Alpha 12 - CPU and Flight Model

Why do the polls only allow positive feedback?

I don't like the current CPU and flight model setup, and I'm hardly alone in that

The flight model implementing speed caps that 1) differ between vehicle types in space and 2) are dependent on mass are totally wrong. There should be a universal speed limit in space, and mass should affect rate of acceleration, or how long it takes to get to that speed. As long as the current model is used, regardless of any "discounts", mass/volume will not be active in any game I play, default setting or not

CPU is just not ready for prime time. When there is a method to manage it, and the tiers have a more gradual increase, I'll take another look then

 

CPU needed to be rebalanced in this update. It's completely biased in certain directions and away from the parts that should've been changed.
The supposed reason for devs making building blocks consume CPU is to keep builds small. But with each update the limits keep getting expanded and now they're able to be removed entirely with the Advanced Core.

 

CPU was suggested to deal with devices, which are the biggest load on the hardware. The biggest issue with CPU is it doesn't actually manage anything. You should be able to divert capacity to different subsystems as needed... "I need thrust to carry this load, so I nerf my guns... oops, pirates, better shut down grav and run like hell... oops, flanked, better cut thrust and start shooting.." something like that

The second issue is that the tiers are too lopsided, there needs to be smoother progression

 

CPU is very tolerable for me. At least so far. I did not even really need the increase to HV and SV T4 limits and the advanced core.

The only reason I do not use mass and volume is I hate maneuvering through menus. It is both, not fun, and, robs the concept of mass and volume of its reason for being in the game and suspension of disbelief outright - sure, I have limited space and mass, but then all it takes is a drop-down menu and *poof* I can move all of it from one place to another via "wireless" transmission? Weird? Really, it is the menus that I dislike - they really bog down the fluidity of the game, but I will mention the other point too(amongst others.) So I never play with it/them on.

The flight model got much more tolerable for me when I realized that most of my builds were over-cpu because I was not really moving forward with the game and over-loading my ships with RCS based on past versions. Once I removed those RCS I not only *usually* fell under the CPU limit but I also found my ships significantly less twitchy. The addition of the sliders furthers that. So a little bit of patience and I can get an SV that is actually BETTER at pin-point shooting than previous versions of the game - which is nice because I am a very good shot(I especially love trick or action shots.)

 

Garbage.

I have said this a million times- there is no need for the artificial CPU/mass volume systems if the game used block/cargo/ammo/fuel mass in the physics. Overload the ship/won't lift off. You wouldn't need a fake arbitrary system to figure out if you've put too much in the cargo hold- you'd see the ship act sluggishly and go "Hmmm, too much stuff"- kinda like real life when you've put too much into a box and try to pick it up. Volume is fine- would better to have some visual representation, but this is ok. The physics/CPU/mass system is just a joke.

 

Like weights and volumes (though clearly ongoing balancing is good), wouldn't play without it. I even (seemingly the only person) like the fact that Weight effects top speed. CPU I remain somewhat agnostic on. I play with it on, and like the fact that it gives progression, but I do think it could have been done differently. Still, it's not a feature I dislike unlike some players.

 

I am speaking only for myself, and expressing my individual observations (hopefully not ranty, but I am passionate). I love building and this game, and want to see it succeed in a massive way in the open market. I'm hoping all these things will be balanced as the game progresses, though it's already been in Alpha for a good long while and things tend to get baked in and left alone if not addressed.

My concern with CPU is that the original purpose was to prevent load on servers. However, due to CPU limits, I find that I need more to fulfill my needs. Now, instead of a thoroughbred SV, I need one for cargo and one for attack and one for exploration (love warping around and scouting, without dragging my CV everywhere). I can't have a single HV either, because I need a tank and a hauler and something quick to get around. With bases, you can easily go over tier requirements with basic building materials. My landing pad is tier 3 and only has concrete and a core. So, I build tiny, specialized, bases and more of them.

Are servers better off with more, smaller, items? Or are full featured but fewer numbers better? I don't know.

I do understand the stated purpose of CPU, however weight/storage limits dictate much of this already. CPU is a barrier, with no gameplay gains or positives. An inert steel block adds cpu; an inert deco pole draws cpu. Why? So you don't have too many. My worry is that fresh players won't understand this and will quit in frustration. We need to draw in a great many new players for this game to succeed as it should. It's fun and a blast to create and explore. I'd hate to see it flutter away.

 

I haven't played a ton since CPU was added, but have 200 hrs in the game from before. Can you explain what the CPU mechanic is supposed to be for and what the point of it is? Just an arbitrary difficulty scaling mechanic to make things more complicated? Is there some lore reason like "your ship needs more CPU capacity for the more complex devices it has", which would at least kind of make sense, sort of. I agree with you I think, if the purpose is somehow related to limiting ship sizes or something, let the physics and flight models try and handle that, or simply put some hard constraints on it and let that just be the way it is - i.e. an upper block count for the different crafts, and have a discussion around what that count should be.

I'm looking forward to trying alpha 12, seems there's a ton of new stuff now, but might wait a few weeks for bugs to be ironed out, seems some of the new mechanics especially the stories, are not reviewed favorably yet. Having a mandatory wall of text that you can't read again later while fighting spiders w/out any weapons or armor does sound pretty terrible way to introduce a story/quest.

 

There's another factor of a proper acceleration decrease that would actually serve as a balancing/limiting factor on it's own. Fuel.

If the top speed is limited, the ship accelerates until it hits top speed, then cruises at minimum consumption

If the acceleration is reduced, it takes more fuel to reach top speed, meaning you have to start out with a heavier load and design that into your ship

 

Slightly more cpu would be nice for a t2 hv I think but other than that I have no issues whatsoever with cpu or the flight model. Nice systems works well and wouldn't play without them.

 

I miss the thumb down. How should you get feedback with such a survey?
I don't like the new flight model and the CPU.

So thumbs down.

 

The unlock level of HV and SV shields is lower than T3 extenders, but it's impossible to fit one on a T2 since the shield alone uses 16,000 CPU and T2 only gives 15,000 CPU.

A T1 CV on the other hand can be fitted with a shield, warp drive, a half dozen turrets and still have CPU left over.

 

SV shield has CPU demand of 16300 and is unlocked at lvl 10 the max CPU available at lvl 10 IN TOTAL is 15000 that's with T2 CPU so you can not use it t without a sever penalty this seems incongruous to the games design. Not till you get to lvl 12 and T3 is unlocked can you use it where you get a massive jump in CPU and you can have both shield and warp drive and anything else you like.

 

That's more of a general issue with the tech tree though which they have acknowledged a few times now.

 

Made the analogy elsewhere, but it belongs here even more...


If CPU and M/V were real world rules:

M/V: a semi truck would be speed-capped at 35mph instead of taking 5x (or more) longer than a car to get to 65mph

CPU: Every program on your PC takes up RAM whether it's running or not

Oh, and your desk and chair take up RAM, too...

 

I agree, this is not a survey relating to different reactions to CPU, this is a kid passing a note to the girl across the classroom with two check boxes, "do you like me?" and second choice is, "do you like me a lot?"

Seriously?

 

Thumbs way way double down! Remove this nonsense it makes you look arrogant as heck! Looks like someone is far removed from reality.

They serous?.. What do you mean thumbs up? Where is the thumbs down for this cpu abomination? I posted part of this below somewhere else but its best place is here.

I left the game for a while after the cpu abomination got implemented then came back to see if things had changed for the better, and no, its got worse, in terms of the cpu nonsense and the new flying system which is strange to say the least.

The one positive feature i really like is the randomly generated universe which i love and love again because it "stays true to the spirit of immersion" which brought me to this game to begin with. But they have polluted that immersion with this cpu nonsense. Its almost like their trying to will this degenerate system to work. I don't think its going to happen because their coming out from an un-immersive cpu foundation which is going in the opposite direction of immersion. Its sad to see this happen.

This is what a central processor cpu unit is. What the empyrion developers are doing is making an already none-immersive feature and mistake even worse by trying to build around an un-immersive foundation.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_processing_unit

CPU is the central processing unit for a computer that means that the only thing that should have cpu in the ship is the core itself. The core is the computer of the ship and nothing else. Roleplay is good to help immerse oneself into an already immersive universe but cpu is doing the opposite to that. If this un-immersive cpu abomination keeps up we may have to find new ways to roleplay and make-believe this growing cpu nonsense away.

 

This is not a survey it is a joke to pat yourselves on the back for doing what you want. Stop insulting us. And now an unlimited CPU core that can be found only by being gifted by RNJESUS. If your system had any merit, did any of the various things you claimed it would do, this super core would be unneeded.

And since you brought it up in your post, please explain the physics of mass limiting top speed?