The video argues that instanced content is essential in Star Citizen to provide structure, protect players from griefing, and enable more engaging, balanced gameplay experiences, especially for PvE and diverse ship usage. Despite frustrations from PvP players, instancing is presented as a necessary solution to overcome the game’s design flaws and improve overall player satisfaction.
The video discusses the controversial topic of instancing in Star Citizen, emphasizing that despite personal dislike for instancing, it is necessary for the game’s functionality. Star Citizen is described as poorly designed with no inherent structure, which leads to widespread issues like ganking and griefing. Instancing is presented as the only viable solution to introduce structure and control, allowing developers to create isolated environments where gameplay can be tweaked and balanced. While instancing may frustrate PvP players who enjoy disrupting others, it ultimately serves to improve the overall player experience.
One of the main reasons instancing is crucial is to protect players engaging with new content, such as exploration missions and dungeons, from constant attacks by other players. The video highlights how many players avoid new content because of the fear of being ganked, which limits their ability to experience the game fully. Previous attempts to address this, like duplicating locations across the universe, were mere band-aids due to the lack of instancing capabilities. Instancing would give players a safer, more enjoyable way to engage with content without the constant threat of interruption.
Instancing also allows for a higher quality, curated gameplay experience, particularly for PvE content. The video points out that current open-world events often perform poorly due to server limitations, resulting in underwhelming and unchallenging encounters. In contrast, instanced environments can better handle complex scripts, AI, and event triggers, enabling more engaging and challenging content. Large-scale fleet battles, akin to MMO raids, would be feasible in instances but are impractical in an open-world setting due to technical and gameplay constraints.
Another benefit of instancing is that it enables players to use a wider variety of ships, including those considered “bad” or non-meta in PvP scenarios. In open-world PvP, players are often forced to use only the most effective ships, which limits diversity and player choice. Instanced missions can be designed to require different ship types, giving value to a broader range of ships and allowing players to enjoy their preferred vessels in a supportive environment. This flexibility is seen as a positive step for player engagement and satisfaction.
Finally, the video acknowledges concerns about instancing, particularly regarding the scale of these instances and how many players can participate simultaneously. The speaker hopes for large-scale PvE events with enough player capacity to avoid exclusion or waiting lists. The video concludes by placing blame for the need for instancing on both the game’s original design by Cloud Imperium Games (SIG) and the PvP players who exploited the lack of structure, driving away potential players. The speaker welcomes instancing as a necessary evolution that will ultimately improve Star Citizen for everyone.