Any New Plans on ED ? Or is it still Maintenance Mode without any Future ?
- Thread starter Sunleader
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O7
It's a doom soapbox and not a discussion..
Not much to discuss, just some updates and Elite narrative for the foreseeable future.
Viajero
Volunteer Moderator
This can’t be stressed enough.
You are always Free to Name a Single Piece of New Content in Development or Announced to be Developed.
Except. I already asked you several times. And you cant Name any so far.
I would Accept pretty much any of this as Development.
Unfortunately nothing of this has been Announced.
Key Feature Overhaul could maybe refer to something like this. (Albeit I am not having my Hopes up) but it more likely just means some Balance Changes without any actual Change to the Gameplay.
Quite the Violent Example.
But if you mean that I am Accusing FDev of not having any further Development Planned so far. Then that is Correct.
Taking a What if Statement out of Context to Imply thats the Topics Statement is not only pretty Pathetic but also not really necessary.
The White Knights already Hate me anyways.
The Point of the Thread is for me to get Information.
If you tought its your Job to Convince me Adopting a Rose Colored Interpretation of some Statements to gain Faith into them actually Developing new Content despite not making any Announcement to that End. Then that is indeed a Pointless Endeavor.
And its still entirely Irrelevant.
Because I will simply Request the same from You as before.
Pls Name me one Piece of New Content in Development.
No Vague Statement that could mean anything depending on Interpretation.
And No Maintenance like Bugfixing or Optimisation.
But some Feature or New Content currently in Development.
Because so far I just dont see anything like that.
And Nobody has so far been Able to Name anything either.
All they Do is either come up with an Interpretation of some Vague Statement FDev made.
Like the Narrative Progressing. (Which can mean anything from entire New Races being Added. To basicly mean some Galnet Stories being Posted that were Created Years ago)
Or the Feature Overhaus. (Which also can mean anything from completely Changing stuff like Trade, Engineering or even FTL Travel. To basicly mean that Droprates for Materials get Increased to make the Grind easier or that Prices are Changed to have a Flatter Progression Curve)
By that Vague Interpretation however I could even claim that FDev is preparing to Implement Thargoids as a Playable Race and that we Engineering Materials are being Removed thus instead you just being able to Buy the Upgrades without Grinding Materials.
Because this could be what FDev does. But FDev never said they will do. They just said something that is so Vague that I can Interprete it as that.
So... a string walked into a bar, looking for a drink. The bar tender took one look at him, and angrily said "Hey! We don't serve strings here! Get out!" Seeing the huge bouncer approaching him, the string decided to leave before he was physically thrown out.
The next day, the string, still thirsty, walked into the same bar. Once again, the bartender angrily shouted at the string to leave, and the string beat a hasty retreat before something unpleasant happened.
The following day, bound and determined to finally get that drink, the string came up with a brilliant plan. He twisted his middle up into a ball, and unraveled one of his ends. The bartender, upon seeing the string walk through the door, looked suspiciously at the intruder. "Hey! Ain't you that string from before?"
"No, my good man," the string replied. "I'm a frayed knot."
The next day, the string, still thirsty, walked into the same bar. Once again, the bartender angrily shouted at the string to leave, and the string beat a hasty retreat before something unpleasant happened.
The following day, bound and determined to finally get that drink, the string came up with a brilliant plan. He twisted his middle up into a ball, and unraveled one of his ends. The bartender, upon seeing the string walk through the door, looked suspiciously at the intruder. "Hey! Ain't you that string from before?"
"No, my good man," the string replied. "I'm a frayed knot."
Now your Outright Lying into Peoples Faces by only Quoting a Part of my Statement and Pretending that its all I said.
The Full Quote was
Listen Mate.
Its one thing to have a different Opinion.
Its another to Fake Quotes with the Intention of Misleading others on purpose.
Funny enough the most Useful Information I got only came on Page 7 as that was when someone Noted the Financial Report.
Which is so far the Only thing Remotely Hinting at actual New Content Development rather than Maintenance Stuff.
And Pls Note.
Your Interpetration of a very Vague Roadmap Point is not something I consider Information.
You are not Working for Frontier.
You have still not Named a Single Piece of Future Content in Development.
You have not Provided a Single Piece of Information so far.
All you have Provided is YOUR personal Belief that something must be in Development.
With the Only Hint towards that being a Vague Statement from the Roadmap which could be Interpreted to mean almost anything from turning the whole Game Upside Down to just making some Adjustments to Ingame Quest Rewards.
Is there a prize for the most number of forum pages for a troll thread? @Sunleader has a way to go yet.
Odyssey that has had several bug fix updates and some additional content, yea its not horizons but its still being developed
What makes truth true?
An individual belief in such a system is true if it sufficiently coheres with, or makes rational sense within, enough other beliefs; alternatively, a belief system is true if it is sufficiently internally coherent.
According to Schrodingers cat maybe the game is in a state of maintenance* and being developed depending on the observer changing the quantum state of reality.
* The stuff still coming is stuff that was supposed to come out when the DLC was released (Odyssey was supposed to be a one and done release not dribs and drabs season releases).
An individual belief in such a system is true if it sufficiently coheres with, or makes rational sense within, enough other beliefs; alternatively, a belief system is true if it is sufficiently internally coherent.
According to Schrodingers cat maybe the game is in a state of maintenance* and being developed depending on the observer changing the quantum state of reality.
* The stuff still coming is stuff that was supposed to come out when the DLC was released (Odyssey was supposed to be a one and done release not dribs and drabs season releases).
Whether or not you believe there's new content coming or not is entirely up to you. I personally think there is new content coming. Frontier have said they are working on new stuff but they haven't given any details and that can make some think that Elite Dangerous is in maintainance mode.
However there are good reasons why a company may not announce what they are working on. Here are just a few off the top of my head.
Something that people seem to forget is that Elite is David Braben's "baby". Whilst he is involved in lots of other things (Raspberry Pi for example), Elite is what David Braben is mainly famous for, I think you'll all agree. Now whilst I haven't had any major issues (yes, I didn't suffer from performance problems) and I really love Odyssey I think everyone will agree that Odyssey hasn't really got the good feedback or positivity Frontier would have really wanted.
Do you really think that David Braben would let Odyssey be the last thing people remember ever of the whole Elite series? I personally don't think so and I suspect Frontier would want to work on (and are working on) at least one more DLC that is so good people more or less forget about Odyssey. That's my opinion. Thankfully Frontier work on other games and some of the profit from those games can be used to support work on Elite: Dangerous.
However there are good reasons why a company may not announce what they are working on. Here are just a few off the top of my head.
- One needs to prove to themselves that what they're aiming to do is possible with current technology before announcing it publicly.
Take for example if Frontier were planning to work on full rich atmospheric planets with procedurally generated forests, rivers, waterfalls, oceans etc. They announce now that's what they're working on before looking to see if it's possible and then after a year of struggling to get it all to work efficiently at a good (or even minimal) framerate they make the difficult decision to abandon that plan for now. How do you think an announcement to abandon their work would be accepted amongst the community especially after the announcement this year to abandon consoles? It would destroy Frontier which is why it makes complete sense to wait until they have proven it's technically possible.
- Similar to above one needs to prove that what they want to develop is cost effective. A well run company wouldn't spend a huge amount of money on a new feature if the amount from sales of that DLC won't cover and exceeed that amount. Frontier are after all a company aimed to make profits, and developing Elite Dangerous isn't just a hobby worked on by your best mates.
- One could be working on a feature that they don't want copied by the competition. Yes, Elite Dangerous isn't the only space game around (although it is the best in my opinion). A well run company would ensure that they can start selling the new feature before any competition can include the same or similar feature in their product.
- The new feature they are working on is related to the current storyline and for good reason they don't want to announce anything that could tell us how the story is going to go. As we now know a big war is starting up with the Thargoids and the story could go in any direction - bubble gets destroyed, we get into on-foot fighting with Thargoids, Guardian AI return, a portal opens up to another galaxy - who knows?
How does this relate to a new feature? The new feature could be the ability to fly Thargoid ships, fly Guardian ships, the mechanics to allow us to go down to the full rich ammonia planets to fight Thargoids, the abillity to jump to another galaxy etc. Whatever the feature is, Frontier may not want to announce that new feature until we have played the part of the story which brings the feature.
Unless you're someone that always want to be told what happens in a movie before you've seen it or how a book ends before you've read it I think you can appreciate not knowing how the storyline is going to unfold and that could mean we can't be told what new feature is coming.
Something that people seem to forget is that Elite is David Braben's "baby". Whilst he is involved in lots of other things (Raspberry Pi for example), Elite is what David Braben is mainly famous for, I think you'll all agree. Now whilst I haven't had any major issues (yes, I didn't suffer from performance problems) and I really love Odyssey I think everyone will agree that Odyssey hasn't really got the good feedback or positivity Frontier would have really wanted.
Do you really think that David Braben would let Odyssey be the last thing people remember ever of the whole Elite series? I personally don't think so and I suspect Frontier would want to work on (and are working on) at least one more DLC that is so good people more or less forget about Odyssey. That's my opinion. Thankfully Frontier work on other games and some of the profit from those games can be used to support work on Elite: Dangerous.
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Ian Phillips
Volunteer Moderator
A gentle reminder to not discusss the poster, but to actually discuss any points they have made that you deem to have validity.
And if you deem there to be no validity, or no acutual points... try not relpying.
Thanks all.
And if you deem there to be no validity, or no acutual points... try not relpying.
Thanks all.
I hope it is completely different. I dont really want to play anything like engineers again.
That is Perfectly fine.
You can believe whatever you Wish. As well as Trust Frontier.
I am not Interested in Changing anyones Mind.
However. Pls be Aware. I want Information on Future Development happening. And for that it is not Relevant what People believe. Because its not giving me any reliable Information.
1.
Even if that is True. There is more than enough things they could Announce. Which would immediately completely Dispell any Rumors of the Game preparing for Maintenance Mode.
For example they could announce Planetary Mining. Thats fairly easy to do. (And before this comes. Yes this is a Feature I would like to See. Because its something I can think off. But there is countless other Features I could not care less for which are just as easy to Implement. And each of them would be Satisfying.)
Even if you dont give an actual Feature. Frontier could Simply make an Public Announcement that they are indeed Planning to to Further Expand the Game for Years to Come.
Thus making a Public Promise to that End which would also heavily Discourage anyone including me from Claiming otherwise.
2.
Oh I am Extremely Aware. It is this which is after all the Reason why I have the Suspicion that after Odyssey Failed. Frontier might have decided that Future Development of Elite Dangerous is not Profitable and thus is preparing for Maintenance Mode.
3.
Given that others would first actually get a Game going. That is frankly not a Good Excuse for Elite Dangerous.
But to begin with. As Said above. A Public Promise that Development and Expansion of the Game is still Planned for Future Years would be perfeclty Satisfactory here.
A Simple Announcement that they are Actively Working at the next Expansion. Or even a Statement that the Next Expansion is Planned to be Developed after Odyssey is Fixed.
Would serve that Purpose and not reveal anything to the Competition. Even tough there really is none right now.
As you cant Promise anything Star Citizen has not already Promised. And there is no Game including Star Citizen that has any hope of Delivering before ED simply because they dont even have the Base Game Ready.
4.
Thats the Problem. It could go in any Direction.
It could also simply mean some Planets will be Seeded with more Ruins. Some more Stations will be Wrecked and some Glanet News will be Written.
With Literally no additional Content being Added.
5.
There is a Difference tough.
Long before Odyssey got Announced. Frontier Repeatedly made Statements that they are Working on something Big etc.
Even tough we did not know what was Coming. We did know it was an Big Expansion.
The same was True after Horizon. We immediately had an Idea on what was Planned to be Added within Horizon.
Some of it got Pushed further out later on. But we always were told that stuff is Coming.
This time this is not the Case.
Frontier is very Careful to only make Vague Statements which do not Bind them to Deliver any kind of Future Content.
Which is why my Suspicion of them preparing for Maintenance Mode keeps growing with each Month they refuse to Commit.
6.
Of that I am aware as well. But you should also be Aware.
Braben is still responsible for a Company. If further Expansions of Elite Dangerous are Expected to turn Losses. He will Shut down Development.
I dont think he will throw Millions away unless he Expects to at least Break even.
The Main Difference between Braben and Roberts. Is that Braben is much more Based in Reality.
He isnt so Foolhardy to try and Push his Dream at the Cost of Ruin for his Company.
I Agree.
I wasted way too much time with Answering People that didnt really Address the Topic at all.
I extended my Ignore list so I dont see certain Replies anymore. And thus dont get Provoked any further.
Good grief.
This thread and the debate over the exact meaning of "maintenance mode" reminds me of the old saying, "The letter kills, but the spirit brings life." I know exactly what the OP is saying, and I agree with him, mostly. Elite is being maintained (bug fixes are a form of maintenance), but what are the new plans? Changing my car's tires from all-season to winter tires is maintenance, not a new feature, just as reworking an existing game mechanic is not a new feature, unless it brings entirely new and different gameplay like core mining did. Of course the question is, what is this feature that Frontier will be reworking in 2023, and what will the "rework" bring? If it's just moving sliders around, that's really not new content, that's just maintenance. If it's something new like core mining, then that's new content.
As for "the story", I do agree that a continued narrative that pushes the game 'verse in a certain direction is more than maintenance, especially if it brings new content like on-foot Thargoid combat. On the other hand, the interaction with this narrative is the same old "haul X to station Y" gameplay loop that has been in the game for years, hence the recent "CGs are boring" threads.
But I'm also of the opinion (spirit vs letter) that working on the code, be it fixing bugs, improving performance, or adding new content, IS development. Coders (also called "developers") actively coding is development. I don't see maintenance as an either / or alternative to development. Heck, if Elite didn't add any new features but developers continued to fix and flush out the current features until EOL, I'd be cool with that, because there's already so much to do in this game. But then we end back up at arguing over words - for example, would a more realistic supply-chain driven trading system be a new feature or just fixing an existing feature?
And before a dozen of you link to some arbitrary definition of "maintenance mode", remember the OP said "BASICALLY maintenance mode". Listen to the spirit of what he's trying to say rather than beating up an "English is not my first language" guy over semantics.
As for "the story", I do agree that a continued narrative that pushes the game 'verse in a certain direction is more than maintenance, especially if it brings new content like on-foot Thargoid combat. On the other hand, the interaction with this narrative is the same old "haul X to station Y" gameplay loop that has been in the game for years, hence the recent "CGs are boring" threads.
But I'm also of the opinion (spirit vs letter) that working on the code, be it fixing bugs, improving performance, or adding new content, IS development. Coders (also called "developers") actively coding is development. I don't see maintenance as an either / or alternative to development. Heck, if Elite didn't add any new features but developers continued to fix and flush out the current features until EOL, I'd be cool with that, because there's already so much to do in this game. But then we end back up at arguing over words - for example, would a more realistic supply-chain driven trading system be a new feature or just fixing an existing feature?
And before a dozen of you link to some arbitrary definition of "maintenance mode", remember the OP said "BASICALLY maintenance mode". Listen to the spirit of what he's trying to say rather than beating up an "English is not my first language" guy over semantics.
I don't think anyone is going to be doing much in the way of guapanteeing anything considering all the things going on in the real world these days.
As for the game, they seem to be prioritising fixing the game before adding new stuff on top of things that aren't up to the standard they want it to be at. This is sensible, in my opinion.
As for the narrative, I see the team that works on that as part of the development team. I know they were looking for someone to co-ordinate the narrative better on their careers page about 6 months ago so they seem commited to it and it seems to be picking up again recently.
Other opinions will, no doubt, vary.
As for the game, they seem to be prioritising fixing the game before adding new stuff on top of things that aren't up to the standard they want it to be at. This is sensible, in my opinion.
As for the narrative, I see the team that works on that as part of the development team. I know they were looking for someone to co-ordinate the narrative better on their careers page about 6 months ago so they seem commited to it and it seems to be picking up again recently.
Other opinions will, no doubt, vary.
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