Hello all.
I've been playing this game for a little bit and thought to share my feedback for suggestion's and fixes with you all. I've read the combined post which is locked so I'm hoping this would get there and some attention from the right people. I'll try to be as detailed as I can about the concepts i've had in mind, here goes:
Colorable Weapon Groups:
Colorable color groups allows players to discern between the different weapons currently deployed. Writing a new section to specify different colors would be a waste of time, and from my customization of the HUD i've learned that you've already implimented a set of predefined color ranges for different HUD elements. (Friendly units, enemy units, objects, wing members, etc..) You could therefore insert the function of using these already existing color variation in the HUD color setup to the weapon group's menu. As it is now, pressing space by default will cycle through each weapon selection and assign it to the primary or secondary key. I suggest that a toggle for a color cycle will be done in the same way but would be activated through a long press down, something like half a second, and would have to be repeated to cycle through to the next color in the setup.
Calendar & Notebook:
I'd like to think that the average space pilot would be using an electronic device to store their information around. I believe this feature should go as part of the communication panel (key 2 by default) as an additional tab or option on the settings. This is because a big full view screen will ruin the feel interacting with a docking station has. Therefore you could include an additional tab already divided into the amount of days, players could use AWSD keys to navigate to each square on the month and press space to access a menu of that day where they could input simple text and save it. There should be no division for hours, or cue for alarms of any kind. This should not be that intricate, however the same feature should be used for a notepad where the player can create list entries, give them title and write messages with upto 1024 digits. The files would be saved locally of course but players should be able to trade them by being in close enough proximity or docked at the same station (in the same instance). They should include a system of permissions where the player toggles whether the note can be downloaded by anyone, or requires permission from the pilot themselves.
Annotation in Starmap:
The star-map should allow for a toggle that would display the distance from the pilot's location to the system without having to select it. Furthermore, you could color the distances a certain color (red like targets?) beyond the pilot's ship jump reach. There should also be a selection sphere in wireframe that allows me to see the area of selection I'm at. I've not once tried to click a specific system straight in my view only to select one across space and have the camera shoot past. If I could tell how far the game is reading for my selection I would avoid this.
Role Play Elements:
I've read some suggestions regarding role play elements here but they were addressed for Solo play and required new assets to be added, while seeing that would be nice I feel that there should be a simpler role play tool offered for players interested in that side of the game. Under the communication tab or under the ship computer (4 by default) a tab could be added where a player could add their information into the format of a 'license', select what faction to represent, their home location, their age and the ship's name as text fields. The home location could be set by docking at a friendly or higher location and setting that place as home, this would do two things, first on the pilot license there would be a star map or system map link that would open that information for the player who accesses the license, this will allow pilots to be able to quickly navigate their computer to take them to their home which could have friends from their group or wing. Second, by setting the home the player would also be able to update the default no-rebuy station (which in my case is Trevithick). This also allows the developers to measure the player's points of interest in the game and be able to expand it based on it. The ship's name could appear instead of the commander's name, or you can even add an option to toggle that on or off. Each pilot would recieve a license number which would not change until the player's save is wiped and a new commander name is entered. It will also display the icons for the player's ranking and a field text where the player can enter what information they want to provide. Alternately this window could be linked to the notepad idea above where the pilot can select which notes to display and thus use the license as means to advertise or request services from other players. As you'd need to be in certain range or docked with the same pilot to view their license this would be no issue with the idea of transferring notes between pilots.
Broadcast Line:
I have read about the nature of the peer2peer networking used in the game and figured there might be a way to add immersion. With the already excellent filters being processed through in game voice communication you could include the ability to transmit a broadcast line within a single star system. Players could access this through the communication panel (key 2) and select to join or leave the channel, or to broadcast. When broadcasting the broadcaster will have the ability to transmit only or transmit and recieve as well as set a password for the broadcast. The options should be toggleable from the broadcast sub menu, just like the one that shows up between players when a call is made. Broadcasting will alow for a large chatroom, pilots to host radio stations or multiple wing operations possible.
Animation for the rover menu:
It seems that you've forgotten to add the build up sequence for the rover menu with the triangles like on the other menus to the left and right inside the cabin. I could not help but notice that.
Gradient for Orbital Lines:
I've noticed that the lines around planets and for the orbits only seem to fade out, this makes it difficult to see through at certain angles. I thought it would be a good idea to add a color gradient between the inner most ring to the outer most to allow the pilot to discern the depth of the orbital scheme around a gas giant for example.
Docking Guides:
I found that while the docking procedure is great fun and with alot of detail, it can sometimes be over-complicated. Especially when trying to find which dock I'm going to. I suggest that the docking computer module you can purchase and install
I've been playing this game for a little bit and thought to share my feedback for suggestion's and fixes with you all. I've read the combined post which is locked so I'm hoping this would get there and some attention from the right people. I'll try to be as detailed as I can about the concepts i've had in mind, here goes:
Colorable Weapon Groups:
Colorable color groups allows players to discern between the different weapons currently deployed. Writing a new section to specify different colors would be a waste of time, and from my customization of the HUD i've learned that you've already implimented a set of predefined color ranges for different HUD elements. (Friendly units, enemy units, objects, wing members, etc..) You could therefore insert the function of using these already existing color variation in the HUD color setup to the weapon group's menu. As it is now, pressing space by default will cycle through each weapon selection and assign it to the primary or secondary key. I suggest that a toggle for a color cycle will be done in the same way but would be activated through a long press down, something like half a second, and would have to be repeated to cycle through to the next color in the setup.
Calendar & Notebook:
I'd like to think that the average space pilot would be using an electronic device to store their information around. I believe this feature should go as part of the communication panel (key 2 by default) as an additional tab or option on the settings. This is because a big full view screen will ruin the feel interacting with a docking station has. Therefore you could include an additional tab already divided into the amount of days, players could use AWSD keys to navigate to each square on the month and press space to access a menu of that day where they could input simple text and save it. There should be no division for hours, or cue for alarms of any kind. This should not be that intricate, however the same feature should be used for a notepad where the player can create list entries, give them title and write messages with upto 1024 digits. The files would be saved locally of course but players should be able to trade them by being in close enough proximity or docked at the same station (in the same instance). They should include a system of permissions where the player toggles whether the note can be downloaded by anyone, or requires permission from the pilot themselves.
Annotation in Starmap:
The star-map should allow for a toggle that would display the distance from the pilot's location to the system without having to select it. Furthermore, you could color the distances a certain color (red like targets?) beyond the pilot's ship jump reach. There should also be a selection sphere in wireframe that allows me to see the area of selection I'm at. I've not once tried to click a specific system straight in my view only to select one across space and have the camera shoot past. If I could tell how far the game is reading for my selection I would avoid this.
Role Play Elements:
I've read some suggestions regarding role play elements here but they were addressed for Solo play and required new assets to be added, while seeing that would be nice I feel that there should be a simpler role play tool offered for players interested in that side of the game. Under the communication tab or under the ship computer (4 by default) a tab could be added where a player could add their information into the format of a 'license', select what faction to represent, their home location, their age and the ship's name as text fields. The home location could be set by docking at a friendly or higher location and setting that place as home, this would do two things, first on the pilot license there would be a star map or system map link that would open that information for the player who accesses the license, this will allow pilots to be able to quickly navigate their computer to take them to their home which could have friends from their group or wing. Second, by setting the home the player would also be able to update the default no-rebuy station (which in my case is Trevithick). This also allows the developers to measure the player's points of interest in the game and be able to expand it based on it. The ship's name could appear instead of the commander's name, or you can even add an option to toggle that on or off. Each pilot would recieve a license number which would not change until the player's save is wiped and a new commander name is entered. It will also display the icons for the player's ranking and a field text where the player can enter what information they want to provide. Alternately this window could be linked to the notepad idea above where the pilot can select which notes to display and thus use the license as means to advertise or request services from other players. As you'd need to be in certain range or docked with the same pilot to view their license this would be no issue with the idea of transferring notes between pilots.
Broadcast Line:
I have read about the nature of the peer2peer networking used in the game and figured there might be a way to add immersion. With the already excellent filters being processed through in game voice communication you could include the ability to transmit a broadcast line within a single star system. Players could access this through the communication panel (key 2) and select to join or leave the channel, or to broadcast. When broadcasting the broadcaster will have the ability to transmit only or transmit and recieve as well as set a password for the broadcast. The options should be toggleable from the broadcast sub menu, just like the one that shows up between players when a call is made. Broadcasting will alow for a large chatroom, pilots to host radio stations or multiple wing operations possible.
Animation for the rover menu:
It seems that you've forgotten to add the build up sequence for the rover menu with the triangles like on the other menus to the left and right inside the cabin. I could not help but notice that.
Gradient for Orbital Lines:
I've noticed that the lines around planets and for the orbits only seem to fade out, this makes it difficult to see through at certain angles. I thought it would be a good idea to add a color gradient between the inner most ring to the outer most to allow the pilot to discern the depth of the orbital scheme around a gas giant for example.
Docking Guides:
I found that while the docking procedure is great fun and with alot of detail, it can sometimes be over-complicated. Especially when trying to find which dock I'm going to. I suggest that the docking computer module you can purchase and install