Understood, but given some ships turn rather slowly, wouldn't that make looking around in the FSS view rather painful?
AND, it also means a different behaviour for multicrew!
ie: Under a dedicated FSS view, multiple crew could all be using it. With one tied to ship direction?
Having thought about it some more, I would speculate that the zero-throttle thing isn't a technical limitation, and is a last minute change (thus, consistent with what the NDA visitors have said). My guess is that the FSS turret view *is* a live view from your ship's position, and it does act basically like a telescope. When you aren't actively moving it, the telescope view has to track some reference frame - either your ship or the background stars. And notice that when its at that middle zoom level where you can resolve the moons around a distant planet, the angular field of view is really small.
Put all that together, and I bet they discovered during play testing (which certainly seems like it happens pretty late in their development cycle) that if the ship was moving at high speed, the parallax motion made it extremely difficult to keep distant objects in the FSS telescope view. Thus they made a last minute change to automatically throttle down. Seems silly, but if they developed the feature using a fixed-in-space testbed, it could actually be that they only recently tried using it attached to a moving ship.
As for not working in normal space - that would be an obvious workaround, but they clearly have a policy that you can only get superluminal information when you are in supercruise yourself. After all, you can't even see ships in SC from normal space, even though they're *flipping bright* when you get close in SC. (Although ironically the current iteration of the discovery scanner is a blatant violation of that rule.)
Put all that together, and I bet they discovered during play testing (which certainly seems like it happens pretty late in their development cycle) that if the ship was moving at high speed, the parallax motion made it extremely difficult to keep distant objects in the FSS telescope view. Thus they made a last minute change to automatically throttle down. Seems silly, but if they developed the feature using a fixed-in-space testbed, it could actually be that they only recently tried using it attached to a moving ship.
As for not working in normal space - that would be an obvious workaround, but they clearly have a policy that you can only get superluminal information when you are in supercruise yourself. After all, you can't even see ships in SC from normal space, even though they're *flipping bright* when you get close in SC. (Although ironically the current iteration of the discovery scanner is a blatant violation of that rule.)
I wasn't aware your throttle reduced to zero in FSS view? But I guess it makes most sense so you simply don't fly blind into stuff?
And I assume this behaviour is only applicable if the pilot is in this view? ie: If a multi-crew member is in FSS view, I'd hope this is completely independent of what the pilot this then doing with the ship, other than the location of their FSS view (not direction).
I'm aware - but remember that Multi-crew is the lesser use case.
We have that camera view already, so I wouldn't take it away.
I just want to be able to fly and scan at the same time.
Just not sure how achievable and useful this would be. If you consider planetary bodies will most likey be evenly spread all around you. If you have to point your ship at each object as you scanned it, what good will flying around in a wiggly path along the system's plane achieve?
Far better to simply sit there for a couple of minutes, do the necessary discovery as you see fit, and then fly off surely?
Note: If FSS does reduce the throttle down to zero, I would see this as an issue. ie: If you use the FSS on an object and realise you want to visit it (probe it), why not point the ship towards it and SC towards it while finishing off work in the FSS?
And what - crash into that planet or fly right past it because you're blind in FSS mode?
Doesn't SC desperately need more functionality?
Not if there's a scanner included (sensibly) in the FSS view so you can see if/when you're approaching said planet?
Being able to fly towards one object while FSS'ing others would seem a pretty obvious use of SC time surely?
Surely we want to be rewarded for wise choices and being able to juggle tasks? So you jump into a system, quickly spot a candidate to probe in the FSS view so head off there in SC, knowing during the X minute flight there you can use the FSS to look at other objects.
Not if there's a scanner included (sensibly) in the FSS view so you can see if/when you're approaching said planet?
Being able to fly towards one object while FSS'ing others would seem a pretty obvious use of SC time surely?
Surely we want to be rewarded for wise choices and being able to juggle tasks? So you jump into a system, quickly spot a candidate to probe in the FSS view so head off there in SC, knowing during the X minute flight there you can use the FSS to look at other objects.
I can walk and talk at the same time.
I dislike being railroaded into doing one thing at a time.
Ian Phillips
Volunteer Moderator
Space legs confirmed?
And spacemouths?
I agree. Once I'm in a system one of the reasons why I'm scanning it is to see if something is worth visiting, which means I will have to travel to the planet anyway (so I can land on it & gather resources for example).
The new system seems to be that I will remain stationary at or close to the entry point of the system until I've scanned it all, then travel towards the chosen body (while detail scanning it sooner than with the current system). Currently the initial reveal is fully automatic & I am situationally aware throughout the honk. The new system will no longer be automatic, but will apparently become so trivial it may as well be to the experienced, while simultaneously becoming a skill barrier to the novice and leaving them vulnerable to attack.
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Here's a wildcard for you.
Given that SC visualization is a boondoggle anyway because of relativistic and FTL speeds.
Make SC look like the FSS blobby view by default and only render bodies if you've scanned them (which you can do while still in control of your ship).
Understood.
But again, if we're discussing you wishing to fly your ship and then having to aim it at the targets in the FSS, your flight will be pointless (random directions), and indeed even compromised. ie: Half+ of the objects risk being through the sun!
Far more sensible IMHO to have a dedicated FSS view which moves like a turret, which can be used while you are SC'ing in a direction of your choice, at least with enough information to have a modicum of an idea of where you are say in relation to a destination you're heading to.
If I'm misunderstanding your proposed flying and pointing to FSS targets I apoligise, so by all means point out what I might be missing.
Not everyone flies the same way, even in SC.
I know how I fly, and I know that I'd find the FSS far more useful while flying than as an independent camera while flying in a straight line or at a standstill.
Yes, you would need to stay on target to complete a body scan, but it is much much faster now than the DSS.
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I don't know the exact amount of time but it's enough time to react & push the throttle up. Much like entering a system at full throttle, you have enough time if you are paying attention.
Hmmm... Don't get it myself.
Again, you'd be changing your direction of flight every 5-10 seconds to point to a new target in the FSS, potentially. And you'd be pointing in all direction across 360 degrees, almost randomly, potentially. And you'd potentially find the star is in your way for many targets, unless you spend the time (waste the time) flying to get the star out of the way.
For me, as long as I can SC in a direction (towards a previously scanned object) while carrying on the FSS (in its view), I think that would do me...
I've flicked through the live stream vid, but admit I have not listened to Adam and co discussing everything.
Can you not drop out of SC and do the scanning thing...or are you forced to stay in SC?
Can you not drop out of SC and do the scanning thing...or are you forced to stay in SC?
This whole FSS mechanic illustrates very clearly that because of the way ED code is structured, FDev can only ever bolt-on new mechanics to the game but are unable to actually integrate new mechanics with those that already exist.
If such were not the case, it should be possible to integrate the FSS with the existing HUD.
The whole of ED is as a series of bolt-on modules; which is why there is so much disassociation between activities within the game.
Very 1984 imo. Bit sad really but, having said all that, ED is still a wonderful game...in VR anyway.
If such were not the case, it should be possible to integrate the FSS with the existing HUD.
The whole of ED is as a series of bolt-on modules; which is why there is so much disassociation between activities within the game.
Very 1984 imo. Bit sad really but, having said all that, ED is still a wonderful game...in VR anyway.
Not sure I agree with that.
If we consider they've taken the approach that you need to point at the prospective objects to then scan them, and for most folks doing this by pointing your entire ship would most likely prove frustrating and slow.
So a more dedicated view would appear logical. And let's remember this same view then lends itself to multiple crew all using it.
ps: I realise some folks don't agree and would prefer to be pointing their entire ship at eash object being scanned, but I can't fathom this being a productive mechanic myself.