Time for distinctions?

Wouldn't it be incredible if the Universe of Elite Dangerous started to have more distinctions for both players and the systems you visit. Wouldn't it be great if there was a genuinely massive difference between Federation systems and Imperial ones? With the Imperials being so fashionable in their clothing and their ships, why are their stations the same looking ones seen throughout the galaxy? Where are the jaw dropping space palaces that make people say "Wow, I'm in Imperial space"? And likewise the Federation could have some really scary stations that look like the Tet from Oblivion... Lol. Wouldn't it be great if there was a distinct feeling of uniqueness between the main 3 super powers?

I truly hope that one day Frontier helps to add more distinctions to Elite so that each system, or at least some major systems, have more feeling of uniqueness, as sadly sometimes after extensive play I find myself feeling that most of the systems have the same feeling from one to the other and really could do with more unique distinctions, which leads me to my next question...

Wouldn't it be great if factions mattered more? So you have a preferred system, a home system perhaps, a base of operations of sorts. Wouldn't it be great if faction rep and influence mattered more to you than mostly principle alone? Wouldn't it be great if dedication rewarded the player with more services, discounts, perhaps special commodities or modules, or even promotions much like how powerplay has some perks? Wouldn't it be great if it felt like doing missions mattered more to you more than gaining credits and influencing your faction in terms of the back ground simulation. Imagine being able to appoint players with distinctions, such a medals and titles for battling it out for hours in combat zones or carrying out other vital tasks for the factions in power.

I think it would just be great if it felt more involving so that the systems you devote most of your time to recognised your efforts more and encouraged you further than merely gaining credit or upkeeing the system faction influence at their end.

I remember a video with David Braben speaking of how he didn't just want planetary landings to be the same experience time and again only against a different background of visuals. He wanted uniqueness. Well I do think some small changes to the Fed/Imperial systems especially along with some deeper aspects to involvement with factions could broaden the overall experience.

Anyways. I haven't thought this out too much, but what do you guys want to see in future?
 
Last edited:
"Wouldn't it be great...?" is not the right question to ask.

"Is it feasible?", "How much resources does it need?", "How big would the asset download be?", "How long would it take?", "What's the cost vs gains ratio?" These are the more relevant questions.

Sure, it would be great, alas, it's not going to appear in a very long time. Dreams are cheap. Reality isn't.
 
The "problem" with having very unique federation/imperial stations is that they can change hands.

So we'd end up with federal stations with an imperial look. Lol

But other than that minor detail, I'd love more obvious distinction between the major factions. :)

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead
 
Then missions for remodelling could be issued. Lol. Get rid of these marble pillars, they offend me. Lol.

Could you imagine pirate faction stations having those rugged looking spikes and stuff like the ship packs. Haha.
 
OP, WHAT? There ARE massive and clear differences between Federation and Empire systems.

Haven't you seen those two massive-great signs that say "Bask in Her Glory" and "Hail the Emperor" above and below the toaster rack?

SMH.
 
The "problem" with having very unique federation/imperial stations is that they can change hands.

So we'd end up with federal stations with an imperial look. Lol

But other than that minor detail, I'd love more obvious distinction between the major factions. :)

CMDR Cosmic Spacehead

Don't see what's wrong with that. When Rome conquered Egypt, they didn't knock down the pyramids. Maybe new builds would be in the style of the controlling faction. You'd get a sense of history in systems with a mixture of styles, since that means it's changed hands at some point.

However, though I think it's a good idea, there are probably more important things they could spend resources on.
 
Don't see what's wrong with that. When Rome conquered Egypt, they didn't knock down the pyramids. Maybe new builds would be in the style of the controlling faction. You'd get a sense of history in systems with a mixture of styles, since that means it's changed hands at some point.

However, though I think it's a good idea, there are probably more important things they could spend resources on.

Definitely liking the concept of history there. I think these changes would be quite small on the grand scheme of Elite's development, considering we do eventually expect their to be atmospheric worlds with forests, caves, cities, etc. These were concepts put forth by Braben himself, so I truly hope that their development team can eventually offer all of these things. So as far as at least designing a few different stations exteriors and interiors, I'd hope this wouldn't be too taxing on the team.

I would love distinctions and I certainly do hope more substance is injected into your commitment and involvement with systems in their own right.
 
Last edited:
A compromise would be some kind of station-kits. Fancy streamline stuff to add for Imperial station, and pragmatic propaganda for Federal stations. That way the station model wouldn't have to change, but just the fluff added to it.
How easily that could be implemented is another thing entirely though.
 
OP, WHAT? There ARE massive and clear differences between Federation and Empire systems.

Haven't you seen those two massive-great signs that say "Bask in Her Glory" and "Hail the Emperor" above and below the toaster rack?

SMH.


And don't forget the music score that changes when you jump into the destination system. It's unique for the factions - for the most part. That's massive work right there! :rolleyes:

The game is very 'samey' and probably one of its biggest issues. So many things are cut'n'paste or cut'n'paste'reskin. It really would have been great to see big differences between faction systems. Even if they had limited certain station types only to certain factions that would have helped.
 
Last edited:
That was supposed to be the deal when we got planetary landings. Imperial settlements were going to look all sleek and radial while federation cities would be more angular and blade runner bleak chique. Anyone got that concept art of an imperial city made out of concentric circular buildings? I guess it got dropped along the way when they couldn't reconcile it with the amount of art assets needed and systems changing ownership as mentioned.
 
I couldn't care about the appearance of stations - they all look like the same menus to me.

I don't disagree though - something to make one power different from another would be nice, I just don't know what that something might be.
 
It would be good if there was distinction to Anarchy systems too. Enter at your own risk! It would be a good system to reintroduce the psychos - NPC's that used to interdict and attack you immediately to the words "hahahahahahahahaha"). Then again the real life gankers play that role. Lol
 
Back
Top Bottom