Ideas and suggestions.

[optimus1971]

After playing this game for over a week now I must say I've really enjoyed it immensely.  Every idea that is listed below should not be taken as a discredit to anyone on your team.  These are some ideas I had to improve upon or add to the game.

 

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Crew stations/Alert Status:

Once you have your ship crewed it would be nice to have customizable setting for crew positions.  example:

 

All Hands:  Positions all crew to their assigned areas.  This would fill in armed turrets over mining turrets if there isn't enough crewman.  This would also replace mining turrets with armed turrets.

 

Mining Operations:  Similar to All Hands but positions crew to fill mining turrets over any other.  This would replace battle turrets with mining turrets.

 

Stand Down:  This would return all crew and equipment back to its original status.  Unless turret or crew are killed.

 

Damage/Casualty Report:  Reports on missing crew, turrets and hull.  Cost to replace could be also shown here.

 

I don't propose this to make the game easier but to put the player in charge of the crew as a whole and not individuals.  The change wouldn't need to be instant but take several seconds while everyone moves to where they need to go.  This way I could start flying into battle while the crew gets ready!!!

 

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Ship Repair:

Not being able to change the tire on my car because the windshield has a crack feels wrong.  That how it feels to me on hull repair.  If I don't have enough to repair the entire ship, then I would like the option to make critical repairs.  This could be user assigned too.  Engines, armor, thrusters or in whatever order I have them set as.  If there isn't enough resources to repair then it goes to the next one in line.  Also, give the option to pick and choose which blocks to repair manually.

 

Building on to a damaged part of a ship should be allowed as long as the area you are working has been repaired.

 

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Space Station/Bases

 

These could be used as a "save point" for players.  When you die you go back to the closest one, unless it too has been damaged too much.  This could help in travel. 

 

Stations and bases could be as small as a ship but those would be more susceptible to attacks and damage.  In multiplayer this would encourage cooperative play.

 

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Travel:

So I've spent an hour just traveling and I bump into an asteroid or blown apart from an attack then whamm-o!  It's back home to rebuild your ship and head out again.  This gets tedious to me.  I don't have a solid idea for this because in principal I agree with how it works.  However, as a player it detracts from the game play.  It does however make me a little more cautions the next time a go out.  This could go along with salvage and there is a special hyperspace jump to return you to the same sector. 

 

Bigger, Better and Meaner Hyperspace gates!!!  I'd like to build my own gates for travel.  Neutral and better relations can pass through without exception.  Anything less will be shot down, unless the gate gets broken.  This should be expensive to build but be a luxury and have it crewed and armed.  These gates are designed to travel to very far away sectors this would allow players to have several places to start from once a base is established.

 

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Salvage:

This is actually fun.  I really enjoy this aspect of the game.  There is one big drawback in my opinion.  I would not only be able to just salvage my own ship but to recover it.  Send out a special rescue craft and crew to get the ship limping along so I might be able to bring it home again.  This I would think should depend on amount of damage.

 

Along the same lines, maybe even recover some alien ships.  I think this should be a tough undertaking but rewarding when you can rebuild a ship instead of just tearing it apart.

 

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Captains:

If a ship is captained, then the player can control that ship as if they were on it.  If that ship gets too damaged or the captain dies, then that communication is lost.

 

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HUD:

Using the center of the galaxy as a marker employ a compass that marks your direction.  Similar to the sectors.  This will help in flying around in a sector to help with orientation.

 

Damage, speed and number of hostile ships could be on the main screen

 

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Other notes:

I would like to set my own home sector.

 

Brighter, add glow effect or add chirp to radar when finding metals on asteroids.  The "iron" color especially is hard to tell the difference at times.

 

When exiting build mode, "B", Don't have the ship re-position itself.  Have the camera re-position around the ship.  This way larger ships don't get damaged on accident.

 

Proximity alarms.  Have an alarm of some sort display or make a sound when getting close to an object.  Distance, type and sounds could be customizable by the player.

 

Waypoints/Beacons:  Add to ships, stations, asteroids.  These could be turned off so as not to clutter your screen in a given sector.