[POLL] System Wide Communications

[GT3000]

The lack of any sort of social aspects to a multiplayer game even one that prides itself on isolation and the immersion of deep space is pretty silly. So vote and maybe Frontier will listen for once.

This is just for system and station based open communication. Not galaxy wide communication. While it'd be nice to see regional chat within a station to help coordinate across a region let's try for the smallest and most basic possible change.


EDIT: If you want just in station communications, pick No and list the exception in your post.

 

[Blake_Dragon]

not giving enough options. opposed to system-wide coms but stations coms would be a plus. feels a bit one sided the way its laid out right now


Edit: voted with the understanding i am favoring station coms only

really don't want to have to click a button each time to avoid seeing things like this:

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[GT3000]

Apologies on that. I didn't think that through on my end. I should've added another option for station only comms. If you pick No, be sure to list if there's an exception. I'll modify the OP to reflect that.

 

[Tankage]

From what I can tell of the Elite background we have FTL travel but not comms, I could see a comms relay system i.e. if you're close enough you can log in and talk to stations in the system (depends on distance to the station) access data services such as "latest" commodity updates, module stock lists, market readouts, news, bulletin board etc. (would give some reason to the nav beacons and all the people hanging around just re name them comms beacons). But not system wide comms, think about it some systems are 100's of thousands of light seconds across meaning it would take days to send a message one way (the discovery scanner is bad enough in terms of immersion). Also if we can send messages FTL why not inter system? Problem is this would break the games background completely. Then again there is a hell of a lot, in the game, that doesn't make sense when you think about it, so they probably will eventually ;- ) .

 

[GT3000]

From what I can tell of the Elite background we have FTL travel but not comms, I could see a comms relay system i.e. if your close enough you can log in and talk to stations in the system (depends on distance to the station) access data services such as station commodities updates etc. (would give some reason to the nav beacons). But not system wide comms, think about it some systems are 100's of thousands of light seconds across meaning it would take thousands of seconds to send a message one way (the discovery scanner is bad enough in terms of immersion). Also if we can send messages FTL why not inter system? problem is this would break the games background completely. Then again there is a hell of a lot, in the game, that doesn't make sense when you think about it, so they probably will eventually ;- ) .

Here's the problem. The Kill Warrant Scanner is FTL communication.

Scanner that incorporates real-time communication with multiple law enforcement networks to obtain all issued bounties.
–In-Game Description ​

 

[Eldonorian]

At least being able to broadcast to the entire system you are in would be nice.

 

[Sandmann]

Voted no. If you want to put up a poll offering station wide only I'll vote yes for that one.

 

[Assimilator1]

I don't see why it would break the game's background at all, you could limit the range to say 5000 Ls so as to avoid the huge distance time lag that would be.
Sys comms would allow for much better socialising between players, it worked for Freelancer, it could work for ED.

 

[agent1138]

At the moment if you have someone added as a friend you can communicate from anywhere I think.

But keeping it relative and realistic like trek is good.

 

[Tankage]

Here's the problem. The Kill Warrant Scanner is FTL communication.

Scanner that incorporates real-time communication with multiple law enforcement networks to obtain all issued bounties.
–In-Game Description​

Yeah, as I said, there is a lot of stuff that they don't seem to have thought through to its logical conclusion. A bounty database that updates whenever you log into a station (run by the pilots federation) would make more sense. For all Mr Brabens talk about "hard" science fiction, I'm getting more of a science fantasy vibe at present. Oh well, just need to turn off my brain and enjoy (it is a game after all).

 

[Andy_Pipkin]

Voted no. If you want to put up a poll offering station wide only I'll vote yes for that one.

^^ ditto

 

[Tankage]

Thinking about it an automatic "drop box" system could fit into the game world. Leave a message for a friend then they can pick up (maybe with a delay) when they next dock at a station. This also adds the possibility of more data based missions i.e. pony express etc.

 

[DieScream]

You don't have to limit anything, or have a cost or anymore bloody tedium added. Just add a decent chat system like people expect, like every multiplayer game has, like every game for the last 15 years has had.

I thought Braben was supposed to be a dev with some experience.

 

[Swan]

I voted yes, as long as you can turn it off, like in other games.
-
Don't really see a need for a deeper 'immersion based' analysis of the whys and wherefores tbh. There's already things in-game that pay no heed to such considerations.
-
More importantly : good in-game comms doth the more popular game make, and if we want the game to stick around and have lots if people partaking, then so it should be.

 

[Tankage]

I don't see why it would break the game's background at all, you could limit the range to say 5000 Ls so as to avoid the huge distance time lag that would be.
Sys comms would allow for much better socialising between players, it worked for Freelancer, it could work for ED.

Yeah I am a bit of a stickler when it comes to science fiction ;-) . (5000 LS is still an hour and twenty minutes or so each way bringing new definition to the word lag!) At the end of the day i'm not going to throw my toys out the pram if they do implement something like that. Though if they do, maybe including arcade mode vs "realistic" mode game play options (as in the rumoured ironman) would be cool, then they can keep everyone happy!

Edit: Or alternatively i'll just play solo and use my imagination, though I would miss being able to have some interaction with other players.

 

[Alric]

I'd like to see communications within a certain radius.. perhaps up to a few hundred ls. So that remote areas are still remote and out of contact, but hubs seem more active and busy. It would even be ok if there was some simulated delay.. So that you could be conversational in stations but would send more complete messages - like a distress call with location and details of attackers - out in the wild.

 

[DaveB]

Voted no because I'd prefer station-wide only.

In more detail:
system-wide comms in flight will make life harder still for bounty hunters and pirates - they'll have their areas of operation broadcast to all and sundry as soon as they jump their first victim. Compared to us (mostly) honest traders we give 'em a hard enough time earning a crust as it is. It would be an unbalancing feature.

In-station commo is a big YES for me. Even a "pilots lounge" where you can communicate with all pilots docked anywhere in the system. Just not system-wide while in flight.

Instance-wide commo in flight would be a good thing, just not system-wide.


And please please please with a cherry on top NO galaxy-wide spamchat channel

 

[Pigpen]

As long as I can toggle it on and off, then that's fine by me.

 

[Floode]

I wouldn't mind provided that I could toggle it off. I often find open chat in MMOs immersion-breaking and often disruptive (not to mention annoying).

 

[DraigUK]

Voted no, as no option for station only comms, which would be my preference.