Are there any planned changes for the coaster builder?

[Variable Gaming]

When playing Planet Coaster, I don't really do anything but make coasters. Sometimes I get a bit bored with what we have. Is there anything planned for the coaster builder in the future? c::white:

here's a couple of pictures of rides I made to add a little b e e f to this post.

http://i.imgur.com/8OHjzHB.jpg

 

[breezerHOG1]

You make really good coasters [up]


My biggest request for coasters: allow us to change the car type without changing the entire track (especially go karts)

 

[Variable Gaming]

You make really good coasters [up]

Thank you!

 

[Doge]

Yeah, we really need some changes, along with some new coaster types.

 

[Snodge Snoodle]

I hope they have more features planned for the coasters.
They are really sexy looking, but lack so many options. I wish they had gone for a more global approach to the coaster tool. We should be able to mix and match features into any style of coaster we like. I don't like having separate coasters with predefined characteristics. If I want to make a looping junior coaster I should be able to. If I want to use a coaster as a transport ride I should be able to. If I want to launch a log flume at 80MPH out of the station I should be able to.
These boundary's are not present in real life. There is no real reason (other than cost or safety) that elaborate wacky ideas can't be done. Yet we are forced to stay within some predefined rules just because nothing like it in real life has been made yet.
You may argue that it will remove realism, but having less limits will not stop you from sticking to the rules of existing coaster types if you so wish.
I would like to see the list of coasters be replaced with one universal tool that combines all the features available. You would then have full freedom to push the boundary's of creativity.

I find it annoying when I can't bank the track enough for a given situation or the length of the track piece wont go long or short enough. Why can we only bank the track up to 90 degrees per section? I want to bank 360 degrees or more per section. I expect the devs would say its to prevent clipping of the coaster cars or whatever, when this is clearly not the case as the diving coaster cars clip into each other if you use 4m track and a 90 degree bend. I wish they would just remove the limits and let the player decide if the clipping is an issue or not. I would love to add more nodes into existing track to get better control too.

There is certainly a lot of room for improvement with the coasters yet I feel they will never do anything about it.

 

[Chems]

More coaster threads. Good. [up]

 

[inspectorgadget1]

Is there anything planned for the coaster builder in the future?

Is this a rhetorical question? The devs wouldn't announce anything like this in advance.

 

[Crowdpleaser]

Is this a rhetorical question? The devs wouldn't announce anything like this in advance.

Also... like what? Changes or additions of what nature?

 

[RealWar]

You make really good coasters [up]


My biggest request for coasters: allow us to change the car type without changing the entire track (especially go karts)

I hope they have more features planned for the coasters.
They are really sexy looking, but lack so many options. I wish they had gone for a more global approach to the coaster tool. We should be able to mix and match features into any style of coaster we like. I don't like having separate coasters with predefined characteristics. If I want to make a looping junior coaster I should be able to. If I want to use a coaster as a transport ride I should be able to. If I want to launch a log flume at 80MPH out of the station I should be able to.
These boundary's are not present in real life. There is no real reason (other than cost or safety) that elaborate wacky ideas can't be done. Yet we are forced to stay within some predefined rules just because nothing like it in real life has been made yet.
You may argue that it will remove realism, but having less limits will not stop you from sticking to the rules of existing coaster types if you so wish.
I would like to see the list of coasters be replaced with one universal tool that combines all the features available. You would then have full freedom to push the boundary's of creativity.

I find it annoying when I can't bank the track enough for a given situation or the length of the track piece wont go long or short enough. Why can we only bank the track up to 90 degrees per section? I want to bank 360 degrees or more per section. I expect the devs would say its to prevent clipping of the coaster cars or whatever, when this is clearly not the case as the diving coaster cars clip into each other if you use 4m track and a 90 degree bend. I wish they would just remove the limits and let the player decide if the clipping is an issue or not. I would love to add more nodes into existing track to get better control too.

There is certainly a lot of room for improvement with the coasters yet I feel they will never do anything about it.

I agree with both statements. Also, I too, feel a bit worried about the sentence I highlighted. They have changed some things, but at the same time, I feel worried that they won't change other things.

#EveryCoaster4MeterMinSegmentLength
#FixSmoothing
#FixFriction
#AddMoreStandardTrackSegments (Like how the Barghest, Torque, Power-Up, etc. have)
#IronFuryFixes

 

[breezerHOG1]

There is certainly a lot of room for improvement with the coasters yet I feel they will never do anything about it.

I too, feel a bit worried about the sentence I highlighted. They have changed some things, but at the same time, I feel worried that they won't change other things.

When everybody complained about the terrain limitations, Frontier said it was difficult to fix but they did it. Also, how about when everybody requested no clipping? Lots of bugs have been improved/fixed due to player feedback, Frontier is constantly adding and tweaking various things

Other requests have been directly turned down, like having multiple coaster stations (Frontier said its too difficult)

I think Frontier stays quiet on certain things because they like to surprise us, and I don't know why anybody would think that it is impossible to improve the coaster editor. I'm sure in time Frontier will get to it, but it certainly not something that ruins the game.

They are definitely listening, and are more directly communicating with us better than most companies

 

[tyczj]

Also to be fair they didn't really "fix" the terrain issue, they only provided a work around that community members have suggested since the limitation was brought to light. The issue of only 8 terrain paints per map still exists

 

[breezerHOG1]

Also to be fair they didn't really "fix" the terrain issue, they only provided a work around that community members have suggested since the limitation was brought to light. The issue of only 8 terrain paints per map still exists

I don't know, I think its a fair compromise... do we really need more than 8? Maybe they will increase at some point

 

[RealWar]

I don't know why anybody would think that it is impossible to improve the coaster editor. I'm sure in time Frontier will get to it, but it certainly not something that ruins the game.

Certain aspects of the coaster editor are things that ruin the game. Mostly track limits, and Frontier's current quest to make new coasters have horrid long minimum segment lengths. The segment lengths pretty much ruin the new coaster types.

I think Frontier stays quiet on certain things because they like to surprise us.

They are definitely listening, and are more directly communicating with us better than most companies

First thing to note is that I dislike the phrase, "are more directly communicating with us better than most companies".
I know they are listening (at least to big things), and they do surprise us some times. However, I wish they would make things a bit more clear when they do surprise us. I wish they would have given us clearer descriptions of the coasters when they announced 1.3. Then, when 1.3 arrived, there were a few unlisted changes that would have made some people excited, but they weren't in the patch notes. So most people didn't know that they happened. (Tiamat Curved lift and Malice Unchained recolorable trains)
Then there was the complete miscommunication in 1.3.2, where this was listed in the patch notes:

Reduced the minimum track length for the Trident coaster so it is consistent with the Bolt coaster

However, it was the complete opposite. The Bolt's MTL was increased to the Trident's 8 meter MTL

Also, how about when everybody requested no clipping?

Yes, however, some of the smaller tweaks that could be implemented to improved the game hardly get as much attention/threads/posts as some of the bigger things, so sometimes Frontier may not even see them. I generally dislike the suggestions and ideas section of the forums, because good things usually get lost in there.

 

[breezerHOG1]

Certain aspects of the coaster editor are things that ruin the game. Mostly track limits, and Frontier's current quest to make new coasters have horrid long minimum segment lengths. The segment lengths pretty much ruin the new coaster types.

While I thank you for taking the time to quote me, you might not have seen my other threads where I say that I agree coasters could be improved. You bring up good points about track length. But for all the threads about coasters, nobody has yet put together a collection of general ideas, they are all scattered about in various places that not everybody will find. You guys could organize your requests better instead of constantly saying things like "We really need a response here"

First thing to note is that I dislike the phrase, "are more directly communicating with us better than most companies".
I know they are listening (at least to big things), and they do surprise us some times. However, I wish they would make things a bit more clear when they do surprise us. I wish they would have given us clearer descriptions of the coasters when they announced 1.3. Then, when 1.3 arrived, there were a few unlisted changes that would have made some people excited, but they weren't in the patch notes. So most people didn't know that they happened. (Tiamat Curved lift and Malice Unchained recolorable trains)
Then there was the complete miscommunication in 1.3.2, where this was listed in the patch notes:

However, it was the complete opposite. The Bolt's MTL was increased to the Trident's 8 meter MTL

I mean, nobody is perfect. Are you nitpicking or are you trying to say that Frontier is a bad company for those mistakes they made?

Yes, however, some of the smaller tweaks that could be implemented to improved the game hardly get as much attention/threads/posts as some of the bigger things, so sometimes Frontier may not even see them. I generally dislike the suggestions and ideas section of the forums, because good things usually get lost in there.

I totally 100% agree. But Frontier is trying and better than most companies. Not too many games have a community with contests, big prizes, weekly live streams, etc. I'm also not saying Fronier is perfect either, I have made many requests. Only pointing out that sometimes people act like the game is broken, when it is not... of course it can be improved though.

 

[Aposine]

Other requests have been directly turned down, like having multiple coaster stations (Frontier said its too difficult)

I wonder what kind of pasta programming they've been doing for their coasters to make that such a hassle to implement.

I'll throw in another request for continuous roll since the thread is practically baiting for it. There's a ton of stuff I'd love to see for the coasters and the coaster builder, but as long as CR remains unimplemented all of those other things are equally irrelevant.

 

[Snodge Snoodle]

I wonder what kind of pasta programming they've been doing for their coasters to make that such a hassle to implement.

I totally agree here. I can't understand why it would be so hard to do. There must be some seriously janky coding going on if things aren't modular enough to allow multiple stations.

I'm fairly sure the coasters were an afterthought.

To me, having multiple stations is my most wanted feature. The use of these stations would be determined by the placement and number of entrance and exit gates.

I'm not really keen on how the multiple stations on transport rides work either. I feel that the station properties should be accessed by clicking the station in question and not from a button in the menu.

If coasters ever get multiple stations then clicking on a station should tell you the EFN ratings of the track up to the next station. It would allow you to adjust the dispatch options for just that station(including sync to adjacent station). So each section of track between stations is treated like a single ride. We should have an option to let guests stay on the ride if it is to be used as a transport ride so they don't have to queue again to get to where they are going. A simple check box for "transport ride" would allow the guest to remain seated and not force them to leave the ride when entering a station.

I feel that when the devs try and fore fill a request they do it in the easiest way possible but not the best way. Look at the coaster chain option they implemented instead of just giving us multiple stations in the first place. It was the simplest solution that didn't really require them to do much, and it didn't really do the job either. Yet they could now claim to have duelling coasters when It was the poorest implementation possible.
Its the same with the fireworks. People requested it expecting to get a timeline editor, but they just pinched the trigger code from the coasters and bolted on a list of timers and called it good, when in actual fact its horrible to use.

The whole coaster system needs to be redone, so do the fireworks and dare I say the paths too.

That is why I said this in my previous comment "There is certainly a lot of room for improvement with the coasters yet I feel they will never do anything about it."
They didn't get it right from the beginning and now its come back to bite them when people realise that basic features that were done 10 years ago are missing and adding them now is out of the question because of poor planning from the start of development.

There are only a few things I feel they got right with PC and that is the graphics and sound. Almost everything else could be improved a lot.

Is the game broken? Absolutely not, it's still entertaining in many ways, but it could be way way better.

 

[Serpentrax]

I hope they have more features planned for the coasters.
They are really sexy looking, but lack so many options. I wish they had gone for a more global approach to the coaster tool. We should be able to mix and match features into any style of coaster we like. I don't like having separate coasters with predefined characteristics. If I want to make a looping junior coaster I should be able to. If I want to use a coaster as a transport ride I should be able to. If I want to launch a log flume at 80MPH out of the station I should be able to.
These boundary's are not present in real life. There is no real reason (other than cost or safety) that elaborate wacky ideas can't be done. Yet we are forced to stay within some predefined rules just because nothing like it in real life has been made yet.
You may argue that it will remove realism, but having less limits will not stop you from sticking to the rules of existing coaster types if you so wish.
I would like to see the list of coasters be replaced with one universal tool that combines all the features available. You would then have full freedom to push the boundary's of creativity.

I find it annoying when I can't bank the track enough for a given situation or the length of the track piece wont go long or short enough. Why can we only bank the track up to 90 degrees per section? I want to bank 360 degrees or more per section. I expect the devs would say its to prevent clipping of the coaster cars or whatever, when this is clearly not the case as the diving coaster cars clip into each other if you use 4m track and a 90 degree bend. I wish they would just remove the limits and let the player decide if the clipping is an issue or not. I would love to add more nodes into existing track to get better control too.

There is certainly a lot of room for improvement with the coasters yet I feel they will never do anything about it.

If I remember correctly, RCT3 had a similar issue and Frontier came up with a rather brilliant solution: The so-called Extended Coaster. That was basically a "godmode" for advanced players; the track resembled the B&M Twister, but it allowed all track pieces in the game, including vertical drops, inversions and overbanked turns. By default it sported those weird drifting trains, but you could also choose Diving Machines, Floorless, Standup, Hyper and probably more train types. If Frontier insists on arbitrary limits in PlanCo, I hope they at least consider a "advanced" type that ignores most of the limits and allow a flexible train selection. Heck, they can even hide it behind a cheatcode!

 

[Chems]

I mean, nobody is perfect. Are you nitpicking or are you trying to say that Frontier is a bad company for those mistakes they made?

Frontier has a lot of interaction with the community with their live streams and contests, yes, but there isn't a whole lot of communication about the actual game, especially problems the game has. And this is the kind of communication people want more of. It is understandable Frontier doesn't want to make promises or give out false hope, since that would make a lot of people really angry if they fail to meet those promises.

But still, their communication about the actual game isn't really any better than from most other developers.

 

[breezerHOG1]

If Frontier insists on arbitrary limits in PlanCo, I hope they at least consider a "advanced" type that ignores most of the limits and allow a flexible train selection. Heck, they can even hide it behind a cheatcode!

Thats part of the problem though. Planet Coaster is a creative game and should not have any sort of restrictions when playing in sandbox mode. Realism does not belong in a creative game, especially when it only creates limitations. If they want "realism" then it should only be part of career/challenge mode. But for some reason sandbox has unnecessary management (like increase staff wages, quitting vendors, and training) because the game does not understand its own purpose. I also think that certain things should NOT be a cheat code (like coaster friction)

SnodgeSnoodle actually has a lot of valid points, the game has many features that need improving. There is not like one big flaw with PC, just lots and lots and lots of little ones

their communication about the actual game isn't really any better than from most other developers.

Chems you are not an easy customer to please... you go on and on about how you love this game, but you really think Frontier is equal to Atari or EA?? You think Rockstar has contests and livestreams and chats with its community??

Look I am all for asking Frontier for improvements and making suggestions, but lets keep it real here. You cant compare Frontier to just any other gaming developer

 

[Chems]

Thats part of the problem though. Planet Coaster is a creative game and should not have any sort of restrictions when playing in sandbox mode. Realism does not belong in a creative game, especially when it only creates limitations. If they want "realism" then it should only be part of career/challenge mode. But for some reason sandbox has unnecessary management (like increase staff wages, quitting vendors, and training) because the game does not understand its own purpose. I also think that certain things should NOT be a cheat code (like coaster friction)

SnodgeSnoodle actually has a lot of valid points, the game has many features that need improving. There is not like one big flaw with PC, just lots and lots and lots of little ones

100% Agreed. Its funny tho that these restrictions we have that try to make the game more 'realistic' actually achieve the complete opposite. It is possible to make 100% unrealistic creations but the restrictions keep us from making more realistic creations. [blah]

Chems you are not an easy customer to please... you go on and on about how you love this game, but you really think Frontier is equal to Atari or EA?? You think Rockstar has contests and livestreams and chats with its community??

Look I am all for asking Frontier for improvements and making suggestions, but lets keep it real here. You cant compare Frontier to just any other gaming developer

I didn't mean to say that Frontiers overall communication is bad, or equal to other studio's. They do have a lot more interaction with the community for sure, but these interactions aren't really about the actual game, like as in bugs or problems the gave has. Although they do actively reach out to the community to ask for feedback, only they do this on Reddit and Discord so it's easy to miss.