Add limited goal contest mechanic
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Ralt23 messagesstarted Aug 25, 2026, 8:23 AM
Ralt23 messagesstarted Aug 25, 2026, 8:23 AMgameplay
RaltOPlast monthI think Competitive would greatly benefit from a limited goal contest mechanic for goals that two players complete almost simultaneously (especially ping-adjusted goals or completions within ~1–3 seconds).
My idea is to give each player ~3 contests per match. When your opponent completes a goal, you would have a short window (e.g. 3s) to press a Contest hotkey. If activated you then have until 5 seconds from the opponent's original completion to complete the same goal. If you do, both players receive a point. If you fail, the goal locks normally and you still lose one of your 3 Contests.
The main purpose would be to make extremely close goal races less punishing, especially on slop lines.
For example, both players spawn next to a Desert Temple with Obtain TNT. Both recognize the same optimal route and one obtains the TNT 0.2s faster. Currently, that tiny difference makes it 1–0 and completely locks the second player out. With a Contest, the second player could spend one of only three uses and, if they also obtain the TNT within the short window, make it 1–1.
This would also help with those rare mid/late-game situations where both players independently finish the same goal within 1–3s, sometimes after both invested minutes into it.
Limiting Contests to only a few uses is important to preserve Draftout's core goal-locking mechanic. If you're really 5+ seconds behind, chose a worse route or aren't actually even close to completing the goal, Contest shouldn't save you.
Finally, for a 12-12 situation, I think the final goal should also be contestable (if u still have the Contest option). If the Contest succeeds and both reach 13, then the match ends in a 13-13 draw, similar to Quickplay.
The exact number of Contests/timer lengths would obviously need testing (u can suggest below).
Would something like this improve Competitive, or do you think even limited Contests would take too much away from Draftout's identity?
My idea is to give each player ~3 contests per match. When your opponent completes a goal, you would have a short window (e.g. 3s) to press a Contest hotkey. If activated you then have until 5 seconds from the opponent's original completion to complete the same goal. If you do, both players receive a point. If you fail, the goal locks normally and you still lose one of your 3 Contests.
The main purpose would be to make extremely close goal races less punishing, especially on slop lines.
For example, both players spawn next to a Desert Temple with Obtain TNT. Both recognize the same optimal route and one obtains the TNT 0.2s faster. Currently, that tiny difference makes it 1–0 and completely locks the second player out. With a Contest, the second player could spend one of only three uses and, if they also obtain the TNT within the short window, make it 1–1.
This would also help with those rare mid/late-game situations where both players independently finish the same goal within 1–3s, sometimes after both invested minutes into it.
Limiting Contests to only a few uses is important to preserve Draftout's core goal-locking mechanic. If you're really 5+ seconds behind, chose a worse route or aren't actually even close to completing the goal, Contest shouldn't save you.
Finally, for a 12-12 situation, I think the final goal should also be contestable (if u still have the Contest option). If the Contest succeeds and both reach 13, then the match ends in a 13-13 draw, similar to Quickplay.
The exact number of Contests/timer lengths would obviously need testing (u can suggest below).
Would something like this improve Competitive, or do you think even limited Contests would take too much away from Draftout's identity?
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Pythorialast month
i dont really get why this would be needed?
RaltOPlast month
Do you think photo-finish situations suck or are enjoyable part of draftout for the losing side?
RaltOPlast month
I understand why such thing doesn't look convincing at the moment. But as players get better at recognizing optimal lines, structure utilization and goal routing, I think near-simultaneous contests will naturally become more common. Two experienced players are much more likely to look at the same board/seed and independently recognize the same best opening or route. And in that case those ping-adjusted moments become more punishable.
Lilalast month
this just punishes having good mechs to get early goals
purplewormwhatlast month
I mean (on linear seeds) super earlygame goals like wood tools is just always gonna be within 3 seconds, it doesn’t make sense to basically remove them from the game
1
RaltOPlast month
I understand you argument. But imagine a slop line of 4 goals. Your opponent is 2 seconds ahead on the first goal, u decide to contest so you both get 1-1, but that decision to press contest hotkey would lose you momentum, so now your opponent would be 4-8 seconds ahead on the other 3 slop goals and in that case you wouldn't be able to contest them, and so the opponent potentially would get 4-1.
purplewormwhatlast month
I dont really understand how the contest makes that situation better than without
RaltOPlast month
So would u suggest then adding the contest mechanic after ~5 min in the game to save the ping-adjusted situations that somehow would happen in the mid-game?
purplewormwhatlast month
I dont really like the idea at all sorry, in mid/late you could use this to hold any goal, which imo should stay limited to only advancement/nether enter based goals
1
Lilalast month
okay imagine there's stone tools and 64 of an item on the board, currently you'd have to commit to either one and try to build your line off of it, for example if there's other quick goals that might need wood you could go for tools and then mine wood for that goal, or there's a village in a direction and you think you can overlap getting 64 leaf litter or whatever from the ground while going towards the village, in your suggestion it basically removes all this and gives the two first goals as free slots for both players and the goals mostly wont influence the rest of the seed
purplewormwhatlast month
I think its chill to have a close goal in mid/lategame, just means whoever was behind between you and your opponent was reading the other well and knew what goal to go for
noura 🜛last month
this just doesn't work with the lockout format idk it'd be really weird to have like a 13-13 tie just because one player decided to activate it
DriftSythelast month
what is the point of this…
RaltOPlast month
I probably underestimated how much people value strict lockout even in extremely closed finishes. The main thing I was trying to address wasn't really being 4–5 seconds slower but the actual photo finishes: ping-adjusted goals or cases where both players independently commit to the same thing and finish like 0.1–1s apart, but one gets the entire point and the other's completion becomes worthless.
Pythorialast month
i dont get how thats a problem
DriftSythelast month
if you get the goal slower then you got the goal slower
5
Pythorialast month
the problem is this literally entirely changes how the game works
DriftSythelast month
you have to think about which goals are more likely to be contested and which would result in wasted time and momentum if it gets sniped
DriftSythelast month
that’s the whole point of the game it’s just more amplified at the start of the game because the goals are faster to get
Ravallelast month
do you know what adjusted for ping means
Lexingtoniuslast month
Fully respectfully what would be the point in early game goals if this was a thing?? Like it would make early games so much less enjoyable because there’d be no giving up goals to get more later - you’d just both do the obvious early game line and start the game at 3-3 in any board with a few early game goals. Would actively make the game significantly worse imo
sam4 weeks ago
honestly i do think it's super fun to have really close races. it's really hype to beat someone by .3 seconds on some early goal cuz your movement or crafts were cleaner or whatever. and when i get adjusted for ping on leaf litter or on breeds, it's always feels like it's my fault for making a mistake (i've personally never taken a perfect line to chickens and gotten ping adjusted on chicken pathing or whatever.)