The 2020 Dev Run: As Big As The Launch Run (?)

[Rubbernuke]

Sure, in a GAAS. And there's at least a nominal hat tip towards that in the minority staffing being left on the core game.



They've very obviously made the difficult decision to let the GAAS aspect suffer to allow the full fat DLC to have the best possible chance of success. The 'suffering in the short term' is a deliberate act, with a deliberate pay off in mind.

The reason for this decision is fairly obvious. Seasons proved themselves to be sub-optimal, both from a dev perspective and from a consumer one. (Personally I think they're right, in the long term, to change tack).

I agree that there are plenty of 'bad practices' inherent in the above missteps, and we're still feeling the negative repercussions of some of them. (One of which was trying to do too much from the off: Launch a game with multiplayer + single player content & functionality, with dripfeed GAAS content drops, while working on periodic core expansions, all in a giant proc gen game build. It was too much).

Something had to take a hit. The GAAS aspect has.

You're seeing it as some weird contagion though. That because the understaffed GAAS branch is doing badly that the prioritised branch will also do badly. That's hugely simplistic, and ignores massive swathes of context. (It doesn't help that you're also trying to reinvent history to make your case. The Beyond Season clearly wasn't the work of the whole dev staff, as the giant hole in the middle of it, corresponding with the start of full production on the PDLC, clearly telegraphs. Stating that company declarations on these points are invalid just because the staff member in question has changed roles is beyond perverse...)

Well, lets hope with the New Era that:

It delivers something worthwhile

Is delivered whole and not yet another placeholder for something else down the line

Once New Era becomes GAAS its not abandoned to rot

The time spent in development rounds out the entire game and not just bolt on another wonky offshoot.

In the meantime ED has tremendous technical issues as well as long standing inconsistencies and balance problems.

This, developing 'blind' and not testing enough to ensure what FD thinks works actually works in practice is another giant problem.

 

[The Chairmaker]

Looking back at the launch schedule for the original Elite Dangerous back in 2014, Alpha testing started in December 2013 with Beta starting in May, launch was in December 2014.

If we therefore work on the premise that the Elite New Era is working to a similar timescale, then Alpha may be due to start in a couple of months, with the Beta period hitting in Summer.

The timing of this ties in rather neatly i would think with regard to the delay of Fleet Carriers to the summer, when Beta testing for new era is likely to begin.

It makes me think that Frontier have incorporated some systems in the New Era for fleet carriers, and have therefore decided that they need to get everything tied down so to speak during Alpha testing of the main New Era product, so that they can be more confident of a positive arrival for fleet carriers with straight forward incorporation of features when New Era launches. Hence frontiers comments about having more time to "refine" fleet carriers.

I also wonder if Fleet Carriers were delayed as the community feedback around the inclusion of carriers was very positive, therefore from a marketing point of view to release fleet carriers as your last free release, prior to the launch of New Era paid for expansion can help create a positive buzz, that will create hype around the New Era, and drive sales.

This though raises a further point as to what proposed updates have been put on the back burner as a result of fleet carriers delay. Presumably something planned for this coming summer is no longer happening, then again maybe it will still happen and Frontier just want to have that big final flourish, similar to chapter 4 of Beyond which incorporated a whole host of new features.

When all is said and done, the number one driver for the continued development of Elite Dangerous is money.
New features will be added that are perceived to be able to generate money based on new sales and revenue streams. Thats why we have seen a new starter experience incorporated to the game in order to improve player retention, as well as a new frontier online shop with ARX for paint jobs and decals, that has also improved the ability of the devs to make better quality paint jobs.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

Agreed and share your hopes. Regarding the SRV related stuff I'm not that optimistic though as with the introduction of the ship data scanner they've removed a large chunk of its right to exist.

Well, it could certainly have more use if space legs becomes a thing. We shall see. Hopefully they can introduce bigger bases we can infiltrate with underground driving areas to get to certain areas, then you would need to get out of your SRV to finish what you are doing. There could be enemy SRVs chasing you to your ship etc. It has so much potential.

 

[[VR] optimal_909]

It really is no wonder that FDev refuse to provide long-term roadmap details, and as much as I find it frustrating that New Era is publicly a mystery, I am slowly becoming agreeable to their policy.

The amount of complaining and "FDev are filthy liars!" happening whenever the roadmap's few-announced details change, makes any premise of more transparency on New Era production (in full swing since Summer 2018) futile.

1. "I want more information on future updates"
2. "FDev changed their future update plans, they are liars"
3. Repeat

The 2yr+ production time of New Era, with the allocation of the large majority of the Elite devteam too, is a good gamble to see IMO. Knuckling down and focusing on a single, large expansion to dramatically improve and expand upon Elite's gameplay and content - like how Firaxis do expansions to Civilization games.

No it isn't. Being at war with the fanbase never pays off, and it is just ugly no matter how you look at this.
1. It is the vocal minority only: then I suppose it is still a mistake not to ramp up interest in the update, like... other, well managed titles do?
2. It is the majority: Then it should be about time to change course, isn't it? I am seeing some of the most hard core fans turning against Elite, or at the very least skeptical/cynical.

I mean, by most objective standards, how was the game managed the past year? Remember commander chronicles, for example? Or the Beyond announcement, that teased content - did it backfire? Remember when CCs were invited to FDev HQ? When was the last time David himself gave an update about Elite, the game that defined his career and kickstarted (literally) his multi-million pound business?

I know you think 'you'll buy the New Era anyway'. Don't take this granted, I was similarly invested in a franchise before, and it took a similarly big flop what FDev is doing now to abandon ship after 10+ years. Sure, the next stage is following news about it for a while, 'farming salt for later usage'. But at the end I was proven right and never looked back. I will follow the news until we see what is shaping up, as I still love the lore and the game (even though I quit the very day of New Era announcement), but oh boy, FDev has now a steep hill to climb.

Not everyone succumbs to Stockholm Syndrome you know...

 

[StuartGT]

No it isn't. Being at war with the fanbase never pays off, and it is just ugly no matter how you look at this.

FDev is at war with the fanbase?

 

[Stealthie]

It really is no wonder that FDev refuse to provide long-term roadmap details, and as much as I find it frustrating that New Era is publicly a mystery, I am slowly becoming agreeable to their policy.

I'm pretty sure the real reason FDev are reluctant to discuss their long-term plans is simply because they don't know what's deliverable.

They leave it to the last possible moment to announce what they intend to deliver... and then still end up causing disappointment by failing to deliver what they've announced.

The amount of complaining and "FDev are filthy liars!" happening whenever the roadmap's few-announced details change, makes any premise of more transparency on New Era production (in full swing since Summer 2018) futile.

1. "I want more information on future updates"
2. "FDev changed their future update plans, they are liars"
3. Repeat

The 2yr+ production time of New Era, with the allocation of the large majority of the Elite devteam too, is a good gamble to see IMO. Knuckling down and focusing on a single, large expansion to dramatically improve and expand upon Elite's gameplay and content - like how Firaxis do expansions to Civilization games.

I don't think anybody's doing that, are they?

All I'm pointing out is that it's a bit silly to continually put much stock in the information they release when they have a poor track record in that regard.

 

[Barking_Mad]

No it isn't. Being at war with the fanbase never pays off, and it is just ugly no matter how you look at this.
1. It is the vocal minority only: then I suppose it is still a mistake not to ramp up interest in the update, like... other, well managed titles do?
2. It is the majority: Then it should be about time to change course, isn't it? I am seeing some of the most hard core fans turning against Elite, or at the very least skeptical/cynical.

I mean, by most objective standards, how was the game managed the past year? Remember commander chronicles, for example? Or the Beyond announcement, that teased content - did it backfire? Remember when CCs were invited to FDev HQ? When was the last time David himself gave an update about Elite, the game that defined his career and kickstarted (literally) his multi-million pound business?

I know you think 'you'll buy the New Era anyway'. Don't take this granted, I was similarly invested in a franchise before, and it took a similarly big flop what FDev is doing now to abandon ship after 10+ years. Sure, the next stage is following news about it for a while, 'farming salt for later usage'. But at the end I was proven right and never looked back. I will follow the news until we see what is shaping up, as I still love the lore and the game (even though I quit the very day of New Era announcement), but oh boy, FDev has now a steep hill to climb.

Not everyone succumbs to Stockholm Syndrome you know...

Most people aren't invested in the game to the degree whereby they are so polarised about what and when 'stuff' happens. People who left the game will come back if they like what they see and hear when the DLC is released. All the noise on the forums will count for diddly squat. There's plenty of people who play regularly who just don't bother with forums.

 

[babelfisch]

Well, firstly, I'd disagree with that - at least partially.
"The money", in entertainment, comes from audience retention and media presence in order to create a market for Paid DLC.

Secondly, again you seem to be missing the point.
It is insanely bad business practice to rigidly enforce isolated teams to the point where a product/service suffers in the short-term.
If a "big push" could have got FCs across the line, they'd have done it.
The only possible conclusions are either that FDev are indulging in insanely bad business practices or that they've been wrestling with FCs for 2 years without success.
Neither of those options bodes well for the future of "The new Era".

There are more possible conclusions than the two you named and your inability to see them just highlights how you are to trying make everything suite your argument. First, make an observation, then come to a conclusion. What you are doing is having a conclusion before you are making observations which is why your argument is flawed from the start.

 

[Rubbernuke]

Most people aren't invested in the game to the degree whereby they are so polarised about what and when 'stuff' happens. People who left the game will come back if they like what they see and hear when the DLC is released. All the noise on the forums will count for diddly squat. There's plenty of people who play regularly who just don't bother with forums.

The trouble being parts of the game do require that level of day in, day out grind- the BGS and particularly the BGS and Powerplay together. Its really hard to drop all your hard work and then come back to it because its not a casual part of the game.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

There are more possible conclusions than the two you named and your inability to see them just highlights how you are to trying make everything suite your argument. First, make an observation, then come to a conclusion. What you are doing is having a conclusion before you are making observations which is why your argument is flawed from the start.

Isn't that what happens on forums though.

 

[babelfisch]

It means that it's unwise to rely on such public statements though.

Nope. It doesn't mean that at all. Unless you assume they lied when they announced fleet carriers, which doesn't make any sense at all.
Rather than lying to us it would be way easier to just say nothing about FCs.

Which, as I said, would mean that FCs have been in development hell for longer than previously thought.

Previously thought? As far as I know we have absolutely no idea when development on FCs started.

 

[sollisb]

It really is no wonder that FDev refuse to provide long-term roadmap details, and as much as I find it frustrating that New Era is publicly a mystery, I am slowly becoming agreeable to their policy.

The amount of complaining and "FDev are filthy liars!" happening whenever the roadmap's few-announced details change, makes any premise of more transparency on New Era production (in full swing since Summer 2018) futile.

1. "I want more information on future updates"
2. "FDev changed their future update plans, they are liars"
3. Repeat

The 2yr+ production time of New Era, with the allocation of the large majority of the Elite devteam too, is a good gamble to see IMO. Knuckling down and focusing on a single, large expansion to dramatically improve and expand upon Elite's gameplay and content - like how Firaxis do expansions to Civilization games.

Company is what company does. How many rewrites are we on? How many cancellations?

Maybe if they had a roadmap and a decent past record I'd respect them more. For now, 'vapour ware' comes to mind.

 

[Ralph Vargr]

Colossal technical debt, secured by a car title loan, comes to mind.

 

[NeilF]

Company is what company does. How many rewrites are we on? How many cancellations?

Maybe if they had a roadmap and a decent past record I'd respect them more. For now, 'vapour ware' comes to mind.

Indeed... Too many half baked designs... Too many questionable designs (which even after second visit are not improved to any real degree)... Too many features delayed when just months away... Too little evidence of a hundred+ people working for 4-5yrs...

ED on its release was impressive. CGs and Wings were good additions. Planetary landings was astounding... And for me then little has been added of any note/worth (eg: Multicrew and CQC were total wastes of time for the game), and indeed some features have even damaged the gameplay (eg: Engineering unbalanced PvE and PvP for no logical reason)...

So I'll hope next year brings a bar raising, technically impressive update to the game... But it is just a hope for me given the past four or so years...

 

[babelfisch]

Company is what company does. How many rewrites are we on? How many cancellations?

Regarding FCs? 2.

Maybe if they had a roadmap and a decent past record I'd respect them more. For now, 'vapour ware' comes to mind.

You want a roadmap that never changes. This is why we don't have a roadmap.

 

[Viajero]

If elite feet becomes a thing, I don't expect it to become the main part of the game, unlike Star Citizen and NMS. Those two games, space legs is vital, without it, the games don't have much to offer. EDs space ship part is really pretty deep compared to those games and I suspect that elite feet will be an addition to what we can do, to expand on our adventures. Similar in some ways to the SRV but with much more gameplay available (the SRV could really do with some more).

Yeah, by definition it would be a DLC and therefore optional.

 

[VR Golgot]

If we therefore work on the premise that the Elite New Era is working to a similar timescale, then Alpha may be due to start in a couple of months, with the Beta period hitting in Summer.

Unfortunately not. They're working more to a Horizons style reveal schedule it seems:

we estimate this will be ready to talk about at some time in summer 2020, after the Fleet Carriers update.

 

[Viajero]

Looking back at the launch schedule for the original Elite Dangerous back in 2014, Alpha testing started in December 2013 with Beta starting in May, launch was in December 2014.

If we therefore work on the premise that the Elite New Era is working to a similar timescale, then Alpha may be due to start in a couple of months, with the Beta period hitting in Summer.

Given the new era is not crowdfunded like vanilla was, I would be very surprised if we have a playable beta of more than a month at most (like Horizons), nevermind the 8 months we got from Premium Beta in April 2014. Would love to be wrong though.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

My newest simple theory is that FDev initially planned to move on with Fleet Carriers, buggy as usual like all the latest updates but now where somewhat shocked how the ARX update wasn't received all too well. All I'm saying is that it's never too late to learn...

There is that other theory that they are just telling the truth.

They have decided to fix as many bugs as possible before introducing Fleet carriers, and hopefully making them even better then what they planned.

Seems like a perfectly reasonable theory to be honest.

 

[[VR] optimal_909]

FDev is at war with the fanbase?

You put it that it is their policy to ignore the ever increasing discontent - I mean, it is already quite bad if it is already a policy... but I see you are getting good at it as well, by ignoring the key points of the post.