2019/10/29 18:00

Hello Pilots!

Development Director (and recently promoted to A+ Lieutenant) Kanbe here with new information for MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM BATTLE OPERATION 2.

After the release in North America, Latin America, and European regions in October, we have achieved a new record for total active players! Thank you very much!

It's been a dream of mine to hit 2 million downloads since PS3's MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM BATTLE OPERATION (the first one) and I'm so happy we've finally reached this point. Again, thank you to all our amazing pilots from Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, North America, Latin America, and Europe for making this dream a reality.

Now – onto more updates other than the information on the new MAP “City Ruins” that was mentioned in our previous Development Newsletter.

Reviewing Points Gained by actions other than attacks

In addition to the scores gained by fighting other MS, there are two other actions that allow you to gain points.

The first is "destruction of the base" and the second is "controlling Waypoint base"

Both are important tactics when it comes to map control and influencing the other team's actions as the match progresses.

However, we noticed that even though these actions provide a positive benefit to the team, players don't enjoy being the one tasked with doing so. And with the importance of individual performance for ranked points, players were reluctant to take on these non-combat objectives.

In order to address this, the following changes are being implemented in an effort to give more agency to the players who take on these non-combat tasks.

1. Review of score for “Capturing Waypoint bases”

Before:
Capturing Waypoint base = +50

After:
Capturing Waypoint base = +50 (No Change)
Neutralizing Enemy Waypoint base = +50 (NEW)

* Neutralizing and then Capturing will award a total of 100 points!

The points are acquired when the enemy controlled Waypoint base (red) is neutralized (white)

As a result, neutralizing (+50) and then capturing (+50) a Waypoint base will award a total of 100 points.

Not only does this prevent enemies from regrouping, but prevents enemy requests for assistance. This increases the importance of relay points and reduces the score of those who leave the battlefield.

2. Review of score for “Base Destruction”

Before:
Individual Points Calculation when a base is destroyed
Total Cost to Enemy Team ÷ Team Size

EX: 6vs6 & enemy unit cost 350
All allies: 2100 ÷ 6 people = 350 score each (distributed evenly)

After:
Individual Points Calculation when base is destroyed
Total Cost to Enemy Team ÷ (Team Size + 1)

Bomb Planter Score Calculation when base is destroyed (NEW)
[Total Cost to Enemy Team ÷ (Team Size +1) ] x 2

EX: 6vs6 & enemy unit cost 350

Bomb Planter: [ 2100 ÷ (6 + 1) ] x 2 = 600 Points

Rest of Team: 2100 ÷ (6 + 1) = 300 Points

The success of base destruction is not only the result of the person who planted the bomb, but also those who defended them, so the calculation should more accurately distribute points for base destruction.

We have tried to accurately reflect the calculated risk of attempting to plant a bomb at the enemy's base.

Please note that this change was not made to emphasize planting the bomb but rather adjusting the point distribution for doing so.

NOTE

1. Total Score for destroying a base has not changed.
2. If a base is destroyed by a direct attack, the points are still distributed based on damage done per Player.

Review on Calculating Overall Personal Ranking

Warning: Lots of tables and numbers below.

First and foremost, the purpose of this change is to more accurately calculate an individual's Overall Personal Ranking. This change does not significantly impact gameplay and is more of an analytical look at the changes. Be sure to check out the next section for more fun updates!

Again, this section is to provide insight on our changes to the system as we believe Players can provide better feedback when they are equipped with the right knowledge and information.

The following is the very detailed information for those who are interested.

First, here are the overall individual rankings using actual in-game test data from the development team.

Before:

・Calculate Individual Rankings in Each Category (1-12th)    　※Table = [Rank]

・Add the Individual Rankings Together　　　　　　　　　　　　     ※Table = [Rank total]
・The person with the lowest total value is ranked 1st overall　 ※Table = [Overall rank]

Based on the old system, rankings were an accurate representation of the overall contribution of an individual but when trying to more accurately determine an individual's skill, problems became apparent.

For example, let's compare the results from 1st Place [A] and 2nd Place [B]

[B] has nearly best results in every category, except for “Diversion” and “Pursuit Assist”, getting placed below [A]. But compared to others [B] has scored a lot from assists or damage given, which shows his high contribution.

Here's another example of 3 people in 5th Place [E], 6th Place [F], and 6th Place [G]

Looking at 6th Place [G], you'll notice that their Pursuit assist score is overwhelming above the second closest score however their overall rank is 6th.

In both examples you'll notice that the even with significant contributions to certain aspects of play, a Player's ranking was only judged based on their overall ranking.

To improve on individual rankings, we are changing the calculation of Overall Ranking to:

・Calculate the "Standard" score for each category
・Sum the scores across all categories
・Player who has the highest total scores across all categories will be placed as number one in the overall rankings

With the above changes active, the rankings look like this:

The approximate ranking remained unchanged, while pilots’ ranking that does not match are replaced.

Overall, we believe that this provides a better example of "overall contribution" when trying to assess a Player's performance. That said, there is always room for improvement, and we will be keeping an eye on this new rating system.

The calculation will be done internally, so there is no need to worry about the calculation while playing. Current individual ranking and overall ranking will be displayed in the results screen.

For Players interested in seeing their "Standard Results" scores for each category, press Square (□) at the results screen to see your performance breakdown.

[CHANGE] Updated Button Input

The following information is a guide to the updated control inputs for pilot’s actions.
We highly recommend you read this as it will affect your gameplay.

We have received feedback such as:
"I'm trying to plant the bomb and accidentally called my MS"
"I accidentally hit the wrong button trying to request support"
"I accidentally got into a nearby MS"

In an effort to reduce accidental actions, we have made slight changes to the controls.

* Pilot’s specific actions (default)

Changes:
MS Request               ○ Button                                   ⇒         No Change
Boarding MS              ○ Button                                   ⇒         No Change

Boarding Other Units ○ Button                                   ⇒         No Change

Bomb Plant                ○ Press and hold                 ⇒ □ Press and hold

Bomb Defuse             ○ Press and hold                 ⇒ □ Press and hold

Request or Support   ○ Press and hold                 ⇒ □ Press and hold

Capture Enemy MS    ○ Press and hold                 ⇒ □ Press and hold　

In situations where there is a Press and hold, you will now use the Square (□) button.

* While scoped or during other specific actions, the special action takes priority.

In situations where you can perform two special actions, you will see an additional display with the available options.

You are now able to select an action with the input button without moving from your spot.
We understand this may be initially confusing, but we hope that after initially trying it out that you will enjoy.

Additionally, we made one more change.

The default operation to access “Ally Info” was to press the “L3 button”

There are cases where players press the L3 button too hard and accidentally turn on the window.

Changes:

Ally Info (On/Off)        L3 Button                     ⇒         L3 Press and Hold

[New] New Skills and Updates coming in NOVEMBER!

Take a look at a new stone throwing skill coming to MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM BATTLE OPERATION 2 in the near future!

* This feature is still in development and may look different as development progresses

In addition to a new skill the flight type will soon join MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM BATTLE OPERATION 2! More information coming soon!

Closing

The update patch for the following items are scheduled on October 31^st 14:00 (JST):

• Release of “City Ruins” map
• Pilot respawn point adjustment
• Score calculation adjustment on “Capturing Waypoint bases”
• Score calculation adjustment on “Base Destruction”
• Calculation changes on Overall Personal Ranking
• Update on button Input for Pilot’s specific actions
• Change on “Ally Info” ON/OFF button to a long press
• Halloween event 

Upcoming updates planned in the coming months:

End of November: Release of “Clan Match”.

December – January: Implementation of new rules *Priority on Weekend Battle

As always, thank you so much for your continued support! We hope you have a ton of fun with the incoming update and be sure to stay tuned for even more updates coming in the future!

- Development Director Kanbe