Damage Meters

I know, I know, I’m beating a dead horse, but the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

This game would benefit from a tool that can measure the effectiveness of the DPS classes.

I know that the opponents of damage meters will argue that damage meters ruined such games as WoW because players were scrutinized on their performance in instances/raids. The players that weren’t living up to the standards of others were belittled and because of this the fun was drained from the game.

Is this not true with most games though? If you’re not performing at a certain expected level of skill or competence, the game will turn on you, you will fail and the game will cease to be fun.

On the other side of the coin, if you perform at, or above the expected level of skill or competence, the game will reward you for your efforts and you will have a positive experience.

The trick with MMOs is that we have to rely on not only our own level of skill and competence, but the level of skill and competence of other players. For the most part, it’s pretty easy to tell if a tank or healer is doing their job effectively, but without damage meters it can be tricky to tell whether or not a DPSer is doing their job.

For any given boss fight:

Did the boss die fast enough or did it die slower than it should have? Were the two DPS classes on par with each other, or was one carrying the load? Perhaps the tank was doing the most DPS. If the tank was doing more DPS than the DPS classes, is it safe to say that the DPS classes were not fulfilling their role? Should it matter as long as the group makes it through the instance?

The last question is what the folks against damage meters seem to focus on: “Hey, we made it through the instance. That was the goal right? We weren’t trying to break any speed records after all…” and I agree with that, however I feel that the people who enjoy spending 3 hours in an instance that should’ve taken 45 minutes to complete would be in the minority.

With damage meters a group can pinpoint the issues that led to the slow run (and possible wipe as a result of not killing a boss fast enough) and make adjustments accordingly. For instance, when this theoretical group reviews the damage meters they see the following:

Sniper (DPS) – 76%
Juggernaut (Tank) – 15%
Mercenary (DPS) – 9%
Sorcerers (Heals) – 0%



Of course this is an extreme case, but there’s obviously a glaring issue with that mercenary’s DPS. Since the group has a damage meter to see this, they can quickly assess the situation and work with the mercenary to make sure he has the right gear equipped, the correct talent spec for his role and is using the most effective attacks to improve his DPS. Without a damage meter it would’ve taken much longer to try and figure out whether the sniper or the mercenary, or both, were the issue.

Of course this would not be a typical scenario. In a typical scenario, especially in a PUG, this would’ve ended quite badly for the mercenary and he would’ve probably received a “Your DPS sucks! G-T-F-O n00b!” response.

So, this poor merc has a few options at this point. He can either:

A. Feel completely hurt and leave the game forever
B. Say “Whatever, I’ll do what I want!” and join another group, ruining 3 other gamers’ experience
C. Say “Man, I’m obviously doing something wrong” and go do a little research on his class to find out how he can be better at it

If he chooses option “A” I’m sorry to say it, but maybe MMOs aren’t for him. MMOs are the internet, and like it or not, if you’re having social interactions with strangers on the internet, you’re gonna need thick skin. Also, kids are cruel, and there are a lot of them playing MMOs.

If he chooses option “B” he’s just being outright selfish and he deserves the negative comments he’ll get from groups.

If he chooses option “C” not only will he have a more positive experience within groups, but the other 3 people will also have a more positive experience.

I think it’s safe to say that everyone wants to have a positive experience when they enter an instance. The best way to ensure that everyone does have a positive experience is to make sure that everyone is performing the role that they were asked into group to do, and for the DPS classes, this means having a way to measure the damage they do.

My personal damage meter:

1) I hit stuff
2)
A) it dies
B) I die

If 2-A, damage good. If 2-B damage bad.

Done.

I would say that damage done is way more important then dps.

Exactly .. I don't know why people don't get it.

Well .. I do know .. because people like the OP want to know if a new player is doing 0.05457% less DPS than their buddy... that way they can shun and belittle the new player.

Exactly .. I don't know why people don't get it.

Well .. I do know .. because people like the OP want to know if a new player is doing 0.05457% less DPS than their buddy... that way they can shun and belittle the new player.

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But if you're pulling way more DPS than other people, shouldn't it automatically be assumed that you're higher on damage dealt too? Granted, I know that wasn't always the case, as I saw people with lower DPS but higher damage done. But in the end, the only thing that mattered was that they brought enough DPS for the encounter. If everyone is pulling at least that much, then you should be able to defeat the boss. Anything above that just makes it quicker (though not necessarily easier, due to potentially paying more attention to meters than encounter hazards)

No, people wana know whats wrong when the boss dont die.
If u try to kill a new boss a couple of nights every week (or whatever raid/fp times your guild have) and u after several weeks still dont can kill it.
Would it not be nice to see why u cant kill it?

If the boss doesn't die then you didn't do enough damage before he killed you. Simple.

If you are doing the same thing over and over again then that is on you. Looking at a window that says you did 32134 points of damage in the 2 minutes you were fighting isn't going to help you.

A damage/DPS meter only serves one purpose .. see my previous post in this thread .. I don't feel like copy/pasting it here.



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If the boss doesn't die then you didn't do enough damage before he killed you. Simple.

If you are doing the same thing over and over again then that is on you. Looking at a window that says you did 32134 points of damage in the 2 minutes you were fighting isn't going to help you.

A damage/DPS meter only serves one purpose .. see my previous post in this thread .. I don't feel like copy/pasting it here.

My personal damage meter:

1) I hit stuff
2)
A) it dies
B) I die

If 2-A, damage good. If 2-B damage bad.

Done.