Some feedback about Monolith progression, I’ll split this feedback up into a couple of different posts because otherwise, it will be way too long.
MONOLITH OBJECTIVES
Each portal you open has an objective that is clear from the start of the monolith, and the rewards from the end/boss are always significantly more exciting than what you might get from actually killing monsters. This encourages people to rush to the objective, which doesn’t create any sense of attachment to a zone. Monoliths need to be fun to clear, and right now I think most of the draw comes from completing a zone objective and progressing. This is good in its own right, but I feel like it’s a little too one-dimensional of a reward system. It feels almost more like a spreadsheet than an experience.
THE PROBLEM
Monolith objectives do not appeal to a wide enough number of core ARPG progression fundamentals, making echoes too simple and unengaging. Players want to rush to the end rather than completing zones, which leads to a detached and hollow feeling towards echoes.
IDEAS AND POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS
EVENTS
Tileset/Echo specific events, like invasions, side-areas with good loot/chests, etc. Using random % chance to spawn certain exciting content, similar to how PoE has a random chance to spawn legions, abyss, blight, etc.
OBJECTIVE OVERHAUL
The build-up to these objectives needs to be a little more exciting. If it’s “kill monsters to reveal boss location”, maybe you’re getting taunting voice lines from the mini-boss at the end the entire time, maybe he’s adding random spawns of themed monsters on you throughout the echo, and after a certain amount of kills he spawns on you and it’s a more engaging fight. These objectives should be a very distinct switch flip from the normal slaughtering of monsters, yet they’re almost always tossed in randomly throughout the echo. I want an arena for the boss, I want an area transition for the endless-wave altars, I want some sort of identity to the spires, I don’t want to chase down patrolling rares. Maybe instead of 3 small random spires, you enter an arena and the spire is lagon-sized and more of a boss fight, where it spawns in themed waves of mobs.
TIE TIMELINES IN WITH THE BOSS
Lagon timeline should probably have a far higher % chance to spawn coral/sea tilesets and monsters. Why isn’t Lagon randomly spawning sea monsters and taunting me throughout the timelines as I’m working towards killing him? The progression of building stability, then suddenly choosing to do some random quests leading up to a boss feels very disjointed and disconnected. It feels arbitrary, like a fetch quest, as opposed to being this interwoven thing that makes me feel more invested. I don’t feel any attachment or desire to kill this boss, other than to just progress to the next timeline.
KEEP ME IN THE ECHO TO GIVE ME MY REWARDS
It feels disconnected to leave an echo to get my reward. This gives ALL of the identity of the echo to the rewards because that’s what you’re pushing for anyways. I’m more attached to the chest and floaty thing I break at the “End of Time” zone than the objective and echo I just completed. It feels like the echo is me getting in my car and the rewards at the end are the destination after the drive. This entire concept of completing something and getting loot is so important in ARPGs. Think about how dungeons/raids traditionally work. You do the hard thing (kill a boss), you get the boss’s loot, and if there are additional rewards they’re typically in some exciting shiny chest at the end of the dungeon after the boss. The chest isn’t waiting for you in town after you get back. It feels somewhat like all of the monolith-related systems are very individual pieces that were put into the same system without really integrating them with one another.
BETTER SWITCH FLIP ON COMPLETING OBJECTIVES
Right now completing objectives doesn’t feel very exciting. Part of this is due to the rewards being disconnected from the echo itself, but also I think the message and portal out system could use a little bit of work and key sound/visual design updates. It’s a little anti-climatic to kill a rare monster and just get a message that I can portal out. This mechanic needs a “switch flip” of progression that makes you feel like you’ve completed something, and right now it just feels empty. I will discuss progression in part 2.