The big GamesCom interview with Bernd - Comments

[Oldman]

Bernd:
Ah, Environment Events. Um. Yes and no. I can not say anything final yet, we definitely have alone in the plot very large events, which are universe changing to say it a bit overblown, but ... there are some things we are working on, which I don’t know sure if they will be in there already in version 1.0, we of course have to bring out someday a game and can’t continue forever working on it.

This quote gives me great hopes about Rebirth. A changing universe isn't a dull one.


Fame

I'm thinking the same here

Although I'm struggling a bit with the exact meaning of this..."...changing to say it a bit overblown..." ?
I'm also wondering, in this 'new' Universe how big is 'big'?. Are the 'systems' going to be joined in a seamless fashion, or is it something like... ...you use superhighways to get from one system (solar?) to another. Sorry to sound a bit dumb but I'm trying to visualise the whole concept of the new universe.
One thought for example:- will there be a finite edge or boundary to the game 'world' or is it infinite....or will it 'seem' infinite.

Controversial question I know (I don't really expect a direct answer because this might obviously cross the 'information boundary') but I'm wondering does the new Universe take away that closed 'boxiness' of the previous games as regards 'sectors'?
In other words....does Egosoft personally think at this moment in time the new universe (as in 'expanse') has been what they were hoping to achieve?

Edit...I just thought to mention (not that it probably has any bearing on the above) I haven't played AP yet (though I've got it installed). I'm still struggling to supply some 'wares' for a pernickity Boron in X3TC!

Oldman

[cobra mk2]

......big snip..... Do you not know that XR is not a sequel? ....snipped more ....

^This has been my impression too... that XR is not a sequel, and that it is not an 'X 4' game ... and this is a problem if true, because the title as we know it is 'X Rebirth'. It make for better understanding perhaps if the game dropped the 'X' factor completely, and was titled something like 'Adventures of the Albion Skunk' - Join us in our brand new adventures in the post apocalyptic X Universe. But 'Albion Prelude' must indicate a prelude to what? Not a sequel. But a prelude to a brand new expereince....

You could say it's not a sequel in the sense that it's not part of the X3,TC and AP timeline and i think it is to be seperated from that by the shutting down of the jumpgates.

However it is still part of the overall history/storyline and does indeed take place after those games so i do think of it as a sequel.

Even though it's going to be like a reimagining or a reboot of the series, if it's part of the same story but takes place further along the timeline i can't think of it as anything else but a sequel, or at least the next part of the story.

[Rabiator der II.]

Player ship becomes 10 or 50 times stronger...

VERY realistic, way to go!
(thought it needs a special mention)

simple example: imagine starting a Nova Raider with 1mj shield and 1 IRE and then changing it to 75 MJ and full weapon banks and there you go even more than 50 times... *this is a joke*

I wonder how the weapon systems available for the Skunk will fit into the game.

• -Are those generally available, as in something that you can manufacture and mount on a station?
  -If not, will they be ridiculously overpowered compared to station and NPC weapons?

Things like that will decide if X:Rebirth is internally consistent and makes for a believable game world (as much as a space sim can be believable).
I sure hope so, but the talk of "the Skunk is a special ship" has me a bit worried .

[Santi]

According to Bernd, weapon systems will have an upgrade tree, the same weapon system but more powerfull. To clarify weapon systems, Rebirth will differ in that they are a fix set up of energy guns, no mix and match of guns this time, what you can do is swap weapon systems while in combat, and each system will have a different approach, some good against shields, others against hulls, good against fighters etc.

He also comments that ship upgrades (weapon systems is one of them) will be available to buy and sell, so pretty sure they are factory produced and NPC ships and stations will carry them, makes sense from a point of balancing the game too.

It will be more of a case that the Skunk, will be vastly underpowered compared to stations and NPC weapons, they showed some turrets and they come in 3 flavours, so a ship will probably mount the small/medium variants.

It is very important to remember regarding Rebirth, that we do have subsystems actually attached to the hull, the points to attach them will be limited, but they will offer a great deal of customization and upgrade capability. With time I see the Skunk evolving into a medium weapons platform able to perform drone and missile strikes and boarding operations.

[Ketraar]

4 years in the making it gona be good.

There's no guarantee of that, you know that, right? Diablo 3 - 10 years. Duke Nukem Forever - 15 years.

I think you confuse the time span between releases and the actual development hours spent on the project. They did not work on DNF for 15 years, that would make it even more of a fail if they had.

As for the "Sequel" thingy, Bernd repeatedly mentions this all over the place: X-Rebirth != X4
While the lore may be a continuation and even the universe as a location may be the same, its clear that it is about it with similarities and we should really make an effort to address these things from new perspective, those like me that have been around X games for ages will sure have a hard time disconnecting from comparing things to current X games but that's really oranges and apples imo. Someone even mentioned about why not remove the X from the name and that may actually be the most correct thing to assume, even if I understand that its probably a bad idea for marketing reasons, people like familiar things, thus keeping the X will maintain a connection to the existing fan base. That's common policy in brand naming.

But for all I read here the thing that stresses me most is that (some) people would rather have the same game (TC/AP) but with better graphics. This is rather disturbing to me. Since there is only so much you can do to refresh an existing game without it being boring. TBH if it were not for the modding possibilities, I had left the X universe after Reunion. So the single most important aspect for me about Rebirth is that its completely new and I get the chance to explore new things and mechanics. Feed the hunger I long for experiencing NEW things and learning new stuff. I want fresh ideas and possibilities and from what I read thats what we'll get.

MFG

Ketraar

[ajax34i]

My point was simply that "4 years" does not guarantee "good." The Egosoft devs are talented and hard working, and that guarantees "good"; "4 years" out-of-context guarantees nothing.

As far as TC/AP with better graphics, I understand it; I even want it. The joystick space-sim genre has been dead for years, it's very very niche, and those who enjoy it would really love to have the fun last forever. It's also easy to assume that "just add a new plot" or "just add new ships" takes no work at all, and thus should be done a lot.

I'm not in the industry, but it seems to me that a majority of the developers out there prefer to switch to new things as often as possible. I've only seen devs sticking with a project for years in MMO's.

Egosoft are keeping the lore but starting anew, and from the info that's been released, it sounds like they're trying to widen their playerbase a bit. Switching to a plot as a central feature, weapons swappable on the fly as required by the tactical situation, control of ships via conversations with NPC's... the game sounds a lot more RPG'ish than "simulation".

[ConCorDian]

yeh Darkstar One did sort of balance itself out, its just when bernd says the ship we start with and the ship we end with will be different... (although we have been told the ship itself wont change physically) Darkstar One comes to mind.

i do have faith in Egosofts ability to create a good game... i suppose im just someone who has grown to love the X series as we know it, and even though this isn't a "sequal" as such its still kind of the next release... (i know what im trying to say, thats what matters) so i still judge it like the next game, and i suppose im worried Rebirth wont match up... i probably shouldnt but i still do.

[bluenog143]

Player ship becomes 10 or 50 times stronger...

VERY realistic, way to go!
(thought it needs a special mention)

This makes me think that the game will have a much larger range and scale. Destroyers will be huge compared to how they looked in X3 (probably), and their weapons will be more proportionate to their size from what it sounds like. I guess this means that a capital would have at least 100-1000 stronger weapons than a fighter. I think they will also make shields stronger too.
I think they may be doing this so that a single fighter can't blow up a station or a capital or frigate (think the plasma burst generators on an M3 versus a Xenon Q). I have to admit I didn't like that in X3.

@Ketraar, I would have to agree. Besides X3 had an old engine, and with X:R I think there will be new things that we wouldn't have been able to do if there were an 'X3 with better graphics'. Personally I'm curious to see how X:R will turn out, and I think I like where the series is going (although I'll have to wait and play the game first before I say that I like it).

@ajax34i, I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Part of me thinks that they are keeping simulation but just adding RPG to drag in the player more (at least for new players).
Although, it has occured to me that they don't want to give much information because they are worried that the current fans/old fans will not like where X:R is going. On the other hand, I have heard that this has been EGOSOFT's trait (secrecy). I forget exactly when it started but I think it was around X2 was it?

[Lazerius]

......big snip..... Do you not know that XR is not a sequel? ....snipped more ....

^This has been my impression too... that XR is not a sequel, and that it is not an 'X 4' game ... and this is a problem if true, because the title as we know it is 'X Rebirth'. It make for better understanding perhaps if the game dropped the 'X' factor completely, and was titled something like 'Adventures of the Albion Skunk' - Join us in our brand new adventures in the post apocalyptic X Universe. But 'Albion Prelude' must indicate a prelude to what? Not a sequel. But a prelude to a brand new expereince....

You could say it's not a sequel in the sense that it's not part of the X3,TC and AP timeline and i think it is to be seperated from that by the shutting down of the jumpgates.

However it is still part of the overall history/storyline and does indeed take place after those games so i do think of it as a sequel.

Even though it's going to be like a reimagining or a reboot of the series, if it's part of the same story but takes place further along the timeline i can't think of it as anything else but a sequel, or at least the next part of the story.

I hope you realize that by this logic, Star Trek is a Sequel of Apollo 13.


Sorry, I had to.

[Geek]

As for the "Sequel" thingy, Bernd repeatedly mentions this all over the place: X-Rebirth != X4

Many people understand this as Rebirth will be built from scratch, from a technical point of view. And really no one objects this.

However it seems Egosoft is also willing to trash the core gameplay (namely freedom and depth) with it, and that is far more disturbing. Just because something is new does not mean it is good.

And please, do not tell me the game is not released yet. We have enough information too get an idea of what XR will be. Some of us have played other games too, and know from that experience where things are heading (dumbing down for the masses).

[Bobucles]

It is very important to remember regarding Rebirth, that we do have subsystems actually attached to the hull,

Indeed, some components (like engines) will be very juicy targets.

There wasn't a lot of information on shields, but if they remain like X then it could cause problems with subsystems. The big thing is that shields prioritize everything, and can be depleted by protecting unimportant components. One of the problems mentioned in the interview is that "engines" end up dying very quickly, probably due to their large size and the fact that they become vulnerable with the rest of the ship.

One possibility is to give shields an "emergency reserve" that only protects these critical components. Below 20% or so, shields abandon most things on the ship, and focus entirely on critical systems. That way engines and life support always have some form of shields, when the rest of the ship has to depend on armor. It is unlikely that random fire would kill engines in this scenario, but dedicated fire could deplete the last shield and destroy them. Should players be allowed to choose critical systems? That could be neat.

[Ketraar]

However it seems Egosoft is also willing to trash the core gameplay (namely freedom and depth) with it, and that is far more disturbing.

See this is where I think you are completely off. From what info is available, freedom will not be an issue, even sure some "freedoms" may be cut, but others (and imo far more important ones) are added. As for depth, well you got to be really blind to not see that its promising to be MUCH more immersive than TC/AP ever hoped to be (mind I like TC/AP).

I'm positive we only know bits and fragments and it really will be great once all come together, that's what I get from the info available.

MFG

Ketraar

[Whiskahs]

Player ship becomes 10 or 50 times stronger...

VERY realistic, way to go!
(thought it needs a special mention)

this is why i said im on the fence.... i do like the idea of the playership getting more powerful with upgrades... its gonna depend on how its implemented. i cant get Darkstar One out of my head when i think about how this is going to go. and if the ship can jump from being the equivelent of an M6 to being an M2 then i think thats not going to work for me. but as Jumee (for all you say your joking it does make sense) has pointed out, if its a combination of upgrading everything and thats how your 50 times more powerful then i think that will be fine... other factor i dont think everyone is factoring in is does that 50x more powerful include the Drones you carry? we have already seen that there are torpeado drones, if they are judged the same way M8's are in TC/AP then even carrying 1 of them could double if not more your power rating.

there are obviously ways that this can work without ruining the game, BUT i do think there are more ways it could happen that will!! just hope its not going to turn into DS1!!

Like I noted earlier, the interview states that your ship will essentially never be able to do more than damage subsystems on a capital ship, so I don't think it'll ever get to the point where your one ship will be able to lay waste to everything in the galaxy by itself. You might be able to shred fighters and maybe frigates, but there is at least one (if not more) established class of ship that will always outclass you when it comes to the ability to soak up and dish out damage. Also keep in mind that in the interview its hinted at that your ship won't even start out with a shield and given how much he mentioned module damage, I'm pretty sure you won't ever want your ship anywhere near the front line unless it has to be.

The short of it:
You start out with a cargo ship, not a warship. Multiplying something with a fighting capability near 0 doesn't result in the death star.

[UniTrader]

i think diffrent Shield types would be more interesting, like "omnipresent" Shields which work like the current ones and protect the whole ship - and Point-Barrier Shields which can only protect specific parts and leave the rest of the Ship vulnerable
and maybe more variations of those: High capacity and slow recharge or low capacity, but really fast recharge (say a 100MJ Shield which recharges in a minute versus a 10MJ Shield which recharges in ten seconds.)

and of course you can combine them freely als long as you have enough Shield slots ^^

[Alan Phipps]

... not forgetting the remote shield drone.

[Geek]

From what info is available, freedom will not be an issue, even sure some "freedoms" may be cut, but others (and imo far more important ones) are added

Let us see that, shall we ?

Removed or significantly reduced :
player ship choice
travel freedom
plot choice/timing
equipement/upgrade choice

Added or significantly expanded :
building choice
tactical choice (ship subsystems)

Overall, a very big loss for a small gain.

As for depth, well you got to be really blind to not see that its promising to be MUCH more immersive than TC/AP ever hoped to be (mind I like TC/AP).

Depth and immersion are not the same thing. One can make an immersive yet very simple game. Besides, immersion is highly subjective.
I do not need cockpits, interiors and other "fluff" to get immersed. I just need the tools to play the way *I* want.

[cobra mk2]

I hope you realize that by this logic, Star Trek is a Sequel of Apollo 13.


Sorry, I had to.

"That's not logical captain"

I now think i am probably wrong with my last post. It should be possible to return to a particular story and tell another part of it without it having to be referred to as a sequel.

So instead i shall think of it as another piece of the X Saga.

When the word sequel gets used it can be easily thought of as pretty much the same as the previous movie/game/book but with more explosions and a new baddie.
I'm sure we can safely say this definetely wont be the case with Rebirth.

[Mightysword]

Overall, a very big loss for a small gain.

By whose Quantita measurement? Yours? For me it seems for now it's an even trade off, and depend on well the new additions are done, it maybe even a better trade.

[Noimageavaiable]

See this is where I think you are completely off. From what info is available, freedom will not be an issue, even sure some "freedoms" may be cut, but others (and imo far more important ones) are added.

And what freedoms would that be, that are added? The freedom to fly a very limited amount of drones? The freedom to have menus hidden behind a bunch of polygons? The freedom to point-and-click around your ship to access said menus?

Meanwhile we lose the freedom to choose our own ship, its load-out or even the freedom to just do whatever we want as we are bound to the plot now.

[vtecem]

See this is where I think you are completely off. From what info is available, freedom will not be an issue, even sure some "freedoms" may be cut, but others (and imo far more important ones) are added.

And what freedoms would that be, that are added? The freedom to fly a very limited amount of drones? The freedom to have menus hidden behind a bunch of polygons? The freedom to point-and-click around your ship to access said menus?

Meanwhile we lose the freedom to choose our own ship, its load-out or even the freedom to just do whatever we want as we are bound to the plot now.

This is pretty much what I am worried about as well. It feels (from what we know) like we are going from an excellent space/empire simulator to a space arcade shooter. Unfortunately the latter is usually what the masses play.

I hope this is not the case and I am completely wrong, because they will have derailed probably 80% of their (current) very loyal player base.