The funnest missions are the early ones

[LethalDose]

I personally think that Mun and Minmus need fewer biomes. You can probably fill out the tech tree with just Mun and Minmus missions. In fact I'm sure you can. 3-4 biomes per moon/planet is probably a good number.

I'm fine with the number of biomes they have, but I would prefer to see the science values for minmus and mun biomes reduced to about half of what they are are now. It seems that the current values were balanced when there was only a single biome/body, but the devs haven't updated the values since the biomes were added.

Really, though, this is a balance issue, and I think it needs to be dealt with before the final release. So, for now, I can live with it.

If the science coefficients were included in the science.cfg file, we could do this ourselves very very easily, but the values are buried in code. I've heard that the RSS mod lets you manipulate the values, but I haven't gotten that mod working yet.

[vger]

You make a good point vger but I beg to differ, mainly because KSP isn't intended to be a game you 'win' by unlocking the tech tree. Since it's after 1.30am here though and I need to go to work in a few hours I won't look-up the dev's comments on it. Will you accept the caveat 'with science as it stands'?

Maybe so, though I don't think a career mode needs to have 'win' or endgame parameters to be considered a true game instead of a tutorial. Sim City had no real end-game, was completely sandbox, but still had a complex development tree. And some of that high-end tech was VERY hard to get.

[Monger]

Well, I think there is some truth in that KSP currently has no proper "end game". 99% of my playing time is on or around Kerbin. Currently, the only difference between landing on Eve or Duna is the amount of Delta V.

Let's see what the contract system will change about that.

[vetrox]

I had a pretty detailed post about things that could be done to make science (and EVA's) much more interesting, and give different worlds their own unique challenges (besides just getting there and back). Something more in line with the kinds of things NASA wants to do. (For example, a probe on Europa would be doing COMPLETELY different things than one on Mars)

I think I got ONE reply.

This is the sort of thing I was after too which i touched on in a thread of mine http://forum.kerbalspaceprogram.com/threads/71514-More-interactive-science-experiments (these sorts of suggestion threads always seem to go unnoticed ). I know career mode is unfinished but it would be awesome to get actual real world science and data (as well as the humurous descriptions we get at the momen)from proper experiments and interaction than just right clicking and hitting "DO SCIENCE" this is something that would add a whole new reason to play career mode.

As it stands at the moment I get bored halfway through career because its just sandbox delayed. Its good at first but without the challenge of currency or the lure of solid science theres just no reason for me to bother with career mode. When i first played career mode the most fun I had actually came when I unlocked plane parts and explored kerbin, and I mean actually explored it not just farming biomes for science. Career mode needs an incentive as a reason to explore. Without it there will forever be "I have farmed mun and minmus, now what do i do?" threads.

Kerbin is still my favourite place to explore just for the sheer diversity. Nothing more satisfying than sending and expedition to one of the polar mountain ranges and pretending to do science experiments. Thanks to kethane I now have the infrastructure to run a plane on duna so I can start having an explore there, but I doubt its as interesting as kerbin

Remember career mode is just meant to be an interesting and playable tutorial, to introduce you to the things you'll be using in sandbox. Grinding science so you can complete the tech tree so you can ... what? ... isn't necessary or much fun once you understand how KSP works.

I'm also going to agree with vger on this one. As it stands at the moment yes maybe it is a babysitting experience but only because the only resource is science. I dont think anyone benefits from starting with the current career mode than they would starting with sandbox. I personally found career mode very un intuitive (in regards to obtain science and doing experiments). Sanbox is far more in keeping with . Much more hilarious things happen in sandbox than career. I remember the good ol' days of slapping random parts together and hoping it gets to space

As it stands from a semi-experienced player. KSP is far more about the engineering of your spacecraft than actually exploring space (the ARM patch is a step in the right direction that provides a nice piloting excersise/objective) I Would love to see it bought closer to a 60/40 split in favour of engineering.

Edited April 11, 2014 by vetrox

[Jouni]

I'm fine with the number of biomes they have, but I would prefer to see the science values for minmus and mun biomes reduced to about half of what they are are now. It seems that the current values were balanced when there was only a single biome/body, but the devs haven't updated the values since the biomes were added.

A better idea would be to have diminishing returns from visiting multiple biomes. The first biome you visit would have full science value, the next would have 1/2 value, the next 1/3 value, and so on. Once you have landed on the Mun, many people would want to do something more ambitious next, instead of flying the same mission over and over again, or hopping around blindly in the search for unvisited biomes.

[merendel]

The new parts really messed up the tech tree in my opinion. Once you get the node with the mainsail and the new liquid fueled boosters getting huge payloads into orbit is trivial and the rest of the science can do easily be earned all the challenge is removed.

I have to disagree on the new parts. Its prety trivial to get huge payloads into orbit with or without the new parts. The only real limiting factor without the new parts is how many parts your computer can handle. anything you can put into orbit with the new parts you could also put there with a large cluster of LV-T30s. The T30s take a bit more effort I'll grant you but its mostly the busy work of runing all the fuel lines and makeing sure you've got enough struts to hold it all togeather and plenty of cooling for your poor PC.

[Mipi]

It´s boring for you grinding all the biomes?

Just don´t do it. Set your own goals. Lack of creativity?

[Joonatan1998]

I think that the biome-problem could be solved by making the first biome you visit give much more science than the second, second would give more than third...

This would encourage new players to do interplanetary missions.

[Holo]

It´s boring for you grinding all the biomes?

Just don´t do it.

Someone finally understands!

[Pecan]

...As it stands at the moment I get bored halfway through career because its just sandbox delayed....

[My underlining] = whether you think you agree with me or not, you make my point exactly. No worries; however people want to play is up to them, I think career vs sandbox is getting off-topic. For the OP, as I said earlier, I agree that some of the most fun missions are within Kerbin's system and can be done relatively 'low tech'.

[Jouni]

It´s boring for you grinding all the biomes?

Just don´t do it. Set your own goals. Lack of creativity?

That's what I'm doing. In my career mode games, I don't use the science parts at all, and I also ignore the biomes for the most part.

I just hope that they don't break the career mode in later updates. Currently the pace of progress is quite nice, when about half of the science points come from crew reports, while the rest come from EVA reports (when you have done something new during EVA) and surface samples (from the first visit to a new planet or moon).

[LethalDose]

I think that the biome-problem could be solved by making the first biome you visit give much more science than the second, second would give more than third...

This would encourage new players to do interplanetary missions.

OOOOOooooo I like this!