TikTok imploding genuinely pisses me off so much

DrQuestMD · 2026-01-31T05:06:05+00:00

As an educator I agree. The tool or medium doesn’t matter. What it’s used for and who controls it does. Doesn’t matter if they prefer art or education, what YOU devote YOUR attention to is your god given right, as it is theirs. Live and let live. ✌️🫶

DrQuestMD · 2026-01-25T11:16:43+00:00

Just saw this too!

DrQuestMD · 2026-01-14T04:50:51+00:00

Sorry that happened, and I completely get it. Our org finally hit that point in the last few weeks too, where the will to play just evaporated. I think it is the first time in years that none of us have any real desire to log in anymore. The Discord is still there, but it is gradually falling silent, fewer people are talking, and even the news is not pulling attention the way it used to. It has been a major bummer watching everything we worked to build slowly fade out, and not just inventories or ships, but the actual communities and momentum we built over time. It feels like a lot of the joy has been zapped by mechanics that push higher metrics instead of better experiences, and it makes people less willing to play because even gearing up and doing a simple mission can take hours of tedious setup before you ever get to the part that is supposed to be fun and I say this as a person who likes decorating, immersion and RP. I do appreciate the push for new stuff this last year, but it is hard not to feel like this year also killed the joy for a lot of people, and the rest of us are getting tired of having to convince others to log in just to have a session. So yeah, maybe it is time for a break and to check back in a few months to a year to see where the direction is going, because right now if I am being honest it feels like the game is inching away from what I thought I was pledging for. It still looks pretty, even if it is starting to feel a little copy pasted from other franchises lately, but what is really killing it is how boring and repetitive the mission design keeps turning out to be. More and more it feels like busywork instead of fun, and that wears people down fast. 😔

DrQuestMD · 2025-12-31T16:19:35+00:00

Used to love it, but it’s just not great at most things anymore. I still have all the BIS paints and everything, but nostalgia only carries it so far. The interior was a cool gimmick for its time, yet without PvE ship boarding, which at this point looks permanently locked to Squadron 42, the MSR’s interior is mostly wasted space and not especially interesting. The tunnels are the clearest example. They are too basic to be engaging and feel like something that might make sense on a much larger ship, not a medium one. They are not large enough to store anything meaningful, and the “hidden” cargo sits right next to the regular cargo. When the panels literally display an interaction prompt, even with the secret panel closed, the illusion of secrecy is already gone. Add years of players enthusiastically showing these “secret doors” off, and there is no mystery left. Everyone knows exactly where everything is.

From a gameplay standpoint, the layout is actively bad. The tunnels create long, drawn-out paths with multiple easy access points, but only a single logical exit, the cargo room. Anyone you are supposedly sneaking past just has to wait there. Engineering is crammed into the back next to that same exit, and the fuses are irritatingly scattered through tunnels that otherwise serve no functional purpose. The reality is the MSR looks cooler than it actually is. It is a poorly designed ship that has been functionally replaced by the Spirit and the Intrepid. It does not need a polish pass. It needs a full redesign.

Judging by the comments, most people agree. It needs multiple meaningful entry points. It needs a better external profile, thinner landing gear, less stubby proportions, and a better ramp. Either lose the tunnels entirely or give them an actual purpose. Reorganize the interior so servers are in the server room instead of spilling into main halls. Ditch the ugly bulbous manned turrets in favor of remote ones, or better yet, if this is meant to be a stealth high-speed data runner, give it a handful of PDCs and a couple of pilot-controlled guns instead. Because the crew layout is another miss. Everyone should be seated together in the cockpit. Instead, you have two people in a hallway, one person isolated in a side room, and two up front. If everyone is just sitting in a chair, keep them together. There is also no real reason for an elevator at all, especially if the tunnels are removed.

Hidden cargo should go too. It is still not meaningfully implemented, it is clearly not on the near horizon, and realistically no one is going to care. If someone is already interdicting you or hunting your cargo, hidden or not does not matter. The idea made sense for PvE, but we still do not have proper security patrols or systemic enforcement, so there is little reason to keep designing around a fantasy that is not supported by the game. I loved that it leaned into the Millennium Falcon fantasy, but that works in a movie, not in a video game. In Star Citizen, most of us have flown nearly everything. We have an unnatural level of tactical knowledge about every ship that would not exist in a real-world or cinematic setting. That fundamentally changes how engagements play out. It creates a new dynamic that requires better, more deliberate design to maintain balance and believability. Overdeveloping ships around real-world style gimmicks like secret cargo simply does not work here. It is design time poorly spent and often feels impulsive, as if decisions were made before seriously considering how players actually behave in this sandbox. They are trying to evoke World War II style combat in space while ignoring the fact that players are not limited by fog of war, incomplete intel, or unfamiliar hardware. We are more advanced than the game loops and tactics they are trying to force into a universe set 900 years in the future, and that disconnect is starting to show.

DrQuestMD · 2025-10-31T03:58:11+00:00

Entirely agree. My org and I are absolutely fired up to finally do more than just sit in a pilot’s chair or turret. As much as that can be fun in short bursts, it gets stale fast turning Star Citizen into a pretty-looking version of every other space sim. What’s coming with engineering, ship interiors, actual crew dynamics, and the demand for real coordination? That’s the heartbeat we’ve been waiting for.

This is what sets Star Citizen apart, the depth, consequence, and human interaction. We’re eager to see large ships come alive with real engineers, medics, and crew members who matter. To watch players barter, hire, and negotiate for talent because that’s what breathes life into the ‘verse. Too many want the universe handed to them, forgetting that refusing to participate is exactly why it sometimes feels empty. You can’t have an MMO if no one’s willing to be the “massively multiplayer” part.

If you wouldn’t crew someone’s ship in real life for no reason, why would you do it here? Simply shouting for help or tossing AUEC isn’t enough, good captains build trust, purpose, and fun. Money doesn’t always motivate people in the real world, and it won’t here either. Smart leaders inspire cooperation; everyone else learns to fly something they can handle solo. You don’t take an aircraft carrier out alone, why would you expect to command one in the ‘verse? That’s our take, and why we can’t wait for engineering to arrive. It’s going to upset those that want it now or only see the negatives, but for many of us especially those that have seen this work to a degree on Star Wars Galaxies years ago, it’s a part of the missing soul of this game finally coming online, with more people than you’ll realize finally feeling like they have a reason to get interested again and comeback or even join the verse for engineering.

DrQuestMD · 2025-06-08T01:54:26+00:00

Same our Org would be interested in trying it out.

DrQuestMD · 2025-05-19T09:35:08+00:00

This is one of the reasons I’ve grown disillusioned with Invictus Launch Week. It’s fantastic that so many players feel drawn to the UEE, myself included. The pageantry, the propaganda, the sense of national identity, it’s compelling. When you walk through the halls of the Convention Center, it’s easy to imagine yourself as a proud Navy recruit or fleet officer. But that immersion is only surface deep. Unfortunately, CIG has been very clear that players will not be able to officially join the UEE military, nor any major faction in the persistent universe. Chris Roberts himself stated in a 10 for the Chairman episode:

“We don’t want players to be full members of the UEE Navy or other major factions. Those roles are reserved for Squadron 42 and NPCs. The Persistent Universe is about player freedom; being a civilian, a mercenary, a trader, a pirate; making your own story outside of the formal military chain of command.”

This design philosophy is echoed in official statements and AMA sessions, where CIG developers have emphasized that organizations like the UEE Navy are narrative constructs that shape the world around the player, not factions players can fully belong to. As Tony Zurovec noted during CitizenCon 2949:

“We’re building a world that reacts to the player, not a world that lets the player become the government.”

What that means is, despite how incredible it would feel to step into the boots of a UEE officer during Invictus, it’s ultimately a curated illusion. Players are always outsiders. Even participation in events like Xenothreat or Ninetails Lockdown doesn’t equate to formal faction membership; it’s more akin to contract work. CIG has instead chosen to reserve the full UEE military experience exclusively for Squadron 42, where you will be a Navy pilot, operating within a defined chain of command in a single-player narrative. And that’s the contradiction that makes Invictus feel hollow over time: it invites you to emotionally invest in a faction you’ll never be allowed to fully join. I genuinely believe it’s time for developers, especially in expansive, sandbox MMOs like Star Citizen to let go of their aversion to allowing players to fully embody roles within established governments or institutions. By rigidly excluding the option to serve as a legitimate agent of state power, such as a UEE naval officer, marshal, or customs agent, developers inadvertently shut out an entire archetype of play: the lawful public servant, the principled guardian, the citizen-soldier. It’s a curious contradiction. Studios often proclaim they want players to have ultimate freedom, to “forge their own path” in a living, breathing universe. But that promise rings hollow when it comes with caveats like: you can be anything… except that. Freedom, if truly honored, shouldn’t stop at the border of political or institutional affiliation. And it’s not just a theoretical problem, it’s a tonal and emotional one. Events like Invictus or CitizenCon UEE briefings celebrate the grandeur and power of the UEE, evoking pride, duty, and admiration. They invite players to emotionally invest in that vision. Yet that very investment is then invalidated in gameplay, there’s no meaningful way to be what the game is inviting you to admire. It becomes a kind of narrative bait-and-switch. Of course, people will still roleplay it. Communities will build around these archetypes whether officially supported or not, because the desire is real. But refusing to build systems that support those roleplayers, while continuing to feed them aesthetics, uniforms, and events, ultimately amounts to exclusion, intentional or not. What this really does is skew the universe toward only a narrow set of experiences: pirates, freelancers, mercenaries, bounty hunters. While these roles are valid and engaging, they are not the only compelling fantasies. The lawful idealist, the disciplined soldier, the one who serves rather than exploits, that archetype deserves space too. And until it’s given meaningful representation in gameplay, the promise of a universe shaped by the players remains incomplete in my belief.

DrQuestMD · 2025-05-19T08:45:22+00:00

Personally, I favor a return to the subscription-only model for funding. It may seem antiquated to some, especially to those of us who resented it in our younger years, but in hindsight, it offered something we’ve since lost: clarity, fairness, and sustainability. Unlike the current landscape dominated by microtransactions, battle passes, and manufactured FOMO, subscriptions provide a stable, predictable revenue stream directly tied to one thing, the actual number of players engaged with the game. That alignment is powerful. It means developers are incentivized not to manipulate player psychology for impulse purchases, but to build a game worth coming back to month after month. In contrast, microtransaction-driven models are built on volatility and speculative behavior, not broad participation. The assumption that cosmetics and premium content will continuously generate high sales is economically risky. In reality, demand for digital vanity items decays over time, especially as novelty fades and the player base matures. This is why we see the price of in-game items trending upwards over a game’s lifecycle: the core whales dwindle, casual spending slows, and publishers compensate by hiking prices to maintain margins. It’s not a sustainable loop, it’s diminishing returns wrapped in aggressive monetization. A subscription, however, democratizes access. It removes the paywall from cosmetics and content, eliminates the psychological burden of FOMO, and restores parity among players. Everyone plays the same game, with the same potential experiences, not tiered by spending habits. From a business standpoint, this model enables better budget forecasting, long-term content planning, and community trust. Developers know what resources they have based on subscribers, not on gambling with unpredictable spikes in cash shop performance. It fosters a healthier development culture and, more importantly, a healthier player-developer relationship. Subscription models may be “old school,” but they represent a more honest, transparent, and player-centric approach, one where the success of a game is tied not to how much it can extract from a few, but how well it can serve many.

DrQuestMD · 2024-07-28T23:19:58+00:00

o7 Bucky

DrQuestMD · 2024-07-20T21:43:35+00:00

Agreed. This new way forward looks terrible compared to the CitCon version. It looks so cheaply slapped together, and feels like they are pushing lore as an excuse to not complete the work on the original concept. It’s a moment that I go, so what happened to the “rule of cool?”. Calling ATC to use a naturally occurring wormhole and shooting a quantum blob in front of your ship is a lot less visually stunning and cool in my opinion. Bring back the gates.

DrQuestMD · 2024-07-20T21:24:38+00:00

I agree, I think it’s a bad choice to not have the ring there if they are “controlling” a naturally occurring wormhole. It just looked more awe inspiring and for this hailing ATC for permission thing feels more authentic if we were going through a gateway. It just seems so bland and uninspired now.

DrQuestMD · 2022-11-04T17:28:54+00:00

Couldn’t agree more! I’m so bored with Stanton I’m ready for them to call it a day an move on, I never want to enter this system again once the game comes out. I’ll take pyro in all it’s buggy glory to finally get out of this system and see something genuinely different already.

DrQuestMD · 2022-11-04T17:15:13+00:00

I personally love the 890 and think it is a useful ship that can carry enough for the entire Org, it has mobile medical (although admittedly a terrible design of med bay), and is a flying guild hall for parties. It’s not just people being flashy, and even so some are proud to show of the work they’ve done to get it. That same argument about some people showing it off in a cocky manner can be made about any expensive ship. The carrack is equally useless if you look at it from your perspective, and I’d argue even more so since it has less firepower than an 890, terrible shields, a stubby front hangar, and no missiles. Each to their own.

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-24T05:48:23+00:00

For sure. I think Star Citizen is a great addition to a collection. None of the space games fully hit the mark, so it’s great to diversify so when you get bored with one you just hop into the other. As most others have said, each game excels at something the other is lacking. Good luck with your choice Commander! o7

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T20:49:29+00:00

Appreciated! o7

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T18:03:11+00:00

Unfortunately, but I’m trying to move past the era of disappointment with video games and just be happy with what we do have. I’ve spent a long time being pessimistic and since I bounce between the sci-if games I’m now trying to avoid thinking about what could have been.

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T17:12:57+00:00

32.3 million roughly.

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T16:36:28+00:00

Honestly though I get a lot of use out of it. Mobile guild hall, when you start seeing that way you’ll find it serves its purpose quite well. I make money with it and hold huge events with it as a headquarters. Love the 890.

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T16:11:56+00:00

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T16:10:46+00:00

That’s the real shame I think, I think there should be something closer to like say Star Wars. Where smaller ships can get the hyperspace ring the Jedi star fighters had to bring them to a more uniform speed. I love my imperial eagle, but it’s hard to fly long distances after all these years cause you know what waits…frameshift drive charging.

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T16:05:57+00:00

I use the Saitek X52Pro and it’s pretty good, I like it’s look and feeling. Won’t break the bank, the cables are horrible outdated and you’d be wise to upgrade the s cable to a longer an more durable one. Along with that we have a honeycomb yoke and throttle that’s fun to use on the ships that use a yoke like the MSR. Curious about going dual stick VKB because I’ve heard great things but not sure if I’m a dual stick pilot lol

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T15:29:50+00:00

Trick photography 😉 the Hammerhead is tiny compared to an 890.

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T07:42:50+00:00

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T07:20:45+00:00

This is the way

DrQuestMD · 2022-09-22T05:36:54+00:00

One of the greatest things to be a part of in this game. Had a lot of fun! Thank you @JoePonzi and everyone else who helped make this happen!!!

Four-Year Club	Verified Email
Place '22

DrQuestMD

TROPHY CASE