THQ's Homefront 2/MP Battle Point Investigation

Document Status: Green [Starting point (with an overview of the HF1 system).]
==Goals==
*To provide an overview of the MP Battle Point system as it existed in HF1
*To identify perceived issues and examine potential areas of improvement for HF2
==HF1 Battle Points==
*Battle Points (BP) are the multiplayer currency in Homefront
*Players can earn BP in both Ground Control (GC) and TDM by:
**Kills / kill assists
**Headshots
**Destroying vehicles and drones
**Marking targets
**Capturing / defending objectives (GC)
**Winning a round (GC)
*BPs are shown on the lower right corner of the HUD (see image) and can be used to purchase either:
**Special equipment items
**Vehicles
*Equipment is purchased in-game using d-pad up / down, while vehicles are purchased on the respawn menu
===Rules===
*All players start with 500 BP at the beginning of every match, and a maximum of 7000 BP can be held at any one time
*Players can equip a maximum of two Special Equipment items as part of their loadout purchase slots (see image below left), which can be purchased at any point in-game
*BP can only be spent within the match they are earned, none can be carried over to subsequent matches
 
HBP3.png|Special Equipment selection menu
HBP4.png|Vehicle purchase options on the Respawn menu
===Battle Point Awards in Homefront 1===
ACTION 	BP AWARD
Killing an Enemy (on foot) 	130
Killing an Enemy (from a vehicle)	70
Revenge Kill 	30
Avenge Kill 	30
Headshot Kill 	30
Kill Assist 	50
Vehicle Co-Pilot Assist 	30
Destroying a Drone 	130
Drone Kill Assist 	30
Marking a target with a Drone 	30
--
ACTION 	BP AWARD
Death Streak
Point award increases with consecutive death number	20-100
Killing a Spawn Camper (BC mode) 	500
Spawn Camper Kill Assist (BC mode) 	50
Winning a Round (GC mode) 	100
Capturing a Control Point (GC mode) 	250
Capturing a Control Point (GC with BC)	200
Defend a Control Point (GC mode) 	70
Destroy a Humvee 	150
Destroy a LAV 	250
Destroy a Tank or Helicopter 	400
===Special Equipment Items (for In-Game Purchase)===
EQUIPMENT 	COST
Flak Jacket 	300
Personal UAV Sweep	400
Ammo Resupply 	200
Thermal Goggles 	250
ROCKET LAUNCHERS	COST
RPG Launcher
Requires direct hit	250
Proximity Launcher
Detonates when near objects so easier to target helicopters	250
DRONES 	COST
MQ50 MG Wolverine (Ground Assault)	500
AQ10 Buzzard (Air Assault) 	800
RQ-10 Parrot (Air Recon) 	250
MQ60 AT Rhino (Ground Anti-Tank) 	400
AIR STRIKES 	COST
Hellfire (player-controlled missile x2)	1300
Cluster Bomb (x1) 	1600
White Phosphorous (x1) 	1300
===Vehicle Options (for Respawn Menu Purchase)===
VEHICLES 	COST
Humvee 	400
Light Armor Vehicle (LAV)	1400
Heavy Tank 	2000
Scout Helicopter 	2000
Attack Helicopter 	2800
==HF2 Design Notes==
Battle Points in HF1
*Battle Points are a fairly unique take on in-game bonuses and help differentiate the game from its competitors
*Acquiring what is essentially money to purchase items is a universally understood system and as such should feel natural to all players
*As such it is definitely a recommendation to evolve the same system for Homefront 2
Perceived Problems with the HF1 Battle Point System
*The system wasn't very well explained before players jumped into their first matches
**There was a chance a loading screen movie gave a brief overview of the system but, at the same time, there was more of a chance that a game mode movie would play instead
**While the vehicle purchase options were upfront when players joined a game, how players purchased special equipment was less easy to understand
*Highly skilled players are quickly able to purchase the most powerful equipment, making life even more difficult for opposition players
*In Ground Control players could save all their BP until the final round if they’d already won the first round
**With the first round won, saving huge numbers of BP allowed teams to spawn powerful vehicles in the final round if they didn’t win the second round, swinging the advantage heavily in their favour 
*The Parrot Drone allowed players to easily rack up huge numbers of Battle Points (+30 for spotting and another +40 if a spotted enemy is killed)
**The Parrot Drone was only 250 BP and so could be spawned instantly
**Flying the drone to an enemy spawn point allowed thousands of BPs to be earned in under a minute (the cooldown time on being able to re-spot an enemy was tiny)
**The ‘Drone-Be-Gone’ and ‘Crater-To-Order’ abilities made the Parrot Drone faster and a mobile explosive respectively, making it even more difficult for the enemy to deal with
*Players have to die in order to purchase a vehicle despite having sufficient BP
*At the end of a match any BP not spent were percieved to be lost (as they aren’t visibly converted into a score bonus)
Ideas for Evolving the System for HF2
*Allow vehicles to be purchased in-game (potentially through special vehicle spawn stations), OR remove vehicles entirely from the system in favour of Battlefield-style vehicle spawners
**The latter would help address balancing issues with only the best players getting access to the most powerful vehicles
*Roll any BP remaining at the end of a match into a visible aftermatch XP bonus (so players have an option to save BP to speed up their rank progression)
*It feels like the range on BP prices for both vehicles and equipment is too high
**Only the best players are reaching some of the higher values, making them even stronger
**Perhaps a “mystery” purchase option would allow players of a lower skill level to experience the cooler stuff?
**Perhaps BP awards could scale based on rank / skill level (a kill for a new player is worth double BP)?
*To help eliminate the Ground Control issue (where the winning team in the first round start saving their BP for the 3rd round), we could reset or reduce BP at the end of each round?
In-World Purchasing Idea
*Empty vehicles spawn at predefined places in bases (as in Battlefield).
*Each vehicle has a BattlePoint cost if a player wishes to use it.
*To use a vehicle, the player runs over to it, spends the required BP and jumps in.
*If a player dies, wants to have a vehicle when he respawns and one is available at a base, he could spawn directly into it (at the required BP cost).
*This mechanic could be extended to other interactive things in the environment such as anti-air defences, heavy weapons and anything more bespoke.
Benefits
*Allows us to balance how many vehicles are in play at any one time.
*Works with the BattlePoint system.
*Players don’t have to die and respawn to purchase vehicles.
*Stops enemies from stealing your team’s vehicles.