Why ED should ignore the forums and love the silent mob (This is not about the current quality of Odyssey)

[True Phoenix]

I've had an epiphany. I was watching a utube video that Drew was casting, streaming NMS. In it there was a brief discussion about realism versus fun and it rang a bell.

Some people want absolute realism in a game or as close to realism as they can get. Others are happy to play games (not just NMS by the way) that stretch realism toward the boundary of, well, lets call it sci-fi science.

The most vocal seem to be those who suffer angst over the smallest issue or are so focused on one small element of the game that they cannot see anything beyond that point. The concentration on such minor points or a particular feature leads to an almost OCD like condition, where the person cannot move forward unless their complaint is prioritised by the community team and the Dev's to the exclusion of everything else.

Others want to play, relax, have fun and just enjoy the experience. The more laid back player can ignore small annoyances and does not feel the need to dominate the forums with discussions relating to switch placements, panel colours etc. The more relaxed players can enjoy the experience and only pop up on the forums when they find something new in-game or want to share an experience. They do not feel the need to constantly repeat the single themed but slightly reworded thread titles that abound.

Clearly this leads to a forum bias, where the more "focused" players shout much louder for their immersion needs than those who are just enjoying the galaxy. Therefore the content of the forums isn't necessarily reflective of the whole player base experience and (with the exception of the Odyssey build) should be, in the main, ignored by ED.

 

[Koma Pahu]

I think the nature of forums implies obsession over details.

I make a thread about something that jarred with me; someone comes along and says it doesn’t matter, I’m overreacting; I defend my position; someone else jumps in; before you know it, it’s now 20 pages long and I’m arguing about the minutiae on a subject that was just an irritation.

There are obsessive people, and there are also toxic elements to this community. You also see the same things being brought up again and again, but that’s certainly not OCD.

 

[amigacooke {macOS}]

I've had an epiphany. I was watching a utube video that Drew was casting, streaming NMS. In it there was a brief discussion about realism versus fun and it rang a bell.

Some people want absolute realism in a game or as close to realism as they can get. Others are happy to play games (not just NMS by the way) that stretch realism toward the boundary of, well, lets call it sci-fi science.

The most vocal seem to be those who suffer angst over the smallest issue or are so focused on one small element of the game that they cannot see anything beyond that point. The concentration on such minor points or a particular feature leads to an almost OCD like condition, where the person cannot move forward unless their complaint is prioritised by the community team and the Dev's to the exclusion of everything else.

Others want to play, relax, have fun and just enjoy the experience. The more laid back player can ignore small annoyances and does not feel the need to dominate the forums with discussions relating to switch placements, panel colours etc. The more relaxed players can enjoy the experience and only pop up on the forums when they find something new in-game or want to share an experience. They do not feel the need to constantly repeat the single themed but slightly reworded thread titles that abound.

Clearly this leads to a forum bias, where the more OCD "focused" players shout much louder for their immersion needs than those who are just enjoying the galaxy. Therefore the content of the forums isn't necessarily reflective of the whole player base experience and (with the exception of the Odyssey build) should be, in the main, ignored by ED.

Following your advice, Frontier should ignore your advice.

Quick, put it on Twitter or something.

 

[Rubbernuke]

Call me strange, but....FD did not listen to anything we said to begin with (and we got the horrific UI and other 'improvements').

So maybe....they do need to listen after all?

 

[leonardofelin]

Others want to play, relax, have fun and just enjoy the experience.

NMS was terrible at launch. The "experience" was really bad.
I did play it on PS4 when it launched. I did got some hours of it.
It took them years to fix it.
I never complained about it, but my experience was SO BAD, that I never played it again, not even after all the patches.

 

[Pigletslastand]

Call me strange, but....FD did not listen to anything we said to begin with (and we got the horrific UI and other 'improvements').

So maybe....they do need to listen after all?

Hear Hear!

 

[Old Duck]

As a prominent member and self-elected spokesman of the silent majority, I'd just like to say....

.... nothing.

 

[babelfisch]

Call me strange, but....FD did not listen to anything we said to begin with (and we got the horrific UI and other 'improvements').

So maybe....they do need to listen after all?

Let's take ship transfers as an example*. First, it resulted in even more complaining and second I am no longer sure if we picked the right choice. I voted for delayed transfers because of immersion, but I am pretty sure that I would have much more fun with the game if I could access all the modules and ships immediately. I ignore most activities because it's simply too much hassle to get the stuff I need, which is parked 200ly away. So was it right or wrong to have delayed ship transfers? Maybe there is no right and wrong for many decisions Frontier made. Apart from the lack of cockpit cats obviously, that continues to be a very bad decision.

*for anyone who doesn't know, originally they wanted to have instant transfer for modules and ships, lots of people complained, Frontier did a huge poll and delayed transfers won by a small margin

 

[PRORABBIT67]

So is not having a sense of humour. Reported.

 

[Deleted member 38366]

Looking at the past and especially the current Situation, I'd say the polar opposite is true.
We had stretches of "no feedback incorporated and none taken" Features being added, which ended up in sup-par results or even entirely failed Features.

This specific title and this specific company in unique in that it needs the feedback and help more than any other I have ever seen.
Most current issues could have been avoided if seasoned Players had been integral part of concepting phases already.

If anything, the critical feedback is commonly taken in way too late around here - if at all.
It's an extremely unusual situation but it is what it is.

 

[Far Beyond Driven]

Company has people so conditioned anyone who doesn't eat up the product and is satisfied has a mental disease.

For a game about blazing your own trail you sure seem to be following a corporate shepard. I know what color the wool is also.

 

[Navigare Necesse Est]

NMS was terrible at launch. The "experience" was really bad.
I did play it on PS4 when it launched. I did got some hours of it.
It took them years to fix it.
I never complained about it, but my experience was SO BAD, that I never played it again, not even after all the patches.

I bought it about half a year ago and I think you may find a completely new game with familiar artstyle. I really liked it and it may be worth a revisit now. But I get it. I can't bring myself to reinstall ED either. It was just to many frustrations piling up. And from the looks of it - I would still need to deal with them and FD can rather stick them up their rear.

 

[Old Duck]

Let's take ship transfers as an example*. First, it resulted in even more complaining and second I am no longer sure if we picked the right choice. I voted for delayed transfers because of immersion, but I am pretty sure that I would have much more fun with the game if I could access all the modules and ships immediately. I ignore most activities because it's simply too much hassle to get the stuff I need, which is parked 200ly away. So was it right or wrong to have delayed ship transfers? Maybe there is no right and wrong for many decisions Frontier made. Apart from the lack of cockpit cats obviously, that continues to be a very bad decision.

*for anyone who doesn't know, originally they wanted to have instant transfer for modules and ships, lots of people complained, Frontier did a huge poll and delayed transfers won by a small margin

As a prominent member and self-elected spokesman of the immersionist minority, I'd just like to say....

For me immersion is more about internal consistency than it is realism. Of course if a game aims to be realistic, then it will be the lack of realism that breaks my immersion. Magic pockets that holds tons of materials bothers me way more in Elite than it does in NMS or Skyrim, for example.

Oh, and as for those signs, it dawns on me that I could probably use 3DMigoto replace those "26 days till lunch break" signs with something less "precise", like "Station Reactor: Online". However, static signs are not what's keeping me from buying Odyssey.

 

[CMDR Von Abrahart]

The main thing that makes me GRRR is the GTA blue marker. Just some stairs / lift and a corridor maybe. I mean i can cope with magnetic boots in space in the cabin. I can ignore things that are not in game - but … that ship transition. I can forgive the SRV transition as its almost a cut scene.

 

[Ydiss]

View attachment 251667

Setting volume of car stereo to 17.

 

[Deleted member 182079]

I think Frontier should focus on those who truly love the game in its current state.

Complainers and naysayers aren't worth listening to as all they do is rain on one's parade.

 

[PRORABBIT67]

I thought it was catchy.

 

[Stikkit]

I've had an epiphany. I was watching a utube video that Drew was casting, streaming NMS. In it there was a brief discussion about realism versus fun and it rang a bell.

Some people want absolute realism in a game or as close to realism as they can get. Others are happy to play games (not just NMS by the way) that stretch realism toward the boundary of, well, lets call it sci-fi science.

The most vocal seem to be those who suffer angst over the smallest issue or are so focused on one small element of the game that they cannot see anything beyond that point. The concentration on such minor points or a particular feature leads to an almost OCD like condition, where the person cannot move forward unless their complaint is prioritised by the community team and the Dev's to the exclusion of everything else.

Others want to play, relax, have fun and just enjoy the experience. The more laid back player can ignore small annoyances and does not feel the need to dominate the forums with discussions relating to switch placements, panel colours etc. The more relaxed players can enjoy the experience and only pop up on the forums when they find something new in-game or want to share an experience. They do not feel the need to constantly repeat the single themed but slightly reworded thread titles that abound.

Clearly this leads to a forum bias, where the more OCD "focused" players shout much louder for their immersion needs than those who are just enjoying the galaxy. Therefore the content of the forums isn't necessarily reflective of the whole player base experience and (with the exception of the Odyssey build) should be, in the main, ignored by ED.

I don't agree. Launch a poorly conceived, rushed, bug ridden expansion whilst charging full ££ for it and people will complain - rightly so. Had the opposite been the case, i.e a feature complete, well polished with good performance then yes your OCD point might have carried more weight.

 

[Koma Pahu]

I don't agree. Launch a poorly conceived, rushed, bug ridden expansion whilst charging full ££ for it and people will complain - rightly so. Had the opposite been the case, i.e a feature complete, well polished with good performance then yes your OCD point might have carried more weight.

Have you seen the forums before Odyssey?

I mean, it’s not OCD but this forums does have its fair share of pedants.

 

[Stikkit]

Have you seen the forums before Odyssey?

I mean, it’s not OCD but this forums does have its fair share of pedants.

given it's timing and location in the Odyssey forum I can only presume the OP is referring to the current feedback. I'm old enough to know that most forums are full of complaints, if your product meets your expectations then you don't tend to shout about it.