Horizons Thanks for the memories.....

[DanTheMan]

....of when ED was fun.
While the scope of the game may have increased for some the "fun-factor" is just not there for me anymore.

Its no longer "play it your way" its play it our way or die.
I was quite happy with the alleged "grind" for profit, next ship, combat rank etc. but now it is all overly aggressive and for me at least too much effort for too little return.

I have managed to get my 3 Elites at least, so that's some consolation for the hours put in.

I won't uninstall, but I certainly wont be playing every day now.
When nearly every mission attempt ends in ship destruction by "Engineered-up" NPC's the losses outweigh the fun and for me that's what ED needs to be "fun".

I would rather dabble in a "solo" mode where I can choose the level of opponent intensity like you used to be able to do in DOOM (for example) so as to match the opposition to my skill levels and gradually improve.
Its hard to "get good" when the encounter lasts <10 seconds and your ship is destroyed I find.

Of course I accept that YMMV.

Have fun Commanders.

 

[CitizenLee]

I don't mean to sound harsh, but how did you manage to get to Elite in combat if NPCs are still giving you trouble? Either your ship loadout is completely wrong for what you're doing, or you need to learn how to fly it better.

 

[cygnusa]

....of when ED was fun.
While the scope of the game may have increased for some the "fun-factor" is just not there for me anymore.

Its no longer "play it your way" its play it our way or die.
I was quite happy with the alleged "grind" for profit, next ship, combat rank etc. but now it is all overly aggressive and for me at least too much effort for too little return.

I have managed to get my 3 Elites at least, so that's some consolation for the hours put in.

I won't uninstall, but I certainly wont be playing every day now.
When nearly every mission attempt ends in ship destruction by "Engineered-up" NPC's the losses outweigh the fun and for me that's what ED needs to be "fun".

I would rather dabble in a "solo" mode where I can choose the level of opponent intensity like you used to be able to do in DOOM (for example) so as to match the opposition to my skill levels and gradually improve.
Its hard to "get good" when the encounter lasts <10 seconds and your ship is destroyed I find.

Of course I accept that YMMV.

Have fun Commanders.

Take a break? Come back later? I've been playing since Gamma and I've taken numerous many month breaks here and there. It keeps the game fresh for me and in the meantime I get to mess around with other games or other hobbies. If the game gets even slightly grindy feeling, I just step away, reset myself, and later come back with a different approach. I completely stopped focusing on credits and rep. I just play the game and do stuff for fun and let the rest just fall into place.

 

[Rudal]

I have to say it's impressive that someone can play this game every day!! I never last longer than two and have to have at least 7 days break before next session!!

I completely stopped focusing on credits and rep. I just play the game and do stuff for fun and let the rest just fall into place.

I'm here since Premium Beta but I have the same approach. Just play for a day or two and coma back later.
I went on a journey to the centre of the galaxy like 6 months ago and I only flew 3,3kLY away from "home" cause I take it in small chunks

 

[Mercury7]

It's not difficult to play a couple of hours/day if you have a goal (e.g. Spend an hour in a Res, or do some hauling).

@OP: I certainly understand your predicament. It's like FD have suddenly realized they wanted to build a different game.

Hopefully the next update will sort the rewards out and put them back to where they were in 2.1.

 

[xondk]

....of when ED was fun.
While the scope of the game may have increased for some the "fun-factor" is just not there for me anymore.

Its no longer "play it your way" its play it our way or die.
I was quite happy with the alleged "grind" for profit, next ship, combat rank etc. but now it is all overly aggressive and for me at least too much effort for too little return.

I have managed to get my 3 Elites at least, so that's some consolation for the hours put in.

I won't uninstall, but I certainly wont be playing every day now.
When nearly every mission attempt ends in ship destruction by "Engineered-up" NPC's the losses outweigh the fun and for me that's what ED needs to be "fun".

I would rather dabble in a "solo" mode where I can choose the level of opponent intensity like you used to be able to do in DOOM (for example) so as to match the opposition to my skill levels and gradually improve.
Its hard to "get good" when the encounter lasts <10 seconds and your ship is destroyed I find.

Of course I accept that YMMV.

Have fun Commanders.

Play it your way, never meant you can do exactly what you want.

Play it your way, means: Here is our game, do whatever you can do in it, we won't stop you.

And also NPC's are not 'engineered up' other then defensive?

 

[Mercury7]

NPCs are most certainly engineered. Not by as much as before, but they're definitely out there.

What is your combat rank?

 

[rrobes]

The issue with NPC'S is balance. For some players who choose not to grind engineers and mods, it is a very hostile galaxy. Unmodded ships are at a distinct disadvantage.

On the other hand if you mod the larger ships to a high level , the NPC'S become an inconvenience/opportunity when encountered.

I did the grind for rank/ship and ended up with a Corvette and did mod it fully. NPC'S have no chance, any ship, any level and are really sources of capital. Now pvp is a different story, it takes different builds/tactics (wings) to survive.

Casual players are definitely challenged, it's up to FD to give that group a chance, I don't have an answer.

 

[Bokugo]

Mods should have never been objective upgrades. And they also shouldn't only be tied to the most asinine material gathering process. It wouldn't be so bad if ships/missions had a chance to give a modded item.

 

[Blackcompany]

....of when ED was fun.
While the scope of the game may have increased for some the "fun-factor" is just not there for me anymore.

Its no longer "play it your way" its play it our way or die.
I was quite happy with the alleged "grind" for profit, next ship, combat rank etc. but now it is all overly aggressive and for me at least too much effort for too little return.

I have managed to get my 3 Elites at least, so that's some consolation for the hours put in.

I won't uninstall, but I certainly wont be playing every day now.
When nearly every mission attempt ends in ship destruction by "Engineered-up" NPC's the losses outweigh the fun and for me that's what ED needs to be "fun".

I would rather dabble in a "solo" mode where I can choose the level of opponent intensity like you used to be able to do in DOOM (for example) so as to match the opposition to my skill levels and gradually improve.
Its hard to "get good" when the encounter lasts <10 seconds and your ship is destroyed I find.

Of course I accept that YMMV.

Have fun Commanders.

Completely agree with you. The same things have stopped me from playing as well. It isnt just you.

I keep coming back here, hoping things have gotten better. And then I see they have not.

 

[Marcus Machiavelli]

Hey Dan, sounds like burn out dude. The group "the Pixal Bandits" swear by playing other games that they base in the elite universe to stop burn out, they use Rainbow 6. They talk about this in there live stream with Ed.
Think about signing up with them as they are really nice guys and girls.
I know of other groups that make their own missions in Arma 3
My group make our own GTA missions based on our home world, below is our headquarters.

 

[eqinox]

I keep coming back here, hoping things have gotten better. And then I see they have not.

There doesn't really seem to be an indication that FD would change direction on fixing balancing issues

 

[Phantom Zero]

Nerfing the missions was a game killer for me. Why don't the Devs work for the players instead of working against them all the time? Its convoluted human DNA ...too much junk DNA in there with mashed genes, that's the answer and hence PC games will always be manky. Yes we were perfect once with perfect strands, then aliens interfered and inbred us with monkeys and we're the convoluted dumbed down result. The Devs are still Cro-Magnon...Dave Lewis possibly the missing link.

Anyway Commanders, I used to play a good 4 hour session every day, now I only dabble here and there, sort of half arsssoled about it.

 

[relayer]

Yes we were perfect once with perfect strands, then aliens interfered and inbred us with monkeys and we're the convoluted dumbed down result.

wut??

 

[Mercury7]

Anyway Commanders, I used to play a good 4 hour session every day, now I only dabble here and there, sort of half arsssoled about it.

Hopefully they realize the error of their ways and fix it before 2.3 drops.

 

[Chris Simon]

....of when ED was fun.
While the scope of the game may have increased for some the "fun-factor" is just not there for me anymore.

Its no longer "play it your way" its play it our way or die.
I was quite happy with the alleged "grind" for profit, next ship, combat rank etc. but now it is all overly aggressive and for me at least too much effort for too little return.

I have managed to get my 3 Elites at least, so that's some consolation for the hours put in.

I won't uninstall, but I certainly wont be playing every day now.
When nearly every mission attempt ends in ship destruction by "Engineered-up" NPC's the losses outweigh the fun and for me that's what ED needs to be "fun".

I would rather dabble in a "solo" mode where I can choose the level of opponent intensity like you used to be able to do in DOOM (for example) so as to match the opposition to my skill levels and gradually improve.
Its hard to "get good" when the encounter lasts <10 seconds and your ship is destroyed I find.

Of course I accept that YMMV.

Have fun Commanders.

TL;DR: git gud post. If you don't want to read it, don't read it.

If the game became too hard for you, clear your save. Start again. You'll be pitted against Harmless opponents and you will be able to feel like a shark in a carp pond again. Plus it's fun, as you know what's what, already, this time around.

I still see people complaining that Frontier makes NPCs harder, but that's just not true. They were made quite challenging in 2.1, but nerfed immediately and then again and again until now, they are almost at pre-2.1 levels, only with some engineer mods on higher ranks.

I think you didn't get one important thing - It wasn't Frontier who made the NPCs harder - It was you. By becoming Elite. So if you are finding yourself in over your head, you need start over, or you need to adapt and start trying new things.

"nearly every mission attempt ends in ship destruction" Have you tried different ship? Different defenses? Different weapons? Different countermeasures? Different (gods forgive) combat tactics? Or do you just keep running head first into the wall and complain that the wall isn't moving, and Frontier has moved the door behind the corner?

 

[Cmdr Ultra]

Well a large part of the problem is people became Elite in the early days, remember the spinning in place, don't shoot back NPC's. That's what they think Elite combat is....

 

[CMDR Yukon]

....of when ED was fun.
While the scope of the game may have increased for some the "fun-factor" is just not there for me anymore.


...but now it is all overly aggressive and for me at least too much effort for too little return.

I have to say I fall somewhere close to this myself. Pre-2.1 I thoroughly enjoyed the game and the pacing. Granted, the NPCs exhibited some goofy behavior that needed correcting (like spinning in place), but after 2.1 hit the overall aggression level (apart from NPC skill) went up exponentially. I loved landing on planets, but with 2.1 as soon as you did a space parade appeared overhead, with absurdly long streams of NPCs to scan and harass you. I still recall departing a planet to cash in some scavenged loot at the ORBITING station a short distance away and getting interdicted before I could get there. Just too great a shift in the gameplay balance, in my opinion. Of course, much of that was tamed and tweaked after release, but 2.1 definitely cooled me off towards the game, and I've taken an extended break from it. Now that 2.2 is out, I'm considering another dip in the pool to see how things have changed.

So don't rule out a hiatus, since burnout happens to everyone at some point and a vacation back on Earth might be in order.

 

[mp4x]

Odd.

My biggest ship is a Cobra and I don't seem to be having any of the problems you are with NPC's or players.

 

[Cmdr. Numa]

Well a large part of the problem is people became Elite in the early days, remember the spinning in place, don't shoot back NPC's. That's what they think Elite combat is....

I was such a player. Quit playing for weeks when 2.1 landed, Then I clenched my teeth and started the engineering grind. I finished my Corvette yesterday. Now combat is no matter what the game throws at me, bastion shields shrug it off, and modded weapons clean up.