Newcomer / Intro Will we ever come across aliens out there?

[Kuroshio]

The ones who simply fell asleep are not the ones who worry me.

I hope they wait a little longer. For some reason, witchspace is scary enough during long-term exploration, and I'd like to make it back in one piece some day. Without having to worry about Chiggy von Richthofen jumping at me.

 

[unite]

Or this could be the red dwarf universe and there is nothing out there. Not even the Quagaars!

 

[Bluebird007]

How cool if this is where a second Commander slot comes in ...... you can have another slot, but it's a Thargoid slot (giggity!).

 

[unite]

Considering the luck I've had so far today spilling my breakfast over myself twice, knocking a cup of tea over some drawings in work and getting landed with the lovely job of designing toilets for the next few hours I fully expect to find myself a Thargoid fleet poking my ship when I log on tonight back to the far reaches of the galaxy armed with nothing more than my garbage dispenser.

 

[Dommarraa]

If you watch the jump animation, you will notice little glowing balls that weave around. Notice that they are not travelling at the same speed or direction as all the other space gubbins. Maybe other CMDRS ? not out where I am at 10kly.
Thats a Thargoid. In ye olden days, they would pull you out of warp space and blow the bejebus out of you, so just be thankfull that they dont want to meet.

 

[Crazy Jedi]

+1 rep for the B5 references

seconded

 

[willowfan]

seconded

Thirded

 

[Guido]

The ones who simply fell asleep are not the ones who worry me.

I hope they wait a little longer. For some reason, witchspace is scary enough during long-term exploration, and I'd like to make it back in one piece some day. Without having to worry about Chiggy von Richthofen jumping at me.

+1 for the Space Above and Beyond ref. Not seen that in years!

 

[This Forum Sucks]

If you watch the jump animation, you will notice little glowing balls that weave around. Notice that they are not travelling at the same speed or direction as all the other space gubbins. Maybe other CMDRS ? not out where I am at 10kly.
Thats a Thargoid. In ye olden days, they would pull you out of warp space and blow the bejebus out of you, so just be thankfull that they dont want to meet.

Those are just lights. Also thargoids were nothing special, the biggest threat they posed was that they'd dump you too far from any systems so you couldn't jump away after you'd killed them all.

 

[Kuroshio]

@Dommarra: Great. Here I was, thinking I started to imagine things in the swirl. I'll be a nervous wreck before I even arrive at Sag A*.

@Guido: One should honor the forgotten ancestor of modern darker & edgier science fiction shows from time to time.

 

[Crazy Jedi]

Whether the aliens (if they are ever introduced) friend or foe, or perhaps some of each, It will totally change the dynamics of the game!

 

[unite]

I'm not to sure it will be a game changer. It will more likely be that the aliens will pull you out of FS just like any other interdiction and I would suggest this is why they are currently not in the game. Once the game evolves with better missions, planet lands, a better market place then it will be time to introduce aliens and expand those features further.

I don't think it would be possible to have the aliens pull you out of a jump between systems. This mechanic is used for your computer to communicate with the servers for your change of location (or at least thats my understanding and why it sometimes takes forever to jump).

 

[Greyhawk]

"He says the sun came out last night, he says it sang to him".

Out there in the black, they are watching and waiting. When the walls of the cabin are closing in and the last case of supplies are opened, canopy cracked and the last sound of home just a memory...watch out. They will be drifting in the dark for you....

 

[Crazy Jedi]

"He says the sun came out last night, he says it sang to him".

Out there in the black, they are watching and waiting. When the walls of the cabin are closing in and the last case of supplies are opened, canopy cracked and the last sound of home just a memory...watch out. They will be drifting in the dark for you....

I just experienced an involuntary shudder!

 

[Crazy Jedi]

I'm not to sure it will be a game changer. It will more likely be that the aliens will pull you out of FS just like any other interdiction and I would suggest this is why they are currently not in the game. Once the game evolves with better missions, planet lands, a better market place then it will be time to introduce aliens and expand those features further.

I don't think it would be possible to have the aliens pull you out of a jump between systems. This mechanic is used for your computer to communicate with the servers for your change of location (or at least thats my understanding and why it sometimes takes forever to jump).

Will the ability to land on the solid planets happen for certain?

It won't change the game in the way it functions but it will add a different dimension and feel to it - Especially if you are anything of a role player like me

 

[the100thmonkey]

I've played a great deal of FPS (Battlefield series mainly) and can see some real potential for plantary landings and walking around the stations.

Imagine rush (BF3/4 game mode) but set on a coriolis starport. Imagine storming a compound on a planet's surface while Dropships rumble overhead. Imagine the dread you feel when you hear a Tharglet start an attack run with its multicannon-equivalent tearing holes in the ground. Imagine the big fight scene at the end of Starship Troopers...

OK, it won't be that big, but there's a lot of potential for 32 players in an instance like that, even against bots. If FD could find some way to up the instance to 64 players, multi-player FPS in the Elite universe could just well be downright awesome (yes, they could make a pig's ear of it too).

And when you're done fighting, you either respawn in the staging area and go back to your ship, or the Dropship picks you up after your glorious victory and takes you back to the transport and on to your ship with a healthy cash bonus waiting for you. I'd actively seek out PvP in that kind of arena.

 

[Kuroshio]

Smack in the middle of nowhere as I am, I'd be happy with putting down beside a lake on a procedurally generated earth-like world, opening the hatch and stretching my invisible feet.

But I wouldn't mind some ArmA 2-like Capture the Island instances in the future. (Maybe they should cooperate. Earlier ArmA muliplayer was already designed for 32 players, and Bohemia knows how to procedurally generate forests. )

 

[mossfoot]

I guess if we go in First Person mode combat WILL have to be part of it... but I almost add "sadly" to that because of what it implies.

But remember, plenty of people play Elite doing their best to avoid combat altogether, living a more or less peaceful life of trading and exploration. FPS should allow for the same thing - yes combat will have to be taken into account (and done well with good mechanics) but it should not be the focus any more than it is in the space sim.

I'd hate to have it that the only good alien was a dead alien

 

[who?]

Even without planetary landings, or getting out of your ship, or FPS combat.. just having being able to get down into the planet's atmosphere would be great for me. One thing I don't like about Elite is often you don't - understandably - get a great feeling of speed since you're zooming through empty space with nothing around for reference.

The only real exception is in the RES where you're zooming through rocks. Imagine how fast a Viper would feel if you're zooming down a valley at ~400m/s after your target, with the engine and weapon fire echoing off the cliff walls. That alone would be a game-changer for me.

 

[willowfan]

Will the ability to land on the solid planets happen for certain?

It won't change the game in the way it functions but it will add a different dimension and feel to it - Especially if you are anything of a role player like me

Planetary landings is one of the announced expansion aims, along with being able to walk around your ship and space stations.