What would you like FD to do regarding offline mode?

[Rog]

Not really very happy about the lack of an offline mode - it was definitely one of the major selling points for many.

I for one wanted to be able to play in places without an internet connection, and into the future with or without the presence of FD's servers. It must have been obvious to FD for quite some time, that their architecture would negate an offline mode. Very naughty to spring it in the manner they did, just before release.

Perhaps FD could offer a solo (non-multiplayer and completely separate from the online) cut-down version for people wanting to play offline?

I think that roadmap and firm statements about what is and isn't going into the game is needed sooner rather than later. What was the point of the DDF otherwise?

 

[Herik]

I know that. But people could explore offline and then when they find something valuable go and collect/mine it with their online character. Which reduces the risk they have to take, because an offline save can be rolled back if you die.

Big deal; I can't see that being a problem....Everyone could do it; not just PvE players. And that is supposing (some) market matching between Online and Offline.

If the offline game were a strictly static single player experience; except planet landing Expansion content; no problem/question whatever.

 

[Antmax]

I didn't see them say never. I suspect it's just not for release and on the backburner as a low priority. It probably only effects 0.02% of players who find themselves without an internet connection the next couple of months. There are a lot more pressing issues to be done by release, plus new bugs likely to emerge with 3.9.

I'm sure they can emulate the server to create online only if they really want to. But that might give away way to much proprietary info to amateur game hackers and perhaps competitors. Especially if it's currently WIP and not fit for public consumption.

Best wait for official word and see what happens between now and after launch.

 

[Globusdiablo]

.....Is he not trying to continue that trend with this game and all of the people experiencing his works for the first time? Is this game not going to be worthy of personal nostalgia in 20+ years?

Apparently not. It's rapidly becoming a bait and switch money grab (read in-game ads).

 

[Bazil]

Could they not just make a flat offline version with a Procedurally generated universe of say 100000 systems, not even mirroring the proper universe. Just to make it so that there is something offline. Just one ship would be needed, the Cobra Mk3 so its basically the original with better graphics. Surely that would be enough to fulfil the kickstarter promise and avoid the refunds.

 

[Zephyriel]

Now that's not what I assumed you meant. Or rather I took option 2 to mean that they absolutely should work on and release an offline mode but its okay if it takes some time (IE months, maybe a year... Not 10 years or whatever). The trouble with saying "before the servers are shut down" is basically you are kicking it into the long grass and when if it looks like the servers are going to be shut down the chances realistically of Frontier spending resources on it are minimal. If it doesn't happen within the next year the chances drop substantially.

I was deliberately being a bit vague, because I'm trying to encompass many nuances in the same answer. So I guess option 2 strictly means that you'll be happy if Frontier release an offline mode at any point in the future, from release to when they stop supporting the game ; you're not in a hurry to get it, you just want to eventually get it so that you can play it after they stopped supporting the game. Though I agree with you that when they're ready to let go of the game, it is unlikely they'll spend the resources to make offline work. So hope is they'll work on that when they're satisfied with multiplayer experience of the base game, possibly after a few patches/free content (the 30 ships) and before they start to work on big expansions like walking on stations.


Antmax > I guess you haven't been following the monstruous thread on the subject, but who could blame you, there are so many messages there. Michael Brookes explicitly said on that thread that there won't be an offline mode, and that it is "very unlikely" they will ever try to make one. It doesn't get much more official than that. Hence this thread, with which I'm trying to give Frontier numbers showing there really are people who want them to work on it at some point. Not at the expense of online, though ; like I said above the ideal would be when online mode is stable and more or less feature complete.

So far the poll still shows more than 55% of voters want an offline mode, while less than 1/5 only want online modes and less than 1/4 don't care either way. I've been following the results all day, and these proportions have been consistent since people started voting, so I guess they'll only consolidate with more voters. So far more than 400 votes...

 

[NotFragile]

No solo-offline play?

Don't care, it was never a factor in my decision to buy into ED.

 

[foxpur]

No solo-offline play?

Don't care, it was never a factor in my decision to buy into ED.

This does bring up a note for me: It WAS a factor to me, my net is seriously unreliable and goes out for a week at a time.

Having said that, I realize it can't be done, thanks for trying FD, I appreciate you gave it a try at least. It's a bit frustrating, but I prefer the live version anyhow so it is just a case of "Deal with it, move on." Can't be helped.

Getting all bent outta shape ain't gonna reshape reality. There are much worse things to gripe about that I CAN have an affect on, like ways to better poverty and bullying and hunger... a game isn't worth that kind of stress.

 

[Jer the Stampede]

Hmm, The Stampede envisioned a galaxy wide expanse of pleasure to explore with friends, strangers and scaly aliens of every shape and size.

However the option for personal entertainment in a more solitary way was always highly desired and is still highly desirable somewhere down the line at least.

 

[foxpur]

Hmm, The Stampede envisioned a galaxy wide expanse of pleasure to explore with friends, strangers and scaly aliens of every shape and size.

However the option for personal entertainment in a more solitary way was always highly desired and is still highly desirable somewhere down the line at least.

A philosophic 3rd person... do you also refer to yourself as 'we'? Just wonder, no malice intended.

 

[Jer the Stampede]

A philosophic 3rd person... do you also refer to yourself as 'we'? Just wonder, no malice intended.

The title of stampede or mechanised typhoon as one is also known is a calling and a privilege that truth be told one isn't worthy of but rambles on like this all the same.

 

[foxpur]

The title of stampede or mechanised typhoon as one is also known is a calling and a privilege that truth be told one isn't worthy of but rambles on like this all the same.

Thank you for the information. I love trivia like that.

 

[Goilveig]

I originally assumed "no offline mode" meant that in 10'ish years when the game is no longer "alive" that they would just shut down the servers entirely and you would never again be able to play Elite Dangerous.

1. I don't think servers are likely to go offline in 10 years. Asheron's Call still has official servers up 15 years after launch, Ultima Online is 17 years old, etc.

2. Even games that flop tend to have free private servers built by reverse engineering. Few client-server games don't ever have private servers, particularly if there is a loyal fan base.

 

[light487]

I chose option 3 but option 2 is good too. I think that they should concentrate on the online mode now, get everything nice and decent and then immediately get a development team started on getting an offline mode created and ready for play within 6 months of release.

 

[Eswaddica]

You might see the point if you worked in a environment where you traveled a lot and/or it took you to places where there was no internet connection.

I had this issue with always online when I was tried to take my copy of one of the Assassin's Creed to sea with me. Wasn't able to play at all because I didn't have an internet connection.

I work for an organisation that has three ships that are at sea most of the time and they have internet for the crew to use so they can play games when not on duty and Skype etc to their families. Also for email and getting information regarding the work the ships have to do. So I don't see your point.

You've still got time to play when you are ashore.

Also I get to travel a lot with my job and I haven't stayed in a hotel without an internet connection for years, in fact it is a requirement so I can get emails ect while away.

 

[Erik Marcaigh]

DB has said (somewhere) that he wants to be able to play this game for a long time to come. So I can see the servers being up for at least 10 years. That's quite a bit of time, you know. How many times will you upgrade and/or obtain a brand new computer over a 10 year span? I just built one for ED, and my computers easily last 4+ years, so I'll probably be on my 3rd ED computer by that time.

Neverwinter Nights (the first Bioware version) kept up a subscription on GameSpy for about 10 years so people could easily find NWN servers (I used to run a persistent world).

Other games that have been online only were converted in their last year of online to a SP experience by their devs.

So fully expect FDev to do the same years and years and years down the road. Or maybe ED will be so wildly successful that 10 years from now, Elite V will be programmed?

But for the moment, why worry about it? If someone is a player who does not have an internet connection, or has very limited bandwidth or only rare times they can connect, then I feel for them. But everyone just crying because they can... nope. FDev needs to keep focus on the game and the content they want to add. So let's let them.

 

[Hermit]

But for the moment, why worry about it? If someone is a player who does not have an internet connection, or has very limited bandwidth or only rare times they can connect, then I feel for them. But everyone just crying because they can... nope. FDev needs to keep focus on the game and the content they want to add. So let's let them.

I think you need to watch Tim Wheatley's video. He's not "crying about it because he can" Instead he's given a good response to the decision, and the way it was announced. Perhaps you'll understand why many feel so strongly about it when you've watched it:
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[video=youtube_share;LA-ZvZJ9fvw]http://youtu.be/LA-ZvZJ9fvw[/video]

 

[Adept]

Perhaps FD could offer a solo (non-multiplayer and completely separate from the online) cut-down version for people wanting to play offline?

I think that roadmap and firm statements about what is and isn't going into the game is needed sooner rather than later. What was the point of the DDF otherwise?

It feels like a limited scope off-line version may be necessary. It would be one without the big secrets of the Milky Way to find, more an updated version of the origial Elite. The problem is, I guess that all the stuff that generates NPCs and such is on the cloud server. Data security aside it will take them quite a while to create a single player version integrating the functionality (even a cut down version), and all that effort will be away from further work on the Online version.

Your second point is a very good one. I would hope Frontier would talk to us way more, rather than managing us and just surprising us with the latest reveals. Maybe not quite open development, but a roadmap on what will be in the release version and a warning on things that have been cut completely (or for now) would be welcome.

 

[Zephyriel]

A limited scope offline could maybe be considered, but I don't think Frontier would settle for that. If they ever make an offline mode, I'm sure they'll make it as close as possible to the online experience.

Regarding a development roadmap, this isn't their style. The DDF's point was to show and discuss the most feature complete game they could possibly make. But like with every game ever made, some cuts had to be made, so there are some things from the DDF we will never see and that's okay. The difference with other games, especially those released via big publishers, is that these games never release this kind of design documents, so we never know what we missed, except sometimes when the missing things are obvious (e.g. the completely empty Kingdom in the first Assassin's Creed) or when some people mine the game's files.

If we want to know what is and isn't going in the game, the gamma release in a few days will mostly answer that question. They'll be adding some ships, but I don't expect massive features to be added after release, outside the big planned expansions like planetary landings and walking on stations.

 

[karel]

Biased. Make less questions, balance them more.