Losing motivation

[ToukieToucan]

So I recently started a new science game (first serious science game so far) and use the mod Kerbalism which adds in slick looking dtuff like life support, relay systems, radiation (keep yo' kerbals shielded), quality of life (kerbals can go insane after a while and can break certain parts in their rage) and malfunction. Playing with the slider at 75% science and so far I've made relay sats for Kerbin, the mun and minmus. (~4) Unmanned mun landings and scansatted the mun and minmus. Since the tech tree has changed a bit by this mod I just got the science bay jr. 

I also kind of feel like giving up this save because somehow I really don't like Minmus for some strange reason and by the time I arrive at minmus there will be tons of malfunctions making you question if those 30 minutes were worth it to set up a precise Minmus relay system.

 

in general I havent gotten that far though I have put a lot of hours into KSP messing around. Anways here's the stuff I've done I've:

'Mastered' orbit

'Mastered' docking 

landed and returned from the mun

landed and returned from Minmus

landed on Duna

landed on Ike

 

I'd like to go to Eve with some kerbals but not sure how I'd get them off...

Edited May 8, 2016 by ToukieToucan

[regex]

People make these "losing inspiration" or "losing motivation" threads all the time; they're a dime a dozen.  Go check out past threads on the subject which basically boil down to either "something ambitious you've never done!" or "take a break".  Seriously, no one here is going to cure your personal problem, you have to do it yourself.  Hell, I haven't touched KSP since the pre-release and you don't see me complaining about lack of motivation, I'm playing something else at the moment.

[FullMetalMachinist]

@regex I love your huggable bedside manner 

[regex]

7 minutes ago, FullMetalMachinist said:

@regex I love your huggable bedside manner 

OP makes list of things they've done, says "I realize I haven't done a lot of stuff", then complains about "losing motivation".  Clearly they need to step away from the game.  Sometimes "tough love" makes the best bedside manner.

[ToukieToucan]

50 minutes ago, regex said:

OP makes list of things they've done, says "I realize I haven't done a lot of stuff", then complains about "losing motivation".  Clearly they need to step away from the game.  Sometimes "tough love" makes the best bedside manner.

Right, but the game feels a bit grindy at this point. I guess youŕe right but kind of weird to describe, I know I might sound like a whiny kid now but I guess that's just the way it is.

[regex]

1 minute ago, ToukieToucan said:

Right, but the game feels a bit grindy at this point. I guess youŕe right but kind of weird to describe, I know I might sound like a whiny kid now but I guess that's just the way it is.

It's not a "whiny kid" thing, it's just reality.  If you're losing interest and motivation in something, step back and take a break.  When/if you come back you'll be in a much fresher head space.  E: Also doesn't mean you have to give up the forums or anything if you're worried about that, plenty to talk about around here other than the game.

Edited May 8, 2016 by regex

[ToukieToucan]

Just now, regex said:

It's not a "whiny kid" thing, it's just reality.  If you're losing interest and motivation in something, step back and take a break.  When/if you come back you'll be in a much fresher head space.

Ohhh, I have this terrible dillema that I want to start a new save when I come back from a break tis'a vicious cycle

[tater]

I'm on a semi-break ATM, myself. I've loaded up the new version and tested a little stock, then tested a little with SSTU. In the last several weeks I've only played an hour or so, and again, I'm testing, not really playing.

A simple thing I tend to do is change scale, then everything is new again in some ways, even just Kerbin SoI becomes more interesting when you have to consider staged landers, etc. There's always RSS/RO, too.

 

[smjjames]

Yeah I'm kind of (or am anyway, blarbity blarbity) in the same situation and kinda bored. Maybe I should get back into Dwarf Fortress or something....

Edited May 8, 2016 by smjjames

[N_Molson]

A few suggestions :

- Make another step forward and discover the addon-development world. Learning to code a bit (in C# for KSP) can open you near-endless possibilities. Or you can simply tweak .cfg files. Or make new models and textures.
- Try Orbiter, attempt to 1) dock the ISS 2) land on the Moon and return 3) land on Mars and return with realistic spacecraft addons. That can keep you busy a while.
- Attempt an EVA out of your place. Regardless where you live, there's tons of stuff to do outside.

[Blunderbuss]

7 hours ago, N_Molson said:

- Attempt an EVA out of your place. Regardless where you live, there's tons of stuff to do outside.

^This. I've fairly recently gotten into R/C flying and love taking my park flyer/Sensei/quads out and tearin' up the real air.

Plus I just love the outdoors.

[WOODY01]

Why not install RSS and the realism overhaul.  You will have to wait for RO to update or play an older version of KSP.

It really opened up the game for me and kept me interested.  Unlike the stock game you will not be able to go from it being a challenge to get somewhere to it becoming almost trivial rather quickly.  Since the tech tree follows a more realistic progression.  

[Kerbin vonKerbal]

Realism overhaul is a good one for me. I'm also pretty active in the forums even while playing other games to fill my time while waiting on updates and such. Don't play if you're burnt out, it just takes away the fun and makes it unenjoyable. 

Edited May 9, 2016 by Kerbin vonKerbal

[James Kerman]

On ‎8‎/‎05‎/‎2016 at 8:36 PM, ToukieToucan said:

I'd like to go to Eve with some kerbals but not sure how I'd get them off...

There is the solution to your problem.  I am working on an EVE return mission at the moment and it's the most challenging thing I've done in KSP.

[Speeding Mullet]

8 hours ago, James Kerman said:

challenging thing I've done in KSP.

Along those lines there's an absolutely incredible amount of challenges to compete in.  Personally I'm taking a back seat in playing KSP to run a challenge thread at the moment, but for sure when I think of the next interesting thing I can do I'll dive right back in.  

A lot of times that I've hit a "what do I do wall" the challenge section has massively helped me get back into the game.

 

SM

[JoeNapalm]

"So go outside!!" -- Mom

 

 

-Jn-

 

 

 

[Guest]

It happens when you do something for hours on end.

[Dfthu]

On 5/8/2016 at 11:23 AM, ToukieToucan said:

Right, but the game feels a bit grindy at this point. I guess youŕe right but kind of weird to describe, I know I might sound like a whiny kid now but I guess that's just the way it is.

If you feel like career is to grindy you could always play sandbox mode instead. 

[Enorats]

This is more a problem with the Kerbalism mod itself. I had the same issue, everything breaks about 2000 times to quickly. Satellites I launched towards Minmus wouldn't go a week before having major malfunctions. In a few months they'd lose all solar power output entirely along with everything else.

 

It's a great mod with many things I like, but it's new and not well balanced yet.

[Mastikator]

Sometimes I get bored with career too. So this is what I do.

> Start up sandbox.
> Enter the VAB
> Hastily put together a plane.
> Fly it around in IVA.
> Put together a different plane.
> Fly that around in IVA.
> Shut down KSP after an hour of doing this on repeat
> Play some other game

[Peder]

Taking off from EVE and returning to orbit....  small hint, it can be a big help ( but also dangerous ) to land on the highest mountain. You can save allot of fuel if you fly from the top of a mountain.
However eve is very though, and you need some serious engineering and rockets and fuel to take off. Lucky now a days you can mine fuel on planets, so technical speaking if you bring a refuel rover that can drive arround and make fuel and fuel the ship then it become more easy.

Anyway it is possible to return from eve, maybe good idea to look at some videos on youtube. ;-)

As you can see there are many ways to build a ship that can make it back into space from eve... I would never have come up with this design ;-) he he
 

 

[Kerbin vonKerbal]

If you start losing motivation, but you don't post about it in the forums, did you really even start losing motivation to begin with?

[T-Bouw]

Like some things, they're best taken in moderation. Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. So moderate to stop it from becomming stale.

I did the same thing with bowling. Sometimes the pins just would'n fall like I wanted no matter how much I adjusted my techniques. Then I took a break, sometimes a few minutes to sip a drink, stare at the pins and rationalize. But sometimes I didn't bowl for a few weeks.
Whatever it took to keep bowling in the long term.

Many suggestions have been made in as many treads, so look them up for inspiration.

[Mjarf]

This why one have more than one hobby, I have several. When I get tired of playing games on my PC I go wash my car for the first time this month, somehow improve it's soundsystem even further, or I do something airsoft related. I also plan on getting the family boat ready for the season, the engine isn't even running right so it'll take quite a bit of work. 

[Perry Apsis]

On 5/8/2016 at 0:23 PM, ToukieToucan said:

Right, but the game feels a bit grindy at this point. I guess youŕe right but kind of weird to describe, I know I might sound like a whiny kid now but I guess that's just the way it is.

@regex, Mission Accomplished.

Motivation is subtle and complex, and something Squad really hasn't thrown the kind of study on that a game developer should. The game does get grindy at that point for a new player.

That said, I must echo Regex (whose answers are always sound, if not always nice). Either take a break (we've all been there), or really stretch yourself. One day I realized that all my stuff looked the same, and was obvious and uncreative, to boot. I could see that other posters here were building things that achieved a complexity, elegance, and sometimes even beauty that I had never approached.

So I started playing with procedural parts, KIS/KAS, Infernal Robotics, and made some things I was rather proud of. I'm still jealous of those who design beautifully (Looking at you, @Kuzzter!) and I will never reach that level. But I got many months of enjoyment and satisfaction out of it.  

I will not leave this without taking the opportunity to jump once again on my perpetual soap-box: The real culprit here is career mode.^* The game is now positioned as a half-assed space program simulator with a sandbox mode for those who can't hack it, whereas it should be viewed as a fantastic space construction and flight simulator with a pretty good tutorial. The greatness of the game is that YOU decide what to do, not Gene, and you do it for love, fun, curiosity, jealousy(!), pride, etc., not funds. 

So hurry up and get through career mode (here's a hint: get ForScience!, put a scientist into a lander with goo and science jr. and any other science tools you've unlocked, and hop around Minmus for a few landings and EVAs in different biomes) and start challenging yourself. Post your builds on the forum so @Starhawk can say encouraging things about them, and get more ideas for missions.

^* Well, that and Regex.