Mod Suggestions for console edition

[Deno_cooper1995]

This is a thread that is completely focused on the console version of K.S.P. I started  this request thread because I feel  that it is unfair that us console players are restricted from mods from a game that has one of the best mod support. So in this thread hopefully it's  reviewed and considered by the devs is a list of mods that i think should be added to the console edition as stock parts and features.

K.A.S (Kerbal attachment system) so players have better attaching options.

K.I.S (Kerbal inventory system) so players can have more inventory items

BD Armory continued to give players more diversity with flight. Giving them more things to do with space planes.

Hullcams vds because what is space without telescopes. And cameras are everywhere now so let's bring kerbol to the 21st century.

Magic smoke industries Infernal robotics so that we can have more robotic parts an control over them.

B9 Aerospace and airplane plus giving the player a wider variety with space plane parts

Kerbal planetary base systems giving the players better base modules to build on planets

Feline utility rovers for better Rover builds.

Tac live support (as a difficulty option) to give the players a more realistic space travel experience.

If you support this notion please leave a list of your own requests or comment about why certain request should or shouldn't be.

[Jas0n]

If you look around the suggestions subforum, you'll find many threads suggesting that certain mods be made into stock. However, most of these won't happen because each player has their own list of essential mods that are unique.

That doesn't mean mods can never become part of the stock game though. Many features in the game, such as planes, rovers, comms net, and mining were first added by mods. 

[Rocket In My Pocket]

Welcome to the forums first off!

Your list seems a little bit excessive maybe, I mean BDArmory? Guns are hardly a "must have." This kind of just sounds like a grocery list of mods that you personally want. I think you'd have more success if you trimmed it back to just a few absolute "can't play without it" mods like KER.

Best of luck!

[Leopard]

never having played the PC version my experience with mods is from reading here, however there are a few extras that seem like they would be workable on the consoles

1. Kerbal Alarm clock - not sure how it works but if you have a "remind me" option on events that would be most useful for trying multiple missions at once

2. extra planets - presumably this is a case of adding a few files in the right place (ok I know there is a bit more to it, but its presumably no additional game code, just data files?) - would need coordination to make sure that orbits don't coincide - almost a case of one pack of "extra planets" or a pack of "real" planets to swap for the lot

3. a part library manager of some sort - so you can pick parts you never use to "hide" or move from one tab to another

4. storing saved craft in a system with logical structures to it - essentially user created folders to avoid a honking great list

[SpacePilotMax]

Perhaps high-quality mods could be added as free DLCs on console? Not sure if adding DLCs costs anything for the devs...

[0something0]

How feasible would it be to include CKAN as part of the game or as a free DLC?

 

Wait, do they also have to be ported separately? 

[Jas0n]

10 hours ago, 0something0 said:

How feasible would it be to include CKAN as part of the game or as a free DLC?

 

Wait, do they also have to be ported separately? 

Judging from the fact that CKAN is developed by people separate from Squad, the chances of that happening are pretty slim.

I don't how consoles work well enough to know, but I assuming moding on a console is pretty hard.

[Leopard]

1 minute ago, Jas0n said:

Judging from the fact that CKAN is developed by people separate from Squad, the chances of that happening are pretty slim.

I don't how consoles work well enough to know, but I assuming moding on a console is pretty hard.

this is what drives my points, a "mod" that is basically adding a few files to a directory isn't that hard - though the files will be verified as to what they do, stuff that changes how a game works, or includes scripting capabilities tend to be refused by the console providers as such can provide ways around their restrictions.

Keep in mind you won't get anything if the likes of microsoft or sony don't have a way to make money out of it

[HebaruSan]

If stock KSP has had problems finding a good control scheme for consoles, I shudder to think of stock trying to share a controller with mods as well, where current key bindings include things like "Alt-End" and most things tend to be mouse-dependent. If a mod crashes on a console, would you be able to collect the KSP.log file to report it? Then there are mods like AlienSpacePrograms, which require the user to edit config files for the mod to work.

13 hours ago, 0something0 said:

How feasible would it be to include CKAN as part of the game or as a free DLC?

It would probably require extensive adaptations for the new platform. For starters, CKAN targets a more recent version of .NET than KSP, so it couldn't be made "part of the game." But assuming that could be figured out, there's the question of how CKAN would find the KSP folder (I assume consoles don't use Steam), and whether it would be allowed to access arbitrary web sites and store a multi-GB cache of downloads. Who knows what else might break. I guess it would be OK with me if SQUAD wanted to provide the CKAN dev team with development consoles...

CKAN is MIT-licensed, which I think would permit SQUAD to distribute it for money, but consult a lawyer to be sure.

Quote

Wait, do they also have to be ported separately? 

Mods, or CKAN?

Edited January 21, 2018 by HebaruSan

[Casualnaut]

Mod support is something that looks good on paper, but is bad in action.

They would end up being bombarded by random people saying "Gimme [insert mod] and [insert mod], because us console players are missing out!" I am a console player, and I think mods shouldn't be on top priority. 

[eddiew]

Given that the hardware specs of a console are pretty much equivalent to a potato PC, especially with regards to the single-thread speed that KSP responds to, it seems likely that even the stock game is already on the limits of what they will handle. Adding complicated parts collections is likely to reveal this in a big way  

Although I do agree that KER should be stock for everyone. It is blisteringly obvious that a game which measures manoeuvres in metres per second should actually have a readout of how many of them you have left in your tank. It doesn't have to be perfect to five decimal places, it just has to be within a couple of percent. It's also really not likely to have any significant performance impact, so there's just no excuse for not having this done yet.

[Corona688]

27 minutes ago, eddiew said:

there's just no excuse for not having this done yet.

kerbaledu.  They still haven't entirely given up hope they can sell a delta-v meter to schools.  Adding it to stock game would be a conflict of interest.

[eddiew]

22 hours ago, Corona688 said:

kerbaledu.  They still haven't entirely given up hope they can sell a delta-v meter to schools.  Adding it to stock game would be a conflict of interest.

But schools are the only people who should be learning to calculate it for themselves!  

[Spricigo]

 

I think the reasons to not give broad support to modding in the consoles are just the reasons to not give support to any mod at all.

[Corona688]

On 1/25/2018 at 11:37 AM, Spricigo said:

 

I think the reasons to not give broad support to modding in the consoles are just the reasons to not give support to any mod at all.

A console is not a PC.  Any programs for them undergo strict scrutiny by Microsoft, Panasonic, Nintendo or whatever.  Add a blanket "...plus whatever random bits and pieces people upload" to that and they'll say "Okay, no.  No running random bits of code from people we don't know or trust."

To get mods allowed on console, they'd have to be dumbed down considerably.  I don't think anyone would be happy about that.

Edited January 27, 2018 by Corona688

[Galileo]

I wouldn’t want any mod I make on console because, frankly, I don’t want to provide support for them on a system I don’t have. What if there is a bug that manifests on PS4 that doesn’t on PC? Then there is also the licensing issue. Squad would need to get permission from mod authors. And each time there is an update, Squad, Sony or Microsoft would need to verify everything. I just see it being too much work.

Edited January 27, 2018 by Galileo

[GrouchyDevotee]

A stock method of moving fuel from a refinery to a lander/orbiter for console.

Also

I'd like to see a couple useful Colony base building parts. Science habitat , Atmosphere processor/Snack bar, Hitchhiker outpost, phone-booth/comm centre,  Geodesic Command.., 

Mun base! , Duna Base!

 

 

[Spricigo]

3 minutes ago, GrouchyDevotee said:

A stock method of moving fuel from a refinery to a lander/orbiter for console.

 

like docking ports and the klaw?

[GrouchyDevotee]

18 hours ago, Spricigo said:

like docking ports and the klaw?

I was thinking something more along the lines of Kerbals being able to stretch fuel lines from a refinery to a fuel rover and then from the rover to a lander.

So, a parts bin for a Kerbal engineer to access and use is more along what I'm thinking.

I've only ever played Kerbal Space Program on PS4 console, and it was a tad glitchy in it's last version. I was never able to do a build where the docking collars would work while landed.

On 1/20/2018 at 9:37 AM, Deno_cooper1995 said:

B9 Aerospace and airplane plus giving the player a wider variety with space plane parts

Kerbal planetary base systems giving the players better base modules to build on planets

 

 

Yes, this!

[Mrcarrot]

This is very unlikely to happen, and here is a list of reasons, though some may have already been brought up.

1. First and foremost, modding on console would be very different from modding on PC. You'd need the mod dev to compile a special version with different code, just to support console.
2. Licensing. If your mod had, say, an All Rights Reserved license, and you gave SQUAD permission to do it, but it wasn't entirely clear you did, you might as well be offering them a free lawsuit.
3. Bugs. If a mod has an issue on console, the mod dev needs a console with KSP to replicate this bug and/or determine the cause. Also, logs would be very hard to provide for console, and the Debug Menu isn't easy for everyone to understand.
4. General Impracticality. You might think it would be easy to drag and drop files into the console's GameData folder, but consoles do not provide the direct access to files a PC can. Each mod would have to come with a package manager, and a simple config would become line after line of compiled code.
5. Hassle. If SQUAD doesn't want to go through the work of recoding and authenticating each mod, they don't have to. Remember, it's their game. The same goes for the modder, who may not want to go through the process either.

Hope this was helpful. Not trying to spoil everyone's fun, it's just probably not going to happen.

[Chel]

A sixth thing, continuing on from @Mrcarrot, how would you even get the mods anyway? The only way to download things for the Xbox is from the Microsoft Store. You won't be seeing 'Kerbal Attachment System' listed as an 'Add-On' for KSP EE in the store, would you? You can't go on the Edge app and go to Curse, pick a mod and download, as the Xbox doesn't support that. 

[GrouchyDevotee]

1 hour ago, The_Cat_In_Space said:

A sixth thing, continuing on from @Mrcarrot, how would you even get the mods anyway? The only way to download things for the Xbox is from the Microsoft Store. You won't be seeing 'Kerbal Attachment System' listed as an 'Add-On' for KSP EE in the store, would you? You can't go on the Edge app and go to Curse, pick a mod and download, as the Xbox doesn't support that. 

I'd love to see a couple of DLC for console Kerbal. But I'd certainly prefer it if Squad creates them.

I haven't used any Mods but I'd like to check out:

Kerbal Engineer

Realism Overhaul

That Docking assist looks cool.

some sort of encounter assist planner

But I'd settle for some Mun Base parts and the ability to drag fuel lines around.

For me at least I'm more concerned with functionality and playability of the game than with having 116 mod's running.

 

[Chel]

28 minutes ago, GrouchyDevotee said:

For me at least I'm more concerned with functionality and playability of the game than with having 116 mod's running.

116? I have only about 7: KW Rocketry, Chatterer, MRS, Space Station Plus (Space Station parts mod, useful for adding cool bits to large ships), Kerbal Joint Reinforcement, KIS and KAS (obviously) and Firespitter. In my opinion, it's not about having a massive amount of mods with parts you don't actually need, it's the mods that have the parts you can use (KW Rocketry is really good for helping me get stuff to orbit).

[Spricigo]

8 hours ago, The_Cat_In_Space said:

In my opinion, it's not about having a massive amount of mods with parts you don't actually need, it's the mods that have the parts you can use

 

I can use each and all of the dozen mods I have installed, but i really don't need any.  Which of this principles should I apply?

 

[GrouchyDevotee]

7 hours ago, The_Cat_In_Space said:

116? I have only about 7: KW Rocketry, Chatterer, MRS, Space Station Plus (Space Station parts mod, useful for adding cool bits to large ships), Kerbal Joint Reinforcement, KIS and KAS (obviously) and Firespitter. In my opinion, it's not about having a massive amount of mods with parts you don't actually need, it's the mods that have the parts you can use (KW Rocketry is really good for helping me get stuff to orbit).

I'm playing Kerbal Space Program Enhanced Edition on a PS4 console, and I'm not aware of any mods for this. I have never played Kerbal on any other platform. This means I've never been able to complete any career or science mode of game play. I haven't even put a Kerbal on the Mun yet in this new version.

I really only hear about existing mods for Kerbals through watching Scott Manley and a few others. It seems there are quite a few Mods out there for PC versions of Kerbal.  I really wouldn't know if there are 3 or 900. I really don't have a clue what half of the mods you are running do.

Us 'console only' players are painfully aware that the game is a tad unstable, and the control interface is already quite busy. Seriously not interested in adding anything to make the game function worse.

So If I'm able to make any suggestions for a future Console  DLC it would be this: Adding the ability to build and earn some functionality out of Mun-base (hotel, refinery, fuel station, science, personnel re-cooperation facility, canteena? ) Would Change the game dramatically.

Sure, having a HD photo-realistic game that models our Solar system precisely, with all the pretty clouds, radiation belts, solar storms, all the asteroids, all the other space junk and all existing Satellites, more dramatic and accurate re-entry effects,  precisely accurate air and wind modelling for both high and low speed aircraft, VFR approach lights would be fantastic,  adding a complete IFR instruments package would be nice, as long as the game never dips below 60 frames per second during 3000 part count launches....

The cartoonishly fun rocket game I'm currently playing doesn't need a whole lot more to keep the enjoyment going. 

Just my opinion.