Could Frontier please demonstrate how to use the FSS enjoyably?
- Thread starter CMDR Karrde Sun
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I am sorry but space golf is a sad excuse for a mechanic and so is the FSS... anything but an improvement... more a pathetic attempt at introducing mechanics of a kind that would be better suited in a game called something along the lines of "spot learns to fly a space ship"
There were plenty of other potential solutions FD could of adopted without inflicting mini-game-hell on existing users.
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I am sorry but space golf is a sad excuse for a mechanic and so is the FSS... anything but an improvement... more a pathetic attempt at introducing mechanics of a kind that would be better suited in a game called something along the lines of "spot learns to fly a space ship"
There were plenty of other potential solutions FD could of adopted without inflicting mini-game-hell on existing users.
It's symptomatic of the dumbing-down which has been affecting ED since David and Michael stopped being involved. Remember that the physics of the planets is sufficiently detailed to allow ships to enter an actual orbit, and yet for probe golf we're required to deliberately crash them into the surface.
If FDev were to create the Stellar Forge today, there'd be an ELW in every system, within 100 Ls of the star.
I don't mind the mechanic. I find the visualization utterly horrible.
My big fat gaming rig is barely working to look at EKG daggers and empty circles.
What an ugly concept. Some designer actually thought - hey the ship computer knows what is at these locations, but we'll conceal it with the lowest possible resolution representation of that item (0 or √V√) instead of an icon, or a minimized image of the item. Lame.
The execution is also pretty buggy with frequent layout squishes and sliding screens as well.
My big fat gaming rig is barely working to look at EKG daggers and empty circles.
What an ugly concept. Some designer actually thought - hey the ship computer knows what is at these locations, but we'll conceal it with the lowest possible resolution representation of that item (0 or √V√) instead of an icon, or a minimized image of the item. Lame.
The execution is also pretty buggy with frequent layout squishes and sliding screens as well.
The FSS works well, but it is a joyless thing.
I'd like to see three changes to it
1. Revealing number and type of generated poi on planets takes too long.
2. I wish they didn't apply that flat white lighting to anything you're scanning once you finish resolving it. It often ruins the appearance of whatever you're looking at the odd time you find something that manages to look interesting in that tiny viewport.
3. I wish the notification of tabulated discovery data (aka the "discovered" notification) didn't overlap the name of the currently active stellar body.
If I was to change the FSS to make it more interesting to use without trying to rewrite too much, I would make it so the audible aspect of the thing is more important. So, planetary signals don't actually automatically show up on either the tuning bar or around your reticle like they do now. Instead you have to tune to an area and then sweep around and locate them by ear which they present using EQ based on your tuning and proximity. To prevent needless time consumption or being exacting, once you get close enough to be considered as having basically found it, the more opaque the signal indicator on your reticle and bar becomes. Signal indication never actually shows up instantly on the the bar or instead it involves ambiguity greater than we have now.
I am suspicious something along those lines was what they intended, because why make a big deal of contacting the radio telescope engineer to get the real thing otherwise? I think in play testing maybe they found it wasn't working somehow.
I'd like to see three changes to it
1. Revealing number and type of generated poi on planets takes too long.
2. I wish they didn't apply that flat white lighting to anything you're scanning once you finish resolving it. It often ruins the appearance of whatever you're looking at the odd time you find something that manages to look interesting in that tiny viewport.
3. I wish the notification of tabulated discovery data (aka the "discovered" notification) didn't overlap the name of the currently active stellar body.
If I was to change the FSS to make it more interesting to use without trying to rewrite too much, I would make it so the audible aspect of the thing is more important. So, planetary signals don't actually automatically show up on either the tuning bar or around your reticle like they do now. Instead you have to tune to an area and then sweep around and locate them by ear which they present using EQ based on your tuning and proximity. To prevent needless time consumption or being exacting, once you get close enough to be considered as having basically found it, the more opaque the signal indicator on your reticle and bar becomes. Signal indication never actually shows up instantly on the the bar or instead it involves ambiguity greater than we have now.
I am suspicious something along those lines was what they intended, because why make a big deal of contacting the radio telescope engineer to get the real thing otherwise? I think in play testing maybe they found it wasn't working somehow.
I'm one of those who find it objectionable. It is not a space piloting kind of theme, which I thought this game was about.
Whenever I need to use it, I try to just go thorough it fast as possible; for me it is just like doing taxes.
Another thing that annoys me about it is that sometimes it is hard to or takes a long time to find the last planet;
you have to search around randomly in the sky until you come close enough for the directional arrows to show up.
So, instead, I usually go out to the System Map, find the Unidentified planet, point my ship to it,
and then go back into FSS.
This can be made easier if the directional arrows appear from any distance.
(If don't want to clutter up the display too much, then can limit the signals to the top 5
strongest remaining signals, for example.)
Whenever I need to use it, I try to just go thorough it fast as possible; for me it is just like doing taxes.
Another thing that annoys me about it is that sometimes it is hard to or takes a long time to find the last planet;
you have to search around randomly in the sky until you come close enough for the directional arrows to show up.
So, instead, I usually go out to the System Map, find the Unidentified planet, point my ship to it,
and then go back into FSS.
This can be made easier if the directional arrows appear from any distance.
(If don't want to clutter up the display too much, then can limit the signals to the top 5
strongest remaining signals, for example.)
Are you serious. You call the FSS dumbing down and the ADS was not?
Delusional is the word. The ADS was as simple and dumb as it gets.
As to Michael, are you serious. The person in charge of Powerplay the second crappiest mechanic in the game after the ADS and the person that wanted instant transfer with 3D printing. And you think the new guys in charge want to dumb it down. Funniest thing I have heard in a long time.
No they wouldn't. Ridiculous thing to say.
Nah, you have it wrong. People pretend to dislike it, as an excuse to have a pop at Fdev.
But Max, the ADS was a 'placeholder' remember? Of course it was simplistic, all it did was provide a schematic. The FSS is the culmination of 4 years and 100 developers, informed by countless suggestions and discussions, by hundreds of players in these very forums, with support from NASA. It's 'science' Max, proper science.
And yet, according to FDev it was explicitly designed to make exploration simpler and easier. Simpler and easier Max, the very definition of dumbing-down.
It's nice that you enjoy it, but don't try to pretend it's in any way complex or challenging. It was designed to be dumb, and dumb is what it is.
Is it? If you say so. I would be very surprised if the whole 100 person team worked on the FSS. Yes they were informed and this is what they came up with.
That is not what they said.
Never said it was complex or challenging. It doesn't need to be either.
You really need to stop putting 2+2 together to make 5. But it's the forums, happens all the time.
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Agreed, the FSS is simple and straight forward (could be a tad more sophisticated if you'd asked me). And yet, to have fun with it you still need to get good at it. It's clearly no rocket science but some practice is required after which it stops being painful. I doubt anyone could state the same about the ADS. To me the FSS is a step into the right direction. And a step is still better than no movement at all.
I “like” the FSS the same way I “like” Elite as a whole: mostly great ideas, mostly good design, largely terrible implementation made even worse by bugs.
The core mechanisms and interface of the FSS is in my opinion terrific. Main problem is that planets with POIs take ages to load, which breaks the flow of play. Another problem is that you can’t use the FSS while moving, which REALLY kills a lot of the fun - instead of adding a cool multitasking action to perform while heading towards a destination, the feeling is less that you’re using a feature of your ship and more like you’re switching over to a mini game interlude. It really is that jarring. At this point they might as well make you log out of the game to perform FSS. Or let you do it on your phone. I don’t understand how Frontier deluded themselves into thinking this was OK. Imagine if you had to zero your throttle to open the galaxy map, or view your cargo manifest, or read galnet; it would make those features infuriating to use, and it’s no different with the FSS.
The core mechanisms and interface of the FSS is in my opinion terrific. Main problem is that planets with POIs take ages to load, which breaks the flow of play. Another problem is that you can’t use the FSS while moving, which REALLY kills a lot of the fun - instead of adding a cool multitasking action to perform while heading towards a destination, the feeling is less that you’re using a feature of your ship and more like you’re switching over to a mini game interlude. It really is that jarring. At this point they might as well make you log out of the game to perform FSS. Or let you do it on your phone. I don’t understand how Frontier deluded themselves into thinking this was OK. Imagine if you had to zero your throttle to open the galaxy map, or view your cargo manifest, or read galnet; it would make those features infuriating to use, and it’s no different with the FSS.
Would one way out of that be to make the FSS a HUD overlay and you use it like a weapon, aiming the ship to 'scan'?
Maybe they should only scan for POIs after 2 or 3 seconds of being zoomed in. A small delay. Then you have time to zoom in and out if you don't want to scan. Or have a manual scan toggle function. Toggle switch of some sort. Might make less hiccups that way.
Not if you still have to zero the throttle to use it. I don’t care if it’s a HUD overlay or if it’s got its own interface, the issue is having to zero your throttle. Personally I think the existing interface is fine, and if you had to aim the ship it wouldn’t be that useful since the ship turns so much slower.
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