This is my own little personal dilemma: I'm finding the new mechanics fun. I'm really enjoying exploring the systems in the beta. My issue is that whereas before I could easily travel 3000 lys/hr and only stop if I happened to come across an interesting sys map, NOW I'm finding my best speed of travel is around 600 lys/hr! Or about 9-10 systems per hour. That's in a 70ly Asp X. I've done several one hour sessions to time myself and I've gotten fairly good at using the FSS but my rate of travel about the galaxy will be taking a huge hit come 3.3.
I'm somewhat surprised at your findings re time. My most recent modus operandi in the live game has been to scan all ELWs and the WWs, AWs and CFTs around the primary star. Like that I maybe average some 25 systems per hour (a bit hard to be precise since I also have to take into account manual plotting & waiting for jumponium so my actual figure is less and I have adjusted it upwards to try and take these factors into account). With the new system I seem to be averaging at least 20 systems per hour if I fully scan them all but don't map anything. So really not much difference time wise. Obviously it would be a lot fewer systems if I investigated the surface features but I quickly realised that one geyser etc is not different enough from the next to be worth flying out & landing. And I've still yet to see a surface feature in ED that doesn't appear to just be tacked onto the landscape which rather destroys the appeal.
I've just started a 11,000 LY run in which I will be in "travelling" mode where I'll only stop if the FSS shows at least a WW. If it does I'll likely scan the whole system. I'm not far into it, but so far whilst it is obviously slower than just Buckyballing (which wouldn't be any slower in its pure form), it's not massively slower than my usual travelling.
The real issue for me just comes right back to the whole concept of the FSS. Functionally, I just cannot see it as anything other than a list of objects which I am being asked to click on one after the other. Needing to tune in to the right frequency and move my joystick around doesn't alter that it is just a list at heart. The FSS knows exactly where every object is and it also knows the right frequency required to tune into it. So it really is just make work for the sake of it. For the last 4 years this sort of doing something for the sake of it has systematically been removed in the name of Quality of Life improvements which is the real reason why exploration is currently so trivial (if you really want engagement, why not go back having to surface prospect to find out what mats a planet has and only gather them 1 at a time...). And now people are wetting themselves over a massive QoL degradation. I can only assume that they find the improvement in finding surface features worth it but I do wonder how long even that can last - I never once found anything live but have already got bored of them in beta.
For me, clicking on a list of objects is just clicking on a list however it is presented. And, no, that's not fun in the slightest. I actively object to the need to move my joystick around a boring screen to do that clicking which means that I have to concentrate on the game and cannot enjoy doing other things at the same time. It doesn't add anything, just takes away the chance to do something else.
Right now, I can possibly see myself continuing to explore after 3.3 drops. It all depends on whether I can think of something worth doing. But it's going to be despite the changes rather than because of them. And for those out there who think it is all about tagging systems, prepare to be annoyed - if I continue exploring, every system I visit and a much greater percentage of planets will have my name on them...
