Epok
Smash Ace
In light of the current debate on stage list it has motivated me to propose an alternative. It is very difficult to create a stage list that is free of anything that may be deemed unfair or polarizing. The number of legal stages continually decreasing in an attempt to remove potential problems. Unfortunately, this has lead to less options which is hurting the meta.
What I am suggesting is going to be heavily criticized, but I would not post this if it were not worth taking a serious look at. It would require the community to look at the game through a different lens, but it may be a solution to our ongoing lack of tournaments legal stages.
I suggest that we use custom stages to create a competitive list.
I can't feel the browlines lowering as you read that sentence, but please allow me to plead my case.
To begin, it is hard to imagine a tournament scene with created stages, but the more I have thought about it and looked at all the possibilities, the more I felt that the pros heavily outweigh the cons.
As many stages as we want:
We can't leave it up to Nintendo to create all the stock stages we need. The list has gone from 9, to 7,to 5 due to the “noncompetitive” nature of stages. Custom stages allow us to makes any number as we see appropriate for tournaments.
Focus on what we NEED instead of HAVE:
This reason is a strong case for custom stages because many players feel that the starting and counter stages are becoming more biased towards certain characters, as well as limiting options for strategic strikes and counter picks. This will allow us more diversity in stages that allow for many characters to have a chance at a counter pick that is strong for the player but not devastating for the opponent.
Variety:
Similar to the previous reason diversity helps to make a much mores interesting experience in competition. Having stages the vary in height, width, platforms, and blast zones can allow us to construct several stages that are diverse and not awkward.
Music:
Awesome music and helps to dodge right protected tunes during steaming.
Adjustments:
Stages creator literally gives us the ability to “patch” stages and recreate classic stages hazard free. If the community complaints arise about a potentially unfair stages. It can be fixed or even replaced.
Okay… here comes the part where we discuss the cons. I will however provide a brief counter argument for each one.
Too much work:
I think that the resources in our community are more than enough to make this a reality. We have lots of creative and data crunchers that could really help streamline this process. Every time a new patch comes out it's amazing to see how fast we can get the information available.
Getting the stages to everyone:
Everyone smash player that is involved in the scene has a responsibility to keep up with current events. Just like the new stage rules that are being suggested. We live in a time we information is at our fingertips. Everyone has miiverse and friend codes so getting 7 custom stages is just a matter of laziness.
Tampering with stages:
I feel like this is one of the major downsides to custom stages, but honestly it does no real good to do that. A player won't play on his own tampered setup, and it's not that hard to test a stage that might be incorrect. We could also enforce strict punishment to players who do tamper.
Agreeing on the number/amount of stages:
This is also another strong case against custom stages. We have a lot of fierce debates on stage legality and it's very hard to agree on a set list. But maybe if we focus on needs and not biased feelings on stage preferences we can create a strong and fair list. With the flexibility of custom stages it maybe easier to compromise.
I hope that those who would have never taken this approach into consideration may have at least take the some time to think outside the box, or at least have a healthy debate with the community.
We don't have to struggle with limited stages. The have a fantastic number of possibilities, if only we just change how we see the situation.
What I am suggesting is going to be heavily criticized, but I would not post this if it were not worth taking a serious look at. It would require the community to look at the game through a different lens, but it may be a solution to our ongoing lack of tournaments legal stages.
I suggest that we use custom stages to create a competitive list.
I can't feel the browlines lowering as you read that sentence, but please allow me to plead my case.
To begin, it is hard to imagine a tournament scene with created stages, but the more I have thought about it and looked at all the possibilities, the more I felt that the pros heavily outweigh the cons.
As many stages as we want:
We can't leave it up to Nintendo to create all the stock stages we need. The list has gone from 9, to 7,to 5 due to the “noncompetitive” nature of stages. Custom stages allow us to makes any number as we see appropriate for tournaments.
Focus on what we NEED instead of HAVE:
This reason is a strong case for custom stages because many players feel that the starting and counter stages are becoming more biased towards certain characters, as well as limiting options for strategic strikes and counter picks. This will allow us more diversity in stages that allow for many characters to have a chance at a counter pick that is strong for the player but not devastating for the opponent.
Variety:
Similar to the previous reason diversity helps to make a much mores interesting experience in competition. Having stages the vary in height, width, platforms, and blast zones can allow us to construct several stages that are diverse and not awkward.
Music:
Awesome music and helps to dodge right protected tunes during steaming.
Adjustments:
Stages creator literally gives us the ability to “patch” stages and recreate classic stages hazard free. If the community complaints arise about a potentially unfair stages. It can be fixed or even replaced.
Okay… here comes the part where we discuss the cons. I will however provide a brief counter argument for each one.
Too much work:
I think that the resources in our community are more than enough to make this a reality. We have lots of creative and data crunchers that could really help streamline this process. Every time a new patch comes out it's amazing to see how fast we can get the information available.
Getting the stages to everyone:
Everyone smash player that is involved in the scene has a responsibility to keep up with current events. Just like the new stage rules that are being suggested. We live in a time we information is at our fingertips. Everyone has miiverse and friend codes so getting 7 custom stages is just a matter of laziness.
Tampering with stages:
I feel like this is one of the major downsides to custom stages, but honestly it does no real good to do that. A player won't play on his own tampered setup, and it's not that hard to test a stage that might be incorrect. We could also enforce strict punishment to players who do tamper.
Agreeing on the number/amount of stages:
This is also another strong case against custom stages. We have a lot of fierce debates on stage legality and it's very hard to agree on a set list. But maybe if we focus on needs and not biased feelings on stage preferences we can create a strong and fair list. With the flexibility of custom stages it maybe easier to compromise.
I hope that those who would have never taken this approach into consideration may have at least take the some time to think outside the box, or at least have a healthy debate with the community.
We don't have to struggle with limited stages. The have a fantastic number of possibilities, if only we just change how we see the situation.
