[rushl]

We all agree that a threat meter would make the game easier for those who use it. In fact, that's the exact reason why there should not be a threat meter. It makes the game easier for those who use it. Therefore, content needs to be increased in difficulty to adjust for those who have it easier. That leads to either destroying gameplay for those who don't use it, or making the meter a requirement for play. Neither of those are an improvement.

Part of the skill of the game is learning to judge your threat, and managing it. Just like part of the game is selecting the correct skills and targets during an encounter. Would you ask for a plugin that auto-selects the ideal skill to use, and applies that to the proper target without any user judgment? Right now, a good hunter will know when to switch out of Strength stance, and back down the DPS. A poor hunter will keep banging away in Strength until no one else can keep the mob from killing him. With a meter, anyone can manage threat. What use is it to become good at what you do if anyone can do it?

Think of it like chess. In chess, you rely on your observation of the board, and your judgment (or your guess) as to what your opponent might do in order to formulate your own move. Don't you think that if you used a computer to analyze the board, calculate all possible moves, and then suggest to you the most optimal move, you'd be missing the point of playing the game?

As it is now, there is a certain amount of knowledge and judgment needed to play the game. A threat meter would remove those - and instead you'd need a certain amount of visual ability to see the line on the graph to play the game. In the first case, experience and practice will improve your skills, and make you a better player. In the second case, you're just an interpreter passing data from the meter to the game. The player is important in the first case, and simply a slow data conduit (which could be replaced with automated skill firing to improve speed) in the second.

Which do you want to be?

rushl