If someone from Fdev streams themselves unlocking all the Guardian tech. I will eat my eye patch.

[Genus]

oof

Do you get all the paint jobs and ship kits with this?

Midnight skins for the first...I think 12 ships? Up to the Orca and yes, the Cobra IV but no other DLC. Also, Horizons upgrade was "free" with it.

Only value I've had from it since purchase, as that was the last premium content.

 

[Genus]

Was only 50 or 60 the first time around, I think. It was an add on to the Mercenary pack or something.

Yeah, if I'd got it the first time around I wouldn't be that bothered as Horizons was £30. Be half way there...

This was when we were expecting a major expansion season on a regular basis, not every four years.

 

[Maro-Val]

£130

You will get your moneys worth in content ofc.. at some point in the ten years.

 

[Franc Kaos]

£130

You will get your moneys worth in content ofc.. at some point in the ten years.

Isn't that amazing, when David Braben talked about stealing other players ships, landing on other worlds, comets and big game hunting with spacelegs, these are unpromised hopeful meanderings of maybe future content*. When he puts forth the hope for the game still being played in 10 years with continuing updates and paid for DLC for the players**, that becomes cemented as a factually incorrect 10 year plan (which no one at Fdev has ever clarified or denied btw).

* Not necessarily by you.
** If financially viable - game might have sold millions when released but how many customers do you honestly think they have left for the paid DLC.

EDIT: Only reason I'm sticking around is that the Chinese company who bought into Fdev would allow David to continue propping up Elite without needing to worry about the customer base - surely China would prefer their citizens* to fly spaceships than to run theme parks.

* I know nothing about the oppressive Chinese government and its relationship to their people, but I kind'a imagine Orwell's 1984.

 

[Skeloton]

** If financially viable - game might have sold millions when released but how many customers do you honestly think they have left for the paid DLC.

Some where in the vicinity of 10,000 and 20,000. If one were to go by steam records alone.

 

[Stigbob]

Yeah, if I'd got it the first time around I wouldn't be that bothered as Horizons was £30. Be half way there...

This was when we were expecting a major expansion season on a regular basis, not every four years.

They've gone with the free QOL improvements for all rather than a paid expansion, which so far is mostly engineer's V2 which even the serial whingers admit is much better if you pin them down to specifics. The chieftain a very nice alternative medium fighty ship and the guardian stuff, which seems to be an issue for the people triggered by wanting it all now.

As for expecting major expansions this is the relevant part of newsletter 29 :

We have regularly said that depending on the level of success of Elite: Dangerous we intend to continue expanding it with new content and new features.

We plan to follow that same incremental development philosophy that we’ve done throughout our Alpha and Beta phases, and continue to significantly enhance the game via further expansions post-launch.

We do intend to release small, free updates after launch, but expansions that include significant new features and content will be charged for separately. For example, our current roadmap is to add (in no particular order):

• Landing/ driving / prospecting on airless rocky planets, moons & asteroids
• Walking around interiors and combative boarding of other ships
• Combat and other interactions with other players and AIs in the internal areas of star ports
• Accessing richly detailed planetary surfaces
• Availability of giant ‘executive control’ ships to players

No timeline, no mention of how often the expansions will be delivered and it all depends on the expansions being commercial viable in the first place. In other words "we'd like to do this, wait and see what happens".

Of the list they've done 1. 5 is squadron carriers which we know is coming soon(tm) 4 is atmospheric landings which they've mentioned is being actively developed more than once so maybe next after carriers. The only thing that's not been given firm information is space legs which would be point 2&3 however they have said that to do that they want to do it well, and there has to be some point to it.

So for spacelegs if they think there's a market and if they think they can make it work they'll try to deliver it. No promise broken or otherwise.

Obviously they also said since they've moved away from the seasons model due to the meltdown Horizons caused, so the roadmaps no longer accurate but that's OK in the newsletter above they only called it their "current roadmap". So the only certainty is that plans can and will change.

 

[Franc Kaos]

...
The only thing that's not been given firm information is space legs which would be point 2&3 however they have said that to do that they want to do it well, and there has to be some point to it.
So for spacelegs if they think there's a market and if they think they can make it work they'll try to deliver it. No promise broken or otherwise.
Obviously they also said since they've moved away from the seasons model due to the meltdown Horizons caused, so the roadmaps no longer accurate but that's OK in the newsletter above they only called it their "current roadmap". So the only certainty is that plans can and will change.

I was actually thinking about spacelegs, what if they sold it not only as a plugin but also a standalone, a first person shooter / RPG lite set in the universe of Elite with a 40 hour storyline / multiplayer and no requirement for the original Elite (to get from planet to orbiting space station to different system you could taxi around). Would generate interest from a new player base and reinvigorate interest in Elite Dangerous at the same time.

 

[Stigbob]

I was actually thinking about spacelegs, what if they sold it not only as a plugin but also a standalone, a first person shooter / RPG lite set in the universe of Elite with a 40 hour storyline / multiplayer and no requirement for the original Elite (to get from planet to orbiting space station to different system you could taxi around). Would generate interest from a new player base and reinvigorate interest in Elite Dangerous at the same time.

If they start work on spacelegs and think wow this is great it needs it's own release to do it justice, then that's exactly what they should do.

However whichever way they do it there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth, if it doesn't happen incorrect claims it was promised by people who think they bought it already, if it's part of the wider game because it's wont be COD standards as it's just an addon which will limit it and if it's standalone because it wasn't given free to all.

In the grim darkness of the 3rd millennium, there is only "wah" .

 

[Sir.Tj]

If anyone has seen the topic can they bring it back please?

Last seen hurtling out the window,

 

[Wotthe Dickens]

OT:
I seem to recall someone having to eat their sock previously, so I think the OP is totally valid!
It does seem a bit strange that FD haven't responded (in a new thread probably). We can only presume it's intended gameplay and we can take what we like from that.
Personally, I'm not surprised.

 

[Maro-Val]

If anyone has seen the topic can they bring it back please?

Last seen hurtling out the window,

Conversation is allready counting 55+ pages and everyone here is waiting for the devs to step in, so its pretty normal to talk other matters while we 're waiting.
This thread isn't something bad about the game and it is not a thread with one or two pages to ignore. It is a thread/request for a dev's stream to show us first hand how a specific mechanic OF THEIR works or how should be done and it could very well be a charity stream.
People in this thread i believe have stayed VERY POLITE comparing to other threads and i would suggest, that at least you moderators poke the devs for AT LEAST a response here (a proper responce not the "we are discussing the matter" kind). If you allready have, then please poke them again.

TLDR Seriously. What else should we players do to get an official responce to a perfectly logical request? Do some magic dance to gods for the devs to appear?

We are waiting...

 

[Stigbob]

OT:
I seem to recall someone having to eat their sock previously, so I think the OP is totally valid!
It does seem a bit strange that FD haven't responded (in a new thread probably). We can only presume it's intended gameplay and we can take what we like from that.
Personally, I'm not surprised.

They probably won't touch anything with dev bashing in it, and if they ever did they'd probably regret it and not do it again. This may already have happened.

 

[RJMcReady]

I can't bring myself to do any guardian grinding.

After unlocking all engineers and g5ing all my fleet in 2.x plus rank chasing, my tolerance for time sinks is very low.

I just pvp in game and chase down the odd gold rush for rebuys. This is ok but I can't see my interest being sustained by this.

Its a real shame because with the beautiful audio and visuals, the lacklustre mechanics in the game seem even more disappointing.

please give us more player agency in game we can create the content if we have the mechanics.

 

[Muetdhiver]

They probably won't touch anything with dev bashing in it, and if they ever did they'd probably regret it and not do it again. This may already have happened.

Dev bashing is disgracefull and should be avoided. Devs have nothing to do with the fiasco.

However, someone, somewhere rather high up in the management chain is responsible for it.
That's what the person leading the design is suppose to do : lead the design team and being accountable for it.

OTOH, accountabilty in corps only happens from top down when a "fuse" is required, and the forums are pretty much in the underground.
So anyone expecting a response is... well... hopeful ? Since no damage has been done yet ($), there is no reason to blame anyone. So, for
now it's all a team effort (the solubility of accountability is a very convenient feature when things are not on fire).

 

[Wotthe Dickens]

They probably won't touch anything with dev bashing in it, and if they ever did they'd probably regret it and not do it again. This may already have happened.

Hi Stigbob
Yep, FD are careful about where/what they post, and most likely for the reasons as you point out.
But the silence on this issue can only mean that this mechanic is working exactly as intended - which appears to contradict FD's comments on our time being valuable.
I, for one would like to hear FD reconcile this contradiction.

Your posts correctly point out that many mechanics in ED can appear to be a grind if you want them to, and similarly, these mechanics can be visited when you feel like and not appear a grind;
but that doesn't take into account that repeating the same task 18 times is unavoidable whether you do them all at once, or every-so-often when you feel like it - and that repeating this task 18 times regardless of when you do them is a pretty uninspired mechanic.

It's a fantastically sunny day today, so I'm making an executive decision to put my work on hold and go out and enjoy it!
Happy sunny day everyone!

 

[Stigbob]

Hi Stigbob
Yep, FD are careful about where/what they post, and most likely for the reasons as you point out.
But the silence on this issue can only mean that this mechanic is working exactly as intended - which appears to contradict FD's comments on our time being valuable.
I, for one would like to hear FD reconcile this contradiction.

Your posts correctly point out that many mechanics in ED can appear to be a grind if you want them to, and similarly, these mechanics can be visited when you feel like and not appear a grind;
but that doesn't take into account that repeating the same task 18 times is unavoidable whether you do them all at once, or every-so-often when you feel like it - and that repeating this task 18 times regardless of when you do them is a pretty uninspired mechanic.

It's a fantastically sunny day today, so I'm making an executive decision to put my work on hold and go out and enjoy it!
Happy sunny day everyone!

I agree the idea of doing the lot sounds way over the top, but this could actually be end game time-sink content designed specifically for those of us with thousands of hours in the game already intended to be done piecemeal over time not in one big rush. That's if you want them at all, I've been looking at the guardian stuff and it seems to be not that much more effective and less so in some cases than what I already have or can get elsewhere. So unlocking them all isn't even on the cards as a possibility for me.

I like steak but I would never try to fit a whole cow in my mouth.

There's thick cloud right outside my window, but it'll pass soon.

 

[Drelthar]

The thing with this particular game element is that, unlike a lot of other repetitive mechanics (games are made of those, that's not the problem) this one simply cannot reasonably be done "here and there" over time "as you just play"

Gaining X amount of bounties, this will just happen (unlocks an engineer) because things interdict you, try to pirate you, or missions send you to fight things, or, you simply choose to head into a ring while doing your normal thing.

Your also going to progress through the elite rankings, and the navy ranks, just by playing. Take a mission here and there, you'll gain a bit of both over time.

Gaining credits just happens.

And... Most (lots, some, choose your word) materials just end up being around, and you can just grab them (there are some notable exceptions, but this is generally true)

These guardian ruins, are unique, specifically placed, interactions.

They are also -way- outside of the "normal" play area, where most things to do exist.

This means, you literally have to go specifically to these things, which implies there is a reason to do so.

You aren't going to "happen upon" these places, which are the one and only source of materials to unlock certain modules. During the course of "normal" play.

So, once you make the decision to go and get these materials, you have gone to get them.

You can't just say "I'm not too bothered about how long this takes to get, I'll just let it happen naturally"

That doesn't work here at all.

This is the problem.
This is why this isn't "people wanting everything now"
Or people "whining about grind they could just not do"

It's a poorly implemented method of gaining special items in the game.

 

[Frenotx]

The thing with this particular game element is that, unlike a lot of other repetitive mechanics (games are made of those, that's not the problem) this one simply cannot reasonably be done "here and there" over time "as you just play"

Gaining X amount of bounties, this will just happen (unlocks an engineer) because things interdict you, try to pirate you, or missions send you to fight things, or, you simply choose to head into a ring while doing your normal thing.

Your also going to progress through the elite rankings, and the navy ranks, just by playing. Take a mission here and there, you'll gain a bit of both over time.

Gaining credits just happens.

And... Most (lots, some, choose your word) materials just end up being around, and you can just grab them (there are some notable exceptions, but this is generally true)

These guardian ruins, are unique, specifically placed, interactions.

They are also -way- outside of the "normal" play area, where most things to do exist.

This means, you literally have to go specifically to these things, which implies there is a reason to do so.

You aren't going to "happen upon" these places, which are the one and only source of materials to unlock certain modules. During the course of "normal" play.

So, once you make the decision to go and get these materials, you have gone to get them.

You can't just say "I'm not too bothered about how long this takes to get, I'll just let it happen naturally"

That doesn't work here at all.

This is the problem.
This is why this isn't "people wanting everything now"
Or people "whining about grind they could just not do"

It's a poorly implemented method of gaining special items in the game.

Quoted for truth.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

I agree the idea of doing the lot sounds way over the top, but this could actually be end game time-sink content designed specifically for those of us with thousands of hours in the game already intended to be done piecemeal over time not in one big rush. That's if you want them at all, I've been looking at the guardian stuff and it seems to be not that much more effective and less so in some cases than what I already have or can get elsewhere. So unlocking them all isn't even on the cards as a possibility for me.

I like steak but I would never try to fit a whole cow in my mouth.

There's thick cloud right outside my window, but it'll pass soon.

While I agree it can be done like that it could be done in a much better way. It's meant to be apart of the "personal narative". It isn't what I would call a personal Narative. IN my view it should have been done via a chained mission system where you need to perform certain tasks to get specific items (maybe going back to the original ruins for some item or other type of data) before ending up at the Guardian base and puzzle which could have slight variations for each module type (you need to do the other missions to get hints on how to do the puzzle and get the other materials if needed). This could even last a couple of weeks for each module depending on when you do the missions but would be much more fun and interesting.

We all know there are ways to make it less boring and grindy then what it is, it still doesn't make it a good mechanic though.

 

[Enderby]

No word from on high yet, I take it?