Sandbox or Career?

[DoToH]

I play sandbox.

Career mode at the moment is a disguised "achievement mode". You can't fail. No wrong decisions, no penalties for mission failure, just do more science to unlock more parts. Maybe when they release 0.24, with buget and missions, career mode becomes more challenging

[Jon Tash]

I play sandbox, at the moment Career just isn't right. It's too easy and without meaning, I'm waiting for a more fleshed out Career whit better science gathering, tech tree and contract with budgets and reputation. I just wish there would be more meaningful challenge in the future, because I got to say, playing since 0.8 (or was it 0.7.3, don't remember anymore) the game is really not that hard. Even when restricting yourself, like the tech tree is doing in career.

[joekidd1992]

I play career, because I tried sandbox when I was deciding to get the game. Sandbox was the demo. I like the logical (In my opinion, probably not as logical as it seems) progression so that the bigger things I want to do, I have to successfully accomplish the building blocks.

When I was playing sandbox, it felt like someone just took a big box of crap, dumped it in front of me, and said, "Here you go, make something." I'm not a big fan of that. I want to start slow, make small things, kind of like the real space program did. You do one thing, build upon it, then do another, and build upon it. You see what you want to unlock, because you feel it will help you get to that next accomplishment.

[MKI]

Career all the way, best part is it will only get better once the next update rolls around

I will have to admit i do sandbox when i play my heavily modded install. It makes finding needed parts easier when i want to build anything thats on my mind.

[Mazlem]

It's like legos. Some people like just a box of parts to play with, and others prefer the kits that give you something specific to build. I've played sandbox since .18 and just started another save for career a few weeks ago. The game play is a lot different early on, but once you get parts unlocked that'll let you do longer / more intricate missions, it's similar to sandbox. Except you can still create missions for yourself for science - in career you actually get the science and that's the reward, but in sandbox it's finishing the mission that's the reward. So I think they're both fun, just in different ways.

[StuntMax]

Career FTW.

Not having the full super-heavy-and-reliable Rockomax bonanza straight out of the box forces you to learn to do missions with only the parts you have. If you're short on TWR you can't simply pop another Mainsail under the rocket...OR, to do so, it you must unlock at least the externarl fuel duct, and it means that you learned to master serial staging BEFORE that.

And doing a Duna mission with only crap-tech fixed solar panels mean that you MUST learn to do an interplanetary transfer that hits the ball at the first pass, you can't afford to fiddle around for one or two orbits chasing the planet from a lower orbit because you were 5° late.

Problem with carreer is the obnoxiousness of initial missions (...a friggin'spoonful of dirt from any single biome of Kerbin? Seriously? Can't a kerbal just go there with a damn CAR?) and the horrific number (and size) of biomes on mun (ok, 4 or 5 biomes to prove that I can go to the Mun whenever I want and land exactly where I plan to... but 15 landings to have all the soil samples? And hours spent watching intensely at the gravscan display to click "scan" in the exact picosecond in which the probe passes over the midland craters?)

Soon, I found that carreer mode with BTSM is way more challenging and sensible than stock carreer.

[cwhiz]

I like Career because it requires you to become very good at utilizing most of the resources available in the game instead of being able to go straight to the good stuff which is a better learning experience for me. I also like the small sense of progression offered which will only become better once contracts and money are added.

[m4v]

eh, career after unlocking the tech tree is sandbox...

[nli2work]

I migrated my sandbox save to career for interstellar mod. without interstellar mod I'd still be in sandbox. Might have have turned on the R&D just to get some science stuff to check out. But without biomes outside of Kerbin SOI, doing science gets grindy for higher tech nodes. I don't expect the extra layers of budget and contracts to make it better. I'll reserve my judgement until .24 about those aspects.

[Superfluous J]

eh, career after unlocking the tech tree is sandbox...

I find that career after unlocking the tech tree is restarting a new career mode

[Pecan]

I've recently switched from sandbox to career mode. Not that career mode is any good, of course; it forces false-choices on you, creates the illusion that something like the mainsail is somehow 'better' than, earlier tech - when just about anything else is better than a mainsail - and generally, if it teaches you anything it's how to do things badly.

But the science reports are amusing. Start a career mode, edit the persistence file to give yourself 9999 science points, 'research' all the tech and carry on as if it's sandbox but with entertaining science parts.

[Raptor9]

I voted for Sandbox simply because that's what I play most and that's what I get the most enjoyment out of. I like the concept of the career, but I'll wait until more substance is added through contracts and such before I try it again.

My main complaint with career mode is that it's made to ease a new player into KSP like a long tutorial, but I absolutely love the R&D and Science part. I wish that upon starting a new career save game, you have the option of choosing a career path of a tutorial structure, or one that seems a little more logical in part availability. (That's just my opinion, I know a lot if not most other people disagree. And yes, I also know there are mods out there that load different tech tree structures)

Just my two cents addressing the current structure of the stock game. Again, I'm looking forward to the contracts and funding aspects, and I'll be trying career again with the 0.24 update.

[Caelib]

I enjoy sandbox, but Career mode has the "objectives" (tech tree) and science that make the game more interesting -- as such, I chose the "both" option.

[Rowsdower]

For anyone that hasn't been so hot on career, will you be giving it another chance with the changes due in 0.24?

[Red Iron Crown]

For anyone that hasn't been so hot on career, will you be giving it another chance with the changes due in 0.24?

Definitely, if only to become familiar with the new mechanics so I can give proper feedback. I'll probably end up back in the sandbox, but we'll see.

[Glaivas]

I still play sandbox mode. Career is still under development and subject to changes so I'm waiting for a stable release of it before give it a try.

[Jon Tash]

For anyone that hasn't been so hot on career, will you be giving it another chance with the changes due in 0.24?

Of course, why not, I'm curious at how Squad will implement contracts and budgets. If it's better than the Mission Controller Extended Mod then it's a win from me.

[NecroBones]

For anyone that hasn't been so hot on career, will you be giving it another chance with the changes due in 0.24?

I already play career, but since I used it up, it's effectively sandbox now.... But yes, I'm thinking I'll start fresh when 0.24 comes along.

[Xacktar]

The great part about career is that once you finish career mode its the same as Sandbox, at least for now. Budgets may change that, though.

Hm I wonder if this will make three game modes in KSP, Sandbox, Career, and then Budgets? Well, I'm sure there will be fun to be had either way.

[Blind Dead McJones]

I can certainly see the appeal of career, but I only play that when I'm getting frustrated with my current project in sandbox. I think that sandbox is challenging enough.

[BadRocketsCo.]

I play RSS, so I just don't have enough skill to play with it in Career mode

Edited May 19, 2014 by BadRocketsCo.

[phoenix_ca]

Career mode is clearly cheating because you actually have parts available and can actually play the game.

Sandbox mode is clearly cheating because everything is available.

WHAT DO I DO?!?!

[Xetalim]

Sandbox, career is a bit too grindy, might change in .24

[Hades514]

Career mode because it is good for missions with limited parts. Sand box is good for testing out new parts. So really both.

Edited May 19, 2014 by Hades514

[Major Gene]

I am really looking forward to contracts. I for one play sandbox. So for me the challenge is not having the technology but how best to use it (Economical and feasibility constraints). In the real world we have a lot of technology available use but we just cannot use it on a whim. The big constraint for NASA and other organizations is funding/money. We must build our systems and use our resources with this in mind. That for me is the real challenge. Sure I could place 10 boosters on a rocket but it would be more economical if I used my brain and designed a more efficient model for the contract or else my space agency will be bankrupt.