Walking around stations may be a bad idea

[schuesseled]

Do I care if I get to walk around stations, not really but if it were possible I would just want to the things I can already do whilst docked except on foot.

> Walk around the dock looking at all the pretty stuff.

> See npc sheep crowding round the bulletin board and access it myself. (Imagine wall street scenes in films)

> Take a lift down to the outfitters, walk around my ship inspecting possible equipment and paint jobs.

> Visit the shipyard, take a walking tour round a few ships.

> Visit the marketplace. (Wallstreet apocalypse, don't want to hang around there)

> Look out a window.

A system of various automated lifts, carts, shuttles, whatever will allow for the scope of the floating city you are in whilst reducing repetitive walking nonsense.

 

[worldoflard]

I think the first step is to vastly expand the variations for procedural generation of stations, including having stations which evolve over time, particularly if related to in-game events, local economic changes etc. for example:
- Having stations which gradually get larger and grander, versus stations which get more and more seedy and run-down would be pretty cool.
- How about outposts which respond to overcrowding by gradually becoming more complex, with more pads available.
- The same expansions could start to consider the internals layouts also, laying the groundwork for "walking around"

I love the stations and outposts even now, they almost ook like the result of expensive hollywood CGI, but I look forward to the day where entering a new station always comes with surprises other than just "where is pad 16? oh, up there". If each station is genuinely different enough to make you pause a little for orientation, or just to look at some interesting new combination of features, then it will be a total success, and lead the way to a much more interesting experience when it comes to leaving the ship.

 

[Sam Browne]

Walking around my ship will add to my immersion tremendously. From my perspective and my experience with ED so far it will be a great addition. Even if stations will look the same and be empty.

Yup.

Being able to get out of the pilots chair on-board would, imho, really add to the immersion... It worked in SWG, works in SWTOR so why not here; not being able to lift out of the chair makes me think my pilot will look like a WALL-E BnL Starliner captain...
.
Likewise being able to exit the ship on-station (perhaps to a limited degree - whilst supervising refits/paint-jobs etc.) (yes perhaps Eve-online style) could add benefits we haven't yet thought of.
BUT...
It has to be way low on the list of priorities, don't make the mistake Eve Online made - ram through a feature no-one really wanted which had no functionality anyway.

jmho.
Best

Sam

 

[Herik]

Completely agree. I couldn't be less interested in walking around stations. Elite, for me, is a game about space and spaceships - that's what I want from it.

I have similar concerns about landing on planets. Unless they find a way to add interesting and varied gameplay alongside them, both walking around stations and landing on planets seem like a colossal waste of the dev's time. I would much, much rather them add new and varied gameplay for the core of the game - space and spaceships.

Well I don't agree, In the case of 'walking around ships/stations/boarding other player ships'; to much (game content) would be thrown out if it disappeared on to the cutting room floor.

Regarding 'planet landings' and their scope, it's even more valuable (content wise) that we implement it; I know it is a large undertaking, but also imagine all those standard mmorpg people realizing they now have multiple thousands/millions of standard mmorpg playing experiences on these planets...;I believe with minimal marketing effort on FD's part, the very large population of regular mmorpg players would become quite interested....

Think about it..at this point the game is near superb; well and good it takes place in space, we needed that. But now its time for the rest of the mmorpg population to become interested; crossing country sides, evading and fighting and hunting animals, proceeding to a certain town or city, locating a known NPC to fullfill a quest/mission or get new quests/missions. All (that) stuff.

 

[Morgo_the_MonkeyGod]

I'm a pilot not a hiker ;-)

 

[Herik]

I think it can be done.

Rather than try to populate a whole station with npcs I would look at just doing various settings within the station and use a transit system like a tram to take players to and from locations (to load them into a instance of the setting) These could be corporation offices where you meet the npcs behind the missions on the boards. A pub where players can be social and interact with each other and play darts or pool, or a garden area if it is an agriculture station.

We would be able to walk around our ships and inside of them also as well as invite other players into them.

To try and do a whole station it would be like trying to create the whole of New York or London in space and populate it with millions of npcs. Just not really possible to do or practical.

Same could go for planet side cities and ports.

As for planet landings that have no cities or populations then these would be PG.


You could then mix it up with the FPS element during a war or civil war in a system where players could go planet side and try to take key locations in a shooter type combat using a cover system like Ghost Recon or GTA V. Where teams will face off against each other to either defend or attack. If there are not enough players then the simulation will put into place bots to make up the team lacking in players.

Interesting thinking; not all of it (I) would do but many more would. The depth of immersive (I know I said that word), experience might come into question, but perhaps not if done in some balanced mechanics way.

 

[Dors Venabili]

Personally I can't wait until we can set foot everywhere: ships, stations & planets. Each of those options will only add to the experience and make you feel you're really there, doing your thing. If you don't want to leave your ship, don't. There are plenty of us waiting to jump out and walk around. Bring it on FD

 

[worldoflard]

the *VERY* first thing i do when FD lets us get up and out of our commanders seat is find the nearest ruddy Loo (bathroom) i been stuck in this seat for countless lightyears now and i really really need to go

Yep. Trouble is, by that time I will need a class 5 A trap, which are about 3m CR

 

[Continium]

Startrek online (although a very different game I admit) has managed to create quite a good blend of Space/Ground content (alot of of it is 'randomly created'). It also has a 'foundry system' that allows players to create missions (space and ground) - I could definitly see a foundry system being a good way to create ground content for ED - the imagination of its players could create some epic things

 

[Ogidch]

There will always be a limiting factor on the content available, and guess once you seen one space port you have seen them all. The main focus for now and the near future should be on sorting out the issues like wings and aspects which i am not going to list here.

However I do think it will be a nice addition to the game to have the option, maybe they can apply some procedural generation to the interiors and NPC character graphics. It would be nice to visit a shop where you can take your ship to have some special tweaks and tuning. I cannot see myself walking to a bar and chatting with NPC's, maybe if other players are there to barter or place bounties on other players etc that could be fun. A darker more sinister side to some ports where bounty hunters and criminals frequent, with some half dozen ports being completely individual and a known place to visit from across the verse for whatever reason.

 

[Dethmunk]

You know I simply don't understand why people create threads like this. People are complaining that the galaxy is empty (not me btw, I love it) and FD have said the ability to move around your ship, station and planets is coming. Your opinion is not going to affect this, its their design decision not yours. So you've wasted your time and effort ranting about this. Besides, and this is the important bit, IF you DON'T want to do this, you DON'T have to. Its totally OPTIONAL!!! So why complain about something that hasn't even been implemented yet.
You have no idea how well or otherwise this will be implemented. I for one would welcome anything that would let me do more things in Elite. Yes it will be a big job, but overtime any shortfalls if any, will hopefully be refined and improved. Just dismissing it outright, because you don't like the 'idea' of it, is shortsighted and a little idiotic. Wait and see how it looks and feels and if you want to partake then download otherwise continue to play Elite as is, no harm done.

 

[Skip Intro]

Startrek online ... has managed to create quite a good blend of Space/Ground content

I spent way too much time in the Character Generator in STO. I'd love to have the same idea in Elite to design an 'Alien' Commander.

 

[Herik]

I would like to know the name of this game?

I think you are expecting way too much if you are in favour of walking around the space stations, ships and planets or if you are one of those not wanting to be able to do this are missing the fact that FD want this.

Personally I want to be able to walk about and interact with my ship, I want to land on the surface of a planet, moon or even asteroid, I want to be able to walk around the landing pad and the corridors of the station. I dont mind if the NPC's in the background have familiar faces and if the odd interactive NPC has a similar face as the one on the last station again that doesn't bother me too much as I appreciate there is a heck of a lot of work that would need to go into making every NPC an individual and every station distinguishable from the last.

I agree; also we should note if FD doesn't pursue this, another game will; and not in the too distant future...I want FD to stay on top.

 

[RobinsonUK]

Shame this didn't go much further...or did it?

Subversion by Introversion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FR9xI0GgrBY

Hah that's cool. You could start generating it when the player enters supercruise and by the time he arrives it might be finished.

 

[Alric]

I'm looking forward to the walking around expansions, but walking around stations is the part I care about least.
Yes, it will be very difficult to generate lots of different places full of characters, and make them compelling.
What I'm much more interested in is walking around my own ship, seeing my own crew and passengers - who will be meaningful characters to me. Possibly content based on them - passengers who didn't tell you the whole story, crew who are wanted by pirates etc.

Also really looking forward to walking around on planets.. big open unexplored ones. Finding wreckage or minerals, or life, pirate stashes or whatever.. unidentified signal sources on the ground if you like.

So to me it's not a case of don't do it because someone else did it badly. Do it, but do it the Elite way. Focus on the vast open ended universe, and the player's own ship. Do a good job on population centres, but don't get bogged down in trying to be a different game.

 

[di6turbed]

... and if FD at some point decides not to implement walking around the stations, we will have 100 simila threads on how dissapointed people are about this. It will be optional, so why would anyone care? If you don't like it, don't use it. I am sure the current way of interacting with the station will stay unchanged, but I also suspect that there will be some additional gains for those who choose to go and talk to traders in person (like discounts or something).

For me the first things to implement are:
- crew members (recruitment, some quests with them, salaries - they should be necessary for bigger ships)
- ability to walk around the ship
- ability to land on planets
- ferrying passengers

 

[Jonathan E]

If they made the station interiors as big as and as nice as the ones in Mass Effect I'd be happy to have a walk around. Would be be good to have to look for people to get/hand in missions.

 

[Neilos]

I have a degree in computer science

Like he said:

This is because:-

(A) You have no.........computing skill, imagination, faith, vision.

I am yet to find a computer (psuedo) science grad who can actually use a computer properly, let alone write software.

 

[Ralph Vargr]

Why is it that everyone wants a full-fledged RPG in every game? Just Curious.

"Never Get Off The Boat"- Apocalypse Now.

@Skip Intro: We need death during chargen, and skimming gas giants.

Ralph, Traveller Ref since 1978

 

[Neilos]

And back on topic... I am amazed with what FD have proven they can do, I'm eagerly awaiting the next DLC. In FD we trust