The only toilet and shower for the entire ship is sadly in the crew section. Imagine the line to that toilet when you have a bunch of VIP guest invited for a luxurious cocktail party :)
That's hilarious. Also, this is a point I wish I would have covered, but I became quite distracted by other big issues. I should maybe consider an amendment to include a bathroom for guests.
It seems very few are fans of the hot tub but for some reason it's still there, I would rather have an office/bathroom or escape pods there instead, and the space in the floor could then be used for the extra power plant we lost or shields. Really love the video though :)
Dude, I'm not an architect, neither I play Star Citizen, but these 4 review videos are amazing. I enjoy it and hope you keep these reviews coming. I like sci-fi stuff and watching you applying your real world architecture knowledge to this game wasn't something I was expecting to find and enjoy. Thanks for the good content you are bringing to RU-vid
If I ever worked with CIG as a concept designer, Morph might have an invitation to a bar once every so often to get his professional and logically opinion.
Talking to a professional every once in a while is a good idea, though Morph specifically would be a problem since talking about anything not yet released to the public to a youtuber could get you very much fired.
smoketinytom didnt mean Morph would give stuff away, just talking to a youtuber in general could be seen as a problem. Game developers are extremely protective of their secrets.
Shall we start a Q&A? :D First, thanks for the review! Its amazing to have an architect give his professional review of my ship! Anything I create requires lots of research in all fields associated with the asset creation so I'm just a "3d architect" at best.
First thing I will say is that the actual lighting fixtures are broken. The lights linked to their respective geo that illuminates as the source of the light are all at 0%. Lighting was so important while working on this ship in particular.
@7:43 My god that indent plagued me. I was beholden to 4 pistons, the 4 that raise and lower the cargo doors. I used columns to house these and then had to design around them. This plus the fish tank meeting the seating area created this dip. Maybe should have filled it with a table surface...I think i tried that and opted for the floor space and being able to get closer to the tank glass.
good idea @9:23 and I agree, however the components and access to them is at a certain height metric (about eye level) for gameplay and animation purposes.
Both bulkhead doors I had on the list for a makeover. unfortunately I ran out of time. Same with the details in the guest rooms like reading lights. The RSI door is a complete contrast to the aesthetic of the luxury body section.
I would love to have a chat with you some time about this for sure, though I'm not sure if you have to go through CIG PR before you're able to. I've spoken with other developers before, and they've always told me they got in trouble unless they got permission first. That was Activision of course, which definitely not you guys. So if it's cool with CR and PR, I would love to do a deep dive into a design conversation, maybe in an audio format if that would be acceptable. Message me on Discord through my ARMCO community in either case, that medium might suit this conversation better.
A luxury ship needs a luxury bathroom. I miss the fancy showers and the higher quality materials available in the crew cabin and cockpit of the old Phoenix. I do however love the new and more efficient usage of space. I believe a lot of these issues could be resolved with the removal of the hot tub.
I'd like to add two things I actually find more serious. 1. The fact that the VIP have to go to the crew area to go to the bathroom or taking a shower is crazy to me. Especially considering the state of the crew bathroom. It just doesn't make sense to me. 2. You kind of touched on this, but you didn't mention it for the smaller rooms. The lack of storage for clothes and or other things for VIP in their bedrooms is weird to say the least. I've seen such in 1 night stay ships in real life. I feel like CIG often forget how people "live" when designing ships, and that they often lack proper crew commodities. Which is a shame.
I agree with the bathroom situation, i say convert the hot tub area to bathroom area. As far as storage, the reveal video with Josh, he mentioned another team was designing the closets, dressers, and other items - they were not placed yet.
@@ericwollaston5654 Yeah, I don't see the point of the hot tub either. I wish one could replace it like you can the piano. I'd love to have a bathroom there, although the space is a little big for a huge bathroom.
@omicron the small bedrooms makes sense for a business-class luxury jet. but then the master bedroom and the jaccuzzi feels odd in a business jet, that's right. I dunno, maybe M. Trump has a jaccuzzi in his private jet too lol
Amazed there is no mention that all VIP guests have to go back into the same dull crappy crew quarters, You know - the same area they are forced to enter through. Just to take a piss. Would be pretty sad paying good money for a master bedroom that lacks even a head.
@@TimTams_64 Not talking about head room, Talking about a ships day head, AKA a bathroom. I'm fine with it being a business class style, The two small rooms makes sense for that but no master bedroom will be on a business class plane. Let alone one with no private bathroom.
Really wish I would have brought this up, I let the video run long again though and couldn't cover absolutely everything I wanted. If there are any amendments to the design, I will be sure to bring it up.
I'd be more concerned with burning while the crew use their pods to escape the ship if it's attacked. Or do we attend fancy parties in space suits and jump out the door like a peasant?
That you are having fun in making these videos really radiates from your tone. It is pure joy to hear you enthusiastically reminissing about a change of tone, colour or material or all at once. I hope you keep this videos comming and still find the time to strive in your profession beyond the refined and individual level you already inherit. Your presentation is close to flawless. Very authentic. Just lovely!
I really like hovering my Phoenix near PO or Levski and watching the coming and going over stellar background views from the windows. This will be nice on longer QT jumps also since they will span minutes.
This single comment makes me excited for when SC is worth playing (as in, more complete). I used to float in space in Freelancer (the game, not the ship) and watch the AI ships go about their business. Combined with the great music and the faint radio chatter it made it very easy to imagine what it would be like to actually live in such a future.
Morph I have to say that while I'm a big fan of what Star Citizen is trying to make here, it's you that is really selling the game to me with your insight into architecture. I love space ships, and I love them even more when they are functional from both an exterior and interior perspective. There is so much that I'm learning from these videos and I really do SC watch these videos as well for what I believe is excellent insight on interior ship design. Keep up the good work, this is by far my favorite Star Citizen ship series!
I agree with everything you said, the cargo entrance and engineering areas were my biggest problems with the design. I’d advocate the forward elevator into the cargo area to create a corridor, and leave a line through the middle of the cargo bay with no mag plating to force the crew to maintain the pass through, and prevent the Phoenix from being a “do everything” ship by slightly reducing the cargo capacity. As for the engineering, I’d move all the component access points into the passageway to the snub fighter, and add a fancy door between the guest area and the hallway, essentially turning the hallway into an airlock in case the flight deck is decompressed due to failure or damage.
7:41 Move the fish retirement home over and make the area just large enough for a cozy space for two.11:03 That looks like another great space for a retirement home with electrochromic glass on the bar side. 15:09 Wow. I didn't appreciate the wasted space between the engines and the fuselage until the second viewing. They could fill in that space with luxury bedrooms. Thank you, Morphologis. Another great review
Is it just me, or are there not enough beds? That table seats for six, and there are six chairs in the sitting section as well. However, there are two single-beds and one master-bed, that's only enough sleeping space for four of out six people. And as many have pointed out, there is no VIP bathroom. I'd say replace the non-working jacuzzi with a large one, or perhaps split that space into two two bathrooms.
I liked the Revel & York style of warm Woods and golds a lot more than the cold white and grey stoniness of the new Connie. Other than the attractive, colorful fishtanks and for the most part lovely bar. It's just another dead Gray Mausoleum in space now like the Origin 600i... Last thing I want in a luxury vessel in the cold bleakness of space is a cold bleak interior. I mean, they even took the life out of the wooden floors and turned them into cold necromancer grey petrified stone... Going to take some fixing, which I hope they do.
I sincerely think this series needs the attention of the Developers. It is hard to hear criticism on your creative labours, but these critiques are absolutely spot on. Looking forward to the next one!
Wow you are amazing! Great quality videos, great explanations, you put words on some feelings I had while visiting these ships and I couldn’t tell what it was. Thanks!!
Love the review and I agreed with much of it! However, here are a few things that I thought it needed. 1. Master bath and closet. 2. Public Restroom for guests. Make the chairs slidable so you can reach the table. This would be a great place to actually add card game playing like in Knights of the old republic. Gives people something to actually do something. 3. Take out tub and put pool Table, that you can actually play! Keep up the great work!
Hmm. Ships in Star Citizen need a lot more modularity. While beautiful, some parts of the Phoenix are questionable. From the ingame point of view, a customer who can affort such a ship should be able to customize it (reasonably ...). For example: 1. The bathtub. Let me use this room as a second master bedroom. Or a childrens room (I suppose in the SC timeframe there are still children that travel with their parents. ^^). Or an office with an intimitating desk, monitors and communication equipment. 2. There seems to be no galley, apart from the small facilities for the crew. Where would my chef work? 3. Speaking of the chef, where does he/she has his/her bunk? And where does my valet has his bunk? You get the point. 4. Is there a rest/bathroom for the guests? I missed it. 5. As with all Constellations, I feel that the bridge has a lot of unused space. Take the section between the front windows and the rear work station. There is a nook that could be used for two bunk beds with rolling shutters to keep it private. Or some lockers/storage space.
As of date/time of writing: I got a lift to loreville from PO yesterday in one of these. First time in a connie, (in person), and first time at loreville, (again, in person). It was beautiful, watching the planet zoom by from the port windows, the landscape, the city coming into view, the blade runner themed aesthetic of the city overwhelming the view I had as we flew past buildings heading to the port, the ominous yet beautiful Hurston tower just over yonder dominating the city in keeping with the blade runner theme of it all. A perfect experience by my count.
Omg! You blew my mind when you opened the hidden door in the floor to the cargo bay! Like when I had obtained the Phoenix, I thought they just took out the cargo bay and I missed the hot tub, but now I'm on the floor. I'm stunned.
I completely agree about the bar area. That transition between wood & stone looks more like a graphic bleed-over from the bar surface than an integration of flooring, especially considering the fact that the floor behind the bar is wood. Also, as the bar itself is small, the single screen located in dark angle would suffice, whereas the screen to the left which juts from the shelving arrangement could easily be removed and not missed. I'm really enjoying your architect's-eye view of the ships, and hope you find time to do more!
I appreciate this series a lot. Seeing these ships through the eyes of am actual professional is really illuminating. Thanks Morph! And welcome back o7
Im an Architecture Student. These Videos really inspire me in some of my Projects. The way you talk about lighting impressed me. i feel, i can learn a lot from your Videos. I had a laugh when you mentioned Mies van der Rohe because we hear about him in every lecture.
I love this series because we all walk into a ship with a certain feeling that you’re able to describe in detail when we can’t. Of course design is subjective, but most of us walked into the 600i thinking parts of it looked great but couldn’t really put into words what felt off about it. You’re able to walk through how we feel when entering these ships and give a description of why we feel off in a certain room or why an area feels clinical. I really hope the devs are checking these videos out because I think you offer a huge amount of valid constructive criticism and praise where it’s due.
Around 13 minutes in, the bar floor. Granite bordering the wood. I have a very similar thing in one of my restaurants. We had to change some of the wood flooring near the bar, and couldn’t find the proper wood to match (the old wood floor was too nice to completely tear out and replace all). We used basically the same solution. Actually looks interesting and gives you that “Hm... that’s kind of neat!” feeling. I like it.
There is so much to discover in Star Citizen and so much yet to be developed. These architect reviews only add to the depth and uniqnes of the experience. Interesting and well done..thank you. Look forward to more.
I really do love your architect reviews of ships. You're on point on everything I see and some things I don't see. I hope RSI appreciates your reviews as much as I do.
It is worth mentioning how far the coffee table is between the four airline seats, you'd have to have extendable arms to grab for a drink. Scrunch that whole space in a bit, chuck out those two lonely seats up front, and suddenly you have tons of space for a guest restroom. Yeah, I agree with the panels by the hot tub. Put them in that back corridor with the others, and chuck a nice big TV up there, maybe a small bench or row of cabinets for towels underneath. Personal storage lockers/end tables for the private quarters are supposed to come in a future update. I, personally, think a small desk much like the one in the 600i's captain's quarters would be welcome in the master guest bedroom. In a VIP environment, separation from crew and guests is key. Since there's only need for one personnel lift on this ship, move it from the crew quarters back into that forward entryway. Guests can go in, turn around and go get hammered at the bar, while crew can come in, step through the forward bulkhead and get setup for a long flight of babysitting, all while mostly out of eye view of other guests, given the hallway curving around the back of the bar. The cargo hold access lift is another issue. It's probably already as far back as it can be, given that any further back and it would probably be cutting into the nose of the snub fighter. I'm honestly kinda stumped here. And there's also the problem of guests being stuck in a fireball of death with no escape pods. I'm also stumped here, but maybe you'd just have to chalk this one up as "acceptable downsides comparing ship model to ship model."
Love your reviews of these ships. You perfectly state the things that bug me in a far more articulate form than "damn bar across the window" :) I wish we could force all the ship designers to watch your reviews haha. No but seriously.
hey. The aquarium IS the bedlight :D Also the window in the master bedroom is probably a window u can do a "blackout" thing on. U can get that in real life today. so in a futuristic game it would be absolutely no problem, And the bar problems u touch upon i would agree with. I also noticed there is no kitchen anywhere. Maybe they could remove the Left TV when u looked at the bar, the one that oes not fit in and double the bar up as a kitchen too. It is a spaaceship first of all so U cannot always think of it as a luxury yacht
You made a comparison to a private jet, it's worth noting that in most Jets you enter through the crew area with a direct line on sight into the cockpit, so while it's not ideal I'd say it's acceptable here
Awesome! Can't wait to see more. Love hearing your pro architectural opinion about these ships. Professional, charitable, honest. Also, you seem to be a fan of Star Citizen too so that's a plus.
My main gripe with the ship was the complete lack of any overhaul of the bridge/crew area. It's such an awkward transition between the luxury part and the bridge part (completely different design language and materials). The reason I got the Phoenix was that I thought it would be a more polished version of the Andromeda with a less cluttered bridge and a nice cosy section that could've felt like a home (sort of like the Tempest in Mass Effect Andromeda which was both semi-luxurious but also utilitarian). The original Phoenix bridge actually looks really good/clean and Star Trek-like in its design. But alas, I'll be melting it during the Anniversary sale it seems :/
I would agree with your assessment. If it was me I might leave the cargo elevator into the cargo hold but I would add a door going from the cargo hold to a more utilitarian area. That way crew can access the space without going through the VIP section, but if a VIP needs to get into a piece of cargo they have down there, you can just bring them down the lift rather than trek them through the working areas to reach the hold. I also agree, as a luxury ship, the main entrance should be as nice as the VIP area, or there is a dedicated VIP entrance. i love your videos. As an architectural enthusiast and someone who does 3d modeling, especially of starship and working out ship interiors, I find your videos very informative.
Valid, logical points of critiques and praise that I agree with. I love this series. If CIG could use a bit of your time as a consultant on ship interiors, they should do it.
I think that the guests should have a bathroom, because there is one little toilet but its for the Crew. So if they have bads they should be able to shower too
Thank you so much for this review Morphologis. I only picked up on your videos recently with the 600i review and I must say they are very interesting and informative to watch and your delivery is great! Your comments give me an entirely viewing perspective which I enjoy (not an architect). Honestly and despite the issues you mentioned (which I completely agree with btw) the phonenix is absolutely stunning! I think after watching this it will be the first ship I actually work towards in game.
A formidabel examples why there is still people out there who just can enjoy de simple equation of esthetic and cartesien design. Its really astonishing how sombody like you can dife in too a subject and truly put their personality upon such a subject, though ireal, and yet so conspiring for our creativity. It suprisilgy entertaining to follow you and i hope more will appreciate your attention for tetail.👏
Two birds, one stone: The jaccuzi could serve as a hybrid tub / escape pod :D Pilot: "EVERYBODY! GET IN THE ESCAPETUB!" Businessman: "Oh I wondered why there was an awkardly placed jacuzzi in here, but now it makes so much sense!"
I am not a Star Citizen player but I remember seeing this ship and falling in love with it. Having seen this iteration of the Phoenix now. It feels like a conversion an incomplete conversion. Like someone took a C17 and turned it into a business jet well trying to keep the utility. This idea I think suffers first as SC seems to lack any sort of limousine buggy or Luxury touring passenger shuttle. These I think would bolster the Luxury market under the 600I, 890J and CP. a vessel that could transport your guest to you either on planet or in orbit.
Love the Connie line. Love the standard white spaceship look. It feels right for an 80s styled spaceship. Have an Aquila myself and looking forward to them upgrading the line hopefully when they drop the Taurus soon.
one of my biggest draws in getting a Phoenix over another connie variant was the initial advertisement that it would have a cargo area that was hidden away and sensor dampened to prevent external scans from detecting what was inside. in that, it would make sense that the Phoenix's cargo hatch would be hidden . They haven't mentioned it in awhile but I hope it is apart of the ships ultimate design as it was one of the things that drew me to it. much like the MSR, the Phoenix has a bit more than initially meets the eye and that is something I like
The only other change I would make, personally, is to fill in the space directly to the left of the master bedroom with shelving of some kind, or even a small entertainment center, to allow the space to be separate from whatever is going on outside the room. Any modicum of privacy will naturally allow whomever is inside to feel more comfortable.
I have been thinking about this for a while now. I will be starting construction on my dream home in just over a year from now. I really like this ship and have been considering using the interior in my home build. The idea is to have the basement built in the same form as the ships interior and fill it in from there. One of the really interesting ideas is to have tv screens playing space stuff outside of the "windows" I have been trying to figure out how to do this. Custom TVs are possible but can get a bit crazy on cost so i'm looking for alternates. Plus if someone walks up to the "window" and looks down or around their perspective will not change at all and would break the immersion of the room. I love the idea of having a movie playing through the screens of the ship going from one system through QT/jump points to other systems. It would have to be in a loop. But would be an amazing experience for parties or hanging out.
Awesome video, as always. Just one mention, the Aquila (and thank you for pronouncing that correctly, btw), has a different cockpit canopy. The Phoenix does share its design with the Andromeda, though.
Love the Phoenix more than the 600i! The only things I would change are: - Moving the elevator to its own dedicated section, preferable an enclosed one. Not having the main airlock right in front of the beds where the crew sleeps. Nobody likes to sleep right next to their entry door, right? - The elevator once again feels very unsafe to use without a railing! - Remove the tiny closet toilet/washing room and replace one of the small guest cabins with a proper bathroom. Instead add a food processor where the toilet closet was. - Ultimately I would spit the master bedroom into two smaller cabins. - Make the whirlpool be in it's own room, separated by a wall. Feels strange that it's right in the living room. - The access hatch to the cargo deck in the middle of the living room feels a bit odd but I can live with that shortcoming. - The small guest rooms(s) should have a window. - All living area windows should have toggleable blinds. - Guest rooms could have a storage compartment of some sorts.
First time watching one of your videos, but as a game designer, i think these reviews are awesome. Makes me feel like having a person like you on a level design team would be amazing for story and narrative design as it relates to level design.
I would love to see your take on the interior, like you did with the 600i. perhaps moving the cargo access to behind the bar and make the hoytub area into a second double room. change one of the single rooms intoa full bathroom. Great videos btw!
Love this video series man! I agree with the things you said, and I also found the big empty wall to the left in the master bedroom a bit odd. It seems like they intended for something to be there, perhaps a closet, but just forgot to put it in. I actually miss that from all three bedrooms: somewhere to hang your suit or clothes and other personal affects. What's more, there is no bathroom in the midsection. Surely your VIP guests might need to relieve themselves on the journey, and I think that could be a good use of the "awkward corner", as you so aptly named it, in the midsection, to the left of the fish tank wall. By moving that fish tank wall a little towards the tub, a bathroom could easily have fit. Maybe having a bathroom that central in the layout would feel a bit awkward, as if one was taking a stage under the starlight from the glass above as one exited the loo, but at least the usused space would come to use. I could also see that groove being made rectangular to fit a pedestal with a golden statue of a phoenix or something.
Just say "ohh dearest I'm afraid I must depart for now. You see I've been DIEING to take a dip in that marvelous jacuzzi behind us! Ha Ha hmmmmMmm". Then go relieve yourself in the Jacuzzi. DUH!
What's especially blasphemous is that the "Master Suite", the one area where you pay a premium to occupy and use, does not offer you a private ensuite head. Blasphemous! You also have the added luxury of random "premium" access to the cargo area when you're wandering the ship at night wondering where to take a dump.
The bathroom is in the crew section. Which really is one of the big flaws with the design. While I am for it being a bit of cheap design (RSI after all) I think it would have been a good idea to find a way to fit a small bathroom for the VIPs, even if it a communal one.
I love the Phoenix, oddly I'm not a huge Constellation fan, but I really want a Phoenix. I'm glad you mentioned the TNG feel of the seating area!! That was the first thing I thought of when I encountered the ship first hand many moons ago.
Also I hope there is some modularity to the ship, not sure I would use a hot tub much either. Perhaps a guest bathroom could be in that space somehow, perhaps at the odd corner too.
Once again wonderful to see things pointed out that I feel is good/bad but cannot express why. Also I have been dying to see the inside of this ship so is my first experience.
-The master bedroom bed should be on the opposite side of the room, so that you could see the outside view. (And I hope that the corridor window is dimable.) -The "reading light" in the smaller bedrooms seems provided by the fishtanks, so perhaps no extra light is needed there?
As a ship that's available as a cargo hauler or as a luxury yacht, the Phoenix reminds me about a particular vehicle in the Steam Workshop for the game Stormworks. It's a modular truck that originally has an empty flat bed, and in the ship editor you attach a passenger module, hospital module or an oil tanker module right before you spawn the vehicle and put it to action. (Ridgeboar MRV3 for those who are curious.) It feels like Phoenix just happened to be outfitted with the "luxury module" before it was sent out the door. I do like the ship though. With it's utilitarian exterior, it's not exactly the type of ship that screams "Here comes the billionaire" from miles away, which some billionaires actually prefer.
I agree fully with all your points about the bar and the materials, and the entrance, and pretty much all the "rough around the edges" remarks you spotted. But one thing that is bothering me even more is how they rushed the bridge section. It starts with the doors that stand out like a sore thumb, into the same copy-paste bridge from the other Connies which is completely unacceptable. If you check the original concept for this ship, the bridge was one of it's highlights and it's had it's own, unique luxurious design with wood, better seats, and everything else included. And now they just copy pasted the standard bridge into it, wtf? Fuck this. They even left the ugly cable going trough the room , this is something I cannot forgive. The job was, as well as many others like 600i, obviously rushed to completion so that they can fit it into their next patch and follow the promised schedule. These oversights are not what Chris would stand for, considering how much involved he was in the design details in the past. It is obvious things are starting to get rushed here in favor of the development scheudle, and this is NOT acceptable. They have to go back and finish this properly, including a completely redesigned bridge fitting for a Phoenix! Following this trend, I'm very concerned how the reworked 300i will work out. I can guarantee we'll get another case of "we'll do that later" situations with it just so they can get into the 3.4. They don't even have a concept fully fleshed out yet and we're a month from release. This thing is going to be rushed as hell, again. And will need yet another update pass, mark my words.
Oh, another issue I spottet was the four-seater section with the blue lights and the glass table: Notice the TV in the corner there. Only two of those 4 people can actually watch that screen, like watching a movie during flight. In fact, among all the passengers you are transporting, only two can watch a movie, unless you sit at the bar ofc. Then again, I have no clue how they would solve that issue. I guess two is better than none.
Nice video as always. I just want to point out that i thought it made sense to keep the industrial looking door that leads to the back area. It's a good visual clue that it leads to an area that's not meant for VIP passengers without requiring a big sign that tells them they can't go there. It' not like it looks really "bad" anyway.
I know we kinda have this opinion of a crew quarter but I always thought of the phoneix as the rich kids exploring ship. The "dad I'm taking a skip year to run cargo around Stanton." Okay son but only the best for my boy!
Game development needs a professional architect point of view, most definitely. I enjoyed this, and agree with many of the points made. Thinking about these ships as if they were actually being used for real world applications rather than just models for a video game, is a really compelling thought. I would hope they see this and take notes👌
If u use the ship for personally i think its just fine, i like the simple modern design ( except the cockpit kinda stands out a bit, it kinda looks like it belongs to a utility/war ship rather than to a luxury yacht type ship). I would totally use this ship with a bunch of buddies for missions and such.
