On cruise distances (aka "let's talk about inner-system jumps again")

[Kaocraft]

Just let us point and click on any location in the galmap, sysmap, or Nav panel and instantly be there. Use the hyperjump animation for every load screen. Everything would effectively be one hyperjump away, including stations and signal sources. All our exploration tools require us to throttle down to zero now, so might as well get rid of frame shift and Supercruise altogether since they no longer serve a purpose. You should either be flying in normal space or watching a loading animation from now on. No need for travel between bodies - those are just "levels" and we ought to have a "stage select". And let us instantly switch ships and swap out modules from the pause screen. Maybe do engineering in there, too.

In fact, let's all just go play Everspace I guess.

 

[Kellan Fell]

Here a idea for the Op. Instead of asking for something like miro jumps. Wait until 3.3 is released and redo your idea.

I've been playing the Beta, and Super cruise over a long distance is still really boring. All the exploration tools require you to slow to a stop before they can be used, which only serves the purpose of turning you into a sitting duck to be interdicted when you're in FSS mode and can't see the surrounding system.


I agree with the OP there is nothing fun or immersive about staring at a screen for 45 minutes and occasionally having to tweak the joystick because your half billion credit starship can't fly in a straight line.

Most Hutton truckers watch Netflix in another window or read a book, how is this even gameplay? If you're in VR then you don't even get that option, you just have to stare at empty space for 45 minutes. I get it, space is big, but this is a game and games are meant to be fun. If you won't give us microjumps, then give us an insystem autopilot. You could configure it to be optional, but for long hauls it could at least allow you to relieve the boredom. And if you did get interdicted and were AFK, then you'd probably die, but as everyone says there are no interdictions on a long haul once you get your acceleration doing.


For the purists, the original Elite in '84 had micro jumps. You would drop out of witchspace at the star, lock onto the plannet and mash the 'J' key to micro jump across the system, hoping not to get intercepted and attacked on the way in. So it's not like they aren't in the lore...

 

[Tarman]

Just let us point and click on any location in the galmap, sysmap, or Nav panel and instantly be there. Use the hyperjump animation for every load screen. Everything would effectively be one hyperjump away, including stations and signal sources. All our exploration tools require us to throttle down to zero now, so might as well get rid of frame shift and Supercruise altogether since they no longer serve a purpose. You should either be flying in normal space or watching a loading animation from now on. No need for travel between bodies - those are just "levels" and we ought to have a "stage select". And let us instantly switch ships and swap out modules from the pause screen. Maybe do engineering in there, too.

In fact, let's all just go play Everspace I guess.

I'm sensing sarcasm. Subtle, but it's in there.

There has to be a middle ground wherein we include more gameplay for the boring parts of travel without precluding the travel itself. Whether that's in the form of making the travel part itself more engaging and interactive (such as my fave, dynamic SC speed alterations with boosters and commensurate risks), or providing more stuff to do in the ship while the travel part remains drawn out , can be discussed. I believe the folks who want actual fast travel are far outweighed by the folks who want more engaging gameplay.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

This is a GAME. It is not space. Sitting for 20 minutes is not game "play". It is stupid and lazy game design.

I can see that quote went right over your head.

 

[masCh]

This is the one.

Microjumps doesn't mean you jump towards any other body. Only to stars. The same principles apply to hyperspace jump - your target is the near star however much your fuel allows you to travel to. You should therefore be able to jump to the nearest star in the same system.

Space is big, yes. But that is already reflected in every other part of the game. Why do we have hyperspace jumps in the first place?

Ideas 3 and 4 have my backing. I especially like the blockade. Not 2 though, because it is the same frame shift drive system. And not Idea 1 because I think the frame shift drive system should target star rather than Nav Beacon. It would be harsh if you were to jump together as a fleet and both end up around fairly different bodies. But then, I do like the nav beacon blockade game play idea.

Since I have no access to the beta... care to explain what changes are planned with regards to this?

EDIT:
BTW, people seem to think that "micro-jumps" would allow one to jump ANYWHERE inside a system. They certainly should NOT. These should only allow jumping between main stars. Stellar bodies can STILL have large orbits, requiring some regular travel time (thus ensuring the sense of scale and that regular dangers remain). Finally, just having the ability to jump between system stars doesn't mean one couldn't travel the "normal" way, if one so desires (for USS hunting or something)... I also don't think such jumps between stars (and only stars) should be expensive or require crafting - our ships can already jump between system, for crying out loud, many LYs apart... yet somehow we can't jump 800,000Ls?

Of course there are some additional things that could be made regarding in-system jumps:

Idea 1:
When jumping to a system with a nav-beacon, you always arrive at that nav beacon star (i.e. as it is currently). But when jumping to systems without one you arrive at a random star inside the system.

Idea 2:
In-system jumps between stars shouldn't be "instant". Ideally I'd like to see a spin-up time and instantly accelerate to a few hundred thousand LS, travelling at a fixed path towards the selected star.

Idea 3:
Possibly allow one to jump TO any star, rather than between. (I.e. extension on how our FSDs work when jumping between systems - it seems the TARGET is important, not the source!) Why? Because sometimes it's faster to jump OUT of a system and back in to get somewhere, which is rather insane if you think about it! Admittedly, this only useful if you're near a stellar body and are the mass severely limits your SC speeds... still, having to jump out and back in is rather silly, so having the ability to jump to a star should always be there.

Idea 4:
Roadblocks? PvPers / pirates could purchase / build navigation disruptors, creating "forced mini nav-beacon" style locations, where players and NPCs alike would be pulled to when travelling nearby. Destroying the disruptor removes the blockade. (This needs expanding to prevent disruptor spam, both from players and NPCs!)

 

[Mo Ronik]

or providing more stuff to do in the ship while the travel part remains drawn out

I like that part. Right now it's just sort of role play for me as I imagine I'm back there checking on what ever I'm carrying. I do try not to take those long SC missions but sometimes the reward outweighs the time it takes to get there. There's one star in the cluster I putter around in that the one and only station is WAYYYYY out there. I have that system name on a post-it note on my screen edge to remind me of this. But, it's usually a very high paying mission so I do the "on one hand I can do this or" kinda thing.

 

[Chaparral]

I can see that quote went right over your head.

Do you like30 minutes + of sitting and staring and support your argument with a quote from the Hitchhikers Guide - or do you also think it's a crappy waste of a player's time?

 

[Shaamaan]

This is the one.

Microjumps doesn't mean you jump towards any other body. Only to stars. The same principles apply to hyperspace jump - your target is the near star however much your fuel allows you to travel to. You should therefore be able to jump to the nearest star in the same system.

Space is big, yes. But that is already reflected in every other part of the game. Why do we have hyperspace jumps in the first place?

Ideas 3 and 4 have my backing. I especially like the blockade. Not 2 though, because it is the same frame shift drive system. And not Idea 1 because I think the frame shift drive system should target star rather than Nav Beacon. It would be harsh if you were to jump together as a fleet and both end up around fairly different bodies. But then, I do like the nav beacon blockade game play idea.

Good point about idea 1 not being that good. You're right, it can effectively mess with fleets. It was just a little idea to add flavour, so...

That said, I don't understand why not idea 2? Think of a cross between regular witchspace (aka "loading screen") and the current SC implementation. You pick a star, press jump, drive spins up, you align, and you speed up so that the effective travel time is, say, 5-10 seconds or something, and you SEE the system as you travel through it (this one's kind of important if it can happen, as it retains some of the sense of scale that COULD, potentially, be lost). And you end up at the other star (as if you exited whitchspace). The only technical issue I see with this is if you engage such a jump from "normal space" (not SC). But, at this point, limiting such jumps so that you have to be in SC to start them is good enough for a start and solves potential technical issues. This is also sort of required for blockades to work.

That said, blockades need a whole lot more defining factors to prevent abuse and make them actually fun. A system with 20 blockades would be just as annoying to travel through as the current "do nothing for 15 minutes" SC, if less boring. So I would expect mini-jumps to be implemented far quicker than blockades.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

Do you like30 minutes + of sitting and staring and support your argument with a quote from the Hitchhikers Guide - or do you also think it's a crappy waste of a player's time?

Nah, I think it's mostly a waste of time.

There is no real sense of scale because you spend too much time not flying past anything to give you a sense of scale.

The only time you ever really feel fast, is ironically when you're actually near a body, traveling quite slow. Lol