The Compromise to End All Compromises - Exploration Scanner Edition
- Thread starter Ziljan
- Start date
It is called "recap" for good reason. It is not really a proposal. Fundamentally changes will stay. People who will learn to addapt will.
As for "splitting up community" and people "leaving in large numbers" please. Without seeing actual mechanic in beta? LOL no.
Jeez, people really do have a tendency to go overboard with conclusions when they have too much time.
And too little info.
Define changes. Small changes yes. Redesigns - not a chance.
Changes as in this thread's OP.
Genuinely didn't know; most updates have not affected me very much or else I've liked/tolerated them well enough.
OP changes aren't possible because they would require to keep two conflicting mechanics for no good reason. No developer would do that.
Some details between - sure. But it seems fundamentals are pretty much ironed out both design and code wise. Anyway, I am as knowing as any others here but yeah, nothing has convinced me so far FD will walk back on planetary discovery mechanic.
This is all very true, but at the same time we have Plasma Accelerators and Rail Guns and Fletchet Launchers in the same game too. These all have very different ways doing different types of damage and that doesn't even take into account the complexity of engineering effects!
This is also a form of "splitting the code". Yet for the two sets of scanners Old and New, the highest end result is basically the same: a Level 3 scanned system map.
Anyway, I am not going to push too hard for the OP compromise if people don't like it. I just would like it if for once we have an end result where the devs design could enter the game purely, without any half baked compromises that gutted the spirit of the initial design completely. If they try to form some hybrid of the old and new system, it will be very difficult to reconcile them without ruining either the sense or mystery or the active filtering mechanic or both.
As a coder myself I see many games , as other software, suffer from the "gamer fallacy" . The belief that because one pays for something he or she becomes the boss of it. Its a byproduct of the fallacy of "customer is always right".
In practice "reality is always right" and the reality of coding is that maintaining code is hard, very hard. For people that are not coders , coding is all about adding features but for us coders coding is as much as adding as it is about removing stuff. Code is a bit like a star that if it reaches a critical mass it becomes a black hole, in the case of coding keeping stuff around creates a black hole that sucks time and pretty much every potential future cool feature because the coder is too busy maintaining the huge old code.
So no, I am afraid something will have to go.
The coding God needs his sacrifice and he is too busy for a diplomatic middle ground or a comprise. He never compromises.
In practice "reality is always right" and the reality of coding is that maintaining code is hard, very hard. For people that are not coders , coding is all about adding features but for us coders coding is as much as adding as it is about removing stuff. Code is a bit like a star that if it reaches a critical mass it becomes a black hole, in the case of coding keeping stuff around creates a black hole that sucks time and pretty much every potential future cool feature because the coder is too busy maintaining the huge old code.
So no, I am afraid something will have to go.
The coding God needs his sacrifice and he is too busy for a diplomatic middle ground or a comprise. He never compromises.
I really like your proposals, but doubt Frontier can or will deviate from their grand plan. I just wonder why it never occurred to them that their new system would need at least more than a tiny reveal and that perhaps it would worry more than one or two players.
My suggestion is simply put Netflix in one of the system panels!
I like your suggestion @Ziljan.
I made a similar suggestion in the original thread but made the two modes - old and new - switchable in the right-hand panel.
Whilst the new proposal looks interesting, my main concern is that the waveform mini-game may get boring after 100 systems or so especially if, like me, you enjoy flying a space ship around a system.
I made a similar suggestion in the original thread but made the two modes - old and new - switchable in the right-hand panel.
Whilst the new proposal looks interesting, my main concern is that the waveform mini-game may get boring after 100 systems or so especially if, like me, you enjoy flying a space ship around a system.
Changes always worry some people. That's how life basically works. If FF were any evidence people always think they have more leeveway and influence on development than they realize. This causes unnecessary friction. Still, happy FD published ot because I was just curious.
But they won't forbid flying around in system. Why would they do that?
I quite like the idea of different types of scanning devices that achieve things in different ways. It could be devised in such a way that engineering paths are wildly different between each module, leading to fun choices.
But this though:
If the new scanning tools are an optional module type then no special options to obtain one should be given.
But this though:
If the new scanning tools are an optional module type then no special options to obtain one should be given.
You got to be fair and stop trying to stereotype
Excellent post,but will it happen ? Don't know
FD do have a history of listening to us(and not so much other times)
1. Initially HS and SC each had their own bindings
2. Then those 2 functions were combined in to one binding which auto selected HS or SC.
3. Community complained that if target is occluded they couldn't SC past the blockage as the combined binding wouldn't work unless you deselected target first.
4. Solution : FD released 3 binds, HS, SC and Combo bind.
They do listen...sometimes
I honestly don't care as long as what replaces the existing, is actually enjoyable to use after visiting the next 2.8% of planets being explored, really. I honestly have given up caring how. How doesn't even matter anymore because Frontier is just gonna do what they think is da wae and we just have to live with it and da wae probably won't be based on Frontier's endless time in game.
Just, can it be repeated for more than 2.8% of targets before I just want to walk into the sea.. please? That's all I ask. Don't make me hate it. I'm tired of hating things because they have to be done a billion times and there's no respite beyond not playing.
Just, can it be repeated for more than 2.8% of targets before I just want to walk into the sea.. please? That's all I ask. Don't make me hate it. I'm tired of hating things because they have to be done a billion times and there's no respite beyond not playing.
No, they obviously won't stop you flying around in systems, and you will need to fly to launch probes from the DSS.
However, if there is no need to launch probes then exploration will turn into Jump, Mini-Game, Jump, Mini-Game, Jump, Mini-Game, Jump, Mini-Game... etc. with little to no flying.
Here's another thought to chew over. So I posted this elsewhere ...
So how about the idea of an additional upgrade, could be a better, more expensive ADS, could be an engineer upgrade, Guardian mod' or perhaps an additional module akin to the docking computer, but basically something which automatically does the scanning for you. So, we stick with the new DS mechanic FD have proposed but, if you have this upgrade, then you can engage it (or perhaps simpy leave it turned on) and, when you honk it begins scanning for you and, when complete (signalled by an audio cue) it basically gives you what the old system gave you but without the need for you to manually switch to the new scanning interface. I'm not sure how long it would need to take (that could be tweaked by enginerering) or how complete or accurate its final results would be (perhaps there'd be the option to go into the new scanning interface and fine tune the results of the auto-scan) but the more I think about this idea the more I like it!
So how about the idea of an additional upgrade, could be a better, more expensive ADS, could be an engineer upgrade, Guardian mod' or perhaps an additional module akin to the docking computer, but basically something which automatically does the scanning for you. So, we stick with the new DS mechanic FD have proposed but, if you have this upgrade, then you can engage it (or perhaps simpy leave it turned on) and, when you honk it begins scanning for you and, when complete (signalled by an audio cue) it basically gives you what the old system gave you but without the need for you to manually switch to the new scanning interface. I'm not sure how long it would need to take (that could be tweaked by enginerering) or how complete or accurate its final results would be (perhaps there'd be the option to go into the new scanning interface and fine tune the results of the auto-scan) but the more I think about this idea the more I like it!
Just going to speak for myself here.
I like the sound of the new exploration mechanics. They would incorporate nicely in how I explore at the moment. Except for one thing, not knowing the lay out of the system.
The proposal talks about compromises, but I feel there is a way where the lay out of the system can be displayed to me without giving away too much about the other aspects of the system. These still have to be worked out through the new mechanics. In that regard, and I'll repeat, for me personally, that's not a compromise but it enriches the experience. Because knowing there's something in the system you like to investigate is not the same as revealing that something to investigate. It's just an incentive. The thought that goes along with this is: "Hmmm, that's interesting. I wonder what's going on here". The "wonder" part is important there. There's no complete picture.
In that regard, I don't feel that is a compromise, since nothing is taken from the intent of the new system.
I like the sound of the new exploration mechanics. They would incorporate nicely in how I explore at the moment. Except for one thing, not knowing the lay out of the system.
The proposal talks about compromises, but I feel there is a way where the lay out of the system can be displayed to me without giving away too much about the other aspects of the system. These still have to be worked out through the new mechanics. In that regard, and I'll repeat, for me personally, that's not a compromise but it enriches the experience. Because knowing there's something in the system you like to investigate is not the same as revealing that something to investigate. It's just an incentive. The thought that goes along with this is: "Hmmm, that's interesting. I wonder what's going on here". The "wonder" part is important there. There's no complete picture.
In that regard, I don't feel that is a compromise, since nothing is taken from the intent of the new system.
The ADS was never the real issue IMO. We just need to agree on a comprise of what it can "reveal" quickly, then we can get into the DSS meat and potatoes of the real discovery fun and hope FD can deliver on making that fun (not hard considering the current DSS gameplay is a void of nothingness).