Now, just hear me out.

[CMDR Soundwave]

I've played the original elite, FFE and FFE2. Loved all those games. Spent so much time in them that I honestly think it felt like yesterday playing them.

With all the people complaining about how much the ships cost, it is actually a very sound design decision done by the Devs.

Mainly, effort.

Not to sound like a hardass or anything, but games nowadays lack what Elite delivers. It lacks giving you the drive to push yourself from your comfort zone.

My story, I started as primarily a bounty hunter, in 2 weeks I earned 5 million. From bounties, assassinations and RES. I loved it, but I knew the ship I wanted (the python) was completely out of reach. This doesn't mean the game doesn't allow me to do it. Hell, if I wanted to bounty hunt my way up, I could. But it wasn't efficient. I needed to source for other ways to build my wealth.

I belong to a very friendly, awesome gaming community. Some of the guys were running rares. I was a proud Bounty Hunter and loved to kick ass. Humbly I asked for help. Fitting decisions, routes, where to go, what to do. And thus my rare merchant trade began, I was a merchant until I got my Python. Sweet.

But during my time hauling, I enjoyed the procedural art that the game threw at me. From binary stars to dwarfs, I enjoyed myself. Running from interdiction, and hoping for good security when I arrived at my destination system. As a bounty hunter, I was the law. The perspective change in role is magnificent, literally.

Now I'm running a T9 doing commodity runs with data shared by my the community I'm in. Half way to my FDL, though I expected it to be at 50m. Its ok, I'm enjoying the game for what it is.

Some people might want to do one thing, so hear me out, expand your scope, and let the game throw some fun at you instead.

 

[BennyBoyW]

Excellent post - have some rep.
Tonight has been awesome for me - the new release is brilliant !

 

[CMDR Beltane]

Can't say i don't agree. Old enough to have seen enough games where you really had to earn your stars. But times change, and you have to find a compromise between old school gamers and the new generation. One thing for sure though, playing those old games some might not even know tought me at least one thing, patience. The very one thing i sometimes miss on nowadays discussions.

 

[Regulator]

great post and very truthful insight.... I went the other way!!! I went for my conda right off the bat, but now like to get a smaller ship or outfit my conda to fight, but always fall back to my trading, the main thing is I'm always having fun!!!

 

[Aszrayel]

Nice post Soundwave!

 

[shadragon]

I'm enjoying the game for what it is.

Yup. +Rep for that simple but elegant summary.

 

[Goilveig]

Can't say i don't agree. Old enough to have seen enough games where you really had to earn your stars. But times change, and you have to find a compromise between old school gamers and the new generation. One thing for sure though, playing those old games some might not even know tought me at least one thing, patience. The very one thing i sometimes miss on nowadays discussions.

I dunno, I'm an oldschool gamer, and I've played some of the grindiest games in existence (I am a Lineage II veteran, which if you know the game you know just how insanely much grinding that is).

That said, these days I tend to prefer pretty casual gaming. With 50-60 hours a week going to my job, I don't have the time to just lay around and grind like I could back in the old days. I probably won't be able to hardcore game again until retirement.

The real problem I have with this game isn't that it takes too long (although if this were single player I'd probably have worked out the save file format and adjusted my credits up by now) but that it really pushes you to do the only profession I can't tolerate, because that's the only profession in which there's a solid progression of ships and good scaling of rewards.

 

[MaccGyver]

+1 and repped.

 

[Ransurias]

I'm glad that *you* have both the luxury of time and the patience to trade grind for ships that the vast majority of the game's playerbase is never, ever going to have, and that *you're* enjoying your laughably superficial WASD simulator in *your* "awesome gaming community." Meanwhile, there's a nearby forum thread approaching 1,000 posts, most of which are exceedingly negative with respect to the staggering disparity between trading and other professions. The reality is that the game is in a poor state, and income inequality between what little the game actually offers is a problem that many, if not most, see as a significant problem.

"But during my time hauling, I enjoyed the procedural art that the game threw at me. From binary stars to dwarfs, I enjoyed myself. Running from interdiction, and hoping for good security when I arrived at my destination system. As a bounty hunter, I was the law. The perspective change in role is magnificent, literally."

So much cheesy nonsense. I don't even -- what? "Hoping for good security when I arrived at my destination"? I've logged quite a few hours in open play, and I virtually never come across players that gank near stations. Moreover, all major stations have pretty similar NPC security outfits consisting of Vipers and Eagles.

 

[Webferret]

+1 and have some rep. These are the posts I like to read

 

[Rhywden]

Not to sound like a hardass or anything, but games nowadays lack what Elite delivers. It lacks giving you the drive to push yourself from your comfort zone.

You probably mistyped but, indeed, Elite lacks this very drive. It's profoundly boring.

Sorry, dude.

 

[Katkon]

Making credits in this game is easy. As you did, many simply go the cut'n paste rares route. No real learning or special skills required (no offense intended) and minimal risk if playing in solo. Making credits is EASY. Making credits and having FUN (which everyone defines a little bit differently)... that's the hard part. I've been playing since PB (a long time - nearly a year), and started in the current production environment with gamma. My net worth is a paltry 16m and is unlikely to materially increase in the near term as I find trading incredibly tiresome. Some find it relaxing. Some find it fun. Most find it lucrative. I can't stand it for the repetition. So the big ships won't happen for me for a while - and that's fine by me. I'm not in a hurry and realized long ago that big ships make the game easier, which in turn makes it a lot less interesting and leads to game fatigue quickly. Sure, I wouldn't say no to a Vulture and would openly welcome high risk/high return BH and escort missions to both increase excitement AND credit earning opportunity. But trading my way to big ships: No Thanks, with a capital N and a capital T.

I'd tell you what I'd REALLY value in ED: some measure of SKILL. I'd love for my combat rating to be reflective of skill, not just how many players or NPCs I've killed. I have NO IDEA how that would work, but would mean infinitely more than credits that just lead to bigger ships and easier fights. I don't see big ships, big bank balances or combat ranks as a badge of honor or something to strive for.... I tend to assume that 99pct of people that got there did so by taking shortcuts like trading rates, trading in the safety of solo, or grinding/shooting small ships at nav beacons, RESs or conflict zones. Doesn't take much skill - just a bit of time and some effort. That's disapponinting to me and does not reflect anywhere near the accomplishment of rightly earning those ships/ranks in the original.

 

[CMDR Beltane]

I dunno, I'm an oldschool gamer, and I've played some of the grindiest games in existence (I am a Lineage II veteran, which if you know the game you know just how insanely much grinding that is).

That said, these days I tend to prefer pretty casual gaming. With 50-60 hours a week going to my job, I don't have the time to just lay around and grind like I could back in the old days. I probably won't be able to hardcore game again until retirement.

The real problem I have with this game isn't that it takes too long (although if this were single player I'd probably have worked out the save file format and adjusted my credits up by now) but that it really pushes you to do the only profession I can't tolerate, because that's the only profession in which there's a solid progression of ships and good scaling of rewards.

Aye, have played Lineage 2. I have to admit that it was too "grindy" for my taste. Not that i have a problem with grind itself, but to grind without reason for myself. And even though i respect your answer and hope for improvement regarding the professions besides trade, trade should always be the way to get credits fast. But lets not turn this thread into another trade vs. rest discussion.

 

[Alpha087]

We aren't all willing to dedicate ourselves to trading, nor do all of us have "awesome gaming communities" to fall back on. Some of us only get time to play after a workday, and would rather spend that time blasting other ships or exploring the depths of space instead of being forced to take up a second job to pay for our virtual space ships.

As of 1.2 the AI difficulty seems to have been ramped up significantly for higher "rated" NPCs. The lowered repair costs at least enabled us pure bounty hunters or pirates to keep our ships without trading. Perhaps we might see some slightly increased rewards to match the increased difficulties now.

Besides the point, it was stated by David Braben himself in one of the development diaries, that this game would be balanced in a way that should never force a player to take up a playstyle that they don't want, and that no one "profession" would be so far ahead of the rest. Just hoping it stays true to his words.

 

[JuicerPrime]

I've played the original elite, FFE and FFE2. Loved all those games. Spent so much time in them that I honestly think it felt like yesterday playing them.

With all the people complaining about how much the ships cost, it is actually a very sound design decision done by the Devs.

Mainly, effort.

Not to sound like a hardass or anything, but games nowadays lack what Elite delivers. It lacks giving you the drive to push yourself from your comfort zone.

My story, I started as primarily a bounty hunter, in 2 weeks I earned 5 million. From bounties, assassinations and RES. I loved it, but I knew the ship I wanted (the python) was completely out of reach. This doesn't mean the game doesn't allow me to do it. Hell, if I wanted to bounty hunt my way up, I could. But it wasn't efficient. I needed to source for other ways to build my wealth.

I belong to a very friendly, awesome gaming community. Some of the guys were running rares. I was a proud Bounty Hunter and loved to kick ass. Humbly I asked for help. Fitting decisions, routes, where to go, what to do. And thus my rare merchant trade began, I was a merchant until I got my Python. Sweet.

But during my time hauling, I enjoyed the procedural art that the game threw at me. From binary stars to dwarfs, I enjoyed myself. Running from interdiction, and hoping for good security when I arrived at my destination system. As a bounty hunter, I was the law. The perspective change in role is magnificent, literally.

Now I'm running a T9 doing commodity runs with data shared by my the community I'm in. Half way to my FDL, though I expected it to be at 50m. Its ok, I'm enjoying the game for what it is.

Some people might want to do one thing, so hear me out, expand your scope, and let the game throw some fun at you instead.

I have expanded my scope. My progression is very similar to yours - combat to trade. I have felt the drive and left my comfort zone, and I still do not find trade enjoyable. I have seen some incredible sights in Elite, the kind where you feel your mind expand at the awesome before you, and none of them have happened running the same routes, staring at the same console, with a hold full of the same goods as I trudged (and continue to trudge) the path of credit-gaining.

It's awesome to hear you've had a positive experience with your progress so far, and I hope you continue to enjoy the game. Sadly I cannot say my own expanded scope has been a cavalcade of positivity in kind. Please remember there are counterpoints, and every player's experience will vary. What is fun for one, etc. etc.

+1 rep regardless, nice to read about a good Elite experience after tonight's shenanigans

 

[Ransurias]

I can't agree enough. Experiences vary, and the general tone of the community appears to be negative with respect to both income disparity and the staggering cost of the new ships, particularly the FDL. That consensus should be respected. The OP's thread comes across as an attempt to rationalize and justify the game's lack of content with anecdotal nonsense that most, in practice, probably can't associate with for a variety of reasons.

 

[JuicerPrime]

The OP's thread comes across as an attempt to rationalize and justify the game's lack of content with anecdotal nonsense that most, in practice, probably can't associate with for a variety of reasons.

Well, wouldn't call it nonsense. Nothing wrong with having enjoyed good times on the journey up the ship classes Bang on the money about the disparity and ship prices though - the forums have been smouldering all night. I probably need to check my laptop for smoke damage at this point >.> Oh well, onwards and upwards as they say...

 

[Deputy]

I'm glad that *you* have both the luxury of time and the patience to trade grind for ships that the vast majority of the game's playerbase is never, ever going to have, and that *you're* enjoying your laughably superficial WASD simulator in *your* "awesome gaming community." Meanwhile, there's a nearby forum thread approaching 1,000 posts, most of which are exceedingly negative with respect to the staggering disparity between trading and other professions. The reality is that the game is in a poor state, and income inequality between what little the game actually offers is a problem that many, if not most, see as a significant problem.

"But during my time hauling, I enjoyed the procedural art that the game threw at me. From binary stars to dwarfs, I enjoyed myself. Running from interdiction, and hoping for good security when I arrived at my destination system. As a bounty hunter, I was the law. The perspective change in role is magnificent, literally."

So much cheesy nonsense. I don't even -- what? "Hoping for good security when I arrived at my destination"? I've logged quite a few hours in open play, and I virtually never come across players that gank near stations. Moreover, all major stations have pretty similar NPC security outfits consisting of Vipers and Eagles.

lol about the number of posts complaining about the game. What matters is the number of people. There are about 15 of you that just keep repeating the same stuff. So it's noisy but not really representative of the player base. I know it's not many of you as my ignore list isn't very long. Just got one more tho. Toodles

 

[Space Junky]

+1 rep and nice post

 

[VATrevelyan]

I can't agree enough. Experiences vary, and the general tone of the community appears to be negative with respect to both income disparity and the staggering cost of the new ships, particularly the FDL. That consensus should be respected. The OP's thread comes across as an attempt to rationalize and justify the game's lack of content with anecdotal nonsense that most, in practice, probably can't associate with for a variety of reasons.

I'm not sure I agree or not with OP's post, although I did find it interesting. But regarding the "consensus" you speak of, why should it matter if it is respected by other players or not? This isn't a trade strike, and satisfied costumers aren't scabs regardless if they have a correct or incorrect observation.