Travel Needs to be Fun and Engaging

Blackcompany

Banned
B
For non combat pilots, half the game - if not more - is spent looking at loading screens. There's nothing either fun, or engaging, about that.

Simply put, Travel needs to be more fun and engaging. I don't know how to accomplish that while maintaining a sense of scale; I won't claim otherwise. But then, I'm not a dev, I'm a customer who finds literally half this game tedious.

And I'm not alone.

Now maybe the answer is the same one we all get every time we bring up a glaring flaw: this isn't the game for you.

But I've now heard that this isn't the game for people who:

-Dont like empty grind
-dont like tons of loading screens
-Dont have boatloads of time
-Dont like forced combat on every mission
-Dont like lots of time alt+tabbing to find info that should be in the game
-Dont like annoying puzzles to arbitrarily inflate time spent on story content

Be careful how many more demographics you turn away; there aren't many left...

I don't know what the fix is. But I do know people have TONS of games to play. And I don't see a lot of them spending time on a game where - literally - half the game is spent watching a loading screen.

I don't pretend to have the answer. But I DO know that, in the 21st century, forcing players to spend 50℅ of their time in a game looking at loading screens is completely unacceptable.

Edit: if possible, I recommend the following:

-Preload new systems. Start as soon as my FSD begins charging. You can always unload if I cancel the jump. REDUCE THE LOAD TIME OF JUMPS.

-Double acceleration rates in Supercruise. Even triple them.

-Greatly reduce or even eliminate the range at which forced deceleration due to celestial bodies occurs

-Introduce intra-system jumps to large gas giants and stars

-Double the base jump range of all ships as a starting point. Then calculate bonuses from the new base. This matters evenote with Colonia being a thing now.

-Give all players option to use this new, more Arcade type travel, or the current, slower system. Money where the mouth is, and all that.

Look. I know space is big. But FREE TIME isn't. And neither is Disposable Income. I want Elite to succeed, but one of the primary complaints ALL IVER the web, is travel time.

You can't sell loading screens. They dont market well.
 
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Aussiedroid

Aussiedroid
Eye Spy? (sorry I couldn't help myself lol)

Personally, I like that these things take time, it is one of the things that make the game feel unique. Your tedium is my enjoyment it seems. Game like ED should not cater for all player types .. it will become generic as with 99% of the games on the market these days.

Loading screens do not take that much time (always room for improvement tho), and probably only count for less that 5% of actual time realistically. You must be exaggerating right, else I would contact support as there may be something wrong on your connection? I am connecting from Australia too and other than the occasional lag out where the load screen make take 30secs between systems, it is normally quick-ish.

Could there be other 'things' going on when travelling? Sure, more content would be cool outside of the mandatory interdiction each system or dropping into a USS, but should remain flexible/optional not to turn back into the chain-interdiction issues we had last year.
 

DrNoesis

DrNoesis
I'm an explorer, I've seen a reasonable amount of the galaxy, much more than some, much less than others.
Yeah the time spent in witchspace can get tedious at times, and it would be nice to have a little variety every now and again, but here's the rub.... I also really like the lack of demand that long distance travel requires.
A couple of thousand light years for me is a chance to watch a streamer, chat with friends or catch up with a series I like on Netflix. It's "me" time where I can sit and think undisturbed, unless I want to be and where the only timeframe I need to worry about is my own.
Be careful what you wish for, they say, and in this case most definitely. Exploration and long distance travel is the one place in the game where you can unwind and take your time, and however you spice it up, you need to do it in a way that doesn't decimate a gameplay style that many of us, at times, prefer to be as bland and unspicey as possible.

I'm not saying that you're wrong to want to change it. Like I said, I've had times where the number of jumps to get to someplace interesting has seemed pretty daunting...I could have done with some means of either getting back automatically, or getting somewhere more interesting more quickly. But that's only every now and again, and the rest of the time I just want to drift on between the stars without worrying when the next npc or random encounter is going to bring that peace to and abrupt, firey end.
 

Cosmo

Cosmo
Eve Online also has long travel times, but they have auto-pilot. So I support auto-pilot cause that makes it much more convenient. Players still need to pay attention, because they could get interdicted or enter a neutron star. Also multi-crew with interactive NPCs and walking inside ships will make space travel more fun. Frontier has to make this a top priority.
 
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Bryan K

Bryan K
I don't mind the time, it's the monotony that gets to me the most. If diverting to an out of the way neutron star costs me an extra 15 minutes but cuts one jump off my trip, I'll do it without a second thought. It's okay that travelling a great distance should take a long time, but it doesn't have to be so unbelievably boring.

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the majority of the jump screen time is unnecessary because all the assets load in a couple of seconds. The rest is just for effect.

- - - Updated - - -

DrNoesis said:
A couple of thousand light years for me is a chance to watch a streamer, chat with friends or catch up with a series I like on Netflix. It's "me" time where I can sit and think undisturbed, unless I want to be and where the only timeframe I need to worry about is my own.
Click to expand...

Right, and for all the people who play in VR? We can't do that. In fact, we can't really take the headset off at all because the controls get disabled when we do so. We can't look away from the jump screen. And once you've played in VR for a reasonable amount of time, you can't go back to playing on a monitor. It's too confining and claustrophobic.
 

Cmdr Hobgoblin

C
Cosmo said:
Eve Online also has long travel times, but they have auto-pilot. .
Click to expand...

The difference there is though, that you take a great risk by using it.
And it is a death sentence if you didn't tell auto-pilot to avoid low sec.
It also takes a lot longer.
 
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Blackcompany

Banned
B
Aussiedroid said:
Eye Spy? (sorry I couldn't help myself lol)

Personally, I like that these things take time, it is one of the things that make the game feel unique. Your tedium is my enjoyment it seems. Game like ED should not cater for all player types .. it will become generic as with 99% of the games on the market these days.

Loading screens do not take that much time (always room for improvement tho), and probably only count for less that 5% of actual time realistically. You must be exaggerating right, else I would contact support as there may be something wrong on your connection? I am connecting from Australia too and other than the occasional lag out where the load screen make take 30secs between systems, it is normally quick-ish.

Could there be other 'things' going on when travelling? Sure, more content would be cool outside of the mandatory interdiction each system or dropping into a USS, but should remain flexible/optional not to turn back into the chain-interdiction issues we had last year.
Click to expand...

DrNoesis said:
I'm an explorer, I've seen a reasonable amount of the galaxy, much more than some, much less than others.
Yeah the time spent in witchspace can get tedious at times, and it would be nice to have a little variety every now and again, but here's the rub.... I also really like the lack of demand that long distance travel requires.
A couple of thousand light years for me is a chance to watch a streamer, chat with friends or catch up with a series I like on Netflix. It's "me" time where I can sit and think undisturbed, unless I want to be and where the only timeframe I need to worry about is my own.
Be careful what you wish for, they say, and in this case most definitely. Exploration and long distance travel is the one place in the game where you can unwind and take your time, and however you spice it up, you need to do it in a way that doesn't decimate a gameplay style that many of us, at times, prefer to be as bland and unspicey as possible.

I'm not saying that you're wrong to want to change it. Like I said, I've had times where the number of jumps to get to someplace interesting has seemed pretty daunting...I could have done with some means of either getting back automatically, or getting somewhere more interesting more quickly. But that's only every now and again, and the rest of the time I just want to drift on between the stars without worrying when the next npc or random encounter is going to bring that peace to and abrupt, firey end.
Click to expand...

I get that some folks like this. I play Euro truck to relax in similar fashion. The difference though is that I at least get to drive my truck. In Elite, I watch my ship more than fly it. Literally.

If Elite were a single player, offline game, I would just mod it. You play your way. I play mine. No harm, no foul.

But it's not. FDev chose (wrongly) to create a massive online game. That game needs funding. Which means players. And you aren't going to get them selling loading screens.

- - - Updated - - -

Another thought: the TEDIUM of travel. As someone else said, it's not even the time, it's the sheer, repetitive TEDIUM of travel. There's literally nothing to do BUT watch.

This needs to change. Soon. There's no reason so much of the game is spent watching.

I suggest autopilot, as in EVE. It's more methodical, do, a tad slower. It will not scoop, so, manual flight is still required occasionally.

Then, add in flight crafting. Once we visit an Engineer, let us LEARN the recipe, and craft it while flying. Continually travelling to Engineers is nothing more than a time sink, period, and we do not need more of those.

And I have no idea why I keep quoting people. Forum issue?
 
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Cosmo

Cosmo
Cmdr Hobgoblin said:
The difference there is though, that you take a great risk by using it.
And it is a death sentence if you didn't tell auto-pilot to avoid low sec.
It also takes a lot longer.
Click to expand...

Yes, it's still better than no auto-pilot. All ships should have it in the year 3303.
 
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DrNoesis

DrNoesis
Bryan K said:
Right, and for all the people who play in VR? We can't do that. In fact, we can't really take the headset off at all because the controls get disabled when we do so. We can't look away from the jump screen. And once you've played in VR for a reasonable amount of time, you can't go back to playing on a monitor. It's too confining and claustrophobic.
Click to expand...

It's your choice to play in VR, just as its mine to play out of it. You've chosen an interface designed to increase immersion, whilst I enjoy the exact opposite, where I can unfocus and take in a wider range of input. Neither choice is anymore valid than any other, but that also means that any design decision made to alter the travel dynamic should be mindful of that very fact and not show bias between the two.
As I said, there does need to be something there to make it more interesting for those that need something more involved to do, but nothing should be implemented in such a way that those of us who don't need or want to interact with it are forced to do so unwillingly.
When you're talking about changing the mechanisms behind an entire playstyle, you need to be even more careful and considered than normal, so that in an effort to be more inclusive to people who struggle with it as it is, you don't simply alienate all the people that were happy with it in the first place.
 

Gunnet

G
Elite is performing well without fast travel. I fear that introducing it would drive away the people who want the kind of immersive experience it currently offers without drawing in and satisfying players who want instant gratification or constant action. At some point you've got to pick which group you're going to cater to, and it's too late to turn Elite into the kind of game which suits fast travel.

Eliminating the forced deceleration from being near celestial bodies would be hilarious though. I can already see the flood of posts complaining about crashing into things at 1000c.
 

Jabezz

J
You will not get much support for any form of auto pilot for long distance travel on this forum, only the usual derision like "why not have the ship Auto combat also", you know because long distance travel takes so much skill right?

To back this up there was a poll several months ago which unfortunately did support the 'no auto pilot' squad. It baffles me why folk are so against it. Ok I can understand that some want to suspend reality and get immersed in the full tedium of the travel but any auto pilot feature would not be mandatory, it would be fully optional as is the docking computer. If you choose not to use it it has no effect on your game whatsoever, unless the knowledge of other players using it really chaps your butt.

The weird thing about the poll was that there was another poll at the same time asking if NPC crew members should be allowed to pilot the ship long distance when that feature comes out in a future update, that got the thumbs up. What's the difference?

Anyway I'm not too fussed about the current state of in system travel in supercruise I think it's about right, but yeah interstellar is as boring as hell. Surely if no autopilot then the loading screens can be drastically streamlined at least? Star hopping and planetary landings are pure tedium due to these loading screens.
 
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