Absolutely NO to new ranks. Not just because of the contradiction of decades old established lore, but because by the time you get to the current maximum in game, you've already drained almost every drop of fun from it. Making players do the same old content for hundreds more hours just feels like a punishment now, rather than a pleasure. And currently the game literally will punish you for engaging in the current "end game"; I've got a fleet carrier, if I don't grind to pay its rent, it gets scrapped and I lose part of the fortune I invested.
Raising the Rank levels also pushes you backwards comparitively to where you once felt you were too. It is devaluing the invested time you already put in, and asking you to repeat it again. I actually have come to resent the game now, after buying a fleet carrier; I feel equally disconnected at the idea that the gameplay loops I once thought I was done with will now have the clock reset on them.
And it reveals the huge gamble FDev have taken; I can see the spreadsheet logic behind it... space sim fans have had no content for years, likely will not be getting any until Odyssey is firmly settled in, so at least extend the rank grind until then... But what if Odyssey bombs too? Quite apart from the shonky state it's in during Alpha, I personally just can't see the appeal of a sub-par FPS whose only purpose is to grind a sub-par FPS to unlock engineering for weapons to keep playing a sub-par FPS. Where's the integration into the wider game universe? People have been patient during the content draught because of invested hope; I can't see the player base remaining so when the only new content will be for things they don't want, and their actual core game is devaluing everything they already did achieve.
Unfortunately we're now trapped in the Forum Dadverse where every single game element has to be 1984 grind loops repackaged; Do this simple thing over and over again to push rank. But what we really want is something new to play with. FDev seem to be betting that they can solve the Elite Feet itch with a basic FPS. I suspect it's not going to be as popular as they think. Not including ship interiors will be a huge mis-step. (To be fair maybe the engine as is can't make them work, but still) Elite +1 etc just reinforces the idea the Devs have no idea how to do anything new and exciting.
Raising the Rank levels also pushes you backwards comparitively to where you once felt you were too. It is devaluing the invested time you already put in, and asking you to repeat it again. I actually have come to resent the game now, after buying a fleet carrier; I feel equally disconnected at the idea that the gameplay loops I once thought I was done with will now have the clock reset on them.
And it reveals the huge gamble FDev have taken; I can see the spreadsheet logic behind it... space sim fans have had no content for years, likely will not be getting any until Odyssey is firmly settled in, so at least extend the rank grind until then... But what if Odyssey bombs too? Quite apart from the shonky state it's in during Alpha, I personally just can't see the appeal of a sub-par FPS whose only purpose is to grind a sub-par FPS to unlock engineering for weapons to keep playing a sub-par FPS. Where's the integration into the wider game universe? People have been patient during the content draught because of invested hope; I can't see the player base remaining so when the only new content will be for things they don't want, and their actual core game is devaluing everything they already did achieve.
Unfortunately we're now trapped in the Forum Dadverse where every single game element has to be 1984 grind loops repackaged; Do this simple thing over and over again to push rank. But what we really want is something new to play with. FDev seem to be betting that they can solve the Elite Feet itch with a basic FPS. I suspect it's not going to be as popular as they think. Not including ship interiors will be a huge mis-step. (To be fair maybe the engine as is can't make them work, but still) Elite +1 etc just reinforces the idea the Devs have no idea how to do anything new and exciting.
