Multiplayer - docking

[Junglebiscuit]

Although this is a british based game so the love of queuing is no doubt an essential part of play

Haha

I would like to see multiple docking ports or the best way to do it may be like landing a plane on a runway - Each is assigned a slot on first come first served basis and needs to dock within a certain time or they lose their slot.

 

[Giskard]

I'm hoping that the queue/no queue, docking problem varies depending on the system you are visiting. So a rough station in a pirateish sector would rely on everyone for themselves bumping and nudging to get to the docks, where as a civlised sector would rely on everyone forming an orderly line and waiting for their number to come up.

Yep, definitely agree with this. Variety is the key!

I think a potential problem in all this, is that the majority of people are not very patient. - They don't want to have to 'wait' outside a station for clearance, or to have to spend a good deal of time flying manually into a landing sequence.

For me though, I love all that!
For example, when I used to play 'World of Warcraft', I enjoyed the fact that the world was large and if I wanted to get anywhere, I'd have to run for quite a while, get on a boat, climb on my mount and fly big distances. It felt natural and I enjoy the 'journey' as much as arriving at my destination.

 

[Jason S]

If we have AI controlled instructions telling us where and how to dock I think it would be cool if these were voices heard from the your computer speakers and that there would be many voices male and female. I know this would add extra work and cost, but it would really make for superb immersion.

 

[Garron]

What Commander Bo said. Maybe even having some celeb voices - imagine Clint Eastwood doing Docking Control!

" Go ahead Punk, park your boat "

etc

 

[Bikky]

I'm trying to figure out how docking will work in the Multiplayer scenario.

Traditional Elite forces manual docking for new starters. Can you imagine what that would be like in an unstructured manner around starter systems.

I'd imagine that docking would need a more formal approach.

a) Join queue
b) Get docking number
c) Dock when called - with docking computer as standard to help smooth the process through.

Docking computers could be a damageable aspect of the ship - forcing manual docking for repairs.

Each active docking window should be time limited. Failure to dock would result in the person re-joining the queue. Docking outside of your queue results in a fine or penalty.

Reading the above - I think I'd make an excellent bureaucrat. I'm sure there are better ideas out there and I'd be keen to hear them.

We're British, we love to queue

I've said it before, but any queue of ships in space is going to be a boon for pirates. Perhaps multiple landing and exiting platforms on stations will reduce the need to queue. Although this is a british based game so the love of queuing is no doubt an essential part of play

LOL my first thought

What happens if a space station is Full?

You have to wait, but what if you have perishable cargo?

Tough, Same as in Frontier and FFE, if you needed to dock and encountered a full station/space port. There'll probably be more than one station per planet so fly to the next.

Yep, 2 port minimum. Easy to do.

So every station is a woman? it has an inny hole and an outy hole.

 

[Bromley86]

I don't want to know what that means!

 

[argus1]

Argus Industries Docking Procedures

Argus stipulated that to fly with our haulage division, competancy in flight control was a minimum requirement. Manual docking is one way to check that. The weevils at corporate HQ wrote a 720 page instruction directive allong the lines of 'haulage vessels must give right of way to galcop and system vessels' and innumerable complexities of queing regulations. At risk of getting a speeding ticket in some of the more corporate neighbourhoods, I tend to jump the queue and go in at 50 to 100% speed rather than have the delay of docking computers.

 

[argus1]

Argus Industries Deep Space Cargo Transfer Procedures

On page 648 of the docking procedures manual, there was a surprisingly short line "collecting cargo dumped by fugitives is discouraged within visual range of system galcop vessels". Does anyone know what that is about? I mean, who'd hire a fugitive for protection in return for laundering the fugitives' cargo with a clean trader vessel to take it to the nearest space port? The use of cargo dumping and scoops in deep space would be messy, lossy, and time consuming, especially from a pirate python who has 100T to flog. Could friends who have suitably equipped vessels transfer cargo and cr in deep space? Should that require precision flying, akin to a mid-air fuel transfer back on old earth?

 

[Cmdr Andy B]

I've said it before, but any queue of ships in space is going to be a boon for pirates. Perhaps multiple landing and exiting platforms on stations will reduce the need to queue. Although this is a british based game so the love of queuing is no doubt an essential part of play

you forgetting the vipers? one shot fired in the 'S' zone and they'll make horsemeat of you

 

[Bikky]

you forgetting the vipers? one shot fired in the 'S' zone and they'll make horsemeat of you

more product for Findus then.....hmmm Findus, is that a pun for Find-Us? a message from the cows.

 

[thrudd]

Having off axis docking ports would make manual docking... interesting.

I recently suggested this very thing as a feature (and more types of docking port in general). I imagined a revolver barrel with one circular chamber, going round and round the center of one face of the space station. People could queue up anywhere on the outer edge of the face with the dock.

 

[Alacrity]

Hi,

Just a thought. If there is to be a queuing system and perishable goods are on board, they need to be dumped. What about fly-tipping? If the police are only interested in law and order, there could be some kind of Community Support Officer Service that would issue fines, with tickets on the wind screen.

Further still, if a cargo cannister is dumped and it is 'Persihable', it would be very messey if it had horses in it. Maybe I should stop 'horsing' around. What would the situation be if a vessel was to hit a cargo cannister full of cats = 'Catastrophic'.

Stop joking now!

 

[Bluefalcon8560]

I'm trying to figure out how docking will work in the Multiplayer scenario.

Traditional Elite forces manual docking for new starters. Can you imagine what that would be like in an unstructured manner around starter systems.

I'd imagine that docking would need a more formal approach.

a) Join queue
b) Get docking number
c) Dock when called - with docking computer as standard to help smooth the process through.

Docking computers could be a damageable aspect of the ship - forcing manual docking for repairs.

Each active docking window should be time limited. Failure to dock would result in the person re-joining the queue. Docking outside of your queue results in a fine or penalty.

Reading the above - I think I'd make an excellent bureaucrat. I'm sure there are better ideas out there and I'd be keen to hear them.

My thought is that with 400 billion stars that the crowding will be minimal.

BF - Stay Frosty

 

[Oppenheimer]

if a cargo cannister is dumped and it is 'Persihable', it would be very messey if it had horses in it. Maybe I should stop 'horsing' around. What would the situation be if a vessel was to hit a cargo cannister full of cats = 'Catastrophic'.

Stop joking now!

@Alacrity
Perisheable goods did not make it as a feature yet.

 

[Avnas]

It's going to be great fun if the perishables start to go off or when you left with a hold full of live animals and they start to get nervous.

that's a feature of the game?

no?

oh.