# of players for Arena

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eyebooger
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Joined: 26 February 2012, 21:22

# of players for Arena

Post by eyebooger »

As of right now, all but one of the comments (including my own) underneath the announcement of the change for the new season from 3 players to 2 players are extremely negative.

Is this just a vocal minority? Do people think that this is a good change?
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Wonderboat
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Joined: 20 July 2021, 18:05

Re: # of players for Arena

Post by Wonderboat »

Seems to me like just another huge flaw in the Guru system. Probably people spamming 2 player games got guru status because their game length is the shortest, then voted their own format. It's a worker placement game so the de facto being 2 player seems extremely weird and questionable to me.
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ufm
Posts: 1328
Joined: 06 January 2017, 08:38

Re: # of players for Arena

Post by ufm »

Or players might have wanted a new format after 7 consecutive 3 player seasons?
Even though 2p mode not being dominant over multiplayer in normal mode (= less 2p only gurus) it somehow was elected as the new format.
btw, it is not a worker placement but a role selection game. And many of them support 2 player option. It's not that weird.
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Wonderboat
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Joined: 20 July 2021, 18:05

Re: # of players for Arena

Post by Wonderboat »

I don't like change for the sake of change personally, and it seems like there's a lot of people quite unhappy about it. I believe variants unless necessary for balancing the game are best left for custom game settings.
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ufm
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Re: # of players for Arena

Post by ufm »

Actually it is not: viewtopic.php?t=11593
In fact kingmaking (including unwitting cases from uneven skills or when every choice favors someone more) is the bane of multiplayer games.
I don't think 2 player form is essentially superior to multiplayer. They have their own pros and cons (e.g. complexity and interaction).
However, with current matchmaking system players might have been tired of multiplayer flaws. You know, a beginner's craftsman.
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Wonderboat
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Joined: 20 July 2021, 18:05

Re: # of players for Arena

Post by Wonderboat »

It indeed is quite the bane. It really turns me off from Terra Mystica. These games take like 2 hours and at the very start someone can do a terrible move for themselves which hands the game to a specific player. :? Then you're stuck playing a game for 2 hours where you're not likely to win.
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Motchel
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Joined: 09 September 2020, 12:32

Re: # of players for Arena

Post by Motchel »

ufm wrote: 08 October 2021, 20:43 Actually it is not: viewtopic.php?t=11593
In fact kingmaking (including unwitting cases from uneven skills or when every choice favors someone more) is the bane of multiplayer games.
I don't think 2 player form is essentially superior to multiplayer. They have their own pros and cons (e.g. complexity and interaction).
However, with current matchmaking system players might have been tired of multiplayer flaws. You know, a beginner's craftsman.
Insulating yourself against suboptimal play and "kingmakers" is part of the fun of multiplayer Puerto Rico. Usually the games are very close at Strong+ play (1-2 points) so if someone tries to intentionally screw you they are often hurting themselves too. Happens more often in lower level games and usually it's unintentional.
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