Initial Reaction to Galactic Starfighter: Nice...not thrilling!...but nice

[TheTrueObelus]

Was a fan of the old X-Wing/Tie Fighter games and I was excited to try out this new game feature but having tried it for about an hour I found it just didn't grab me at all.

 

And it's pretty clear to me why:

 

1. I'm shooting at gnats not starships. I kept thinking "how is this like a Star Wars movie battle? The sound effects?" Everything is too distant. I never really see the enemy ship only the target reticule that surrounds it. As a result I didn't feel particularly involved. Basically the experience wasn't immersive or feel particularly Star Wars.

 

2. All these color patterns you can apply to your ship feel useless because no one will really get close enough for long enough to ever see them. I want to show off my bling but whats the point as it stands now.

 

3. Initial control setup is clunky. I feel like I'm fighting my ship to get it to go where I want. I imagine I'd get used to it in time but it would be nice if the control scheme was more intuitive to begin with. I guess some of the issue for me comes from aiming being separated from movement.

 

4. HUD needs work. Should be clearer who is close and who is far away and where they are in reference to your ship when they are off screen. Also there's a problem with your target reticule blending into background. I find I often have to search the screen to find it. And no my vision isn't bad.

 

5. 3rd person ship view is more distracting than I expected. I kept wanting to move my ship out of the way.

 

Anyway that's it. Sorry, wanted to like it. Back to the ground game again I guess.

[Kain_Turinbar]

I love GSF but would welcome the option for cockpit view (the way I've always played Ace Combat) and the opportunity to take on large ships in our fighter.s

[Sharee]

Was a fan of the old X-Wing/Tie Fighter games and I was excited to try out this new game feature but having tried it for about an hour I found it just didn't grab me at all.

 

And it's pretty clear to me why:

 

1. I'm shooting at gnats not starships. I kept thinking "how is this like a Star Wars movie battle? The sound effects?" Everything is too distant. I never really see the enemy ship only the target reticule that surrounds it. As a result I didn't feel particularly involved. Basically the experience wasn't immersive or feel particularly Star Wars.

 

Try flying a scout. They are close combat fighters. You want to be closer than 2000m from target

 

2. All these color patterns you can apply to your ship feel useless because no one will really get close enough for long enough to ever see them. I want to show off my bling but whats the point as it stands now.

 

Same as above

 

3. Initial control setup is clunky. I feel like I'm fighting my ship to get it to go where I want. I imagine I'd get used to it in time but it would be nice if the control scheme was more intuitive to begin with. I guess some of the issue for me comes from aiming being separated from movement.

 

It fits like a glove when you get used to it. All new games take time to familiarize oneself with the controls.

 

4. HUD needs work. Should be clearer who is close and who is far away and where they are in reference to your ship when they are off screen. Also there's a problem with your target reticule blending into background. I find I often have to search the screen to find it. And no my vision isn't bad.

 

Read this: http://dulfy.net/2013/11/15/swtor-galactic-starfighter-new-player-guide/

 

5. 3rd person ship view is more distracting than I expected. I kept wanting to move my ship out of the way.

 

Not a big issue but yes. I compensate by keeping target in upper half of screen.

 

Anyway that's it. Sorry, wanted to like it. Back to the ground game again I guess.

 

See yellow above.

[TheTrueObelus]

Thanks. I'll check out the link.

 

I'm sure it will make me a better pilot but I have my doubts it will change my strong feeling that I'm simply playing a space fighter game and not a Star Wars space fighter game.

Edited January 14, 2014 by TheTrueObelus

[RebekahWSD]

 

1. I'm shooting at gnats not starships. I kept thinking "how is this like a Star Wars movie battle? The sound effects?" Everything is too distant. I never really see the enemy ship only the target reticule that surrounds it. As a result I didn't feel particularly involved. Basically the experience wasn't immersive or feel particularly Star Wars.

 

I understand the rest of your concerns but this one just seems odd, particularly as you're a veteran of X-Wing/TIE Fighter. Frankly I've never played any air combat game where you got more than a fleeting glance of the ship models at close range. It's just part of the genre. I'm not sure how this could be changed without seriously disrupting the flow of play.

Edited January 15, 2014 by RebekahWSD

[reclipsed]

I understand the rest of your concerns but this one just seems odd, particularly as you're a veteran of X-Wing/TIE Fighter. Frankly I've never played any air combat game where you got more than a fleeting glance of the ship models at close range. It's just part of the genre. I'm not sure how this could be changed without seriously disrupting the flow of play.

 

 

and to add, you can see the details of the targeted ship in the hud display which you can move anywhere on screen. also you can tell if the target is tracking you by how it is pointed

[archifikoss]

I'm enjoying GSF a lot but you make some great points OP which I agree with. I am used to the game enough now though to be able to brush off issues I had before... I think that if you give GSF a chance and play a bit more you will also get used to it There is huge room for improvement though, there's no denying that.