What do you think of Odyssey as an Explorer?

[Martin Shepard]

Hi there,

as the newest gameplay trailer was just released by Frontier, I wanted to know what you think of Odyssey as an explorer?
Personally I'm a bit afraid of what it will do to the game. I'm afraid that it will attract people that don't "fit" in the existing community or that the community will change to the worse as there will be more people who usually play shooters instead of people who play Elite because of its galaxy. And we know from other games that the communities of shooters are mostly more toxic than the others.
Personally I will not use the shooter part as it's nothing of interest for me. I play Elite solely as explorer and therefore I'm only interested in the atmospheric landings. I'm afraid this expansion will change the character of the game and the character of the community. I hope that we explorers will remain as we are now cause I like how we stick together and help each other. But I think we will lose even more status in comparison to the rest of the community.

So what are your thoughts?

CMDR Martin Shepard

 

[Florenus]

Hi there,

as the newest gameplay trailer was just released by Frontier, I wanted to know what you think of Odyssey as an explorer?
Personally I'm a bit afraid of what it will do to the game. I'm afraid that it will attract people that don't "fit" in the existing community or that the community will change to the worse as there will be more people who usually play shooters instead of people who play Elite because of its galaxy. And we now from other games that the communities of shooters are mostly more toxic than the others.
Personally I will not use the shooter part as it's nothing of interest for me. I play Elite solely as explorer and therefore I'm only interested in the atmospheric landings. I'm afraid this expansion will change the character of the game and the character of the community. I hope that we explorers will remain as we are now cause I like how we stick together and help each other. But I think we will lose even more status in comparison to the rest of the community.

So what are your thoughts?

CMDR Martin Shepard

I'm excited - can't wait to visit new planets on foot.
We have plenty of people who play shooters already and we have game modes to keep them away, so nothing to be concerned about, really.

 

[Linnunrata]

I'm afraid that it will attract people that don't "fit" in the existing community or that the community will change to the worse as there will be more people who usually play shooters instead of people who play Elite because of its galaxy. And we now from other games that the communities of shooters are mostly more toxic than the others.

I wouldn't be too worried about this. I doubt Odyssey FPS side will stand out solely as a shooter that can compete with dedicated franchises of FPSes when it comes to player group that is mainly interested about pew pew.

 

[Muetdhiver]

To me it really depends on what gameplay loops it will add exploration wise.

If all it adds for exploration is sightseeing and picking up materials by hand, I think it'll rank as "mostly useless"

OTOH, if it brings interesting new gameplay like exploring caves, EVA repairs and clues for exploration themed puzzles to solve, then yeah
Odyssey could turn fantastic for exploration. Here is the stuff I would see as interesting exploration related gameplay :

1) Module complications/issues requiring EVA repairs. Stuff like getting space amobea in the cooling water after visiting a bio site planetside, or a metal eating fungus causing havoc after visiting a notable stellar phenomenon

2) Cave exploration and cliff rappelling, with interesting things to discover. Maybe just sample, maybe some predator for your amobea problem.

3) EVA exploration of hollow asteroids and notable phenomemons like the stygian hearts and others.

4) Breadcrumb/puzzles leading to exploration themed SOI. It would be amazing if you had puzzles leading to guardian ruins, clue trails leading to a missing generation ship or a notable stellar phenomenons. This would help make exploring feel more like discovering new things and solving mysteries, rather than the touristy vibe I get now.

I will say that exploration is a lot of time spent in loading screens, scooping and FSS. More invectives to go planetside at a few locations in depth would help a lot.

However, since I have seen nothing of the sort in the reveal my expectation is it to rank "mostly useless" for exploration.

 

[Zieman]

What do you think of Odyssey as an Explorer?
I just hope it doesn't disturb my current exploration project too much.

 

[Linnunrata]

IMO, the new planetary surface generation and inclusion of tenuous atmo planets will probably make Odyssey "worth it" anyway, even if you disregard the parts not related to exploration. Not terribly hyped about scanning planetside space mushrooms on foot, but we'll see.

 

[Hellrider]

I can say 1 thing.
I don't play DCS for taxi driving.
I don't play in games about warships for infrantry skirmishes.
I don't play in total wars for submarines.
I don't play in space sim for fps.
But easy, fps isn't only 1 thing with odyssey
But yes, I'm afraid too, that this stuff can attract people, which change community "in -".

 

[goemon]

I'm very flashed by the lightning on tennous atmospheric planets, as well as the surfaces, especially the icy ones.
Plus love the brief moment of a human figure next to a cobra.
So, for me exploring, that kind of opening up more bodies to land on, and more spectacular views is well worth it.
I can understand people asking for exploration gameplay in a gameplay trailer - but for my style of exploring (going somewhere and finding interesting looking things on the way) this short video looks promising.

 

[TruthSeeker]

 

[Rock-Hermit]

There's very little for explorers. But that's always been the case when a major update comes along, exploration is always last to get updates and content.

I like the look of the new planets but those will become boring very quickly, like they did on Horizons. There has to be more to exploring planets than looking for fauna. We've already done that gameplay loop with the Codex stuff on airless worlds.

 

[Deleted member 38366]

With so little info at the moment, there's only a few things I can think of :

• Planet Surfaces (classic no Atmo and the new minimal Atmo) should look more interesting, both from Orbit and on the Ground
• new Bios (Plants, supposedly also some more alive stuff, possibly mobile)... depends on how those are detected and how much time it takes. Plus, will it be only few types in a dozen different colors, artificially and digitally separated by Galactic Sector borders - or will there be sufficient variation to be of interest. distributed organically.
• the new 3rd discovery tag (boots on the ground)... I just hope that tag isn't just for setting foot (zero skill/activity) but at least involves taking some samples or something
• Codex.... could be a big thing if they finally fixed/recoded everything. IF. Otherwise, we'll see the same-old "standing in front of something new - but the scanners don't do anything" lol
• Mat gathering... given Suits can be engineered, I fully expect a "2.0 Engineers - redux" moment, with a whole new family of salvage/looting options to fill up the Mat stocks

If anything, they should be hellbent on avoiding a repeat of the original "Horizons paradox".
Tons of new Planets you could land on - but almost no Gameplay reason to ever do so in 99.999% of all cases.

PS.
Alpha/Beta Testing will have to reveal if Explorers in Deep Space can maintain station there at Odyssey Release - or are better off being near the bubble/Colonia in order to purchase/equip/engineer their stuff first before getting back out there.

 

[Linnunrata]

If anything, they should be hellbent on avoiding a repeat of the original "Horizons paradox".
Tons of new Planets you could land on - but almost to Gameplay reason to ever do so in 99.999% of all cases.

Yeah, agreed. Might be difficult though.
Pretty common theme in exploration really, like how there's no tangible gameplay reason in exploration to ever travel very far from the bubble.

 

[goemon]

I'm afraid this expansion will change the character of the game and the character of the community.

generally, no matter which new influx of, i always have experienced it as something positive. whether that was xbox, ps4, or recently epic. of those coming to the game fresh, around the same percentage gets bitten by the exploration bug.
i don't think it will be much different with this.

 

[Martin Shepard]

of those coming to the game fresh, around the same percentage gets bitten by the exploration bug.

Really? In the german community really really few people are interested in exploration. The new ones mostly only do that so that they can say "they have done that". But "new explorers getting born".. hm.. I can't say that from the German community :/

 

[CMDR Yates]

Hi there,

as the newest gameplay trailer was just released by Frontier, I wanted to know what you think of Odyssey as an explorer?
Personally I'm a bit afraid of what it will do to the game. I'm afraid that it will attract people that don't "fit" in the existing community or that the community will change to the worse as there will be more people who usually play shooters instead of people who play Elite because of its galaxy. And we know from other games that the communities of shooters are mostly more toxic than the others.
Personally I will not use the shooter part as it's nothing of interest for me. I play Elite solely as explorer and therefore I'm only interested in the atmospheric landings. I'm afraid this expansion will change the character of the game and the character of the community. I hope that we explorers will remain as we are now cause I like how we stick together and help each other. But I think we will lose even more status in comparison to the rest of the community.

So what are your thoughts?

CMDR Martin Shepard

I'm not worried. I'm not particularly attached to the character of the community as it stands and sometimes feel it could probably benefit from the injection of fresh blood and perspectives.

Having said that, I have to admit to being a little bit of a loner in the game. I mostly play in open for the danger and the fuller backdrop, but don't actively seek to mix with other players in the game.

I think a lot of people, especially explorers, are like that. I'm probably in a slight minority in that I play alone but also sometimes post on the forums. I suspect exploration is an activity that (with some fairly large exceptions -- expeditions, people who wouldn't normally do exploration but dabble with friends, etc.) tends to attract lone wolves who aren't that fussed about "the community", and there's a selection bias where people in "the community" only interact with a minority subset of explorers who are interested in socialising in the game and on social media.

I don't have the figures to prove this, of course. I wonder if FDev do.

More players will mean more explorers, more explorers will mean more of that minority subset of explorers who are into the social side.

 

[goemon]

Really? In the german community really really few people are interested in exploration. The new ones mostly only do that so that they can say "they have done that". But "new explorers getting born".. hm.. I can't say that from the German community :/

well - i obviously have a restricted perspective as you
but when xbox went live, quickly the first xbox exploration groups happened.
i signed up for a very well organized expedition recently - by a ps4 commander (who does not exclude pc players like me).
i think, due to this subforum being as great as it is, we tend to overestimate the relative numbers of explorers.
but i expect 0,5-2% of new players sticking to exploration at the end.
and i'm looking forward to them.

 

[Martin Shepard]

I'm not worried. I'm not particularly attached to the character of the community as it stands and sometimes feel it could probably benefit from the injection of fresh blood and perspectives.

Having said that, I have to admit to being a little bit of a loner in the game. I mostly play in open for the danger and the fuller backdrop, but don't actively seek to mix with other players in the game.

I think a lot of people, especially explorers, are like that. I'm probably in a slight minority in that I play alone but also sometimes post on the forums. I suspect exploration is an activity that (with some fairly large exceptions -- expeditions, people who wouldn't normally do exploration but dabble with friends, etc.) tends to attract lone wolves who aren't that fussed about "the community", and there's a selection bias where people in "the community" only interact with a minority subset of explorers who are interested in socialising in the game and on social media.

I don't have the figures to prove this, of course. I wonder if FDev do.

More players will mean more explorers, more explorers will mean more of that minority subset of explorers who are into the social side.

I play the game the exact same way like you. I play all alone. For me the community as an explorer exists outside the game. When i say "community" I mean this forum, Inara, EDSM and Facebook groups. The last mentioned showed that due to the launch on Epic there were some players that you don't want to have in this game (insulting others, thinking they know more than the others while only being few days in the game etc.). Maybe my fear rises from those experiences.

 

[Deleted member 38366]

I play the game the exact same way like you. I play all alone. For me the community as an explorer exists outside the game. When i say "community" I mean this forum, Inara, EDSM and Facebook groups. The last mentioned showed that due to the launch on Epic there were some players that you don't want to have in this game (insulting others, thinking they know more than the others while only being few days in the game etc.). Maybe my fear rises from those experiences.

IMHO Exploration (prolonged, long-term) is one of the very few end-game Professions.
Only the BGS (and for a very few maybe PowerPlay) offers similar open-ended Gameplay. IF you're willing to start living in BGS cycles and being a slave to a never-stopping factory conveyor belt that expects your Inputs every day.

So when it comes to new people joining in, I believe we'll only see after several months (the earliest) how many of these pick and stick to Exploration.
During the first weeks and months, I personally see most of these guys earning Credits and doing Mining, Trading and PewPew in the bubble - and primarily learning along the way.

Might be just me - but to me most of the dedicated Explorers seem "oldfarts". People who've either made a very distinct choice - or who've already seen it all and do the only thing left to do.

 

[CMDR Yates]

I play the game the exact same way like you. I play all alone. For me the community as an explorer exists outside the game. When i say "community" I mean this forum, Inara, EDSM and Facebook groups. The last mentioned showed that due to the launch on Epic there were some players that you don't want to have in this game (insulting others, thinking they know more than the others while only being few days in the game etc.). Maybe my fear rises from those experiences.

I think there's always been a sizeable chunk of miserable so-and-sos in the Elite community. It's maybe a slightly different flavour than you get in some other games, it's fewer outright insults and slurs, and more sneering, ingroupiness and pompous sarcasm.

I've lost count of the number of times a new player, for example, has asked a genuine question and the first page of replies is all folk going "Ummm... I think you'll find...", and making in-jokes and sideways put-downs instead of just answering the question. Just as toxic IMO. (I always picture Comic Book Guy from The Simpsons).

Epic may have brought a few more outright, overt idiots, but I don't think those types stick around long in a game like Elite.

 

[Martin Shepard]

IMHO Exploration (prolonged, long-term) is one of the very few end-game Professions.

For me, I started exploring after 25 hours in the game
But okay, I knew that I'll do that before I started the game.