Are Frontier taking ship design suggestions still?
- Thread starter Talon2779
- Start date
No, it should be fit for purpose... Unless its purpose is to be stunning, then mot all ships need to be pieces of art. However, like with the car industry, there is no harm in injecting a little style now and again.
+1 for the Viper from me too, best looking ship so far.
Anaconda, viper and Panther my faves so far.
The only one I actively disliked is the Imperial cutter/clipper? (the one with the BIG engines sticking out of the side)
The only one I actively disliked is the Imperial cutter/clipper? (the one with the BIG engines sticking out of the side)
I am very OK with all ship designs, loving Adder (it's about balance between functionality and good looks, stupid), Imperial fighter and battleship. Don't mind Sidewinder (it looks very ok for start workhorse). I love functional design going into it. I know some people are for ship ****. Well, I am not.
Yeah - they don't all have to be slinky beauties... but they DO all have to be iconic and interesting.
For my money not enough of them are.
I like the idea of some of the trader ships being big ugly things.
I also like how they've said there won't just be style associated with the factions, but also with the different ship manufacturers.
I also like how they've said there won't just be style associated with the factions, but also with the different ship manufacturers.
To explain my post more 
I've always felt the Panther is the 2nd most iconic ship in the series behind the Cobra.
If you look at many polls on 'favourite ship' in both FE2 and FFE the Panther is often either right near the top or number 1 ...sometimes by a noticeable margin.
I always liked how ugly the Panther actually was. It was a gigantic hauler with 4 moving legs, which made it quite unique.
While the new Anaconda is instantly recognisable, the new Panther was a mystery when it was first revealed, it looks nothing like the old one.
Sure the new one looks great ..... but that to me is why its a little disappointing.
I want my Panther to look gigantic, ugly and have moving legs/thrusters
I've always felt the Panther is the 2nd most iconic ship in the series behind the Cobra.
If you look at many polls on 'favourite ship' in both FE2 and FFE the Panther is often either right near the top or number 1 ...sometimes by a noticeable margin.
I always liked how ugly the Panther actually was. It was a gigantic hauler with 4 moving legs, which made it quite unique.
While the new Anaconda is instantly recognisable, the new Panther was a mystery when it was first revealed, it looks nothing like the old one.
Sure the new one looks great ..... but that to me is why its a little disappointing.
I want my Panther to look gigantic, ugly and have moving legs/thrusters
As I've said before, working on the old shapes it became obvious people projected very different ideas of the actual ships onto those wire frames, also I think people are a lot more tied to the ships because of the stats they had and the experiences they had in them than purely their visuals, which is interesting, but also heavily colours debate on favourite ships.
Hopefully they'll be something for everyone in the game.
Viper? Pah, it's all about the Cobra MK III.
Hopefully they'll be something for everyone in the game.
Viper? Pah, it's all about the Cobra MK III.
I have to say, I am happy to experience FD/David's vision of Elite. Preconceptions will only lead to disappointment.
Try not to make all the ships look fabulous though, 'kay?
What I care about the most is the lighting used, or the filters. I want ships and structures to look real.
Most of these space sims always give me the neon-lighting impression. It is like walking in Main Street at night with all the neon lights on if you know what I mean.
Give me realistic lighting and then every ship looks good.
Having said that, I would like some ships that are mostly whitish or have white or creme colored parts.
Most of these space sims always give me the neon-lighting impression. It is like walking in Main Street at night with all the neon lights on if you know what I mean.
Give me realistic lighting and then every ship looks good.
Having said that, I would like some ships that are mostly whitish or have white or creme colored parts.
I've always thought if you channel a healthy does of Chris Foss you can't go far wrong.
Hi Josh - question to you as an artist...
Do you find working within those old wireframes a bit restricting? Obviously there are massive positives because of the "brand recognition" of the old ships - but does it tie you in to shapes that you might not otherwise have picked?
A bit drawing within a canvas that's defined by the low-poly wireframes of the classic ship-set?
I'm going to just copy and paste from my interview:
"I know we are working with a lot of history, to be honest that's a good thing. Starting from a blank white canvas is much harder than coming in with a set of boundaries and history to jump-start your ideas. But I realise I probably shouldn't make all of the Vipers be powered by unicorn vomit!"
So for the many of the ships it's a starting point, along with their original description of the type of ship they are. Though personally though we can't have them sticking too rigidly too the old angles because our silhouettes become too similar, though of course we want them to echo the old shape (though this comes back to what you see in the old shape!)
Thanks Josh - for me at least, I think the best ships (Viper etc) are the ones which give but a brief "nod" to their original design. Bring your full creativity to bear!