Engineers I've just tried the Engineers for the first time

[smartroad]

At least the first time in the production game. I don't like it with the amount of RNG (I know this is nothing new of course!) but while I was wasting my 20th bit of nickel for a grade 1 overcharge on a pulse laser I got thinking as the sliders moved back an forth. The sliders for the primary effects should be user controlled. I should be able to specify how much damage I want the weapons to do, but this comes at a cost, as I move the slider on the damage scale up, the distributor draw and thermal load increase. Want to increase the rate of fire? Then that adds some extra jitter as well (along with the need for more power). Want the weapon to draw less power? Then the damage slider moves down to compensate.

The secondary and experimental effects can still be random as an excuse for this is the condition of the weapon in the first place and any manufacturing tolerances (modern example would be CPU's. Some can be massively overclocked, others barely anything before they become unstable).

Just my thoughts on this flogged horse

 

[Kayin]

From what I heard, the Engineers came from David Braben's experience with Vietnam about some engineers who would magically upgrade pieces of combat helicopters to give them an advantage in their missions.

If they functioned the same way the current engineers work in game, then that means David knew someone who would tinker with an engine to randomly change random properties of the helicopter that would randomly produce some random effect to randomly make them more (or less) survivable in their missions in exchange for some drugs.

So, in other words, a sociopath. David turned a drug using sociopath into a game mechanic.

#RNGineers

-K

 

[BostromNZ]

The use of sliders has been raised a number of times but I'm not so sure it's a good idea. First of all, it would kind of make us the engineer and we're not, we're just the pilot.

It would also remove the possibility of god rolls as increasing one stat would always decrease (or increase) another. You would also have to remove the secondary effects otherwise you'd move the sliders to where you want them and then the secondaries would muck them up anyway.

Does anyone have any examples of a loot based game that allows the player to tailor item attributes exactly the way you want them? Genuine question as I'd like to see whether it worked or not.

 

[Tori Yamazaki]

Maybe it should be an option; allow the pilot to choose between the "slider method" or the "Let the Engineer Tinker method" (as is) ?

If you have limited resources and/or limited time/inclination to get the resources for lots of rolls, then I can where the "slider method" would be quite a nice feature.

They really need to fix the SRV scanner to make finding materials on planets easier to help with this. So many times I have tracked a signal for a significant time only to see the signal just disappear. Other times I have driven straight into a rock and the scanner shows nothing -- no sound and no bars.

 

[X-Terminator]

I rather like the RNGineer roulette as it feels alive. I just hate that the rare materials are very very hard to find even when you are on a planet that has 1.5%. Even though each is now 3x uses I just think it takes way too long to search for these. I'd be happier with a buff of % x10 please. Just as all Missions still require a x10 increase to allow for our losses and not have us put off playing for the huge risks.

 

[foebits]

The use of sliders has been raised a number of times but I'm not so sure it's a good idea. First of all, it would kind of make us the engineer and we're not, we're just the pilot.

It would also remove the possibility of god rolls as increasing one stat would always decrease (or increase) another. You would also have to remove the secondary effects otherwise you'd move the sliders to where you want them and then the secondaries would muck them up anyway.

Does anyone have any examples of a loot based game that allows the player to tailor item attributes exactly the way you want them? Genuine question as I'd like to see whether it worked or not.

The way it is now there are no engineers and no, it wouldn't make us the engineers, it would make THEM the engineer since we're having to see them. This implementation is so far beyond garbage in every aspect it's not even worth fixing. A complete re-rewrite is almost required at this point.

 

[Don_Von_Hulio]

The use of sliders has been raised a number of times but I'm not so sure it's a good idea. First of all, it would kind of make us the engineer and we're not, we're just the pilot.

It would also remove the possibility of god rolls as increasing one stat would always decrease (or increase) another. You would also have to remove the secondary effects otherwise you'd move the sliders to where you want them and then the secondaries would muck them up anyway.

Does anyone have any examples of a loot based game that allows the player to tailor item attributes exactly the way you want them? Genuine question as I'd like to see whether it worked or not.

Ya, almost every single MMORPG to ever release. FD simply made it overly complicated because they are bad are choosing design decisions and even worse at balance.

 

[Tori Yamazaki]

The way it is now there are no engineers and no, it wouldn't make us the engineers, it would make THEM the engineer since we're having to see them. This implementation is so far beyond garbage in every aspect it's not even worth fixing. A complete re-rewrite is almost required at this point.

Interesting. Personally I didn't think it was that broken!

I only visited my first engineer recently, so perhaps my view is a tad "new". However, the experience wasn't that bad; I came out with some nice modifications that solved my power issues and significantly increased my jump range, so I am happy.

I guess "later" engineers are more difficult than Farseer.

 

[Karl Agathon]

I rather like the RNGineer roulette as it feels alive.

~shivers in disgust~ The casino is over yonder. I abhor gambling and its psychological principles. Let's keep gambling away from our space game, yeah.