My Single Biggest Concern About Colonisation

[Cmdr Travers]

We're less than two weeks now before we get more details about colonisation, and a date for the release of the public beta. I still have one major concern given what Frontier have said about the new feature so far.

Frontier have said that the 10ly range is under review, but let's face it, it might well turn out to be 50ly or 100ly. This, as many other people have said means that nobody will ever be able to expand out of the bubble, as the bubble will just expand ever so slowly with new colonies.

What my concern is, that if colonised systems will behave like any other system in the game as Frontier have already said, how will they be or feel differentiated from any other inhabited system in the game. Unless the player has direct control over the economy, such as...

• Will they mine
• What will they mine
• What will they produce
• What prices are things sold for
• Can manufactured and mined goods be kept for the player

Then there are other ways a colony could be differentiated. Can a player specify extra services...

• Have a local Engineer
• Have material trader services
• Have interstellar factors
• Have a technology broker

All of this would be mitigated by the maximum distance out you can build your colony being extended, so as to make having a system that's otherwise just the same as others in the bubble actually meaningful. 1,000ly out, even 5,000ly out having even basic services is a real tangible thing. Being close to, or on the very edge of the bubble though with a system that is difficult, or even impossible to distinguish from the systems around it presents, let's face it, no tangible benefit either to the player(s) that have built it, or to any other player as there's no special reason for them to visit.

It will be interesting to see what Frontier announce later in the month, but this one thing really does bother me.

 

[alexzk]

I would like to build tritium sellers in the vicinity of the Sag A*.
That is what I need. Not sure about everything else.
And about ranges - currently factions cannot expand over 40ly barrier, I guess it will be a maximum.

Also there is PMF (I think 1st ever) is locked behind 40 ly barrier. Owners aren't playing for the years. I would make them a bridge too.

 

[Cmdr Travers]

I would like to build tritium sellers in the vicinity of the Sag A*.
That is what I need. Not sure about everything else.
And about ranges - currently factions cannot expand over 40ly barrier, I guess it will be a maximum.

I think there's a lot of us that would like to build tritium mines. I want to build one out in Tenebrae. The advantage to boosting exploration for the player base of allowing this would be huge. But will it ever happen?

 

[alexzk]

I think there's a lot of us that would like to build tritium mines. I want to build one out in Tenebrae. The advantage to boosting exploration for the player base of allowing this would be huge. But will it ever happen?

Probably it could, after 10-20 fixes of the Colonization update, than they could allow it to do from any station. Than we have some rare stations here and there.

 

[Kimosabe_X]

We're less than two weeks now before we get more details about colonisation

Make that 6 weeks, this months FU episode has ben cancelled/postponed to February 26th...

 

[Rat Catcher]

We're less than two weeks now before we get more details about colonisation, and a date for the release of the public beta.

Make that 6 weeks, this months FU episode has ben cancelled/postponed to February 26th...

They can't cancel something they hadn't announced...

But, I believe some of us assumed (I did!) the next one would be this month.

 

[Cmdr Travers]

Make that 6 weeks, this months FU episode has ben cancelled/postponed to February 26th...

 

[aRJay]

We're less than two weeks now before we get more details about colonisation, and a date for the release of the public beta. I still have one major concern given what Frontier have said about the new feature so far.

Probably another two weeks before more info.

Frontier have said that the 10ly range is under review, but let's face it, it might well turn out to be 50ly or 100ly. This, as many other people have said means that nobody will ever be able to expand out of the bubble, as the bubble will just expand ever so slowly with new colonies.

What my concern is, that if colonised systems will behave like any other system in the game as Frontier have already said, how will they be or feel differentiated from any other inhabited system in the game. Unless the player has direct control over the economy, such as...

• Will they mine
• What will they mine
• What will they produce
• What prices are things sold for
• Can manufactured and mined goods be kept for the player

Then there are other ways a colony could be differentiated. Can a player specify extra services...

• Have a local Engineer
• Have material trader services
• Have interstellar factors
• Have a technology broker

All of this would be mitigated by the maximum distance out you can build your colony being extended, so as to make having a system that's otherwise just the same as others in the bubble actually meaningful. 1,000ly out, even 5,000ly out having even basic services is a real tangible thing. Being close to, or on the very edge of the bubble though with a system that is difficult, or even impossible to distinguish from the systems around it presents, let's face it, no tangible benefit either to the player(s) that have built it, or to any other player as there's no special reason for them to visit.

It will be interesting to see what Frontier announce later in the month, but this one thing really does bother me.

Why should they be any different to any existing system, after all all but one of the existing systems started as a colony.

 

[Cmdr Travers]

Why should they be any different to any existing system, after all all but one of the existing systems started as a colony.

I can only speak for myself here, but if they turn out the same as every other system in the game, and can only be built next to every other system in the game... then what's the point?

 

[aRJay]

I can only speak for myself here, but if they turn out the same as every other system in the game, and can only be built next to every other system in the game... then what's the point?

How similar do you find the existing systems to each other?

 

[Cmdr Travers]

How similar do you find the existing systems to each other?

For station services, commodities, mining sites, everything really, they're all very similar.

For as great as Elite Dangerous is, it's not a very diverse game.

 

[Rock Hunter]

Every time I read Cmdrs hopes for Colonisation I can’t help but think that they’re fundamentally different from FDev’s intentions. Not that we know FDev’s intentions.

I sincerely hope I’m wrong.

I’ve stopped thinking about Colonisation too much as it’s clearly some way off still and information is scant at best. It’s the only way I know that will ensure disappointment isn’t inevitable and I can enjoy whatever does come our way. I’ll have a play around with it and see what can be done with the plaything we’re given and go from there.

 

[the100thmonkey]

I think a few points from the stream might address some of your concerns.

Material traders are found in high security stations with a population over 5 million, according to the codex. System population will be one of the factors under player direction.

Economy type will also be determined by the player.

You will be able to make an IF available by colonising for an anarchy faction, if it is not possible to influence the security rating of the system.

Many functions of a system - such as shipyard ship availability - depend on variables that are hidden from the player. In the case of shipyards, the devs had to manually intervene to change the tech level of the Phekda system because initially you couldn't buy a ship there. It remains to be seen which of these values the update will expose, how it will expose them to us and how it will allow us to manipulate them, if at all.

 

[Robert Maynard]

We're less than two weeks now before we get more details about colonisation, and a date for the release of the public beta.

Are we?

 

[Cmdr Travers]

Every time I read Cmdrs hopes for Colonisation I can’t help but think that they’re fundamentally different from FDev’s intentions. Not that we know FDev’s intentions.

I can sum up the differences between player hopes and Frontier's intentions in two words...

"Elite Dangerous"

 

[Kimosabe_X]

They can't cancel something they hadn't announced...

Hmm... this Phil W. guy seems to be a funny one...

 

[Cmdr Travers]

Hmm... this Phil W. guy seems to be a funny one...

It doesn't suprise me that the beta isn't ready. I can't think of a single major update that Frontier haven't pushed back at least a month.

But if that's the time it takes to make sure the final released version only requires seven emergency bug fixes in the weeks after, then it'll be worth it

 

[Flimley]

I really, really hope I'm completely wrong. And frontier do come up with a winning formula here. Something one could get really enthusiastic about, and in principle colonisation could be good. But my two most prevalent concerns are...

Firstly, it's going to be a painful, tedious and a time consuming chore for single cmdrs. Literally no fun. May as well go to work irl.

Secondly, ultimately once complete a pointless exercise in that you're creating what already exists in game in the multiples of tens of thousands.

Hoping for customisation to save things here a little. At least the aesthetics of buildings to differentiate from the standard.

Flimley

 

[HRDiagram]

Make that 6 weeks, this months FU episode has ben cancelled/postponed to February 26th...

That still qualifies as an FU so, technically, it's still happening, one way or another.

 

[Cmdr Travers]

I really, really hope I'm completely wrong. And frontier do come up with a winning formula here. Something one cold be really enthusiastic about. But my two most prevalent concerns are...

Firstly, it's going to be a painful, tedious and a time consuming chore for single cmdrs. Literally no fun. May as well go to work irl.

Secondly, ultimately once complete a pointless exercise in that you're creating what already exists in game in the multiples of tens of thousands.

Hoping for customisation to save things here a little. At least the aesthetics of buildings to differentiate from the standard.

Flimley

I completely agree. Just a few things I can think of off the top of my head, all of which would work best with colonies out deep into the black...

• Building your reputation with an engineer so they'll open up a depot in your system (proper gameplay in this one)
• Using the system to manufacture / mine commodities for yourself and your squadron to use / sell (such as Tritium)
• Use your system as a place for Cmdrs to get meaningful exploration missions, there are so many possibilities here (see my wishlist link below)
• Searching for an interesting system to set up a tourist colony, and then building tourist stations on planets and in parts of the system where there are interesting things to see, then deriving an income from this by building reputation with factions and powers so they'll send tourist ships to the system (again, really useful gameplay here)
• Set up an anti-Xeno colony equipped with all the commodities, components, and engineering needed to keep the caustic cauliflowers at bay

These are just a few ways colonisation could be made truly meaningful, but I know Frontier won't do it, because we don't get nice things