StarMade v0.199.429 - Combined blocks, new blocks, optimizations and fixes

[DrTarDIS]

I would like the choice to go back to the old one button system, only because for me this new system makes the game unplayable. My mouse has no scroll wheel it has a ball instead so i can no longer pick different shapes.

Can't you just remap?

 

[kupu]

- The Pickup Point rail block appear sometimes with a cross in the middle of the block like if it was" the pickup point not working ".
So, when i try to dock on with a ship, the pickup point just dont appear.

The pick up block can be turned off and on with a linked activator. This little cross indicates the block is off.
Link the activator and toggle it to change it's state. This was included perhaps 1 or 2 updates ago as people never knew which state the block was in with only one texture.

You're right, pick up rails in advance buildmode don't seem to have a preview. Will pass this along.

 

[DukeofRealms]

I would like the choice to go back to the old one button system, only because for me this new system makes the game unplayable. My mouse has no scroll wheel it has a ball instead so i can no longer pick different shapes.

I think we will add pressing the hotbar number slot to switch through the block types to the existing system, like I believe was done with the multi stacks.

 

[Jojomo]

Thank you guys!

 

[AtraUnam]

This update looks awesome, can't wait for the multi-textures either, looks like they'll improve the apperance of terrain a lot.

Edit: I take it back the menu change outweighs everything with its awfulness. Let me explain.

The old system required a single operation to select a new shape:

1. Scroll to shape

The new system requires 4 operations to sleect a new shape:

1. Scroll backwards (if you don't do this the submenu won't appear and it just goes to the next hotbar slot)
2. Scroll forwards again
3. Wait half a second because if you don't the radial menu fails to open and just places a block instead
4. Select a block with the mouse

Its honestly just awful in every way and about 20 times slower, even used perfectly it would be slower simply due to the wait required to make the damn thing actually open.

 

[Jananton]

Well, again all these refinements sound like a great update is coming down the line.

The only thing I truly dislike is the simplification of the block manufacturing system. It feels a bit like after the receipts for building blocks was simplified after lots of nagging about its difficulty and complexness the naggers have won again and now a part of the PvE gameplay is lost again and when I read the posts before here it's probably a question of time before the whole factory thing will be ironed out as well.

I'm definitely not looking forward to that, but hey, in that case there's always Space Engineers, Interstellar Rift or Avorion to keep me occupied.

Greets,

Jan

 

[Napther]

However building from AtraUnam 's point above, the block menu will SAVE the wedges, tetra, and hepta state to all multi slots so this only needs to be done once. Even for doors, they get their slabs and wedges, as do hull when you add them to the menu

This I can get over,

frustrating to me is hiding all the parts like Lights and LoD behind the radial menu, which means every time we want that block on start up or reboot/ crash we need to re-add it. Im pretty sure newer players will completely forget the existence of Rod Lights since they are in fact hidden behind the menu

Edit: Clarified by devs that once a\ll blocks are saved onto multislot, it carries between instances

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The only thing I truly dislike is the simplification of the block manufacturing system. It feels a bit like after the receipts for building blocks was simplified after lots of nagging about its difficulty and complexness the naggers have won again and now a part of the PvE gameplay is lost again

What? Just What are you trying to say?
Block manufacturing has been simplified to reduce factory clutter and the need to be forced to build all parts of the hull in order to create a ship blueprint/design in the shipyard.

There have been zero, count them Zero, changes to the "Player VS Environment" Scene unless you count beams now actually worth a damn VS armour

 

[The_Owl]

Radial system for blocks is the worst thing that has been put in, it's just a clunky, hard to use and impossibly flawed system compared to the old system with slabs in the Adv build mode and all blocks in each multi slot always. It slows down building to the point where it's properly easier to build in the previous update and just move that ship to this one.

I seriously have no clue what the entire point of the radial menu system for blocks is other than something to try and make it look "fancy" or to Put the radial menu idea into places where it isn't needed.

The new blocks and stuff are nice thou

 

[Jananton]

What? Just What are you trying to say?
Block manufacturing has been simplified to reduce factory clutter and the need to be forced to build all parts of the hull in order to create a ship blueprint/design in the shipyard.

There have been zero, count them Zero, changes to the "Player VS Environment" Scene unless you count beams now actually worth a damn VS armour

Well, when the factory system first was introduced manufacturing was quite complex and several intermediate steps where needed to construct system blocks like cannons, beams and whatever. Quite realistic, but even I found that a little over the top. Sadly when the manufacturing system was simplified to what it was just before this update, every receipt, even for the most advanced blocks, is just a one step building process, except for hull types. I'm still inclined to say that this is the other way around as it should be, hulls should be infinity simpler to construct as advanced system blocks. If against this simplified hull manufacturing that's introduced now had been a more complex creation of ship (advanced) system blocks I would have applauded this balance shift in manufacturing, but sadly that isn't the case, it all gets dumbed down even further. A missed opportunity if you ask me.

The current update removes the complexity of planning what type of hull blocks are needed to make for your ship completely. And, I might add, your ship and its creation is just as much Environment as any other thing in the universe.

Greets,

Jan

 

[kupu]

I seriously have no clue what the entire point of the radial menu system for blocks is...

To allow players to create a custom multislot in the hotbar for all block shapes available to the root block.

LMB to select.
RMB to assign / unassign from the multi group.

It's primary purpose is not to select blocks from on the fly, but to set up your hotbar with the shape variants you need.

Eg: If a player were to only need Dark Grey Hull cubes, wedges, corners and Yellow Hazard Hull cubes and 1/4 slabs, a one time operation to a root block would save them scrolling though 5 unneeded shape variants. It also removes the need to be adjusting a slider within the old slab selection tool in adv build mode whilst making their selections during building.

Further feedback is always appreciated.

 

[Criss]

As Napther has pointed out, you will only need to set which blocks appear on the hotbar once, and it will save between gameplay sessions.
Furthermore, just how you used to be able to choose which blocks appear in the inventory, you can now choose which blocks appear in the new system.

As far as how long it takes to get a block ready for placement, there is little difference. In both situations you are scrolling along your hotbar, and for orientations you still need to use advanced build mode. I find it easier already to place slabs without having to pinpoint a position on a slider to get the correct thickness, which happens enough to be at least noticeably irritating.

The current update removes the complexity of planning what type of hull blocks are needed to make for your ship completely.

I disagree. Eventually we would like player run factions to compete with NPC factions, and while a player might be able to make a large warship to dominate those factions, they cannot hold down territory with the same effectiveness. This is because AI fleets are unequipped for that task, and generally there are not enough players to put a dozen or so ships in every system you claim.

When the time comes for a faction to create as little as a dozen ships for their territorial fleets, the process of building is going to become glaringly tedious. At some point we will need to move away from micromanagement and streamline the process. This is one of those steps.

 

[Crimson-Artist]

great update as always!

but just a heads up there seems to be an big bug with templates. Just tried to use one and it not only required completely different blocks but it actually corrupted the entity I placed it on. it started having graphical glitches and reloading the game only made it worst. tab+f6 didnt do anything so be careful!

 

[The_Owl]

To allow players to create a custom multislot in the hotbar for all block shapes available to the root block.

Except that a custom multi slot for a large majority of people is just every block, and therefore everyone is being forced to use this entire system, which is inherently flawed in one way that i can already see, even if they prefer the old system with the multi-slot + slab slider, aside from the fact that the radial system has been added into blocks where it really isn't needed, like light bars and other blocks with only 2 different forms.

Also a "custom" multi slot isn't very custom if the blocks always appear in a pre-defined order based on there placement in the radial menu.

 

[Raisinbat]

There is a problem, factories are tedious. This change doesn't address this, it just makes us have to use them less. A big chunk of what factories were used for was just scooped out. And, I mean, it's not like this chunk in particular was worse than others, it was just the most prominent one, by virtue of the great volume and variety of hull. Even if the removal was partial, this was a decision of "factories are bad, let's remove them" rather than "factories are problematic, let's fix them".

Just like with power and shield transfer beams, remove the bad thing instead of fixing whats wrong with this broken mess of a game. Schine, here's a little idea that shouldnt be hard to add for making factories more interesting: Read by Council - Factory progression block

1. Would getting rid of factories really be that bad? They really add very little to the core engagement, and are mostly tedious. Just because they are part of the game now doesn't mean they have to stay. I would like them to stay (and to keep similar logical functionality, I think it's neat) but, objectively speaking, the devs could scrap them and it probably wouldn't affect the quality of the end product all that much.

YES!!! YES IT FUCKING WOULD!!! This is why schine needs to stop following the community, you're a bunch of lemmings running off cliffs.

No factories = No crafting = no mining = game loses it's management, economy trading and crafting systems. How is that not a huge deal???

2. Is this really the hill you want to die on? Is this the fight you want to wage? Out of this whole update, you're going to pick the one feature that's been heavily requested for at least the full year and a half I've been playing, and nitpick that? It really only takes one fight on the update thread for everyone to think your a troll for the rest of your forum based existence, and you're going to spend your token on 4 extra factories per hull type? Turn back now man, you can still save it for when they implement NPC crews, that one's sure to shatter the current game play.

He's not complaining about the interface change, he's complaining that actual gameplay is being ignored, as usual.

Open community content and click on the ship tab; You'l notice that as of writing 75 ships are in roleplay category and only 15 in pvp. You have 5 times more people who aren't playing the game but fucking around in interstellar dollhouses; that's why so much discussion on these forums revolve around stupid shit like interior decorating, oxygen simulation and making the turrets smaller because THEY JUST WONT FIT NEXT TO THE COMMODE.

These people don't want a game; They want a 3D modelling tool where they can make and explore 3D art. That's perfectly fine, but listening to them for ballancing and mechanics is destroying what little game is in starmade, and certainly wont help turn it into one. There's a ton of RP chumps on this site, because everyone else got sick of your shit and left, so now they outnumber those of us focusing on combat effectiveness, and we just get drowned out.

Maybe leave the interface alone until the game is more developed and you have a better idea what the interface needs to do?

 

[Deserea]

please revert this to the one button system, this is really clunky.

God this so much please.

Imma hurr durr still partially agree with this however, just editing to remove what i said wrong.

 

[Criss]

God this so much please.

This update just made it a pain in the rear to do any kind of building at least for me, five minutes of playing with it, if that, and i wanna punch something because of both the amount of clicks required to change block shapes and the annoying wheel menu. I really preferred scrolling through all the block shapes, it was much faster and smoother than this current change.

What is preventing you from scrolling currently? If you sticky the block, it stays on the hotbar, similar to the previous system. The menu allows you to select which blocks appear.

 

[Deserea]

What is preventing you from scrolling currently? If you sticky the block, it stays on the hotbar, similar to the previous system. The menu allows you to select which blocks appear.

Ah, didn't realize i could do this, fast reader and i skipped over that line i guess in the update section.
Now a question. Do i have to resticky everything each time i exit and start the game or is it permanent?

 

[Criss]

Ah, didn't realize i could do this, fast reader and i skipped over that line i guess in the update section.
Now a question. Do i have to resticky everything each time i exit and start the game or is it permanent?

No. It saves between game sessions. Super nifty.

 

[Deserea]

No. It saves between game sessions. Super nifty.

Aw good even better then, and i see it carries over to all the block types too

 

[Crimson-Artist]

to be honest I actually prefer this system over the old one. at least with the this I can customize my hotbar with the blocks that I use the most while my least used ones are still available.