Six Degrees of Freedom

[sidrat]

I've just seen the news for the 6.0 Public Test Beta. Looks great and feels like bloody hard work and dedication - as usual I am a former X game player.

What I want to know is if space ship flying is going to be more like space ship flying with full directional thrust in all six degrees including reverse? If not now when?

Sure Elite Dangerous controls are very nifty once you get used to them, even Star Citizen has a fun space ship flying in and out of atmosphere, but that's beyond the scope of the X Series and I don't miss planets when I don't have them.

However what I do miss is the feeling of flying a space ship in a space ship flying game and it seems to have been a problem - or mine - since the game release.

Granted I know, yes I do know so sit down and relax, that most of the game experience will be had while lounging in a chair issuing orders from a map. However sometimes, most of the time I want to feel like I'm flying a space ship.

TLDR: Why does flying in space feel so different in the X series compared to all the others? It's weird and weirdly annoying.

[ΔΙΑΚΟΣΙΑ]

I don't get what you're saying.
X4 has 6 DOF.

[sidrat]

Originally posted by //Goplat moved to bad spot//:

I don't get what you're saying.
X4 has 6 DOF.

I guess so, kind of but not really. Why is reverse speed limited?

I'll find out shortly if the 6.0 Beta is still limited in the buttons it will recognise too.

[ΔΙΑΚΟΣΙΑ]

Reverse speed being the same as forward speed would require a second same-size engine on the front of the craft.
If you want the same speed in all directions, you'd need to cover the craft in same-size engines.

Not sure what you mean by "still limited in the buttons it will recognize".

[xDDD]

Originally posted by sidrat:

Originally posted by //Goplat moved to bad spot//:

I don't get what you're saying.
X4 has 6 DOF.

I guess so, kind of but not really. Why is reverse speed limited?

I'll find out shortly if the 6.0 Beta is still limited in the buttons it will recognise too.

Reverse speed is limited because, as the other posted said, you'd need an equal-size engine on the front.

I suggest learn how to use the "Disable Flight Assist" button if you haven't yet. It lets you turn around while maintaining speed in one direction. This way you can go fullspeed backwards (if you turn around while going fullspeed, that is)

[Darminato]

Reverse speed is limited because you have giant engines in the back of your ship with little spray nozzles in the front for reverse and course corrections. If you want 6 DOF at all the same speed, you'd need big engines pointing in every direction which would be an absurd design choice unless you're a BORG ship.

I completely understand about how Elite Dangerous feels like really driving a ship while X4 is kinda meh. I attribute it to a combination of sound design (Elite is oomph-ier) and hud designs (Elite is livelier and presents flight information while X4 is nearly non-existent). The sound design can't be overstated as well, Elite just feels so boomy and vigorous, even their slow-as-molasses ships sound meaty and whale-like. X4's sound is more muted and generic, especially in the capital ships where the bridge sounds like you're standing next to a noisy computer and not much else.

If you're looking for snappier space flight, the scout ships are probably what you're aiming for. Anything medium class and larger are probably going to feel like you're driving a tugboat through an oil spill in the frozen arctic.

[Detective Dan]

Originally posted by sidrat:

Originally posted by //Goplat moved to bad spot//:

I don't get what you're saying.
X4 has 6 DOF.

I guess so, kind of but not really. Why is reverse speed limited?

To quote Sir Newtons 2nd Law of Motion:
"The acceleration of an object depends on the mass of the object and the amount of force applied."

in other words like the guy above said if you want to go the same speed in reverse you need an engine of equal size on the front of the ship as the rear facing ones.

[sidrat]

Originally posted by //Goplat moved to bad spot//:

Reverse speed being the same as forward speed would require a second same-size engine on the front of the craft.
If you want the same speed in all directions, you'd need to cover the craft in same-size engines.

Not sure what you mean by "still limited in the buttons it will recognize".

Due to reasons I've mapped my controllers so I only have two vjoy devices instead of the six available. That means there are over 100 buttons mapped to vjoy1 device. Even then this game will map to a single hat switch. I've turned off the vjoy and stopped masking the physical devices so I'll see what happens now.

[sidrat]

Originally posted by Darminato:

Reverse speed is limited because you have giant engines in the back of your ship with little spray nozzles in the front for reverse and course corrections. If you want 6 DOF at all the same speed, you'd need big engines pointing in every direction which would be an absurd design choice unless you're a BORG ship.

I understand the sentiment however let's not allow physics spoil an otherwise enjoyable game.

I'm not asking for realism, just standardised spaceship controls.

Or I need to remap the controls because the x52 throttle is shockingly bad.