Guild Wars 2 Guru: John Smith outlines discussion of RNG changes

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John Smith outlines discussion of RNG changes

As Arenanet is gearing up for the continuation of season 2 of the Living Story, talks on the forums are focusing on the CDI.  John Smith has outlined two ongoing ideas in both topics and inside the studio doors.  Be sure to voice your views and opinions in the thread on the official forums.

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Here’s the premise. RNG is evenly distributed on aggregate. On an individual level this means that while almost everyone falls into a reasonable range in the middle, there are outliers on each side of the distribution that are either highly rewarded or not rewarded at all.

These individuals become sample cases and spotlights for experiences that maybe shouldn’t exist.

We do need to be very careful about ideas that flatten the experience entirely as that quickly becomes not fun at all.

There are two concepts that have been discussed in the other thread and in the studio that I’ll briefly summarize.

1. Use a specifically non-random NG. The NRNG functions similarly to a RNG, but has characteristics that either squish the distribution so that outliers exist much less or specifically manipulate a player’s experience for loot in a more complicated way that makes it feel rewarding.

2. Implement measures that counteract low-end outlier behavior inside of game design. This would be a system that is something like: If player hasn’t received a rare drop in X time send them Y tickets for random drops.

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Benjamin Foghladha
Community Manager, SanctumofRall.com
Founder and Activities Director, The Gaiscioch Family [GSCH]