The commonwealth bar

[goat not sheep]

I really hated that bar. I went there to see what they say, and realized they took 5 credits! I'm 1 credit short to buying a particle beam! Maybe it should cost 1 credit, instead...

[Yugi]

A credit short?

Anyways, I think it's fine as it is. 99.99% of the time people can spare five credits

Or, maybe, for a bit of variety, the option to buy different drinks? The most expensive the drink you buy, the more helpful people you get to talk to. Say, for a 1-credit quarter-pint, you get to listen to some guy rambling on about who knows what, and for a 500 credit bottle of wine you get to talk to some really high-ranked government official who gives you free stuff (ROMs, ammo, etc.) for talking him out of suicide?

[Sponge]

I've always thought the bar should give you some actual information about the game's story. I think it would be a quick and dirty way to introduce some of the backstory into the game for people who don't use the forums.

[Karl]

I think the bar should give you tips about things in that instance of the game world. For instance, if you buy a merchant a drink, you might learn that "there's an abandoned shipwreck near X full of rare luxary goods".

[goat not sheep]

Or, some drunk guy smiles...smacks his head, and gives you his ship for a buck...