Sorry this is quite a long post, if you care to read about new features that game may potentially have please read and comment.
I believe these suggestions would only make the game more fun, engaging, alive, immersive and interesting. I would like to see ED and number of players grow and not dwindle. These recommendations would only help the progress:
Mining:
(currently IMHO mining is very basic, presents no challenge, lacks fun element and screams for more features)
1. Add mining drones
2. Add mining scanners to scan the asteroid for specific metals without engaging the mining itself. Basic asteroid scanner, intermediate asteroid scanner, advanced asteroid scanner. Currently you can only know what's inside the asteroid after you start actually mining.
3. Add ice mining along with the commodities produced out of it (didn't try to mine the ice yet)
4. Add new mining lasers with drillbits ammunition. Ammunition can be used to drill/mine specific ore type more accurately yielding higher % containing specific metal. Allow to change that ammunition in space and add cooldown after ammunition is changed. For example you got to a roid that has silver. You swap to a silver type drillbit/ammunition etc.
5. Spawn enemies into belt on regular basis, to counteract that - allow players to hire NPC wingmen or sign a contract with 'security forces' to provide defence ship(s).
6. Would be nice if players were allowed to place on-demand missions so that others who are looking for 'escort and defence' type of missions could accept them, that would require cross-sector mission posting though so probably not feasible in the way missions work currently.
Missions:
(Missions are very basic and FedEx-type unfortunately right now. Next to none branching missions (trust me, I've done a ton). Tried one with prisoner ships where NPC asks you to forget and turn around which totally destroys your reputation and combat missions overall it takes FOREVER to find 'prisoner ships' or 'bounty hunter ships'.
1. Add more branching missions. (There are a few and between right now)
2. Add ESCORT type missions. Escort NPCs and fight off waves of enemies, Player accepts the mission then flies to a certain sector, finds NPC ship (jump into battle layer). Both do a few jumps until NPC reaches the destination then player is rewarded right there on the spot (Money transferred to the bank). Another type of escort mission could be while NPC is mining, player is asked to provide defence. Jump in pirate ships. Or a few waves possibly. Depending on how bad miner NPC is damaged reward scales.
Scale enemies based on a type of ship player is flying.
Scale rewards based on the outcome of the mission, how damaged is NPC etc.
3. Add patrol missions - multiple legs of the mission would require commander to fly into multiple sectors and engage in battle.
4. Add timed transport missions - transport a VIP passenger to a specific star system station. Reward scales based on how fast the passenger reached the destination.
4. Remove the Unidentified Signal Sources in order to find what mission is asking. Instead, make a mechanic that pulls a player into a battle layer after exiting hyper jump. It may take a long time to find things in USSs, plus you have to approach and jump every USS. Its very time consuming and makes combat missions very boring. Most of the people becouse of this would just rather do bounty hunting at the star beacon because its more profitable and more fun. Or at least if not removing the USS completely FLAG the USS that contains mission objective so that players wouldn't have to jump to random USS' hoping to find there what they need.
Events:
1. Add mini events. Thank you FD for main events. They are fun and all but unfortunately most of us either can't get to the system where event is, or dont have time, or find it uninteresting etc. I believe that these mini events would help to make the game more fun for everyone. Mini event would spawn in star system or sector of star systems based on availability of players in those systems. The trigger could be one of the missions on BB. Mission-trigger should be appropriately tagged so that player would know that it will start a mini event. Mini event can be similar to a current military conflict between empire and federation but only on a smaller scale and based on intrigue between the local sub factions.
2. Add branching mini events. This continues #1, but would include multiple legs/chapters. Player would receive a mission status update after completing each leg of the event and receive substantial reward in the end.
For example - System authority requires an asteroit belt sweep. Some miners recently have reported that they are being harassed by the pirates in multiple asteroid belts. Player sweeps a few asteroid belts for evidence and finds a few clues that need to be scooped. After turning the clues in the first leg of the mini event is triggered. Authorities review the evidence - and new mission spawns in station. etc etc. These missions should NOT expire or reset like regular missions do. They should be available at all times for a player to commit at their leisure. They can take a break, or come back the next day and continue or complete all the missions of the mini event that same day/play session.
I find the game currently extremely repetitive and flat and sorry but yes - boring. Players ignore the content that devs put in game and rather stick to more profitable routes - bounty hunting at the star beacon instead of doing missions, trading - instead of mining etc. Not all of course, some people still try to enjoy the basic mechanics of other activities but eventually we all ask a question what is more profitable, which shouldn't happen if game is well balanced and presents multiple ways of having fun.
I personally like to try all that game has to offer. I've noticed that i waste a lot of time if I do combat missions on approaching every USS in the given mission system. Or if I try to hunt for a 'rare artefact' they are REALLY rare. Not only it takes a while for them to spawn inside USS but you have to visit multiple USS' which may take over an hour sometimes. And when i get back I get 30K reward for that mission. For that same hour I can make 1 million in trading, which is boring and I like to have fun in games. So after you enjoy 30K mission for an hour, you just go to boring stuff again - BH at star beacon or trade.
I am one of the people who thinks that effort should be equal to the reward. I like to have fun but I also would like to progress through the game since everything in ED is based on money. Expanding mining mechanics, Branching missions and mini events should add more activites and make game more fun. This doesn't mean that ED has to be easier no, just more stuff to do and more ways to do it.
I believe these suggestions would only make the game more fun, engaging, alive, immersive and interesting. I would like to see ED and number of players grow and not dwindle. These recommendations would only help the progress:
Mining:
(currently IMHO mining is very basic, presents no challenge, lacks fun element and screams for more features)
1. Add mining drones
2. Add mining scanners to scan the asteroid for specific metals without engaging the mining itself. Basic asteroid scanner, intermediate asteroid scanner, advanced asteroid scanner. Currently you can only know what's inside the asteroid after you start actually mining.
3. Add ice mining along with the commodities produced out of it (didn't try to mine the ice yet)
4. Add new mining lasers with drillbits ammunition. Ammunition can be used to drill/mine specific ore type more accurately yielding higher % containing specific metal. Allow to change that ammunition in space and add cooldown after ammunition is changed. For example you got to a roid that has silver. You swap to a silver type drillbit/ammunition etc.
5. Spawn enemies into belt on regular basis, to counteract that - allow players to hire NPC wingmen or sign a contract with 'security forces' to provide defence ship(s).
6. Would be nice if players were allowed to place on-demand missions so that others who are looking for 'escort and defence' type of missions could accept them, that would require cross-sector mission posting though so probably not feasible in the way missions work currently.
Missions:
(Missions are very basic and FedEx-type unfortunately right now. Next to none branching missions (trust me, I've done a ton). Tried one with prisoner ships where NPC asks you to forget and turn around which totally destroys your reputation and combat missions overall it takes FOREVER to find 'prisoner ships' or 'bounty hunter ships'.
1. Add more branching missions. (There are a few and between right now)
2. Add ESCORT type missions. Escort NPCs and fight off waves of enemies, Player accepts the mission then flies to a certain sector, finds NPC ship (jump into battle layer). Both do a few jumps until NPC reaches the destination then player is rewarded right there on the spot (Money transferred to the bank). Another type of escort mission could be while NPC is mining, player is asked to provide defence. Jump in pirate ships. Or a few waves possibly. Depending on how bad miner NPC is damaged reward scales.
Scale enemies based on a type of ship player is flying.
Scale rewards based on the outcome of the mission, how damaged is NPC etc.
3. Add patrol missions - multiple legs of the mission would require commander to fly into multiple sectors and engage in battle.
4. Add timed transport missions - transport a VIP passenger to a specific star system station. Reward scales based on how fast the passenger reached the destination.
4. Remove the Unidentified Signal Sources in order to find what mission is asking. Instead, make a mechanic that pulls a player into a battle layer after exiting hyper jump. It may take a long time to find things in USSs, plus you have to approach and jump every USS. Its very time consuming and makes combat missions very boring. Most of the people becouse of this would just rather do bounty hunting at the star beacon because its more profitable and more fun. Or at least if not removing the USS completely FLAG the USS that contains mission objective so that players wouldn't have to jump to random USS' hoping to find there what they need.
Events:
1. Add mini events. Thank you FD for main events. They are fun and all but unfortunately most of us either can't get to the system where event is, or dont have time, or find it uninteresting etc. I believe that these mini events would help to make the game more fun for everyone. Mini event would spawn in star system or sector of star systems based on availability of players in those systems. The trigger could be one of the missions on BB. Mission-trigger should be appropriately tagged so that player would know that it will start a mini event. Mini event can be similar to a current military conflict between empire and federation but only on a smaller scale and based on intrigue between the local sub factions.
2. Add branching mini events. This continues #1, but would include multiple legs/chapters. Player would receive a mission status update after completing each leg of the event and receive substantial reward in the end.
For example - System authority requires an asteroit belt sweep. Some miners recently have reported that they are being harassed by the pirates in multiple asteroid belts. Player sweeps a few asteroid belts for evidence and finds a few clues that need to be scooped. After turning the clues in the first leg of the mini event is triggered. Authorities review the evidence - and new mission spawns in station. etc etc. These missions should NOT expire or reset like regular missions do. They should be available at all times for a player to commit at their leisure. They can take a break, or come back the next day and continue or complete all the missions of the mini event that same day/play session.
I find the game currently extremely repetitive and flat and sorry but yes - boring. Players ignore the content that devs put in game and rather stick to more profitable routes - bounty hunting at the star beacon instead of doing missions, trading - instead of mining etc. Not all of course, some people still try to enjoy the basic mechanics of other activities but eventually we all ask a question what is more profitable, which shouldn't happen if game is well balanced and presents multiple ways of having fun.
I personally like to try all that game has to offer. I've noticed that i waste a lot of time if I do combat missions on approaching every USS in the given mission system. Or if I try to hunt for a 'rare artefact' they are REALLY rare. Not only it takes a while for them to spawn inside USS but you have to visit multiple USS' which may take over an hour sometimes. And when i get back I get 30K reward for that mission. For that same hour I can make 1 million in trading, which is boring and I like to have fun in games. So after you enjoy 30K mission for an hour, you just go to boring stuff again - BH at star beacon or trade.
I am one of the people who thinks that effort should be equal to the reward. I like to have fun but I also would like to progress through the game since everything in ED is based on money. Expanding mining mechanics, Branching missions and mini events should add more activites and make game more fun. This doesn't mean that ED has to be easier no, just more stuff to do and more ways to do it.
