Dear Devs: Stupidity is not a Feature.
I know many others have tried, I know they have failed. I really should just uninstall X4 and go to Eve or Elite but there are some good things about this game, but its a Love/Hate relationship for sure. ..
Ok the Movement commands are a mess, as the OP points out sometimes, the AI wont use Travel drive when it should but my experience has been the AI overpowers every thing its trying to do badly. So today I am trying to siege a Station, I have a very narrow window where I can do damage, but not get killed. I try to bring a 2nd Destroyer up, just move it Just one Length, It turns hard right, and shoots off into space, Why? There is no way that if I want a ship to move 300m forward its best course is to Sheer Right and Fly off into space before maybe coming back to that mark, if it survives.
Now I used to live on Laird Street in Buffalo, My Best Friend lived on Crowley on Block over. If I was to tell your AI take me to Wayne's house, it would shoot off for the Thruway, Engage travel Drive, Race to Rochester NY 100 Miles away, Fly back, overshoot the landing and wind up on Hertle 2 miles from where it started. At which point I would be calling Wayne to tell him I can't make it over because the AI in the New Car, got my Vehicle Wrecked on Hertle. Is it just me, or is it not one of the very simplest programing skills any game programmer must have to move a Sprite, and Icon, a square. One step on the grid; but your guys can't do that. And is it Really so amazingly hard to get the computer to go at a speed appropriate for the distance one intends to Travel, and or still has to go.
I had to laydown a cordon of Laser towers before attacking, because this station has Hundreds of Defense Drones, Maybe 1000, I'm pretty sure its cranking them out during the fight to replace its losses. Again I have to micro this on my own ship, because to get a tight cordon I have to be going between 40/60 Meter per sec, and if I leave it to the AI it will be going at least 250 meters per sec. Then when If I get a ship into that sweet spot its 4Star Captain will not engage without Charging in. He's got 4Stars, so he should be able to use the full range of his weapons. But he Doesn't
I lost an Oddy, because somehow, the AI decided it needed to Flee from a Drone, I swear I am not making this up, I could not make this up.
So my Oddy, decided is needs to Flee from a Drone, like a man running from a Hornet; And runs straight at the Stations Defense platform. Incinerated in Sec.... Over all after 3 restarts, I lost at least 4 Oddy's in various ways to the AI, not once to the enemy doing something you would expect, not once for a reasonable tactical reason. Each and Everytime because the AI kicked and did something Suicidality Stupid. I would not think you could code in a death wish but you all seem to have succeeded at that project. But But But, see that's another opportunity for you as a Player to be the Hero. If all your Captains are complete Idiots You! and Only You!! can save the Galaxy Yeah!!!!!!!!
Excuse me, Why do we even need fleets if one and only One Pilot, the Player. Can be expected to act with the Least bit of Sense? No, Ok Please, Pretty Pls, there is no excuse in this moment in time when AI is exploding all around us, for your AI to always do the Dumbest thing Possible. And I am Quite sure this is intended, it simply can't be random. It can't be Random that if the least competent Human Pilot imaginable in a given moment with a given choice would still pick A, and your AI processes that information and will ALWAYS pick Z. Is always 180' out of phase with the least bit of judgement. Oh a Drone is attacking me let me run towards the Mega Plasma Cannon!!. Which as I said literally happened today.
Item: Facing, Why is it I can't order a ship to Face, X -X, Z, -Z no to get a ship faced the proper way I most order it to move, Order it to come back along the line I want it facing. Pray it stops where it's supposed to, watch it fail, Slam my head against my Desk 11 Times and Try again.
Again, is not Facing something kids teach themselves out of Game Programming Books in Grade School, before there even begin formal Computer Science Training?? So why can't we do this Elementary thing?
It's not just that I don't want to have to Micro every ship in my Fleet. Its that I can't If I tell a ship or Group of ships go to point A. The Larger the Ship the better the Chance it will slide past the point and into Trouble. Ok just Tell it to Go to B, if you want it to go to C, and hope it Slides into C, problem Solved. ... No, ok No, If I tell a ship to Go From A to B that should be the end of it, I should have no reason to Doubt that ship will stop on B! Again that is like something a Kid in 7th Grade programming his first game would get Right. Why do you guys get this wrong?? Ship ordered to B should always land on B no Excuses, no well we have to Calculate Weight Velocity, 100K other Variables so it never happens that a ship actually lands where you tell it to go.
Its a Game!! Simplify your model and remember people don't really care about your Formula under the hood, but the damn well do care about the result. Right now, trying to Micro my ships into a position, is rather like trying to drive a nail with a Sledge Hammer. Well don't Micro put things in the hands of your painfully incompetent pilots. Ok we are back at square one and we have already covered that blunder.
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So long as I have your attention for a moment, Item: Why can't my L class ships use Torpedos Oh but they have heavy Dumbfires. Which have virtually no pop and are useless. But But But if Big ships could use Torpedos Frigates would have no reason to Exist. .. True, Sorry for the Frigates, but that's a BS Reason, and there really is no Good one. Ok we need the ability to use Torpedo's on any Large ship for Bombardment purposes, they are the only weapon in the game with the Range and Pop you really need to get this right.
Item: Bombardment does not mean attack Capital Ships, not in English. We do need a proper Bombard Command, we do need to be able to Tell our L and XL Class ships to Stand off and "Bombard" A Station, or Big ship from Max Range with it's Big Guns. You see that is what the Word Means. And we need to be able to do that.. God we have needed a Stand off and Fire command for years. I know others have Begged for one, ... Na, but Look the Boron have a new Fished Shaped Fighter, doesn't that make you happy!!! No, Please at least add Stations to the current Definition.
Station Sieging is such a basic part of this game, so why are our tools for doing this basic thing so bloody Awful? Again that has to be intended. Lil Clue, your job as Dev is not to maximize a players chance of failure when ever possible. It is to create an environment, for the game to be played in...
Lastly, Here is a little Mark to Aim for Going forward, If the Stupidest Person you know would not do something,
because he's just not that Dumb. Your AI should not do that Dumb thing Either.