2.3 dev update feedback mega thread

[Godsailsaqueen]

Ok, my grain of salt.

For the instant teleportation, my feelings are that you should go with it. It's more obvious, because it implies unprecedented gameplay. So a quick, fast way to access it is cool. I could come back on why instant transfer was not a no-brainer for ship transfer (IMO), but this discussion is becoming tiresome.

On the rest of your announcement, and fully aware that there are more things to come - still eagerly waiting for them btw...
- Multi-crew's implementation, compared to what was originally planned, looks (on paper) like a letdown.
- the only new role is the gunner role, and is it that that new when you have implemented a working system of controlled turrets long ago for 2.0 SRVs?
- Mostly combat related as far as we know, and the fact you did not even mention something to reassure other kinds of players is disappointing.
- involves some weird inconsistencies regarding the current limitations of SLF, why we can't have 2 with npc crew, why human players can launch more, even though they're still on the telepresence side of the spectrum.
- probable cases of abuse, and cheats (multi accounts)
- not punitive at all in case of griefing.

- it would be nice, a nice gesture to tell us why things changed that much from the concepts presented here : https://www.reddit.com/r/EliteDangerous/comments/3wxxew/multicrew_first_details_from_adam_woods/.
Why this level of depth was given up? Technical difficulties? Balance issues? time issues, planned for later, no ETA?

- that were the problems with you devblog post only, I still trust the rest. to end on a positive note, a move towards cooperation, more multiplayer, more fun, is more than welcome and will surely make a better, fleshed game. It's just a shame that this idea seems to suffice in itself in the dev plan, and that no further development is considered for now.

 

[Dbrn47]

Can't say I'm a fan of it being multiplayer only. If I can't be bothered to find some friends around here it will be a complete waste of a feature for me.

 

[Martian Successor]

I'm a dirty casual lone wolf, and while I understand the reasoning for implementing the insta-join, it still leaves a strange taste in my mouth, it tastes like "dumbing-down".
It's a taste I first encountered when FD made the decision to have the 3 majors reputation rise/lower when players are offline.

But there's literally no other way to do it and still have it be called "a feature" of any worth currently because we don't have legs yet. The alternative is a transfer timer - oh god kill me now

Or only able to Force project within a couple light years or via "special meditation magic" only accessible while docked at a station. Both of which would arbitrarily restrict this feature for absolutely no good reason.

Best thing FD can do is follow Obsidian Ant's thinking, i.e. when we get legs you can walk around and board ships manually. The force projection thing stays but you cannot get up from the seat if you force project yourself over there.

 

[Goose4291]

Tis a bit telling of the type of commandments that were handed out from the leadership isn't it?

It is. Remember when Shinrata went into lockdown and we had all those 'wahnwah wah Shinrata is in lockdown, griefers should be banned, fdev magic wand this plz'?

Only one thread was locked for being a duplicate. The one that encouraged people to try to do something about it in game rather than bleating for a godmod.

Wish i could.rep you but Ive recently.repped another of your posts.

 

[Jack Schitt]

Probably covering old ground but I thought I'd throw in my 2p before this thread becomes huuuuge like the others.

• Avatar creator: should be fun. I always enjoy messing with character creators, even in games I don't go on to actively play, so the option to do so in the Elite environment is welcomed. I'm also looking forward to seeing a whole bunch of new forum avatars as people play around with this.
  
  
• New camera: there's not much to go on but anything that gives us a new perspective on the game can't be bad. I'm just hoping that it's available to everyone, not just players who are flying a multi-crew-compatible ship, or who have active PC crew aboard.
  
  
• Instant crewing: I've thought about this and while I was part of the "immersion crowd" for ship transfer I've come to the conclusion that instant crew transfer won't bother me as much as I thought it might as long as there's no attempt to explain it in the game. No "telepresence link" text at the bottom, or voice-overs announcing the same. Just the acceptance from the players that the character they control can effectively be in two places at once, albeit only active in one, and can pool resources and experience gained in either. Just like dying. Just like CQC. The minute someone tries to explain this in the context of the characters, everything else that's come before in the game(s) and the authorised fiction becomes meaningless. Please don't try to do this, FD.
  
  (In an ideal world we'd have two characters; the owner-operator character we normally play as, and a second character available to crew our friends' ships, with no connection between them. But that would require extra coding and storage so probably isn't practical, at least for a point update like 2.3.)

Overall I'm quite positive, even though I probably won't use the multi-crew feature much if at all. As long as nobody tries to shoehorn ansibles or clones or miniature wormholes or SGU-style body-swapping or other gubbins in to justify the multi-crew, it'll be fine. Keep it for the game, not the game universe, and it's likely to annoy the fewest number of people IMO.

 

[bladerunner900]

Really just wanna know if theres any non multi crew non combat content in this patch, and if not, then when is 2.4 due out and will it be pew pew as well?

I would like to know the answer to this too. I'm trying, really trying to find a reason to pick this game up again.

 

[Alec Turner]

Gotta get 'em back in again Mr Turner

Okedoke, if we're gathering opinions all in one place then, ignoring my ramblings on the subject of Robert Falcon Scott, Norwegian "speed freaks" and slices of Pemmican (none of which were that salient), I guess these are mine ...

Honestly can't see myself using the main 2.3 multi-crew feature whatsoever.

Scenario 1: I'm happily playing Elite (exploring, rep grinding, gathering engineering materials, visiting interesting places, bombing around in my SRV, bounty hunting, ferrying passengers around, etc, etc) and a friend in-game (and yes, via Buckyballing and Fuel Ratting I do have a few now) invites me to come and crew for them. I have limited play time so I've got maybe another hour and a half of gametime left. Would I do it? Absolutely not. Why would I want to be a gunner on someone elses ship when I'm busy/happy playing the core game?

Scenario 2: I've decided to indulge in a spot of bounty hunting, or perhaps I'm doing a CZ CG. I see one of my friends (see above) log in. Would I invite them to come and crew on my ship? Absolutely not. I really enjoy engaging in and managing all aspects of the gameplay I'm about to embark on all by myself. Why would I want to compromise that by having someone else come onto my ship and handle some of the work? I don't need the buff (I'm far from invincible but I've never been desperate for more pew-pew power, quite happy with my own and my ships capabilities in this regard) and I don't need the hassle of having to ask them what they want to do next or having to tell them sorry but I need to quit now (e.g. because my family need me).

Am I a completely anti-social, miserable git? Absolutely not. Some of my favourite in-game moments have been instanced with other players. For example ..

Spoiler

[video=youtube_share;cQRnMqEpU4Y]https://youtu.be/cQRnMqEpU4Y[/video]

Would I derive the same sort of enjoyment from watching someone else man my turreted weapons or fly one of my SLFs? No.

I guess the avatar creator intrigues me a tiny bit (yes, I've spent more time in games like Warcraft creating my character than is acceptable for a grown man).

I guess the new camera intrigues me a bit if it extends beyond the cockpit and offers an improvement to the capabilities of the existing debug camera.

I'm really hoping 2.3 will introduce ship naming - that would be cool.

Oooh oooh - and asteroid bases (wasn't that going to be a thing?).

Hopefully there will be other content in 2.3 that's of interest.

Hopefully they will fix some old bugs (insta-fail missions, broken wavescanner, SRV 45% hull, etc).

Otherwise I'm going to have to wait for 2.4 and hope, desperately, that FD finally get over their obsession with adding more and more multi-player combat oriented features and start focusing on some other aspects of the game such as exploration that are desperately in need of some love.

 

[EUS]

I'd assume you have to be docked

That cannot be if us out in the black explorers are allowed to instantaneously jump in & out of someone else's ship & vice-versa.

 

[Martian Successor]

Can't say I'm a fan of it being multiplayer only. If I can't be bothered to find some friends around here it will be a complete waste of a feature for me.

Hopefully they expand upon the SLF crew mate feature and make it into a fully fledged NPC copilot feature accessible to all two seater ships. A just for fun thing without buffs or nerfs, just the Han and Chewie factor.

That's my hope for NPC crew at least.

 

[Vingtetun]

Here's another q:
Let's say I'm in combat, losing. I decide to join another CMDR on his/her ship (worked out beforehand with other CMDR).
Guess I'm *poof* gone from battle?

the existing 15 second countdown timer would apply - same as if you logged out through the menu I would imagine

 

[EUS]

the existing 15 second countdown timer would apply - same as if you logged out through the menu I would imagine

Let's hope (ugh that dirty word).

 

[Faybs]

That cannot be if us out in the black explorers are allowed to instantaneously jump in & out of someone else's ship & vice-versa.

That is absolutely essential for the sake of exploration. Being able to jump in as a gunner on a CG should do wonders to alleviate space madness, and more people will go on long trips knowing they won't be missing out on more action-based stuff.

 

[A DEVIOUS HYENA]

I'm glad there's a way to warm up the other seats in my ship,it gets rather lonely in my Cutter.
Although I have many questions about multicrew I can wait for Frontier to release more info or watch videos when the Beta comes out. The only questions I am dying to ask is "How does the dynamic power distributor work? How much does it add?(individual power distributor or is it like they get 10% extra from my power distributor". All in all im just happy for multicrew,although my friends just say they'll "sponge off of me"But I see it as a parasite with benefits .
A question I see about multicrew is that people don't like the instant switch to the multicrew ship,I only have one thing to say:If you don't like it,go meet the same person you want to play multicrew with and dock at the same station. You're allowed to Roleplay to make the game suit your play style.

Now I wait for multicrew...o7

 

[Faybs]

the existing 15 second countdown timer would apply - same as if you logged out through the menu I would imagine

I'm surprised they don't just make multicrew a menu option - it would solve so many problems.

 

[Kayweg]

I take it back, i have to.
I've always said this forum is no different from any other online game forum, i was wrong.
Never have i seen a forum for an online game, where significant parts of the player base lobbied against convenient and "on the go" grouping tools and mechanics.
Perhaps it's part of this ungodly "the journey is the destination" philosophy....or was it the other way around ?
Apparently it's more important to some folks how you get to the fun bit (multi-player game play) than that you get to it so you can enjoy it.
Sorry, guys, it just beggars belief.
There are going to be several controversial topics with regard to Multi Crew as more details are revealed, no doubt about that.
But this isn't one of them, FD does the right thing in trying to make it as easily accessible as possible.

And that's the 0.02 $ from the 1.7 guy.

 

[StrikingViking]

Probably already been said, but and Engineer-style role would be aweseome. I'm thinking damage control, module repair, systems optimization, that kinda thing. Think Scotty from Star Trek.

 

[lokvette]

All though I'm not against people wanting to play with their friends or family the whole idea that pilot A can join Pilot B who is 65K Ly away by space magic and then take control of part of pilot A's ship just doesn't sit right with me, I know why they are doing it, and I'm sure a few people will use it, but it just doesn't sit right with me.

It takes all that I love about Elite as a whole, and rains a golden shower upon it from a great height. I'm sure but when you die your back in your ship in a station via that very same space magic argument will come up, but to me its not the same thing. One is damn it I fudged up and have a rebuy screen and time loss, the other is "hello im here"

Just feel even tho I do love playing this game the more time pass's and the less we see in terms of well anything past a quick fix shooter pew pew game that ED is becoming the less I want to play it. I do hope MC is the first step to something larger and more in depth and is not just a selling gimmick to the forth coming PS community.

Dont care for multi crew, unless or until we get NPC crew as for me It's not so much having an npc crew for multiplayer it was more about expanding on the npc crew we already have. One of the things I loved about frontiers was having a crew even if back then all they where was lines of text on a pop up screen.

Commander creator. be nice to give Lok a face she has one in all the other games I use her name in, again its part and parcel of most modern games in this gene so no wow factor there.

.

 

[Faybs]

I take it back, i have to.
I've always said this forum is no different from any other online game forum, i was wrong.
Never have i seen a forum for an online game, where significant parts of the player base lobbied against convenient and "on the go" grouping tools and mechanics.
Perhaps it's part of this ungodly "the journey is the destination" philosophy....or was it the other way around ?
Apparently it's more important to some folks how you get to the fun bit (multi-player game play) than that you get to it so you can enjoy it.
Sorry, guys, it beggars belief.
There are going to be several controversial topics with regard to Multi Crew as more details are revealed, no doubt about that.
But this isn't one of them, FD does the right thing in trying to make it as easily accessible as possible.

And that's the 0.02 $ from the 1.7 guy.

A lot of it are instant-transfer people who are still salty and want to force a re-vote.

 

[Von Elsner]

Likewise, however, if FDev goes back on the feature and capitulates to the people who do not want instant transmission, I will likely not play the game anymore. Not just because I don't get my toys, but because it will show where their priorities lie and where their direction is heading. If they want to sacrifice a fun and accessible mechanic for the sake of immersion, then this game clearly isn't for me. Part of what keeps me in this game is being excited for what lies ahead. If what lies ahead is a game filled with even more boredom and needless busywork obstacles made to cater to boring people who like poor game design then I have no reason to stick around, even after spending a year and several hundred hours on it.

If they don't cave in here, I will be even more excited for the future of the game. I already put up with a lot of boring stuff to play this game, but for the most part it's worth it. Them showing that they are willing to implement accessible and fun mechanics signals to me that they want to take this game in a more positive direction.

This is a multiplayer game at its heart. Robust multiplayer features are required to make it work on a fundamental level. Without that, multicrew will fail. And I'm sorry, but putting obstacles in the game to prevent people from leveraging multicrew will be poor design.

Like you I will definitely be thinking about leaving this game, though for a different reason, if they implement multi crew as is.

 

[Greyza Badger]

IDK, if I had VR, I'd agree with you...but I don't

From my experience, it was about the same. It didn't cheapen it for me though. I went out there and was really just more impressed by my own persistence to get out there. I took a picture and added my name to the visitor's thread

Now, I don't think crewmates should take the honor of having visited Sag A...unless they rode the whole way with you. Of course, you can't police what people take credit for...so I hope it would just be up to the community to shame them.

I went to SagA* recently. It's not very special as a sightseeing spot and I stayed about 15 mins.
However, I felt that I earned it. It was my achievement. I didn't cheat the galaxy. I paid my dues and put the hours in.
If the insta-gratz crowd piggy-back their mate's efforts, then fine, that's up to them. I know I wouldn't feel honest about it. I just hope they don't get any recognition for the effort they didn't put in to it.

Also, why isn't MC limited to CQC/Arena? It is, after all, designed almost fully for pew pew. Coincidentally, so is CQC.

Alternatively, to maintain integrity throughout the galaxy, why not consider this...
MC pewpew mode is enabled as part of Starport Services.
It is essentially you visiting the station's Arcade (with high power comms) to set up a game with your mates who are in station Arcades anywhere in the Galaxy.
There is the instant gratification of telepresence for the rest of the crew who get to play with the lead CMDRs toys as his current ship loadout is used in the game. C&P doesn't apply as it's just a game (within a game!). Everyone gets away with no rebuys and no rep damage. Missions can even be set up, such as 'Murder 10 innocent traders', 'Intercept 5 Elite Pirates' etc...
MC Explorers could be a more relaxed mode where you just control the enhanced camera and get to go 'Meh' as you diminish the Explorer's efforts. Let's face it, there's not much else to do. This could even be a lower power ship to ship mode, as long as the Explorer fitted the proper broadcast module.
MC Miners and Traders are a little different, but I'm sure someone could work it out.

Just idle thoughts.