Criss
Social Media Director
I think something everyone needs to understand is that Schine is well aware of where the largest issues are in StarMade gameplay. I can list all the problems off the top of my head right now. See below.
So here is the thing. I am not concerned about whether councilors are incredibly experienced. They represent the players that are not on the council. We know the problems. We have solutions that we will try over the course of development. Some of these problems exist solely because the game is incomplete. People want things to do and a big part of that is what we are working on now, it's just not in yet. Balancing is a massive thing to tackle, because eventually it reaches every corner of the game.
The councilors have a straight forward job. They provide us suggestions. Ideas. There was in fact lots of balance discussions. There were changes in the last few major patches because of this. I want that to happen more so I will make it happen.
Don't be concerned if a councilor is here to get their favorite color into the game because frankly they aren't. There are more individual posts about pink hull on Kupu's thread than there were of messages from councilors asking for the same. They only need to say it once and it's there. The last time I have heard of anyone asking for decoration blocks was months ago and if sooner, it was restricted to Kupu's thread. Side note - decorative blocks and art are pretty much completely independent from balancing the game. Relax about decoration blocks.
If you want to make an impact, then write a well thought out suggestion that backs itself up (I am looking at you Chckn Wildstyle). Now would be the best time as the councilors will ensure that I get a look at these suggestions and be able to communicate with everyone.
The councilors hardly bring fourth suggestions with the intention of pushing their agenda. They bring them to us because those suggestions are usually the best we have heard.
1 - Tutorial system needs to be redone. New players know nothing when they start the game. A new "help" feature is my personal preferred approach and I expect something similar to make it into the game.
2 - AI is useless right now. Ships need to make smart decisions. When NPC's are in then they also need to act naturally and intelligently.
3 - NPC's need to be in the game period. This is why they are the focus of development.
4 - There needs to be new assets. This is why I am building them. This is why we want to do more contests. The universe is empty. It needs to be filled.
5 - Weapons need something new. Right now 2 weapons are used ever out of the 4, and most players can tell you that a limited number of combinations are worth matching. Pulse is useless. Common knowledge even among devs.
6 - The universe needs some restructuring. There needs to be a reason to travel, to fight, to claim etc... Hardly any of that exists. This ties very much into what is planned for factions and NPC's.
7 - There needs to be a difficulty curve. Pirates in the void are just as easy to kill as pirates near spawn. This needs to change and we already have plans for this.
8 - The economy needs to work. Credits need purpose, as do FP. There needs to be a reason to acquire them and spend them. We have plans for this as well (since it is not as discussed as other aspects of the game)
2 - AI is useless right now. Ships need to make smart decisions. When NPC's are in then they also need to act naturally and intelligently.
3 - NPC's need to be in the game period. This is why they are the focus of development.
4 - There needs to be new assets. This is why I am building them. This is why we want to do more contests. The universe is empty. It needs to be filled.
5 - Weapons need something new. Right now 2 weapons are used ever out of the 4, and most players can tell you that a limited number of combinations are worth matching. Pulse is useless. Common knowledge even among devs.
6 - The universe needs some restructuring. There needs to be a reason to travel, to fight, to claim etc... Hardly any of that exists. This ties very much into what is planned for factions and NPC's.
7 - There needs to be a difficulty curve. Pirates in the void are just as easy to kill as pirates near spawn. This needs to change and we already have plans for this.
8 - The economy needs to work. Credits need purpose, as do FP. There needs to be a reason to acquire them and spend them. We have plans for this as well (since it is not as discussed as other aspects of the game)
So here is the thing. I am not concerned about whether councilors are incredibly experienced. They represent the players that are not on the council. We know the problems. We have solutions that we will try over the course of development. Some of these problems exist solely because the game is incomplete. People want things to do and a big part of that is what we are working on now, it's just not in yet. Balancing is a massive thing to tackle, because eventually it reaches every corner of the game.
The councilors have a straight forward job. They provide us suggestions. Ideas. There was in fact lots of balance discussions. There were changes in the last few major patches because of this. I want that to happen more so I will make it happen.
Don't be concerned if a councilor is here to get their favorite color into the game because frankly they aren't. There are more individual posts about pink hull on Kupu's thread than there were of messages from councilors asking for the same. They only need to say it once and it's there. The last time I have heard of anyone asking for decoration blocks was months ago and if sooner, it was restricted to Kupu's thread. Side note - decorative blocks and art are pretty much completely independent from balancing the game. Relax about decoration blocks.
If you want to make an impact, then write a well thought out suggestion that backs itself up (I am looking at you Chckn Wildstyle). Now would be the best time as the councilors will ensure that I get a look at these suggestions and be able to communicate with everyone.
The councilors hardly bring fourth suggestions with the intention of pushing their agenda. They bring them to us because those suggestions are usually the best we have heard.