As a preface, I only see this as plausible in PvE if they revert the damage multiplier back to HoW-era damage. For PvP, the changes would work regardless.
Anyway, I thought I'd give my suggestions on what changes could make old Exotics worthy of coming back in Year 2.
First up is the [b]Universal Remote[/b].
This has always been somewhat of a niche weapon. It could put out tremendous amounts of damage (during the HoW era, at least), once you learned to work with its range. I used it a lot, and I mean a LOT in Year 1. It was my first ever [dropped] Exotic, and although I didn't like it at first, I soon came to love everything about it. Handling, looks, the sound was just amazing. It was my baby, and I miss it very much in Year 2.
[b]So, what will this beast need to earn its place in the Year 2 collection of Exotics?[/b]
Well, as we all know, shotguns are in a weird spot right now in PvE. The archetypes often lack range (at least in vendor versions), damage has been lowered by quite a large amount since HoW, the reload speeds have become incredibly slow on some of them. They used to be great counters to major enemies in general PvE, and had a high risk/reward balance, a balance that now is weighted towards risk, rather than reward. With so many bosses having one shot, close range attacks, there's absolutely no reason to even attempt to use shotguns on them, something that was viable during the HoW era. Even Golgoroth, a close range boss fight, is better defeated with snipers. Damage drop-off has also been increased by a lot.
[b]So, to sum up, shotguns in PvE lack damage, range, have large damage drop-off and their reload is really slow.[/b]
[b]Bringing back the Universal Remote could fix all that, and here is how:[/b]
- First of all, we need to [b]buff the base reload stat[/b]. UR already reloads really slow, and it must be painfully slow since the last balance patch (I haven't tried it).
- [b]Increase the precision damage multiplier[/b] by a small amount, so that getting those crits really makes a difference at range. UR was always meant to be a precision weapon, to a certain extent.
- [b]Alternatively[/b], give it slightly higher impact instead of increased precision damage. This would also help DPS quite a bit, and at the same time helping with the range. RoF is so slow, that an increase in impact wouldn't make a huge difference to its performance in PvP.
- [b]Replace Crowd Control with Shot Package.[/b] This will come as a controversial suggestion to a lot of people, but hear me out. Rate of Fire is already very slow on the UR. You rarely get to take advantage of the CC buff to damage. Shot Package has been completely removed from the game (as far as we know). However, bringing it back in an Exotic would merit its return, especially considering the already niche place the UR has as a primary Exotic shotgun. That would have it earn its place in the current line-up, give it a reason for existing in Year 2. UR was always meant to be a precision weapon, and this would further support that role. An Exotic weapon needs to earn its place in your setup, it needs something that sets it apart from the others. Giving UR Shot Package would make it a very attractive weapon to use, in both PvE and PvP.
- [b]As an alternative to Shot Package, give it Feeding Frenzy[/b]! Can you imagine how good this would be in both PvE and PvP, having faster reloads after kills?
- [b]Give it HoW-era range and range drop-off values.[/b] Again, this is meant to be a cross between a shotgun and precision rifle, as per the grimoire entry, and it needs something extra that sets it apart from other shotguns, making you want to use it over the likes of legendary shotguns. Right now, the only shotgun that's used is pretty much Conspiracy Theory-D.
If these changes came into effect, on top of a complete reversion to HoW-era PvE damage multipliers, I could see the Universal Remote becoming a worthy Exotic in Year 2.
Thoughts/opinions?
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It already has shotpackage as it's hidden perk.