The Dead(er) Sea: Saltiest Catch

[Dark Sage Walker]

It both has a weaker special and a far worse sub weapon to work with.

No one is going to argue that the Sprinkler got nerfed into oblivion. So sad when there are so many other things that actually deserve to be leveled out. Who was out there complaining about the Sprinkler? Was it really such a horrible thing to come across that they decided that they were going to leave it in the game but basically make it so that it would be non existent? This is a cruel injustice that cannot stand!

On the other hand, I do like the Ink Storm. The key to using the Ink Storm is to drop the rain cloud in proper places. Use it to make a choke point that much more dangerous for the enemy to be in. The bridge in The Reef comes to mind. Use it to cut off a route that you don't want the enemy to take to corral their movements and control the flow of battle more effectively. Use it when the enemy is pinned to prolong your control (and their suffering). It is a special that is designed with a control freak in mind, so I guess that would explain my usage of it. Definitely a special with my name written all over it! But I like the Baller too, so maybe I'm just weird.

 

[InklingJoe]

I'm half and half on this. The vBrella had the unfortunate honor of sharing Sprinkler with some weapons that were way to good at spamming specials. If I recall, sprinkler was nerfed so certain weapons would stop being 24/7 baller spam.

I still love inkstorm though. I get a respectable amount of splats with it. Throw it at the enemy teams escape routes, or right as they dive. It's useful in any mode, though I would concede an argument that people would rather rock bomb rush in splat zones.

Clash Blasters don't bother me much anymore. Not anymore than the Octobrush already did anyway. But, as a fellow Brella user, you should take into account that aiming brella and blaster is a little similar, so theirs some skill carry over.

 

[Elecmaw]

If they want to decrease the special spam, just increase the point requirement. It's that simple! It keeps the weapon in check while leaving the weaker weapons alone.

Ink Storm in it's current state is weaker than Splat Launcher, but Sprinkler was a far better fit for Brella than the nigh-useless Autobomb. So there was a legit choice of picking a safer option (vbrella) or a more aggressive one (sorella) and either one was valid.

Now with the sprinkler nerf, vbrella doesn't hold a candle to sorella. Storm still has solid synergy with the weapon itself, but Splat Launcher can aggressively claim the objective and while autos are garbo they at least still do something. Sprinkler now is just a method of throwing away 60% of your ink gauge.

But far more to the point, this game needs, needs less nerfs and more buffs. Luna is a particularly sad example, having more endlag and less range than the Blaster, yet it's not being adjusted in any meaningful way and just being dumped in the corner like a sad neglected child. Squeezer still can't ink anything, meaning it can't keep up with Forge. Undercover still has a wafer-thin shield that blasters can crush in one go.
Nerfing is how you create games where tiers end up dominating skill, because the weapons end up being so downplayed that no matter how good you get the learning curves end up being so flat you can't make up for the weapon's shortcomings.
But far more insulting is that there's actual interesting weapons hidden beneath this mess, but why bother when you can play vBlaster, turn off your brain and play better than the guy who pumped hundreds of hours of practice in a niche weapon?

 

[Cephalobro]

The main problem with the Clash Blaster is the fact that it has very little drawback and the fact that it's what makes it the main Blaster in the meta. I didn't think I had an easier time winning matches with any weapon I had not tried before than the Clash Blaster. An actual good weapon needs to have a learning curve of some kind, it's how the importance of skill works.

 

[Dark Sage Walker]

I share many opinions with @Elecmaw on this topic. I seem to recall that the Ink Storm also got nerfed in an update, but while this did something for the weapon it was intended to weaken it hit hard some of the weapons that made good use of it. The idea of nerfing things is a good one if they are broken, i.e. the Tri-Slosher. But if it isn't broken, then you don't need to fix it! The best way to balance the game is to strengthen the weaker things and make them more viable. As is, nerfing subs and specials just takes more weapons that didn't need to be killed and makes them completely obsolete while leaving things that were already strong and essentially making them stronger. That's ppart of the reason why I dislike the Sploosh-o-Matic so much. It has been more or less untouched since the launch of the game and has therefore been a continual recurring problem within the design space for me. It is the very definition of brain dead and yet continues to be one of the most popular choices because you can get more work done with this weapon while turning your brain off than you can while actually trying with another weapon. I am seeing that the same thing is being done with the Clash Blaster, and do I even need to mention the deceptive area of effect with Splashdown? There are lots of weapons that I love that are being scrapped in favor of leaving the current meta untouched. It's unfair and really disheartening at times. Nintendo needs to do something about this!

 

[NOICE]

@Dark Sage Walker the Splattershot Pro used to be my go-to weapon; it was never a great turfing weapon, but the awesomeness of the Ink Storm made up for it. Alas, it hasn't been the same ever since the nerf. Storm is definitely still a strong special, but there are many arguably better weapons (Zimi, perhaps?) to make use of it that render the Pro kinda useless now due to its crappy turfing. Come to think of it, it sometimes seems like Nintendo loves to punish weapons that get too good at turfing. The brella, for example, has had its main weapon turf coverage nerfed, then the storm nerfed, and now even the sprinkler nerfed. Rude.

Some weapons have definitely been greatly improved over time. Most dualies have received a ton of buffs and are so much more of a threat now than they once were. Even the dynamo roller has come a long way since 1.0. The Sploosh I think is ok where it is, although I very much understand your hatred for it :) It's such a short ranged weapon though, its speedy movement and quick TTK is really all it has going for it. I'm not sure what they could nerf about it that wouldn't instantly make it completely useless. Maybe slightly less turfing power, I suppose? Similar to how they nerfed the aerospray (which they later undid, HA!)...

As long as we're complaining about weapons, I'd like to once again express my hatred for standard blasters. They were buffed once (something like 15 frames faster movement while shooting?), began completely dominating, and have remained untouched ever since. Yes, they increased special requirement for vanilla's Splashdown recently, but the weapon itself remains mighty, and now we're just seeing tons of Custom Blasters instead. The problem is not specials IMO, it is that this weapon is TOO GOOD at killing. No other weapon lets you simply stand under a wall and absolutely obliterate the enemy by shooting in their general direction. Take the raised platform with the scoreboard in Goby Arena for example. I cannot believe how many times my team gets destroyed by a blaster who stands underneath and shoots in our vicinity. Two shots from that large blast radius will get you every time. I understand it's not an easy weapon to use, it's just that it's so fast now, it renders most other "slaying" weapons useless. If they want to keep weakening other weapons, I don't understand why they don't do anything to keep the blaster in check. Like, even increasing the immobile frames after shooting by ~8 frames seems like a reasonable way to even things out, yet still keep the weapon viable.

 

[Maave]

I'm tired of Splatfest / Turf War. Nintendo, please keep it to once a month.

 

[xXShadeXx]

I'm tired of the influx of Tenta Missiles and Dualie Squelchers I see during Splatfest. As well as I'm still salty that ranked gets the boot when splatfest happens. The only saving grace is salmon run.

 

[Cephalobro]

I'm honestly sick and tired of the influx of teammates who use short-ranged shooters like the Sploosh, granted. It's not as bad as last time.

 

[Ansible]

Guess I'll add one to the chain also: Charger (and even a few Heavy Splatling) teammates that anchor in one spot, and that spot is entirely safe while creating no form of pressure or initiative.

 

[Cephalobro]

I know this one was from the last time Salmonid Smokeyard was the stage for Salmon Run, but I just need to vent here. Who the heck decided was a good idea to have a stage in which it is essentially split when high tides happen? I mean sure, Lost Outpost is kind of annoying with an entire grated section. But really, if I had the power to remove any stage in existence, it would be Salmonid Smokeyard. Fittingly enough, it's where the high tides happen to me the most along with Grillers. Not to mention, Glowfly rounds are seriously annoying here too. The egg basket is too far into danger. And need I mention the mess it becomes when Flyfish and Stingers are around in high tides?

 

[xXShadeXx]

I'm honestly so freaking sick of tenta missiles. Like my god, they're more annoying than inkstrike. Like it honestly seems like most people's thoughts are, "Hm...what weapon has tenta missiles? What gear of mine have nothing but special charge up so I can spam it. Okay, now let me sit back, camp, and rarely engage in a fight so I can sit back and just spam all day." I don't care too much in turf war, but in rank? Are you freaking kidding me?

And don't even get me started on the matchmaker. "Okay, let's see. Let's have you go against...3 dualies and a tentatek, and let's put you with weapons that can't outrange/combat them well." "Okay let's see, let's have you go against...a weapon with bubble blower, bomb rush, and ink storm and pair you with weapons that aren't that great at inking." "Let's see, let me put you against people who are super coordinated, and give you teammates that all rush in and die one by one and tries no coordination whatsoever."

Gee matchmaker, you're so kind. Yes, I'm salty, and I'm not afraid to admit it.

 

[Nerdbird]

but why bother when you can play vBlaster, turn off your brain and play better than the guy who pumped hundreds of hours of practice in a niche weapon?

@Dark Sage Walker

As long as we're complaining about weapons, I'd like to once again express my hatred for standard blasters.

I don't understand why they don't do anything to keep the blaster in check. Like, even increasing the immobile frames after shooting by ~8 frames seems like a reasonable way to even things out, yet still keep the weapon viable.

WHO IS HATIN ON MA BOI?

 

[Marfie]

xxxxxxxxxx

 

[the]

It almost feels like the game is sentient, thinking up new ways to make me hate it EVERY SINGLE TIME i try to have fun playing it.

Today’s transgression took the form of Patto, who got stuck on my team every single match, and for whatever reason played very well for one match and then started throwing them.

That doesn’t happen naturally, no matter how bad you are. And definitely not 4 matches in a goddang row. After I finished leveling an ability slot, I just left the room because I was just not risking getting put with Patto again. I hope Patto, wherever you are, that you step in a really gross dirty puddle right after buying new white sneakers.

 

[Dark Sage Walker]

@the Match crashers have been a problem for me for a while. They are the type of person I report almost as often as Squidbaggers. In general, people who only want to spread grief can keep far away from me. I want to enjoy the game, make new friends, improve my skills, and maybe even take things to the next level. The toxicity of certain people cannot be overstated though, and as such I think that the best way to deal with them is to block them when we see them. The idea is an easy one. We aren't forced to play with these people. It was a whole different story when your mom told you that you had to play a game with your odd smelling cousin who doesn't understand the game and likely just wants to make things difficult on you. Now we have tools to make sure that those of us who enjoy the game can continue to enjoy it without those people. Give them no place to turn to for griefing people and they will either have to be better people or, more than likely, just move on to another activity. Take the toxic behavior away from the players who want to have a good time!

 

[Cephalobro]

This Salmon Run wasn't actually that bad, I just wish they would just lower the spawn-rate of Flyfish and Stingers, like seriously, I lost count into how many updates we're in and those two cheaters are still way too common.

 

[Slushious]

tfw you were a missile spammer before it was cool

;)

 

[Breezy]

How are losing streaks possible in ranked? Seriously, how? Isn't the point to place you with players around your skill level? If that's the case, then why would your winrate ever be substantially below 50% unless you're simply playing very badly on a certain day? I ask this because I just came off a losing streak and in S+ and I've never, ever had this much trouble with the map and mode I was playing. I am currently ranked the highest I have ever been, but not by much at all, and my own individual performance did not wane until loss number 8 or so, where I got tilted for a couple games, but bounced back to my usual performance, only to lose 3 more times, resulting in a 35% winrate for this rotation. Not the worst, but my bar is about to break below the OK line and I'm almost certain if the rotation had not ended, I would still be losing. I also kept getting put on double charger comps this rotation for some reason, which is never a good time for anybody.

This is not the way ranked is supposed to work, period. I'm okay with not winning all the time, and I'm okay with not ranking up if I'm not ready, but the fact that I keep going on losing (and winning) streaks makes me feel like this is all pointless if I'm ultimately at the mercy of some algorithm that arbitrarily decides if I'm going to have fun today.

 

[Ansible]

tfw you were a missile spammer before it was cool

;)

That and you were jumping back to base to fire them before it became "meta"... slimy, missile spamming hipster. >xP