Twitchy Questioning 8: BSN Questions Manhattan

INTRO

As usual I have gathered up questions from fellow players on BSN (the Bioware Social Network forum, BSN-dot-boards-dot-net).
This week we are emphasizing User Interface (U.I.) and quality of life questions.

USER INTERFACE / QUALITY OF LIFE

A few weeks ago you said you were looking into unlocking FOV (field of view) settings on console. Is that still a possibility?

A few weeks ago you said you were looking into allowing console players to re-map powers. Is that still a possibility?

Several weeks ago we proposed the creation of a ‘known issues’ stickied thread on EA Answers HQ with known bugs and their status, to cut down on duplicate reports. Any progress on that front?

We appreciate the changes to when Boosters are used up on Games In Progress (GIP). However, because of the related changes to amount of XP/Cr earned, would you consider adding a GIP indicator to the lobby?

Why does the points shown in the lobby no longer count points from medals? (But medal points are shown during the game in the pause menu.) Does this have any effect on XP/Cr earned for a game?

Can the U.I. text size be made adjustable, primarily for console users? The current text size is too small to read on TVs from more than a few feet away.

Various timers are not shown in the game’s U.I. Why is this information hidden from the player?
(Examples: time until next Saving Barrier, Rage / Ascension kill count to goal, Rage countdown timer, Martial Artist killcount / bonus amount & countdown timer, Biotic Warrior countdown timer)

Would you consider adding an optional, more detailed killfeed with detailed damage information and timings? This would make testing much easier for both you and the dedicated fan community.

Is there any inclination to unhide the "hidden" stats on weapons? For example, reload time (in seconds), headshot multiplier, modifiers against defense types, etc. Previously you stated this might fit into a U.I. update.


Can the 'Random' matchmaking filter be changed to search specifically for lobbies also set to 'Random'? Currently, 'Random' acts unintuitively like 'Any' which severely limits joining options. ‘Any’ appears heavily weighted towards Apex and popular maps/enemies, instead of being more varied as the proposed ‘Random’ would be.

On Apex missions, ‘Combotastic’ awards less XP/Credits than normal. Is this intentional? If so, shouldn’t the XP/Cr penalty be listed in the Mission Modifiers?

In ME3, the Ammo Pack equivalent (Thermal Clip pack) granted bonus weapon damage for a short time, which made them more useful. Could a similar bonus be added in MEA? This would encourage players to use this currently underused consumable.

In ME3, the First Aid Pack equivalent (Ops pack) granted brief damage and stagger immunity (i-frames), which made it more useful for skilled play. Could First Aid Packs be modified to work this way in MEA?

Is there an upper limit on the number of Consumables a player can own? In ME3 the limit was 255, which made it possible to obtain (what we now call) Boosters once we had a large supply of all four consumables.

Could you rotate different Boosters per day/week for Mission Funds (MF), in addition to the XP Boosters currently available? This would allow players to spend MF on their preferred playstyle Boosters (ex. Ammo Capacity, weapon Rail Amps, melee, etc.).


DESIGN INTENT

What do you consider the most significant issues you have NOT yet addressed with patches or balance changes?

Why does cover only work when your character is facing the direction from which the enemy is attacking? Shouldn’t ‘side cover’ still protect you from the side regardless of the character’s facing?
(link to relevant thread)
www.reddit.com/r/MECoOp/comments/6g80bx/one_thing_i_will_never_understand_about_this_game/

Weapon reload speeds in MEA feel sluggish (esp. compared to ME3 reload speeds which were faster across the board). Could you please explain the design intent for MEA reload speeds?
(comparison between ME3 and MEA reload speeds on my Google Drive)
docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BX29W1BSeD3gR7f23U9yoqtLk-dkA98I9rYXeLxn0lI/edit?usp=sharing

Is player character survivability where you want it to be? Given the recent increases to enemy damage and past decreases to certain characters’ shields, some characters feel extremely fragile.

Two questions on ammo priming. (1) The Dhan appears to use the same formula as other pellet-based shotguns even though it does not fire pellets -- is this intended? (2) Cryo Ammo has various penalties to the number of bullets it takes to prime certain enemies, but Incendiary and Disruptor Ammo don’t have such penalties. Why is Cryo Ammo treated differently?
(link to relevant thread)
www.reddit.com/r/MECoOp/comments/6dhrvx/correlation_between_rof_and_ammo_priming_rate/

Related question - in ME3, some types of weapons (ex. Falcon, Scorpion) automatically ammo-primed enemies, which gave those weapons a special niche. Would you consider making the same modifications to those types of weapons in MEA?

What is the design intent behind the 4-second cooldown on detonating combos of the same type? (Enemies don’t receive damage from the same combo type for 4 seconds after that type of detonation.)

Is enemy accuracy something you will look at? Enemies are pinpoint accurate from across the map even with shotguns or automatic weapons.


POWERS

Singularity 6a (Exploding Singularity) does not detonate combos. Intended design or bug?

Fortify’s movement speed penalty seems too high compared to the amount of DR it offers. (Being slower means you take more damage, vitiating the DR.) What is the design intent behind this power?


BUGS

There are some reports of performance problems and stuttering introduced with 1.08. Are you aware?
www.reddit.com/r/MECoOp/comments/6gsy1o/fyi_the_stuttering_in_108_is_not_caused_by_a/

When you Respec a character that is not yet Rank X, it resets to that number of skill points, and further character ranks do *not* grant the missing skill points. This is particularly harmful for Ultra-Rare characters that are hard to rank up. Can this be looked at?

Remnant Observers and Breachers will frequently phase through walls or ceilings. Is this intended behavior?!


There is a bug with Barricade where the power has visually disappeared even though it is still active (thanks to passive power duration increases). Are you aware?

Why do I keep getting matched with people I've blocked on Origin?

Can we get an update on the audio bug on PC? You previously stated it is related to the Frostbite engine and that another team was looking into this.


OUTRO

Thank you very much for answering our questions! Keep up the good work.