Engineers Getting the feeling

maybe it s you not knowing a good game from a bad! i have over 1000 hours of fun with it so far! i think they do a bloody great Job!
And calling Elite not a good game just Shows your lack of game Knowledge in General!

Elite is as classic of a compter game as it gets!
 
maybe it s you not knowing a good game from a bad! i have over 1000 hours of fun with it so far! i think they do a bloody great Job!
And calling Elite not a good game just Shows your lack of game Knowledge in General!

Elite is as classic of a compter game as it gets!

ok mate
 
maybe it s you not knowing a good game from a bad! i have over 1000 hours of fun with it so far! i think they do a bloody great Job!
And calling Elite not a good game just Shows your lack of game Knowledge in General!

Elite is as classic of a compter game as it gets!

I wouldn't go that far. The game has its strong points, but there are many areas in the game that should have never been included in their current state. All you have to do is look at the polls in the forums to see that the majority of ED players are not enjoying many of the features that FD thinks passes for good game play.

I contend that a lot of these issues stem from the fact that the FD staff do not spend enough time actually playing their own game. I'm not talking about their development accounts that open with billions in credits and access to every single ship and feature in the game from day one.

I doubt any of them have had to work their way through the ranks like all of us have. There is a HUGE disconnect somewhere, and I suspect that THIS is where it begins.
 
I wouldn't go that far. The game has its strong points, but there are many areas in the game that should have never been included in their current state. All you have to do is look at the polls in the forums to see that the majority of ED players are not enjoying many of the features that FD thinks passes for good game play.

I contend that a lot of these issues stem from the fact that the FD staff do not spend enough time actually playing their own game. I'm not talking about their development accounts that open with billions in credits and access to every single ship and feature in the game from day one.

I doubt any of them have had to work their way through the ranks like all of us have. There is a HUGE disconnect somewhere, and I suspect that THIS is where it begins.

Yeah I see what you're saying man and yeah, hope that's the case. Well said.
 

No, really. What is it that causes this feeling you have?

Unless you are just posting for postings sake...then I'll kindly let myself out.

EDIT: if you can't handle a little salt in my replies...just let me know...I've got a safe for hyper-tension post bag over here, too.
 
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No, really. What is it that causes this feeling you have?

Unless you are just posting for postings sake...then I'll kindly let myself out.

EDIT: if you can't handle a little salt in my replies...just let me know...I've got a safe for hyper-tension post bag over here, too.

I love salt
 
Make missions work.
How so?

I've been running assassination and pirate hunting missions for great profit, fun, rep and rank.

I tried some resource gathering missions but got turned off when the mission branched and it then required a medium pad, mah Clipper don't fit there damut
- I'm not sure if that is broken, I could have just purchased a T6, tranferred my cargo and been on my way...but a T6? ew--Abandon :D

Missions taking place at specified locations is a great addition, in my book. Just wish they didn't take so long to spawn.
 
Make missions work.

How so?

I've been running assassination and pirate hunting missions for great profit, fun, rep and rank.

I tried some resource gathering missions but got turned off when the mission branched and it then required a medium pad, mah Clipper don't fit there damut
- I'm not sure if that is broken, I could have just purchased a T6, tranferred my cargo and been on my way...but a T6? ew--Abandon :D

Missions taking place at specified locations is a great addition, in my book. Just wish they didn't take so long to spawn.

When the missions work, you're right that the new mechanics are much better. Unfortunately they don't always work.

I just had a kill deserter mission which I completed (a bit long winded being sent from the target system to another one to get info on the target to be sent back to the original destination - at least make these changes mean something). Anyway, destroyed the target, got the bounty awarded, but no mission update. Until 10 minutes later when I'm told the window of opportunity is closing, and the mission will have to be abandoned if I don't find the target soon!

I found him, destroyed him, but the game is blissfully unaware. I just wasted enough of my time to make it a bit more than irritating. I know it's a bug, I reported it.

Sadly this kind of thing is currently sapping my enthusiasm for the game, and I really was a fan boy! :(
 
When the missions work, you're right that the new mechanics are much better. Unfortunately they don't always work.

I just had a kill deserter mission which I completed (a bit long winded being sent from the target system to another one to get info on the target to be sent back to the original destination - at least make these changes mean something). Anyway, destroyed the target, got the bounty awarded, but no mission update. Until 10 minutes later when I'm told the window of opportunity is closing, and the mission will have to be abandoned if I don't find the target soon!

I found him, destroyed him, but the game is blissfully unaware. I just wasted enough of my time to make it a bit more than irritating. I know it's a bug, I reported it.

Sadly this kind of thing is currently sapping my enthusiasm for the game, and I really was a fan boy! :(

I'm guessing a lot of the struggle comes from trying to make interesting and deep missions work with algorithms that run the BGS. Unlike some other space games where the game just pulls out of a rather large bag of mission scripts (like Freelancer), ED is trying to tie missions intrinsically with the BGS...not only for what missions spawn but in how their success or failure affects the simulation.

There needs to be more mitigation for undesirable situations...

- Long waits for mission location spawn
- Branching to missions that can't be completed without getting another ship
- Lack of clear updates when a mission is in a fail state (missed the time window)

None of these things give anything to the mission experience and should be remedied. We want to avoid situations where commanders are wandering aimlessly, wondering if they are doing this thing correctly. A lot of time is wasted on waiting.
 
That these people thought they could make a game but didn't really understand how to.

The code itself: flight mechanics, UI, the graphics, AI - top notch - and continue to improve. Combat is good. Basic trading works. Exploration is fine (i guess? not my thing.) The codebase is solid, I rarely experience a crash or major glitch.

But other parts of the gameplay design ... Engineers (and PowerPlay) - no. There's a demonstrated lack of understanding game concepts there.

A child will enjoy a game of "what color am I thinking of?" An adult will get annoyed after a few moments, and wonder what your issue is with asking adults to guess colors.

I'm an original '84 Elite player. The parts of Elite 2016 that are also in '84 (trading, PvE combat) are basically similar in flavor. They worked well in 84, and with some modern touches also work well in 2016. It is the things that were not present until recently that are terribly lacking. That is not to say I wish this was simply "1984 Elite with 2016 Graphics". I'm saying that they did get THAT part right. But when it comes to RNG engineering, the mess of powerplay confusion, the BGS (or lack thereof), and making players spend weeks doing things that should take hours - it's either ignorance of what makes a game enjoyable, or willful refusal to create a game that plays that way.
 
I know exactly how you fell. It seens they are not players, dont know how an game should be, dont understand how an game could be fun etc.
Its comum to see this on smaller games, but its the first time I see this happens with an big game like elite, I really hope they wake up and hire game professionals to fix this game.
 
The code itself: flight mechanics, UI, the graphics, AI - top notch - and continue to improve. Combat is good. Basic trading works. Exploration is fine (i guess? not my thing.) The codebase is solid, I rarely experience a crash or major glitch.

But other parts of the gameplay design ... Engineers (and PowerPlay) - no. There's a demonstrated lack of understanding game concepts there.

A child will enjoy a game of "what color am I thinking of?" An adult will get annoyed after a few moments, and wonder what your issue is with asking adults to guess colors.

I'm an original '84 Elite player. The parts of Elite 2016 that are also in '84 (trading, PvE combat) are basically similar in flavor. They worked well in 84, and with some modern touches also work well in 2016. It is the things that were not present until recently that are terribly lacking. That is not to say I wish this was simply "1984 Elite with 2016 Graphics". I'm saying that they did get THAT part right. But when it comes to RNG engineering, the mess of powerplay confusion, the BGS (or lack thereof), and making players spend weeks doing things that should take hours - it's either ignorance of what makes a game enjoyable, or willful refusal to create a game that plays that way.

Agreed with every word.

+1
 
I'm guessing a lot of the struggle comes from trying to make interesting and deep missions work with algorithms that run the BGS. Unlike some other space games where the game just pulls out of a rather large bag of mission scripts (like Freelancer), ED is trying to tie missions intrinsically with the BGS...not only for what missions spawn but in how their success or failure affects the simulation.

There needs to be more mitigation for undesirable situations...

- Long waits for mission location spawn
- Branching to missions that can't be completed without getting another ship
- Lack of clear updates when a mission is in a fail state (missed the time window)

None of these things give anything to the mission experience and should be remedied. We want to avoid situations where commanders are wandering aimlessly, wondering if they are doing this thing correctly. A lot of time is wasted on waiting.

Agreed. I understand and accept bugs (although this is by no means the only bugged mission I've had, and perhaps that is why I'm so frustrated), but I really feel as a matter of urgency that FD need to give missions the love that they need to be fun gameplay.

I agree with your points regarding the BGS tie in. My own feeling is that the BGS should not be the sole 'provider' of gameplay content, it's potentially very limiting. Players should be able to get a reasonable selection and a reasonable mix of mission types when they look at the board, otherwise what are they to do but log out, or potentially take any mission which may actually work against their own rep, and the rep of a favored faction? It seems to benefit nobody, either those that care about the BGS, or those who don't.

As I said above, in principal I am really pleased with the changes to mission mechanics. It drove me nuts sitting in SC hoping a target would spawn, and I have to say I have never had a long wait in 2.1, once I reach the target vicinity, the signal source has always spawned within a very short space of time, I'd say a couple of minutes has been the longest. That's a huge thumbs up from me.

But I feel that FD need to flesh out the mission templates still further, and of course, they really need to stamp out mission breaking bugs. I imagine that most players that actually do a mission but cannot complete it due to bugs or unanticipated changes to the mission will end up disappointed. No one likes having their time wasted.

Clarity on whether what you are being asked to do is legal would IMO be a very good thing, as would more information on the level of risk that is involved. Hostile ships may be sent against you? Why not 'Bob the Elite bounty hunter' will be on your tail. :) (As a side note, I suspect at least some of the angst towards the new AI is down to the fact that players have taken high level missions without understanding the potential risk.)

Anyway, we'll see what happens. I've been on board since premium beta and have the LEP. Unfortunately, right now I'm not getting the urge to log in and play. That makes me sad... :(
 
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