Elite: General talk

22 Sep 2022, 11:51pm
One pilot's trash is another pilot's treasure.

Some people like the on-foot stuff, some don't. Some people like the 4.0 graphics, some don't. Some people like spending real money on livery stuff, some don't. Some people like living in a cocoon, some don't. Some people like real life, some don't. Some people like the story/lore, some don't. Some people like ganking, some don't. Some people like to back up their statements with facts and evidence, some don't. Some people like to play buggy games, some don't. Some people like to play in open mode, some don't. Some people like to bash others for their opinion rather than just disagree and provide another point of view, some don't. Some people like to read a post and make assumptions rather than reading the posts that preceded it to gain some context, some don't. Some people like the new Inara, some don't. Some people like to take screenshots of things we have seem 1000 times already, some don't. Some people like to think that because A is false then B must be true, some don't. Some people like to take a wider perspective, some don't. Some people like to take things too seriously, some don't. Some people like to forget past events in their current analysis, some don't.

Is the game bad? It is buggy, unoptimized, and unstable.
Does the game have good things in it? Yes, depending on what you like.
Is FDev reliable and trustworthy? No, they have proven that repeatedly over the lifespan of the game.
Will things get better? In some areas perhaps, but the overall forecast is not promising given the history thus far.
23 Sep 2022, 12:15am
In the end, people still like Elite and are playing it. And on that bombshell I would like to end this squabble. (insert Jeremy Clarkson's smug face here)
23 Sep 2022, 12:23am
Avengerdutton I don't recall saying anything good or bad about EDO I was just suggesting that if a game upsets you and you hold the company that makes it in contempt then nothing is lost in moving on.

Contre, I paid for EDO but I thought it would be natural continuation of the EDH and the better version of it but it is not... so I lost my money unless it was designed as ED membership dues...
23 Sep 2022, 2:40am
I don't mind if people like the game or don't like it, but at least provide some reasoning rather than just saying the other person is wrong. It is possible to dislike a good product and also to like a bad product.
23 Sep 2022, 8:40am
Thing is, the whole "stop moaning or go play something else!" attitude is counterproductive and stymies improvement of the game, though that's presuming that Frontier is actually interested in constructive feedback (I'd say the Suggestions sub-forum is probably only kept by FDev as a noise suppressor/agony aunt where customers can let off steam and then hopefully forget about it).

If nobody complains, change won't happen. Telling others to shut up and move on is no different.

I tried to criticise the game's (unfortunately many) shortcomings and issues in a reasonable and well-argued manner on the forum in the past, but ultimately realised it's a wasted effort. FDev might read the forums, but devs are shielded by emotionally detached CMs who come across as it being just another 9-5 day-job with apparently very little knowledge about the product they're supposed to represent (with one notable exception although I frankly believe it's all just lip service to temper the community, so same difference) so there's little chance of getting any results via that approach. Screaming and shouting for weeks on end does seem to make a difference every now and then though... which is a shame.

Add to that whenever you do put forward any criticism the usual suspects gang up and mock the poster (not the post, because other than "I don't see it" there often isn't any counter argument), regularly sactioned by the mods by the way, so ended up turning my back on the forum. It used to be a great place to critically (positive as well as negative) discuss my most favourite game, but now it's a shadow of its former self, which is a pity as I really used to enjoy many posters (most of which have left over the last year).


Last edit: 23 Sep 2022, 8:48am
23 Sep 2022, 8:47am
I guess a big part of the playerbase just became bored and tired. I can't be the only one having those feelings.
23 Sep 2022, 8:58am
MeowersI guess a big part of the playerbase just became bored and tired. I can't be the only one having those feelings.


I managed to get some mileage out of Odyssey, despite its gameplay loops - I won't go into the technical issues, with an i7 / 2060S I was affected but not as badly as other players - not because of it (thanks to my compulsive nature 'completing' stuff in games, like G5'ing equipment in this case) - and because I pre-purchased it so sunk-cost-fallacy right there...

Also, I decided to wipe my triple-Elite-everything-unlocked-and-achieved CMDR last year, and had to go back roughly to where I was - in hindsight a foolish decision but it kept me busy.

My friendlist has shrunk significantly, and apart from a handful players nobody logs in regularly (as in daily or even weekly) anymore unlike in the past.

I firmly believe not adding anything at all to the ship parts of this here spaceship flying game was a massive mistake, so was making on-foot content the headline feat. It being a 'sideshow' feature similar to how it's done in X4 would've worked much better for Elite imo, but FDev felt differently about this obviously.

Edit - just to add, I feel like I've squeezed as much as I could out of the on-foot content, High CZs don't present a challenge nor are they particularly engaging (thanks to the braindead AI and arcadey set piece itself), I know each settlement layout by heart, the routes AI takes. All in all, the on-foot stuff is just not as replayable and enjoyable as the ship bits. And the ship bits is why I boot up the game for the past 7 years. I guess my future with this game is a more dip-in-and-out one rather than it being the fulltime job it used to be!
23 Sep 2022, 9:40am
On a separate note entirely ... just skipping through yesterday's stream, and there's one section with Derrin where they go through player submitted favourite locations screenshots.

The very first one hit right in the groin - Dav's Hope - the 3.8 version of course - obviously zero mention how that got butchered and moved into permanent darkness in the 4.0 client; and then the killing blow (though referring to the site's name) Derrin said "we rarely do things unintentionally". Oof.

It's at the 1:18 mark if anyone desires a bit of cringe for lunch.
23 Sep 2022, 10:02am
Let's not put things out of the context. Derin's answer was to Bruce's question if Dav's Hope was deliberately made a good spot (for material farming) on which he replied that he don't know because it was made before his presence on the project but that they rarely do things unintentionally. Even if Dav's Hope has been "butchered" in regard of materials (I don't know, I haven't been there for a while), it's still a perfectly valid and reasonable answer. No cringe at all.


A general note for all related posts here: I am for all well-thought, valid and constructive critique, but please let's not turn that into Frontier bashing for whatever petty reasons. I will simply redact or remove such posts, because it doesn't help anybody - not the community here and not the game as well. I do not want to turn this thread into some kind of obscure hate train. Thanks.


Last edit: 23 Sep 2022, 10:07am
23 Sep 2022, 11:19am
ArtieLet's not put things out of the context. Derin's answer was to Bruce's question if Dav's Hope was deliberately made a good spot (for material farming) on which he replied that he don't know because it was made before his presence on the project but that they rarely do things unintentionally. Even if Dav's Hope has been "butchered" in regard of materials (I don't know, I haven't been there for a while), it's still a perfectly valid and reasonable answer. No cringe at all.


A general note for all related posts here: I am for all well-thought, valid and constructive critique, but please let's not turn that into Frontier bashing for whatever petty reasons. I will simply redact or remove such posts, because it doesn't help anybody - not the community here and not the game as well. I do not want to turn this thread into some kind of obscure hate train. Thanks.


That's why I mentioned the bit in brackets, maybe should've been more explicit to what I meant by that.

I understand your position and will let it rest, I will say though I still found the particular segment of the stream cringeworthy nonetheless because the elephant in the room is continually being skirted around.... while the forum is imploding on topics such as the various technical issues/changes and most recently FDev's refusal to allow 4.0 HZN access to Odyssey players by simply not adding a launcher option even though they easily could (this is what my snark above was mostly aimed at, fwiw). Still no acknowledgement at all from Frontier although I guess they pre-loaded their 4.0 live post in a 'this is it, deal with it' manner so there's that I suppose.

If they think sitting out the noise on their forums and ignoring disgruntled customers as if nothing happened is the right approach then so be it, all that leaves me is chuckle about it in disbelief when they do so.

As I said, I'll let it go now, hope the above clarifies my motivation for the post and doesn't require any moderation on your side. Thanks.
23 Sep 2022, 11:48am
Kegaira OhayaIf any person takes up Elite as a full time job, and then complains about losing interest in it, then what should be blamed is not the game. When you take something fun and put pressure on yourself doing it, then all the fun is lost. And pressure also comes from lack of restraint on fun. It turns enthusiasm into routine and *boom* you are now on a job.
And how is it possible to make a job interesting? When it's challenging, yes, I agree. And this can come from new challenges all the time, in a job that you like.
But this is a game. It's not logical to expect a never narrowing flow of input in challenging things to do, when the current input is not even explored to it's extent! If you cut back on the "I have to get everything NOW" and the prioritizing and general fun-killing processes that turn the game into a job, you might even take breaks of a week or two, without proclaiming elite dead to you, then coming back to kill some bugs, explore, do a 10000LY trip or whatever. And then the urge to play more would come back, since you would now be playing bound only to what YOU want to do not what HAS to be done to get the new meta or the new big challenge, which will at some point be achieved and then again "boo give us more content".


It was a full time job I (mostly) enjoyed, logging in almost daily for a large part of those 7 years, and getting to meet quite a lot of CMDRs over time which only further fostered my emotional investment in the game (having spent a small fortune in the mid-to-high 3 digits is another but smaller factor). And it still has me under its spell, the problem simply is it's a more frustating experience (visually and gameplay wise) than it ever has been. And 3.8 used to always deliver on the visual front at least without question.

In part that's a "me" problem of course, personal preferences vs. Frontier's idea of Elite in itself, and what constitutes a fun game in general, but that kinda makes it a "Frontier" problem also because they seem hellbent on putting off their most loyal customers for whatever reason. Let's remember that those most heavily invested in the game are also those who spend a fair bit on their Arx store (at least that used to be the case for me, until they pushed it too far with overpriced on-foot skins and how they broke almost all my previously purchased skins in 4.0, many still not fixed).

I still want to boot up the game, and I still get enjoyment out of (bits of) it, but yeah it seems like the end is coming faster than I hoped for (although I did say that last year and here I still am...). It's a pity they decided to not add anything new at all to the ship flying bits of the game i.e. the reason I actually play Elite - be that new ships, stellar objects, or activities. Odyssey really is the "on-foot" DLC, with a shaded skybox for pretty sunset screenshots thrown in for good measure, nothing more nothing less. I had hoped it would be a more well-rounded package at the time but alas...
23 Sep 2022, 5:58pm
FYI, min-ed-launcher was updated yesterday to allow launching EDH4 even if you use an Odyssey account.
23 Sep 2022, 11:34pm
To be fair, if nobody complains, FDev thinks nothing is wrong and there will be no fixes. The more people who complain, the more likely they will know things need to be fixed or they will lose even more of their playerbase, and then they may or may not fix those things anyway. But at least it would be on them. If we don't complain, it's on us. The trick is complaining to the right people in a way that sounds positive to them. Squashing or ignoring all complaints outright hurts everyone. If you bought the newest phone but it only works as well as a phone from 10 years ago, would you not complain and persist until it is resolved? If it never gets resolved, would you not take your business elsewhere? Would you not let others know so they don't go through the same experience you did?
24 Sep 2022, 2:41pm
EDH is liability for FD as corporate man - avangerdutton said, they even removed EDH from Steam only EDO is available now.

Post edited/moved by: Artie, 24 Sep 2022, 3:42pm
24 Sep 2022, 3:17pm
Shg56they even removed EDH from Steam only EDO is available now.

Technically yes, but if you bought the season pass before the fold-down, the DLC will still appear in your list.

Frankly, I can't wait for Frontier to take action against EDO players launching EDH4. Doubt it will happen though, as it would likely result in a major shitstorm.

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