Why is it called DPS?

General Discussion
1

…in this forum all the time?

doesnt dps mean damage per second? i actually know the term DD = damage dealer. is it just something that grew over time and is now “just used” or am i wrong?

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2

Basically. It, as you noted, just means the heroes general role is to deal as much damage per second as they can.

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3

it’s been called DPS for over 20 years. The new generation of gamers call it DD.

Some of us olden folks are hard to break of old habits.

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4

Mainly because that is what their entire role is centered around, their damage. I mean calling them damage dealers makes the same amount of sense since every hero except Mercy (who can but doesn’t often) deals damage.

I would say they are called DPS because that what the focus of their role lies.

Tanks-tank, Healers-support, and damage dealers-dps

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Came from wow so I always call it just Damage or DPS. DD sounds like the sister of a boy genius with a secret laboratory.

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6

This thread is the first time I’ve ever heard DD used for anything other than cup sizes.

What “new generation” of gamers are we talking about? Young kids or really young kids? (Read: high schoolers, anyone huffing Juul, respectively)

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7

Yes

:+1:

/20characters…

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8

well… im from 1989 and grew up playing computer games, wouldnt call me young kid anymore tbh :smiley:
for me the term dd always was damage dealer since wow and dps was damage per second if one talked about the ouput of a dd.
other games like classic shooters didnt require that term back in time

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9

It’s the fact that when doing comparisons and analysis for any game that’s how relative damage power is ranked. It’s been like that for forever.

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Nah its to get kills because just dealing damage just feeds healer ultimates (as long as they have competent healers) but that’s also half right and half wrong because assists exist etc but you get the idea.

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Interestingly, I’m also from 1989 and always called it DPS. In my case, this is from World of Warcraft, since you would queue for a dungeon as either a Tank, a Healer, or a DPS. I’ve personally never once called them DD or heard them referred to as DD.

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12

maybe its a question of where you are from. i used “dd” mainly in warcraft 2 or 3 and wow of course but usually played on european or even german servers. there dd was the common term for damage dealers (rogue, mage, …) who dealt xyz dps in a certain dungeon or stuff like that :slight_smile:

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Ah, I think that must be it. I always played on US servers (specifically West-Coast).

So I guess it’s a regional thing! Learn something new every day :slight_smile:

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It wasn’t originally defined as Damage Per Second.

It was originally defined as Damage Per Strike.

Every Damage dealer is a DPS, and every DPS class is a damage dealer.

It’s not wrong either way, just odd for us olden people who grew up with DPS being damage dealers and not actually spelling it out.

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15

didnt knew that in turn. :smiley:

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16

It developed as a term by habit. Someone started it and everyone else followed.

17

“Now you know and knowing is 1/2 the battle.” -GI Joe

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18

Well, DPS is the term that I just always used, and everyone around me always used.

When I think of “DD”, I don’t think of “damage dealer”, I think of “designated driver”. :joy:

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19

i will become a true dps some day :upside_down_face:

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20

We support acti-blizz so I think we work for Cobra.

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