2 little suggestions for later release (easy)

[XenonSurf]

While playing, 2 details are irritating and can be changed without being anything of an exploit:

1)
Quadrant map colors:
Make the yellow color for disputed areas much brighter for better contrast and visibility

2)
Keep station info in the Quadrant map once player gets in a sector.
If you play for the Alliance, It's irritating, and not necessary IMO, to see in the Quadrant map e.g. Alliance +30, then go there just to discover that all stations are FED and you cannot do any station-related activity there.
Once the player has travelled into a sector, the station info should be kept and visible in the sector map when zooming in.
One can of course log manually this info, but it's cumbersome, against the logic of sensor memory.
Of course, the info is subject to change, stations could be destroyed or change owner, but then: so be it, the player will discovver this next time he enters the system.

Greets,
XenonS

[DaveK]

I like 2: Do you mean that the map should be updated for all players or just the visitor? Of course when the system is being actively fought over and you leave the area, the info could soon be out of date ( ... very soon!)

Are there any disadvantages to having the global map updating to the present situation in real time without the visits? Technologically it makes sense and is possible - is there an impact on gameplay? It would mean that if you spot a critical system under attack (its % reducing) you can head there to lend a hand. On the other hand if you arrive and find that the stations are hostile it's a very big hint that you need to drop what you're doing and help the locals get the system back!

[XenonSurf]

Hi DaveK,
I can only speak for Single Player, I have no experience whatsoever in MP, but I would say: once you go let's say to the Iota System, you will find a FED station although it's a ALC controlled territory. That's absolutely fine and coherent, but then, when you later go in the Quadrant Map and zoom in, then this station and other in-sector objects (e.g.carriers, blackholes etc.) should ALSO APPEAR, because you have already visited the sector.

In MP, for anyone who has not been in the sector, I still would hide this info until he gets here.

This makes more sense IMO, and you can better plan ahead your operations, I'm sure.
Currently the Quadrant Map doesn't show any kind of in-sector information, apart stellar objects like planets, asteroid fields, nebulas and suns. The station owner info is important in the first place though.

Greetings,
XenonS

[Edited on 5-13-2016 by XenonSurf]

[Edited on 5-13-2016 by XenonSurf]

[XenonSurf]

The info can also be in the News section, for example

Instead of:

"Modules in Sector: 1"
"Station Command Module in Sector: Yes"

This is more useful:

"Modules in Sector: Yes (or No or Unknown)"
"Module Faction: FED (or ALC, or VON, or or Unknown)"

XenonS


[Edited on 5-14-2016 by XenonSurf]

[DaveK]

I think that the Nav Map details really are like the Michelin or OS (UK) maps we have in RL - they contain the details they are created with and don't add extras just because you visit. The ephemeral items (stations, carriers, cities) would require far more processing power than the ship's AI can handle and given the threadbare economic state of humanity at this (game) time, not worth providing.

However, you can add your discoveries to the (in game) Nav Map screen by adding them to the (game) Map Log - this lets you add anything you think is interesting or worth recording, whilst limiting the number of items to those that you think are worth recording rather than having thousands of items being added automatically - making the AI data/energy/processor efficient and making it easier to find what you want when you return. This lets you create a personalised Nav Map system -not quite as convenient as having stuff appear whenever you zoom in on a sector, but you can peruse the Map Log list whenever you want, wherever you are. It also stops the game spoiler of having everything recorded on a fly-by through a system.

Hope this helps

ps - give MP a try, it's free and the community is very friendly and helpful! Evening time in the USA is a good time to look - the yanks are free after work and Europe hasn't gone to bed yet Can't speak for Russia and Oz though!

[Vice]

At least for #1, I will make it possible to modify the region territory control indicators in the next update. They were actually dimmed to make the quadrant map details more visible, so I won't likely increase them again by default. But with a custom option, you'll be able to import any level of brightness or even shape you might want for those indicators (you'll just need to keep them within the 24X32 and 48X64 image sizes for each tile). The customizing kit will be updated with details and sample files.

[XenonSurf]

(...) It also stops the game spoiler of having everything recorded on a fly-by through a system.

This
I have not considered such an exploit, so yes: logging the info is better, although it's a lot of work...

ps - give MP a try, it's free and the community is very friendly and helpful! Evening time in the USA is a good time to look - the yanks are free after work and Europe hasn't gone to bed yet Can't speak for Russia and Oz though!

I'm sure this is true. I generally do not play MP but for EL I would certainly make an exception. Unfortunately, I currently have serious connection problems related to my WiFi transmission, in fact I use my laptop for internet and an additional stick for signal repetition on my desktop. I probably have to throw my modem away and get a new one, my transmission gets interrupted every 15 minutes or so, not the best conditions to play MP
Resolved these problems, I will enjoy meet you on a server too

@Vice,
For point 1: maybe my computer system is the culprit, I don't know, but instead of yellow I get a sort of brown color (in french = beige) making it difficult to differentiate them from green systems (your faction control).

Greets,
XenonS

[Vice]

@Vice,
For point 1: maybe my computer system is the culprit, I don't know, but instead of yellow I get a sort of brown color (in french = beige) making it difficult to differentiate them from green systems (your faction control).

The RGB is 88,88,0, so it's a true dim yellow. So it could be how your monitor is rendering the color. Regardless, with the next update, you'll be able to set a yellow RGB tone with whatever color values you might want.