I think the issue with 'crime' as legitimate gameplay is that none of the infrastructure to make it actual gameplay really exist.
Firstly, bounties are far too easy to get, so the repercussions for getting them have to remain trivial otherwise it can become gamebreakinig for players who get them for non serious offenses. Personally I would say that bounties should only ever be got for actual assault or destruction to a ship. Not for loitering, not for destroying skimmers, and fines should not turn into bounties but should simply be major faction wide, and remain until they are paid off or added to a re-buy.
Once bounties are only given for serious offenses, then the repercussions for having a bounty can be more severe. They should of course last forever, or until they are collected.
Then there need to be places that 'criminal' players can go and still effectively play the game. Anarchies, presumably, with pirate factions that give out decent missions, potential for reasonable shipyards and outfitting, decent commodity markets (including black markets obviously). So these systems need to be places a CMDR would want to call home with stuff to do on the days they don't necessarily want to be hunted all the time.
Then the risk for the criminal player is venturing out into non anarchy systems (with their wanted status, which should again be major faction wide) in order to commit piracy, murder or whatever it is they want to do, with hopefully the added gameplay of having to avoid security services and NPC bounty hunters, and having some kind of potential gameplay tactics to do that, perhaps modules that can confuse a scanner for long enough that the pirate has a chance of making a getaway, I don't really know.
In the previous games, it was really quite difficult to get bounties for legitimate gameplay. I remember assassinating senators and governors as well as mafia bosses, and as long as you did it out of the sight of the law (and space is big, you just had to not be dumb and open up too near civilization) you never even got a fine, let alone a bounty. And let's not mention that I could nuke a base and my reputation and status would be none the worse for wear.
FD had to make the game 'all seeing' because I presume of multi-player, but for as long as the authorities are all seeing, there's not really much chance of a criminal career, PvE or otherwise.
Personally, I also play a law abiding CMDR, but clearly there is a demand from players to role play their fantasy of being bad. Perhaps once the PF bounties and karma start to address player on player crime, then FD can revisit PvE crime and make it fun for those that want it.
Actually, I'm pretty sure it doesn't. If a clean ship interdicts another clean ship, then the interdictor gets a fine, but not wanted status, so if the interdictee fired at the interdictor they would be assaulting a clean ship. (None of this takes anything to with PP into account.)
Firstly, bounties are far too easy to get, so the repercussions for getting them have to remain trivial otherwise it can become gamebreakinig for players who get them for non serious offenses. Personally I would say that bounties should only ever be got for actual assault or destruction to a ship. Not for loitering, not for destroying skimmers, and fines should not turn into bounties but should simply be major faction wide, and remain until they are paid off or added to a re-buy.
Once bounties are only given for serious offenses, then the repercussions for having a bounty can be more severe. They should of course last forever, or until they are collected.
Then there need to be places that 'criminal' players can go and still effectively play the game. Anarchies, presumably, with pirate factions that give out decent missions, potential for reasonable shipyards and outfitting, decent commodity markets (including black markets obviously). So these systems need to be places a CMDR would want to call home with stuff to do on the days they don't necessarily want to be hunted all the time.
Then the risk for the criminal player is venturing out into non anarchy systems (with their wanted status, which should again be major faction wide) in order to commit piracy, murder or whatever it is they want to do, with hopefully the added gameplay of having to avoid security services and NPC bounty hunters, and having some kind of potential gameplay tactics to do that, perhaps modules that can confuse a scanner for long enough that the pirate has a chance of making a getaway, I don't really know.
In the previous games, it was really quite difficult to get bounties for legitimate gameplay. I remember assassinating senators and governors as well as mafia bosses, and as long as you did it out of the sight of the law (and space is big, you just had to not be dumb and open up too near civilization) you never even got a fine, let alone a bounty. And let's not mention that I could nuke a base and my reputation and status would be none the worse for wear.
FD had to make the game 'all seeing' because I presume of multi-player, but for as long as the authorities are all seeing, there's not really much chance of a criminal career, PvE or otherwise.Personally, I also play a law abiding CMDR, but clearly there is a demand from players to role play their fantasy of being bad.
Perhaps once the PF bounties and karma start to address player on player crime, then FD can revisit PvE crime and make it fun for those that want it.Actually, I'm pretty sure it doesn't. If a clean ship interdicts another clean ship, then the interdictor gets a fine, but not wanted status, so if the interdictee fired at the interdictor they would be assaulting a clean ship. (None of this takes anything to with PP into account.)
Last edited:
