Oolite Bulletins

hiran wrote: ↑Mon Jan 10, 2022 9:08 pm

[...]
Or, when loading a savegame that requires OXPs not yet installed the Expansion Manager should popup and offer the installation of the missing bits.
This situation may occur if you receive a savegame from someone else or reinstall your machine and want to load a savegame you still have from an earlier setup.

I would challenge the feature to edit the OXP set when loading a game. If you can only do that at game creation time it would lock you into a fixed set of OXPs which would then lead to a more consistent gameplay. This may even be a feature configurable for the advanced plist-modifying user...

Hah, I would challenge the installation of an OXP, without "OXZing" it for installation through the Expansion Manager
Luckily, my favorite (won't tell you which) is not on anyone's list around, plus is not save game "compliant", so I really have no worries about it

Redspear wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 12:14 am

If there are more problems/complaints than the 5 that arquebus listed then lets address them direcly and (I would suggest) minimalistically

I agree, any solution should be the minimal option possible, not the whole hog gone wild, or some other mixed metaphor of that sort.

arquebus wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 3:34 am

I agree, any solution should be the minimal option possible, not the whole hog gone wild, or some other mixed metaphor of that sort.

So as our resident vocal newbie, what are/were your other (let's call them...) 'issues' with the default game?

As the resident vocal oldie, I have two issues with the default game: sun distance and hyperspace/docking tunnel effects!

Cody wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 9:42 am

As the resident vocal oldie...

Yes, I think you qualify

I think the first one's obvious enough but what of the second?
Too basic/graphically simple???

In a word, yes! The default hyperspace/docking tunnel effects no longer match the ambience of the current game.

Hmm...

I think the oxp replacements (whilst impressive) tended toward the fancy/ornate especially with regards hyperspace.

Mysterious, ominous even, with a hint of the horror that potentially lies within would be nice. But then, talk's cheap...

The alternative to Svengali's hyperspace tunnel is cim's SOTL (requires steering, which I kinda like).

Cody wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 10:38 am

The alternative to Svengali's hyperspace tunnel is cim's SOTL (requires steering, which I kinda like).

A bit technicolour for my tastes if I remember...

Re the steering however, the illusion of ether steering or (more mysterious) being steered/pulled might make things a lot more interesting.

Oolite's default is based on the concentric circles of elite.
Stop them being quite so concentric and move the POV to follow and you then (with strategic placement) have the effect of travelling through a winding tunnel. Add whatever efffects on top and not only is it prettier but also more interesting (especially if it steered randomly).

Even if the current model required the very beginning and end to be straight then there is at least some scope to manipulate the middle.
Not much however... so then the question becomes do we really want a longer sequence? Gameplay-wise the answer is likely to be no.

Other options: if it must be short then what's to stop it being fast? 'Tunnel length' could be visualised that way too.

Re the SOTL steering: get it wrong and you're dead!

Cody wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 12:21 pm

Re the SOTL steering: get it wrong and you're dead!

Oolite equivalent:
Get it wrong and hello Thargoids

Making it gameplay would be an excuse for a slightly longer tunnel but then some ships are much more agile than others so it would need some consideration.

Quick idea: agility helps but speed doesn't.

If each ship had to steer but effectively at its top speed then not only would each ship feel different but it would (generally) promote similar difficulty.
So the worst ship would be very fast with low agilty, the best slow with high agility. The asp might struggle a bit but I think that could work...

Redspear wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 12:26 pm

Oolite equivalent: Get it wrong and hello Thargoids

I think I'd keep it as simply dead, your atoms smeared across hyperspace, and have the possibility of a misjump to IS on top.

Redspear wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 12:26 pm

Quick idea: agility helps but speed doesn't.

If each ship had to steer but effectively at its top speed then not only would each ship feel different but it would (generally) promote similar difficulty.
So the worst ship would be very fast with low agilty, the best slow with high agility.

<nods>

So we currently have the following witchspace tunnels.

Are there any others?

1) Vanilla default
Concentric rings

2) Current BGS


3) Original BGS


4) SOTL Exploration



_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
2 & 3 have red-streaked variants for misjumps.

There is also cim's Enhanced Misjump OXP (download link broken)

I'm always torn between the two BGS tunnels - but either one, with improved SOTL steering added, would be splendid.

Cody wrote: ↑Tue Jan 11, 2022 1:13 pm

I'm always torn between the two BGS tunnels - but either one, with improved SOTL steering added, would be splendid.

I'd have thought that the improved SOTL steering would make more sense as a new oxp, no?

What I would love would be to have the option of the old spiderweb effect with the newer BGS.