BewBo Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 What is the point of these other than making travelling to planets more tedious? I know some quests are given at some of them but those npcs could be on the planet instead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joesixxpack Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 Placeholder for future content (if released) is what I've assumed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armphid Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 I think for some of them it's an issue of programming and time allocation. For the starting planets, since the PCs won't have their ships yet (or lose them in the Smuggler's case), Bioware just never made a cinema of the character's ships landing on Tython/Ord Mantell/Hutta/Korriban and thus when you go there later, it can't show you landing on the planet, so they do the orbital station work around. I could be wrong, of course, but that's my suspicion. As for other worlds that have them, your guess is as good as mine on that front. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andryah Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 Placeholder for future content (if released) is what I've assumed. Yep yep.. and also some relevance in some of the class stories at launch if I recall correctly. They give you the ability to skip them now, so I don't see the real issue anymore. The only thing Bioware did wrong here is that they grossly underestimated peoples impatience in MMO travel these days. Years of insta-porting everywhere in WoW will do that to the MMO player base IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lium Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 This is something I would really like to know about. What purpose they served. I'm sure something was said around launch or back in beta, but I don't ever recall what the reason for these things were. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WookieIsshe Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 I have a gut feeling those Orbital stations are going to become very useful when the SSSE is announced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BewBo Posted November 21, 2012 Author Share Posted November 21, 2012 They give you the ability to skip them now, so I don't see the real issue anymore. We can skip em?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seatown Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 Yep yep.. and also some relevance in some of the class stories at launch if I recall correctly. They give you the ability to skip them now, so I don't see the real issue anymore. how can i skip them, everytime i go to belsalvis or balmorra on my pub or taris on my imp i gotta walk through the orbital station first and the first couple times i was like ok what ever but now its just getting tedious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maccha Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 They give you the ability to skip them now, so I don't see the real issue anymore. Actually, you can only skip them when you leave the planet. When you arrive you still have to go there first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hchsiao Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 (edited) I remember when JTL released in SWG, there are certain planets that you need to use in-game shuttle instead player ship because those planets aren't big enough to have space port. It is the same case here in swtor. There are also quest givers at orbital stations for planet side quest which also act as level check for some planet. (E.G you can't go to Quesh or Hoth without receive "gear" from the npc next to shuttle.) Edited November 21, 2012 by hchsiao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seven_deadlies Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 Nobody interacts with the Orbital station, until they have a ship. New characters are always delivered to the surface by shuttle (or their own ship for Smugglers). When you depart, the shuttle takes you directly to the Fleet. And if you try to return before getting your ship, you take that same shuttle back to the surface. Orbital stations really are just an extra step between your ship and the planet. And I would support having the extra step removed. You can skip them on the way back up. Clicking the shuttle on the surface usually gives the option to visit the station, or board your ship directly. It should be the same both ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calsetes Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 They give you the ability to skip them now, so I don't see the real issue anymore. Not quite all of them, mind you - I still have to go to the orbital station on Hoth before I go down to Hoth itself, and I could swear another planet was like that for the Republic - but you can definitely go straight to the ship from the docking pad, so it's cut at least in half. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meepbot Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 You can only skip them going from the planet --> ship. Can't skip ship --> planet. I don't really mind them, as some planets have a reason lore-wise that you can't land directly on the planet. Hoth for example, is to cold for most ships to land on unless they have some special equipment which the shuttles have. Quesh is another good example, as you must be treated on the orbital station so that you won't die upon entering the planet. Voss is a maybe, since Republic/Imperial access is limited, and most likely most ships aren't allowed to directly land on... Actually, there reallyi isn't a safe place to build a spaceport on Voss, between the Gormak, the nightmare lands, and the very limited space on Voss-Ka. So, I don't really mind them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordArtemis Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 (edited) I think they are essentially the SWG canteena of the SWTOR world, intended as a "one stop" shop for all things SWTOR. As such they probably set travel with the station as a go between to promote spending time there. It is where you find all of the commendation vendors for each planet, as well as all the flashpoints and other world perks and items all placed together in the same place. That doesn't mean I disagree that it's a pain to constantly travel there....just that that was probably the intent IMO. As far as the planetary stations, which is probably what you speaking of, they have many missions as you go triggered on the station. It seems like they could have avoided this, but this is how they set it up, making the transition unfortunately required. Edited November 21, 2012 by LordArtemis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andryah Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 Actually, you can only skip them when you leave the planet. When you arrive you still have to go there first. Correct... it's one way only. Because I believe some class quests make use of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepperawr Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 So I'm going to make the "You youngsters have it easy! back in my day..." speech. We used to have to walk through the station, with no mount (weren't allowed to mount there), no rocket boost, both ways (weren't allowed to skip going back)!" I'm amazed at how similar this is to "through the snow, uphill, both ways!" Yep, this is the easy version of orbital stations, was changed due to complaints. Not that I disagree with the OP - orbital stations don't seem to have much of a point at all still. /shakes cane Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goretzu Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 What is the point of these other than making travelling to planets more tedious? I know some quests are given at some of them but those npcs could be on the planet instead. They are seemingly an artefact of the story quest concept, mostly the class stories. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goretzu Posted November 21, 2012 Share Posted November 21, 2012 (edited) Yep yep.. and also some relevance in some of the class stories at launch if I recall correctly. They give you the ability to skip them now, so I don't see the real issue anymore. The only thing Bioware did wrong here is that they grossly underestimated peoples impatience in MMO travel these days. Years of insta-porting everywhere in WoW will do that to the MMO player base IMO. If they'd had summon in instead of taking it out in beta things would have been much better (instead of the nonsense of 20+ mins travel [including loading screens] just to help someone on quest). Progress happens, you can't turn back the clock, as much as 45+ min runs across EQ1 were epic they wouldn't work in a new MMORPG. Innovative new ways could be used though. Edited November 21, 2012 by Goretzu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enriquezarmy Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 Please Get Rid of Orbital Stations They are a huge inconvenience and tedious, a waste of time and hard drive space. You can bypass the daily ones yeah but moving from planet to planet to help a friend or to level is just ridiculous. Another thing why don't you just port my toon to their ship when i run into that space station instance? i mean why do I have to click an elevator , speeder over to my ship watch a cut scene then watch a minute long load screen. Please streamline player movement by getting Rid of Orbital stations and porting characters to their ships from spaceports and the fleet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darth_Moonshadow Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 *dropkicks Necromancer* UUUUUH! YEAH, SITH! YOU LIKE THAT? YOU LIKE ME DROPPING YOU LIKE A SACK OF POTATOES? THIS IS MY HOUSE! YOU AIN'T GETTING YOUR NECRO ON HERE! WHAT! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zhiroc Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 As someone said, they built class story events (quest givers and triggered scenes) into the orbital stations (as well as ship hangars for the planets without one). To remove them entirely would mean having to redo those scenes, which I think makes it unlikely to happen. As for skipping them, as people noted you can skip them leaving, though not coming to a planet, except for the daily hubs where you can shuttle directly between them all using the terminals, including the ones on fleet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overmannus Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 (edited) They could implement dialogue when you click on the planet on the star map. You could then choose to visit orbital station or go directly to the planet surface. Edited June 17, 2013 by Overmannus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feztonio Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 they do seem to just be extra loading screens. I'd like to think if I'm the jedi knight who defeated the biggest bad in the history of the universe, or a darth on the dark counsel, or even the greatest smuggler in the galaxy or most feared BH.. that I'd be able to pull off landing my ship planet-side, rather than having to park it in space like the commoners and shuttle down in coach like the rest of the dregs of the universe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_biddan_ Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 NO ONE THINKS ABOUT THE LORE! so tell me,how the hell can someone land straight on a planet during a secret operation like belsavis or makeb? and the voss don't build spaceports,and on hoth it's pretty much impossible to keep a functioning one. an other thing. STOP NECROING OLD POSTS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feztonio Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 NO ONE THINKS ABOUT THE LORE! so tell me,how the hell can someone land straight on a planet during a secret operation like belsavis or makeb? and the voss don't build spaceports,and on hoth it's pretty much impossible to keep a functioning one. an other thing. STOP NECROING OLD POSTS! I hold that if I can kill the Emporer i can land a space ship on a planet. your argument is invalid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts