Those still playing Marvel Avengers and the gaming community in general did not react well to last week’s news that developer Crystal Dynamics will undo the game’s level progression once the PlayStation 5 version is released on March 18, 2021. The studio confirmed that it will increase the amount of XP needed to increase its rating as you work on the back half of the progression system, with many fans thinking that this will increase the grind needed to experience the content of the final game. Instead of reversing the decision based on negative feedback, the team has now doubled its commitment to move forward with the controversial update.
In an official Reddit post by the developer, Crystal Dynamics tries to clarify its decision. The developer starts by defining the scenario where you level up, or “dinging”, as Crystal Dynamics says, two to three times per mission. “So, what’s the problem? That’s great, you could say. The problem we were seeing and hearing, was that you would immediately receive more skill points than you had time to review, apply and get used to, before embarking on your next mission and gaining your next levels. Hopefully, you can see the problem here. “
The studio goes on to explain that, while it absolutely wants players to level up all of its superheroes, once again it doesn’t want the process to become overwhelming while you are inundated with skill points prepared for allocation.
Therefore, we smoothed the top level curves to make you less prone to “ding” more than once or twice per mission at the top end. There is a lot of variability in how fast you can earn XP (level types, mission selection, etc …), but the final result of our adjustment was made to add about 3-5 hours to reach the maximum level in total. This means leveling at a more stable location every 2-4 missions at the top end. We consider this a way to reach clearer “ding” limits and more time to get involved and enjoy each skill acquisition.
Crystal Dynamics then said that the next patch will make progressing through the initial levels easier and that defeating more powerful enemies will grant XP bonuses. We would argue that a level progression system seems more oppressive at first than half, however. Once you have to understand the skill tree and what it has to offer, that feeling can quickly dissipate.
RPG progression systems have always worked as they are set up as soon as the Marvel Avengers PS5 version arrives, but Crystal Dynamics’s reasoning doesn’t match. We don’t know about you, but leveling up always seems more oppressive at first (which will be done even faster now) than halfway. What do you think? Share your opinion in the comments below.