Discuss the AI here!

[Arvel Yael]

Well sadly I think its time I retired my Commanders chair. I've played every single version of Elite since the original back on the BBC Micro B and was ecstatic when I learned about Elite Dangerous! Serious nerdgasm lol. However the AI in the current update is beyond fierce and quite simply made an already tough game even harder. I guess my reactions aren't what they use to be lol but the damn AI now gets behind me and no matter what I do rips me apart in seconds. I truly understand the hardcore players loving the new AI but please remember us working 50+ hours week people who just play to unwind. We aren't into the Hardcore end game we just want to fly a few missions and take down some bad guys.

FD you have a great game on your hands but AI like this will only put off the casual players and sorry guys/girls and billy who lives in his mum and dads basement the casual players pay the FD Bills . I will probably check in regularly to see if the AI has been nerfed but as it stands I'm signing off.

I've said something similar, but I think I need to give the game a fair chance. I need to get the explorer back home and take the vulture out to a res site to see what it's like there. If I have to fight tooth and claw and limp away on 20% hull just to get 14,000cr bounty then I'm not gonna bother anymore.
I need to find out quickly though, my Rift ships on the 6th of next month and I need to decide whether or not to cancel it.

 

[Katkon]

For the millionth time: ED needs to be DANGEROUS. I came back a couple of weeks before Engineers was released out of curiosity and stopped bounty hunting a long time ago - was tired of shooting fish in a barrel, and bored with a game that presented very, very little danger. New AI needs to stay. FD: Don't listen to the folks that just want 'easy mode' and to grind for credits: it makes the game boring.

Well done on 2.1!

 

[Soliluna]

So where exactly is the game "teaching" better combat skills, genius? All I know is I can't even see the enemies as they stay behind me and blast me to oblivion. You have NO idea what starting out like this is. It is utterly impossible to fight anything. If I were to have just bought the game and experienced this, I would have IMMEDIATELY returned it via Steam for a refund. There is no chance for new players like me with the difficulty this high. There is no 'learning' on the new AI, there is only dying. How can I practice and get better when I can't last fifteen seconds against an Eagle with my Cobra mk III?

Sure, in your selfish arrogance you can thumb you nose and say I don't know what I'm doing, and you're right, that's why I'm NEW at the game, because I don't know what I'm #$^$in' DOING. We can't all be amazing geniuses like you.

The easiest AI, was made EASIER.

If you combine this with the fact that we have - more UI information, more detailed filters, more useful functions, more helpful mission text, better payouts on missions, better explanations of missions, higher and faster security response, more community information and videos and more options for cheaper ships with a more accessible outfitting window, a more comprehensive player manual and better options menu's *way better*.

People here are being arrogant, yes, but it IS easier for a newer player. This is a point of fact of the AI's programming but also with what I have detailed above meaning the experience is far less taxing than when I started playing at release, than when people started six months ago - than when you started two weeks ago.

As has been said so many times already, the people affected by this change are those who have grinded themselves to high combat rating on weak or buggy AI and are now having to adapt. They will come around or recognise there are challenges in the game that they cannot best and need to run.

 

[DBCloggy]

I had to vote too hard.

I'm worried that people with less ability to develop strategy will be put off by all this.

It's not so much that they have less ability to have a strategy, but if you're talking new players then you're inevitably talking less well equipped players, and ones that find they are not able to improve their equipment because they keep being taking out in double quick time, losing cargo and possibly insurance costs.

You have to hope that any interdictions are not by dangerous and above level NPCs until you can afford better ship/shields/weapons and are a better pilot.

 

[Steve50]

Well sadly I think its time I retired my Commanders chair. I've played every single version of Elite since the original back on the BBC Micro B and was ecstatic when I learned about Elite Dangerous! Serious nerdgasm lol. However the AI in the current update is beyond fierce and quite simply made an already tough game even harder. I guess my reactions aren't what they use to be lol but the damn AI now gets behind me and no matter what I do rips me apart in seconds. I truly understand the hardcore players loving the new AI but please remember us working 50+ hours week people who just play to unwind. We aren't into the Hardcore end game we just want to fly a few missions and take down some bad guys.

FD you have a great game on your hands but AI like this will only put off the casual players and sorry guys/girls and billy who lives in his mum and dads basement the casual players pay the FD Bills . I will probably check in regularly to see if the AI has been nerfed but as it stands I'm signing off.

I'm sorry but you're overreacting. I've been playing since 84 too and I *MUCH* prefer the new AI. its finally a challenge. as long as you pick your fights carefully it's really not an issue. I can't believe people want to return to the utterly boring "shooting fish in a barrel" mode..

 

[Hexcaliber]

It's not nonsense at all. I've had Vultures absolutely annihilate my hull. Yet I have three times the guns and when I fight a NPC version of my ship, it takes way longer. The AI definitely have advantages. They can also fire forever.

Yes it is nonsense. I already told you their capacitor does not run dry, but its hard to code the ai to manage it effectively.

Further, unlike most average players, the ai often uses fixed weapons that are naturally more powerful than turrets and gimballed versions, and that includes rails and plasma accelerators two weapons only available in a fixed mount and the most damaging weapons in game. Learn to fly FA off or use more maneuverable craft and use them yourself.

 

[Xani D]

The new AI is terrifying, and I mean that in a good way.

In saying that though, the spawn rate of Elite pilots does seem a little high, but maybe I have just been unlucky in the last few random encounters. One mission (To ferry cargo for 900k ish) saw me face off an elite ananconda, an elite FdL, an elite Dropship and an elite clipper across 3 jumps, I was like come on seriously... I danced with a few but decided it just wasnt worth it, I was taking to much of a shield hit, and wasnt really setup for combat (My Python is more a casual trader, even though its fully A kitted out), so fled from most of them. It made my heart race a fair bit in each encounter, as I have no idea what they were hitting me with, but my shields may as well have been budget ones, it was great!!!

Entering a fight is now worrying instead of a bug swat, and although this is a bit of a shock, and may require me to up my game, I love it so far.

 

[Dave1029]

Guys. Maybe you haven't had an experience like this, so you are just blissfully ignorant, but when my A rated Conda shields are taken down in 10 seconds, something is wrong. I can't do that to another ship. I just can't. I'm not a bad pilot by any means. But the Anaconda is not agile enough to evade enemy fire. It has to tank it. There is no tanking in 2.1. Only "shields down."

 

[DBCloggy]

Well sadly I think its time I retired my Commanders chair. I've played every single version of Elite since the original back on the BBC Micro B and was ecstatic when I learned about Elite Dangerous! Serious nerdgasm lol. However the AI in the current update is beyond fierce and quite simply made an already tough game even harder. I guess my reactions aren't what they use to be lol but the damn AI now gets behind me and no matter what I do rips me apart in seconds. I truly understand the hardcore players loving the new AI but please remember us working 50+ hours week people who just play to unwind. We aren't into the Hardcore end game we just want to fly a few missions and take down some bad guys.

FD you have a great game on your hands but AI like this will only put off the casual players and sorry guys/girls and billy who lives in his mum and dads basement the casual players pay the FD Bills . I will probably check in regularly to see if the AI has been nerfed but as it stands I'm signing off.

Certainly the higher levels of NPC are much tougher. Lower levels are easier for sure, unless they turn up and multiples.

I'm certainly not one to tell you to stop moaning, I can feel your pain here. How long have you been playing? They game needs most of it's players to be happy with things in order to succeed and it's always sad to see someone give up on it.

I hope you keep persevering or things improve enough for you to come back.

 

[firebee1]

I've now given up with combat for the time being. I think the problem is not the fact that the AI kick up more of a scrap. It's the fact that all his mates gang up on you very quickly, Take your shields down within seconds then take your thrusters down even quicker so you're dead in the water. this happened to me 4 times in quick succession. I even tried PDT's and ECM to try to stop the missiles, which seemed to be causing the biggest problem. But they just kept on coming.
I'm an explorer by trade who likes to help out the faction when I'm home on leave. So my combat skills aren't the best(Expert) What really concerns me is that Frontier will hear all you guys who are hugely experienced saying 'Hey! this is a great challenge' and ignore the rest of us who really can't cope. I'm afraid if something isn't done, this wonderful game is going to loose an awful lot of it's established casual players and also scare the hell out of any new players.
On a personal level. I'll just slip back into the void........

 

[Steve50]

For the millionth time: ED needs to be DANGEROUS. I came back a couple of weeks before Engineers was released out of curiosity and stopped bounty hunting a long time ago - was tired of shooting fish in a barrel, and bored with a game that presented very, very little danger. New AI needs to stay. FD: Don't listen to the folks that just want 'easy mode' and to grind for credits: it makes the game boring.

Well done on 2.1!

Well said!!

I'm just really really hoping FD don't cave in yet again to the moaners and ruin it.

 

[gogereaver]

well i will just talk my experience as a anaconda pilot. my first run with my full gimbled build i got owned by the ai. 1 re-speck later to 2 large beam turrets on the top and multicannons on the rest and im dommnating the ai again. the turrents dispatch anything speedy. and anything slow enough or unlucky enough to get in front of me is shredded.

itss going to be rookies in small ships used to beating anacondas solo that are going to take issue with the new ai.

 

[Dave1029]

Yes it is nonsense. I already told you their capacitor does not run dry, but its hard to code the ai to manage it effectively.

Further, unlike most average players, the ai often uses fixed weapons that are naturally more powerful than turrets and gimballed versions, and that includes rails and plasma accelerators two weapons only available in a fixed mount and the most damaging weapons in game. Learn to fly FA off or use more maneuverable craft and use them yourself.

I think I'm just going to play a different game instead of being frustrated that your solution is to fly a different ship. And I promise you, there's a silent majority that thinks like I do. The game isn't getting better, it's getting worse.

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well i will just talk my experience as a anaconda pilot. my first run with my full gimbled build i got owned by the ai. 1 re-speck later to 2 large beam turrets on the top and multicannons on the rest and im dommnating the ai again. the turrents dispatch anything speedy. and anything slow enough or unlucky enough to get in front of me is shredded.

For whatever reason the AI gets flustered when under fire. I think it's coded to try and avoid. But you can't avoid turret fire. So they end up just flying in circles until they slowly perish. I've known about that. But it's mind numbingly boring. I prefer using gimballed or fixed.

 

[CMDR Corleone]

Just popped into a few likely places in my combat Vulture to check out the AIs, my initial take is: boring.

The small ships are still very easy to kill, the medium ships are tedious, and how do they have unlimited chaff with no cool down?

I took on one big ship, a Deadly FDS, despite the infinite chaff I got his shields down and was doing damage, the instant his shields came back on he turned and rammed me, took me from one and a half rings of shield to dead instantly.

I avoided his first couple of ramming attempts, but eventually he got me.

Add to this the fact that they already have engineer upgrades that we can't possibly have acquired and it seems really like a loaded deck.

Maybe I need to tweak my piloting and combat style to better take on the new AI, but quite frankly if it remains this boring I may just give up combat altogether.

 

[ulpian]

I went to haz res with my anaconda and I felt that AI was good. It was harder and more challenging than before. But just a moment ago I was attacked by a NOVICE viper in USS. And there was no difference between novice and dangerous viper in terms of skill! He was just doing less damage I thing, but other than that, he was flying like elite. Really, I just couldn't catch him. He was cycling about me like an annoying fly for 15 minutes. I left him with 4% hull, but I couldn;t land that last blow, so I decided to escape. From a NOVICE viper.

So keep the high rank AI as it is, but lower the difficulty of harmless enemies, because i don't have time for this et.

 

[CMDR GTR2014]

The easiest AI, was made EASIER.

If you combine this with the fact that we have - more UI information, more detailed filters, more useful functions, more helpful mission text, better payouts on missions, better explanations of missions, higher and faster security response, more community information and videos and more options for cheaper ships with a more accessible outfitting window, a more comprehensive player manual and better options menu's *way better*.

People here are being arrogant, yes, but it IS easier for a newer player. This is a point of fact of the AI's programming but also with what I have detailed above meaning the experience is far less taxing than when I started playing at release, than when people started six months ago - than when you started two weeks ago.

As has been said so many times already, the people affected by this change are those who have grinded themselves to high combat rating on weak or buggy AI and are now having to adapt. They will come around or recognise there are challenges in the game that they cannot best and need to run.

This is Perfect!!!

The ones that grinded to the skyies, never EVER touched a fixed weapon, never ever learnt how to FAOff, now are rising from their grind chair screaming to the world that the game is unbalanced, that they'll quit game (for the lack of better argument, and trying to force the devs into SUBMISSION to their will).

Fact is, THEY WILL NOT ABANDON THE GAME, because in the end they will come back 3-4 days latter to see if their crying out loud made efect, if not they will start to learn how to pilot , learn that fixed weapons exist , learn FAOff... and have fun playing the new challenge they have at hand.

 

[Ian Skippy]

And they don't run out of ammo. But other than that, complete nonsense! Yeah.

Except for mc all weapons of npcs have proper ammo, including rails and torps. Just count it yourself, if you can survive that long.

 

[Hexcaliber]

Guys. Maybe you haven't had an experience like this, so you are just blissfully ignorant, but when my A rated Conda shields are taken down in 10 seconds, something is wrong. I can't do that to another ship. I just can't. I'm not a bad pilot by any means. But the Anaconda is not agile enough to evade enemy fire. It has to tank it. There is no tanking in 2.1. Only "shields down."

You are not a special little snow flake flying around in a special instance with boosted enemy, we are all facing the same ai. I already told you they use rails, plasma accelerators and fixed weapons, try them yourself instead of whining and you will do the same to their shields and hull. FWIW, they also manage pips now to maximize shield use, and engines something they did not do before.

 

[dutchy2000]

Or you could you know develop some different strategies to deal with the new problem. You know evolve and stuff, its what we humans do, the AI is stuck with the same tricks.

 

[Noddie]

It's no more dangerous than it ever WAS to run away. What you do need to do is consider the combat rank, ship and wing of any foe rather more carefully. An adder can be quite dangerous when flown by a good pilot.

I don't like the fact that the AI doesn't have to worry about the PD - it's a major problem for us human pilots when we have to (for example) stop firing in order to put power into shields. They can apparently do both at once - which isn't right.