I’m tired of redoing Strongholds every season just to check something off. It’s redundant gameplay that becomes extremely repetitive and provides nothing to the seasonal experience other than time gating.
If you want to require these to still be completed each season, do something with them each season! Tie them into the season.
Something I’ve been waiting for is for seasons to completely change the way Sanctuary looks, with stuff overgrowing in places, enemies affected by the season (which they’ve done but haven’t since, what, S2?)
Seasons need to have a little more “oomph” to 'em, for a lack of a better term. Right now, the devs have used Seasons to introduce new endgame activities, and essentially used the entire first year to test out different ideas (really hated being a guinea pig for the record). And the last two seasons have been to essentially fix the itemization, while introducing two new endgame activities. Seasons need to be more than just new items and a game mode.
Well this is the state of the game. They didn’t know how to make a game when they launched… then they spent too long trying to tell us we were having fun wrong and what we should be excited about. Now they’re finally getting stuff done that we shouldn’t have had to tell them about.
So we didn’t get meaningful game mechanics in S4 and S5. Instead we got meaningful base game upgrades. They apparently don’t have the manpower to do both. Base game upgrades are more important. Maybe we’ll start getting real seasons again next year.
Also, S3 affected Sanctuary with different monsters and map changes.
Yes, I understand that 100%. I’m glad they’re making the changes they are making. This is just feedback. I hope they are already aware of this anyway and perhaps we’ll see changes in S6. But it’s always good to leave feedback, regardless of the feedback. Even if it sounds dumb, or something they already have planned. It gives them the opportunity to possibly see it, say “ok, that makes sense” or “yeah, we already have that planned” or even “nah, that doesn’t work for our game.”
So we’re on the same page. I just want them to know we’re looking for a little more spiciness in Seasons.
I barely bother with them anymore. Didn’t do them all last season either. If I get a sigil that needs that stronghold then it just gets deleted. I do some of them but they are pointless now after a year of doing them.
If they at least made it account wide per season then I might do them but I usually make at least 3 characters per season. I can’t be bothered to repeat something so useless.
Personally, I would be content if I only needed to do them on my first seasonal character.
Alternatively, When you create your character and elect to do seasonal, also include a selection indicating if you would like to opt out of unlocking Strongholds.
I don’t share most of your thought here. I am content overall.
BUT back to strongholds… getting very tired of them (although the original idea/story of them was great) but… really? EVERY character I make in a season?? Starting to lose interest in multiple seasonal characters because of stuff like this. Assuming they desire lengthened player engagement, please do something here already.
I think that what I meant by Seasons need a little more oomph is that it’s missing something to keep players engaged beyond the first week. Something like their events, but more events. I personally would like to see a new event every 2 or 3 weeks, rather than once a month.
They can give us new transmogs, and/or items from these events, that gives players a new carrot to chase every few weeks.
Season 5 has been great, don’t get me wrong. I’ve enjoyed the amount of content they’ve provided. But I’ll be done with it in a week or two. Then it’s just leveling characters.
I actually really enjoyed the quest line for this season, and was just thinking it would be cool if we saw those characters again a few times throughout the season with smaller quest lines, and then get some little items to chase in an event. Nothing huge, just something fresh every few weeks.
Strongholds are definitely pointless right now. Rather than eliminate the mechanic, they may as well use it. When I think of a stronghold, I think of a seat of power for an armed force. Strongholds should have been tied to legion events, have legion events spawn from strongholds and invade zones with large armies. If the stronghold goes unconquered for too long, the military spreads and gains in power/numbers.
Turn it into a player world cooperation sort of deal, basically
i don’t rly care about strongholds, but it pissing me off when i leveling my glyphs and can’t get to a certain dungeon cuz it’s locked behing stronghold.
I think the open world needs more life. Something like 20% extra gold when dominating a fortress in that region. I like making fortresses, some are beautiful and fun but normally we are 20 levels above the monsters. Which leaves the fortress boring and unchallenging.
I totally understand and agree. We were used as a test for them to ultimately make a copy of D3, not wanting to get into the merits of whether D3 is good or bad (it’s good in its own way, but I don’t want to pay for a copy).
The last two seasons were an attempt to improve itemization, and although the new features were good, I think they need to be improved further. Magic and rare items need to be relevant, and legendary items need to have more impact.
The fortresses were cool at the launch of the game, as were the renown and the altars, but they need to be better used.
They could be an endgame system where we farm materials to improve them and make them stronger to defend against demon attacks, and at the end of each well-defended attack, we receive the loot, for example.
Renown could also be reused. It’s very discouraging to see that something was put into the game and never used again.
I get it but we differ here a bit. The fun for me in a season is spawning multiple characters to try out different things with the new dynamics handed to us. Personally, I have yet to ever play an ARPG in which I found the story to be well written, etc. so I never expect much in that department.
Currently, they keep tweaking things: gear/skills/etc until we are sufficiently happy with the base of things. My enjoyment is in seeing what I can make of all this.
I continue to have zero interest in characters, etc because they never garnered my interest in the first place.
While I’m rambling : CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT 101: “Oh it’s my fault all this happened”, I’m soooo responsible" is lazy writing. That attitude=Narcissism as one only feels that way if they overly put themselves at the center of the universe. OTHER people make choices, etc an have effects on things.
Strongholds are totally worthless unless you’re a Druid & have no choice. I heard a rumor, idr provenance, that they have plans for them.
Haven’t done strongholds since at least S2… sigils are a dime a dozen at some point. Not available for me because of stronghold? OH WELL, to dust with you.
it makes zero sense to not just roll them over as done after the first time you did them.
We cleared them, killed Lilith and the world has moved on, why do they reset?
If each season they were taken back by the seasonal theme it would make sense, but otherwise there is no reason to not make them completed when you skip the story and have cleared then once.
MMM I just can’t share that attitude but I’m a bit OCD. I MUST be able whatever nightmare sigil I get. Once I’m on seasonal character 2 or 3, that attitude starts going out the window though.
They started addressing things a LOT faster once Last Epoch came out. CATCH UP HERE.