ANNOUNCEMENT Odyssey: Update on VR and Ship Interiors

Ships interiors are already made, why can't we just hop out of the chair?
This. We should at least be able to walk around our already modelled and rendered cockpits/bridges. Even if it's only while landed/docked.

Figured it'd work something like this: You have an "arsenal" of some type within your cockpit. Here, you can select what suit and weapons you bring out onto whatever planet you've landed on. The bigger the ship, the larger your arsenal inventory is. When that's all said and done, you head to the bulkhead/door/turbolift at the back of the cockpit, and select the option to either hop into your srv, or exit on foot.

There. Gameplay. See, it's not that hard. AFAIK. It's something, at the very least.
 
In Odyssey, players will be able to fly down to planets, fly through atmospheres and drive along planet surfaces in their SRVs - all while remaining in VR.
Yay! This is great news. Thank you FDev. This gets a thumbs-up. (y)

When disembarking your ship or SRV, players will be presented with a projected flat game screen in their VR headset in order to continue on foot.
What?! This gets a thumbs-down. (n)

I can't help but feel like more dev time will be spent making this "flat game screen" possible than it would to just leave the full 3d VR experience turned on for feet.

To put it all another way.

1. VR for ship/srv will remain. (good, it's not a regression)
2. A new VR mode "2d projection screen" will be implemented. (ok...)
3. New content (feet) will be locked to the 2d projection screen mode. (what?!)

Indeed I suspect it would have taken less dev time to just leave the already implemented VR available for feet!
The new mode is a nice option for those that want it, but it should be exactly that, an OPTION. You can even make that option the default, but let me turn it off. Sorry, but I'm not buying the "nausea" excuses.

As it is right now, you are asking me to buy an unfinished game expansion (at least it's not a regression anymore)... I'm not convinced yet... show come commitment and share intended plan/timeline for adding "full" VR support. Open VR beta even for those that have not bought Odyssey. This is a foundational game-engine issue.

I realize FDev is hesitant with VR feet... There are a lot of ideas/expectations outlined in this thread: VR support 'not at launch' for Odyssey
Let us help you get it right, because "right" is different for different people so "options" will be needed.

For me: same as pancake but in VR+headlook. I just want to play in 3d.
 
That's... slightly disturbing to me.

So, earth likes, will use the new tech? Gas giants? Water Worlds?

That implies things about the new tech that doesn't make sense to me.

Unless, they mean that the new tech does "stuff" at long distances, and for the earth likes and gas giants, they'll use that stuff, because it obviously can't be using any close up stuff as you never get close.

I dunno, that's really confusing.

By "all planets in the game", I would assume he's referring to all accessible planets.

Not the inaccessible ones that are simply textured spheres with some bump-mapping. He's likely neglecting to think of those as "planets" in that sense, given that the context is about surfaces, which don't really exist on those worlds.

In other words, he's saying that the upgrades will apply to airless "Horizons" worlds as well and not just the new planets coming with Odyssey.
 
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By "all planets in the game", I would assume he's referring to all accessible planets.

Not the inaccessible ones that are simply solid textured spheres with some bump-mapping. He's likely neglecting to think of those as "planets" in that sense, given that the context is about surfaces, which don't really exist on those worlds.

In other words, he's saying that the upgrades will apply to airless "Horizons" worlds as well and not just the new planets coming with Odyssey.

That's what I thought. Thing is, I watched it, and it didn't seem like that's what he was saying. I think at one point he literally said "Not only the ones you can land on" so... dunno.
 
This is perfectly reasonable, if somewhat disappointing. I’d love to see a better VR implementation in the future (even if it’s just the full VR POV with traditional controller support). Guess I’d better set some cash aside for this now...
 
Yay! This is great news. Thank you FDev. This gets a thumbs-up. (y)

What?! This gets a thumbs-down. (n)

I can't help but feel like more dev time will be spent making this "flat game screen" possible than it would to just leave the full 3d VR experience turned on for feet.

To put it all another way.

1. VR for ship/srv will remain. (good, it's not a regression)
2. A new VR mode "2d projection screen" will be implemented. (ok...)
3. New content (feet) will be locked to the 2d projection screen mode. (what?!)

Indeed I suspect it would have taken less dev time to just leave the already implemented VR available for feet!
The new mode is a nice option for those that want it, but it should be exactly that, an OPTION. You can even make that option the default, but let me turn it off. Sorry, but I'm not buying the "nausea" excuses.

As it is right now, you are asking me to buy an unfinished game expansion (at least it's not a regression anymore)... I'm not convinced yet... show come commitment and share intended plan/timeline for adding "full" VR support. Open VR beta even for those that have not bought Odyssey. This is a foundational game-engine issue.

I realize FDev is hesitant with VR feet... There are a lot of ideas/expectations outlined in this thread: VR support 'not at launch' for Odyssey
Let us help you get it right, because "right" is different for different people so "options" will be needed.

For me: same as pancake but in VR+headlook. I just want to play in 3d.

they could add on-board systems to do stuff or order the ship computer to maneuver in some way or do something, add the possibilty to do some stuff instead of just piloting the ship

  • Draw free power from module plant and reroute to a module, for gain in % something
  • Order the ship to orbit bodies, or attack X kind of ship in the radar, or trade some kind of simple cargo between systems, maybe explore and check on systems. While it would be weird to add auto-pilot (hello, hired crews? I paid 1 billion already to a crew of mine, why can't he just drive the ship or do some really simple jump?), player input SHOULD be a requisite to avoid afk-pilots tsunamis, even if there is a crew npc controlling the ship, or just a new-ship computer. They could add modules suited for combat, trade, exploration, who knows, engage in some chat in some new window who connects all live commanders in the server in open -and solo, maybe?-, and filters everyone by some wird tags, and allows the possibility of opening small topics and stuff. It would made the world feel like there is more connected, now that GalNet is around. Discord is good, but really... 3rd party app?
And there you have it, you go around your ship if you get bored, and play some snake in the screen behind your pilot seat, after it you check systems, and order your crew to attack some pirate in the radar, interdict and engage, who knows.

People call that minigame, but I don't see it as a minigame. Some people would even prefer to PvE just commanding from behind the pilot seat.

everything is blocked in this game, it's like you can't go past lvl 3 and you don't unlock all skills and features yet ._o

They cannot even fix the ugly ugly turret camera mode, and you can't use turrets if you're not in crew. They need to add more module space, or the possibility to split or new module splitters, there would be so many new options in the game with what already is in the game.

I mean, I played a LOT of games along my entire life, and no game has an uglier 3rd camera like Elite:Dangerous in its turret mode. I hope they fix it :(

They are small things, that can make tons of changes in the gameplay of the game. Those QoL improvements would stop the boring bottleneck that these issues had become.
 
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This is the thing: I'd do too, and that despite being a lifetime pass holder.

Once again, just like with Multicrew we're running the risk of ending up with a minimum viable implementation of a feature, and then being stuck with it like we are with multicrew. And for once, instancing isn't the technical roadblock here, it's really a question of scope and ambition. My fear is that there might not even be the ambition to get to the point where walking around is really more than an FPS version of driving around in a base in an SRV.

I hope I'm wrong.
Unfortunately I believe you're correct in your assumption.
 
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I find it hard to believe that most players would prefer OTHER interiors over ship interiors, are they really that out of touch with the player base?
Who here would accept a 6 month delay to the expansion if they added ship interiors? I would.

A six month delay seems too little for full ship interiors, might be possible for basic ship interiors like cockpits. I think most folks outside this platform would be okay with a delay of it was officially announced. Still the game has already been delayed once, not sure they can afford to delay it again.
 
Hello!

Asked earlier and asking again now in a separate message so it doesn't get missed.

Will the flat projection into HMD's offer head tracking, or will it static and like watching a screen in the HMD?
Pretty sure it will be like watching a static monitor in your headset. It's likely to be a very big screen though.
 
Ships interiors are already made, why can't we just hop out of the chair? I don't care if you can only do it while enabling some kind of auto-pilot mode with basic combat and exploring manouvers.

I wouldn't care if you cannot control the ship while you're walking inside of it.

But we should be able at least to see our legs in the cockpit ONLY, at least that, if they don't want to add ship interiors. just block the door and open it when you can dev it out. But at least give us the cockpit :D

i would happily buy the game. but I haven't got Vr, is more suited for VR and CoD players than space xplorers. D:

(I guess I will buy it anyways, I mean, why wouldn't I? :D )
We used to be able to. Not long after I got my original Vive, I got out of the chair and wondered around some of my ships to see that there were other rooms. In almost every case, doors were closed but I could see hints of them by causing clipping effects depending on where I lay/sat/stood/walked after whilst resetting the HMD position.

I only remember because I once noticed an open hatch on the floor slightly behind me and to the side, against a bulkhead. I went to have a look and headbutted my radiator.

Then FD went through a phase of some updates it would work for me and some it wouldn't and now - never, I get disorientation whereby if I lean forward/sideways to look past a frame or beam and the whole damned cockpit leans with me. No idea why they nerfed this.
 
Pretty sure it will be like watching a static monitor in your headset. It's likely to be a very big screen though.
Idea: WMR supports windows embedding natively without any TP software. Open a window next to your '2D' screen and get co-op mate to twitch his view so you can see it next to yours, then do the same for him. The advantage of '2D' mode screens is that they're not superimposed on any part of the game screen ( assumption - depending on how FD render it ). Of course we could try this in regular VR but it does mean obscuring the game view. Might not be a problem for 2D 'on foot' view depending on how big ED make the telly. Might be some advantages for 2D in a headset - totally guessing though.
 
F Dev:

I love the game and think highly of you guys (despite having been frustrated on more than one occasion with some of your priorities). :)

I'm not being hostile, this is a genuine and, I think, a fair question.

Regarding ship interiors, Do you plan to stand by your statement made during the Kickstarter campaign? Thanks.

  • Can I leave the space ship?

    Yes, but not in the initial release. The core release of the game focusses on the ships and space. We'll then be working to expand the game. This includes exploring your ship and space stations. The potential content for Elite is huge,so we're keeping a sensible strategy to add to the game in stages.
 
Call me naive but I always thought they'd refresh ALL worlds in Odyssey; but saying "..old planets too" doesn't mean it applies to prior games. It should, but it doesn't mean it will. There may be many that could care less about legs, don't want it, etc. but would love the new vistas. Should they be excempt? I think it'd be weird in case that new tech means two people see different things in the same place. At least when Horizons came along, everything looked the same, you just couldn't go land. Yet, we don't know for sure if those base game users will get the pretty or not :) (I think they will, at least in part).
What do you mean by prior games? As to the base game, that doesn't really matter, why put a performance hog in when they can't use it? I'm very confident when they say all planets will get the updates, they mean what's in horizons too. Sure horizons owners won't be able to land on the atmospheric planets, but I am very confident that horizons planets will get the upgrade. Reason why; why would you design for two code bases when you can use one. And that's really the best reason there is.
 
Reason why; why would you design for two code bases when you can use one. And that's really the best reason there is.

Plus: what happens when you're taking cover behind a boulder that's in a different position, has a different shape, or doesn't exist in your enemy's game client? What happens when the terrain slopes in a different way and you see your friends' SRV driving through thin air (well, vacuum)?

It would be senseless and very, very technically challenging, maybe even insurmountably difficult, to maintain multiplayer compatibility between game clients with different terrain models for the same shared environments. When the alternative -- rolling the airless world upgrades out to Horizons users too -- would be trivial, obvious, and resolve all such problem.

It would be insanity. And for no discernible reason.

Even "encouraging Horizons players to upgrade" doesn't stand up logically as a motivation for doing something as nonsensical as that.

Even setting aside that the legs part is the main draw, and that a terrain upgrade was already mooted as a free upgrade for Beyond, and how broken it would be for Horizons users interacting with Odyssey users... even setting all that aside... it would also break surface multiplayer for Odyssey users who'd actually paid for the upgrade. They would encounter exactly the same issues in reverse. It would be a HUGE undertaking of ongoing work just to punish EVERYONE.

I get that people want to keep expectations low, but when that involves this kind of mental acrobatics to hold on to the worst possible interpretation, it's too far. It starts to become almost a kind of information orthorexia.

Personally, I'd just accept it's coming to Horizons too, and run the minuscule risk of being utterly gobsmacked with the rest of us if they end up taking the craziest option imaginable and keep the surfaces different somehow.
 
What do you mean by prior games? As to the base game, that doesn't really matter, why put a performance hog in when they can't use it? I'm very confident when they say all planets will get the updates, they mean what's in horizons too. Sure horizons owners won't be able to land on the atmospheric planets, but I am very confident that horizons planets will get the upgrade. Reason why; why would you design for two code bases when you can use one. And that's really the best reason there is.

Well... when I used to play on my laptop, it utterly died and did all kinds of jank when I went near planets in horizons - without horizons, they looked entirely different, and didn't do any of the planetary generation stuff, meaning I could still play in none horizons mode.

Maybe they changed that at some point though...

But yes, horizons owners will get the new tech upgrade to the horizons planet surfaces, be mad not to.
 
By the way, seeing the potential that CQC has to be intense and exciting (when it's not being either totally empty or absolutely dominated by grandmasters who'd chew me up before I can react) , I totally wouldn't mind Odyssey turning into "an FPS Module" for Elite Dangerous.

Just saying: it could be cool, if given the chance.
 
Then FD went through a phase of some updates it would work for me and some it wouldn't and now - never, I get disorientation whereby if I lean forward/sideways to look past a frame or beam and the whole damned cockpit leans with me. No idea why they nerfed this.
@aXeL, there’s something not right with your set-up - sounds like you’ve dropped into 3DoF instead of the full 6 which I still experience. I’m using a Rift S so I can’t give you the solution, but I do remember reading something about it happening to other players here with WMR headsets. Perhaps put a post in the VR sub-forum?

Edit: a quick Googlin’ suggests either a poorly lit room or that you need to run the set-up again (doing the safe boundaries thing)
 
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F Dev:

I love the game and think highly of you guys (despite having been frustrated on more than one occasion with some of your priorities). :)

I'm not being hostile, this is a genuine and, I think, a fair question.

Regarding ship interiors, Do you plan to stand by your statement made during the Kickstarter campaign? Thanks.

  • Can I leave the space ship?

    Yes, but not in the initial release. The core release of the game focusses on the ships and space. We'll then be working to expand the game. This includes exploring your ship and space stations. The potential content for Elite is huge,so we're keeping a sensible strategy to add to the game in stages.

Obviously otherwise they would have categorically denied it was in their plans.... like they did with "base building". And obviously they aren't going to reveal any post-Odyssey update or DLC marketing push now or rush the Odyssey tease. Can't people just wait to see what is revealed in their plans after Odyssey launches? Moaning and whingeing for the next 7 months ain't going to make Frontier throw their business plan up in the air.
 
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