More variations in spcaestations

Just i suggestion after playing this for awhile. Could you try to make some variations in the spacestations so they are not all the same - it's seems like there is 4-5 space stations or so - and they all look the same on the inside.

I nice thing could be a somehow random or procedural code that generates some variations.

Another thing is to vary the colors/palettes and also vary the fonts used on the walls of the stations - all systems kind of have the same corporate identity so to speak - which makes it a bit "strange" and monotonous.

And thanks for a great game by the way ;)
 
Im very dissapointed too, with so many colonies in different parts of space one would asume cultural diversity alien architecture and a own style. When i travel from country To country i can see a different style of architecture. The houses in Europe look different than the houses in say, Asia or Africa. So why not in space ? And what about Alien influence in the art design i cant imagine that the human race wiped out all other races and destroyed their culture and are now and forever the dominant species with only 4 copy paste spacestations who only are different in names.

Do something about it.

More different textures and lights inside stations would be great, now its very boring. Diversity and please make the spacestations look better now i am having the idea they were developed on a playstation 2....
 
Yes, more variation is always good.


+1 to the OP for the positive way of expressing this.

-1 to the second post. Please, there's no need to be rude. It's possible to express yourself effectively AND get people on-side at the same time. It's all down to your tone, and choice of phrases.
 
8694-frontier-elite-ii-dos-screenshot-imp-trader-coming-home-s.gif I was always fond of these. Would be nice to see the bulk carriers make a return also frontier-5.jpg

And I really want to see this Frontier_elite2_screenshot.gif and some of this http://eab.abime.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=27956&d=1298226596 with the accompanying exterior view so it can be admired fully.
 
View attachment 6228 I was always fond of these. Would be nice to see the bulk carriers make a return also View attachment 6229

And I really want to see this View attachment 6230 and some of this http://eab.abime.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=27956&d=1298226596 with the accompanying exterior view so it can be admired fully.

Well, you speak for many I think :) however FD has stated more than once that its on the drawing board. How they will do it we just don't know. We do know how it can be done with todays computers and fancy coding :)
 
small space stations

I don't know how small the smallest station is, but presumably the smallest station only needs 1 docking port, and it should not take long to design one.

I can see a need for a small station with a limited number of docking ports that can be used in star systems with a limited number of resources.

maybe only 3 or 4 docking ports, and perhaps not even internal to the port, they could be external to the station.

it would make sense for the following reasons:

- quicker for developers to design
- appropriate for star systems with fewer traffic, services, or resources
- added element to the game by having limited docking ports
 
planet-sized space station

I think the holy grail of space stations is the Death Star type of station as seen in Star Wars.

perhaps the designers should make a planet-sized (or Moon sized) docking station, with near unlimited docking ports, unlimited resources, etc?

and then put it in orbit in a high-trafficked area, or around a star that has no planets.
 
Some asteroid-stations would be a nice variant, and not too hard to do (basically some new variants of the "outpost")
 
another reason to have a small station, whereby you can dock outside the station without having to enter a slot, is that new users can focus on practicing docking without worrying about loitering, bumping the station, and other issues.
 
I've always wanted to experience the shoot tube ship launcher type experience like from the modern Battlestar Galatica series. This would be awesome in the Oculus also.

The kind of station where you dock normally, but has a super fast exit shoot that propels your ship at 1000m/s through a launch pipe into space (Also with an awesome engulfing, wind up, whoosh sound).
 
Stations need gameplay variety, not just visual variety.

What is the difference between a military base, a mining base, a trade hub, a shipyard, a manufactory, a space habitat, a pirate hideout currently? Absolutely nothing is what. All of these roles and more need distinct models with distinct docking ports, distinct things you can do on them, and in several different sizes too. A lot of work, yes, but needed to create truly interesting variety. It would also allow trading to be more intuitive as you no longer have to guess so much what is produced and what is needed at various stations.
 
For me personally the most important and straight-forward thing to do seems to be: make stations different based on allegiance:

  • Federation:
    • Logo/flags.
    • Wealthy stations are flooded with Space Cola and Burger President ads.
    • Sound is top 40 radio type.
    • Poor stations look like ghetto with graffiti, etc.
    • Paint and glow like Federal Dreadnought. Both inside and out.
  • Empire:
    • Banners with logo and faces of honoured people of the past. Statues.
    • Music is hymn type.
    • Paint and glow like Imperial Clipper and Dreadnought. Both inside and out.
  • Alliance:
    • Logo/flags. In addition, member state logo/flag, if the station belong to a specific state.
    • Their colour is green and some stations are painted outside with it (should be painted inside too), but I don't know about glow. They don't have their own ship to copy style from.
    • Music: folk metal? hardstyle? I have no more info about them, except they are liberal and diverse.
  • Independent:
    • Basically what we have now, for the time being.

More different textures and lights inside stations would be great
Lighting can make a big difference. They definitely need to play with colours and intensity to make stations different inside.

What is the difference between a military base, a mining base, a trade hub, a shipyard, a manufactory, a space habitat, a pirate hideout currently?
I like the economy making stations different.
  • Military: Dropships and Clippers (and whatever Alliance will get) lined up outside and a couple inside. In the view, but not in the way.
  • Tourism: Orcas instead. Maybe use white stations with palms from Sol system.
  • Agriculture: only use stations with farm rings and use them only for agriculture. Ocellus with ring(s) and Orbis.
 
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There are current 3 types of stations in general and 1 outpost that can change in configurations

Coriolis

The Coriolis is the iconic dodecahedron Starport from Elite.
Its around 2km in diameter.
Inverted skyscrapers are placed on the outside - "basement" penthouses provide comfortable gravity and spectacular views of the local planet or moon.

coriolis.jpg

Variations: You can expect to see the above blue lights or red lights! I personally like the "Red Light" variation with its darker colored hull/metal surface.

Red Variation:
Station_Type1_out2_zps37936ac4.jpg

Inside the Coriolis is similar just has a more industrial feel to it. The lights can go from dark and blue/green lights or much brighter with blue and white lights.

Inside the Coriolis Stations:

Blue/green Variation:
Blue/White Variation:
Station_Type1_in3_zps70e76d61.jpg



Orbis

Orbis are the giant Starports first introduced in Frontier, based on the 'Stanford torus' concept.
Measuring around 4km in diameter, the torus contains accommodation and amenities such as park land.
The smaller 2km diameter torus mid way down the Orbis provides 0.5g gravity for an easy living environment.
The giant bays towards the rear of the Orbis house vast storage capability for these mega-markets.


Orbis_HighRes2.jpg

Outside Variations: The Corbis can see a change in its "Agricultural" rings. Where they are positioned on the starport, how many it has, or sometimes it will have no rings. Its modules sticking out can also change. Sometimes it has large cargo areas and sometimes it doesnt. Some of these have other subtle features in differences too.

Just an example of how varied they can get:

Notice the Ring is all the way in the back and notice the position of its cargo holds, how they are "Elevated" away from the main starport itself.
Station_Type2_out2_zps6dc31e41.jpg
Notice the forward position of its rings!

Station_Type2_out3_zpsd3211109.jpg


Inside Variations:
Please note that I have NOT seen ALL of these because they can change and I have seen different types, from Palm Treee ones with parks too. Although, I will say that the Coriolis inside textures get used frequently here, but thats not to say these stations have different looks!

Palm Tree "California" Variation:
Station_Type2_in_zpsac1d6181.jpg


Ocellus

Ocellus Startports are new to Elite: Dangerous. They are smaller, stronger, better protected from radiation and more expensive than the Coriolis class Starports.
Ocellus are based on a modified Bernal sphere design.

Outside:
BernalSphere_Concept2.jpg

Variation comments and pictures of my own to come! I havent found one yet... YET!

The game just came out, I personally think theres plenty of variations already... I dont know what the complaint is.



 
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In general i find the spacestations in elite kind of empty, there's little to no traffic and it feels dead. Some kind of hubs, crowded outposts would be a nice addition to the game. If anyone played X Rebirth, he'll know what i'm talking about.
 
If some super smart person was to design/code some procedural station builds the variations could be massively different.

Stations are already procedurally generated. But the number of base elements is limited. And since E: D wants to remain a realistic(-ish) game, there's a limit to how many "kinds" of stations you can have. Currently, there are 4 kinds. This can definitely be improved, but even 10 kinds wouldn't give a huge variation.

Orbis stations have some nice variations (Outside). Inside... Well, all stations look the same (Except for the Palm-tree variation). That's the main issue IMO.

Outpost have some nice variations too.

I can see a need for a small station with a limited number of docking ports that can be used in star systems with a limited number of resources.

maybe only 3 or 4 docking ports, and perhaps not even internal to the port, they could be external to the station.

Looks like the very definition of an Outpost to me


In general, I'd like to see improvements in the following areas:

- More station types (At least 6 or 7 - we currently have 4)
- More differences in the docking bays/hangars
- More differences in the station outsides (Especially Coriolis and Ocelot)

There is concept art for this so hopefully we will see them. Maybe they are there, we just have to discover them?

They don't exist yet
 
Inside the Coriolis Stations:

Blue/green Variation:
Blue/White Variation:
Station_Type1_in3_zps70e76d61.jpg

I don't see any difference.

The game just came out, I personally think theres plenty of variations already... I dont know what the complaint is.
Yes, the game just came out. Yes, there is some variation. The complaint is that currently it's 4 things copied 100 billion times each over 400 billion stars and it becomes evident if you only visit a handful of stations. There is room for improvement and this thread is a nice place to give developers ideas.
 
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