Air Game Suggestions (3.8.0)

[GiledPallaeon]

I know everyone does this, but I'm going to start off with saying that I very much appreciate the game even as it already is, kudos to the team.

Honestly I think the ground game, insofar as I have gotten through in my partial campaigns is in a reasonable spot.

For the air game, I also think it's broadly in a good place, but I wanted to offer some ideas.

First, the easiest: some sort of speed (and/or agility) module. We have range extensions, armor, weapons; the only unmodified characteristics of the aircraft are speed and agility. I think it would be neat to have a module that either increased cruising speed (and sprint speed?) or increased agility, possibly at a cost to one of the other characteristics (besides weight and hardpoints) if necessary for balance.

Second suggestion, somewhat harder: transfer pilots from aircraft, especially with manufacturing new jets. It seems like ace pilots do perform somewhat better than their green counterparts. Would it be possible to add a way to move pilots from jet to jet? I mostly want this for upgrading my 17 kill Angel pilot into a Phantom, and then again into a Gemini. Very nice to have, but just that, a nice to have. Maybe something that triggers upon completion of an advanced interceptor asking if you want any other pilot there to move, and backfill that one with a green pilot (possibly retrigger if you move a Phantom pilot to a Gemini if there are Angels also present?)?

Third suggestion, likely not hardest but probably most involved: a fourth interceptor aircraft. Right now, the Phantom wipes the floor with the Angel. That's not bad per se, but it's such a radical upgrade across the board it's kind of jarring. One of my favorite parts of XN1 was the air component strategy, finding that good mixture of Condors, Foxtrots, Corsairs, and Marauders, as you slowly phase through that 2-3 generations of aircraft (depending on how you count). I suggest this fourth aircraft sit between the Angel and the Marauder, keeping some to most of its upgrades in range and speed but otherwise being a middle-of-the-road jet. Maybe several hardpoints but a low(ish) payload to incentivize missiles over guns, so it can be a missile truck for both the Marauder and the Angel?

I know the air game rework is still coming, and hopefully this isn't too late to inform that if you guys are interested in these ideas.

Looking forward to seeing where this goes next.

Edited June 2, 2024 by GiledPallaeon
Fat-fingered the enter button to post while still typing

[Chris]

Thanks, glad you like the game so far. I think both the ground game and air game are improved in the experimental Milestone 4 builds too - there’s a few changes to the air combat, like aircraft equipment being upgraded rather than individually constructed and some general tweaks so its a bit less punishing in places.

The idea for pilots is something we’ve been debating a while. I like the idea in principle, but it’s a question of whether we have the time to do it - and also whether it overcomplicates the UI.

The idea about the different planes is a bit trickier. We’ve gone for a setup where most of the difference between planes has instead been moved onto the equipment itself, so planes can have more varied loadouts but there’s less room to differentiate different plane types.

The two things I’m considering at the moment are having the speed of aircraft be upgradable, so the Angel can keep up with the Phantom etc if you pay the Alenium for the upgrade, and to make whether a plane can evasive roll be based upon how much equipment it is carrying (eg it can only roll if it is carrying less than 80% of max capacity) which might give a bit more gameplay variety in loadouts (although obviously the numbers would need tweaking again).