I can't properly speak of the alleged decline of the server, simply because I've not been hear long enough to witness it. I guess only time will tell whether the mod is just experiencing a slow point or if it is in its death throes, but even if it is, you can't deny that it's had a pretty good run. All good things come to an end.
All that being said, I do not think that Disco has breathed its last. Hell, the place was lively enough to lure me back, even after a very long time of personal inactivity.
The reason for me coming back? Actually mod's strength is it's not so much the mod itself (sweet ship models notwithstanding,) rather than the stories that the community makes and tells through the mod. I just think that you need to get past the occasional rule-lawyering and political mud-slinging which often 'headlines' and concentrate on doing something that inspires other players.
So I found Discovery back at 4.85. I was stumbled on it during a web browse after my uncle told me about the actual game itself. I was instantly interested and that is when i found Discovery. I played on 4.85 for about a year. I then had to step away due to joining the military but I have returned now that i have balanced out my work and personal life. I always found that player interaction made the game so much better. I also liked the major revamp Discovery did to the game with the addition of...well everything. how they added so much material to make the game so much more. Now that i have started playing again I have even started recruiting my friends to check the game out. I don't view Discovery to be a mod really I look at it and an expansion. with that being said I think that is what is needed to be done. Now i'm not talking about another huge production. I would compare it to what console games consider being a "map pack" but make it a ship pack. In my entire experience with numerous types of games nothing helps lure people into a game more than something new. Throw in a few new ships here and there and i know that people will be drooling. But ofcourse you can't just throw in any kind of new ships make them unique and lets say "shiny" and once retired players here about them you know that the thought going through their mind is going to be " I gotta try that out" that and the current players are gonna want to try them as well. It really is that simple really. initiate something new that people havent seen and you just reopened a game up.
As for the people saying people RP too much I think thats wrong. It's a RP server. It has RP rules. people would be lost with out them thats why we have them in RL. If you aren't into RP then play on another server and let us Geeks be Geeks.
I personally think that if the developers were to add new ships maybe lean towards some of the popular designs some of these newer space flight games are using. Make them sleek and cool. It is what attracts people and gets them interested. A for goodness sake make ships that can haul more that 5000 cargo its time that we are able to haul more.
I stopped playing Disco mostly due to the dated feeling of freelancer at this point.
Also, after 4 years on the server, you sort of feel like you've done it all before. For what it's worth, Disco is 10 years old at this point, and seems to be doing ok.
What I could offer is to try switching factions once in a while. Just to try new avenue of roleplay. For example, join Lane Hackers but if you don't feel like it mid-way, then try another factiom, let's say Hogosha. And so on. Perhaps developing the character might not go that far, but you could always keep interest due to different challenges and encounters.
As a newer player, I think new players should get a bit more help. This mod is HUGE. It's very intimidating when you start. I tried to start playing this mod with a few friends but it seems I'm the only one who is motivated/crazy enough to stick with it. I think a big step forward would be updating the wiki. It's one of the only tool we newcomers have, and it really sucks to fly somewhere for half an hour to find out that the ship you were interested in buying is no longer sold there.
Just a newcomer's opinion, take this with a grain of salt.
Quote:I personally think that if the developers were to add new ships maybe lean towards some of the popular designs some of these newer space flight games are using. Make them sleek and cool. It is what attracts people and gets them interested. A for goodness sake make ships that can haul more that 5000 cargo its time that we are able to haul more.
I'm personally a fan of having a big diversity of ship design. Sure, it makes sense to have some ships sleek looking (Gallic Liner is pretty sexy), but it makes sense to have other ships have that worn, run-down look (Junker Salvager, Slave Liner, etc). I think the ship diversity is good. And ...you do have the Barge (but I think it needs tweaked a bit...).