Open letter to Frontier Developments. RE: Decals

+Rep OP, very well said.

I'm at a complete loss as to who these decals are for. They have no connection to anything, either in game or out of game. Just a bunch of random shapes. Who looked at Decal Pack 3 and went "yes, that collection of grey triangles with a white blob on top is exactly what I've been looking for"?
 
I mean...

..does it not bother anyone else that this has to be said to FDev?


Decals people OBVIOUSLY want, and in a variety of styles:

  • Major factions
  • Power Play factions
  • Commodities that have a story behind them (Hutton Mug decal, Onion Head decal, etc.)
  • Larger minor factions
  • ED ship manufacturer logos (Core Dynamics, Zorgon, Gutamaya, etc.)
  • Easily recognizable constellations (Dippers, Orion, etc.)
  • Letters (ship names!)
  • Holiday symbols (Shamrocks, Hearts, Pumpkins, XMas Trees, etc.)
  • WWI, WWII logos (allied military patches)
  • Legendary war posters (eg. women's "We Can Do It!" poster, uncle sam "I Want You" poster and similar iconic posters)
  • 4 suits of playing cards (club, heart, spade, diamond)

The above print money and need no justification or explanation.

I'd love for someone at FDev to explain why we didn't get anything from the above list because I can't figure out why on my own. It seems so obvious. Why give us completely empty, meaningless decals when any of these would have made infinitely more sense?
 
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My disappointment with the new decals is that they aren't for the major and Powerplay factions. I want to display my support for the Empire and the Emperor, dang it! :mad: A Buckyball Racing Club decal would be nice as well. ;)
 
I mean...

..does it not bother anyone else that this has to be said to FDev?

At this point, not really. They seem to have a knack for making boneheaded decisions that only get fixed when we moan at them enough. Examples include 2.1, where about half the community took up arms against the insane levels of RNG skinner box nonsense FDev foisted upon us and now we have triple drops for SRV'd resources and the favour system for weapon mods, or 2.2 where basically everyone pointed out that Neutron boosts are only close to useful at >200% increases.
 
I mean...

..does it not bother anyone else that this has to be said to FDev?


Decals people OBVIOUSLY want, and in a variety of styles:

  • Major factions
  • Power Play factions
  • Commodities that have a story behind them (Hutton Mug decal, Onion Head decal, etc.)
  • Larger minor factions
  • ED ship manufacturer logos (Core Dynamics, Zorgon, Gutamaya, etc.)
  • Easily recognizable constellations (Dippers, Orion, etc.)
  • Letters (ship names!)
  • Holiday symbols (Shamrocks, Hearts, Pumpkins, XMas Trees, etc.)
  • WWI, WWII logos (allied military patches)
  • Legendary war posters (eg. women's "We Can Do It!" poster, uncle sam "I Want You" poster and similar iconic posters)
  • 4 suits of playing cards (club, heart, spade, diamond)

The above print money and need no justification or explanation.

I'd love for someone at FDev to explain why we didn't get anything from the above list because I can't figure out why on my own. It seems so obvious. Why give us completely empty, meaningless decals when any of these would have made infinitely more sense?

^These i would Buy !

Rep +
 
They are to small and really we need an interface where they can be placed more then the 3 spots, for instance I'd like to put them on the fins of a beluga like an airliner.
 
Glad to see there is some sort of a consensus regarding the decals. Seems almost everyone went "daf*q..?" when they saw them at the store. Me included. Incredibly mild and non-descriptive.

And all of the packs share the same look. Maybe it was someone's first job at FD. I really hope so, at least. The Christmas intern.

Just B-A-D. First time there is something new at the store that holds absolutely no interest to me whatsoever.

+1 on OP.
 
tbh I assumed they did mean something (in-game brand logos) & I just didn't recognise them.

I use the Elite badges to specify whether the ship is primarily for Combat, Exploration or Trading, but I notice on my current jaunt out once the paint wears (something I am very much in favour of) the single logo I added to port is gone anyway but the various markings that are part of the paintjob (caution hot etc) are still there despite half the paint being gone from beneath them.
 
we, the players, feel no real connection to these designs

'We'?
The whole player base?


I do agree with OP though. I would have hoped for manufacturer or faction decals, not just some random symbols someone dreamt up.
I'm normally a sucker for new things in the store, and decals are one thing i've been wanting, but these? Pass.

Generic decals are a good start. They are not 'use restricted' in the same manner that more specific ones are, and allow players to attach their own meaning. I expect it's a trail and the first dip of a toe into the water.
 
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'We'?
The whole player base?




Generic decals are a good start. They are not 'use restricted' in the same manner that more specific ones are, and allow players to attach their own meaning. I expect it's a trail and the first dip of a toe into the water.

The problem is that, if this was intended to gauge interest, Frontier is going to think that nobody is interested in decals because not a lot of people are going to buy these.
 
'We'?
The whole player base?

Well, yes. I've seen demand for decals before, for things like powerplay, major/minors powers, large player groups et cetera, but never have I seen anyone ask for generic shapes with no connection to anything. And if you're right, and this is a dip of the toe, then they chose the foot that had gangrene. Even just the Alliance/Federation/Empire logos would have been a better choice, and likely better received by the community as a whole.
 
I mean...

..does it not bother anyone else that this has to be said to FDev?

Nope - as what is important to you isn't to others (and maybe FD) more so considering you can't really see them unless you're close up .. and they don't really "do" anything to the game other than cosmetic (which is very meh! IMO)
 
Might be the pretentious quality is in the eye of the beholder.

What seems pretentious to some, seems cordial to others.
 
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