Top 10 Requests

[Scarecrow71]

In no particular order...

1. Robotics.  Being able to move parts in or out or up or down is sorely needed.
2. Fix SAS.  Please.  Ships currently don't hold trajectories unless under thrust, and the reaction wheels/RCS are of no help.
3. Fix Fairings.  Please.  For starters, far too often we have to build an assembly, then build a fairing next to it to get it to close, then move the assembly inside the fairing.  In KSP1 we just built the fairing around the assembly.  And then they either don't eject properly OR they get stuck inside other parts, causing the ships to blow up.
4. Full TWR/dV per stage.  By celestial body.  There's a mod that does this (Micro-Engineer), but this was stock functionality in KSP1 and is sorely missing in KSP2.  Not to mention that the calculations for dV are incorrect most of the time, and they change between the VAB and the launchpad/runway.
5. Alarm clock would be nice.
6. Bring back the old way of doing maneuvers.  I get that KSP2 counts down to when you should actually do the burn, while KSP1 had you cut the time to burn in half and start at that point.  I get that the new way is more intuitive for newer players.  But the old way was so much better.
7. The ability to move the UI elements is needed.  Some people like the navball on the side, some like it dead center, some may prefer it up top.  Let us decide individually where our flight instruments should be.
8. The ability to use the scroll wheel on maneuver markers.  It is so annoying that you have to pull on the handles to get the smallest of increments, while in KSP1 we could simply use the scroll wheel on the mouse.
9. Fix the VAB controls.  PLEASE.  Having to hold MMB and then move the mouse to move up/down is ridiculous.  Again, the scroll wheel should be our friend, not our bane.
10. I'd actually like to see the phase angles for where the celestial bodies are.  We know that the phase angle for Duna, as an example, is in the neighborhood of 44 degrees.  KSP1 had a mod (KER) that showed this, but we still have to eyeball it in KSP1 without the mod AND we have to eyeball it in KSP2 without the Interplanetary Calculator mod.  Especially for new players who may not be aware of this, it would be nice to show this.

[Vl3d]

15 minutes ago, Scarecrow71 said:

Having to hold MMB and then move the mouse to move up/down is ridiculous.

Just middle click on the part you want centered.

[Kerbart]

• Robotics, like @Scarecrow71 mentioned. Maybe not the fully programmable gamut that we saw in the KSP1 DLC (I'm sure that will be DLC for KSP2 as well) but a simple set of controllable hinges and rotators would greatly help in making spaceflight real - things fold out all the time in reality. If Wobbly rockets are such a big deal, help us by removing the need for 15m diameter fairings at the top.
• Construction, even if it's just the ability to place struts on a flying aircraft. This would make large stations (in orbit or on the surface) so much more stable
• Add inclination to the navball, where we have AP and PE
• Add latitude and longitude to the navball. For everything else there can be mods but being able to see where you are is helpful for so many things that it'd be a shame you'd need a mod for that.
• Make the KSC the adventure-land it was before! The sneak previews on the docks allude to "work on the KSC" but I really hope this includes colliders everywhere so you can truly explore, climb stairways, discover hidden details on buildings, etc
• Make the KSC alive - moving antenna dishes, waving flags, a few scattered vehicles (preferably moving but that might be too much to ask) and not the scene of a 1950s horror flick "The Day After It Happened"
• Vehicle couplers/decouplers. Not static parts like docking ports but flexible, allowing you to pull multiple carts or surface base components in place

Edit: I forgot one!! Thank you @Pthigrivi for the balute suggestion, that reminded me. It's related but different, so...

• Larger parachutes / parachutes integrated with docking ports. Right now, if you want to use a Mk III capsule with a docking port, you end up spamming the craft with radial parachutes as they're tiny. Not only does it look unrealistic but we also get deprived of the wonderful animation of Mk16(? the nosecone-shaped one for S size) deploying gracefully. If you use that one you can't have a docking port and there goes your Apollo-style mun landing. Either have it integrate with a docking port, or have a similar sized parachute available as a radial chute

Edited November 10, 2023 by Kerbart

[Pthigrivi]

So many good ideas yall^

1) Life support! I know its controversial but I think it can be done in an enriching yet forgiving way. I made a thread about it.
2) Flight Planner with a transfer assistant and alarm clock that adds up a dV budget leg by leg to a destination. Bonus points if this can be appended to vessels in the VAB and in flight. 
3) Trajectories factoring drag and visible in flight mode. This could be unlocked after performing an atmospheric analysis of a given world. Super important for aerocaptures and precision landing.
4) Scanning and Mapping. This is such a gimme for the science system. The SCANsat style method of building maps was really instructional and overlays for altitude, slope, biome, and later resources would be amazing.
5) Make Kerbals Important at colonies and maybe even on vessels. There should be real in-game benefits to science and resource processing for having more of them  and there could be some really simple ways of autofilling job slots when you have lots of them.
6) A Simple habitation mechanic at colonies to increase kerbal productivity.
7) Stage recovery. I think it's possible to use the supply route system to rate subassemblies as recoverable. We've chatted about this in the past.
8) Solid tools for resource flows. When the resource system comes around learn from Starfield's mistakes. Without some basic tools managing resource flows you run into a lot of frustrating issues.
9) 1.875m parts. I know its a bunch of work but man I miss these. 
10) Ballutes! Last but not least. These would be amazing for aerocapturing big complex vessels where the center of drag is difficult to manage.

Edited November 10, 2023 by Pthigrivi

[Royalswissarmyknife]

53 minutes ago, Vl3d said:

Just middle click on the part you want centered.

Nothing wrong with middle clicking but the scroll wheel is much easier ESPECIALLY if there isn't a part where you want to go.

[dansiegel30]

1. Better tools for Inter-Planetary Travel - Porkchop Plots, Map visualization of ejection and phase angles - A decent amount of players in KSP1 never went past Minmus because of this, and for those that did, VERY few figured it out all.on.their.own - had to watch tutorials, use mods, research on their own - You'd like this game to teach people from doing, well, first you have to help them do it.

2. Robotics and full part parity from Final KSP1 - I mean it ridiculous that there is not mounting plate from XL->L or L->M, even though you have M->S and S->XS. Same goes for the tank options, many mor options and sizes are needed, although most people would prefer procedural tanks.

3. Tiny features from KSP1 - Commnet Visualization and signal strength, EVA Construction, Kerbal Specialization and skills, Astronaut Center showing all Kerbals, their skills, their locations, ala KSP1, Alarm Clock, Engine Restart limits but can be reset by Kerbal or specifically a Kerbal Engineer, precision DV increments by clicking on MN planning (dragging the vectors is rediculous for being the only way).  docking port rotation for proper alignment, Upgrades to Astronaut Center, VAB, Tracking Center, etc using Science Points, parachutes, repair kits, storage and deployable science, asteroids/telescopes - not sure if these were planned or not, but none of them are linked to roadmap features, so I figure since not in 0.1, sorry, we wont have them in KSP2. - not sure if they are already planned later   

4. Rover autopilot that can run while not in focus - fine, it should be recommended to go VERY slow, I get that - but I dont use rovers often because it takes FOREVER to drive them in realtime.    Similar need for atmospheric autopilot.  I want to be able to not focus on the craft if its doing a 30 minute flight path - and be able to use time warp while my altitude and and course are set - if it runs out of gas or hits a mountain, thats my fault.

5. Ec/LifeSupport/Comms PLANNERS - so frustrating to get the craft into space, and figure out you dont have enough Ec to survive orbit while using lights- of course needed for mods that will do science over time, ISRU, etc - or even worse, get all the way to Jool for the first time, and then find out your Antenna is not powerful enough.  

6. Waypoint manager - to remember sites, ability to appear on the navball and link to your autopilot in feature request #3

7. Ability to adjust the size of the Parts Manager and especially the parts picker in the VAB.  THEY ARE HUGE.  With both opened, they take near 50% of the screen.  Or atleast be able to push/hide the parts picker to the left, and push/hide parts manager to the right.  moving mouse to left or right screen edge brings them back. The parts manager needs to be accessed all the time, but its infuriating how large it is and annoying as heck having to go to the app bar so often to click it back open.

8. Proper Boat parts and hydrodynamics

9. Multi-Vesel Display Panel - something like from Kerbalism, which shows all active craft - or perhaps just done in Tracking Center, however like Kerbalism show battery state, kerbal health, battery state, indication if in shadow or not, etc - this is vital when running multiple craft on multiple missions which will be quite necessary when doing a campaign with several active vessels orbting around where ever.

10. Look at the top 100 mods in KSP1 to get more ideas - there is an extremely high chance that what those mods do is not in KSP2, nor in your plans.

[VlonaldKerman]

This thread is a good idea! My answers are in no particular order:

1) Life support- doesn’t have to be complicated, can be tied to a single or maybe 2 resources- the goal is to make time a valuable resource. Perhaps it can be configurable or disabled. I think it should be lethal at a certain point, but with a lot of alerts and stuff beforehand.

2) The new terrain system (I forget what it’s called).

3) Asynchronous rover driving a la Bon Voyage mod… I’m not sure how this is best implemented, because Bon Voyage is a little overpowered. Perhaps the rover can only drive a certain distance with the feature, and the player has to drive the first kilometer of the route, to prove that the rover can actually drive and handle well? Less sure about this one, but it could be a very cool feature, and would really create interesting design/strategy decisions along with life support.

4) Reusable booster recovery a la FMRS mod.

5) Vessel construction times… synergizes well with life support. No more instant rescue missions! There are some game-design issues to be solved (should there be a craft hangar? What about repairs? How to make non-tedious and how to modify difficulty to be more forgiving?) but I would PERSONALLY like it and this is my PERSONAL list…

6) Weather! Even if only cosmetic. Blackrack’s Duna sandstorms were very cool, even if they couldn’t actually impale Matt Damon.

7) Considering clipped parts when calculating tank volume… seems like a massive technical challenge, but maybe not?

8) Wear-and-tear. Like weather, this could be a purely visual effect, or have gameplay ramifications. Wouldn’t it be cool if your rover that’s been sitting on Duna for 20 years had dust on it? Could go all the way up to part failure.

9) SCANSAT features like surface mapping, etc. Good for scouting out landing sites with intentionality.

10) Testing mode. Especially if there are things like life support and construction time that make failure states more common and less recoverable, being able to test crafts and missions is important, and it breaks immersion to have to load up a different sandbox save with your crafts in it. Though, you can do that, so this is really more QOL than anything.

 

I think that the unifying theme here is that the challenge is kicked up just a notch from KSP 1. I know that onboarding is a big priority, but new players won’t have to worry about LS for example when they are landing in the Mun. They might create a station in LKO to test out LS mechanics, before putting a base on Minmus, which is easier to land on but far enough away that it’s a good test bed for LS before their first Duna mission.

In other words, the steepness of the difficulty curve won’t change, it will just have a higher ceiling, even before the player goes interstellar.

I would also argue that persistent colonies are irreconcilable with the “one mission at a time” play style, so future dev decisions should not be made with the intention of catering to that desire. Therefore it seems very logical to introduce features that make time a valuable resource, and require the managing of several concurrent missions.

But yeah, those are my ten! I also happen to be the arbiter of truth, beauty, and wisdom, so they are also the definitive ten! Boom!

 

moar boosters

[cocoscacao]

I'll chip in. Not ordered by priority.

1. robotics
2. precise MN modifier in a separate window (focus on MN not required) 
3. ability to select entire craft and move it around (alt + click in ksp1(?))
4. old fairing building system as an option (PLEASE!!!)
5. put/rotate/translate tool separated and mapped to 1, 2 and 3 respectively (like in KSP 1)
6. parts consistency (all size varieties for all parts) (PLEASE!!!)
7. focus camera on MMB click in flight to a specific part, same as in VAB
8. keyboard input for number values (wing length, angle, engine mount length...)
9. Parallax mod - KSP 2 edition (more interesting terrain)
10. Indication of overlapping trajectories. Sometimes, trajectories overlap, and when I time-warp to a certain point, I've clicked on future trajectory, time-warping too much (current trajectories are a mess in general)

Just 10???

[Scarecrow71]

2 hours ago, Vl3d said:

Just middle click on the part you want centered.

That doesn't work when I'm trying to move the entire assembly up or down.

[Ahres]

I'm quite in-line with Mr. Space Cat himself, @Pthigrivi. 

Let's see...

1. Life Support: Yes please. The game is about building and flying rockets, sure. But it's also about Kerbals, and I want mechanics for taking care of them and consequences when I don't.
2. Flight Planner and Simulations: So obvious. There's even a Dev Diary from someone that talks about going from the desire of being an astronaut to gradually realizing the desire to be a Mission Controller. And that applies here. I'm fine with the ability to build something without checking what its capabilities are, but I'd like the opportunity to know ahead of time if the chutes will work, if the antennae have the range, if the solar panels generate enough power, if the batteries can provide power through nighttime, etc.
3. Trajectories: flightpath through reentry would be so helpful. As would being able to set a maneuver right at the Ap or Pe (and knowing which orbit I'm clicking on! I'm with you @cocoscacao).
4. Scanning & Mapping: I'm playing my first KSP1 playthrough with SCANSat and holy cow I'm never going back. Adds so much more to differing aspects of gameplay including, reasons for satellites, planning, exploring, and science.
5. Kerbal Importance: Again, it's KERBAL Space Program, and we love these little guys and gals. I want to take care of them, and I want to have a gameplay reason for stationing them anywhere off-world. I'll lump the Habitation Mechanic with this- seems very related.
6. Environments: I know we'll see strides as the game matures but I want it all. Highly varied terrain as seen from orbit all the way down to when boots are on the ground. Terrain in-game is so flat and bland compared to what we see from the Moon landings and Mars rovers. I want to explore, but it's all so similar- love me some Parallax 2. Different interactions/behaviors between ice, lava, rock, etc. More of what we expect from the hiring of Blackrack: scatterer, weather, cloud layers, etc. Get us some aurorae, and that planetshine we saw in early development too. Perhaps bootprints and tire tracks. Additionally, my pal @PDCWolf and I would still like to see stars washed out when a much brighter/larger object is on-screen (granted it seems to be highly controversial).
7. EVA Construction: Not sure how bad we'll need this when we get the BAE, but until I know what its capable of, I'll maintain that it sure is fun to do spacewalks on orbit for upgrading a space station or assembling a rover when landed.
8. 1.875 Parts: I use these all the time. Playing KSP2, it just feels like we're missing an entire category of parts that are much more aesthetically pleasing in certain builds.
9. Telescopes: Part of my desire for exploration. I've unfortunately learned a lot about the forthcoming exoplanets. It sure would be fun to discover the ones I haven't heard of and work to reach them and learn more about them. Alas, I'm worried that this is a game mechanic that would come after release... when all the planets will already be known and visible.
10. Robotics: It opens the door to so much creativity which is better for the community and its growth. Plus, it really hinders what a player can fit inside a fairing when it can't be unfolded/extended in space.

[Scarecrow71]

On the topic of Life Support that @Pthigrivi, @Ahres, and others in this thread have mentioned...

I am not one to use actual life support mechanisms for my Kerbals.  Snacks, air quality, water, etc., are not something I want to see in the game.  However, I believe that if there is a way to make it optional for people to use in game (like we have options for Probes Require Control, Infinite Electricity, etc.), then absolutely get it added.  So many ways to play this game, and I see no reason why something that is wanted as badly as LS shouldn't be in the game.

[Periple]

I think optional LS would be a problem because it would have to inform the ship designs. One of the fun things about KSP is sharing them and if you have to specify that a craft was designed for LS on or off that would detract from it. 

It would also make balancing the game harder, things would likely feel OP with the system off since you’d be dealing with much smaller payloads. 

If it’s not possible to design in a way that’s fun for everybody (or almost everybody) then I think it should be left to mods.

Difficulty options in LS itself would make sense, like easy mode would just make kerbals less effective (disable experience?), normal mode would put them into hibernation, and hard mode would kill them, but all modes would need the same amount of resources so ship designs wouldn’t change.

[Scarecrow71]

Just now, Periple said:

I think optional LS would be a problem because it would have to inform the ship designs. One of the fun things about KSP is sharing them and if you have to specify that a craft was designed for LS on or off that would detract from it. 

I don't think would be any different than sharing craft that were designed/built for different versions of the game.  Or even under situations where you have some parts enabled in a career save but someone else may not in theirs (akin to the whole "Test this part" stuff in KSP1 when you don't have that node unlocked).

I agree with the sentiment that it may make things more difficult when sharing craft.  But I don't think that should be the reason to not include it.  It should go on the list of pros and cons, but not be the sole reason.

[Vl3d]

Life support (consuming craft resources) is out (because it breaks time warp), radiation + habitation (artificial gravity) are in.

Edited November 10, 2023 by Vl3d

[cocoscacao]

2 hours ago, Vl3d said:

Just middle click on the part you want centered.

I still think we need vertical scrolling ability in VAB. MMB is fine, but when parts get larger, I'm still stuck at the center of the part. Maybe I wanna do something precise at the edges...

[PDCWolf]

11 minutes ago, Vl3d said:

Life support is out (because it breaks time warp), radiation + habitation (artificial gravity) are in.

how does life support break timewarp exactly? it'd be no different to an engine draining fuel, and maybe creating another waste resource if they go that route.

[Cosmic Sailor]

I would like a way for time to matter when planning missions. These would be my suggestions which are already in KSP 1 mods.

1. Life support. Already covered by others, I won't go that in depth with this. IMO snacks would be fine though.

2. Failures. Random failures I would only really want for engines, a failed reaction wheel would be annoying.

3. Part deterioration. Solar panels could deteriorate on long missions which would require you to add separate solar panels that unfold after the other ones fail. I'm pretty sure that it was Molniya that did this? It was in the Scott Manley video on Soviet communication satellites.

Other than that I would also like:

4. KSC collisions. Cool for driving around.

5. 1.875m parts: For R7 recreations, mostly.

[Periple]

23 minutes ago, Vl3d said:

Life support (consuming craft resources) is out (because it breaks time warp), radiation + habitation (artificial gravity) are in.

LS could work just fine if integrated with the resource logistics system. Just set up a recurring supply mission and warp away.

[regex]

29 minutes ago, Vl3d said:

Life support (consuming craft resources) is out (because it breaks time warp)

We have burn during warp my brother in Kerbol, we can consume craft resources during timewarp.

Have you never managed several flights with TACLS in KSP1? It's not really that hard, it usually just requires more on-orbit mass and an alarm clock.

[EchoLima]

Probably too late for this, but recognize that much of KSP 1 is semi-abandoned placeholder content, from the contract system to the planetary system. Don't limit the design to what's familiar when there are better alternatives. 

e.g.

• A second gas planet for Voyager-type grand flybys. 
• Redesigned capsules with space for a parachute, docking port, and LES.
• More granular science collection that rewards exploring the local environment (hilltops, craters, various rockbeds and soils, other procedurally generated scan points) 
• A more informative map view that accounts for re-entry and warns you of commnet and electric problems ahead of time. 
• Any kind of incentive for using non-capsule modules for crew, whether it's crew comfort that affects the science multiplier or life support. 

Edited November 10, 2023 by EchoLima

[dandoesstuff]

btw, this isnt serious, but:

1. Early Access Release
2. Science
3. Colonies
4. Interstellar
5. Exploration
6. Multiplayer
7. Dating Sim
8. Dakota Kerman
9. Dating Sim 2
10. KSP 3

ok, back to being serious,
1. 1.875m parts, including the saturn v cluster engine mount
2. more 0.625m parts
3. life support
4. EVA construction
5. scanning (KerbNet)
6. robotics
7. future trajectories
8. construction times
9. ballast tanks (for ballast)
10. persistent rotation

[Socraticat]

1. Mining. I want a refueling station at every moon.

2. Fuel in Wings

3. Give numpad control instead of sliders in VAB.

4. HEX Codes for colors

5. EVA Ragdoll

6. Faster Rover wheels

7.  Robotics

8. EVA Repair

9. Colonies. I want a VAB on every Celestial.

10. Create your own Kerbal sounds too cool.

[NexusHelium]

18 hours ago, Ryaja said:

9: Kerbal being awed when around a planet with stunning visuals.

You mean like... All of them? In my opinion, from orbit (KSP with Parallax, EVE and Scatterer still looks better from the surface) looks AMAZING!

[Vortygont]

1. 1.875 m parts
2. Persistent rotation during timewarp
3. Asteroids, comets with tails, physical asteroids and rocks in planet rings
4. Hydrolox engines, not only hydrogen nuclear
5. Better rendering of enviromental props in high dictances
6. Distant giant objects like OAB, space stations, colonies are visually rendered at long distances. Sattelites and planets can be seen as flares [Distant Object Enhancement ksp1 mod]
7. Relativistic effects during interstellar flights
8. The eighth planet in Kerbol system which is so far away in orbit and has weird inclination that it's pointless to fly to it using Hohman transfer
9. Aerostats and balloons for atmospheric research e.g. for Jool
10. Direct dependence of colony welfare on infrastructure in orbit: communication satellites, imaging satellites, telescopes, etc.

[Bej Kerman]

7 minutes ago, Vortygont said:

• Hydrolox engines, not only hydrogen nuclear

The NERV-US engine will be able to do that, and it'll come with a vacuum mode as well.

5 hours ago, Scarecrow71 said:

But the old way was so much better.

The old way was extremely inaccurate and I'm struggling to figure out how it could be considered better under any circumstance. Unless you were playing with very high TWRs or simple missions, it'd lose accuracy easily, and things only got awful for nuclear vessels. The system KSP 2 uses isn't just more intuitive, it's also incredibly accurate and lets you do maneuvers that would have been extremely hard to predict in KSP 1.