Elite Dangerous | 2025 Roadmap

[Rubbernuke]

Yes, would really appreciate an NPC crewmate - hopefully with a bit of game play around it.

A long time ago I suggested this:

PROPOSAL: Hiring NPC crew [mockup]

The 2.1 Engineers has shown great potential to open up NPC hiring, and make us actually care about our ships, and where we go. Right now we fly anywhere and don't really care about what stations we dock at, or what we really do there. No station has any real 'atmosphere' like say the Cantina...

forums.frontier.co.uk

looks at date

feels old

 

[Jinx Chrome]

A long time ago I suggested this:

PROPOSAL: Hiring NPC crew [mockup]

The 2.1 Engineers has shown great potential to open up NPC hiring, and make us actually care about our ships, and where we go. Right now we fly anywhere and don't really care about what stations we dock at, or what we really do there. No station has any real 'atmosphere' like say the Cantina...

forums.frontier.co.uk

looks at date

feels old

That goes right into the direction which I'd like to see, too! And with your success of getting the PC, you might try to ask another 65245 times for this feature On the other hand, chance may be that FDev won't give you another feature.

Therefore, let's pester them (nicely) to get an interactive crew! Plus the ability to space them somewhere out in the Formidine Rift in case that they get really pesky.

 

[Dillon Fallon]

looks at date

feels old

Well let's pile on that thought.

I'd just bought my PS4 and was playing Star Wars Battlefront at that time- just after turning off Skyrim on my XBox 360 for the last time. It'd still be another 18 months before I started playing ED.

My eldest child who is just starting to dip her toe in ED now was 2 months old.

 

[Dougie]

I WANT THIS!
....

Yes no doubt the joined Hydrocoptic Marzlevanes would be a game-changer.

 

[Rubbernuke]

That goes right into the direction which I'd like to see, too! And with your success of getting the PC, you might try to ask another 65245 times for this feature On the other hand, chance may be that FDev won't give you another feature.

Therefore, let's pester them (nicely) to get an interactive crew! Plus the ability to space them somewhere out in the Formidine Rift in case that they get really pesky.

Well I suppose I need a new hobby to pester / frighten FD into doing.

 

[Rubbernuke]

My eldest child who is just starting to dip her toe in ED now was 2 months old.

Mine were just learning to control bowels when my tender, innocent fingers typed out that suggestion.

 

[tolm]

If there were NPC crew … I’d really want to be able to walk around the cockpit to see/talk to them. Even if only when docked.

 

[Doctor Dread]

If there were NPC crew … I’d really want to be able to walk around the cockpit to see/talk to them. Even if only when docked.

It always irritated me to see seats next to me in the cockpit empty. I would like to have a crew sitting there - they don't have to do anything, just to fill the seats. It would look less lonesome.

 

[[VR] Mad Mike]

It always irritated me to see seats next to me in the cockpit empty. I would like to have a crew sitting there - they don't have to do anything, just to fill the seats. It would look less lonesome.

that is what I have never got! it's surely not a technical issue the pieces are already there. we have ships crew (if we choose). and in multicrew we can see that the feature exists to see characters in seats... so why on earth (or in space) can we not see our crew in their seats?

 

[aRJay]

that is what I have never got! it's surely not a technical issue the pieces are already there. we have ships crew (if we choose). and in multicrew we can see that the feature exists to see characters in seats... so why on earth (or in space) can we not see our crew in their seats?

My take on it with the SLF crew is that they stay in their own cabin and drone SLF control centre built into the hanger which I am very happy about since I do not trust them enough to let them on my bridge.

And no I don’t go out in the SLF leaving them in control of my ship.

 

[Jinx Chrome]

In the age of (cheap) gen AI, a crew mate who is just a bit more than a pixel puppet should be doable with not too much development work.
For testing it out if that resonates with the player base, they could try

• Interaction through ship menu, dialogue wheel, spoken commands would give them a bit of game play.
• Use certain triggers like jumping into a newly discovered system, warnings when landing on high-g worlds or when being attacked
• sometimes (please let us adjust the frequency) comments from the codex.

Then give us outfits to dress them (ARX) and the feature is financed

 

[aRJay]

In the age of (cheap) gen AI, a crew mate who is just a bit more than a pixel puppet should be doable with not too much development work.
For testing it out if that resonates with the player base, they could try

• Interaction through ship menu, dialogue wheel, spoken commands would give them a bit of game play.
• Use certain triggers like jumping into a newly discovered system, warnings when landing on high-g worlds or when being attacked
• sometimes (please let us adjust the frequency) comments from the codex.

Then give us outfits to dress them (ARX) and the feature is financed

Please not a dialogue wheel.

 

[Jinx Chrome]

Please not a dialogue wheel.

typing isn't fun either when using a HOTAS or VR when flying Voice may be the most natural approach but the design should be inclusive and allow players who don't want to / cannot or do not want to speak / have a strong accent enjoy such a feature, too.
Personally, I found the dialogue wheel in Mass Effect to be pretty good.
What do you suggest, instead?

 

[aRJay]

typing isn't fun either when using a HOTAS or VR when flying Voice may be the most natural approach but the design should be inclusive and allow players who don't want to / cannot or do not want to speak / have a strong accent enjoy such a feature, too.
Personally, I found the dialogue wheel in Mass Effect to be pretty good.
What do you suggest, instead?

Having only used dialogue wheels in Odyssey on foot, I don't have a high opinion of them. I agree the other options aren't ideal either.

Perhaps a simple reply bound to a control of our choice saying "Not now I'm busy"

 

[Doctor Dread]

In the age of (cheap) gen AI, a crew mate who is just a bit more than a pixel puppet should be doable with not too much development work.
For testing it out if that resonates with the player base, they could try

• Interaction through ship menu, dialogue wheel, spoken commands would give them a bit of game play.
• Use certain triggers like jumping into a newly discovered system, warnings when landing on high-g worlds or when being attacked
• sometimes (please let us adjust the frequency) comments from the codex.

Then give us outfits to dress them (ARX) and the feature is financed

No, zero interaction.

They're there just to sit in depressingly empty seats.

 

[Spaceman-FXL5]

They're there just to sit in depressingly empty seats.

Yep, no dialogue necessary, just FILL THE SEATS please!!!!!

 

[SergMx]

No, zero interaction.

They're there just to sit in depressingly empty seats.

My pilot thinks I pay him too little and won't go with me to the surface (on your feet) of the planet, even in a settlement.

 

[anumist]

thanks FDEV for still working on new features, we really appreciate it !

 

[Jinx Chrome]

No, zero interaction.

They're there just to sit in depressingly empty seats.

to show us their depressingly empty faces
Nah, I am getting it - but also this could be controllable from empty face over 'briefly confirming an order', 'random comment' to 'really chatty'. VoiceAttack does this pretty well.

 

[Doctor Dread]

to show us their depressingly empty faces
Nah, I am getting it - but also this could be controllable from empty face over 'briefly confirming an order', 'random comment' to 'really chatty'. VoiceAttack does this pretty well.

I'd rather use "full helmet on all the time"