As someone who used the PKM and other support weapons since this game was released, I can tell you that it is about time they fixed this weapon. Several things about it have been changed since the first release, including time to deploy which many ANTI-PKM players may not realize.I've played for over 580 hours, 60 of that as support, so no saying my opinion is irrelevant because of experience. I do realize that before the patch, support rifles were not as accurate as they could be, but the idea behind the support class was the quantity of fire, not the quality. Though, it was still too shabby. Now this doesn't mean any of the support classes were broken, as you seem to think.
Before the accuracy fix in 1.2, you could start firing at enemy that was 20m away and only see one (maybe two) hit in a five round burst. 20m away? That is horrible accuracy compared to other weapons that do only slightly less damage (like Assault & Medic weapons). That made the kit useless except for resupply and grenade spamming when going head to head against infantry. Granted this is a game, but in real life this weapon slices infantry like butter at 50m and is extremely accurate.Hey, did everyone forget about the shotguns? Overall, meaning all the shotguns combined effectiveness, they suck at close range. When they are effective, it's only at 20 meters or less, when in reality, some of the shotguns are effective at 100 meters. So much for realism in this game, but I digress.
So the support class lacked some accuracy, does this mean it deserved the insane accuracy increase? In my opinion, no. Yours is different, but maybe I can enlighten you why I beg to differ. First off, when balancing, it's good to know what is over powered, what is under powered, and what the norm of balance is. Maybe the support rifles were a little under powered, but the incredibly accurate spec op and medic guns were too accurate in some situations? Sure they are good at long-med range encounters, but they are more than a match sometimes with shotguns, which are supposed to be defenseive, in which it should save your life. Not that medic rifles or carbines shouldn't be accurate, but you shouldn't be able to snipe with them.
Before 1.2, you could jump down off of something go prone and fire. Granted your accuracy sucked, but you could still shoot. Now, whenever you jump over a wall, off a box, over a sandbag, whatever and go prone, you have to WAIT two seconds before you can start shooting, PERIOD. I always avoid jumping at all costs because I know that wait is coming if I hop just once. If you do experience this, you hold your breath for two seconds waiting for your gun to deploy hoping the guy shooting at you can't hit shit.First off, support players are supposed to be prone to be effective. When they are, they can be deadly. So by implying that before 1.2, you couldn't instantly deploy and be effective almost all the time is absurd. The support class is supposed to have a draw back, and that's for it to be notoriously inaccurate while standing or moving, but what you want is to instantly go prone and not have to deploy so you are not at a disadvantage and always at an advantage. This is like someone with a shotgun who can't hit a guy at 100 meters, so he magically runs up to him in a second and mauls him with the DAO-12. It's called balance, and it's delicate. So the support gunner isn't meant to be a sniper, but he is good at long ranges while prone. Medics, assault, and spec op classes are good at short, med, and long range engagements and such; shitty engineers are supposed to be good at close quarters, but they lack that; snipers are good at long-med to long ranges.
Body-armor versus speed. This class compared to other true infantry (spec ops, assault, medic) is insanely slow. I am sure many of ANTI-PKM players out there appreciate when they are running for a chopper or tank and always win against their support teammates. It is like the support class smoked 5 cartons of Marboro before the round started.A second or less won't kill you buddy, especially if you can gun someone down with a few shots at very long distances. And sir, you can't get extra body armor and not expect it to bog you down. And please, like there isn't a dozen people running for 2 jets and a chopper. Chances are a lot of people won't get them.
So, I say STFU and play. If every class was perfectly balanced, then why would you have different classes at all? Just have one standard kit on both teams with no upgrades and no differences in vehicles. Then you could call it boring and would stop playing in a week because all the good players "are just hacking".Telling someone to STFU is a good way to get your argument across the table. No game that is dependent on balance is perfect, but it is very obvious when there are balance flaws. Ever played a good RTS game? How can a game like Warcraft III have so much diversity, yet be so well balanced? Diversity doesn't mean you can't have balance, and when you do achieve balance, it's superb.
So this is what I think. Light machine guns do need to be deployed, but when they are, they should be very accurate. Not insanely accurate, just reasonably accurate. There is no doubt that the PKM should be a more accurate and damage alternative to other LMGs, but it shouldn't be the most accurate. That's the MG36's job, and it's not the strongest of the bunch. But support players need to be elevated and prone in order to be the death machines they are, not to be able to go prone while aiming down the site and squeezing off a few rounds killing off some guy who doesn't even have a second to retaliate, let alone finish you off. This goes for all guns where you can seamlessly go prone while aiming down the site and making a very accurate kill. Landing face first and aiming your gun will cause a short disorientation, and especially inaccuracy since your gun isn't necessarily aiming in the middle of the crosshairs as depicted. Your gun is aiming up as you are brining it down while going prone, how can you shit something unless you spray and pray? Even when doing that, you are not yet in position to absorb the kick of the gun, furthering the inaccuracy. But hey, once you're prone, you are now one deadly marksman, which is ok! So rant along, flame me, or question my opinion. If it has to do with realism in the game, well, then ok. Since some of the game is and isn't, I guess it's fair.
Last edited by Hellogoodsir (2006-03-18 00:05:48)
