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[Sirus]

it's supposed to be 'hard' sci-fi. If there are lasers at all I will be sorely disappointed.

What?! No lasers at all? That's absurd. What have you against lasers?

We've already got the technology to shoot down missiles and stuff with lasers. If we're billions of years ahead in an alternate timeline in which we never stopped improving spaceflight, why wouldn't we have weaponized lasers?

You're not billions of years ahead. You're a handful of colonists who woke from cryogenic sleep billions of years after the rest of mankind has died off, with only the technological know-how they had when they went to sleep. In 1988. Even if they had never stopped improving spaceflight, they'd be at best a decade or so ahead of where we are right now.

Also, a beam of light that melts your enemy isn't nearly as cool as crashing a giant tungsten dart into him at a thousand kilometers a second. 

Ok, but from what I've heard it's an alternate timeline in which the space (and by extension, technology) race never slowed down, but sped up to the point where we actually had cryostasis capsules in 1988. Something which we don't have today. If we have that kind of tech, there's no reason to believe that we wouldn't have other kinds as well. We'll probably also have some form of FTL, unless you want a six-month real-time trip to Mars. Again, no reason to accept some technology and not others which we are actually capable of in real life.

There's also the fact that the machines have still been working after these billions of years (evidenced by the fact that humankind woke up at all), and it's not beyond the realm of possibility that they've been improving tech on their own.

And finally, giant darts may be cool, but they are speed and ammo-limited. Lasers would be far more accurate at range and wouldn't require the purchase and storage of ammunition.

[DrPoo]

That, or we could have plasma cannons and particle accellerators to wreck shit with, writing a program for the DCPU to compensate for the recoil with the thrusters would be god damn awesome.

[Urist McScoopbeard]

well Sirus, even in soft sci-fi lasers' damage fall off significantly over range, also I think a particle accelerator would be op, you'd be drivin' along and BOOOOOM the rear portion of your ship just violently explodes. The worst part about lasers is that your actually can't see the beam in space

[Girlinhat]

Realism is nice, but strict realism is incredibly boring.  I don't want to spend the next could hundred years traveling to the next star because it's realistic.  I don't want to stare at an empty screen because it's realistic.  I want to jump across stars and peg someone with a bright flashy laser.  Realism should be included so long as it doesn't detract from gameplay.  Invisible lasers detracts from gameplay and makes it boring.  Silent explosions simply aren't fun.

On the other hand, ships can behave like spaceships without detracting from the fun.  Sure, aircraft controls are more intuitive, but it's very easily to deal with regular spacecraft controls and not get disoriented, and doing so doesn't hurt gameplay.  It's realistic and it doesn't hurt, it gets added.  That's what it all comes down to.  You don't sell titles by bragging about how realistically boring you are.  Principles don't pay bills, or entertain.

Before you suggest something, think about it briefly:
"Would I pay to experience this, or would I find it more rewarding to do it another way?"

Loud, bright lasers are incredibly rewarding.

[Tilla]

Anyone still arguing from the 'realism' angle needs to remember Notch has already officially dropped the Hard Scifi angle because it simply wasn't fun to play. Full stop.

[Girlinhat]

It can be soft sci-fi without being Star Wars though.  It's a spectrum, not a yes/no.  I figure we'll see a lot of momentum conservation as well as long-range lasers and transporter beams.  He does seem to imply that he wants to keep it as accurate as possible in the places where it needs to be accurate.

[Neonivek]

Realism is nice, but strict realism is incredibly boring.  I don't want to spend the next could hundred years traveling to the next star because it's realistic.

There was a really old game that was based on that.

[Kaleb702 Games]

Realism is nice, but strict realism is incredibly boring.  I don't want to spend the next could hundred years traveling to the next star because it's realistic.

There was a really old game that was based on that.

I think you're referring to Orbiter.

[TempAcc]

Noctis?

[White Kitteh]

Journey to Alpha Centauri (In Real Time)

[Alehkhs]

Has Notch said if the game universe is going to be separated into individual "sectors" that you instantaneously jump (read: load) in between? Or is he actually going to make is seamless so you can fly between the sectors (at high-speed, obviously. perhaps even with an optional gate system).

I'm really hoping for the second. I actually enjoy flying direct in Shores of Hazeron, and am always saddened I can't do so in the Elite series...

[Sirus]

Has Notch said if the game universe is going to be separated into individual "sectors" that you instantaneously jump (read: load) in between? Or is he actually going to make is seamless so you can fly between the sectors (at high-speed, obviously. perhaps even with an optional gate system).

I'm really hoping for the second. I actually enjoy flying direct in Shores of Hazeron, and am always saddened I can't do so in the Elite series...

Flying direct in SoH isn't actually flying there. Once you leave the system, you load into an "in between" state, where you stay until you load into another system, either your destination or one that was just in the way.

At least, that's the way I remember it.

[Alehkhs]

Has Notch said if the game universe is going to be separated into individual "sectors" that you instantaneously jump (read: load) in between? Or is he actually going to make is seamless so you can fly between the sectors (at high-speed, obviously. perhaps even with an optional gate system).

I'm really hoping for the second. I actually enjoy flying direct in Shores of Hazeron, and am always saddened I can't do so in the Elite series...

Flying direct in SoH isn't actually flying there. Once you leave the system, you load into an "in between" state, where you stay until you load into another system, either your destination or one that was just in the way.

At least, that's the way I remember it.

This is indeed how it works, but it at least is a better representation than just warping from one system to another immediately. You have to get pretty far out of said system in Hazeron.

Another game I can think of that at least had smooth transitions was Noctis.

[Sowelu]

I'll have a lot of fun with horribly inefficient designs.  Anyone can run the numbers and design a perfect ship; I'd love to emulate a fighter jet just because I /can/, who cares if it wastes fuel and flies like a brick.

[Urist McScoopbeard]

Does Anyone know exactly WHAT kind of tools will be available to us in the ship and room editor? Will it based more around placing solids and hollowing them out or will we being drawing surfaces (think CAD) ?