TheBedla Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 It seems with the start of .22, quite a few people were unhappy with starting off with kerballed pods, while many others argued KSP should not be a recreation of Human Space Programme.Why not let the players decide? Just a minor tweak in the tech tree should allow for both.There would be two nodes just after the starting one in the tree, one with the mk. 1 pod and the other with a dumb probe, and a starting player would have enough science to unlock either node (but not both).Thus everyone would be able to start with whatever they prefer.What do you think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crush Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 (edited) Currently, starting with probes would be a dead-end for the player, because the most profitable sources of science in the early game (crew reports, EVA reports, Kerbin soil samples) require crew.To make an unmanned early-game viable, probes would need more ways to collect science points. Maybe replace "crew report" with "flight telemetry report" for probes would be a start? Or move the scientific instruments like thermometer or gravimeter closer to the start? Edited October 17, 2013 by Crush Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Awaras Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 Also, power. Without batteries or solar panels, probes run out of juice very quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Technical Ben Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 Probes and satellites in orbit could be used to improve the % return on transmission (to a limit, say 90%). Then they are a viable boost for those who wish to use them (as the current %40 transmission boost to double that would be worth the extra launch). It would also mean you get to balance science launches, and funding (1 launch at 40% science, or two at 90% or one massive return craft at %100). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sean Mirrsen Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 Probes really need instruments to gather data, and power to work. Without so much as using its reaction wheels, a typical probe will not last long enough on internal batteries to make it anywhere, plus the reaction wheels it does have are pitiful. Probes are thus nearly useless without RCS.So to recap, in order to do science - i.e. start the game - with probes, you need a probe core, some kind of instrument, either RCS or separate reaction wheels, and ideally some extra power because probe cores have pitiful reserves and actually need them to stay active. The power draw of the simplest transmission antenna, for the simplest report, is greater than what the probe can store, so you would be even more limited.Starting the game with manned capsules makes more sense both from the game progression standpoint, and from the in-universe standpoint, that being the Kerbals' amazing incompetence in the face of their sheer engineering prowess. They have rocket engines and spacesuits, but need effort to put together space-worthy thermometers and battery packs or realize that landing legs are a thing that spaceships intending to land should probably actually have. Them not having remotely controlled probes from the start, in the light of all that, makes perfect sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UbioZur Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 We already have a thread that discusses this, so I'm closing this one. Please continue here: http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/52606-Probes-before-Kerbonauts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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