I think it would be a very wise decision for the level cap to increase from 50-60 in the next year or so.  Now I understand the argument that merely increasing the level cap isn't content.  That said, increasing the level cap makes the problems of content less severe.

Simply putting in content without a level cap increase doesn't help players get more enjoyment out of their old characters, and it doesn't really help newer characters who level out of content faster than they can run it.  Adding in content with additional zones for levels 50-60 help extend and add to the game players already have, it doesn't keep older players with 50+ characters on the shelf.

Diversifying through pool powers and extra slots only adds to the game and adds to the functionality of characters.  The present circumstances don't allow players to achieve a 5 power elite branch and a four power travel option at the same time.  Adding skills and slots will allow players to do this, and allow players to get into other skill groupings they wouldn't ordinaraly get.  Given the hard caps, I don't think the results will be unbalancing, not anymore than IOs do.  A lot of the appeal of this game is gaining powers and building a profile of what the hero is capable of.  Adding to the level cap allows players to get more satisfaction out of this.

Now I know someone is going to say, "just make a new toon."  I do that every two weeks or so.  But I also like my old characters, and wish I could see them grow and develop further.  Doing the Rikti MS and TFs get old, especially when I've slotted everything I want to slot.  Other than doing a respec, there isn't much left in terms of new things I can do with them.

So I hope that NC Soft will do something with the level cap in the coming year.  As more vets level multiple characters to 50 in this aging game, it would be good to give them new challenges and new opportunities for growth.

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Originally posted by Beatnik59
I think it would be a very wise decision for the level cap to increase from 50-60 in the next year or so.  Now I understand the argument that merely increasing the level cap isn't content.  That said, increasing the level cap makes the problems of content less severe.

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All of the things that function as endgame content now would no longer do. Level 50 inventions would have to be surpassed. Hamidon-enhancements would be near-worthless. The Hamidon raid, mothership raid, ITF, LGTF, STF, RSF, Barracuda, Kahn - all of this becomes obsolete. Also character builds were never designed to go above 50. They are at a good point where you can't have everything (forcing some decisions) but there are more than enough power choices available to perform whatever role you have effectively.

Most importantly, increasing the level is, as you say, not content in itself. What you want is more content - which is fine - but you're asking for totally the wrong thing. If they made it the goal to increase the cap, that would force 50s to go get which would take practically no time at all, and then we'd be in the exact same position but with zero endgame content instead of the limited amount now.

Increasing level cap has one purpose, and it's not what you think it is. Moving it up doesn't create content. What it does is force people to try the new content. Consider this: They add the Kahn TF, and players try it a bit, but then they go back to the more farmable ITF. Why not? They already know how to do it quickly, and you fight 50 enemies with 50 powers and get 50 drops. It's all the same.

Instead, what if they pushed the level cap to 60 and made Kahn a 60 TF instead of a 50 one? Then you can still run ITF in exemplar mode, but you only get 50 drops from 50 enemies using 50 powers. You'd have to do Kahn to get 60 IO drops.

See the difference? Raising the level cap doesn't create new content, it lets them maneuver new content to make people use it. Blizzard knows this, which is why they keep pushing the cap with their new expansions. It makes all the old raids and old equipment obsolete, forcing people to run the new stuff.

NC is working on a "Going Rogue" expansion, and I have no idea what's in it so it might actually push the level cap. I'm sure it will contain some new content, which I look forward to. But make no mistake, a level raise is not a necessary part of that and wouldn't be doing us any favors.

um wasnt their a rumor of level increase or alt advance ssytem in going rouge?

If memory serves, one of the early Going Rogue announcements included the fact that you will be able to quest and add 10 additional slots to your level 50's build. It's not increasing the level cap, but it is a way to add a few more set bonuses to help fill in any weaknesses or further enhance the strengths your 50 possesses.

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Originally posted by Axeion

um wasnt their a rumor of level increase or alt advance ssytem in going rouge?

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Other than the initial jump to fifty, pretty much any talk of increasing the level cap from the devs has been of the "NO!" variety - for the kind of game City of is set up as, gear-less and without Fireball I, II, III, etc, it would cause more issues than it would solve, and most of what it would solve it wouldn't solve long.

Originally posted by Rajani_Isa

 

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Originally posted by Axeion

 

um wasnt their a rumor of level increase or alt advance ssytem in going rouge?

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As I recall, there has been no official announcement of any kind of AA system being in Going Rogue. Speculation, yes, because the main feature of Going Rogue (Side-switching) was in a marketing survey that also mentioned several things including a "10 universal enhancement system" that would (apparently) be done as an AA system.

 

Other than the initial jump to fifty, pretty much any talk of increasing the level cap from the devs has been of the "NO!" variety - for the kind of game City of is set up as, gear-less and without Fireball I, II, III, etc, it would cause more issues than it would solve, and most of what it would solve it wouldn't solve long.

There was an interview with Matt Miller on tentonhammer a while back (before your post actually) where he mentioned a way to improve level-capped cahracters.

Matt explained that the team isn’t just extending the purple enhancements grind. “We’re going to have a whole new system that will allow max-level players to take their max-level characters and make them even more powerful.” For the moment, that’s all we were able to find out on that topic.

So there's that.  Also in the article, they're making a new-improved newbie experience for folks who start in Praetoria.

The Positron quote is a good one.

It has been stated or implied several times that they have an idea for how they might go about adding levels, adding a new dimension without simply extending the present system with more powers and slots.

However, that doesn't mean it's being put into effect, it's just an idea. That a new level cap might come with Going Rogue is a reasonable guess. But it's just a guess, they've said pretty much nothing about the new expansion yet.

(Actually it's so hard to imagine what this expansion contains for actual content that it would pretty much have to contain 10 levels of play to be worth it as a serious expansion. Consider everything City of Villains contained, and how much Going Rogue would need to have to even remotely approach that.

The devs have said on more than one occasion that they're not planning on raising the level cap in CoH, so the thought that a level cap bump might come with Going Rogue is a very unlikely idea.  It's possible I suppose, but unlikely given the mindset of the devs generally in charge.

They're coming out with a new starting zone and an improved 'tutorial'.  So there's going to be new low level content (I'd guess for at least the 1-20 range) and then there's likely to be new 35+ content.  And then I personally think this new end game content they're planning will be missions, TFs and possibly a zone or so of nothing but 50 only content.  My thought is it'll either be stuff along the lines of DAoC's master levels and champion levels, or it'll be something along the line of using some kind of new merit to buy specific improvements to your character.

Who knows until we get to actually try it out though.  Oh, and they're most likely going to toss out new information during Hero con too, so that might answer some questions I hope.