Exploration: reduce payout for re-scanning systems and bodies

joergen

J
Balancing exploration and creating a outward bound pressure:

I would suggest to (drastically) reduce the exploration and scanning payouts for systems/bodies that are already discovered and/or scanned. I think the original discoverer deserves full credits, while re-scanning bodies i.e. in the bubble, or on the way to Sag A, should not get full credit.

This will encourage players to actually get off the beaten paths, and do some real exploration work.


comments and thoughts on this?
 

gorankar

gorankar
joergen said:
let me re-phrase it: re-scanning systems & bodies earns way too much money
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It is sort of desirable for the early game. There has to be some way to make decent money without going mining meta or fighting for a fresh commander.
Also, how does the current payout negatively effect you? Do you want to make less money doing it?

I already have 10B+ and nearly 20 ships. I got mine, I would not want to get in the way of someone else getting theirs.
 

Babellon

Babellon
I'm not sure how much money you think is being made on rescanning systems. I have been doing a bubble run for my own xploration fun, I want to visit and scan all 19000 systems in the bubble. I have scanned nearly 500 systems so far and made about 5 million credits roughly, maybe a little more. Most unable to be scanned and the few that can be scanned are already discovered and mapped. you can map systems but that is not very much pay out. There is very little in the way of credit gains from rescanning systems.

checke my logs on eddiscovery - started exploring the bubble in november- I have total 7,560,045 credits earned. 400 systems scanned.
 
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Kissamies

Kissamies
Yeah, I don't think the effect would be what the OP thinks it would be. It'd mainly make new players and non-explorers perceive exploration as not worth of their time, so they wouldn't even try it. Not go off the beaten path or even scan things on their trip to Colonia. Even out there players tend to choose same destinations like nebulas, which have all of their systems already scanned. Getting first discovery on some worthless red or brown dwarf on the way there wouldn't be worth so much anyway. I know there is more out there, but that would be the perception. Of course there are also others, the "true explorers" if you will, that don't care about credits, but logically changing credits wouldn't motivate them either way.
 

WinterKing2112

WinterKing2112
joergen said:
Balancing exploration and creating a outward bound pressure:

I would suggest to (drastically) reduce the exploration and scanning payouts for systems/bodies that are already discovered and/or scanned. I think the original discoverer deserves full credits, while re-scanning bodies i.e. in the bubble, or on the way to Sag A, should not get full credit.

This will encourage players to actually get off the beaten paths, and do some real exploration work.


comments and thoughts on this?
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I like this idea. Why would anyone pay for data they already got off another explorer? It's not logical. So they should really discount payments for systems someone else has already been too. This would encourage explorers to go off the beaten track and... really explore! I also think they should nerf core mining too, it's just too easy to make credits in this game. When you finally get a beast of a ship like an anaconda there should be a sense of achievement, not "well that was easy, what's next?"
 

Babellon

Babellon
speaking for myself, credits are not a motivating factor in doing or not doing something in the game. Mining is a good example, you can make a lot of credits from mining these days, I still don't do a lot of mining because to me it is not much fun. Exploration is one of those things you either want to do or don't. If someone wants to fly around occupied space sight seeing the places they haven't visited but that have already been discovered making it pay less for the trip isn't going to deter them from doing it. Further, and on a side note, I do not want to be 'herded' in to a given play element. Which is what that comes across as to me, reducing the pay out for already discovered systems in an effort to push people to fly out to undiscovered system for more credits.

I would much rather see them create a better experience in exploration by implementing a system much like what EDDiscovery does, that program was written by players because it was a fundamental core information feedback element missing from the game. Exploration would be far more interesting if that were in the game rather than as a 3rd party program run outside of the game.

another example being trading, that program written by aventure, trade computer extensions mkII, is a perfect example of how we should be interfacing with the trade system in the game. If that were a part of the games UI I would find myself far more encouraged to fly to those stations, interact with those markets, be involved in trade actively because doing so would give me a larger trade network built by my own direct activity in the game.

Those two things alone, combining Trade computer Exension mk11 and EDDiscovery into an ingame element would drastically increase the feedback, sense of involvement and motivation to do those activities in a meaningful, organized and satisfying manner.
 

Red Anders

Red Anders
Linnunrata said:
Compared to what? It's a waste of time compared to mining.
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Compared to scanning completely new discoveries.

I made what is basically OP's point when they last refreshed exploration payouts - that the total credits potentially available from scans (i.e. the scans themselves plus the first discovered bonus) should be biased significantly more towards first discoveries. It's purely an issue around logical consistency; if I contact Ordnance Survey today and tell them I'd like to sell them a map of Coventry that I made, I don't think they'd be offering me much for it because I'm pretty sure they've already got that covered.
 

metatheurgist

metatheurgist
Explo payouts are ridiculous now but everything is ridiculous except combat.

WinterKing2112 said:
I like this idea. Why would anyone pay for data they already got off another explorer? It's not logical.
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New data is always useful. Transient phenomena might not be there all the time. Changing circumstances might reveal new things. It should take years of scans before something is close to being fully understood.
 

lenna

lenna
joergen said:
let me re-phrase it: re-scanning systems & bodies earns way too much money
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I think you do not realise how the standard (non-bonus) amounts compare with the first discovery amounts (standard+bonus) - the amount given out in either case is not actually that high when you consider the time investment.

You can earn alot more for the same kind of time investment doing other activities as it currently stands.
 

Linnunrata

Linnunrata
WinterKing2112 said:
Unless you enjoy exploring for the sake of exploring. Some people play this game for fun y'know.
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Of course, but the original post is about monetary compensation of exploration. It assumes that credits change exploration patterns, but if payment was the driving motivator here, I'd imagine people going to far more lucrative fields like mining.

Personally I of course agree - getting a first discovery is a reward in itself.
 
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TiberiusDuval

T
Nah, payout system is good as it currently is. You'll get decent payout so people won't get frustrated, but it certainly is not get rich quick style money machine. And well it is kind of open from pretty early on. Decent exploration ship does not cost very much. Something like DBX, or even Cobra Mk3 for starters are quite reasonably affordable. While core mining gear does not fit to pretty small ships. I did some cartography business on my early game, in fact first Elite rating I got was from exploration. Got some nice money from it, and that was before mining making everybody rich...
 
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