Why I Love PvE

DontPanic07

TL;DR: I find PvE content rewarding and PvP content discouraging. I'm not saying everyone should share this view. It's just how I play the game.

Why I find PvP less enjoyable...

• PvP squads are inherently exclusive. In PvP modes, certain teams are objectively inferior to others. I'm not arguing this point, because it can be—and has been—objectively proven.
• ...but this renders the "others" irrelevant in PvP formats, particularly when the teams in question share one or more units. (See comments for example.)
• Because of its meta nature, PvP inherently encourages all players to farm all the same teams. When the superiority of a given squad is clearly proven, it becomes irresponsible for players to prioritize anything else.
• The prevailing strategies in Territory Wars only enforce this meta uniformity. TW provides a direct value for guilds willing to farm a "wall" of any given defensive squad. This pits creativity & ingenuity directly against effectiveness, undermining the greater potential of this game.
• Lastly, PvP is a constantly changing meta. For those who enjoy PvP, I assume this churn is appreciated. It keeps things interesting, rather than allowing the competitive environment to grow stale over time. Fore those who don't enjoy PvP, though...this phenomenon feels more like a meta-chasing rat race that never ends and offers underwhelming & dissatisfying rewards for those willing to run it.
• In all these cases, the winners are individual players & guilds...but the losers are the game & the community.

Why I love PvE

• PvE content presents fixed goals that each player can work toward and achieve in a predictable & rewarding manner. This achievement conveys a sense of fulfillment & purpose upon the player's daily shard/gear grind. It also provides clear feedback on the player's progress, affirming that he/she is constantly improving within the game.
• Territory Battles are the single most enjoyable feature SW:GoH has ever provided players like me. TB aggregates well-defined individual goals into well-defined group goals. These goals help a guild to rally together and to observe clear return on their investments.
• Best of all, Territory Battles have found a way to reward diversity within the guild. The platoon mechanic—while admittedly frustrating at times—rewards guilds who discover interesting and diverse means of meeting the combat & special mission needs within a given phase. If everyone farms the exact same teams (a la Territory Wars), no one in the guild is be able to both platoon popular toons and complete all missions. A diverse guild, though, will find it easy for different members to platoon different units and complete the missions using different squads.

A note to Capital Games:
I'm not looking to pick a fight or declare who's wrong & who's right. I just want to provide insight into a player persona that I hope represents a loyal, significant-sized (and occasionally paying) segment of the SW:GoH user base.

Edited for clarity.

DontPanic07

My favorite example of wasted "fun" potential is Qui-Gon Jinn's zeta lead.

Given the options currently available for Jedi squads, it's objectively correct to argue that a QGJ zeta lead with zHoda and zGMY is a waste of Yodas...but it's sad that this is the case. Seriously. How much fun would it be to put all those evades together in one squad just to annoy your opponent? Or to put those zeta Yodas under an Old Ben lead where everyone gains silly amounts of turn meter just for constantly evading?

...but these potentially entertaining synergies are demonstrably less effective than the Bastila/Revan alternatives, so we never even get to try them in meaningful formats.

MaxCoulomb

I agree with you. I also like to set my own goals in this game, and try to achieve those. However, in general this means I can't compete in PVP since I'm not following the meta and completely do whatever I like.

JohnAran

I would argue that every point you made (except specific examples) are still valid if you switch pvp and pve. Just replace tw with raids.
There is a pve meta, guilds need to farm all the same teams, it’s irresponsible to farm anything irrelevant if you don’t have all the relevant things already. Feels like you’re constantly chasing another needed team for another event and constantly losing out on rewards everytime the event appears and you can’t do it.
Etc etc etc.
So it’s all a matter opinion as you said expect for one thing that isn’t for sure : pvp doesn’t hurt the game.

Moorebid

I've been stuck in the nineties and early 2000's for as long as I remember. There was practically no multiplayer around back then. I've always enjoyed the single player modes much more in games.
Aaah, I'm thinking about Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast just now, magnificent!

DontPanic07

There is a pve meta, guilds need to farm all the same teams, it’s irresponsible to farm anything irrelevant if you don’t have all the relevant things already. Feels like you’re constantly chasing another needed team for another event and constantly losing out on rewards everytime the event appears and you can’t do it.

I think you misunderstand the concept of "meta". A game's meta is essentially an observation of and reaction to behavioral trends in its player base. It is, by its nature, constantly in flux. In the case of SW:GoH, the meta is typically redefined through players' adoption of new units that are either more powerful than existing alternatives or uniquely capable of defeating the current meta. If you wish to follow these changing trends, the challenge is to build up these meta units before a new meta emerges.

With PvE events such as raids, though, the challenge is to farm units capable of meeting the event's established goals. Once the event launches (and stabilizes), these goals are unchanging.

Chasing the PvP meta is like trying to hit a moving target; PvE challenges are like trying to hit a very small—but fixed—target.

FalenXLacer

Well said. I’m sort of hopeful that the upcoming grand arena will give us all a chance to trot out our wackier squad comps in a meaningful PVP format.