nexus. And I did that out of memory, which is a testament to how memorable NX's brokeness was. -_- I dropped NX shortly after.
Didn't play Ninebreaker.
Now LR... yeah I think FROM finally got it right this time. It still isn't perfect but I can say that it's probably their best product so far. There are probably more bannable parts than the previous games (as seen in our PACT rules) BUT there are far also far more usable parts than in any AC game before it. Numerous core types to choose from. Numerous competitive weapons. Actual variations in internals (in other AC games, the gen with the highest output was good enough for everything). Clearly defined roles for each leg type. Bipeds and quads however are definitely top tier although RJs and Tanks are still a very close 2nd tier and are just as viable in the hands of a specialist in my opinion. In LR, it's clear that accuracy is most important. Defense is also valuable. BUT! -and this is where LR shines- Creativity is still rewarded even on a competitive level.
Can't comment on AC4 as I have not played it. And based on feedback from others, I don't even want to play it.
*I'm not even considering hovers in any of the AC games. They simply don't seem to be for competitive use. -_- IMO, their only use is for missions with water involved. They just don't seem to be as well thought out as the other leg sets.
Conclusion: Looking back at everything I wrote, it is clear that biped will always be a prime choice. So... to answer your question, it is most likely that AC is indeed a game for bipeds. However, I wouldn't love AC as much if it didn't have the other leg types to spice things up. Now if only they'd make hovers actually useful.
As I've said before, I wish AC was a patchable PC game that the developer could periodically tweak. This is because it is simply IMPOSSIBLE for a game as technical as AC to ever be 100% or even just 75% balanced upon release unless it goes through a really long beta testing or something like that.
In AC2, bipeds and RJs are still particularly good. At least in AA, bipeds have some of the lowest turning speeds in the game. It was a good move in my opinion, as it gave bipeds a distinct disadvantage. Quads look good to me so far (or maybe I should say "Quad," as only one Quad leg part seems to be attractive). And with GL available to them, are definitely up there with bipeds in this game (assuming GL is legal. Is it?). Tanks also seem very viable, at least on paper. They have excellent turning speed with an excellent turn-booster available for added security. The newly introduced OB also allows them to move away from those that try to get behind them. Decoys and CAMS also work great. And again, with GL on the back of a tank, everything will be a-okay. I'm just not sure how effective armor is in AA though. So on paper, based on my limited AA experience, those four leg types seem viable, although there simply aren't enough options for tanks and quads as there are for bipeds. In AC2, OB was king. In AA though, the newly introduced discharge heat really toned OB down.
AC3 was the game that got me hooked to AC. It introduced one part that changed AC forever (at least in my opinion): THE HOWITZER. Yep. Because of that part, I haven't equipped blades on my ACs since. It was like a foreshadowing of things to come. The presence of OP-Intensify hampered my (and several other people's) growth.
Now SL was the game where I stopped being a noob. I really LEARNED the game for the first time because for so long, I had been playing AC only paying attention to the weight of a part and the maximum capacity of my legs. This time, I learned what ALL the stats did. I finally learned to design properly. I hadn't been going to AC forums yet when I was getting good with SL so things took time but I still grew at a steady pace. I was really happy with the addition of left hand rifles but when I used them, I merely tapped onto the circle button every once in a while and didn't get the most of it. Eventually, maitreya, whom I was playing against, started shooting both his right and left guns simultaneously at me and I got totally owned. We instinctively new then that that was the direction to take with SL. And with OB heat not being as big a deal as in AA, it was obvious that OB was king once again. Bipeds were obviously the best choice in this game. Some RJs were also top-tier too. I hadn't been playing with Quads yet back then so I can't really comment. Tanks... well they were viable if one had the necessary OB jousting skills (and having LOTS of armor of course). So... yeah in SL, you had these auto-staples: 008 core, hadro arms, biped/rj legs, SRA02 fcs, Dual rifles/MG-800. It was probably not the most balanced of the AC games but it was definitely one of the most fun for me.
Now Nexus... wow it probably had even more auto-staple parts than SL. CICADA2, E2/UA, XS arms, DINGO2/COUGAR2/LHT, Dual Wyrm/Dual M2, Dual Missile+extenions/Dual GLL. Yep. That pretty much constitutes all the useful external parts in Nexus. And I did that out of memory, which is a testament to how memorable NX's brokeness was. -_- I dropped NX shortly after.
Didn't play Ninebreaker.
Now LR... yeah I think FROM finally got it right this time. It still isn't perfect but I can say that it's probably their best product so far. There are probably more bannable parts than the previous games (as seen in our PACT rules) BUT there are far also far more usable parts than in any AC game before it. Numerous core types to choose from. Numerous competitive weapons. Actual variations in internals (in other AC games, the gen with the highest output was good enough for everything). Clearly defined roles for each leg type. Bipeds and quads however are definitely top tier although RJs and Tanks are still a very close 2nd tier and are just as viable in the hands of a specialist in my opinion. In LR, it's clear that accuracy is most important. Defense is also valuable. BUT! -and this is where LR shines- Creativity is still rewarded even on a competitive level.
Can't comment on AC4 as I have not played it. And based on feedback from others, I don't even want to play it.
*I'm not even considering hovers in any of the AC games. They simply don't seem to be for competitive use. -_- IMO, their only use is for missions with water involved. They just don't seem to be as well thought out as the other leg sets.
Conclusion: Looking back at everything I wrote, it is clear that biped will always be a prime choice. So... to answer your question, it is most likely that AC is indeed a game for bipeds. However, I wouldn't love AC as much if it didn't have the other leg types to spice things up. Now if only they'd make hovers actually useful.
As I've said before, I wish AC was a patchable PC game that the developer could periodically tweak. This is because it is simply IMPOSSIBLE for a game as technical as AC to ever be 100% or even just 75% balanced upon release unless it goes through a really long beta testing or something like that.
