Later you go on to tell me the "design philosophy" of the game despite you too having zero insight. So let's agree neither of us know.
A steep learning curve has always been a thing in Elite. You didn't know that?
Not on this post no, but in general I've seen the sentiment a lot when someone tries to figure out why the early game blows.
K.
No, it's steep because there is absolutely nothing there for the player beyond just accepting a mission and hoping for the best that it works.
I did a few missions, killed some wanted ships at a nav beacon, and started trading. First few hours was just flying around and trying random stuff. It was fun :D
My anecdotal experience isn't worthwhile evidence but yours is. I see.
"Trudge" is a metaphor for a state of mind. We may have both done similar things but what felt like a trudge to you didn't feel like a trudge to me. That was clearly my point.
I mean gee whiz, imagine criticizing something I also enjoy? Who does that!
It's not the criticism that's the issue. It's that you're criticizing things other people like about the game and these things also happen to define the game. My buddies and I liked the opening hours of playing this game precisely because there was little guidance. It also happens to be something that defines Elite as a franchise.
So it's perfectly logical to suggest it might be the game for you.
Furthest distance I've traveled so far is 100Ly.
So you haven't actually done any real exploration? I'm confused. I'm 500ly from Sgr A* right now and I can say that exploration is easily one of the most underdeveloped aspects of this game.
Why you have to take it personally on behalf of Frontier is beyond me.
I've worked and done business in the software field for many years and it annoys me when people use alarmist language like you do. You jump to some ridiculous conclusions without exploring the complexity of the issue at hand.
For example, you state that the early game "blows". But it doesn't blow. It's actually a lot of fun for a lot of people. By stating it this way you're misrepresenting the reality to support your personal preferences. A more objective way to say it is something like, "I wish the early game was a more guided experience. It's apparently fun for people that like to figure things out for themselves but not for those of us who want some guidance early on".
But your criticism was carefully worded as objective fact. In the context of a thread titled as it is...