Flashlight Update š¦
Introduction
Please read the WHOLE POST and then give me your feedback!
I have 5000 hours in the game on PS4, and a few hundred hours on other platforms across multiple accounts. I play primarily Survivor, but a LOT of Killer as well. I find Killer gameplay unique and interesting but tend to avoid it due to Survivor being a more casual experience.
Lemme let you in on a little secret... Flashlights... Suuuuuuuuuck. I know. Hot take, but It's a fact of life that using a Flashlight at high MMR is usually less rewarding than it is punishing. I haven't felt threatened as a Killer by Flashlights in a while which is a GOOD thing (to a certain extent). But then... What's the point of them? This is it! Welcome to my post I made instead of doing Psychology Homework!
Item
The following is the description of the Flashlight Item if it were to undergo the changes Iām proposing:
(Uncommon) Flashlight:
A Standard Flashlight. It can be used to light your way in the darkness or for self defense.Ā
- -The Flashlight has a Battery Life of 8 Seconds.
- -Press the Ability Button to Passively use the Flashlight. This does not consume charges.
1 Charge is consumed every second.
It takes 1 Charge to blind the Killer.
Passive Use of the Flashlight is incapable of interacting with the Killer or their belongings.
Most of the Battery Life was wastefully used by the previous owner.
Ex: Ā Item Descriptions, ESPECIALLY flashlights, are vague. Itās my opinion that items need to be more flushed out. Flashlights, Keys and Maps suffer from identity crisis and I think they deserve love instead of āitās coming eventually.āĀ
Ā Ā This change would add onto the capabilities of the Flashlight as a way finder whilst maintaining its offensive capabilities.
Ā Ā Movement speed during Passive Use would be maintained and you'd be able to Sprint with your Flashlight on. Obviously the drawback is terrible accuracy and reduced FOV. Additionally, Passive Use would flicker off if placed near the Killer, so that Survivors cannot abuse the Beam Brightness as a form of Disruption.
Regular Flash lighting would still suffer from the speed penalty.Ā
Add-Ons
Ā Ā Add-ons: Right now there is a precedent that Killers must have a certain number of every tier of Add-on. While itās a good way of making sure no Killer is crippled or bland from lack of add-ons (such as Hillbilly once was, but honestly I find he was in a better state before they butchered him but thatās another conversation). I find this precedent constricting. I think the precedent should be the MINIMUM number of add-ons required because some Killers are missing out on add-ons that are an obvious design choice. Since this Add-on limitation is set, good ideas from the community must compete with or be slapped onto existing add-ons which creates power creep and hinders creativity.
Ā Ā I think Items need an Add-on precedent as well. And with this update the Flashlight gains some unique design opportunities. For example:Ā
(Common) Spherical Bulb:Ā
A bulb you might find in a bedroom. You feel slightly warmer as the light clings closer to your torch.
- -Decreases Flashlight range by 4 meters.Ā
- -Changes Flashlight Cone to a 140ā¢ Cone in front of the Flashlight.Ā
Ex: A different way to explore the trial. Similar to the Clowns Common Add-on that changes the arc of the Bottle Toss.
(Ultra Rare) Friction Lever:
A Lever commonly found on handheld emergency radios. Itās in rough condition.
- -Once Per Trial, when inside a locker with a fully depleted Flashlight, hold the Ability button to Recharge your Flashlight.
- -Recharging your Flashlight will takes 5 seconds to complete and replenishes 50% of your Flashlights charges.
- -Triggers 2 Difficult Skillchecks during the Recharging process.
- -Succeeding a Skillcheck replenishes an additional 10% bonus charges, up to a maximum of 20% bonus charges and a combined total of 70% bonus charges.
- -Recharging the Flashlight produces auditory cues that can heard within 12 meters.
- -Consumes the Add-on on use.
Please, last a little longer.
Ex: Similar to a Brand New Part Minigame. Furthermore it would emit an auditory sound similar to the flashlight āshakingā noise in the game Tattletail (if youāve had an emergency torch/radio you know what Iām taking about. You turn the handle really fast to create electricity from friction to charge the Battery.)
(Very Rare) Black Light Bulb:
A professional bulb used by investigators and supernatural enthusiasts alike. It reveals more than meets the idea.
- -The Flashlight can no longer blind or burn the Killer or their belongings.
- -Unlocks potential in oneās Aura Reading Ability. Reveal the Aura(s) of the Killer, their Belongings and Survivors who are within the beams range for .4 seconds to all Survivors.
- -Increases Battery Consumption by 50%.
- -Increases Movement Speed penalty by 10% whilst Actively using the Flashlight.
- -Changes the Visual Beam Color.
- -Trumps all other Add-ons.
Show me something more.
Ex: This is a transformative Add-on making it difficult to synergize with other things. HOWEVER, I still believe it is a pretty good idea. It says "within the Beams Range" not directly in the Beam. But in RANGE of the Beam. Meaning through walls, it would synergize well with Range Add-ons such as lens! This does come with drawbacks of course, the speed penalty, minimum amount of time to reveal and the fact that the effect ONLY persists when the target remains in the beam. Meaning it is not easily abused, especially since even IF the survivor has perfect timing to know .4 seconds, they likely wont be able to register meaningful information with 1 frame of aura reading.
(Rare) Hilt Tape:
Often used on Guns and Swords for comfort in ones hand.
- -Increases Aim Accuracy by 50%.
- -Increases Walk and Crouch Speed by 10% during Passive use.
- -Increase Movement Speed by 10% during Active Use after .4 seconds of use.
- -Does not Stack with other Speed Gains.
Ex: This one just seems like a fun option. Speedy boi while "Flashlighting". It also helps JUSTIFY blinding the Killer at a Pallet or Vault when you could instead hold forward.
(Rare) Deluxe Cleaner:
A name brand lens cleaner, the Flashlight is clearer than ever!
- -Unlocks potential in one's Aura Reading Ability. Reveal the Aura of Gens, Chests and Exit Gate Switches when the Flashlight beam is directly on them for at least .4 seconds, to all Survivors. Revealed Items are automatically tracked by Maps if Capable.
- -Increases Beam Brightness by 20%.
- -Increases Battery Consumption by 10%.
Ex: I'll discuss my proposed Map Changes in another post later, but @dugman had a pretty good Idea in the comments so I incorporated it!
Add-On Conclusion:
You might have noticed these Add-ons seem a little complex and you'd be right! It's not that simple add-ons are not good. Plenty of Killers operate with Simple Add-ons but plenty of them don't. The possible design philosophy behind Item Add-Ons is that they might be simple as to not overwhelm the Killer. But I personally don't think ideas like this would. Especially since many of them provide minor buffs, or are transformative. Finally, my proposed changes would provide a healthy amount of information to the Killer so they know what is going on. For example, the "Black Light Bulb" would visibly change the beam color. So the Killer is aware of the Add-on. Passive Use would have a different sound for clicking the Flashlight on or off something round and discrete, loud enough to be heard, but not as disruptive as the tart, click of the Active Use. The Recharge Lever produces auditory cues that can be punished through a Locker Grab. And bulbs that alter the flashlight beam can be identified by looking at the shape of the beam.
With my proposed changes, other underutilized Add-ons could become common place! Focus Lens! Amplifying Bulb! These are things I do not get to see the true effect of. But with Passive Use of a Flashlight, you can constantly see "oh that's what extended range looks like!" or "oh! That's what Accuracy impacts!"
This would be a dream come true, if they went this direction with Flashlights.
Conclusion
It is my opinion, that this would be a pretty interesting and welcome change. Items need to give PERSONALITY to Survivor gameplay. It should be defining of the way you play, and something like this would be immersive. Especially on Indoor maps! I feel sad that the Items haven't been shown love in comparison to the all the Killer Add-on passes we've been receiving. Some of which haven't really marked a shift AT ALL in the characters effectiveness (regardless of what "the stats" say. I'm sorry, I haven't seen yellow smoke from the Clown in over a year; which also is upsetting because I thought It was a really good idea. It's just not worth using). Anyways that's all! š Upvote me please, I'm desperate. š¤¤
Comments
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Have you tried doing bones?
(Also I'm a huge fan of anything that let's me do more flashlight clicking)
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Imagine using the passive flashlight with brightness filters on, it would basically be a basekit flashbang against pc sweats. But god no, no more clicking, I am someone who is easily distracted and the clicking can be really disorientating, especially when I'm playing a killer that requires precision.
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That was mostly a meme comment. If it were me, I'd have the Passive Use have more of.. round... soft noise for clicking on rather than the sharp tap that the Active Use has. That way if the Killer is approaching you can turn off the Passive Use without being as punished auditorily considering it doesn't have offensive capabilities.
Additionally, the light for Passive Use would be considerably lower and I'd make it so the light blinks OFF when shined on the Killer. Kinda like... "supernatural events affect electricity" even though I know all characters aren't necessarily supernatural. It'd be a gameplay cue that "Passive Use" doesn't impact the Killer.
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I agree Flashlights are not great items generally speaking, at least compared to tools and medkits.
Thinking about it, Maps also aren't used much. What if Flashlights were given a secondary function that maps have - highlighting nearby things? So if you use a flashlight in a direction if there's an interesting prop in its range it highlights it for you. Then maps could be removed entirely or revamped into something new. I think if the object-finding ability of flashlights was good enough, but not TOO good, then that combined with the current ability to get saves on people would make the items be more on par with tools and medkits.
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I definitely think it's an interesting concept! A green add-on that highlights nearby props and synchronizes with Maps. It's my personal opinion that maps should remain largely the same. But they need more Add-ons. More things to track. And frankly, more things WORTH tracking other than player positions and such (that should remain with keys and perks).
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You're aware the hilt tape combined with the passive use which does not drain charges puts survivors at a permanent 110% move speed? That's utterly broken. Otherwise yeah, pretty creative.
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Oh Just a little misunderstanding! It specifically says Increase Walk and Crouch speed by 10%! Walking Speed is 56% on base, so this would increase it to 66% and Crouch speed would go from 28% to 38%! I wouldn't dare increase Sprinting Speed! But thank you for making me double check! I've adjusted the Add-On description so it is non-stackable with other Speed Gains from Self-Aware or Urban Evasion!
Here's my reference for my Movement Speed Values! :)
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Actually Im Up for this, great job, very unic ideas. Originality in all. :)
I support this whole idea. Also the flaslight clicking is toxic as hell, It should be eliminated for good.
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Everyone is always so aggro to Flashlight Clicking. I guess I don't really label any in-game behavior as Toxic. Everyone plays how they like, some people body block their teammates. Other people "bully" the Killer (which often is the Killers own fault). If you let Flashlight clicking provoke you, then that's fine for you. But I think Flashlight Clicking is a tool good for Communication, considering all Solo Survivors have is pointing and calling.
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