Could Frontier please demonstrate how to use the FSS enjoyably?

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The FSS supporters want suggestions for improvements to the FSS, not requests that the ADS is brought back, so, in a spirit of cooperation I propose the following improvement to the FSS.

An optional 'FSS Booster' module that extends the capabilities of the FSS - the same principle as the FSD Booster - by adding automatic mapping functionality to the initial honk. This would populate the System Map with images of system bodies and show selectable 'Unexplored' items in the Nav Panel.

So the evil ADS doesn't come back and the FSS gets even better!
I have suggested something very similar, in another thread. I don't believe I have been the first either. ;)
Yes...

But with Drew's excellent and original suggestion, everybody's going to love it!! :LOL:
Not that original in principle, but the packaging is a little different though. :)

As for everyone loving it? Not quite, but IMO it would be a start wrt fixing the total pigs ear FD made of exploration with 3.3.
 
So, basically, everyone agrees that the fss is not good.
Cool.
That's a bit of an oversimplification. We don't agree it is bad, it is much, much better than ADS.

We probably all do agree anything can be made better. FSS included. Drew's "suggestion" is a.bad one though as it brings ADS back.

I would support any suggestion that would somewhat speed up the exploration process by applying skill.
 
That's a bit of an oversimplification. We don't agree it is bad, it is much, much better than ADS.
What Enderby is saying is not related to "subjective assessments" of the relative mechanics but rather that the FSS has been badly implemented and very few people disagree with that point - even if they think it is better than what we had pre-3.3 (which is entirely subjective).

We probably all do agree anything can be made better. FSS included. Drew's "suggestion" is a.bad one though as it brings ADS back.

I would support any suggestion that would somewhat speed up the exploration process by applying skill.
I think the concept of imposing needless interactivity for exploration is the root of this whole argument. The "skill" argument is pro-mini-game which is something I diametrically oppose. The nub of the problem is that there is a fallacious perception that the argument against the FSS and in support of the ADS is about speed of discovery - this is a misnomer since the ADS based approach was always on balance slower and the lack of forced interaction is what some of us liked about it.
 
We probably all do agree anything can be made better. FSS included. Drew's "suggestion" is a.bad one though as it brings ADS back.
It does nothing of the sort! It merely adds to the functionality of the FSS, to allow more gameplay options. I don't see how this can be considered a bad thing!

I would support any suggestion that would somewhat speed up the exploration process by applying skill.
This is applying your definition of what constitutes 'the exploration process'.

To some people, the exploration process starts AFTER they have sufficient information to determine whether or not they want to explore the system - said information may contain visual representations of the bodies or details of orbital distances.

To others (possibly just me), flying one's spaceship around the system is an intrnsic and fundamental part of the exploration process.

An optional FSS enhancement that automates the process of body visualization and 'targeting' would make both of these exploration processes available, without removing the process you enjoy.

In addition, since 2019 is all about improving the new player experience, it can be argued that a simplified process should be available since the FSS is non-intuitive and has a steep learning curve - as evidenced by the need for a tutorial. A new player's first visit to an unexplored system should not leave them wondering where all the planets have gone and how they use the minigame screen to discover them.
 
Not really followed the thread. How was it badly implemented in an objective way and not subjective?
  1. Bugs in general - also arguably applies to a lot of ED, but certain key bugs were highlighted during the Beta and not fixed till months after the release: case in point blob rendering in VR. A key bug that has not been resolved is that regarding the Codex not being populated with pre-3.3 exploration data for relevant individuals.
  2. Many disagreeing with the "out of cockpit" approach and/or having to throttle down - subjective I know, but there has been a degree of consensus on this point over the course of various discussions about the FSS both during the Beta and after 3.3 was released)
  3. No consideration for those with any form of hearing impairment - case in point the "claim" that it was learnable seemingly based purely on the scientific basis of the audio component (the base mechanics themselves have no "learnable" elements as such - at least in any significant way)
There are other more subjective critique of the FSS and the 3.3 FSS/DSS mechanics in general and I may have missed some other "objective" points or "subjective" points of significant consensus.
 
Not really followed the thread. How was it badly implemented in an objective way and not subjective?

I'd go with the following:

1. It can only be used while stationary.
2. It has no meaningful multicrew functionality (due to point 1)
3. It's mandatory, thereby removing player choice
4. It's complex and non-intuitive

The key point in the above is number 3. Unlike every other module added to the game, you have no choice but to use it. If it's merely subjectively bad, it wouldn't matter, since you could simply not use it.
 
4. It's complex and non-intuitive
I would disagree with this point - it is simplistic and childish in terms of implementation IMO - the implementation is modelled on radio telescopes, that much is clear, but it lacks various features one would expect from a radio telescope emulation/simulation which makes it ultimately a pain to use.

Key missing elements include:-
  1. Visualisation of the audio component
  2. Pan/zoom of the consolidated frequency spread bar
  3. Tuning memory
 
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I would disagree with this point - it is simplistic and childish in terms of implementation IMO - the implementation is modelled on radio telescopes, that much is clear, but it lacks various features one would expect from a radio telescope emulation/simulation which makes it ultimately a pain to use.

I was considering its usage, rather than its design. When you first enter the FSS screen there is nothing that indicates what you can do, or how you should be doing it.

For example:
There's a horizontal scale across the bottom of the display, which you move a slider across, but there's also a vertical scale on the left, that's purely informational, with nothing to indicate the difference.

I could go on, but it just depresses me.
 
I was considering its usage, rather than its design. When you first enter the FSS screen there is nothing that indicates what you can do, or how you should be doing it.

For example:
There's a horizontal scale across the bottom of the display, which you move a slider across, but there's also a vertical scale on the left, that's purely informational, with nothing to indicate the difference.

I could go on, but it just depresses me.
That aspect was part of the Beta and was included at release as I recall - the "forced (notionally) one-off tutorial" was a major condescending flaw with FD's overall approach IMO (it should not have been forced on everyone during first use and kept as a separate optional tutorial that could be engaged with at will).

The general FSS screen barely needs explanation IMO and what you are talking about could be said about MANY different features of ED.
 
Of course no-one scans full systems any more, since the introduction of the dreaded FSS...

134862


Oops... maybe some of us do after all :p

ETA: there were no 'high value' bodies in that system either :)
 
So, basically, everyone agrees that the fss is not good.
Cool.

Sorry, not everyone agrees about that. For an entry level system discovery multi-scanner, I think the FSS is quite good. It’s kept me exploring for almost nine months now, and I’m still discovering things about it... though the later is a consequence of the pace I had to maintain to have a hope of completing DW2 on time. :)

That being said, I do think it could be improved even more.

First and foremost would be removing the completely necessary and artificial restriction to throttle down while using it. Second would be fixing some of the remaining bugs, especially the lack of orbit lines while zoomed in while in VR. Third is the addition of an exploration information sub-panel that could display a system’s spectrum and body count, information about targeted bodies, and other information relevant to explorers.

Finally, there still needs to be more tools to choose from in the exploration tool kit, including an automatic system map maker for those uninterested in that aspect of exploration gameplay. But this isn’t a flaw of the FSS, but of exploration in general... along with a lack of survival, logistical, and “living off the land” gameplay.
 
Of course no-one scans full systems any more, since the introduction of the dreaded FSS...
There are enough vehement defenders of the FSS to make your comment moot. However, I have over 10k L3 scans under my belt pre-3.3 and a Codex filled with only 17 entries - it is sickening to think anyone like myself would have to re-tread old ground in order to gain data they should already have.

The thought of engaging in the FSS mini-game 10k or more times just makes me want to hurl.
 
There are enough vehement defenders of the FSS to make your comment moot. However, I have over 10k L3 scans under my belt pre-3.3 and a Codex filled with only 17 entries - it is sickening to think anyone like myself would have to re-tread old ground in order to gain data they should already have.

The thought of engaging in the FSS mini-game 10k or more times just makes me want to hurl.

10k?
You're not a REAL explorer :p
I had over half a million - and that was after a save reset after Engineering.
 
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