Majik- said:
Well, you can't really go around and respond to issues regarding online play with "if people would do this and that then it wouldn't be a problem", because since there will always be a large amount of online players that will continue to disregard objectives and teamplay it really won't get you anywhere.
Nerfing a weapon just because players can't handle the teamplay it requires isn't the answer either.
I'd rather have the game force more teamplay and make lone-wolfing more lethal / less rewarding.
I've dealt with mines and similar weapons (like turrets) in TFC and Unreal Fortress and even though people tended to mine the flags and chokepoints they never caused the problems you claim exist.
I'd agree that the mines need some tweaking and adjustment, but that's more because the average UT2kx-player and mapper isn't used to dealing with mines and their effects.
The majority of the mine-
problems are map-specific issues (major chokepoints + lots of mines available = problem) and thus
can be solved as such by looking at the location of the minelayer(s) in relation to the (possible) chokepoints in the game.
In this regard it is like the powerups, sniperrifles, rocketlaunchers, superweapons and similar "dangerous" and/or spammy weapons & items : treat it with respect, don't just place it in a map 'cause you happen to like it.
Personally I'm not all too fond of the spider mines as they are right now. They usually aren't hard to deal with, but in cases where they're used for non-defensive purposes, like spamming chokepoint areas, spawn raping or even in combat, I think they detract from the general gameplay.
Forcing players to use them as defense-only weapons is just another way of ensuring the weapon won't be used as few players have the patience to play defense (as noted by the spawn-camping 'problem').
I'd suggest you read how mines are used in 'real' combat.
They are used to create chokepoints where no natural barriers exist.
If there's a location that the enemy shouldn't reach then you mine the heck out of that area. The only reason they're not used offensively is because they don't discriminate between friend and foe.
Perhaps that's the best "fix" for the mines as they are :
as soon as the (controlling)player is out of range (or switches weapons) the mines go 'neutral' and attack *anyone* including the 'node' or other assets they're supposed to be protecting.