Lack of upgrade is one of those things that people don’t like, but it makes the game so much better. Everyone wants their fleet to be all shiny and new with the latest gizmos. The SotS designers were made of stern stuff! Sometimes that was awesome, sometimes it was merely annoying (like handicapping combat UI based on tech).
I think a ship designer done well can be really, really fun. I agree that it’s usually done poorly.
