My 1.2 Experience

[ansaman]

I have nothing but good things to say about the 1.2 Pre-Release and the means by which the whole project has been presented. Devs have been listening. It is not just bug reports, but game play, interface, game balance, and other aspects.

For me, since I am a serious addict with thousands of hours of game play since 2013, I have been forced to dump all of my mods and play manually.  I was delighted to find that I had learned something and I was able to do it, particularly since many of the previous problems with map view and maneuver nodes have been corrected. 

The tracking stations and relay satellites provided a whole new level of game play and planning. I had to build a Deep Space Network (DSN) and eventually was forced to create a high-powered Keosynchronous relay satellite. Upon getting a probe to Duna and Ike, I found that no only did I have to deal with power issues on the dark side of bodies, I had to deal with Loss of Signal (LOS) and diminished data rates as I had opted to try it out with a single ground station. There are almost always some windows with LOS or diminished signal.  I had to plan my maneuver nodes around control loss issues and I had to plan my science transmissions around the loss of connectivity.  It gave the whole thing a larger feel for reality since we often hear about JPL having to download data over extended periods and to plan burns and corrections around the capabilities of the Deep Space Network. When I was done, I felt that special feeling of accomplishment that I remember when I first achieved orbit so long ago.  

Having said all that, I feel that there is still room for game development even as 1.2 has proven to be far more mature. I crave surprise content. Upon getting 1.2, I excitedly built a high speed jet to reconnoiter the new tracking stations to see if they were just points on the map view and I found there were actual massive DSN dishes that actually moved if you approached closely enough. I bet with a little work a system of weekly or monthly puzzles, encounters, and surprises could be developed to expand a mature KSP to a service. It could be a push or pull service. As an example, a cut-scene with narrative explains that KSC has detected an unknown object entering the system and the player is challenged to identify the object (it turns out to be an unmanned alien probe) and upon doing that a spacewalk allows your Kerbal to retrieve an artifact which grants an increase in technology or a new part or even more simply a spiffy professional craft file. Squad needs a writer.

Screen grab from my Duna-Ike Mission:

 

[ansaman]

Oh... while this is all fun... a link to a live status page for the entire NASA Deep Space Network:

http://eyes.nasa.gov/dsn/dsn.html

[Kermanzooming]

3 hours ago, ansaman said:

I bet with a little work a system of weekly or monthly puzzles, encounters, and surprises could be developed to expand a mature KSP to a service. 

Quite a good idea... Could also help financially Squad, if that service was a paid one. I would surely subscribe for a reasonable amount.

However, I'm not sure how many players on KSP are interested on the storyline side of it, I think most players are of the sandbox type

[Luis]

I would subscribe to this in a heartbeat.

[Fuzzra]

19 hours ago, ansaman said:

Oh... while this is all fun... a link to a live status page for the entire NASA Deep Space Network:

http://eyes.nasa.gov/dsn/dsn.html

That is an absolutely lovely bit of design. The longer you stare at it the more functions you spot.

[Guest]

20 hours ago, ansaman said:

I bet with a little work a system of weekly or monthly puzzles, encounters, and surprises could be developed to expand a mature KSP to a service.

Why would Squad bother when Reddit has (or used to have) a regular challenge and the forums here have an entire forum dedicated to challenges?

[ansaman]

4 hours ago, Luis said:

I would subscribe to this in a heartbeat.

Well, I am not a programmer, but if they want a person to write scenarios, I am available. I know it can be hard to come up with new ideas on a continuing basis.

2 minutes ago, regex said:

Why would Squad bother when Reddit has (or used to have) a regular challenge and the forums here have an entire forum dedicated to challenges?

Well do the current challenges include in-game benefits for completion? I get the impression that the challenges of which you speak are not programmed per se. I am talking about a download like the asteroid intercept that NASA took part in. Objects have to be created, backstories written. It adds a little adventure and roleplay. Of course, not being a Redditor I am not sure what has been done in the past. I am talking about something new in-game on a monthly basis to do based on my excitement on discovering the auxiliary tracking stations actually existed. It was a lot of fun doing reconnaissance to see.

[legoclone09]

20 hours ago, ansaman said:

Oh... while this is all fun... a link to a live status page for the entire NASA Deep Space Network:

http://eyes.nasa.gov/dsn/dsn.html

 

I've seen those before at JPL and they are awesome.

Hey Telemachus people! I HAVE A JOB FOR YOU!

[Guest]

13 minutes ago, ansaman said:

Well do the current challenges include in-game benefits for completion?

Like what are you expecting for in game benefits?

[ansaman]

1 minute ago, regex said:

Like what are you expecting for in game benefits?

Vanity parts or bling. Custom unique Kerbals. Perhaps an part that replaces a part with better capabilities. Perhaps an addition to a status screen that shows completed tasks. Perhaps a custom made craft file that would be fun to use.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, ansaman said:

Vanity parts or bling. Custom unique Kerbals. Perhaps an part that replaces a part with better capabilities. Perhaps an addition to a status screen that shows completed tasks. Perhaps a custom made craft file that would be fun to use.

Nothing could possibly go wrong with this plan. I endorse this product/service wholeheartedly.

[Sandworm]

1 hour ago, ansaman said:

Vanity parts or bling. Custom unique Kerbals. Perhaps an part that replaces a part with better capabilities. Perhaps an addition to a status screen that shows completed tasks. Perhaps a custom made craft file that would be fun to use.

Having special/magic/legendary parts scattered around as rewards comes very close to "Jeb's boots of +10 ISP".  I'm all for advances in technology, but not hero parts added simply to inject an RPG element.

[ansaman]

8 minutes ago, Sandworm said:

Having special/magic/legendary parts scattered around as rewards comes very close to "Jeb's boots of +10 ISP".  I'm all for advances in technology, but not hero parts added simply to inject an RPG element.

I bust out laughing reading this.

[Sandworm]

6 minutes ago, ansaman said:

I bust out laughing reading this.

I don't.  Jeb's boots were very close to being a real game element a few patches back.  There was talk of pilots, Jeb in particular, magically adding to the performance of engines.  We got some of this concept with engineers better handling drilling.

[Alshain]

2 hours ago, regex said:

Why would Squad bother when Reddit has (or used to have) a regular challenge and the forums here have an entire forum dedicated to challenges?

It would be neat to see more sanctioned community contests like we used to have.  Not just giveaways but actually something in-game.  It doesn't have to be developed into the game though, remember the World Cup contest?  Something like that, but actually somewhat related to KSP and not soccer.

[Guest]

5 minutes ago, Alshain said:

It would be neat to see more sanctioned community contests like we used to have.  Not just giveaways but actually something in-game.  It doesn't have to be developed into the game though, remember the World Cup contest?  Something like that, but actually somewhat related to KSP and not soccer.

It would be? The problem with that is that KSP boasts precisely zero DRM, which means that eventually everyone get their hands on said special items. Sure, I suppose we could do forum games, but I'd bet you 95% of the forums literally could care less.

And if you're just talking contests then I see things like the world cup thing: you get people like COM putting out a fantastic vision of what KSP could be losing to a pretty standard grand tour.

Yeah, no, count me out.

Edited September 25, 2016 by regex

[Alshain]

What special items?

[Draco T stand-up guy]

2 hours ago, regex said:

Like what are you expecting for in game benefits?

Simple Steam Achievements would work I suspect.

Reddit doesn't have such a record of achievement nor is everyone on Reddit or the forums to get the chance to partake of those challenges.

Edited September 25, 2016 by Draco T stand-up guy

[Alshain]

Oh no, I didn't mean giveaway items in-game, I meant the contest would take place in game as opposed to drawing names from a hat from a list of people who answered questions right from a web poll.

Edited September 25, 2016 by Alshain

[ansaman]

1 minute ago, regex said:

It would be? The problem with that is that KSP boasts precisely zero DRM, which means that eventually everyone get their hands on said special items.

I don't see the problem. It is not for money, it is not a competition. If someone wants to cheat, they cheat themselves of the adventure. Like I said, I had a ball looking for the unknown when I decided to look for the tracking dishes and found them. It was exciting and new.

 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, ansaman said:

I don't see the problem. It is not for money, it is not a competition. If someone wants to cheat, they cheat themselves of the adventure. Like I said, I had a ball looking for the unknown when I decided to look for the tracking dishes and found them. It was exciting and new.

 

Good for you, dude!

3 minutes ago, Draco T stand-up guy said:

Simple Steam Achievements would work I suspect.

Not everyone plays on Steam. I don't, even if I use Steam for a delivery device. I have two Steam badges, 11 years of service and 50+ games owned; Steam means nothing to me besides a means of delivery.

[ansaman]

2 minutes ago, Alshain said:

What special items?

What if they developed a some special cool artwork for some of the parts? You could "earn" the bling and it wouldn't change game performance. I mean everybody ooohs and ahhhs over the "curvy" graffiti and some of the little easter eggs on some of the parts. What if they snuck in a new easter egg and gave clues to find it in a series of missions or achievements? They is real fun potential here... and the dev work would be minimal for a few skins or a few items.

 

[Alshain]

3 minutes ago, ansaman said:

What if they developed a some special cool artwork for some of the parts? You could "earn" the bling and it wouldn't change game performance. I mean everybody ooohs and ahhhs over the "curvy" graffiti and some of the little easter eggs on some of the parts. What if they snuck in a new easter egg and gave clues to find it in a series of missions or achievements? They is real fun potential here... and the dev work would be minimal for a few skins or a few items.

 

No no no.  I'm not talking about in-game items.  Not only is that not what I'm talking about, it's a rotten terrible idea to withhold beautiful artwork from everyone.  It took us long enough to get the old rocket parts re-done.

[ansaman]

Hey folks... it is an IDEA... not a debate. I threw it out there. Maybe someone at SQUAD thinks it is worth thinking about.. maybe not. Once the game is mature and the difficulties are ironed out... what then? As an example, if you want to do the research, KOEI did a game called "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and they did something like fifteen different versions of the same game with different weighting for military, diplomatic, and economic aspects.

Just now, Alshain said:

It took us long enough to get the old rocket parts re-done.

Some of them are still ugly as hell. The fuel tanks that look like 55 gallon drums. Perhaps that is intentional.

 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, ansaman said:

Hey folks... it is an IDEA... not a debate

I thought it was a debate about an IDEA... Oh well.