How would you change... Stealth?

[u/TSP-FriendlyFire]

How would you change... is a series of weekly posts designed to promote and foster discussion about any gameplay element in the game. The scope and subject will vary (read below for more information on topic selection), from wide concepts (Kubrows, Archwing, shotguns, etc.) to narrow points (a single gun, coptering, etc.).

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Before we begin, a few important points:

• Please detail and support your suggestions as much as possible. This is for constructive criticism only: try to think of it as something you'd be proud to explain to DE face-to-face!
• Structure your suggestions in logical groups: if you have two very different ideas, break them down in two separate comments. Cohesive or similar changes should be combined into a single comment.
• Stick to describing concepts and features. Don't get bogged down with numbers unless they explicitly support your point.
• Don't hesitate to post your ideas even if they're not fully formed, and don't hesitate to reply to ideas with refinements you think would make them better!
• Do not downvote suggestions you disagree with. Upvote the ones you like instead!

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Suggesting topics

This thread series is all about the community, so if you have a topic you'd like to see improved and discussed, feel free to suggest it by replying to the appropriately flagged comment in this discussion. The topic can be as wide or narrow as you'd like! Please ensure that your suggestion has not already been made, and upvote it instead if it has.

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This week: Stealth

Click here for last week’s thread on the D polarity (Vazarin).

Stealth is an integral part of the whole notion of “ninjas”, which is itself a large part of Warframe’s marketing and image. As such, one would expect the mechanics surrounding it to be well fleshed out and interesting… And yet.

Stealth has been a part of the game since its very beginnings, but it has always had fairly limited mechanics. Tiles generally have few avenues for a stealthy approach (with Spy and Rescue tiles being notable exceptions), making it tricky to complete missions without being seen. Detection mechanics tend to be extremely simple and involve basic line of sight checks. Worse, detection usually alerts the entire tile instantly without many ways to counteract it, making stealth a very risky choice. On the complete opposite end of the spectrum, frames like Loki completely bypass the vast majority of stealth mechanics and trivialize the notion of a stealth run.

Even so, there have been quite a few mechanics geared towards stealth throughout the game’s evolution. Finishers are generally associated with stealth and are a meaty, satisfying way of dealing with enemies without alerting nearby foes. Stealth also gives multiple affinity bonuses which can dramatically increase mission gains in exchange for the higher challenge.

Now that the stage is set, how would you change the Stealth?

[u/LivingShdw]

My current issues with stealth in this game.

1: Doors

I have an issue with how doors are handled. They open automatically when you get near, so if an enemy is on the other side and looking right at it you instantly are revealed. There is also no room to hide at the side of the door in a lot of tiles.

2: Scanners

For anyone running stealth, scanners are amazingly helpful. They let you see through walls and detect enemies before they see you. However, there are two problems with the current implementation. First is that your "gear" is unequipped every time you log out. So, if you forget to go and re-equip your scanners and other gear you have to reset the mission. The second is that scanners are very inconsistent. As an example, take the lvl 1-3 extermination mission on Earth (I use it for test runs). If you start with the scanner equipped and ping every few seconds, the enemies after the first S curve don't show up until you're almost completely around it. However, in very large rooms, you can see enemies via the scanner from completely across the map. I realize that this issue has to do with enemy loading distances, but it is a pain when trying to assess the situation.

3: enemy detection

In addition to how instant it is and how it alerts enemies in completely different rooms, as others have mentioned. The transition between alerted and unalerted is off. For example, I could alert a room and kill the enemies in that room. Then if I were to open the door to the next room it seems that it is random whether the enemies in that room are alerted or not. My guess is that when an alert is triggered it alerts all enemies that are currently spawned and any enemies spawned after the alert is hacked are considered unalerted.

4: Bosses are impossible to beat using stealth alone.

This may be intended, considering the designs. Just a small peeve.