Haven’t played Elite Dangerous in awhile, but I wanted a break from Factorio. As said, the Engineer update was released possibly a month or two ago. Thankfully it didn’t take me long to re-learn all the controls I bound to my HOTAS.
So the first change I noticed was the new Outfitting screen. I have mixed feelings about this. I liked how everything was displayed infront of you instead of in categories (and this feels clunky).
However, with having them in their own categories, it makes it easier to search for what modules I need (as only that specific module type will show up in the search). And with it, I ripped out my mining build and went with a more deep space exploration build, and it only costed me two million credits. Not bad.
Basically got a standard SRV vehicle bay, and a better fuel scoop that can fill up my fuel tank pretty good.
Oh yeah, there’s an off-game change I need to mention. The website, coriolis.io, now finally..FINALLY shows upgrade advice (similar to ingame)!! No more tedious guesswork! No more having to ask for build advice! 😀
It shows info as you mouse over the upgrades, if this is a better or worse upgrade for your entire build. And I used it the best I can, and feel satisfied with the results.
Though I wish there was a “can’t find this particular module in this system? Click here to try and find a system near you that has it” option. Even one ingame would be super helpful.
Second change I notice (this one is ingame), which is really helpful, is the addition of Bookmarks to the Galaxy Map. An example of this is “I want to plot out my course for future exploration!”, or “Show me where this system is, incase I ever feel like going there!” It’s as simple as selecting a system and look for the flag icon, and select ‘Bookmark location’ and a little blue flag will show up over the system.
To remove bookmarks, they added a Bookmarks tab (between the Course and System tabs). Here you can select any of your existing Bookmarks. You can Delete or Edit the name of the bookmark.
Do have a small complaint about this. I don’t understand why you’re not allowed to remove the bookmark outside of the Bookmarks tab, as the Bookmark button turns red and becomes unavailable.
The other changes, I’m really liking them. Haven’t tried out the Engineers yet, but this is what I’ve discovered about them. The player has a choice of three Engineers, each one based around the three main things the player can do (Bounties/Exploration/Trading). Check your messages and you’ll see invites of them wanting you to come to them and chat.
And then there’s the more lifelike vocal system when it comes to a spaceport/settlement;
-Soon as you jump to where a station is, you’ll hear a message about how this place requires you to request docking before going in. You’ll get a different message depending on the level of security (and if it’s a Settlement on a planet).
-Will tell you what your assigned hangar number is, vocally instead of just displaying it. In other words, the “Docking request granted” voice has been changed.
-Will tell you in meters, how close you are from your assigned port. Will also notify you if you are speeding (only heard this with spaceports).
-An additional vocal has been added after “docking successful, engines disengaged” is played after landing. It welcomes the CMDR to the station.
Other changes I’ve seen;
-If your ship (and its current build) is unable to reach a system, the game has the Plot Course button unavailable. I like this change, as it’s no longer confusing if I can go to that really distant system or not.
-The Controls menu is now in their own categories, instead of one big mess.
-The pre-recorded messages that play when you’re in a station, can also be heard when you’re in a hangar.
-When at a planet settlement, the area is now protected by System Authority Vessels (for high security). In addition, they now inform the tower when they’re heading into and out of the station.
-There’s been some new vocals added when in spaceports and settlements.
-When selecting a spaceport or a settlement, there has been added radio chatter.
-New types of settlements have been added.
-New sounds have been added when moving around in the Galaxy Map.
-The mission screen has been completely changed. To explain this best, it shows all minor factions of the system and the current rankings that you have with them(even pictures of the faction leaders). It also shows the Community Goals that can be seen galaxy-wide. Personally, the old system worked for me.
-New “Local News” has been added when in an inhabited system, such as more news in the system and station news.
An issue I’ve seen;
-The AI seem to not know how to dock correctly now. They attempt, then either stop attempting or miss the landing pad (which eventually causes them to be destroyed by the station’s laser cannons).
Despite the bugs with the AI (and now knowing the random “I want your cargo, even though you don’t have any!” pirate interdiction thing isn’t fixed either), overall.. good update.
Anyway, the whole reason I’m even playing again is I want to go back to all the places I visited and then some (starting with the first Nebula I managed to reach). Because it’s about time that I use this ASP Explorer for the reason I bought it; getting to all the Nebulae that I can, and eventually to the center of the galaxy (and maybe all the way out towards Beagle Point.. if my ASP can even handle that far of a jump).
I’ll be exploring Coalsack, the Horsehead Nebula, the Orion Nebula (and the famous Orion’s Belt), the California Nebula(my original destination), the Bubble Nebula, and a few others. It’ll be fun, and you guys can even be part of the journey! Because I’ll be posting pictures of anything interesting in my exploration (using separate blog posts, of course).