hah no worries, just re-organising the post a bit. Loads of cool ideas already, with a bit of luck i can get a dev to look at this at Lavecon if they dont check the forum often
Racing Feature - FDEV supported (Quality of life)
- Thread starter Burtonias
- Start date
hah no worries, just re-organising the post a bit. Loads of cool ideas already, with a bit of luck i can get a dev to look at this at Lavecon if they dont check the forum often
Did somebody say racing?
Some great ideas in the OP there, any initiative to add more possibilities for racing gets my support!
Beacon scanning's an interesting idea and one we've used in the past for our Buckyball races (basically you make things like tourist beacons be waypoints in the race and require that one of the screenshots required as part of your race submission shows the clock and the "beacon scanned" messaged on screen).
You can also use planetary settlement data points as race markers in the same way. For our "Aquarian Job" race one of the stages required a landing at least 8km away from the settlement (as evidenced by a screenshot showing clock and target distrance), then driving to the settlement and scanning the data point (another screenshot) and finally driving at least 5km away again before recalling the ship (a third screenshot).
[video=youtube_share;yQivaH0EWfc]https://youtu.be/yQivaH0EWfc[/video]
One thing I would add tho, while I support anything Frontier can do to add more support for racing, there's more to our Buckyball Races than simply having course markers. We like to spin a bit of backstory or roleplay around the race, there's often lots of great banter in the forum thread about tactics, etc, there are often navigation elements to a race, sometimes we have special rules and time bonuses for certain achievements (like flying without shields or repairs), there's the idea of a regulation ship class for those that want to compete on an even footing, and of course there's the maintaining of a scoreboard which is something everyone wants to see - ultimately you're aiming to get your name up there at the top!
With that said, the "Medevac Memorial Challenge" is on until Sunday night so if anyone here fancies a go then PLEASE come along (click my signature banner for details and to sign up). We always welcome new people turning up and it really is a LOT of fun, very challenging and a very welcome break from the daily pusuit of credit, rep and rank.
Here's a short film which gives you an idea of what this latest race entails.
[video=youtube_share;-_YsqdEnis8]https://youtu.be/-_YsqdEnis8[/video]
P.S. for details of past and future Buckyball races check out http://www.buckyballracing.org.uk/
Some great ideas in the OP there, any initiative to add more possibilities for racing gets my support!
Beacon scanning's an interesting idea and one we've used in the past for our Buckyball races (basically you make things like tourist beacons be waypoints in the race and require that one of the screenshots required as part of your race submission shows the clock and the "beacon scanned" messaged on screen).
You can also use planetary settlement data points as race markers in the same way. For our "Aquarian Job" race one of the stages required a landing at least 8km away from the settlement (as evidenced by a screenshot showing clock and target distrance), then driving to the settlement and scanning the data point (another screenshot) and finally driving at least 5km away again before recalling the ship (a third screenshot).
[video=youtube_share;yQivaH0EWfc]https://youtu.be/yQivaH0EWfc[/video]
One thing I would add tho, while I support anything Frontier can do to add more support for racing, there's more to our Buckyball Races than simply having course markers. We like to spin a bit of backstory or roleplay around the race, there's often lots of great banter in the forum thread about tactics, etc, there are often navigation elements to a race, sometimes we have special rules and time bonuses for certain achievements (like flying without shields or repairs), there's the idea of a regulation ship class for those that want to compete on an even footing, and of course there's the maintaining of a scoreboard which is something everyone wants to see - ultimately you're aiming to get your name up there at the top!
With that said, the "Medevac Memorial Challenge" is on until Sunday night so if anyone here fancies a go then PLEASE come along (click my signature banner for details and to sign up). We always welcome new people turning up and it really is a LOT of fun, very challenging and a very welcome break from the daily pusuit of credit, rep and rank.
Here's a short film which gives you an idea of what this latest race entails.
[video=youtube_share;-_YsqdEnis8]https://youtu.be/-_YsqdEnis8[/video]
P.S. for details of past and future Buckyball races check out http://www.buckyballracing.org.uk/
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Oh also if the structure is there it could be used for CG's, just added to main post -
- Imagine a Galactic race CG, everyone to go and record times at say 3 race tracks, the fastest times recorded could represent your reward (fastest 5% get X credits, top 20% get Y credits etc)... I WOULD LOVE to see new CG types of this nature
Racing is happening already, albeit under improvised conditions so why not making it official, both the game and the community can only benefit from this and with minimum time investment on either side. I can imagine players nominating places and the devs setting up checkpoints/beacons, imho it wouldn't take much.
Did somebody say racing?
Some great ideas in the OP there, any initiative to add more possibilities for racing gets my support!
P.S. for details of past and future Buckyball races check out http://www.buckyballracing.org.uk/
http://www.buckyballracing.org.uk/images/brc_banner_512.png
Thanks Alec, awesome to see how you guys "fudge" something similar together already, imagine an official Fullerene C60 Race with times registered by FDev.
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Yeah, that'd be pretty darn cool!
As an aside - I do wonder how many people are REALLY interested in racing tho. We've been running our races regularly since the beta, typically at least one a month (I've probably competed in well over 50 of them now). I bang on about them as much as I possibly can in the forum here, I mention them on facebook and twitter. I get them promoted in the newsletter, in Sagittarius Eye, on Galnet (when that was a thing), on Lave Radio, on Pixel Bandits podcast and in Pete Wotherspoon's Galnet news review. We have a website and a Discord channel. And yet, as you can see by the above scoreboard, we still only get around a dozen people taking part (by the end of the race), mostly the same old (but beautiful) faces.
I guess if racing was an actual in-game thing then at least people might be more aware of it and maybe less intimidated by it? Or perhaps it's just that our whole screenshot evidence submission thing puts people off?
sigh
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i think more racing goes on than you think, we certainly have races in Delta Squadron every now and again but we tend to do SRV racing (scarab adventure nexus) rather than multi system hopping.
Problem it is so hard to organise currently with no structure or physical in game presence. Its all about being able to just "turn up and race". When you start having to jump in and out of forums, learn the rules, take screenshots, learn the route, make posts its too complex for most commanders. If you could just go to a race track with some buddies i think it would be popular, recording the best times in the game i think is important, its all about bragging rights
Problem it is so hard to organise currently with no structure or physical in game presence. Its all about being able to just "turn up and race". When you start having to jump in and out of forums, learn the rules, take screenshots, learn the route, make posts its too complex for most commanders. If you could just go to a race track with some buddies i think it would be popular, recording the best times in the game i think is important, its all about bragging rights
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Absolutely, racing seems to be very much a niche activity at the moment. I see occasional threads about "wouldn't more racing support be good", but comparing the posters in those to my records of participants in past Buckyball races (and my memories of attendees at past Elite Racers events), I don't tend to see many matches. I'd love to see in-game features to help with racing, but if people really want that to get up FDev's priority list, come along to the events that exist already, to show the numbers interested in taking part.
Our current race is on until the end of Sunday, as Alec pointed out (then the next race will be 24th Feb - 1st March); for live Eagle racing, the next Elite Racers race takes place next Sunday (11th Feb) at 1800 GMT - keep an eye on their reddit page for signups starting a week in advance.
I'm aware that numerous player groups will do racing within their own groups. I'm only aware of two (Buckyball Racing Club and Elite Racers) that regularly put on events open to all, though.
Totally agree, but i believe its a chicken and egg scenario. i think its time for a field of dreams quote "if you build it, they will come"
, sadly it wasnt "if you come, they will build it" although perhaps that is more apt...Anyway i have added your comments to the op post about the Buckyball and Elite racer events
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Avago Earo
Banned
Some peole may want different types of racing. I think (to me) some 'races' seem like endurance tests, which suits some players. The idea I proposed a few posts back was a different approach (I think). It could be completed in a much shorter distance. Each system (nav beacon space) would be like a buoy in a sailing race. No one knows prior to the race, what cargo item their team (Wing) will be designated. Each player has to get to the next nav beacon and drop their cargo for their team mate to collect and in turn pass on to the next team mate in the next system. Members of opposing teams can shoot the cargo, forcing that team to start again (Wingman 1 has to return to the start). Ships cannot be shot and stealing opponents cargo would be pointless as each team has different items to get back to the start point. Zero G egg and spoon race if you like.
I know what I mean, I'm just not getting it across very well.
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I support these ideas very much.
(translator)
to push the thing further and really allow more racing .. about official races only,
the other obstacle I can see.. I do not notice this to stop the idea but because I think it's important to think about it..
there are things to put in place to bring people together at the race and at the start. I see only two solutions,
1.> always leave it in the hands of the community for the organization .. easy for Frontier and does not require a design effort .. but not very effective (this limit to the forum and groups of players isolated).. nothing to add on that is what already does.
2.> the organization becomes automatic, in game, requires a big effort of design, it is a game in a game.
for this "small" 2 .. so must race routes already built, a menu that informs of the date and time of departure.. score and championship..
in addition to the balance with the speed of the ships.. special ships for the race (to avoid very large imbalance) or disable engineer improvements at the start of each race.
to force the players to place it at the right place on the starting line and for that I see only one real solution in a multiplayer game (to prevent people from doing anything and delays) .. you have to teleport the players to the starting line.. and block orders until departure.
validate each checkpoint crossing to the finish line to avoid cheating.. when cornering, you must go through the interior and not the outside.
and provide an ATR police armada and anti-aircraft guns on each circuit .. risk of criminal attack.. that any intruder who is not a runner and who enters the circuit is eliminated very quickly.. so it must be easy to see the limit of the circuit.. or make the circuits in giant hangars.
and also provide NPC runners .. not only for solo play but also if there is no open player to participate (off-peak time).
when all this will be done .. I could say that races are officially part of the game.
to push the thing further and really allow more racing .. about official races only,
the other obstacle I can see.. I do not notice this to stop the idea but because I think it's important to think about it..
there are things to put in place to bring people together at the race and at the start. I see only two solutions,
1.> always leave it in the hands of the community for the organization .. easy for Frontier and does not require a design effort .. but not very effective (this limit to the forum and groups of players isolated).. nothing to add on that is what already does.
2.> the organization becomes automatic, in game, requires a big effort of design, it is a game in a game.
for this "small" 2 .. so must race routes already built, a menu that informs of the date and time of departure.. score and championship..
in addition to the balance with the speed of the ships.. special ships for the race (to avoid very large imbalance) or disable engineer improvements at the start of each race.
to force the players to place it at the right place on the starting line and for that I see only one real solution in a multiplayer game (to prevent people from doing anything and delays) .. you have to teleport the players to the starting line.. and block orders until departure.
validate each checkpoint crossing to the finish line to avoid cheating.. when cornering, you must go through the interior and not the outside.
and provide an ATR police armada and anti-aircraft guns on each circuit .. risk of criminal attack.. that any intruder who is not a runner and who enters the circuit is eliminated very quickly.. so it must be easy to see the limit of the circuit.. or make the circuits in giant hangars.
and also provide NPC runners .. not only for solo play but also if there is no open player to participate (off-peak time).
when all this will be done .. I could say that races are officially part of the game.
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translator
and for the races if there is a day, I would like the shields to be deactivated, we should only rely on the hull of a ship, more elimination by destruction, more adrenaline.
Reduced cost of rebay for races.. because insurance wins a share if we win the race.. there must be a reason for that loL.. yes because win a race .. deserves a reward .. reward for the first three (as in all racing games worthy of the name).
and for the races if there is a day, I would like the shields to be deactivated, we should only rely on the hull of a ship, more elimination by destruction, more adrenaline.
Reduced cost of rebay for races.. because insurance wins a share if we win the race.. there must be a reason for that loL.. yes because win a race .. deserves a reward .. reward for the first three (as in all racing games worthy of the name).
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Well, I am always looking for testers for the racing feature I built into my companion app for Elite.... Obviously it's not as nice as what you propose (and I think the proposal is awesome!), but it does have 80's race game music, so...
Anyway, if you like to test the racing feature, feel free. The idea is simple, you create a track by setting a couple waypoints, select the type of race (time trial or checkpoint) and off you go! Should not only work in the SRV, but everywhere near a planet's surface. You can even share the waypoints and let others try to beat your time. The feature can definitely use some polishing, so any feedback is welcome.
Companion apps aside, I really do hope your idea is implemented in one form or other in the game, racing is an awesome use case for SRVs.
Anyway, if you like to test the racing feature, feel free. The idea is simple, you create a track by setting a couple waypoints, select the type of race (time trial or checkpoint) and off you go! Should not only work in the SRV, but everywhere near a planet's surface. You can even share the waypoints and let others try to beat your time. The feature can definitely use some polishing, so any feedback is welcome.
Companion apps aside, I really do hope your idea is implemented in one form or other in the game, racing is an awesome use case for SRVs.
Well, I am always looking for testers for the racing feature I built into my companion app for Elite.... Obviously it's not as nice as what you propose (and I think the proposal is awesome!), but it does have 80's race game music, so...
Anyway, if you like to test the racing feature, feel free. The idea is simple, you create a track by setting a couple waypoints, select the type of race (time trial or checkpoint) and off you go! Should not only work in the SRV, but everywhere near a planet's surface. You can even share the waypoints and let others try to beat your time. The feature can definitely use some polishing, so any feedback is welcome.
Companion apps aside, I really do hope your idea is implemented in one form or other in the game, racing is an awesome use case for SRVs.
WAIT.... did you say 80's theme music.... sign me up
if you like awesome racing in the real world (with said music) check this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddtB76x_Zfc (dont forget to put your aviators on)best not to go off topic though.
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I must be a little nostalgic of "Star Wars Episode 1 pod racer" ..to write all this..
I have incredible memories of this game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQbAidihQ10
I have incredible memories of this game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQbAidihQ10
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I must be a little nostalgic of "Star Wars Episode 1 pod racer" ..to write all this..
I have incredible memories of this game
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQbAidihQ10
Haha yeah that also makes me think of red bull air race, actually if you fly close to the ground in Elite in something very fast like a racing eagle with performance enhanced thrusters you can create a similar feeling of speed, we just dont know where to fly
I thought of another use of "tracks" if they ever got implemented which i added to the possibilities section of the op post -
- These same tracks could then be used as the targets for "racing missions", "go to this famous track in system blahblah and record a time".... or better yet; win a race against AI racers... ok that might need some work from AI programmers but as a long term goal... (i bet they would love to get stuck into it). As a mission type i am sure it would be extremely popular, how much more fun is racing for money than delivering cargo? lots!
+Rep
The work you do on those races is awesome.
I think you would see a lot more people racing if the game had a "built-in" way to start a race, and would also track who actually wins (including verifying they didn't miss any waypoints.)
When I've raced with my friends, it was not only laborious to explain where the fictional track was, but if I was losing I would cut corners to keep the race interesting lol.
It would also be awesome to have stats on who has the best times per track, etc.
Then you could brag like Han Solo did about the Kessel Run :-D
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