So, what's the point of the game?

[Azrael]

Hi there,
I just bought Star Valor on a whim because I liked SPAZ and Drox Operative - and forgot that they too had me very bored after a short while. So, I'm curious: What do you like about Star Valor and what keeps you playing? I've only flown around a few hours and it was interesting in the beginning but I can't quite get into any sort of motivating gameplay loop. And that's not something I personally would excuse with "It's EA" - especially after being in EA for 2,5 years. I usually don't buy EA titles but I've got a fondness for indies and would really like to keep liking the game :-)

Appreciate your insights.

[Bigstacks 8000]

I just got this game recently as well and something that I like is finding/crafting new gear. new ships finding or buying, finding bosses, finding relics, etc. The leveling system is a nice touch as well. I too enjoyed spaz and also never quite finished it but came close.

[nobrien]

what got you bored in spaz ?? you dont say anything about that what makes you bored and you have private profile so cant chk how much time you played spaz ?

also did you use mods b4 you finished the campaign in spaz , the zombies being released was alot of grind for some players and they didnt have good setups b4 the progressed and got killed alot and quit, was the major negative i remember by alot of posters.

[WillieSea]

Like you, I appreciate this style of game as well.

The future plans for this game are enticing and if completed, will make this a truly special game. Right now, it is RNG reliant like a lot of other games of this type. There is an initial story, which will hopefully be expanded upon.

There is a lot of equipment you can put on your ship, even creating your own weapons. But in addition to that, you have 'rarity' values for all weapons and equipment, that make the weapons or equipment 'better' as the rarity goes up. And up to purple, you can upgrade your equipment using Ancient Relics you find floating in space.

You might also want to check out 'Transendence' and 'Void Expanse' besides the two games you mentioned. (I have them all.)

[Azrael]

Originally posted by longnight858:

I just got this game recently as well and something that I like is finding/crafting new gear. new ships finding or buying, finding bosses, finding relics, etc. The leveling system is a nice touch as well. I too enjoyed spaz and also never quite finished it but came close.

Can relate to that, I enjoy the finding loot / crafting / finally getting together enough money for that new ship as well. The leveling system is a nice touch but feels a little shallow, at least I imagine there could be more (meaningful) skills to get a little complexity and diversity going for different gameplay styles.

Originally posted by nobrien:

what got you bored in spaz ?? you dont say anything about that what makes you bored and you have private profile so cant chk how much time you played spaz

To be honest, I could not give you a meaningful answer to that since I started and stopped playing back in 2011 when it had just come out (I think, would need to check...). But I get your point, so let's get back on topic: I've now spent 8 hours with Star Valor and most of the time was spent flying between sectors / stations doing contracts (Fly to A, Destroy Pirates, Get X resource and bring it to B). In between there's some fights that are either a cakewalk or Dark Souls level difficulty (which is not my cup o' tea).

Maybe I haven't found the proper way to play but from a game design standpoint I can't see a gameplay loop that will actually keep you engaged for longer periods of time (which as far as I can remember was the same problem I had with SPAZ and especially with Drox Operative).

[Azrael]

Originally posted by WillieSea:

Like you, I appreciate this style of game as well.

The future plans for this game are enticing and if completed, will make this a truly special game. Right now, it is RNG reliant like a lot of other games of this type. There is an initial story, which will hopefully be expanded upon.

There is a lot of equipment you can put on your ship, even creating your own weapons. But in addition to that, you have 'rarity' values for all weapons and equipment, that make the weapons or equipment 'better' as the rarity goes up. And up to purple, you can upgrade your equipment using Ancient Relics you find floating in space.

You might also want to check out 'Transendence' and 'Void Expanse' besides the two games you mentioned. (I have them all.)

I'll check them out, thanks :-)

To be honest, I only clicked on buy because the EA info said "24-30 months in EA" and it was released in the middle of 2018, so I figured v1.0 shouldn't be that far away. What future plans do you find enticing?

Regarding the different mechanics, thanks for the explanation. Not everything is yet as intuitive as it could be (and hopefully will) but with my 32 years of gaming experience I've figured all that stuff out...dammit, gettin' old :-D

[WillieSea]

My hours played in each game to give you my perspective on the playability of this style of game.
Drox Operative - 6
SPAZ - 209
Transcendence - 20
Void Expanse - 176
Star Valor - 162

With this game, you have to make your own weapons for the best damage. Buying or finding them are usually a waste of time damage wise.

A lot of equipment 'stacks' in your ship, so make sure you are doing that. Need more shields, faster shield recharge, more power? You stack them and fill up your ship.

But the most important thing is to have a good scanner and collect all the Ancient Relics that are flying around in space. And use them to upgrade your equipment to a better rarity level making them better overall.

There is also some rare equipment you cannot buy that you can find by defeating 'boss' ships.

EDIT: I have more than 32 years of gaming experience, so I understand 'getting old'.

[Azrael]

Originally posted by WillieSea:

My hours played in each game to give you my perspective on the playability of this style of game.
Drox Operative - 6
SPAZ - 209
Transcendence - 20
Void Expanse - 176
Star Valor - 162

Just checked out the store pages for those two. Transcendence got a nice overall review score, Void Expanse not so much, people calling it "too shallow" / "it needs more depth". Since you played Void Expanse a lot more than Transcendence, what's your opinion on that?

I have to admit, I never got this whole concept of "I played the game for XXX hours, therefore I know what I'm talking about". For each and every game I have played in the last 10 years I could tell you after an hour if it was for me or not (with the really bad ones only taking about 10 minutes). What can take a little longer is the question of "will it keep me engaged long enough to finish it" but that's a different story. Right now, with Star Valor, there is something there that makes me want to keep playing but at the same time I'm often thinking "so where's the 'meat'?".

With this game, you have to make your own weapons for the best damage. Buying or finding them are usually a waste of time damage wise.

That's something I'll try next. Couldn't be bothered so far because of the limited cargo space.

A lot of equipment 'stacks' in your ship, so make sure you are doing that. Need more shields, faster shield recharge, more power? You stack them and fill up your ship.

You mean, stacking as in "several power generators etc."? Currently I got 3 reactors and shield generators each.

But the most important thing is to have a good scanner and collect all the Ancient Relics that are flying around in space. And use them to upgrade your equipment to a better rarity level making them better overall.

I think I'm getting closer to what's bothering me: What is my actual goal in the game? There's no clear finish line to aim at. So, it's mostly about finding stuff & grinding. Usually that's the means to an end but not everything so this brings me back to the gameplay loop thing. What do you think?

EDIT: I have more than 32 years of gaming experience, so I understand 'getting old'.

Weird feeling, hu? ;-)

[WillieSea]

There is no goal or 'ending' to this game because the story does not exist yet. So that might be a sticking point for you.

I found it enjoyable to run around the various systems, collecting the equipment as I came across it for my ship. (I stopped at cruiser size, because the bigger ship is way to slow.)

I currently have 12 miner reactors for my power needs. The Venghi shields are the best since they come with shield chargers and absorbers. (saving you from equipping those so you can have more of the Venghi shields). Then you have ship repair equipment, refineries, combat mods, energy armor and hull reinforcers. And much, much more.

Finding that equipment is what kept me in the game for so long. And even in all that time I played, there is some equipment I have never seen but heard about on the forum.

[RakWar]

isn't there endgame to defeat the Venghi???? Just started the game myself and i thought the guys question was kind of weird to ask..but maybe it isn;t lol i don;t know

[WillieSea]

How do you 'defeat' the Venghi? I am curious because I never got that from the game as something that can even be done.

[Zarinthal]

So iirc the gameplay itself isn't going to be super plot-intensive, but there is a good bit of lore, available in the discord channel. We have a lot of fun over there, very active developer, mostly 1 man project. Soon we will get fleets, a more robust economy and crafting system, maybe some new boats and toys. At the end of the day, it is kind of like a broad mix of arcade and open world. The game will likely change a lot, and yet probably feel very much the same as it does now, just MORE. I don't know if there will ever be a main story line of quests to follow, or NPCs with persistent roles or any revelations into the background. As of right now, no faction can be truly eliminated unless you play a limited size universe and blast all their stations to dust.

Personally, after a few hundred hours, I got my moneys worth, but I also got attached to it a bit so I am still excited to see where it goes of course. So to answer your question "what is the point....?" as of now, for me, the point is to continue to enjoy testing out a game-in-progress, making suggestions as I come up with ideas, pointing out any bugs or concerns with game play and balance. I do get concerned that I will burn out before it's complete, but once I am back in the gamer, I realize that will probably never happen.

In the mean time, there are games like 3030 Deathwar, which is not cheap, but it is a robust fixed open world game with a fun plot, very retro and lots of genre references.

Endless Sky and Naev are free games, passion projects that have a story line or two. Naev just got a huge update with a few more things to come. Endless Sky is about to get a massive update, time frame unknown, but it already has a great universe, fun story, lots of ships, toys and tech progression. Both games are incredibly impressive for what they are, namely free.

So Star Valor will be done when it is done, but for now, just enjoy the system and action and join us on Discord and tell us what you think.

[Moon-Shadow]

And more Time coming.


Drox Operative / Have not

SPAZ / 28

Transcendence / The Free Version from the Web Side , more as 100 Hours over more Versions.

Void Expanse / 14

Star Valor / 322

---

Void Expanse , Give Mods.

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It is difficult to walk after hours like good something is.

Because depending on the game it takes longer or shorter until you are through, or whether you drag the end out because you just want to do a lot more, instead of starting over more often to do everything else.

[Moon-Shadow]

Naev

What is Full Name. ?

Steam say not what the "Naev" is.

[FangElon]

Sounds like this genre is just not for you. I don't think you like SPAZ and Drox Operative or you wouldn't be bore with them. So tell me what you like about SPAZ and Drox Operative.

[Zarinthal]

Originally posted by FangElon:

Sounds like this genre is just not for you. I don't think you like SPAZ and Drox Operative or you wouldn't be bore with them. So tell me what you like about SPAZ and Drox Operative.

I think you are way off lol they keep trying games in the genre so they must like something about it. Not exactly the kind of game you p[lay to look cool or edgy for others to see haha