And I have already spoken exhaustively before, on this very thread it’s been moved to, on how that is not the case.
And will people please stop using the phrase “broke the game,” in regards to things that just make gameplay easy. It in no way caused the game to “break.” Lucas Grey not appearing in cutscenes he’s supposed to be in, that’s a broken game.
Yeah, the Electrocution Phone didn’t break the game for me, it made it more fun. I get why anyone who cares about leaderboards (personally, I couldn’t care less about them, but I know lots of people enjoy them) are justifiably happy that the EP is gone from H3, but equally it should be possible for those people to recognise that there are justifiable reasons why some people (like @Heisenberg and I) would prefer the EP to be in the game… with the very justifiable reason being that we think it’s a fun tool to use.
That’s literally the terminology. And it did break the game, in ways i’ve already explained in multiple places people on here seem to be actively ignoring. You can still break the game by exploiting the flow of the game, that is just as valid as Grey not appearing on a speedboat.
Sorry for breaking my vow of silence btw, but this needed saying imo.
I agree that it actually broke the flow of the game, as someone who wishes the phone were back. 
used it in level 3 of the The Han Encasement Escalation (you must electrocute a target in quick succession if I remember correctly). it helped me get a pretty good leaderboard spot which in hindsight, doesn’t feel right
Breaking the game; breaking the flow of the game… not the same thing. Breaking the game means it doesn’t work. Breaking the flow of the game means it feels different as a result. That may be the terminology, but it’s incorrect terminology that needs to be rethought.
It is exactly the same thing; “Breaking the game” is not a static descriptor when it comes to games. If you disrupt the flow of the game with an OP item, other parts of the game that rely on that flow don’t work, get neutered, or just do not feel good to play. That’s still breaking the game. That is just as important, arguably moreso, than Grey not being on a boat. Stop trying to find a distinction when there isn’t one. It’s getting real annoying.
At the risk of adding fuel to the fire, you’re both right and you’re both wrong. The problem is that hyperbole is a very, very common thing here. Something like the Electrocution Phone is legitimately OP, but it doesn’t literally break the game. The game still works, it doesn’t just crash whenever the phone comes out, and it doesn’t prevent a player from finishing the objectives.
On the other hand, the phone does make for easy (or at least easier) kills, and doesn’t void the Silent Assassin ranking. That can legitimately be seen as “breaking” the flow of the game, even if the engine itself continues to function.
Whenever two (or more) people insist on using different definitions of the same term, you’re not going to reach consensus. Clearly the term “breaking the game” is being used in two different contexts here and you are not going to reach any mutual agreement on it.
Does the phone literally cause the game to cease running? No, clearly not. Does it detract from or negatively alter the flow of the game? Maybe. Both points of view are valid and both can be correct, depending on where you’re coming from. Heisenberg and Dribbleondo are both right, and both are wrong.
Like some kind of Heisenberg uncertainty principle or something?
JK.
With this part right here, you give the whole thing away. It does not actually affect the game in any way that it was not programmed to do, you just don’t like how the “flow” feels different.
Then don’t. Use. That. Item. I truly don’t understand what part of that you and others who use your arguments are not getting. If the IEP affects your gameplay in a way you don’t like, don’t use it. If exploding fire extinguishers make the game too easy for you, don’t use them. If the fact that they exist and are there to tempt you to use them is too much and you still can’t accept things as being right without them being removed entirely so that you can’t be tempted to use them, the you’ve an entirely different set of problems, namely impulse control issues. Let the people who do enjoy the way they can play the game with these items have their enjoyment. It does not affect you or your way of playing the game in any way whatsoever… unless, of course, it skews leaderboard results in a way you don’t like. And that also kinda gives up the pretense, doesn’t it?
The item is pointed out as having a flawed design, so the counterargument should be “it does not,” not “just ignore it.”
But the problem is, it DOESN’T have a “flawed design”. It was designed to kill a target by electrocution. It does that. No flaw in its design.
I don’t think that argument is being made in here. Or is it!?
The argument is both. It does not have a flawed design, but even if it did, it does not negate the fact that is entirely within the power of the player whether it even gets used.
Ok, have to disagree there. That’s pretty shitty if a game has a design flaw with an item (i.e. the item doesn"t work properly) and the “fix” is to just not use it.
Hitman has design flaws with the aiming system/hitbox detection. Fix? Don’t use any guns! Problem solved!
Hitman has a design flaw with NPC’s seeing through walls. Fix? Don’t use the game! Problem solved!
Wait…
The EP made it harder for me to make interesting contracts. When I want to create a challenge, that item bypassed the challenge for a target.
Sure the player does not need to use it, but it feels like I ship a Sudoku where besides the given numbers there is also a set of numbers given writen with a pencil.
It is weird to ask the player to erase these numbers to find the challenge.
Anyone that misses the Dial-a-Kill EP, could you please (as an alternative) substitute it with the EMP Device? I’m not saying you SHOULD, just offering the suggestion.
It’s not an illegal item to carry (except you can’t throw it), NPCs/Targets are attracted to it, and you can trigger it whenever… Given, the target will have to be in at least 4 situations. Standing near a leaking propane tank, a puddle of gas from a vehicle, in a puddle of oil, or a puddle of water.
Although, triggering it while in view of other NPCs when something happens (like an explosion) seems to make you look highly suspicious for a couple seconds.
I’d gladly welcome the EP back if they have it work like the above scenarios, but maybe have a ‘Taze’ action if the target isn’t near any potential hazards. Make it like an accidental KO.
If it doesn’t kill them outright then I don’t sacrifice my integrity with a lazy, cheap/easy kill. The challenge then becomes to trigger it at the right time and/or place.
Speaking of lazy/easy kills… I can’t help but to think of the potential for (an official) lethal poison dart gun. That’d be in the same tier as the EP. The only risk is shooting it out in the open. There’s really no reason we can’t have one based on the logic of how the other dart guns work. I guess if they did then make it lose SA if the body is found because “Look, a suspicious dart!” But if you’re going to shoot someone from a distance then you might as well use a bullet. 
At least you won’t have to account for the flight arc.
Well, no, I don’t just mean ignore it and that’s that in such a case. If an item is genuinely flawed, don’t use it until IO can fix the issue. It would obviously be dumb to continue using an item that’s actually broken. Set it aside until IO can come up with a fix.
And before anyone tries to get cute about it, no, IO removing the phone altogether is not them “fixing” the flaw. If they had to remove it altogether, that doesn’t mean something was actually wrong with it, they just had nothing else they could do in response to the complaints, seeing as how it worked exactly as they’d intended.
I did genuinely want to move away from the thread, but I saw something I just had to respond to.
There’s a reason I logged out earlier.
Nice meme, btw, got a good chuckle out of it, and i’ll be stealing it =P
It was replaced with the ICA Electrocution device, which behaves much more like what people expected (electrocution via puddles of water). As I said, the phone was badly designed mechanically, it’s too useful.
Ok, hold on: I think your perspective is coming through. Are you saying that it’s sort of like Superman; so powerful that it’s hard to make a decent story about him where there’s a legit threat against him?