This is why you're on my team. Brother. ;)
Attracting trouble / warfare theory crafting
- Thread starter BenjiMac
- Start date
When you get tired of replacing ships you will either confine yourself to safe space or adopt NBSI
just sayin' :skull:
experience is the antidote for idealism
You won't see others as you warp around. But you can figure that anyone you come across hanging out at a station or choke point is not just taking a cigarette break.
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I suspect this is true.
my cynical nature was polished to a brilliant shine in online gaming. Eve taught me some harsh lessons.
I can see the other side and indeed,not every other player will be aggressive, but it only takes enough to be to turn everyone very defensive.
The game will no doubt take on something of a tribal quality in non-secure space quite quickly where you kinda have to nail your colours to the mast on org loyalty because your org is the only known quantity.
Han Burgundy
Space Marshal
Which is a huge reason that many didn't enjoy EVE to its fullest potential [Myself included]. Most of the conversation that compares SC to EVE that I have seen both here and on reddit is an urge to break away from what THEY have done for something different, and I agree with that. I would honestly be saddened if everyone outside "safe" space adopted this approach. It kills off any possibility of something like running into a fellow random merchant in the black and docking up to conduct a tense deal where everyone walks away richer. Sometimes it's funner when a white-knuckle event ends with nobody shooting.
If the standard operating procedure for the verse becomes kill on sight, then emergent cooperative gameplay like that will die almost immediately [And don't tell me that I can just stick to the "safe" space because probably at least 40% of the game will be outside that]. The chance of running into combat is always a given, especially in lawless space, but I wouldn't stick around to play very long if there was no such thing as an amicable encounter with a stranger.
I mean, I get what you're saying. In the end it's Gank or be ganked. But I personally will try to adopt the strategy of either carrying a big stick or having friends nearby to discourage conflict in the first place. This is why groups like the yellowjackets will be so needed. Once they build a reputation for doling out retribution, TESTies won't ever have to fire the first shot. That's because when your enemy sees that TEST tag on your name, they know that they'll have to deal with every other TESTie in the verse tomorrow if they decide to kill you today.
While it is true that we cannot control the actions of every member in an org this big, we can certainly establish some general guidelines to follow [For example: "Don't be a pile of hickory-smoked horse buttholes to newcomers. A potential new recruit is always more useful than a mustang-shaped splat on the windshield of your polaris, tough guy]. If a TESTie is griefing and making us all look bad, we should have a formal process to kick their ass to the curb. Otherwise you'll see many of the industry focused players bailing to a smaller org with less of an infamous rep to work past.
I'm really hoping that this game becomes a living breathing universe and not Call of Duty: Space. But, then again, people suck and are impulsive. It's why so many games end up feeling the same these days. Many folks seek the immediate gratification of blowing something up because they don't possess the wit or patience for anything else. As it stands right now, the PU is looking like COD: Space, but hopefully that is a symptom of how little there is to do in 2.5...Carebears unite for a better tomorrow!
That's my whole $3.50
me too
But there are limits to what CIG can do differently. They can put better anti-griefing mechanics in place in policed space, but, by definition, they can't control player behavior in lawless space.
And it's naive to think that all the meanies will be playing Eve while the kinder, gentler folk will flock to SC.
great post, I used to feel the exact same way but I came to feel I might have to adjust my expectations to avoid disappointment.
its hard to have a mature, nuanced and deep online game, especially these days where a wide demographic is so crucial.
a lot depends on how mich they chicken out on death and bounty hunting mechanics.
the original permadeath\injury\arrest pitch sucked me right in. I settled to be a search and rescue pilot because it was a service with meaning. At the time, when you got destroyed you could be rescued, while you awaited rescue and recovery from your injuries you played as your next of kin while other players recovered your prior character, transferred them to a hospital ship and youd be notified when you could pay your bill and resume. What a great mechanic I thought, it doesn't interrupt the 'dead players' too greatly, but they'll gladly pay to recover their original character because it preserved all the reputation gains theyd made.
then CIG chickened out. Gone was the talk of consequences and intelligent, meaningful play.
dead players will now auto respawn at the nearest medical ship. It will still create a job for SAR.. But its hollow. The player is already healed up and gone and you'll be rescuing a dummy for no actual reason.
the same sort of mechanic was pitched for if you were captured.. You could also be rescued. I get the feeling thats canned too and players will be 'capturing' a bounty that's already free and roaming.
now, if CIG back out of death having meaningful consequence then combat becomes a throwaway decision again and we'll be in a warzone within minutes.
Han Burgundy
Space Marshal
One can dream...You're probably right, though. Hopefully the universe being 90% NPCs will be enough to balance out the high percentage of PCs that are sociopaths.
This is exactly what I have been afraid of. If they do away with the death of a spaceman mechanic, it will completely ruin this game's main appeal for me [and many others]. The idea of being afraid of death changes the whole dynamic of how people play. IF all you have to face after biting the dust is a rebuy screen, then people won't give a shit about attacking everything that moves because there is now so little risk in doing so. The people that want to play a game like that can piss off to call of duty. Alas, i fear that CIG will give in to pressure from those unimaginative lot who are intimidated by gameplay mechanics that differ from what they are used to. If people are sick of the yearly COD clones, they need to wade out of their comfort zone a bit. Otherwise it will just be a really well put-together arcade shooter that gives us nothing new that is of value.
I think it's important to remember that there's a major difference in player positioning between EVE and SC - EVE has you flying an entire battleship alone, a Demigod amongst the stars, where as SC Sets you up as very much a sole pilot making your way through the universe. As well as a heavily story driven universe. I can quite easily see the engine sending AI bounty hunters after people once they hit a certain level of bounty, or sending AI pirates after people, lawful space or not. What it comes down to is balance, and people not tipping the scales too far in one direction re: casual space murder, or making billions of credits unopposed.
This is realistic
this is unrealistic
Never underestimate the ignorance of gamers. 95% of them never use the forums - they only know what their org mates and IRL friends know. There are 11,000 of us, and 1,500,000 of them
When you say, "Fool, I'm in TEST, don't you know who we are?" they will say, "Fuck no! Who cares?" BLAM!
not happening
also worth mentioning that we are only 11,000 if we count filthy affiliates, who may and probably will, have loyalties that lay elsewhere when the game is more playable.
I think the open door, hang with us policy here is great and can Hoover up new members who join because their own orgs become a wasteland.. But not everyone will stay. Especially normal people, or 'norms' as I affectionately term them. They're adorable with their sense of responsibility and drinking in moderation and their pants.
I think the open door, hang with us policy here is great and can Hoover up new members who join because their own orgs become a wasteland.. But not everyone will stay. Especially normal people, or 'norms' as I affectionately term them. They're adorable with their sense of responsibility and drinking in moderation and their pants.
Han Burgundy
Space Marshal
We can, at the very least, shun known assholes for being assholes [To be a known asshole, you REALLY gotta be fuckin' up]. Just because we have a lot of people doesn't mean we need to be a total shitshow of exceptional griefing dickbaggary. But maybe you're right. Maybe TEST is destined to be nothing more than my shitposting forum while I actually play the game with a smaller Org that takes things a tad more seriously. It would be sad to miss out on all the TEST hijinks indeed, but I'd rather not be justifiably hated for the tag over my name whenever I walk into a room [Especially if i agree with why they hate me]. We won't know until the game drops, but I have faith in my fellow TESTies that the majority of them won't make SC a griefing simulator.....[Because, like it or not, there is a fine line between pirating an griefing]
I agree, but the line is most definitely there.
We can, at the very least, shun known assholes for being assholes [To be a known asshole, you REALLY gotta be fuckin' up]. Just because we have a lot of people doesn't mean we need to be a total shitshow of exceptional griefing dickbaggary. But maybe you're right. Maybe TEST is destined to be nothing more than my shitposting forum while I actually play the game with a smaller Org that takes things a tad more seriously. It would be sad to miss out on all the TEST hijinks indeed, but I'd rather not be justifiably hated for the tag over my name whenever I walk into a room [Especially if i agree with why they hate me]. We won't know until the game drops, but I have faith in my fellow TESTies that the majority of them won't make SC a griefing simulator.....[Because, like it or not, there is a fine line between pirating an griefing]
not a pirate myself but I appreciate the playstyle, adds colour to the game.
a Pirate should attack for economic gain and cease once the other party surrenders, or fights back and is subsequently destroyed.
griefing, to my mind, is to single out a player and repeatedly attack them for no motivation at all.
what we discuss now, is marauding I suppose and falls between the two. Not attacking for economic gain but not singling out a victim at Random. Basically alpha striking unknown vessels in ones area of operations that pose a threat.
pirate division aside, I think the average TESTie wouldnt bother a lone Taurus or MAX or Starfarer that passes by one of our operations, or our fleet or entered territory we considered our own.
but a wing of vanguards.. Those have to at least be challenged if not preemptively attacked before they are reinforced. Important to remember that thanks to VOIP even the most polite of traders could be scouting for a fleet thats preparing to come and smash your stuff to dust and leaving you with the bill.
I don't expect there will be enough asshats in TEST to make you want to fly with some other group
and if anyone hates on you for being a TESTie, invite them to send their spais to join us so they can know what we're up to!
supitza
Vault Dweller
I agree with you fully. I hope the fact that the PU population will be 90% NPCs will somehow act like scaffolding for Chris Roberts' intentions, and I have faith that He (the Holy CR) doesn't envision an EVE Call of Duty kill fest.
Until the next day, when they wake up with the Yellow Jackets knocking at their door. They only have to make that mistake once. TEST notoriety will grow at an increasing pace once we're all in the 'Verse.
I'm terrified of pirates, but I agree that their role in the 'Verse is crucial. A pirate who shoots on sight or kills just for the fun of it won't be successful and won't last very long.