Why is this game so clunky?

[Vas]

Seriously, people keep telling me it got better since its release. I had this on wishlist forever, choosing not to buy it because of its initial release issues.

Someone gifted me the game. Now I feel bad, because I can't stand so many of the features in the game.

It feels like a collection of mashed parts all shoved into one product that don't fit. In particular, the most terrible part is space combat.

"Hold S to lock on", which makes your ship point towards the enemy ship. Oh but your weapons don't lock on, they just fire straight forward while your ship is pointing kinda sorta towards the enemy. So you do no damage while they hit you with every shot. Even my rockets, which is a type of weapon that should be able to follow and track things. Instant energy beams too, they just fire perfectly straight, with the ship slightly off center and being missed entirely.

Even worse, the game uses the worst possible space controls ever. W for forward, S for backwards except in combat where backwards is removed. A and D for rotate. Where's the side thrusters for moving sideways? Where's the up and down thrusters? Why is this a plane simulator in space?

I also have this constant set of objectives stuck in my game, every time I find a piece of equipment it becomes a mission locked into my escape menu till I do it. I feel like if I ignore them, I'll have 100 missions to install useless equipment I've found somewhere.

Using oxygen to sprint is one thing, using oxygen to sprint on a planet with a breathable atmosphere is stupid. Using oxygen for jetpack fuel is also stupid. Most of all, using oxygen to sprint while on a mount that is doing the running for you, is maximum stupid.

The economy scanner was a disappointment too. Telling me super basic useless information like "power systems" instead of what commodity in my cargo would sell where.

Lots of features that all feel like they were just quickly done and thrown in there and ignored for the sake of profit and getting the feature slightly in.

You know, I'm trying my best to figure out how to play, and trying to find a way to enjoy this cause I don't like feeling bad about a gift. But this is getting ridiculous.

[Knightphall]

Originally posted by Vas:

Using oxygen to sprint is one thing, using oxygen to sprint on a planet with a breathable atmosphere is stupid. Using oxygen for jetpack fuel is also stupid. Most of all, using oxygen to sprint while on a mount that is doing the running for you, is maximum stupid.

What would you have done differently?

If you say "added more life support systems separate from each other" I'll assume (probably correctly) that you would also call them a "collection of mashed parts all shoved into one product".

[Brew]

I don't think anyone would call the spaceflight anything like a "simulator".

[Shadow Strider]

Originally posted by Vas:

"Hold S to lock on", which makes your ship point towards the enemy ship. Oh but your weapons don't lock on, they just fire straight forward while your ship is pointing kinda sorta towards the enemy. So you do no damage while they hit you with every shot. Even my rockets, which is a type of weapon that should be able to follow and track things. Instant energy beams too, they just fire perfectly straight, with the ship slightly off center and being missed entirely.

there is a little circle that you have to aim at while locked on (weird I know, but that's how it works). Or just don't use the lock on for anything but quickly facing the enemy ship, and learn to manually aim.

Originally posted by Vas:

Even worse, the game uses the worst possible space controls ever. W for forward, S for backwards except in combat where backwards is removed. A and D for rotate. Where's the side thrusters for moving sideways? Where's the up and down thrusters? Why is this a plane simulator in space?

You can change the in-flight controls. There are no strafe buttons, but you can roll to the left or right. and you can change the lock-on button to something else so you can break during combat...

Originally posted by Vas:

I also have this constant set of objectives stuck in my game, every time I find a piece of equipment it becomes a mission locked into my escape menu till I do it. I feel like if I ignore them, I'll have 100 missions to install useless equipment I've found somewhere.

The blueprint missions can be abandoned in the mission log with no penalty (you can also reactivate them if you want by finding them in your catalog) Also, none of the equipment is useless, but some are more useful than others. At the very least, they can provide adjacency bonuses by being placed directly beside other tech of the same type

Originally posted by Vas:

Using oxygen to sprint is one thing, using oxygen to sprint on a planet with a breathable atmosphere is stupid. Using oxygen for jetpack fuel is also stupid. Most of all, using oxygen to sprint while on a mount that is doing the running for you, is maximum stupid.

When did the game say the atmosphere was breathable? Just because there is life there, it doesn't mean it's safe for you... (however I do agree that using more oxygen while a creature does the running is pretty stupid)

Originally posted by Vas:

The economy scanner was a disappointment too. Telling me super basic useless information like "power systems" instead of what commodity in my cargo would sell where.

trade items come in 7 types, if you look at the item description it will tell you what trade system wants that type. You can search the wiki for Trade Routes for more info

[Aieonae]

It's funny how the recent iterations actually complaints about what is supposed to be a dream feature which is not even in as recent as 2019.

Recalling the bunch of PD players literally actively avoided combat at any cost to wrap up the plot to get title immortal.

I am glad they make players life easier by having an auto lock feature(which is on by default, optional to turn off at one's desire).

As for why the "S" key, in case you had not do combat way back in 2018~2019* the combat mechanics are supposed too advanced for casual players to comprehend how to out maneuver AI pilots. Leading to a more than often having players just slow down to a halt and tries to point turn to orient themselves to the enemies in order score any hit.

As for the Log, it always had been complained as a nothing to do game before a new plot comes about other than Atlas path. I can understand it can be overwhelming. But most are optional to follow up on if not could really assist the player in game accessibility. Granted many are still not bug free.

As for oxygen burn... I have no idea what wrong with that, have you considered how actually how breathing in a space suit and combustion in a jet works?

As for the trade scanner...idk I find it sufficient it pin points me to the nearest trading outpost. I really don't want a stock market in my face while piloting. I recommend you go play elsewhere, where you could be spreadsheet processing clone of a pod.

I agree a lot of features are actually dumb down from originally intended or default to assist first otherwise made optional.

However, please understand the game comes first as an entertainment and not torturing device.

I noted perception of entertainment might be different for everyone, but most current NMS players agree the current state is entertaining enough for us to continue playing it.

*2016~mid 2018 the game can barely run without glitches or crash.

[Mr. Bufferlow]

The game is primarily an exploring sandbox. Originally, very light combat was mainly there to add a little life to the game. They have improved it, but this is not a game to pick if you value combat as a mainstay. As you have discovered, the ships are mainly a way to get to a planet where most of the "action" happens.

90% of the game is on planets and this is not even close to even a fake of real world physics. It is a space fantasy with the emphasis being on fantasy. It is very casual and you can play most of the game while rarely firing a shot in anger. It is a sandbox but they added a few missions for those folks who are lost without some direction and have no willingness to make up their own goals. If that is not what you are looking for, you are not going to enjoy it.

[Vas]

Originally posted by Knightphall:

Originally posted by Vas:

Using oxygen to sprint is one thing, ...

What would you have done differently?

What would I do differently? Well, oxygen would not be used for anything while on a planet with a breathable atmosphere. Nor would sprinting while on a mount as the creature would be the one breathing, not you.

Forbid the use of creatures that consume life support on planets with a need for life support, unless you have an animal life support module in your exosuit to transfer air to them in which case, that air would be consumed, not your own.

Thrusters would use some kind of fuel thats regularly used in real thruster systems, hydrogen for example, like your ship fuel.

Originally posted by Brew:

I don't think anyone would call the spaceflight anything like a "simulator".

I said plane simulator, not spaceflight simulator. This game flies space craft like earth-based aircraft. I find myself trying to use keys from other space games, like Q E to rotate and A D to strafe, but this game doesn't have that so I keep accidentally landing and such when close enough to a planet surface or whatnot.

Originally posted by Shadow Strider:

1) Or just don't use the lock on for anything but quickly facing the enemy ship, and learn to manually aim.

2) You can change the in-flight controls.

3) The blueprint missions can be abandoned in the mission log with no penalty.

4) When did the game say the atmosphere was breathable?

5) You can search the wiki for Trade Routes for more info

1 & 2) With how bad the space flight systems are, locking on is kinda needed. I can't follow the enemy with the terrible bad useless controls of "mouse over that way faster and harder!" to try and follow ships that fly past me. I need to maintain a constant lock on ships as they move past me. There are no ways to make the controls better as the required controls as you've said, don't exist. Due to this being an import of an air flight game into space.

3) Why did they decide to make every component, every blade of grass you pick up, a mission to be tracked and require abandoning?

4) Hmm, plant life, water, organic mammals wandering around. Oxygen producing trees that literally contain oxygen in them as a harvest-able element. I wonder what that could mean... Hmmm..

5) Why would a game be designed specifically to need a wiki in order to play? It should contain the information inside, in a way that you can figure out easily. Not some convoluted mess of "whats this thing and where can I sell it?". I hate the galaxy map as is, adding the information to it didn't improve anything at all while using it because its just basic information. Might as well have been a scanner that says "This system has planets in it!"

If I could have had a scanner that can scan the nearby sectors, and tell me if any of the commodities in my hull were valuable there, that would have been great. Including commodities (if scanned recently before entering a shop), in the interface screens of shops so I could buy the right items and be ready to sell them elsewhere. Without the need of a wiki and learning complex trade routes when I'm barely able to do anything with my just started space ship so that I can begin to make enough profit to finally buy my next level ship sometime soon rather than spending months grinding up to something that can actually do the complex trade routes people usually share.

Originally posted by Aieonae:

I am glad they make players life easier by having an auto lock feature(which is on by default, optional to turn off at one's desire).

As for the Log, it always had been complained as a nothing to do game before a new plot comes about other than Atlas path.

As for oxygen burn... I have no idea what wrong with that, have you considered how actually how breathing in a space suit and combustion in a jet works?

As for the trade scanner...idk I find it sufficient it pin points me to the nearest trading outpost.

I agree a lot of features are actually dumb down from originally intended or default to assist first otherwise made optional.

However, please understand the game comes first as an entertainment and not torturing device.

Actually, I've found auto lock to cause me problems. I was mining in an asteroid field, kinda.. Just shooting random rocks and getting random stuff. When suddenly my weapons started shooting a neutral ship for no reason whatsoever and got me attacked. Which makes no sense considering I couldn't get my weapons to lock on while holding S to face the enemy following me around in another encounter.

The log quests don't need to make a quest out of every single little thing you stumble across. The game doesn't need an unending torrent of micro-quests to keep you entertained. If people feel there aren't enough quests, they aren't going to be satisfied by "You found the blueprint for an upgrade! Build it now and get the components! Hurray, you completed a quest!"

Yes.. I'm absolutely sure NASA uses oxygen as their preferred propellant in rocket ships. It all makes sense now. That must be why we're running out of oxygen on Earth. Oh wait.

I have in fact played eve online, and I used to like it. Before it became free to play and full of trolls and garbage players and bots. Thats not what I was talking about, however. I want something that lets me scan the nearby sectors, and shows tooltips on various items in shop markets, and in my inventories, as to their best buy and sell values within warp range. A simple tooltip on each item to hover over them and see what system I can go to to sell it for the best, and what system I could go to to buy it for the lowest cost. In the warp screen, hovering over systems could show me what objects in my hull are in demand there, as well as what objects are in surplus there.

I've not seen a lot of options in the game to make the game better. I haven't even seen a way to keep the game sound playing when I alt tab which really, really, sucks, especially for a "borderless window" game. I can't alt tab to google anything because sound shuts down and I have no idea whats going on because the game runs even when you hit escape, with no pause feature that I can detect.

You claim its not a torture device, and yet it starts you off on a planet of death by default, and drains your oxygen doing anything and everything, even walking slowly on a planet filled with plant life and oxygen generating trees. Every feature in it seems designed to be overly complex or under-developed. Ugly huts caused by adaptive pieces that don't adapt properly. Missing keys to force structure placement to be correct. Ugly illogical structure pieces requiring tons more work to make them more decent looking. Its a giant mess of torture. Nothing I want would actually be torturous for anyone, and in fact, be of benefit to everyone. With the exception of advanced flight controls but those could easily be optional.

Originally posted by Mr. Bufferlow:

It is a sandbox but they added a few missions for those folks who are lost without some direction and have no willingness to make up their own goals. If that is not what you are looking for, you are not going to enjoy it.

If I'm looking for what, making my own goals? I already want to make my own goals, thats why I hate the fact that the game keeps spamming me with constant new missions and unending tasks then randomly cycling through them all the time when I'm trying to do ♥♥♥♥.

[Shadow Strider]

@Vas
You responded to half of point 1, but not the part relevant to if you need to use lock on still...
While locked on, you still have to aim... there is a little circle (red or white, depending on if you are focused on it) that you have to aim at

point 3... the game is marketted for age 7+, and some people apparently need their hand held at every moment (its annoying, but that's just how it is)

point 4. if you took the same gases of Earth's atmosphere, but changed the ratios, you would die

point 5. The wiki is not needed to play, but if you can't use the in game descriptions to figure things out for yourself, then the wiki is there as support...

[Aieonae]

Originally posted by Shadow Strider:

@Vas
You responded to half of point 1, but not the part relevant to if you need to use lock on still...
While locked on, you still have to aim... there is a little circle (red or white, depending on if you are focused on it) that you have to aim at

point 3... the game is marketted for age 7+, and some people apparently need their hand held at every moment (its annoying, but that's just how it is)

point 4. if you took the same gases of Earth's atmosphere, but changed the ratios, you would die

point 5. The wiki is not needed to play, but if you can't use the in game descriptions to figure things out for yourself, then the wiki is there as support...

Thanks bro🙏 @shadow strider

Spare me the brain rot to argue, I am leaving to you guys to teach highschool academic studies.

Please tell him the locking and target swap are not the same thing.

NASA did use oxygen as a component of their rocket propellent. Else how to burn things? Thanks (@shadow strider) to about deeper understanding how earth atmosphere works.

See I knew it the moment I saw those descriptions, I knew I stumbled on another Eve Online spreadsheet processing clone of a pod. Look it's not spreadsheet space simulator. I already part ways with eve online. I am not playing "work in office". I don't mind getting paid to "work in office". Just not playing it as well.

And bye, this can go potentially torturous for me if I don't jet away, ciao!

[Vas]

Originally posted by Shadow Strider:

point 4. if you took the same gases of Earth's atmosphere, but changed the ratios, you would die

I prioritized responding to things and tried to get everyone in one post, I may have forgotten pieces of information.

As for this, if there is mammalian animal life, its most likely that the ratios are going to be right for other mammals, such as humans. We can tolarate different levels of the gasses, and for more hazardous levels, our space suits could filter out the hazards while still supplying us with the right amount of oxygen. Oxygen would only become a problem if the levels were so low the suit could not draw it in as fast as we breathe it, and would logically be able to refill its air tanks during the time in which we are breathing less than its output capacity.

EDIT: Reference material I asked, after making my response here.
https://chatgpt.com/share/62f2296f-2d5b-4893-ab4c-60ebe130e850

P.S. Before you go "AI is always wrong!", perhaps you (whoever reads this) should actually read the information.

Originally posted by Aieonae:

Spare me the brain rot to argue, I am leaving to you guys to teach highschool academic studies.

NASA did use oxygen as a component of their rocket propellent. Else how to burn things? Thanks (@shadow strider) to about deeper understanding how earth atmosphere works.

And bye, this can go potentially torturous for me if I don't jet away, ciao!

Don't let the door hit you on the way out. Since you wanna be a jerk and all, there's no real point in debating things with you anyway. Aside from the fact that NASA's rockets are not 100% oxygen based. Oxygen is only used as an oxidizer, to help the fuel burn. Without it, it doesn't burn. Even if it does in silly physicsless games like Space Engineers.

[gh0stwizard]

You're right, but people get used to it.

As of life support. First it's not a regular life support systems for a human. Second, player character is not human. Third, life support systems represent stamina and have no connections with breathing. Fourth, oxygen was added in later versions. Originally life support systems could be recharged only with things, which nobody remember:
https://nomanssky.fandom.com/wiki/Archive:Life_Support_(Atlas)

[Felis_Exploria]

Another convince me to like it post. What is the point? Does op want the debate? Is op researching responses. When I don't like a game, I simply stop playing it and maybe write a review. I don't go onto their forum and say "this game is mickey mouse."

[gNg]

This. If I wasted my time complaining on forums about the games I'd bought and didn't like, I wouldn't have any left to play the ones I enjoyed.

[pseudo]

Why don't you direct this rant to the person who gifted you a game that you clearly don't like? That person likes the game enough to double dip to give you the chance to enjoy it too, and would like the opportunity to change your mind. I feel bad for your friend. Actually, after reading your post history and profile, I feel bad for everyone that comes in contact with you.

Originally posted by Vas:

Don't let the door hit you on the way out. Since you wanna be a jerk and all, there's no real point in debating things with you anyway.

I find this response quite ironic. If you have any self awareness you'll reread your posts in this thread and change your tone. All you've done is throw pedantic passive aggressive remarks around and insist the game better fit your ideals. Everyone in this thread has gripes with the game but none of us are misinterpreting this game as some NASA certified Space Simulation experience. I'd tell you to sit through the story but god knows you'll complain about how shallow it is after misinterpreting the message which seems to be a complete rebuttal to half your points.

Just go play a game you do like instead of pretending that debating "morons" on the internet is some worthy pastime for a quadruple IQ theoretical scientist like you. It's a colossal waste of everyone's time, including yours.

[Shadow Strider]

Originally posted by Vas:

Originally posted by Shadow Strider:

point 4. if you took the same gases of Earth's atmosphere, but changed the ratios, you would die

I prioritized responding to things and tried to get everyone in one post, I may have forgotten pieces of information.

As for this, if there is mammalian animal life, its most likely that the ratios are going to be right for other mammals, such as humans. We can tolarate different levels of the gasses, and for more hazardous levels, our space suits could filter out the hazards while still supplying us with the right amount of oxygen. Oxygen would only become a problem if the levels were so low the suit could not draw it in as fast as we breathe it, and would logically be able to refill its air tanks during the time in which we are breathing less than its output capacity.

EDIT: Reference material I asked, after making my response here.
https://chatgpt.com/share/62f2296f-2d5b-4893-ab4c-60ebe130e850

P.S. Before you go "AI is always wrong!", perhaps you (whoever reads this) should actually read the information

I did read the AI generated text... it is not relevant to the discussion. You led it to the answers you wanted to get from it... and you had to feed it preconditions like "assuming oxygen percentage stayed within the safe range"...

When you removed such conditions, then it agreed that you would need a space suit with oxygen supply/regulation as too much or too little can kill you...

Why do you think the weird alien creatures are mammalian? Where does it suggest this is the case? If you presumed they have anything to do with real life, that's your mistake...

Maybe you should have asked something like: "if I find life on another planet should I assume it is mammalian?" or "if i find life on another planet, should I assume the air is breathable for me?"

And why did you presume your character is a human? Because they are humanoid? That's not a very strong argument... The game never refers to you as human. You are a "traveller".

Also, more importantly than whether or not something is possible in real life.... This is a game not a factual simulation. As gh0stwizard stated, the oxygen meter functions as a stamina meter...

[ElmoBond]

Have you ever tried moving your mouse during spaceflight? oh hey look, rotation. If you're upset with the locking system, just don't use it, many of us don't anyways.

Originally posted by Vas:

Even worse, the game uses the worst possible space controls ever. W for forward, S for backwards except in combat where backwards is removed. A and D for rotate. Where's the side thrusters for moving sideways? Where's the up and down thrusters? Why is this a plane simulator in space?