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Darkspace killjoys |
Gideon
Cadet
Joined: September 14, 2001
Posts: 4604
From: Oregon, USA
|  Posted: 2003-09-16 12:28
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On 2003-09-15 17:08, Unknown Force wrote:
There is a saying that goes 'death by a thousand cuts' and it aptly describes the numerous little things that take away from the enjoyment of darkspace.
I shall attempt to list some of them and I am sure I will have left out some but these are the ones that come to mind at the moment and are not listed in any order of importance.
1. waiting for research to finish on a planet is like ' watching paint dry '
if research times are speeded up maybe by 50 percent than it would be all the more tolarble.
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Actually, we plan to slow down planetary development in the future. No, this change will not be done in a vacuum, so don't think of it in terms of the game as you know it. Basically, however we are developing DS along the lines of it being several interlocked games, not just one game. If planety management is not your thing, then nobody is going to make you do it. Just play the game in realms that you enjoy.
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2. running out of fuel. I fly dreads most of the time in the MV and to get to the systems without gates can be tricky in some cases. There are times when it is Impossible to reach a friendly planet in the system to refuel when flying in alone. hmmm WHY not give us more fuel capacity? No battle was ever lost because of fuel capacity so it seems like its just another item to make the game annoying.
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Actually, fuel is a key component of logistics, strategy, and tactics in the real world. Fighters must limit their range by how much fuel they have. Combats must be broken off for lack of fuel. Ships must put to port for supplies and fuel from time to time. The Battle of the Bulge is a good example of what happens when you extend yourself without enough fuel to back you up. Sorry, but fuel is a key component of the game. Your options will no doubt increase, with the implementation of player buildable supply platforms in v1.482. As to the fuel capacity of ship types, this is always reviewed and may or may not be changed as need dictates.
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3. those nasty things that give you a red jump line like jumpgates and asteroids. Do we really need to know that an asteroid is in the jump path??
ditto for jumpgates which I jump right thru anyway. It just adds up to more wasted time trying to figure out whats causing the red jump line.
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Seeing the red like through a jumpgate let's you judge your jump so that you land in the jumpgate's hit zone. A valueable tactic at times, when you feel you must must get through a jumpgate immediatly. Asteroids are lethal if you hit them with a ship in jump speeds in v1.481 and beyond. So, players should probably know when they are in the way.
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4. penalty for scrapping buildings on a planet. At the moment it seems that you lose more for scrapping than you gain from building so in the long run you will lose all your build points. In the MV especially, everybody needs to scrap structures now and then. It is inevitable if you want to play the game effectively. At the least the penalty for scrapping should be reduced a bit.
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Prestege costs for scrapping were nessesary implement in order to help curb rampant sabotage by players. We have been reviewing the need for this in light of further developments in the game, towards an eye of facilitating players needs to upgrade, modify, or repair a planet rather than sabotage it. Basically, it's a nessesary if possibly temporary, evil.
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5. long jump times. If everybody had shorter jump times in the game it would simply mean less waiting and more time playing. How about reducing jump times by 50 percent? Jumping for nearly a minute across some systems is just plain annoying.
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Long jump times:
Enforce the large stellar scale of the game. Create the need for forward supply bases (particularly important in v1.481 with shipyards). Place importance on jumpgates as a quick method of transfer, thereby making them valuable strategic targets. Provide an option into a system other than having to try and brave a heavily camped gate, as we have found such situations meerly promote stagnation in the game.
We feel, at this time, that long jumps actually do far more good than bad for us within the context of the game. They exist in a complimentary fasion to our plans for DarkSpace's development in the future.
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6. getting around in the MV takes too long. Just for example, the travel time between the two farthest systems in the MV is unbearable. I can probably cook my dinner in the time that it takes. Perhaps the /connect command should be allowed to some degree in the MV. It sure would make things more engaging and more active. Currently when I see activity in a system that is half a dozen jumpgates away, it just really takes away your enthusiasm to even bother.
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Half a dozen jumpgates take only a few minutes to cross. I know our general society right now encourages instant gratification of all things, but the reality of the situation is that this is not always a good thing. The /connect command is too vulnerable to exploits in order to be allowed to be used except in very specific circumstances. Concider, for a moment, that it could be used to instantly position a fleet within your home system or in some of your backward systems, or could be used by your enemy to instantly flee you thusly preventing their defeat. Furthermore, shipyards, which are present in v1.481, provide a much quicker way to spawn closer to the front lines.
Okay, listen, this relates to points 5 and 6:
If you just cannot stand it taking time to do things, if you just are not able to muster five or siz minutes of patience, for whatever reason, then go play on the scenario servers. They are there for players to get quicker gratification through. Play within them will no doubt become more difficult, as we continue to change the game in ways that build off of a more gradual and long term play experience as is present in the MV. Sorry, but this is the specific business model we are persuing, and the course we have choosen to take. We want the bame like this, because it fits with the audience we are trying to target. If you do not feel you are that audience, then while this saddens me, I am comforted by the knowledge that I am sure there are faster paced games out there for you.
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7. logging/ getting disconected- this is somewhat related to number 6.
We all get disconected at some point and I guess that is unavoidable but when you throw in the long travel times in the MV and then you get disconnected and have to start all over? Talk about wasted time!
Similarly in order to change ships in the MV without sding or dying you must log and go back to your home system and then spend all the time traveling back which again equals more wasted time.
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It is the opinion of the development staff that disconnects are the single worst problem in DarkSpace. This is the primary reason we have spent so much time working on v1.481. We have been developing a server architecture and communications framework that we believe will eliminate disconnect issues that originate from our side. Great strides have been made in this area, and we are confident that we are close to success in this area.
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Well thats all I want to list now but I do want to say that I still think DS is a great game and have played it now for about a year and over that time these little annoyances have persistantly plagued my play experience enough that I wanted to make this post.
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And I am glad you have enjoyed yourself. I am very sorry that the game is going to be developing in a direction that will probably not please you very much. Such disappointments are part of life, but I am comforted that there are games that will provide you with a faster paced more high-speed action oriented play.
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He piled upon the whale's white hump the sum of all the general rage and hate felt by his whole race from Adam down; and then, as if his chest had been a mortar, he burst his hot heart's shell upon it. - Moby Dick
[ This Message was edited by: Gideon on 2003-09-16 12:34 ]
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...and lo, He looked upon His creation, and said, "Fo shizzle."
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Banshee
Grand Admiral
Raven Warriors
Joined: August 28, 2001
Posts: 2181
From: Philadelphia, PA
| Posted: 2003-09-16 14:16
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On 2003-09-15 17:08, Unknown Force wrote:
2. running out of fuel. I fly dreads most of the time in the MV and to get to the systems without gates can be tricky in some cases. There are times when it is Impossible to reach a friendly planet in the system to refuel when flying in alone. hmmm WHY not give us more fuel capacity? No battle was ever lost because of fuel capacity so it seems like its just another item to make the game annoying.
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Germany lost the Battle of the Bulge cos their forces ran out of fuel, not to mention almost every single armoured engagement of World War II after that, fuel can and will play a very important part in any battle, be they real, or in this case, fictional, its just another little item in the game that encourages teamplay, you should never really be in MV alone, wasnt designed for that 
***EDIT***
Hmm Gid said same thing, thats what i get for posting without reading the whole topic, but hey, it happens 
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And when he gets to Heaven, To St. Peter he will tell: 'One more soldier reporting Sir - I've served my time in Hell'
[ This Message was edited by: Banshee on 2003-09-16 14:18 ]
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Firekka
Fleet Admiral
Joined: October 27, 2002
Posts: 285
| Posted: 2003-09-16 16:23
I still like the (dunno how it is in english) quadratic jumpdrives where a small distance takes a relative longer period then longer jumps.. say the speed varies between 1k and 5k gu?
This prevents quickjumps in systems but greatly reduces the amount of coffee i have to drink to have inter system jumps
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PanelBeater
Vice Admiral
Joined: February 07, 2003
Posts: 47
From: Next Door
| Posted: 2003-09-16 16:45
yea those things are goin to be taken care of in the patch. yeah rite ive been hearing for like ever dont it'll be fixed in the patch. but look still no patch!
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unknown force
Cadet
Joined: September 27, 2002
Posts: 69
| Posted: 2003-09-16 18:02
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On 2003-09-16 06:29, Dwarden wrote:
Orbit any planet with hydrogen (e.g. gas giant) and it will reload ur fuel
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really? I didnt know that. Always learning new things about the game
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