Much needed quality of life changes Pt 2

[Hexcaliber]

First off, I apologize that this turned into such a wall of text, I did go back and edit the original to cut out some fat and I thank anyone who takes the time to read it.

I am restarting this thread as it was clear from the responses in the first, that many others feel as I do, and it is clearly something that needs to be discussed. Sadly, the first was closed after a few people resorted to swapping insults.

Please try to keep things civil, you do not have to agree with one another or me, but that is no reason to descend into a rabble.

-------Original post-------

Right now, here in 2015, we can log in to any computer, and within minutes be presented with a list of every conflict zone on the planet, or, despite our particular tastes and proclivities, find any product or service we desire and even have them delivered to our door. We can also arrange though employment agency websites for someone to come work for us within minutes.

In game in 3301, despite the fact we have mega corporations spanning multiple systems, with the ability to travel systems in minutes, we are reduced to a guessing game in the hunt for ships and equipment. Why on earth is it not possible to search in game using the galaxy map and a few additional toggles to find ships and equipment. Programmatically it is no different from listing star type, economy, or trade routes. Further, with the latest patch you had to go and change all the ship locations in game, so all the bookmarks I have assembled over the last 12 months are now useless.

Like many others I joined a faction navy, surely they might find a use for my python in any of their dozens of conflicts. Might it not make sense that they would inform their soldiers and officers where to take the fight in order to help; why not a simple icon on the galaxy map we can toggle on and off?

Bulletin board missions, in a sandbox game, this sort of mission dispenser serves to provide quick and EASY access to bite-sized content the player has an interest in. Why then, do we have to constantly waste time gaming the bulletin boards in open, group, and solo in order that we might find something we have an interest in doing. And when we cannot find the mission type we are looking for, why do we have to sit waiting ten minutes before they refresh? I am posting this now while I lose another ten minutes that I can never get back; it is a pointless waste of time.

The list goes on, much needed minor changes that would make a world of difference to game systems that have nothing to do with grind, or difficulty, and everything to do with playability. You cannot even argue through canon that the technology to disseminate the information is not available, if it were not, there would be no Galnet in game.

FEDV, you are great with the technical presentation of the game involving space travel within our galaxy, but you stink when it comes to playability, ease of use, and enjoyment. Your deliberate obfuscation of these systems is in a word, "pointless", it serves no one. WHY?

- - - - - Additional Content Posted / Auto Merge - - - - -

-------ADDENDUM -------

After making the above post I returned to the game to check the mission board for the 4th or 5 th time, that's nearly an hour, sitting trying to get a combat mission. When I returned I still could not find a suitable mission for my combat equipped ship.

At this point I logged out and went and bought a new game from steam; from Fdevs point of view this cannot be what they want for their customers, it needs to keep people engaged. I believe counter arguments about going off and finding something else to do in game are moot; the bulletin board is provided by the game, as a game system it should be functional and provide entertainment, much of the time it does not.

 

[Kristov]

Finding who sells what ships and modules and where, good point, we should have that functionality in the game, totally agree with that.

Naval stuff, no, don't agree, we aren't part of the actual Navies for the Federation or Empire, we're contractors who do jobs for them that they can't be seen doing, clearly evidenced by the fact that we only get Naval missions when it's time to rank up with the Auxiliary Navy of the Federation/Empire, and that's it. We don't otherwise get Navy missions, did you notice that? We're mercs, contractors, that's it, Aux Navy rank is a polite way of showing that we've been of service to them, the higher the rank, the more useful we've been, and at specific ranks we get access to military toys, the ships of the Federation and Empire that aren't available otherwise. So we don't special notifications about where and what the Navy is doing, we're not part of it.

BB missions, eh, not sure there, I find them to be fine overall. True, sometimes they offer nothing I'm interested in doing, but that's acceptable to me, I'm not the hero of the game after all in Elite Dangerous, I'm some schlub with a ship, so if there's a job that interests me, great, if not, that's fine, there's other things I can do with my time ingame, and I've never sat and waited for missions to change because there was nothing I was interested in. I want to fight, no combat missions, I head to a Nav Beacon, HazRes, CZ or CS or just pop into every USS/WSS/SSS I can find, simple as that. I don't want to fight and there's nothing BUT combat missions, I head out and do whatever I want that's not combat, mining, exploration or just looking at the stars..yeah, I do that, just look at the stars, I'm kind of the target audience for this game in that regards. I don't get bored by the game, I enjoy every moment of it.

Someone started a thread earlier, 'What do you enjoy doing in Elite Dangerous', my answer, hit the Play button.

 

[tawittle]

The two biggest quality of life improvements we need from FD:
1) being able to pay to deliver an owned ship to the station you are currently at.
2) being able to pay to deliver a specific module to the station you are currently at.

Also would be nice to have the mechanics for using KWS modified, it's pretty annoying having to hold that button down for 10+ seconds at a time, especially because of the NPC chaff.

The other points about quests and the navies etc. I think are mainly moot points. With a little imagination a CZ can easily be the type of battlefield that people ask for. Theres LOTS of roleplay opportunities in game, FD shouldn't have to hold your hand and spell out everything for you to be able to immerse yourself. As for the quests, well I have no problem stacking 30-40+ combat missions at a time, but you tell me you can't even find a SINGLE combat quest? Sounds like user error my friend.

 

[CMDR_Amanath]

Not interested in easy moding this game. Its fine how it us, the ugly duckling systems are part of the fun.

 

[Juffa]

The two biggest quality of life improvements we need from FD:
1) being able to pay to deliver an owned ship to the station you are currently at.
2) being able to pay to deliver a specific module to the station you are currently at.

Yes, why not, but only if:
3) The above would be completed by other players. As missions from the bulleting board. On their risk and only in open play, but the reward should be substantial and +some reputation as a reliable player. You would still probably get them faster if you did them by yourself.

 

[Lord Momo]

Agree with all points OP, especially missions, they are a function in the game that could be very engaging but are mostly broken, uninteresting, or unrewarding. Hell are there even missions for explorers yet? One of the 3 MAJOR careers advertised!?!?

Also I can find some combat missions, not sure why they are so rare for you, but they still feel bland, same RES fighting, just turn in a mission when you get back to station as well as claiming bounties.

A few other things I would add to your list,

Request ship from any station, larger distance, larger fee, but nothing too crazy, 1-100k

Make NPC's have ammo like us, giving npc's infi-chaff and infi-rail ammo and energy isn't making them more interesting to kill, it makes them obnoxious to kill, they just spam chaff and fire huge thermal weapons without ever needing a reload, that is dumb, improve the AI to make it more interesting to fight them, not a superfacial way of making them appear as a challenge, just draws out a battle I am still yet to be killed by one, now they just live longer. AI is a must, without it it is always super obvious I am playing a game, not a bounty hunter in the depth of space.

Lastly I think the BB should be persistent for all players a mission is only taken down when some other player (maybe even NPC but that is a lot of BGS calculations) takes it and others are just added over time by factions and corporations. This would require there to be hundreds of missions at a station which would be really cool, there could be a sorting tool, and you could pick the ones you wanted and there would be no need for logging, when you got back the ones that hadn't been completed would still be there and there would be some more. This would make the game feel mush more alive and like what we did changed something at least a little. This would also mean that you could exhaust the BB if you really tried which would encourage freelancers to travel around to other stations and explore instead of logging in and out. Sure there may be some small issues with this idea but I think they could be fixed fairly easily and this would add a lot of depth, reward and such to missions, it would feel mush more like an evoloving and changing galaxy with mercs freelancers corporations and factions all playing there own part in the mission system.

And maybe one day, player created missions

 

[Hexcaliber]

Naval stuff, no, don't agree, we aren't part of the actual Navies for the Federation or Empire, we're contractors who do jobs for them that they can't be seen doing, clearly evidenced by the fact that we only get Naval missions when it's time to rank up with the Auxiliary Navy of the Federation/Empire, and that's it.

BB missions, eh, not sure there, I find them to be fine overall. True, sometimes they offer nothing I'm interested in doing, but that's acceptable to me, I'm not the hero of the game after all in Elite Dangerous, I'm some schlub with a ship, so if there's a job that interests me, great, if not, that's fine it.

I am ex military, I served for 12 years and also worked as a private contractor. I can assure you, most are keenly aware of current events, and seek out information to keep abreast of conflicts. That is true for many auxiliary, people do not volunteer for armed service just so they can walk away and forget about it; auxiliary services exist as an augment to regular troops. Today, auxiliary, and private enterprises are called on more than ever, even in the US and UK to help serve on the front lines. Why on earth assume that would change in future when conflicts are fought over multiple systems?

As for the missions, no work, no pay, so you seek out gainful employment, even regular guys have to pay bills. Folks tend to stick to what they know or do well. It is the game that claims to support a number of defined roles, Smuggler, mercenary, bounty hunter, trader, miner, courier, pirate, explorer, and it provides a mission terminal in support of those roles. Is it really too much to expect that those missions be available when you check the terminals? It does not matter that it presents a number of missions when you visit; not when those missions hold no interest and are not of every type available, at that point it becomes a waste of time and an example of poor design.

 

[Deleted member 102790]

If the majority of people want to have all their ships delivered from here to there by a paid pilot then I am all for it.

In my case I know I would not use it ever. I like flightsims and to me a good deal of the immersion includes me traveling in my little cute hauler back and forth.

For me it is also more immersive that I have to make compromises to choose which ship etc, sometimes make a new temp ship etc.

About knowing what stations sell what items. I agree because that would be a massive time sink looking for just one item while in my low range FDL (you have to take the ship you need it for to see if it is there).

An alternative which I would prefer (since I like using my taxi - beep beep!) is to have my hauler turn up at a station and I can choose a ship and see what components are available for each in a list.

Another alternative is that if you are aligned with a faction you can see from any station of that faction what places sell what items but when in other areas you can't and have to travel (and then maybe see the lists I described)

 

[tawittle]

Yes, why not, but only if:
3) The above would be completed by other players. As missions from the bulleting board. On their risk and only in open play, but the reward should be substantial and +some reputation as a reliable player. You would still probably get them faster if you did them by yourself.

That defeats the whole point. Why add a feature in game if no one is going to use it? If I have to get another player to deliver my ship why wouldn't I just do it myself lol... Theres no reason why the NPCs can't do it for us.

It should cost credits and take some amount of game time to use the service. That cost already very fairly balances the reward. I was thinking a cost equal to 2-3% of the total ship value. Time it takes to deliver depends on distance the module/ship is traveling

 

[Hexcaliber]

There are many other things, design changes I could list that I did not include in the original, list too many at once and folks would not read them.

A few more omission's

Adjustable convergence for fixed weapons. Since WW 1 when craft were made from little more than string, wood, and cloth, ground crews and pilots would adjust the convergence of weapons. Today, with the exception of firearms, which frankly have changed little since the Chinese fire lances of the 10th century, there are very few truly fixed weapons systems, and all are adjustable before or shortly after deployment.

Collapsible menu's in the control configuration screen, this is so simple and obvious I am mystified as to why they are not there.

Separate the values for the radar icon colours from the rest of the hud colour scheme. If fedev wont give us the ability to change HUD colours in game, at least let us change the theme without screwing up the colour of enemy, friendly, neutral and wing mate icons; some folks out here are colour blind.

Ship radar range, right now this is little more than pointless, while utility increased a little with horizons and planetary landing, most folks are not even aware you can adjust the range, much less make use of that feature. However, right now that doesn't matter, in normal space the range on our ship scanners is less than that of the first WW 2 sets, with coverage far too narrow to make adjustment worthwhile. Note I do not mean the radar in general, I use it all the time in combat, but the lack of range and its adjustability just do not make sense.

Now the most obvious. For the love of god, please let us see what changes components make to our ships in a meaningful and useful manner, we were told this was coming ages ago.

The information present for all components could do with a revisit to provide more meaningful data. As of today, we still need pen, paper and, or, third party websites to figure out our hull and shield values, changes to manoeuvrability, and speed relative to the ships default configuration. Why can I not see the hps of my shields when I have 4 pips compared to 1, I have three fixed bands in my cockpit that do not change to reflect the value, what engineer in their right mind would omit that feature? Just how much difference is there between that gimbal mount, and its fixed, or turret variants, your little scale doesn't cut it. Give us clear numbers for the shield and armour penetration value of our weapons, variables are all well and good, but not without a table of values or point of reference. How much further out can ships lock on if I substitute a component producing X heat for another producing Y? Seriously, come on, we have been asking for this change since closed beta.

 

[Limoncello Lizard]

It would be nice if teh bulletin board offered a filter that displayed missions that cooincided with what you wanted to do.
The professions: e.g. mining, bounty hunting, assassination, smuggling, trading, combat, exploration
Law abiding, illegal, don't care
Ranking in Fed/Imp
Gain rep with [] factions
Within [] ly
Over [] time
Returning [] credits
.
Then we could do what we want to do.

 

[MarcusKross]

Quality of life? Hmm.

Turret accuracy scaling with sensor suite class and grade.
Useful missiles and explosives.
Shifting the credit earning towards missions.
BGS FIX ( Fdev pls )
Ability to flag oneself with their select minor power ( works like powerplay )
Clock in cockpit

 

[the100thmonkey]

I see missions as more of a way to influence the BGS than as the primary way to get "content" in the game (scare quotes to indicate my scepticism towards the term, nothing more).

Therefore, if I see a mission on the BB that interests me, it's going to fit a very narrow spec - right faction, Med/high influence effect.

In other words, I'm quite used to there being not so much overt "content" - missions are just a tool for me to achieve other goals, and I can quite happily do other stuff if there aren't any good ones spawning.

 

[Liet Atreides]

One of the most needed change imho is to give money to a friend, because obvious reasons. Devs can even put a hard cap of donations for 1 player like 20+ millions if they like. Just let us give noobs a hand.

 

[Hexcaliber]

I see missions as more of a way to influence the BGS than as the primary way to get "content" in the game (scare quotes to indicate my scepticism towards the term, nothing more).

Therefore, if I see a mission on the BB that interests me, it's going to fit a very narrow spec - right faction, Med/high influence effect.

In other words, I'm quite used to there being not so much overt "content" - missions are just a tool for me to achieve other goals, and I can quite happily do other stuff if there aren't any good ones spawning.

Missions terminals are not the primary way to get content, and I have never seen them as doing that in sandbox titles, they are an adjunct to the sandbox. The sandbox itself has no real direction, we chose what we want to do within the available framework, perhaps with friends, and typically for longer periods of play. By its nature, a sandbox, unlike directed missions is unpredictable.

However, I do personally feel that directed content such as that provided by mission terminals is essential to the success of any sandbox. They deliver content in bite sized chunks, often focusing on specific areas of activity, they also provide a structure and a means to grind towards specific goals or rewards. They allow the player access to the mechanics and content they have most interest in, even when they have limited free time. Depending on the game they can also provide a focal point that may otherwise not exist or be hard to find in huge open play scapes.

Some of the best friends I have made in gaming have been as a result of grouping with randoms to grind missions. Done correctly, mission dispensers, whatever their guise, can add great depth and re-playability to a game.

 

[_neuron_]

Posted my agreement on the original thread before it went off the rails, and just wanted to do so here as well.

 

[Chummy62]

I agree as well. Also wanted to point out that we need transportation missions so the cruise ships are more than just pretty freighters.

 

[CMDR Byr Goefin]

One of the most needed change imho is to give money to a friend, because obvious reasons. Devs can even put a hard cap of donations for 1 player like 20+ millions if they like. Just let us give noobs a hand.

AS soon as you do that we will be flooded with "$$ FOR CR!!!1!1! WWW.ISPAMLOCALCOM FOR BEST PRICES!!!!!"

 

[CTCParadox]

AS soon as you do that we will be flooded with "$$ FOR CR!!!1!1! WWW.ISPAMLOCALCOM FOR BEST PRICES!!!!!"

Good thing there's no in-game global chat so that's not a threat.

Everything in the OP I agree with. When the game forces players to external programs/sites like Coriolis/ED Shipyard, the Wiki, the trade databases etc. all it shows is that the information present inside the game is insufficient.

CMDR CTCParadox

 

[CMDR Byr Goefin]

Good thing there's no in-game global chat so that's not a threat.

Everything in the OP I agree with. When the game forces players to external programs/sites like Coriolis/ED Shipyard, the Wiki, the trade databases etc. all it shows is that the information present inside the game is insufficient.

CMDR CTCParadox

Local and private messages

and OTHER people claim we need a global system for "Quality of Life"