Mode switching mission board update gone: alternative for ranking up

[Martian Successor]

I've played for a year like that, or if you want to express that in more quantifiable ways, over 1500 hours. Current ranks are Ensign with the Feds and Count with the Empire. That's the point where the ranking starts to get very slow. It is something of an irritation to know that I'll be lucky to have the rank for either a cutter or a Corvette by this time next year.

Cheif Petty Officer and Lord here. My rank progress has ground to a halt now more than ever before of obtaining them "naturally" , i.e. just doing whatever I want. Not a single percentage more have I received on either of them since 2.1 dropped. I'm trying to let it flow guys, I really am! Might need some rank laxative - Ranklax!

Although I am kind of attached to the notion that I am a very 'Petty Lord'

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if it was intended why did they remove it?

You'll have to ask them.

Counter question: If it was "cheating" why did they put it in the game in the first place?

 

[[VR] Mad Mike]

i will buy a corvette/cutter one day but what is the rush? (I am only speaking for myself btw).

but what can i do in a cutter that i cant do in an anaconda (which i havent flown either )

ranking up now in the military is a real double edged sword imo...... one day - hopefully - FD will actually flesh out the military career and make it fun with different missions in there..... (speculation warning but how about some handcrafted missions like the new training missions)... but if you have boosted you way all the way up the ladder now, just so you can get another new ship which is just a variant of what you can get already, then you may miss all that cool content.

 

[JetsonRING]

Only true with the "must have cutter/Corvette after X Days of playing" premise. The real diffrence between the two mindsets is one is impatience and in a hurry and the other isn't.

Goal-oriented vs. Process-oriented.

 

[[VR] Mad Mike]

This. I'd rep you if I weren't on my cell.

@bomba, when I used the term "weeks" I meant in game weeks. I'm approaching 2000 hours played. Please don't get saucy with me, okay? I'm not looking for a fight, I just have a different opinion than you.

OTOH if anyone wants to get saucy with me, i am game...... HP ideally, but I am not fussy

 

[CmdrKull]

In superpower capital systems, that is Sol, Achenar and Alioth, there should be additional option under "contacts" - auxilary navy contact. There, you can ask for special missions for rank progression. They won't give you money, but will give you more rank progression than usual missions. They need to be really difficult missions.

It is my new pet theory that season 3 will be primarily about war between superpowers (and maybe super aliens) and that FD will take that as their opportunity to build real Naval Careers gameplay. I'm guessing it will be something between what you've suggested and a CG. I'm hopeful, but I went ahead and ran missions until I got Duke just to be safe. The view of this thread from my Cutter is breathtaking.

 

[Siranui]

Not that I'm in any hurry, but I've been playing this game for weeks and I'm not even remotely in the neighborhood of being highly ranked enough to buy one of those ships.

I don't think the aim of the game is to reach 'end game' content in weeks. It is a game whose model points towards a longer intended play life.

Took me a month or two to get an Asp, 9 months to get a Cutter. No mode switching required. As I intend to still be playing this game next year, the year after, the year after that... it does not seem like having to wait 'more than a few weeks' is a bad thing.

 

[Wasp0]

Don't need rank for an Anaconda. The Cutter/Corvette ships are overpriced, overhyped and over here!

 

[Martian Successor]

ranking up now in the military is a real double edged sword imo...... one day - hopefully - FD will actually flesh out the military career and make it fun with different missions in there..... (speculation warning but how about some handcrafted missions like the new training missions)... but if you have boosted you way all the way up the ladder now, just so you can get another new ship which is just a variant of what you can get already, then you may miss all that cool content.

Very good point. The longer they take in providing an actual military career the more useless the feature will become to existing players - I guess maybe that's why the devs are seeking to shut down ways of obtaining ranks faster so as to buy themselves more time. But that's not fair on players who wish to fly rank locked ships and expect a relatively fun gameplay experience along the way.

I predict they'll have to deal with a lot of requests to reset military ranks (when a military career becomes a thing) if they take any longer with releasing a proper military ranking mechanic.

 

[Tuub t Tute]

I would agree that it always feels a bit eggy when they close a gamey loophole, without visibly instigating a more correct game mechanic to replace it.

This is coming from someone who did the Tun-twister until my X-52 hat started failing on downshifts only to find out I really wanted the Cutter not the Corvette.

 

[Adept]

About time the mode switching was addressed. A very silly flaw left in the game for far too long.

 

[DarthRavadge]

So effectively they just doubled the time to rank up. I'll keep my popcorn handy.

So has anyone achieved rear admiral or duke without mode switching? If so how much gameplay did it take you? I'd wager 18 months. New players will love to hear that news.

 

[IndigoWyrd]

Never used it, never needed it. Station doesn't have a job I want, I go to one of a million other stations and look there. I always find what I'm looking for somewhere. It's not that big of a deal.

 

[BigBANGtheory [VR]]

About time the mode switching was addressed. A very silly flaw left in the game for far too long.

yes I agree but as Jason Barren was saying it should have come with a mechanic to offset the motivation for mode switching. I suspect FDev might feel they have done that with reputation being awarded for passenger missions I think what they needed to do was add skill based (challenging) missions that test a player with high risk but offer much more rep as a reward. All they have achieved is slow the rate of progression down it seems maybe that was their intention.

 

[_Flin_]

Random "features" are lazy gamedesign.
And any fanboism along the lines of "play as supposed" is iŕritating.
We all play the way it is most fun to us.

Modeswitching is the solution to suboptimal gamedesign, which is randomized mission choices. This design element adds a random length of x hours, where x can and will easily be somewhere around 100 hours.

While grinding rank in itself is a lazy design decision, complicating the grind by randomly removing the possibility to do so... is... cruel.

Having to run over 1000 missions for Duke is a challenge, and a bit boring. Having to randomly wait 5 minutes for a board refresh... well... no fun in that.

Games are supposed to be fun.
This is something that quite a few people on this board seem to forget on a regular basis.

The issue (lack of missions / lack of mission choice / lack of mission stacking) severly cuts into the possibility to play the BGS as well.

 

[Bambi]

Counter question: If it was "cheating" why did they put it in the game in the first place?

In video games, an exploit is the use of a bug or glitches, game system, rates, hit boxes, or speed, etc. by a player to their advantage in a manner not intended by the game's designers.[1] Exploits have been classified as a form of cheating;

 

[biohazard15]

Haven't noticed anything about it in patch notes.

 

[Siranui]

Very good point. The longer they take in providing an actual military career the more useless the feature will become to existing players -

Unless one ignores one of the factions until it is instituted, in recognition that it is under construction and will provide a better experience if engaged with at a later date, of course.

 

[Huita]

Unless one ignores one of the factions until it is instituted, in recognition that it is under construction and will provide a better experience if engaged with at a later date, of course.

That can be applied to every aspect of the game. Are you suggesting we just don't play it until it's no longer under construction? Lead by example.

 

[CMDR Pugwash]

Modeswitching is the solution to suboptimal gamedesign, which is randomized mission choices. This design element adds a random length of x hours, where x can and will easily be somewhere around 100 hours.

I agree, as with the transfer debate people are simply trying to fill gaps in the current game design. I personally feel strongly that the BGS and mission system need a lot of attention to make them more coherent, consistent, engaging and ultimately more fun. Trouble is, this isn't as sexy as space legs or crafting or anything like that. It would dramatically improve the game for everyone though.

There is nothing more frustrating than spending your very limited time looking for a mission to do. Then finding one that takes you too long and you have to abandon it because you have work in the morning.

 

[CMDR Sheehy]

In that case, I take it none of you gentlemen has any problem with combat logging.

<ducks>