So I got thinking about Freelancer, Freespace 2 etc...

[Cholmondely]

I suppose I'm trying to turn oolite into a freelancer / freespace type game - and obviously it would be a massive and probably impossible undertaking..
but i think it would go down very well with youngsters / new players if there was an overarching 'purpose'

One can presumably do this sort of thing by using Cim's scenarios.plist.

I've little idea about freelancer/freespace, but there are several missions OXPs which do have such an overarching purpose. Xeptatl's Sword springs most readily to mind, and I suspect that Cataclysm is another. One needs to be pretty much Elite to take on either, so the hard grind of getting to Elite is presumed, but those OXPs do exist. It is the gap between starting as a green Jameson and attaining Elite status which is unscripted...

How much does it matter?

[RobsterLeal]

To us people who live and breathe and love Oolite? It matters not at all.

For someone new to the genre / game / scenarios? Possibly a lot - i think a measured introduction to OXPs in the form of a storyline would be a good way to introduce someone to it.

I could even see some 'tutorial' OXPs with someone talking you through docking, MFPs etc etc..

But - looking at the Oolite demographic (and I'm guessing somewhat here, so sue me) - the vast majority all know and love Elite as a game already, so would have no use for such an introduction to the Ooniverse.

I think it goes down as something that would be nice to see, but limited appeal i guess. I would definitely play a structured lengthy storyline from green Jameson onwards. It definitely would be an immense undertaking to build...

[Cholmondely]

Have you tried the in-game Tutorial?

[Cholmondely]

But, yes, I agree with you. The in-game tutorial does not help with MFDs, for example. It is only for the vanilla game.

And over the past 5 years we’ve attracted many younger people who never knew Elite (and who presumably drifted away again). And who seem to load up their game with a zillion-and-one oxps from the outset!

I was hoping to structure the “Hints” oxp to cover other oxps, but am not a programmer and was also defeated by how to best balance vanilla game hints with oxp hints.

What, other than MFDs, is needed for OXP help?

[RobsterLeal]

there you go - every day is a school day - I never even knew the tutorial existed

[Cholmondely]

..and I got to thinking how Oolite could be adapted to include a singleplayer 'adventure' much the same as these..

Now this has probably been thought of before, would entail a whole shed load of work (possible understatement there), that I personally have no clue how to go about, and definitely flies in the face of Oolites 'go anywhere , do anything' freedom, but hear me out....

imagine an Oolite that opens up in stages - governed by the money you have earned, much the same as Freelancer. Perhaps you would start the game with a short tutorial mission, in-system only. Then for a short while be unable to jump to another planet, with ,say , the in-system cargo and taxi expansions loaded so you could still do things and make some money.

Once you hit that threshold you get 'given' a jumpdrive and can start to move between planets. be given a mission or two to take you to specific planets in the galaxy. and so on and so on, building up , introducing expansion things like bounty hunters guild, feudal states etc as you go..

I see several reasons why its not easy - can you have a game that introduces expansions as you play it? Is that possible - some sort of auto download?

obviously my tiny brain can't come up with any sort of ongoing mission thread, apart from perhaps the starter.

I suppose im trying to turn oolite into a freelancer / freespace type game - and obviously it would be a massive and probably impossible undertaking..
but i think it would go down very well with youngsters / new players if there was an overarching 'purpose'

Thoughts anyone?

Coming back to this, I can see no reason why one could not start with a graduated introduction to Oolite.

We have SOTL as a start scenario choice at the beginning of the game.

Somebody with the skills could create a scenario with eg. Paddling Pool to create a softer start as well as simple missions with some banter involved, thus teaching some of the game realities. One could be equipped with a better HUD and with an MFD with instructions as to how to use it - as well as an equipment piece needing selection, with instructions there too.

One could start, for example, with destroying some asteroids. Then be moved on to confronting a lone pirate assailing the asteroid miners, then more pirates and eventually tackle the pirate den (perhaps with some help).