Poll: Outfit visibility: (20 member(s) have cast votes)
When should you see outfits that require a minimum ship size/class?
At all times - to see what's available and where.
(18 votes [90.00%])
Percentage of vote: 90.00%
Only when it can be used - to reduce clutter.
(2 votes [10.00%])
Percentage of vote: 10.00%

I'm talking about general items, not something that is hidden for specific secrecy reasons.

Sometimes it's nice to know where certain items are for future reference, but it can cause unnecessary clutter, and sometimes leaving a little mystery is part of the fun.

What do you guys think?

I voted ABB.

1: A because if it is regarding ships, you should be able to see what you can get if you go out and buy that bigger ship.

2: B because it needs a specific ship and THAT would cause clutter.

3: B because factions would not be in an outfitter showing off their stuff.

I voted A-B-B, too.

Ideally, though, I'd say use planet, shipyard, or misn descs to hint at the existence of as many outfits as possible (in all three categories), and hide everything for which you lay a hint (e.g. "this port specializes in upgrading the combat capabilities of large freighters," "the mechanics here are famous (at least in some circles) for their skills at providing well-off young hotshots with customizations for the popular ZAP-4 Etherhornet," or "this is the only planet in Flurpflaspray space where expatriate Gruzguzz engineers have set up shop.")

I agree fully with the views and reasoning expressed by the previous two posters.

A-B-B

What he said.

AAB

Because you should have information about all things you can get a hold of. Why would someone selling you outfits hide those who don't fit your ship. I don't run around hiding comics like Conan when an old lady comes into our store.

I'm only for hiding outfits for logical reasons, like this place not selling them, or only selling them to certain individuals.

Yeah, either A-A-B or A-B-B would make sense to me. You most certainly wouldn't be able to browse and examine outfits that belonged to a different faction, but with the other two it makes sense. If you're running a lot of one-ship-only ones I'd probably hide them to reduce clutter, but the ones that are generally usable but only on big ships, say, are just fine.

There seems to be some confusion as far as factions.

I didn't say enemy factions. If they were hostile, you probably can't even land there.
What about allies? They might not have items to spare if you're not one of them, but here's what you could get if you join our cause...

I understand there are story elements that may or may not allow you to see what they have.

I don't know if that changes anyone's answers, but basically what you guys are saying is that the default is "Yes, we are friends (or neutral), but I'm not going to show you our marketplace." (understanding that there may be exceptions here and there.)

Right now, I'm considering a reputation system. Do missions for these guys = better rep with them. Some reputations are mutually exclusive, some are not.
So you might be able to buy some simple items at one place, but they'll reserve the best for people they know better. But you can still see what's there.
How about if you can't buy because they actually dislike you (but still let you land) they don't even show the items.
If you can't buy because your not quite liked enough, then you can see but not buy.
Edit: Hmmm, is that even possible?

This post has been edited by Desprez : 11 March 2008 - 08:28 PM

I voted AAB because:

1- knowing what weapons are available for a different/larger ship must be factored in when buying a new ship.
2 - same as above
3 - unless really friendly, factions probably wouldn't share their tech, let alone give it the appearance of being "available" on foreign planets.

Let the player choose how much clutter they want. <cryptic grin>

A-B-B

1. When I explore a universe, I take a mental note of all the space ports and what they sell in the outfitters and trade center. For example, I can tell you that Rauther is a good place to get Hellhounds while Sirius II is a good place to sell medical supplies. If you can see all the outfits all the time, you won't have to look over all the planets several dozen times trying to pin down what, exactly, they sell.

2. If it's a special ship, like a RAGE Gunboat, then the outfits it has available should be made into a surprise for the player.

3. I cite the Polaris here; when you first venture into Polaris space and land on a planet, you can't see all the cool stuff they have waiting for you when you enter the storyline, but you know the stuff must be there because the ships you're seeing are using it.

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When should you see outfits that require a minimum ship size/class?
At all times - to see what's available and where.

Anything that can be purchased without completing a mission first should be available at any time.

If you had a large number of outfits I could conceive that reducing clutter would be beneficial, but for the most part it would only cause confusion and players wouldn't be able to make note of where to go once they bought that nice big warship that they want to deck out now.

Another reason to only show ship/class-specific outfits would be if you dispensed with the use of tech levels and sold everything everywhere.

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When should you see outfits that require a specific ship?
At all times.

This depends.

I say at all times if it's for use with a ship that you can buy without completing any missions and if it isn't immediately obvious that the ship has it or can use it. A shield enhancer exclusively found on or made for ship X would be an example of an item that wouldn't be immediately obvious a ship has or can use.

It probably should be invisible if it is a special weapon that only a certain ship has and is clearly visible on the sprite — the UE Fighter's gatling guns, for example.

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When should you see outfits that require a specific faction?
Only when it can be used.

For the most part, players will realize there's something cool to be had by seeing a factions' ships in action. I think part of the fun when playing for a faction, even if it is an allied faction, is actually "unlocking" technology. I also see no reason why a faction, friendly or otherwise, would show you their sensitive technology unless it was a trading guild or somesuch organization who would not be adversely affected by allowing regular citizens to inspect their designs.