Is it just me.... or...?

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[jemagnussen]

Hi m8's,

Is it just me, or are we many getting a bit bored with SS 2008...? I don't care much about the missions, many of them are just too long and not really challenging, but that's just me, I have several years experience running smaller tug boats in connection with my work, and have for the past 20 years had private vessels. I'm into MP, the working together with other likeminded is the great part...

Only getting new vessels won't make it for me, I will need some more inter-activity to get my interest back in the simulator. In my opinion it should be developed more in the direction simulator and less in the direction arcade. Proper bridge controls, active nav system, active radar system, active AIS and IMO numbers, ability to name the vessels and change the colors, even be able to fly your countrys colors. More inter-activity would f.ex. be cargo handling, having the push-boat bring barges with containers and bulk cargo to deep water quays to be loaded on container vessels and others with working cranes. Getting sim-dollars (or probably € considering the fall of the old greenback) for moving freight, to be used for buying newer and larger vessels, pay for tug assistance, repairs etc. etc.

Let me know if I'm alone and should start to look for something else to do, or if we are enough to put pressure on Vstep. Maybe the idea of a SDK is not the immediate cup of tea for Vstep, but could be the only way forward...!

"MS Magnus"

[IRI5HJ4CK]

Ok, i'll be honest with you on this one, you have spoken my mind, this has been my point all along, our simulator needs to be more realistic as regards to bridge equipment etc. and i think SS needs to be more interactive, when i say interactive i mean, to be able to open and close doors manually, to be able to turn lights on and off at your own will, to be able to launch lifeboats and use them, to be able to open bow doors for ships to drive on and off, perosnal vessels is also something i long for.

I just sometimes wonder whether we are getting anywhere with SS? I don't mean to offend v-step but i honestly think our simulation could be a lot better if v-step wanted to do it, and, Goax's model of the Berge Stahl, that is fabulous, yet v-step haven't even bothered to reply to Goax, aperently? almost everyone wants the Berge Stahl in the game and it could earn v-step a hell of a lot of cash, but they don't seem to be bothered.

And whats with this "ShipDriver" thing?

http://www.shipsim.com/ShipSimForum/index.php/topic,8922.0.html

I'll give my honest opinion on this, i think it is expensive, cheap and tacky, and i certainly wouldn't buy it. And 64 people have said they wouldn't buy it for that price, yet v-step have been given the Berge Stahl as an option to earn money on, yet they go out and talk about this ship driver thing that looks tacky!

I honestly believe v-step need to re-think some of their decisions, and i think v-step need to start offering top simulation. I can understand that this simulation is pretty new, but i think v-step are certainly capable of making our simulation better, but they don't seem to be doing it.

Jack

[naauriis]

Hi! I also would like to buy and sell ships and use tu help for money

[The Captain]

Ok, i'll be honest with you on this one, you have spoken my mind, this has been my point all along, our simulator needs to be more realistic as regards to bridge equipment etc. and i think SS needs to be more interactive, when i say interactive i mean, to be able to open and close doors manually, to be able to turn lights on and off at your own will, to be able to launch lifeboats and use them, to be able to open bow doors for ships to drive on and off, perosnal vessels is also something i long for.

I just sometimes wonder whether we are getting anywhere with SS? I don't mean to offend v-step but i honestly think our simulation could be a lot better if v-step wanted to do it, and, Goax's model of the Berge Stahl, that is fabulous, yet v-step haven't even bothered to reply to Goax, aperently? almost everyone wants the Berge Stahl in the game and it could earn v-step a hell of a lot of cash, but they don't seem to be bothered.

And whats with this "ShipDriver" thing?

http://www.shipsim.com/ShipSimForum/index.php/topic,8922.0.html

I'll give my honest opinion on this, i think it is expensive, cheap and tacky, and i certainly wouldn't buy it. And 64 people have said they wouldn't buy it for that price, yet v-step have been given the Berge Stahl as an option to earn money on, yet they go out and talk about this ship driver thing that looks tacky!

I honestly believe v-step need to re-think some of their decisions, and i think v-step need to start offering top simulation. I can understand that this simulation is pretty new, but i think v-step are certainly capable of making our simulation better, but they don't seem to be doing it.

Jack

I also agree . I find that I am playing SS less and less every week . I think the experience whould be better if I had a better graphics card though .

[agt1980]

Hi

 I do enjoy ss very much but do agree. I know you shouldnt compare fs to ss, but the fact that other people seem to making their own ships makes me think that like fs we should be able to use other peoples creations on ss.

 Like with the navy ships topic already raised. on fsx you can fly millitary planes but cant use their weapons but you dont need to. its great just flying a tornado or spitfire. it would be the same for a type45 or hms ark royal!!! sailing her into portsmouth would be wonderfull.

More ports, more ships and more action on the boats. not alot to ask really

[jemagnussen]

I also agree . I find that I am playing SS less and less every week . I think the experience whould be better if I had a better graphics card though .

Hi Captain,

Don't hold your hopes too high for a better graphics card, I have an Nvidia 9800GTX on a hefty pc with lot's of ram and a fast disk, look's ok and have frame rates of 60, but does not do anything to the longer term interest in the sim. Jack has a lot of good points - let's face it, the vessels handling charateristics are done very well and quite realistic, water surface looks good, but we have to get further. Vstep might be on the way - I don't know, but for me it takes too long. This could change with taking advantage of a good SDK (And I keep hopes high for a soon death to Questviewer). I know that Vstep would loose out on some possibilities to cash in on the add-ons, but if they don't develop faster I'm afraid they will loose much more.

"MS Magnus"

[agt1980]

whats sdk?

[jemagnussen]

whats sdk?

Hi m8,

SDK = Software Development Kit... you can see a comprehensive explanation on Wikipedia... in short: It would make it possible for a lot of independent software developers to develop add-ons to Shipsim..

"MS Magnus"

[agt1980]

that would be awsome

[pauljanaway1]

I also agree . I find that I am playing SS less and less every week . I think the experience whould be better if I had a better graphics card though .

same i used to play it all the time but i am now hardly ever on it

[llamalord]

This is the whole reason I started modeling my own ships for the game I figured it would give me something to do.

[jemagnussen]

This is the whole reason I started modeling my own ships for the game I figured it would give me something to do.

Hi m8,

That proves the saying "Nothing is so bad that it's not good for something" - you do a hell of a good job at modeling, keep it up. We should probably thank Vstep for being a bit slow... , seriously m8, I admire your work and wish I could do something like that.

"MS Magnus"

[llamalord]

Have you seen my latest Dredger?

[jemagnussen]

Have you seen my latest Dredger?

Yes m8, and I love it, hope some day to see the dredgepump running and the rainbow feeding land reclamation for a new container area. I will be around to do the sheetpiles... 

"MS Magnus"

[Water Weasel]

I certainly agree that more interactivity within the sim would be better. Much more is needed in the way cargo is handled. It gets very boring just moving from point "a" to point "b" ,etc.

An SDK is absolutly a geat idea! This has been discussed much in the past in the SS06 days.

"MS Magnus", all of your ideas are right on the money. And that could translate into real money for VStep, because it will keep their current cutomers happy, as well as bringing more simmers on board. We pay good money for the product and we want to get much more use from it and not get bored and stop playing.

WW

[NathanC]

In my opinion VSTEP need to get there act together and listen to the members of this forum a lot more. Several great quality ships have been made by users, and have been completely ignored. Requests to fix bugs/ships have been made and ignored. A topic was made asking us for our ideal servers, that looked good, but it seems like it has now been forgotten about. As Jack points out, a brilliant Berge Stahl has been made by Goax, with only 2 people voting "no" to the question "would you like this ship in the game?". Yet, VSTEP ignore this poll, and decide to go with a tacky looking piece of junk from the 1940s (Some may call it a ShipDriver) while 60+ people say they wouldn't buy it. PMs to the admins and development team are ignored too.

If VSTEP want to make a great game where users are satisfied with the content, they should stop counting there millions and come listen to us.

[moonrider]

Yep in a way i agree, this game has cost enough by makin it and research and i know they prob needed the money from the game to go on.
But there are to much bugs still in it, if you write them (vstep) a mail you prob get a mail back by xmas 2011, they just dont respond to anything.
The game was'nt ready when it came out, and  after all the  fixes and downloads its still not finished.
I like the game, but there is no challenge anymore, i hope they listen to the board members for a change.

Best regards, frank

[The Captain]

Yes, I do think that V-STEP should mlisten to us, its costomers. I have never seen an admin say in a post" Wow, that looks like a great Idea! I will put that on a list to the development team. Who knows, maybe we could include this ship in SS09!" Nope, they, never in a thousand years, whould do that . They don't seem to be interested in our opinions. I think they just pick what they wan't to model, not even caring if the public likes it!" Who cares! As long as the members buy the game, we are set!" I do concur that a lot of people are upset to see that a lot of common ships are neglected, such as the QM2. Or, even a simple taker! They could also give us some feedback about our suggestions . Don't see that happening .

[mvsmith]

From the tone of these posts, I think it would be foolish for VSTEP to sink a lot of resources into catering to the wants of customers who become so quickly bored. No matter how far they develop the product, those people will be quickly bored and demand still more.

A slow progress to their own vision for their product, as they are doing, makes more sense in the long run. There will always be new customers, along with the majority of less vocal current customers who are too busy enjoying what the sim has to offer.

Very few of the sensible additions posted, often repeated ad nauseam by every newcomer, have not occurred before to the developers. They are discussed and evaluated on the basis of desirability and feasibility within the present architecture. Many will eventually find their way into the sim when it is developed to the point where it is possible to do so.
Some can only be done after a major change in some part of the architecture—as will happen with SS2009. Some will probably never be implemented—people scurrying about the ships—because they are a useless departure from the core purpose of the product, and would have an adverse impact on performance.

Throwing the product open to third party providers of ships or environments makes absolutely no business sense, and they would lose those customers who appreciate the quality maintained by VSTEP.

SS is open to modelers who can produce ships to the requirements of VSTEP. Those requirements have been explained in posts by DJM and myself. They include more than just the appearance of the model, but other things necessary to the functioning of the vessel in the simulator. There are very few 3D modelers who can work to those standards.

[The Captain]

It is not so much that we are getting bored with the simulator itself, but in my opinion, the ships and enviornment selection is getting quite old. I think that the shipyard is going to offer the simmers a better experience with new ships and enviornments. I think that we are just getting hungry for new challenges, new ships and enviornments. Especially the multiplayer crane operations, that is becoming a very wantable feature. What I do not understand, is that you think that V-STEP should not care as much about our opinions as to their own. Of course they should follow their drams and create what they want in the sim, but they do need to follow the wishes of others. They cannot simply feel that all of their dreams will meet the expectations of others. That is why we all have our own thoughts.

It is not that I am bored,(Because I don't ever get bored with anything, not even waiting . I am the master of boredum ) but rather seeking for more ships and new enviornments. I also do really think that I would enjoy the sim more if I did have better equiptment, Mangus. What fun is it to have your ship accelerate to top speeds in about 10 mintues, when a person with better equiptment can reach top speeds in about 2 minutes. What fun is it to not see foam or smoke? NONE!

[mvsmith]

It is their product. They certainly do have the right to ignore requests or suggestions that take the sim in a direction that they never intended, and that in their judgment would be to the detriment of their product.

They, alone, are in a position to judge whether a particular change or addition is feasible at the present time, and is worth diverting resources from the many other necessary tasks.

Many of the things that are demanded are ill conceived and would cause problems that the demanders have neither the knowledge nor imagination to understand.

[IRI5HJ4CK]

We aren't getting bored with the simulation mvsmith, well i'm not anyway, i'm probably one of the most active users on MP, so i don't want to sound like i'm complaining, But i just feel that v-step aren't listening to us, and i don't like that.

And i think you are right with your points above, BUT i think v-step need to start paying more attention to us, we are the ones playing their game, and if we point something out, its only going to earn them more money, and make everyone else happy. Obviously they would have to draw the line somewhere regarding how much they could do over a period of time.

But the likes of Goax, he has worked on the model of the Berge Stahl for SS, yet v-step haven't even bothered to at least give him feedback, aperently? i feel this is a clear indication that v-step need to listen to our opinions more, just to make their game better, then, everyone is happy. But like i said above, they would have to draw the line somewhere.

That is my personal opinion,
Jack.

[TerryRussell]

Hi Chaps.

I don't know the ins and outs of the Berge Stahl, nor of Vstep's responses so I won't comment on that. But, if I can give you a technical perspective: images of a ship, no matter how wonderful they may look, are merely the starting point for a new vessel. The real work is in developing all of the programming aspects to make it look and react something like a real ship in Ship Simulator.

Just my own estimate based upon my own modelling in Train Simulators, but for every hour spent on the images, there may be somthing like 50 - 100 hours of programming time, plus something similar in verification and validation testing.

You'll understand that is an enormous amount of work.

As an example, can you image what it takes to hook up the ship controls and make them work for every position and every viewpoint? And that's small stuff, comparatively.

If only programming was as simple as every non-programmer believes it to be.... 

[John Carter]

You are absolutely correct Terry, the task ahead is of huge proportions & would tax the top companies like MS.

However, a start has to be made, otherwise VSTEP will lose out as people fade away.

A proper development plan needs to be put in place, with this visible to SS users, so they can see what's going to happen.

I know this will cause loads of arguments & discussions, but it has to be the way forward. I do not want to see VSTEP lose out, as they have done an incredible job so far.

This will take alot of time effort & resource, & will never stop, but as you can see from the number of SS members, people will buy it. SS is amazing & has the potential to be so much more.

Captain Jack

[IRI5HJ4CK]

You are absolutely correct Terry, the task ahead is of huge proportions & would tax the top companies like MS.

However, a start has to be made, otherwise VSTEP will lose out as people fade away.

A proper development plan needs to be put in place, with this visible to SS users, so they can see what's going to happen.

I know this will cause loads of arguments & discussions, but it has to be the way forward. I do not want to see VSTEP lose out, as they have done an incredible job so far.

This will take alot of time effort & resource, & will never stop, but as you can see from the number of SS members, people will buy it. SS is amazing & has the potential to be so much more.

Captain Jack

Yes, that is correct John, v-step have done a great job but just don't seem to be moving forward at this current time. That is the issues i have with v-step.

Jack.