X-Rebirth

[Trojan_generic]

OK, here is what I really think X-Rebirth will be: Silent Hunter 5

Fortunately, the mods will fix it like they maybe by now have fixed SH5.

You can walk around the fucking spaceships and stations but it does not serve any purpose that could not be done easier and faster, except making cool screenshots, just like you can walk in your sub in SH5. Immershun for the simple-minded.

Watching the space, scenery and ships will be beautiful - the same in SH5.

The game will be dumbed down just like SH5.

 

[Space Satan]

OK, here is what I really think X-Rebirth will be: Silent Hunter 5

Fortunately, the mods will fix it like they maybe by now have fixed SH5.

You can walk around the fucking spaceships and stations but it does not serve any purpose that could not be done easier and faster, except making cool screenshots, just like you can walk in your sub in SH5. Immershun for the simple-minded.

Watching the space, scenery and ships will be beautiful - the same in SH5.

The game will be dumbed down just like SH5.

How can you dumb down X? Compared to Elite it's like neandertals in space. The only difference is that neandertals learned to build stations and stick them together.

 

[Trojan_generic]

How can you dumb down X? Compared to Elite it's like neandertals in space. The only difference is that neandertals learned to build stations and stick them together.

You can for example dumb down the controls by removing keyboard shortcuts, I mean who even uses keyboards anymore when you have gamepads!

You can also add companions whom you have to keep dragging with you for the 20 hours it nowadays takes to reach the rank of X-treme, because nothing is as lonely as a teenager boy:

In the distant future, the X universe faces a period of profound and irrevocable change. While the universe stumbles towards an uncertain future, countless adventures await as new enemies rise in search of power.

Enter a young adventurer and his unlikely female ally traveling in an old, battered ship with a glorious past - two people alone against the galaxy, playing a key part in the events to come.

:facepalm:

 

[trym88]

How can you dumb down X? Compared to Elite it's like neandertals in space. The only difference is that neandertals learned to build stations and stick them together.

You can for example dumb down the controls by removing keyboard shortcuts, I mean who even uses keyboards anymore when you have gamepads!

You can also add companions whom you have to keep dragging with you for the 20 hours it nowadays takes to reach the rank of X-treme, because nothing is as lonely as a teenager boy:

In the distant future, the X universe faces a period of profound and irrevocable change. While the universe stumbles towards an uncertain future, countless adventures await as new enemies rise in search of power.

Enter a young adventurer and his unlikely female ally traveling in an old, battered ship with a glorious past - two people alone against the galaxy, playing a key part in the events to come.

:facepalm:

I don't understand the discussion about dumbing down. The only thing I hear all the time is "ohhh the game will be a dumbed down mess because they added gamepad usability and you can't steer your capital ship with arrow buttons anymore, zomg". Have you even compared that to the improvements they made on the other side? Improved AI (better pathfinding/combat behaviour), more realistic economy (f.example decisions/incidents have more influence on the economy), station and ship surface elements as part of combat and economy (f. example Ships are not a single healthbar anymore. Now you can take out specific surface elements on a ship in order to cripple certain ship functions), huge with life filled sectors instead of dead, tiny sectors (and no tons of loading screens anymore, except one when you start the game). Oh yeah but let's focus on the most important new feature! The gamepad ! Don't forget about TEH GAMEPAD! It's crucial !!! You can now use a gamepad if you like! DON'T FORGET ABOUT THAT! ZOMGGG!!!!

 

[Turjan]

I'm not too concerned about not being able to fly capital ships. I hardly ever did so in X3, either. Remote controlling them from a different ship was always a preferable option to me. I liked to watch them do their things from somewhere nearby. Even when flying them directly for safety reasons I tended to use third person view.

The thing about drones sounds as if it was very similar to dogfighting with fighters, so I hope that turns out sufficiently similar. X3 didn't have any cockpits without mods, anyway, so the experience should be about the same if they don't fuck it up.

All in all I'm cautiously optimistic. On the other hand, it's Egosoft, so the release state will probably be some level of horror. But usually they are pretty good at patching things up in a timely manner.

 

[Trojan_generic]

I don't understand the discussion about dumbing down. The only thing I hear all the time is "ohhh the game will be a dumbed down mess because they added gamepad usability and you can't steer your capital ship with arrow buttons anymore, zomg". Have you even compared that to the improvements they made on the other side? Improved AI (better pathfinding/combat behaviour), more realistic economy (f.example decisions/incidents have more influence on the economy), station and ship surface elements as part of combat and economy (f. example Ships are not a single healthbar anymore. Now you can take out specific surface elements on a ship in order to cripple certain ship functions), huge with life filled sectors instead of dead, tiny sectors (and no tons of loading screens anymore, except one when you start the game). Oh yeah but let's focus on the most important new feature! The gamepad ! Don't forget about TEH GAMEPAD! It's crucial !!! You can now use a gamepad if you like! DON'T FORGET ABOUT THAT! ZOMGGG!!!!

Funny you didn't understand even my short message. It is not about adding gamepad support (you can already play with a gamepad 98 % of games old and new if you so wish), but if you for example remove keyboard shortcuts, it is dumbing down = reducing features because of stupid masses. Anyway, my reply was to a theoretical question "how can you dumb down X".

By the way, do you always believe when they claim there is an improved AI in a game before release? Radiant AI say anything to you? Also, I'm sure that the 'life' in the sectors will be fun to watch for the first 10 minutes. The other features you mention are nice ideas, but they need to be implemented properly, which remains to be seen.

 

[trym88]

I don't understand the discussion about dumbing down. The only thing I hear all the time is "ohhh the game will be a dumbed down mess because they added gamepad usability and you can't steer your capital ship with arrow buttons anymore, zomg". Have you even compared that to the improvements they made on the other side? Improved AI (better pathfinding/combat behaviour), more realistic economy (f.example decisions/incidents have more influence on the economy), station and ship surface elements as part of combat and economy (f. example Ships are not a single healthbar anymore. Now you can take out specific surface elements on a ship in order to cripple certain ship functions), huge with life filled sectors instead of dead, tiny sectors (and no tons of loading screens anymore, except one when you start the game). Oh yeah but let's focus on the most important new feature! The gamepad ! Don't forget about TEH GAMEPAD! It's crucial !!! You can now use a gamepad if you like! DON'T FORGET ABOUT THAT! ZOMGGG!!!!

Funny you didn't understand even my short message. It is not about adding gamepad support (you can already play with a gamepad 98 % of games old and new if you so wish), but if you for example remove keyboard shortcuts, it is dumbing down = reducing features because of stupid masses. Anyway, my reply was to a theoretical question "how can you dumb down X".

By the way, do you always believe when they claim there is an improved AI in a game before release? Radiant AI say anything to you? Also, I'm sure that the 'life' in the sectors will be fun to watch for the first 10 minutes. The other features you mention are nice ideas, but they need to be implemented properly, which remains to be seen.

I didn't notice that they want to remove keyboard shortcuts forever (would be nice if you give me a source of that statement) but that could be a bad or a good thing. They made a completely new interface, so if the interface is well-conceived, then maybe you don't need any shortcuts. If it's as complicated like in the last x game, keyboard shortcuts would be useful. In fact, I didn't even use keyboard shortcuts in X3 because there were so many of them. I'm already happy when I'm able to remember my telephone number, so I never tried to remember all those keyboard shortcuts and just clicked through the menus, but that's me and I can understand if someone else doesn't feel comfortable without shortcuts.

About the AI: In their videos you can already see how the AI is now able to fly smooth near stations. In X3 the AI wasn't able to fly near stations/ships/asteroids without getting stucked and correcting it's flight path like thousand times, ending up in a pathetic explosion.

I'm sure that the 'life' in the sectors will be fun to watch for the first 10 minutes.

Fine, but dead sectors were a problem many people complained about, so that's just your personal impression.

 

[Turjan]

By the way, do you always believe when they claim there is an improved AI in a game before release?

The old engine that was used for the X3 games could not make use of several processors or 46-bit systems, and both these limitations were one of the main reasons for the engine switch. While this doesn't necessarily mean that the new AI is better, it at least has a chance, unlike the old one.

 

[Space Satan]

From steam page:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/2870/
FEATURES
TRADE! A fully simulated economy that means your actions really do matter. Travel the space highways to find profit in gigantic space cities, swarming with ships and drones.
++ Every ship you see has a task. Stop a freighter from reaching its destination and its cargo will be stopped too, causing prices to rise. ++

FIGHT! From small scale skirmishes to epic fleet encounters, battles in the X Universe know no limits. Choose to fight for the military, work for the police or be a lawless pirate, or if you prefer just fight when you need to defend yourself - it's up to you.
++ Take the action right into massive structures. Target turrets and shield generators to weaken your enemy, damage engines and jump drives to prevent their ships from escaping, or stop their factories producing to cripple their economy. ++

BUILD! Create your own empire! From trading stations to large factories, farms to hightech military complexes, everything can belong to you. Build for trade and profit or to strengthen your military presence and dominate your enemies.
++ Extend and upgrade your stations to make them operate more efficiently, with every element visible in glorious animated detail. Harvest your own resources to keep your empire running smoothly. ++

THINK! A rich, detailed history and a deep complex plot await you, but you are free to decide when and where to take part. Explore the universe at your own pace - choose your own path and create your own destiny.
++ Get up-close and personal with aliens and humans alike. Land on stations, meet people, then accept missions from them or hire them as crew members for your ships. ++
******
The most interesting thing is that now you can damage ship parts. Seems like Shield+HP system is put to rest.

 

[J_C]

******
The most interesting thing is that now you can damage ship parts. Seems like Shield+HP system is put to rest.

There is nothing new about this, a lot of games had destroyable ship parts, starting from X-wing all the way to Freespace. I don't know if earlier X games had it though.

 

[Zewp]

That's what he was saying. He didn't say this is a feature new to games, but that it's interesting that this feature finally made it into the X games.

 

[Space Satan]

Yes, X had only shield and HP. And piracy was mostly - shoot shield and send warning to drop cargo. Not to say that even a slightest hull damage past shields was almost instant death. I prefer freespace - shoot comm tower\antennae - can't call for help, shoot engine - can't escape.
Plus, the neat part is that X universe have slavery and slave trade.

 

[J_C]

Got it. Agree, I'm glad that this feature makes it into a game.

 

[Metro]

In a nutshell I'd like this to be closer to Freelancer -- how's it looking on that front?

 

[someone else]

So we can eliminate factions now?

 

[mikaelis]

In a nutshell I'd like this to be closer to Freelancer -- how's it looking on that front?

What do you mean by that? More seamless world without tiny sectors? In that case yes. The universe will be structured as follows: Only a dozen of star systems, but HUUUGE. Between them, you will be moving via gates (which will be disabled in the beginning). Within the single star system, you will have many many zones (which are an equivalent of former sector), and you will travel between them using highway system (which you can leave freely half way and fly wherever you want). Finally, zones will exist in clusters, and you can travel from cluster to cluster using superhighways (these cannot be left half way). Those clusters are still in the single star system. So in the essence we will get only few old "sectors" but hugely inflated. I believe, it is the reason why they are abandoning some races. I guess the game will play somwhere in the Argon or Terran "sectors"/star systems from the former games.

Or you mean less micromanagement? In that case, it looks like it will stay true to its predecessors (you can still own an armada, built stations, trade - but in somewhat different manner - only one ship to fly, but heavily tunable).

Or you mean more story focused? In that case it is partial yes. I think, the idea is to make a lot more plot focused game in the beginning, which is supposed to be much more interesting and relevant for the whole game (e.g., changing the state of the universe by opening gates to other systems etc.). After that however, you are free to build your super-empire pretty much how it is done in other X games. At least that's what my impressions are after reading and hearing all those interviews.

So we can eliminate factions now?

I believe Bernd mentioned that in principle yes, you can do it, though no one really tested it (erradicating every single station and capital ship of some races/factions). It was said however that it will have a huge impact on economy as AI is not suppose to be cheating in this game, i.e., every station/ship etc. owned by NPCs is created from something in a chain of production in exact the same way as executed by the player. The only commodity that will replenish over time are asteroid fields that you can mine for resources (the first ring in the production chain).

 

[Space Satan]

Asteroid mining is nice. Because noone liked that initial money grind with moving energy cells back and forth.
The only thing I am opposed to is the idea of capital ships owned by players. It's like riding a tank in GTA. Marks your dominance and kills the motivation to play. Navigating them is another alwuf part of revious X.

 

[Spectacle]

Asteroid mining is nice. Because noone liked that initial money grind with moving energy cells back and forth.
The only thing I am opposed to is the idea of capital ships owned by players. It's like riding a tank in GTA. Marks your dominance and kills the motivation to play. Navigating them is another alwuf part of revious X.

Maybe they will actually add some decent content for fleet-owning players?

 

[mikaelis]

I just hope there will be more than one ship to fly. Since they put a lot of work into a single cockpit and never show anything else.

If not... well, gonna not remove it from an inventory and check the beautiful space anyway.

Uhm, they've explicitly said from the first announcement that you only fly one ship.

I think, the latest news is: "Try our game as it is and think about it. If there is a huge demand for flying other ships we will patch it in the future". Same goes for RTS-like management of your fleet somewhere from the bridge of your carrier/destroyer. It may take some time, but if there is a demand, we should see it. In any case mods will fix most of these things before.

 

[mikaelis]

Asteroid mining is nice. Because noone liked that initial money grind with moving energy cells back and forth.
The only thing I am opposed to is the idea of capital ships owned by players. It's like riding a tank in GTA. Marks your dominance and kills the motivation to play. Navigating them is another alwuf part of revious X.

Maybe they will actually add some decent content for fleet-owning players?

That is one of my most anticipated addition (if ever happens). It was also the reason why I quit playing X2 after getting my first destroyer and carrier. There was nowhere to use it meaningfully.

 

[Space Satan]

Quite a news here:
Seems like asteroids will not be the only target for mining - Ice collector ship -collecting ice crystals

Spoiler

Check the how intense transport traffic is, it's like space new-york at rush hour.
Capital ship with numerous turrets along their hulls.
At last Ego overhauled retardo artstile that plagued X for years.
They scrapped jumpgate mechanics and made it almost identical to Freelancer - wormhole between sectors and highways within bigger star systems.
Highways should fix time accelerator faggotry
Now some Q&A from reddit:
Q: I may be late to the party, but I'm a huge fan of the X series since X2. I've noticed with changes to SETA and ship control, the game seems to be moving away from some of the features that would stop it from multiplayer use. I may be looking too much into this, but is Egosoft working their way to an X online again?
A: SETA was never a nice thing. It was necessary but an ugly hack. The reason to remove it did not require online gameplay... But yes it would also help there.

Q: I had one question about the "Pride of Albion". You say that it will be customizable. Will it be like the previous games (engines, shields, weapons, cargo, ...) or will it be something a little bit more complex ?
A: Extending the playership is limited to certain systems (engines, shields, weapons etc.). These changes may also change the outside look of the ship a little, but this is not a modular design. This is in contrary to building capital ships whre we sometimes have just that. I think I explained this in another post here a bit more indepth.

Q: How does station disabling and such works?
A: There is more than one way to interfere with a station's operation. I won't go into detail but suffice it to say that you can affect things from both outside and inside a station. Not sure I understand your question right, but there is the hacking feature which can be used to temporarily disable parts of a station. You have a special drone for this and you fly very close to the surface of a station to waypoints and may have to play a minigame for each.

Q: Are there massive space battles like in xwing vs tie fighter? I just want to get into massive battles and target missles and what not.
A: We definitely intend to have some massive battles in this game. Not just through the amount of ships but also through the scale of some of the large objects involved in them.

Q: It would be very dissapointing for me (because this feature is for me ONE of the best!) when Stations look inside like each other. Will this be the Case?
A: Well unfortunately we do not have endless resources. We try to make station interiors as versatile as possible within our time and budget restrictions and have huge plans to extend this later, but we have to use systems that reuse assets in some places.

Q: Will you be able to build your own space stations or something similar to your own base? The game looks amazing.
A: Thanks... You can build almost everything. Most of the stations and space cities you see in the videos can be built by the player.

Q: I'm sure the future plan is, for the next game to bring back multiple ship available for player, but do capital ship will still be able to be controlled ? Cause at this point you think it is boring, but a lot of player, including myself really like to controlling huge and slow ship ! By the way i'm perfectly ok with the single player ship concept for X Rebirth !
A: I do not see us putting the player back into the cockpit of a huge slow capital ship and force him to push the steering stick / hold the mouse / tilt the joystick for minutes on end just to look what is behind him.

If you now say: But wait I can do that from my external camera! No! Whats the difference then to what you can already do in X Rebirth? Add the ship to your squad, keep it in close vincinity if you like and command it with the help of the Skunks HUD?

Yes I know it is cool to be on a large bridge. Maybe we will have them eventually as indoor locations at a later point in time. But no way will you control such a ship with your standard controls.

Q: When you say you can "eliminate" a faction, do you mean you can completely erase them from the game? No more ships/stations getting spawned? Or will those factions/governments still produce ships and stations from nothing?
A: Thats the plan. I cant say that I have personally tested it yet, and cant even promise that it is feasible in any earthly amount of time, but we should support it.

Q: you were speaking of item trading beside the large scale trading. Does that mean that we have more (respective) items to sell. More variants or even rare items that can drop ect..?
A: Yes. There is a large variety of items. Soma illegal, some require a license to carry some with interesting missions behind them. Items can be collected in various ways but all are pretty obvious: Fly over a crate in space, open a box on a platform, get them from a trade on a station etc.

Q: Here are my questions: 1. Will there in near future be support for DX11? and 2. Why is it like "cartoon" inside the cockpit and stations? I have an eye for 3D graphic and design and can see that the most can't, so I noticed this in the first trailer. Why is like that - not like other X games fully 3D designed models and textures?

A: Looking at improving and changing the 3D engine is also one of the things on our long list of possible jobs after the release of the game, also for the Linux/MAC port to OpenGL which has a high priority for us. But no promises as to when. There is NO comic shader or comic look anywhere in Rebirth. I think some people confuse the brighter low orbit atmosphere of the Omicron Lyrae system that we show in a few videos for cell shading. But it really is just more colorful and most importantly a lot brighter because it is very low in the orbit.

Q: One thing that annoyed me in x3 was how easily ships would collide against each other when in large groups. Especially in fighter combat as well as flying in formations. It made me uneasy to trust the AI to take control of any of my ships. With seta gone, it should help a bit, but will AI ship collisions almost be impossible to happen now?
A: Impossible to happen is a big word. But the new pathing is far far superior. Have a look at This video about pathing. Also this is only one of the subsystems.

Q: what are possible actions, if you want to be a pirate?
A: Stealing for one thing. You can steal goods from stations as well as ships. These can be items you can pick up with the skunk, or you can use freighters with collector drones and also steal large amount of cargo.
Then of course the whole stealing of ships either for your own use or to sell them off. Smuggling is also a possibility of course if you dont want to get the legal licenses for all kinds of ware types. Special missions and much more...

Q: in the X News 49 you wrote: In X Rebirth there is a big difference between being in scanner range for a quick ID and being REALLY scanned deeply. There are several levels of scanning. Your true identification for example is something that requires a deeper scan. If you attack a station or shoot down a small transport vessel near a station, the law enforcement of that station may immediately start to hunt you, but they do not know exactly who you are (YET). Hiding in the right place, for long enough can help you not being punished for your evil deeds are we gonna see this feature in v1.0?
A: The technical system to have a "cover" is in version 1.0. Yes.

Q: I really loved the station building economic aspects of the previous games. But after awhile as things grew, I always tired of the perspective from the cockpit. The game grows in scale as you build space stations, but your options for control do not. Are there any plans to allow players to control their stations and fleets from a view other than what was available in the previous titles? Perhaps a simplified sector view to better control station buliding and economics, not tied to your avatar in the game. I'd love to be able to play your games from space pilot and then make the transition into more of a galactic sim. Or perhaps I should just wish for yall to make a galactic sim instead?
A: There is a map system which can show you a systematic overview of a station by modules. We are not showing this map system yet because we are not yet happy with its look and feel and want to improve it before release, but this functionality is already there and essential when you investigate build plans for a station and make decisions with your architect. The feature which will not be in the game at release however is a more strategic gameplay that such maps could make possible in the future.

Q: I have heard that ships won't have SETA in X:R. Do you compensate in other ways (such as increasing ship speed) for this? Is the player more preoccupied in-between destinations such that the lack of SETA doesn't matter as much?
A: THIS. Yes. That is the whole idea of highways. If you like to travel fast, you will and it will occupy you and be fun but you can leave the local highways anytime and explore at your hearts desire.

Q: We love massive complexes/stations and they look amazing in X:R. Can we expect performance improvements over x3:ap when building massive complexes?
A: In both these regards it is not possible to compare the two games. The complexes in X3 were just collections of loose stations while in X Rebirth you have the blueprint based complexes. Of course we improved the game to allow these complexes at decent framerates because they are now the rule and not the exception.

Q: My question is about the ships, you've said that you'll only be able to fly one main ship but is it possible to build up massive fleets and command them from your main one? Or can you only control the one ship and its drones?
A: You own and control them all. But other ships are not controlled from a cockpit. You order them around. This does not always mean talking because we also have special HUD features (modes) which directly connect with those ships in your squad that can do special tasks (like collecting large freight in space when stealing from a station). Drones can be controlled in 1st person but you are not there yourself and therefore dont die when they explode.

Q: Do I can dock on my own capital ships and is there also an interior which can be visited?
A: You can dock on your own ships and sometimes the locations that you can then walk around on or in maybe actually inside the ship. More importantly however you can also fly into a ship to destroy turrets in the inside for example (see new video from today although this is a pretty small captial ship.

Q: As a player, I am curious how the player will interact with their own stations. What I mean is this, will you be able to build space cities of your own? Since the focus is on space cities, I am curious also how this ties into the empire building elements. Will you be able to build such large space cities in areas of space controlled by the player and have all your ships and fleets doing whatever it is they do there? Etc.
A: Yes you can build large space cities yourself. There is also another post here in which I explain the nature of blue prints and that every station is a complex. Owning a zone is not implemented yet but on our list of features to be put up for voting after the release.

Q: How extensive would the interaction with the NPCs on the space station be? Will they give out missions, sell goods, etc?
A: Yes they can be involved in missions in various ways and yes they also sell goods. In fact what they sell we call items as opposed to the large quantity trading that requires larger ships and happens asynchronously (you send ships). Also you hire people there (with different skill levels) and you upgrade your ship.

Q: How does the modular construction of capital ships work? Are they weled wall by wall together like stations and need time to build? and has the player influence on the appearance, or just wehre Turrets are placed? Do shipyards still have infinite Ships in stock?
A: Capital ships are built just like stations. It takes time and follows a blueprint. Unlike with stations, typically there are however not a lot of fundamental choices on a cap ship blueprint. The upgrades fall into two categories:Those build in large quantity (e.g: turrets, shield gens, missile launcher etc.) where you do not select each seperately but just decide about the amount. And those that are individual build steps.

 

[Space Satan]

Q: Can you tell us the approximate number of sectors (by sectors I'm obviously talking about solar systems) compared to X3: Albion prelude? I doubt they will be fewer in x rebirth and you can not reveal too much, but more precise information about it would be welcome. I wonder if the AI will be able to build complex by himself throughout our adventure, so that it fits to the fluctuations of universal economy?
A: Solar systems: Few. But huge. A lot fewer than in the older X games, but they can not be compared to any old game. What used to be a sector is now more of what we call a "zone". So logically you have to compare the number of zones with the number of sectors in the old game. If you do that you get in a similar ballpark. Yes the AI builds complexes.

Q: So what about piracy and boarding?
A: Boarding is of course supported. In fact you now hire a boarding crew commander personally on a platform and make sure he gets better (more experienced) and survives his action. They use pods like in the past and you have to disable engines and jump drives to allow them to board in the first place. More about that maybe in a video before release.

Q: Will the station interiors be different according to the station and the race type? - I watched the videos posted and I noticed that in the main cockpit of the Albion Skunk only one type of laser is shown at same time. Does it mean that we can only mount one type of weapon for each turret?
A: There will be variations of each type of interior, yes. I don't want to talk too much detail - spoilers, you know Regarding the weapons: you can have several weapons installed, but only one shoots at a time. In previous games weapons were often rather similar, especially when it comes to range and projectile speed, so shooting several different ones at the same time worked. In Rebirth they are very varied to serve different tactical purposes, so we encourage the player to choose the right weapon for the right situation.
The playership does only have front mounted weapons. Additional protection comes through your drones which you can simply start like wingmen OR control manually. Then there are of course also other ships with LOTS of turrets that you can have in your fleet and which can be around you if you like.

Q: Will there be empire/command/strategic elements to the game? What I mean is, will you be able to take over areas of space (or possibly even the whole game universe) and eliminate factions/governments in some way?
A: You can still eliminate almost anybody and we sure dont stop you from eliminating an entire faction. However the game will not have a special UI to support strategic war planning at release. But this is high up on my personal wishlist for things to add in an update. This could maybe also include owning zones and many interesting consequences from that. But again: We are working on this beast for 7 years and cant add EVERYTHING for a 1.0 release or we will be working for several more decades ;-)

Q: Will there be a Jumpdrive system? If yes, how will it work if gates are disabled?
A: Jumpdrives are only available for capital ships and only work inside solar systems (which is still a huge distance). However, the player can currently land on a capital ship and jump with it.

Q: Are there aliens on the space stations? Can you talk to them like to the argon people seen in the videos?
A: I do not want to give away exactly which races you will see in X Rebirth at release but yes there are some. BUT the new universe does not have as many different races as the old one. What we do is to show only a few solar systems but in a MUCH bigger resolution. What used to be just a sector with four gates is now an entire system with thousands of kilometers and many zones to explore and work in. This is also the reason why we had to limit the game to show only a smaller area.

Q: Is the 'Humble Trader' start still in the game? Can I be a 'space trucker'?
A: There will be only ONE gamestart at the start. Again: What we add after release is another topic and I am very much looking forward to hear your votes on what is most important. Of course you can play the game sandbox. As pointed out in this thread at another place, the sandbox nature and idea that you can do what you want and be who you want to be (pirate, trader, mogul, military etc) is really at the core of the franchise. Thats not just marketing bla bla. It is just that we have a cool plot and we make it very tempting to play it because without this plot the game would be an awful lot harder.

Q: what, if anything, has been done to ease the process of creating and placing a station? I remember reading from the earliest of docs that we would be able to expand stations and add modules, but what about that initial setup?
A: You get station "blue prints" which are pre designed but allow different paths and alternatives. Almost all stations are what you would have called a Complex in the X3 games, a combination of many factories which supply one another with their products. You have an architect who looks at the blue print and asks you what to do, so the decissions (even though they sometimes require menus) are always supported through talking to this person. Also you can not simply build at ANY location. There are "build spots" which you can start to build at. Thats not really a big limitation as we supply enough of them everywhere, but they allow us to help you place them "meaningfully".

Q: The other X games have had quite a modding community, and is the new engine similarly open to user-generated content?
A: Yes absolutely. I think it is safe to say that the new engine is a lot more open and will at least after a few weeks be much better documented than anything in the past. We definitely intent to support modding.

 

[potatojohn]

Does it still have submarine physics?

 

[Zarniwoop]

That interview is a huge boner-killer. Everything sounds dumbed down.

Does it still have submarine physics?

Yeah, it sucks when those depth charges hit you at periscope depth. Remember not to go to Gibraltar.

 

[Turjan]

To be fair, the game could do with a bit of dumbing down, as much as I liked the predecessor. Especially if dumbing down means providing better menus and functions.