Some suggestions to improve the game (what else did you expect here?)

Suggestions Visuals
1

I’ve got a handful of suggestions regarding gameplay, UI, medals and such, so let’s get started.

 

1. Better markers for important stuff on the map.

As it is now I find it often quite hard to locate even such obvious elements of the map as beacons. A little dogfight with enemy bomb carrier, grabbing the bomb and which direction am I supposed to go again? I’d like to recall old Freelancer here. Just look at it. On the left and right you got two giant arrow pointing you the important stuff, while smaller ones always tell you where the enemy is. Both beacons and enemy ships need such clear indication that stand from the background. Inactive beacons sometimes are almost invisible and even spotting a lone ship that is in the middle of your screen is sometimes difficult. Here you can see how well the mission objectives were marked (upper left). I’d like to see beacons this way, with letters inside for better recognition. On the right side you have arrow pointing towards your currently locked-on enemy, which leads us to the second point…

 

2. Targeting reticle

Have you ever lost track of it in some intense combat? Would be nice to have it more unique and better connected with the center of your screen so at least you know which direction to look. Same for the guy you’re tracking. Thank God for the small red arrow coming out of the middle-screen UI or I would lost the guy I’m dogfighting with (when there is chaos around) on far too many occasions. This is not a common issue as far as I know, but it still happens.

 

3. Medal idea: “There can be only one”.

Awarded in Combat Reconnaissance for captain who killed enemy team captain with use of his main weapons or standard rockets / missiles / mines, etc. Basically - not with special abilities to prevent long range sniping / torpedo.

 

4. Silly microwarp medals.

Since it is hilarious, there could be medals for micro warping yourself into enemy ship or an EMP bomb in Detonation mode (aka the smallest object on the map) from extreme distance (10k+?). About the first case - if you manage to kill enemy ship in the process, can we have a medal named “Never saw that coming” or something? :smiley:

 

5. Rockets and missiles mechanic.

Now I’m not saying that how it works currently is bad or anything, but let’s just consider another option for a second. How about making all the so-far consumable weapons cooldown-based, but unlimited? Basically what you bring to the fight depends on the launcher you’ve bought, not missiles themselves. If your ship has more slots for various kinds of missiles, you have better variety or you can mount two launchers of one type to increase your rate of fire. Various rocket / missile launchers would have varying cooldowns.

 

This will make build such as missile frigate possible and will also require anti-missile systems to be upgraded in order to counter increased amount of projectiles in the space.

 

6. Sub-factions equipment tree.

Unless I am blind, there is no such thing now. It would be super nice to be able to check what modules, guns and missiles become available at specific ranks with given faction. Looking in the store is not efficient since equipment is scattered in various categories. I’d like to just click let’s say Wardens Rank 6 and have a list of everything that becomes available at this exact rank with this exact faction.

 

7. Radio commands

Basically, one button will open a small menu with some useful commands to “announce” to your team by pressing a corresponding number. Team Fortress 2 and Counter Strike players should know exactly what I am talking about. That would add at least a small degree of communication in public games. Among the useful commands there should be those of attack, defend, follow me, help, watch out (I imagine this one to point out your current locked-on target to your teammates - good way of informing your team of enemies sneaking around with bomb / to kill captain) and others. To avoid spamming, it would have a limited number of uses in given period of time or a cooldown.

_____

 

I hope you won’t murder me for wasting your time here. ^^ Say what you think…

2

1. Better markers for important stuff on the map.

As it is now I find it often quite hard to locate even such obvious elements of the map as beacons. A little dogfight with enemy bomb carrier, grabbing the bomb and which direction am I supposed to go again? I’d like to recall old Freelancer here. Just look at it. On the left and right you got two giant arrow pointing you the important stuff, while smaller ones always tell you where the enemy is. Both beacons and enemy ships need such clear indication that stand from the background. Inactive beacons sometimes are almost invisible and even spotting a lone ship that is in the middle of your screen is sometimes difficult. Here you can see how well the mission objectives were marked (upper left). I’d like to see beacons this way, with letters inside for better recognition. On the right side you have arrow pointing towards your currently locked-on enemy, which leads us to the second point…

 

I like it, but I feel like some small amount of situational awareness should still be necessary. For instance, you can only minimap things in the 180-degree arc in front of you, so you have to know the general direction to head.

 

 

 

5. Rockets and missiles mechanic.

Now I’m not saying that how it works currently is bad or anything, but let’s just consider another option for a second. How about making all the so-far consumable weapons cooldown-based, but unlimited? Basically what you bring to the fight depends on the launcher you’ve bought, not missiles themselves. If your ship has more slots for various kinds of missiles, you have better variety or you can mount two launchers of one type to increase your rate of fire. Various rocket / missile launchers would have varying cooldowns.

 

This will make build such as missile frigate possible and will also require anti-missile systems to be upgraded in order to counter increased amount of projectiles in the space.

 

I don’t terribly like this idea as is because missiles are too powerful, probably because they were (obviousness incoming) designed with limited ammo counts in mind. If missiles got less devastating, I wouldn’t mind it, but we’d have to do something to keep Fed frigates’ drones alive in all that AoE explosiveness.

 

The rest of your ideas are mostly things that can’t do any harm and could add some fun or functionality. With regard to your Number 7, though, an additional suggestion. Anyone who’s played Planetside 2 knows about the Spot command, and I think that could be a cool thing to have here. It causes the enemy in your reticle to show up globally on your allies’ minimaps and HUDs for a few seconds, the electronic equivalent of “Hey, over here!” Not sure of that’s what you were talking about with the “watch out” command.

3

I like it, but I feel like some small amount of situational awareness should still be necessary. For instance, you can only minimap things in the 180-degree arc in front of you, so you have to know the general direction to head.

 

Well without awareness you won’t make much out of all those arrows floating around. Actually game already has both arrows pointing out enemy ships and the one leading towards your locked-on target, but they are barely visible. I’d like them bigger and more bright to not have to specifically look for them on my UI when what I should be looking at is in front of my ship. Also beacons are not marked at all I guess, which makes finding them in some situations very hard.

 

There’s a thing I actually forgot to mention. It would be also nice to know where is up and down. It’s not important in general combat, but map does not rotate with your ship, so I’d like to be sure I’m not going “the other left”. ^^

4

map does not rotate with your ship

 

I think it actually does, if we’re both talking about the same thing here. Is the minimap the circular indicator at the top-right? Last I checked it rotated with my ship as I went through maneuvers in all 3 dimensions.

5

Minimap / radar - top right corner of screen.

Map - whole area map under [TAB] (default).

6

Ah, I see what you’re talking about now. Yeah, the map could use a bit of rework. If you look closely at it, you can see laser beams arcing between targets, as if it’s just an extreme zoomed-out topview instead of a separate map. I think the map was more designed as something to occupy players waiting to respawn than to be useful in the game. Could use fixing. +1, hope this gets read.

7
  1. Medal idea: “There can be only one”.

would be cool

 

  1. Silly microwarp medals.

young grasshoppers

 

  1. Rockets and missiles mechanic.

unlimited rockets would be op

 

  1. Sub-factions equipment tree.

in warehouse you can see everything, but this would be newby friendlier.

 

  1. Radio commands

MEDIC! pls god no xD do a macro for your mouse/keyboard if you really want

 

“what else did you expect here?”

http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcT4msPLhD-FPZF-eY_XyUeqYf_VmcUvCJqR8BukZ9i6ZX-y9Vcb’>this xD