Why is this game so unneccesarily inconvenient?

[Pyrobee]

1 - eddb.io

2 - eddb.io

3 - You don't have to go to settlemnets on planets if they annoy you that much

4 - You can use the gravity wells to brake your ship when you are coming in too hot and avoid the loop of shame

5 - Get your engineer materials by mining then, you don't have to do it on the planet.

 

[AceFlares]

Taking a deep breath and pausing before posting fixes most things. However, No.5 Engineer crap I agree with. It's not necessarily the time taken to find the mats. It's the endless driving around barren landscapes poking rocks that's taxing.

 

[CMDR Cosmic Spacehead]

1&2 i agree with.

That sort of information should be accessible in game, and i don't even mind if it's only updated daily, so it's slightly inaccurate. But for now, we have eddb.io.

The rest is meh. I'm fine with all that.

FYI, Tetris is very inconvenient. The blocks are always different shapes and sizes!
If they were all 1x1, it'd be fine.

 

[Gunner Deckard]

Life is a journey not a destination.

When you can read the wave scanner correctly for what node your looking for that will most likely have your material you want. It takes a lot less time. Practice and patience.

Everything else EDDB or patience.

 

[Magic Man]

&TL;DR - OP plays a game that isn't the game he wants it to be. Moans a lot.

 

[rdizz]

Everything is inconvenient because it is a mask to hide the lack of things to do inbetween.

 

[Volimar]

Everything is inconvenient because it is a mask to hide the lack of things to do inbetween.

Agreed. If you're busy with tedium you might take longer to notice that there's not much else. I think that the monumental interest in this event on the 29th is evidence for just how famished players are for content.

 

[ArchEmperor]

It is the usual "I want godmode" thread.

But I can feel the issues.

eddb.io should be a clickable link IN GAME.

The reason these databases does not exist in game is because they exist already on sites like eddb.io

Elite is old.... very old. That mean stuff has grown together like roots into your house, covering stuff, hindering you, but cutting it down would mean killing the trees (eddb.io).

 

[Volimar]

It is the usual "I want godmode" thread.

And the usual dismissive replies.

 

[ArchEmperor]

And the usual dismissive replies.

TS:CR - It was a trailer for my edited post.

 

[Watcher]

I was sort of with you on the first couple of points but you lost me beyond that.
Providing more information and better ways to find things out an where things might be seems like a good move and I would personally like to see better in game tools and some improved mechanics, but once you make everything essentially instantly available and doable you are beginning to make the whole thing a bit pointless (or more so than usual in a game where you are pretending to be a space pilot). Being annoyed about having to take off, land, take time flying to places and so on is to be annoyed at fairly close to the core experience of the game.. I don't have a whole lot of time to play but I think for me personally it would detract from the experience if it didn't actually take time to do stuff. But yes, some better tools to help with that, absolutely.

 

[[Diplomacy] Carnegie]

Thanks for posting the TL: DR version of your thread. It's appreciated and refreshing.

It's one of two reasons.

1) Life is hard and challenging situations, when overcome, give you a feeling of accomplishment.

2) You bought a game you are unsuited for and wish to change it to something you are comfortable with, like HALO or Tetris.

Hey, Tetris is totally inconvenient, with all the blocks being different shapes and stuff. They should all be squares - the weird 'S'-shaped ones are just unnecessary time-gates.

(Is that the right usage of 'time-gate'? I don't actually know what they are)

 

[ratchet5000]

There are some fair points here, the need to be some quality of life improvements to the game - anything that unnecessarily wastes the player's time needs to be done away with:

1. FSD charge times when not in combat - at 10 seconds each for h-jumps, this amounts to an extra minute of wasted time for every 6 jumps. Also is that 4,3,2,1 countdown even necessary? Another 4 seconds wasted. A minute wasted every 4 jumps.
2. It's the 34rd century, looking up where to buy modules and prices for commodities on GalNet in game should be a thing. (or even where to find compromised nav beacons, hazres, etc)
3. In system supercruise is sometimes painstakingly slow. Make any FSD higher than E rating have a boost in supercruise acceleration, velocity, and turn rates.
4. Scooping for materials or even using limpets is really clunky. Why can't there just be something like a "grey goo" nanorobot swarm that acts essentially like an automatic tractor beam?
5. RNGineer crafting material limit. Also, why aren't crafting materials (or even some commodities - platinum etc) available for credits? No one but players mine platinum or SRV for Arsenic? Talk about immersion breaking.

"Debunking" the OP with non sequitur fallacies doesn't make at least some of his points invalid.

 

[-Denali-]

I've felt this way plenty of times, especially about travel. By the time I get to where I'm going I'm usually out of time to actually do anything, so doing stuff takes multiple play sessions or very long individual ones (time I don't have). Increased FSD range has helped somewhat with that.

Then theirs engineering... which you don't really need unless you like combat. Sadly, I do. I recently spent 3 weeks killing trade ships in anarchy systems just so I could find some chemical manipulators. THREE WEEKS! That's some real RNJesus says 'screw you man' stuff right there. You know where I eventually got them? From an npc pirate ship, an expert python of all things in a RES. Hordes of master, deadly, dangerous, and elite trade ships later I get one from a lower leveled multi. Thanks in game descriptions!

Yeah, it's frustrating. Is it rewarding? I don't know yet. I spend so much time running around looking for stuff that I haven't gotten to that part. What's even more annoying is they keep changing weapons and combat relationships so once I finish a build the meta shifts and I get to start all over. Thanks for constantly nerfing special effects, changing combat hull mechanics, and adding a super buff to bi-weave regeneration by the way! That was exactly what the previous meta needed, like a steel pipe to the face. I spent days and weeks gathering mats for a few rolls on some of those weapons and now the special effect I spent engineer reputation to get isn't what I worked so long for? And my reward is getting to do it again and try with another effect? That's fun!

They obviously have too many mats for their rng. Then they added some that aren't even used for anything... WHY? If they want to keep changing special effects then they should make it free to switch the existing effect on a weapon. Hell, make the mats needed for any mod specific to the weapon, not the mod type- then let players change the mod for free too once you've nerfed it to hell and back. And get rid of the entire RNG aspect of mods. Make them give specific results each time. Why do you want me spending ages looking for crap? Do you find it fun when you lost your car keys? That's what this often feels like, an endless search for a set of non-existent car keys. Sure it feels great to find them, but not because it was fun, and not because it was rewarding!!!!

Yes yes, come to the game's defense. Tell me to play tetris, this game isn't for me. blah blah blah. See no evil, hear no evil, speak no common sense. Hate me, hunt me, I don't care. Pretending all the above doesn't annoy me would be pointless.

 

[Kyennamo]

The OP TITLE is extremely accurate.

He may not have illustrated it very well with his points.......but we all know the title to be true.

Elite is a GAME.

While i am all for immersion and realism, there are about a billion QoL issues with this game that need to be addressed. But....FD simply does not respect your time enough to iron them out.

The worst part though.....is the fanbase. People looking to find meaning in their life through a VIDEO GAME attack any idea that brings convenience to the game and breaks their "immersion".

 

[Han Zulu]

1: Finding crap.
Want a specific module? Well go ahead and visit a dozen stations. Your ship is useless without the modules. Yet you have to go spend hours to collect everything you need.
How hard can it be to make a module finder, huh? Why can't I just do a search? Does it make things too easy? Screw you. I was killed by a goddamn NPC and I could not fight back reliably and I was dead before I knew it. Why? Because my ship did not have the goddamn shield I wanted, and I was searching for the shield for the past 2 hours already. Seriously, go screw yourselves.

Spoiler

First, work on getting an elite status in combat, trading, or exploring. Secondly, the elite rank will give you permit to Founders World. Go there to Jameson Memorial, and you won't have this problem anymore. One stop shop.

 

[[Diplomacy] Carnegie]

FD simply does not respect your time enough to iron them out.

I see this said a lot.
I have absolutely no idea why someone would think that a game developer should 'respect their time'.

In fact, it seems like people are just trying to blame someone else for their lack of patience - but I'm happy to listen to alternative theories.

 

[IndigoWyrd]

Edit: it posted before I was finished? The hell.


Anyway, I came back from a 3 month hiatus, figured that Commanders just may have something interesting for me.
Multicrew looked nice but for some reason I have not yet figured out how to even get it working for me. Whatever. I had unfinished business anyway.

Except... nothing really changed I guess. I left after one hour because I had the same issue that caused me to quit: everything is so gorram inconvenient.


1: Finding crap.
Want a specific module? Well go ahead and visit a dozen stations. Your ship is useless without the modules. Yet you have to go spend hours to collect everything you need.
How hard can it be to make a module finder, huh? Why can't I just do a search? Does it make things too easy? Screw you. I was killed by a goddamn NPC and I could not fight back reliably and I was dead before I knew it. Why? Because my ship did not have the goddamn shield I wanted, and I was searching for the shield for the past 2 hours already. Seriously, go screw yourselves.

Or you can use EDDB.IO to find the modules and ships you want, or do all your shopping at Jameson.

2: Trading crap.
Want to find a trade route? Well if you don't have a second screen and/or never heard of EDDB, you're out of luck kiddo, trading ain't for you. If you want to trade then, go visit every goddamn station, write down the fricken prices. Figure it out. Except I see you already moved back into a combat ship and went to that RES. Yep, so many do that.
Again, how fricken hard can it be to have a price finder in the actual game, huh?
But noooo, you would rather spend months on developing a fancy face generator instead of developing practical stuff. And then there's idiot players who encourage that kind of development. The hell is wrong with you?

Or you can use EDDB.IO and find the routes and goods to and from anywhere in the galaxy.

3: Planetary crap.
Why, oh why, do we even have surface installations? I find that those are the most worthless timewasters and I just want to get on with my day.
First, you have to land on the planet. This takes longer than just landing on a station. But ok.
And then, you accept missions or buy resources. Guess what? Now you have to take off and find that in plenty of cases, your destination system is obscured by the very planet you're on. Proceed to spend minutes to get out of the fricken planet, turn around, and jump. Meanwhile you're already having a mental breakdown and wonder why the hell you landed on the planet, and promise to yourself you will never do that again voluntarily.

We have them because they are part of Horizons. Of course, you're under no obligation to actually visit any of them. If you don't like them, don't go there. There's nothing there you can't find orbiting somewhere else.

4: Travel crap.
Seriously the whole idea that celestial objects slow you down in supercruise is nonsense and the only reason why this mechanic is there is to slow you down. Literally, it has no other purpose. Because apparently things are not inconvenient enough already that you have to visit dozens of stations or surfaces to even get basic crap done, no, you have to do that slowly or else you will not fully appreciate space.

"Ye cannae change the larws o' physics!"

5: Engineer crap.
"This planet has like, 5% germanium yo"
Cool, so 1 in 20 chance to find it? Meaning I seriously have to go shoot like 20 rocks to have even a decent chance at finding this mineral I need? (I know, chances don't work like that, but whatever) I dunno about you but I find that the wave scanner is pointless. Because of 1 single thing: all of the stuff you are finding is at the surface in big rocks that look different than other rocks. I bet with some optical scanning device from the 34th century you can find that crap from orbit. I want pinpoint locations. I want to know exactly where to look, and NOT memorize the different kind of wave signatures and then HOPE that this one rock has what I need and I can fricken move on with my day. Because I really do not want to roam around on these planets longer than needed. They're boring; if you're seen one, you've seen them all.

Someone has not been making their requisite sacrifices to RNGesus. It's a pretty rare bird when I cannot find the material, data or resource I need within 10 minutes. Then I just find something else to do, and almost always whatever I was looking for turns up.

And that's just of the top of my head. Thing is... why are these not being worked on?
"Muh immersion?" If anything the fact that crap is inconvenient will make me realize it's a game because in a real universe, stuff like this would definitely be there to make things more convenient for pilots.
In general, everything that I need to do before I can do something else is boring. Because I want to specifically do the "something else" because I find THAT the fun part. Yet in 9 out of 10 cases in Elite, it just has to be made harder than it needs to be to actually do that.[/QUOTE]

After all that crapping, you must be exhausted. Take a break, take a breath, relax and remember: It's Only a Game. It is designed to waste time and accomplish nothing. You will never receive anything for being "the best" at a game. If you're not enjoying it, you're either doing it wrong, or it's just not for you.

 

[ratchet5000]

Spoiler

First, work on getting an elite status in combat, trading, or exploring. Secondly, the elite rank will give you permit to Founders World. Go there to Jameson Memorial, and you won't have this problem anymore. One stop shop.

I'm elite in trading and I still think in game module search should be a thing.

 

[GunnerBill]

Edit: it posted before I was finished? The hell.


Anyway, I came back from a 3 month hiatus, figured that Commanders just may have something interesting for me.
Multicrew looked nice but for some reason I have not yet figured out how to even get it working for me. Whatever. I had unfinished business anyway.

Except... nothing really changed I guess. I left after one hour because I had the same issue that caused me to quit: everything is so gorram inconvenient.


1: Finding crap.
Want a specific module? Well go ahead and visit a dozen stations. Your ship is useless without the modules. Yet you have to go spend hours to collect everything you need.
How hard can it be to make a module finder, huh? Why can't I just do a search? Does it make things too easy? Screw you. I was killed by a goddamn NPC and I could not fight back reliably and I was dead before I knew it. Why? Because my ship did not have the goddamn shield I wanted, and I was searching for the shield for the past 2 hours already. Seriously, go screw yourselves.

2: Trading crap.
Want to find a trade route? Well if you don't have a second screen and/or never heard of EDDB, you're out of luck kiddo, trading ain't for you. If you want to trade then, go visit every goddamn station, write down the fricken prices. Figure it out. Except I see you already moved back into a combat ship and went to that RES. Yep, so many do that.
Again, how fricken hard can it be to have a price finder in the actual game, huh?
But noooo, you would rather spend months on developing a fancy face generator instead of developing practical stuff. And then there's idiot players who encourage that kind of development. The hell is wrong with you?

3: Planetary crap.
Why, oh why, do we even have surface installations? I find that those are the most worthless timewasters and I just want to get on with my day.
First, you have to land on the planet. This takes longer than just landing on a station. But ok.
And then, you accept missions or buy resources. Guess what? Now you have to take off and find that in plenty of cases, your destination system is obscured by the very planet you're on. Proceed to spend minutes to get out of the fricken planet, turn around, and jump. Meanwhile you're already having a mental breakdown and wonder why the hell you landed on the planet, and promise to yourself you will never do that again voluntarily.

4: Travel crap.
Seriously the whole idea that celestial objects slow you down in supercruise is nonsense and the only reason why this mechanic is there is to slow you down. Literally, it has no other purpose. Because apparently things are not inconvenient enough already that you have to visit dozens of stations or surfaces to even get basic crap done, no, you have to do that slowly or else you will not fully appreciate space.

5: Engineer crap.
"This planet has like, 5% germanium yo"
Cool, so 1 in 20 chance to find it? Meaning I seriously have to go shoot like 20 rocks to have even a decent chance at finding this mineral I need? (I know, chances don't work like that, but whatever) I dunno about you but I find that the wave scanner is pointless. Because of 1 single thing: all of the stuff you are finding is at the surface in big rocks that look different than other rocks. I bet with some optical scanning device from the 34th century you can find that crap from orbit. I want pinpoint locations. I want to know exactly where to look, and NOT memorize the different kind of wave signatures and then HOPE that this one rock has what I need and I can fricken move on with my day. Because I really do not want to roam around on these planets longer than needed. They're boring; if you're seen one, you've seen them all.


And that's just of the top of my head. Thing is... why are these not being worked on?
"Muh immersion?" If anything the fact that crap is inconvenient will make me realize it's a game because in a real universe, stuff like this would definitely be there to make things more convenient for pilots.
In general, everything that I need to do before I can do something else is boring. Because I want to specifically do the "something else" because I find THAT the fun part. Yet in 9 out of 10 cases in Elite, it just has to be made harder than it needs to be to actually do that.

It looks like ED is't the game for you. Can I have your right arm pls?