In concern to point 3, everything IS relatively new-born, due to the “Sector-wide explosion” created by your ship. The idea is that when you start playing, you take up where another pilot left off, after s/he exploded.

And i like the idea of distress signals coming from ships in need, like the stations do when you attack them.

1: Undefined quests. I completely agree with Vaconcovat’s comment a few posts back. It’s discovering how to scrap modules, then playing effectively to capitalise on it, that makes it enjoyable. If you give the player an objective but no directions, it’s a puzzle. An objective WITH directions feels like a a chore.

2: Some kind of flight log. When you export your ship from Successor, the evolution of the craft can be spooled through. An expanded version of this that also could record your resource management, use of modules, opponents defeated, path through the universe etc would be very cool. Exporting this data for comparison with other players would be even better.

3: Derelict ships. Imagine wandering is some distant, unpopulated area of the verse, and stumbling across a huge derelict craft. Coming across the remnants of older battles would give the verse a sense of age; in Successor, everything seems new-born. The modules that comprise the wrecks could be heavily damaged, faulty, and often completely inoperative, ensuring the player doesn’t receive a bunch of free modules for nothing.

4: Strong atmosphere. The slow decline of oxygen is a nice touch, but I’d like something a little sinister to happen occasionally; for example, you could receive distress signals from unarmed craft under attack, or encounter a ship that silently follows you but flees if fired upon.

5: More interaction. You get a lot of messages in Successor, but you can only respond with attack or indifference. I’m not sure how, but a way of communicating other than gunfire would be nice. Speaking of which…

6: A peaceful option. In my very first attempt at Forever, I was reluctant to fire upon passive ships, and felt guilty when I did. Once I realised there wasn’t much of an alternative, it didn’t seem to matter. The ability of advance without the use of weapons could restore the moral implications of attacking a passive ship, and might increase the overall immersion.

7: Keep the lovely little touches. The laser spam melody (term coined by Berin), symmetry cultists and command line interface all contribute to the game’s unique feel, and I’d love to see all of them and more in Jameson.

Lastly, I’d just like to thank you for listening to your community. When reading your blog, it’s clear that you value the suggestions and opinions of those who comment.

(0 and 19, 0 and 17, 5 and 14, 5 and 10, 7 and 12)

If you want to try it :)

The only thing I’d say about the Clippy system (or quest ui, or journal or mission hub or whathaveyou) is that they either become a nightmare mesh of interfaces and micromanagement, or they simply break immersion. One of CF’s strength is making everything feel natural and believable though, so I have faith you’ll break the trend.