Ranked Battle (Splat Zones, Tower Control and Rainmaker) Discussion

[XenoMole]

Something that may interest you.
Playing ranked, rank B- at the time, Port Mackerel, Neither team held both points at anyone time, goes to results, my team wins with 1 point.
I thought there'd at least be some sort of tie break system but apparently it's just random who wins in these situations.

 

[Cthulhu]

I dislike splat zones. It's too luck based with the random teams, and the only way to carry a team is to use a boring load out that everyone uses. I wanna use a charger, but without half decent players on your team you just get wrecked

 

[SGM]

HOW TO PLAY SPLAT ZONES

Step 1: get lucky
congrats you did it

 

[Mayday]

Feel like I'm going to be done with Ranked after I hit A. Random teams + no communication + no teamwork + consistently getting matched with the worst people from the last round = frustrating

EDIT: Nevermind. Ending at A-. Played a match where my entire team kept super jumping to a beacon right in front of their entire team. Lost a 20 point lead in the last 10 seconds because of it

 

[Mrwhatzitooya]

About the knock out point, its either that or the people you getting (randomly) match up with are too incompetent to actually do anything.

Like the suicide conga that @Mrwhatzitooya mentioned.

Too right! One match today we lost... I had 12 kills (Splatterscope), had been painting the turf like mad and the rest of them either died or just ran around the map -.- Then you get these really good teams. I remember one where we all kept giving out the Nice/Booyah call every couple of seconds because somebody was always doing something useful xD

 

[D3RK]

Splatoon staff: How can we make the worst ranked mode possible? Not just bad, it has to be terrible. Any suggestions?
No communication unless come on and boo-ya secretly mean 50 different things all at once.
No friends and random teams
Not ranked on how you personally performed but by your entire team. Enjoy all those terrible teams boys and girls, they are going to cost you quite a lot of points and de-ranks.
If our servers screw up we are gonna dock you -10 points. Please understand.
Every time the opponent breaks the circle you now have to spend even longer to win thanks to this cool time buffer!
Overtime even if you are 50+ points behind because why not. We are already holding your hand by adding time each time you break the ring when you are behind.
Skatepark... we need to put 2 squares each 2 seconds away from spawn so you can endlessly charge at them! Super fun!
When you lose you get absolutely nothing points wise.
Oh you de-ranked by 10 points? Now you need 30 just to get back up there buddy! (at least they give you a 30 point buffer after ranking I guess)
Occasionally wins will only give you 6-8 points and losses give 12 based on the ranks in the room. Thanks for punishing me even more for your random matchmaking I guess.

Ranked is honestly a load of bs. If it was not the best way to get money for re-rolling gear I wouldn't play it. August will hopefully make this a lot more enjoyable...

 

[Trieste Sp]

finally someone that isnt retarded. YES BOTH gamemodes lack team cordination etc cuz of no party system. But then again as said 3-6 times already, how can a little box require more skill to protect than more than 50% of the map, since the area to protect is soooo small it will make protecting it super easy since there are only a few ways to get there since all the maps are small. So if you are not retarded it will be easy to set up a strat to get there fast and lock the area cuz of the few ways to actuly get there.

while in turf u have to protect almost the whole map and there will therefore be more ways to break in and harder to protect your ink. And a singel inkstrike does not matter if u actuly have enough controll over the map.

and im only saying it shouldnt be a ranked game mode, thats all.

Please don't resort to name calling. We're a community so let's try and keep it civil.

 

[WaifuRaccoonBL]

Man so much negativity.

I love splat zones. I was uncomfortable with it at first, but like the motion controls, I got used to it, and found the appeal.

Splat zones main draw as oppose to Turf War is how intense it can get. Stalemates, Clutch plays, that feeling when you secure a zone after you've been put under constant pressure. Not to mention the feeling of winning when your opponents are in the lead, but you manage to take it from them during over time.

Don't even understand where the hate is coming from for any of the stages.

Urchin underpass: Has a very interesting dynamic with the splat zone being slightly below ground level. (Though probably my personal least favorite map, though I just dislike it in general).
Arowana Mall: Insane fire fights, a very huge need to pay attention, lots of ways to backstab your opponent.
Walleye: Basically kill each other the level. One giant straight pathway means there are little places to hide. Have to constantly be creative.
Blackbelly: Probably the most intense out of all of them due to the constant stalemates. When this game becomes competitive, this will be the stage people will want to go to. (Well, unless more multiple zone maps are made). The constant stalemates show very large competitive play as it shows how well you are at being offensive or defensive.
Port:...Haven't played actually...

Some other tidbits.

Voice chat: Still don't care. Wouldn't turn it on even with. With random strangers I honestly doubt how well it will help, especially if playing with people who don't know lingo, or are just kids which is what this game is marketed for. Even though it probably should still be an option, I'm telling you now you won't magically be be the best even if it is there. I mean, who even knows if they people you need to communicate the most to, (like say someone who thinks splat zone is turf war), even has voice chat on themselves.

Rank: You shouldn't care about it. All it really affects is how much points you get and who you are matched with. I mean, just because you have an A rank doesn't really prove anything. Only being on competitive teams and winning actual tournaments will prove things. It should be treated like for glory. A mode you go to when you need a quick match that is more up to competitive standards. (Granted, in this case we don't know what the competitive standard is). But hey, can't force you to not care.

 

[Funen1]

@WaifuRaccoonBL I had my first experiences with Port Mackerel in Splat Zones tonight, and already I can say that this map is right up there in intensity with Blackbelly Skatepark. Two zones to capture, but they're much farther apart compared to Blackbelly, meaning you have to have a solid grasp of when to push through the center vs. falling back to defend. Kinda like Blackbelly like you said, but the distance adds another element to it. Generally, teams that are able to bring the timer all the way down to 0 find ways to defend the area around the "opponent's" zone, and it can get tough to break through that if you're not able to surprise them, but that's how I think it should be tbh. Knowing how to navigate the corridors is also pretty rewarding - thankfully the forklifts are absent in Splat Zones, allowing you to use the whole field. I'm steadily warming up to this stage in Ranked myself.

And you're definitely right about how we should approach Ranked. I'm desperately trying to shed any negative reactions I make to whatever stuff happens, since I know how unhealthy that kind of mindset can get over time. Not that I'm claiming it's easy, especially since I don't consider myself an expert at any shooter, let alone this one, but not holding myself to "unrealistic" or flat-out unreliable standards like this in-game rank really lets me focus more on what I can control. I certainly encourage others to try it out. ;)

 

[CyberHyperPhoenix]

Man so much negativity.

I love splat zones. I was uncomfortable with it at first, but like the motion controls, I got used to it, and found the appeal.

Splat zones main draw as oppose to Turf War is how intense it can get. Stalemates, Clutch plays, that feeling when you secure a zone after you've been put under constant pressure. Not to mention the feeling of winning when your opponents are in the lead, but you manage to take it from them during over time.

Don't even understand where the hate is coming from for any of the stages.

Urchin underpass: Has a very interesting dynamic with the splat zone being slightly below ground level. (Though probably my personal least favorite map, though I just dislike it in general).
Arowana Mall: Insane fire fights, a very huge need to pay attention, lots of ways to backstab your opponent.
Walleye: Basically kill each other the level. One giant straight pathway means there are little places to hide. Have to constantly be creative.
Blackbelly: Probably the most intense out of all of them due to the constant stalemates. When this game becomes competitive, this will be the stage people will want to go to. (Well, unless more multiple zone maps are made). The constant stalemates show very large competitive play as it shows how well you are at being offensive or defensive.
Port:...Haven't played actually...

Some other tidbits.

Voice chat: Still don't care. Wouldn't turn it on even with. With random strangers I honestly doubt how well it will help, especially if playing with people who don't know lingo, or are just kids which is what this game is marketed for. Even though it probably should still be an option, I'm telling you now you won't magically be be the best even if it is there. I mean, who even knows if they people you need to communicate the most to, (like say someone who thinks splat zone is turf war), even has voice chat on themselves.

Rank: You shouldn't care about it. All it really affects is how much points you get and who you are matched with. I mean, just because you have an A rank doesn't really prove anything. Only being on competitive teams and winning actual tournaments will prove things. It should be treated like for glory. A mode you go to when you need a quick match that is more up to competitive standards. (Granted, in this case we don't know what the competitive standard is). But hey, can't force you to not care.

I should probably elaborate, I don't hate Splat Zones as a gamemode, far from it actually.

Its just some of the ways that ranked is set up is what really bugs me about the mode itself.

The only reason I really don't like Arowana Mall on Splat Zones is simply because of the tiny splat zone itself, otherwise its a fun map.

 

[Cardon]

After playing a bit more of this mode yesterday I can say that the intense corridor firefights in Port Mackerel are one of my favorite game moments.

Avoiding Seekers in those corridors is hell, tho.

 

[missingno]

I'm finding a mix of people that don't like it when the Splat Zone maps go into stalemate. But shouldn't we consider it a design flaw if a map's too easily held? It'd imply the map inherently favors defensive play--that once a team's held onto the contested zone, the game's already stacked against the other team. It might be my bias, but the marginal wins on Splat Zone stalemates seem more accurate as an expression of the teams' comparative average skill level, whereas a knockout feels more like we're fighting the map design.

Well the way the timer is designed to keep adding penalties every time the zone changes hands requires you to be able to hold it for a long time at once. It's a clear contradiction between how the mode is designed and what these maps do to it.

Also, there's a big difference between a match feeling close because both teams are scoring a lot and one where both teams can't score anything. The latter is what we have here, and it's just so frustrating knowing that you can't get anywhere because the game is practically rigged to make scoring impossible.

 

[obscurica]

After playing a bit more of this mode yesterday I can say that the intense corridor firefights in Port Mackerel are one of my favorite game moments.

Avoiding Seekers in those corridors is hell, tho.

Basically why I always make sure to paint the lateral alleys.

 

[Bisquid]

Don't know if this has been mentioned yet, but when the enemy team has control of the zone(s), your team's special meter charges automatically. So a good strategy might be to just play it safe for a while and charge a special to get back in the game.

 

[Starbound]

Really curious how the Ink Brush will do in ranked battle. It's a super fast weapon which is unique for rollers and it also looks like it might have some range on it. The biggest deal is the Sprinkler and Inkstrike it comes with, which (I think) is a unique combination to it. Inkstrike is far and away the best special for splat zones and Sprinkler is one of the best subs for splat zones too.

 

[The ΩS]

@Starbound In one of my ranked matches, a Inkbrush user was flickering ink on a nearby splat zone that cover some decent ground. If he had better backup, then we would lose that point a lot more often. Seems like it does well from above to cover zones below.

 

[flc]

Inkstrike is far and away the best special for splat zones

it's good but it's absolutely NOT "far and away the best".

echolocator, inkzooka, bubbler, and kraken are all better either because they're reliable or because they guarantee kills or safe pushes. inkstrike usually just makes people get annoyed for a bit, except when you use it to start a push, which the wail is better for on most maps.

 

[TheMH]

Depends on the map and the size of the zone(s). On Arowana Mall Inkstrike is huge, while on Port Mackarel it won't help you much.

 

[Boidoh]

I love Port Makcarel because of the double zones. I feel it requires a little more strategy than just charging into the zone. You can have a guy or two guarding your zone, while you send some others to attack the opposing zone. It's my favorite Splat Zone map, we need more of those like that. On the other hand, Blackbelly Skatepark sucks. I hate it. It's my most hated alongside Urchin Underpass. Terrible maps for Splatterscope users.

Arowana Mall is great for Splatterscope users since there is a small ledge area near your base that the enemy cannot access easy, and you can easily quick scope everyone else.

Also, anybody else at B- and keeps getting stuck with literally ONLY Japense players? I can't even tell them apart....

 

[Blatikin]

I have to say that every map sucks in this mode except Walleye Warehouse and Blackbelly Skatepark. The only two maps that are decently open maps. Any other map and it practically turns into a corridor shooter with choke points. How is that even fun?? Sure you can use teamwork and strategy to get past but even with two evenly matched teams it still becomes a chore getting past. And it's not even fun when you're winning because all you have to do is hold those choke points and you're okay, no variety in gameplay. Whats the point of the creativity of squid from when you're confined to such small areas.

I remember once during walleye warehouse I flanked and took out an entire team because they had tunnel vision and only focused looking ahead. And if they did see me then that would been great, cause it would of been more fun that way.. I really hope any new maps have a little more variety in getting to zones.