Please DONT have automatic vertical thruster compensation for gravity.

[aRtFuL]

I would expect FD to implement planetary flight something similar to how Helicopter flight works.

After all, that how most sci-fi games that has planetary flight does it (ie. Planetside 2 and the likes) and people are probably used to it.

 

[WR3ND]

I do enjoy these threads when we all argue over "reality" in a FTL space ship game..

It's called a "willing suspension of disbelief" for a reason. Some people just have different tolerance levels for "artistic interpretations." I personally would like the game to be as scientifically accurate as possible while still providing a viable game. The FSD is just one of the means by which to make the game viable to play, not an excuse to make it annoyingly nonsensical.

Now if we could just get the right number of stars in well known systems...

 

[Darian]

It's called a "willing suspension of disbelief" for a reason. Some people just have different tolerance levels for "artistic interpretations." I personally would like the game to be as scientifically accurate as possible while still providing a viable game. The FSD is just one of the means by which to make the game viable to play, not an excuse to make it annoyingly nonsensical.

Now if we could just get the right number of stars in well known systems...

ED uses an theoretical model "how to archieve FTL"
you can not move faster than light so the other option is to compress space around your ship so the distance shrinks.
An observer from the outside would see off course "FTL" flight, but the ship does not violate speed of light.
In so faar ED is pretty much scifi but not in an way that makes suspension of disbelief snap.

What irks me much more is drag and speed limit in space, we could have true newtonian flight, true ships would be too fast for dogfights in the middle of nowhere, the dogfights would be reserved for close to stations where ships have to slow down to dock.
That would open much more fun activities like blockade running and so on because you had ships forming a shell around a station and other attempting to get through it.
Pilots would have to think stratetical to reach an other ship in an way that would not remind of jousting.

So well, the FTL does not stress my sod as much as drag and speed limits in space.

Regarding the hovering over surface, having that not would be plain silly, or "because game reasons" because the first partial height controlled thrusters where invented at a time computers still used punchcards. Your cellphone has enough juice to controll an spaceship in that regard. The only reason to not have them would be game reasons and that is silly .