Elite - Would it be better as a single player?
- Thread starter ITZC0ATL
- Start date
I appreciate this has both modes available but I feel it struggles to do as much as could be done with either as a result.
Even so I'll take multi so I can play the game with my wife anyway. I just wish all the multi features didn't feel like abandonware as soon as they launch.
Hearing the "and if people like it and it works we'll do more of it" in the wings beyond live stream immediately made me think of the same thing they said about multicrew - ie the featureless mess that dropped as paid content then was basically abandoned because of course it was - it was a featureless mess.
Imo it's ridiculous that wings us only now getting missions and I hope it works but wow, I did *not* need to hear that "if it's not good out of the gate we'll likely abandon it" thing again.
Even so I'll take multi so I can play the game with my wife anyway. I just wish all the multi features didn't feel like abandonware as soon as they launch.
Hearing the "and if people like it and it works we'll do more of it" in the wings beyond live stream immediately made me think of the same thing they said about multicrew - ie the featureless mess that dropped as paid content then was basically abandoned because of course it was - it was a featureless mess.
Imo it's ridiculous that wings us only now getting missions and I hope it works but wow, I did *not* need to hear that "if it's not good out of the gate we'll likely abandon it" thing again.
This game would not have succeeded had it just been a single player game. It would have caused a temporary blip of nostalgic popularity, then faded away again leaving a handful of diehards playing it.
Modern open world games require the multiplayer factor to get the critical-mass necessary to keep it earning money.
I played the Archimedes port of the original in the early nineties which I enjoyed a lot (filled in colour polygons for the win).. but I wouldn't have got involved this time round had it been a single player game again - gaming has moved on.
Modern open world games require the multiplayer factor to get the critical-mass necessary to keep it earning money.
I played the Archimedes port of the original in the early nineties which I enjoyed a lot (filled in colour polygons for the win).. but I wouldn't have got involved this time round had it been a single player game again - gaming has moved on.
Last edited:
No.
I really enjoy wing play, as well as being able to see random CMDRs in space. And being in a player group is even better.
I really enjoy wing play, as well as being able to see random CMDRs in space. And being in a player group is even better.
I don't know about "better", but I do tend to feel that ED is designed like a single-player game. A lot of the multiplayer-related systems seem like hasty band-aid patches on top of what is fundamentally a single-player design. Which is ironic, since of course the game was sold on Kickstarter as a multiplayer experience from the very beginning and Solo Mode AFAIK was an afterthought added by popular demand.
Last edited:
Yes, wouldn't need supercruise, we could go back to the old system of time acceleration, wouldn't have the randomly long/short loading screens between systems, wouldn't have player groups screwing up community goals by locking down systems, these are just the first few things I thought of, there are many more.
I love the MMO aspect of this game. And this is from someone who played the 1984 game to death for years to the point where I can go from zero to elite in a single sitting. In fact I can do it from less than zero - one of my saved commanders (harmless commander ) has zero credits, zero fuel, zero modules, and is stuck on Riedquat, an anarchist planet in a game where anarchies are truly dangerous. Of course, that was all of no benefit here, I am nowhere near as proficient as I thought I would be. Downright incompetent in fact. The one thing I don't like is the PvP. The game would be better without it.
That's because Fdev are noobs at designing an mmo.
I diddnt play the original until around the early 90s, yeah i'm that old, but age is but a number.
I dont think the game would be better as single player game as I've now come to see it as or at least trying to be a MMO, but that's not the discussion, IF it had come out as a single player game then yeah I would have prefered it that way.
I dont think the game would be better as single player game as I've now come to see it as or at least trying to be a MMO, but that's not the discussion, IF it had come out as a single player game then yeah I would have prefered it that way.
IMO, the game should have remained SP to begin with, instead of trying to work in elements of multipew to garner more financial backers for the Kickstarter.
Original implementations of Elite (1984, etc.) were designed as Single Player games... and the introduction of multiplayer elements are (arguably) the reason we ended up with the chaotic mess of balance adjustments, outrageous demands, and so forth. Granted, in 1984 the technology also wasn't yet implemented for multipew- which came much later with LAN play, etc.
That said, I'd not shed a single tear if FD decided to just strip away all the multipew elements of the game and make Solo the only choice. It would also be MUCH more cost effective for FD to do so, as they wouldn't have so much to maintain in the long run, one game for all people instead of catering to many different groups of people wanting different types of game play options available to them.
Private Groups is a nice touch, but it's poorly implemented in maximum capacity and lacking ruleset controls for those who wish to restrict PvP game play within the group. Since there's a "friendly fire" code restriction available with the introduction of Wings, it demonstrates that it's indeed possible to implement a strict flagging system to enforce this, so all they'd need to do is implement the ability to ignore Friendly Fire in PG's with a toggle and voila!, instant PvE mode for Co-Op available. Open can remain the FFA chaosfest it currently is, and PG's can have their choice of PvP or PvE with a toggle. Arguably it could also serve as a means to implement Open PvE and then PG's like Mobius would no longer be "necessary" as a means to play with like-minded players, as people could still form Wings, Squadrons, etc. in Open PvE.
Personally I bought this game with SP game play in mind- but having Private Groups was a bonus if I wanted to Co-Op with others. When offline SP was stripped out of the KS, I knew that Solo/PG's was still available so it didn't matter as much.
Of course, all of this is purely hypothetical- because I seriously doubt this many years later FD is going to fundamentally change this game by removing the mode system.
Original implementations of Elite (1984, etc.) were designed as Single Player games... and the introduction of multiplayer elements are (arguably) the reason we ended up with the chaotic mess of balance adjustments, outrageous demands, and so forth. Granted, in 1984 the technology also wasn't yet implemented for multipew- which came much later with LAN play, etc.
That said, I'd not shed a single tear if FD decided to just strip away all the multipew elements of the game and make Solo the only choice. It would also be MUCH more cost effective for FD to do so, as they wouldn't have so much to maintain in the long run, one game for all people instead of catering to many different groups of people wanting different types of game play options available to them.
Private Groups is a nice touch, but it's poorly implemented in maximum capacity and lacking ruleset controls for those who wish to restrict PvP game play within the group. Since there's a "friendly fire" code restriction available with the introduction of Wings, it demonstrates that it's indeed possible to implement a strict flagging system to enforce this, so all they'd need to do is implement the ability to ignore Friendly Fire in PG's with a toggle and voila!, instant PvE mode for Co-Op available. Open can remain the FFA chaosfest it currently is, and PG's can have their choice of PvP or PvE with a toggle. Arguably it could also serve as a means to implement Open PvE and then PG's like Mobius would no longer be "necessary" as a means to play with like-minded players, as people could still form Wings, Squadrons, etc. in Open PvE.
Personally I bought this game with SP game play in mind- but having Private Groups was a bonus if I wanted to Co-Op with others. When offline SP was stripped out of the KS, I knew that Solo/PG's was still available so it didn't matter as much.
Of course, all of this is purely hypothetical- because I seriously doubt this many years later FD is going to fundamentally change this game by removing the mode system.
Rubbish there are lots of single player games that make money and then continue to make money by adding paid DLC and whats to stop companies selling ietms in single player games? They could sell whatever they wanted and it wouldn't cause "pay to win" arguments, there is also the possibility of a heavy modding scene, Freelancer was kept going for years by mods
I have to agree here. It still would have been successful, just not as likely to earn as much in profit as it did.
My next question, then, is what if solo mode had been implemented as proper offline play?
Take GTA V for example - You have two modes, single player and online.
- In single player, you play as the protagonist(s), you are expected to become filthy rich, you can have as many saves as you like, you can mod it to the point where it's almost unrecognisable, etc.
- Then, in online play, you have a totally separate character, money is not as easy to come by and things are more expenisve, no mods are allowed, etc.
In practical Elite terms, I know a lot of PvE players aren't impressed with Open these days. Likewise, a lot of Open players dislike that other players can duck into Solo/PG. Also, the existence of Solo and PG has given FDev an excuse to put fixing griefing on the long finger.
If we had two similar modes in Elite, here's how they could work:
- Online. Basically, Open but with proper C&P from day one. You affect BGS, first discoveries, etc. You cannot duck out into Solo to do Powerplay stuff or to take part in CGs.
- Single player. Big ships don't need to be as expensive or locked behind rank, you can customise game with mods, don't have to worry about gankers, can earn money at a more casual rate without grind.
I know it's been said that Elite tries too hard to be both an individual's game and an MMO - so perhaps FDev should have split the modes up properly and each commit to its purpose. Players can still play either mode as often as they like, as they wouldn't affect each other.
(this is obviously a totally hypothetical question - I'm in no way suggesting that FDev should make changes that fundamental at this stage of the game's development)
Take GTA V for example - You have two modes, single player and online.
- In single player, you play as the protagonist(s), you are expected to become filthy rich, you can have as many saves as you like, you can mod it to the point where it's almost unrecognisable, etc.
- Then, in online play, you have a totally separate character, money is not as easy to come by and things are more expenisve, no mods are allowed, etc.
In practical Elite terms, I know a lot of PvE players aren't impressed with Open these days. Likewise, a lot of Open players dislike that other players can duck into Solo/PG. Also, the existence of Solo and PG has given FDev an excuse to put fixing griefing on the long finger.
If we had two similar modes in Elite, here's how they could work:
- Online. Basically, Open but with proper C&P from day one. You affect BGS, first discoveries, etc. You cannot duck out into Solo to do Powerplay stuff or to take part in CGs.
- Single player. Big ships don't need to be as expensive or locked behind rank, you can customise game with mods, don't have to worry about gankers, can earn money at a more casual rate without grind.
I know it's been said that Elite tries too hard to be both an individual's game and an MMO - so perhaps FDev should have split the modes up properly and each commit to its purpose. Players can still play either mode as often as they like, as they wouldn't affect each other.
(this is obviously a totally hypothetical question - I'm in no way suggesting that FDev should make changes that fundamental at this stage of the game's development)
Last edited:
It is, as you say, a tricky question.
Most of the most interesting times I've had in game have involved other players, and sometimes involved other players I hadn't previously arranged to meet and just happened to cooperate with (or on rarer occasions, get shot at by).
On the other hand, 99% of my time in game has been basically spent not around other players (in Open, but at most seeing other players in the instance rather than any further interaction) and the game would be a much better singleplayer game if it didn't have to have lots of its mechanics set up so that they could work with multiple players at once.
But going back to the first hand, through the BGS and other shared data like first discoveries, and through some of the player-led plots and developments, my lone experience has been far more interesting than it would have been had I been the only person in the galaxy.
So I think on balance it's better as multiplayer, and I'm looking forward to some of the Beyond features Frontier have planned which should make more varieties of multiplayer interaction practical.
Most of the most interesting times I've had in game have involved other players, and sometimes involved other players I hadn't previously arranged to meet and just happened to cooperate with (or on rarer occasions, get shot at by).
On the other hand, 99% of my time in game has been basically spent not around other players (in Open, but at most seeing other players in the instance rather than any further interaction) and the game would be a much better singleplayer game if it didn't have to have lots of its mechanics set up so that they could work with multiple players at once.
But going back to the first hand, through the BGS and other shared data like first discoveries, and through some of the player-led plots and developments, my lone experience has been far more interesting than it would have been had I been the only person in the galaxy.
So I think on balance it's better as multiplayer, and I'm looking forward to some of the Beyond features Frontier have planned which should make more varieties of multiplayer interaction practical.
Last edited:
![[VR] Mad Mike](https://forums-cdn.zaonce.net/data/avatars/m/27/27910.jpg?1553527108){kind=avatar}
This is not true.... OFFLINE was a bolt on midway through the KSer... and it failed to materialise.... but the game was always meant to offer a solo experience if you wanted it.
My issue is not with the multiplayer features... it is from the boat load of single player features which have been run under a bus at the expense of multiplayer only stuff.
In theory i love that the game offers MP stuff for those who want it, I just wish my playstyle was not constantly being eroded for it.
right on CMDR!
Last edited:
It would be if SP offline was offered as a separate game mode - I dont care about MP in this game but many other does (majority I suspect). But for me completely SP mode would offer modding possibility, and with our community it would be just crazy.
As the game stands right now, I don't think it's really offereing anything that much in the way of "multiplayer" because if offers no MP options. It's a single player game and barely even one at that but it offers you the ability to multi-single play LOL
edit: Oh I thought of an example. Some SP games my friends play "together" in that they're both be on teamspeak talking but obviously playing the game by themselves. So imagine you bought the witcher or soemthing and you're both playing the game at the same time whilst chatting about it - ED MP is kind of like that in feeling - you're techincally playing the same game at the same time but not really getting that MP feeling from it.
edit: Oh I thought of an example. Some SP games my friends play "together" in that they're both be on teamspeak talking but obviously playing the game by themselves. So imagine you bought the witcher or soemthing and you're both playing the game at the same time whilst chatting about it - ED MP is kind of like that in feeling - you're techincally playing the same game at the same time but not really getting that MP feeling from it.
Last edited:
