So I've been playing around with different weapons, and I just can't figure out the usefulness of mines. Occasionally, while being chased, I can drop one and have it do damage, and perhaps they might be a bit more useful in pvp, but typically they aren't worth it IMHO. So here's a couple of ideas for better mines:
1) Persistent mines: I haven't seen any mines that stick around long enough to be useful. I'd love to be able to mine the area around my asteroid while I'm mining so if any pirates to get try to get close they can take some damage. I get that having mines stick around indefinitely would not be feasible, but maybe a minute timer on them would be an improvement. Perhaps a skill to increase how long they stick around.
2) Directional launch: I'd love to launch mines towards my mouse cursor instead of just behind me. That way, I can park next to a couple of asteroids and mine the area around me. Give the mines a couple of seconds before they activate, that way it's not a directional missile. Again, would make for a great skill, or perhaps just only have it on certain types of mines.
3)Utility mines: What if mines did more than explode? Crazy I know, but what about mines that are short lived turrets with slow tracking, but 360 degree coverage. Or maybe drones that orbit around you for a short bit and detonate if the enemy gets too close. Hell, mines that don't do any damage, but act as an AOE repair for a bit (balanced by slow rate of fire and little ammo, would be cool for multiplayer or missions where you need to repair stranded ships), or ones that mine asteroids for a bit and then drop a crate when they "explode". I guess the possibilities are endless here.