In this Frontier Friday episode, CCP Yoten introduces a major update to EVE Frontier featuring manual WASD ship controls that replace traditional automated navigation, enhancing player skill and immersion with precise maneuvering and targeting. The update also includes remappable controls, plans for joystick support, and a live test scheduled for late November, alongside new dramatic clone death animations to deepen the game’s gritty space adventure experience.
In this episode of Frontier Friday, CCP Yoten hosts a stream from his home, introducing a major update to EVE Frontier that fundamentally changes how players control their ships. Unlike the traditional point-and-click navigation of EVE Online, this update introduces manual WASD controls, allowing players to pilot their ships with much greater precision and skill. The new control scheme includes a speed throttle with multiple settings, the ability to reverse, and thrusters that let players reorient their ships without moving, making maneuvering around complex environments more immersive and engaging.
The team behind this update, including game designer CCP Paragon and CCP Overload, emphasizes that this change is intended to make the gameplay more skill-based and interactive. Unlike EVE Online, where much of the gameplay involves watching automated movements, Frontier aims to put the player in direct control of the ship’s movements, enhancing the sci-fi fantasy of piloting a starship. The new controls encourage players to think about positioning, speed, and orientation in real-time, making exploration and combat more dynamic and hands-on.
The stream showcases the new controls in action, demonstrating how players can navigate intricate space structures, perform tight turns, and even parallel park their ships. The manual targeting system is also previewed, allowing players to control turret aiming with the camera, adding another layer of skill to combat. The developers highlight that the controls are fully remappable and designed with future support for joysticks and console controllers in mind, aiming to accommodate a wide range of players and playstyles.
A significant part of the update is the removal of automated navigation commands like right-click approach, orbit, and keep at range, pushing players to rely entirely on manual inputs. This shift is expected to change the pace and feel of the game, making it more immersive and challenging. The developers plan to launch a live test of the manual control scheme starting on November 27th, running through December 1st, inviting players to try it out and provide feedback before deciding on its future integration.
Towards the end of the stream, CCP Yoten also reveals updates to the clone death system, with more dramatic and immersive death animations that add emotional weight to player deaths. The overall tone is enthusiastic, with the team expressing excitement about how these changes bring the game closer to the vision of a gritty, skill-based space adventure. They encourage players to participate in the upcoming test and share their thoughts, emphasizing that this update represents a major evolution in the Frontier experience.