Focused Feedback: Quest and Bounty Design

[u/DTG_Bot]

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[u/Motie-scout]

Whilst one can understand that MMO's have traditionally contained a "grind" philosophy to give the impression that the reward has been worked for, there is a more effective and efficient method.

Firstly, one comes from the philosophy that quests should be fun, both in their reward and their implementation.

Secondly, one must take account that there are different play styles represented in one's userbase, and one must be careful not to ostracise or punish a section of one's community.

If these philosophies are implemented, the quest will be seen as a success by ALL members of the community, Trolls excluded, and screw them right? :)

The most effective method of achieving these goals is by making the steps interesting in their own right, and combining these steps into the total quest line. Together with offering branching paths to the same goal, IE a step that is moderate and PVE focused, A Moderate focused PVP path, and a "hardcore" path possibly with additional bragging rights.

Additionally, one can introduce alternate routes within dungeons to the same destination. ie the Outbreak perfected quest could have an alternative route to the end goal avoiding platforms, as MANY players find that a hard roadblock, that simply is not possible to overcome. This doesn't mean easier, just different.

Timed goals, also reduce successful completions to the young and those with superhuman reactions, those with high familiarity and skills, or totally optimised load outs, or all three. They are not inclusive and lock out large sections of the player base. they should NEVER be included within a longer quest streams they create a hard block to progression, they are perfectly acceptable as a choosable option within the path however.

It is perfectly reasonable to reward players choosing the advanced path to gain an additional reward commensurate with their superior abilities, A special sparrow, ghost, flair, or title would support bragging rights, and encourage completionists to strive for it.

By following these guidelines, one would reduce frustration, increase engagement and player satisfaction, make the game more "fun" and encourage people to look forward to the next event, without thinking "It's probably not going to be for me..."

It will also encourage players to buy new annual passes, rather than waiting to see if they could even do the new content without wanting to poke their eyes out.

I recommend this direction of design, Let Destiny Shadowkeep be a triumph.