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Starsector 0.97a is out! (02/02/24); New blog post: Simulator Enhancements (03/13/24)

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Author Topic: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options  (Read 2810 times)

Sandwich

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The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« on: March 28, 2020, 11:01:16 AM »

Right now it is kinda barebones and there are not a lot of things to do + missions are pretty repetitive.

You should have more things to do on planet than simply sell and buy stuff or search for missions. The game is super cool but it lacks something. Some mechanics that should be added. Perhaps the possibility to visit your ship from the inside and talk with your crew (minimalistic isometric view, Underrail-style) ? Random events in space (like an argument between members of your crew) or while visiting a planet ? Character creation a la Traveller that lets you generate the background of your character (with an impact on your adventure) ? I don't know, there is a looooooot of potential, like an insane potential, in this game but I feel like only a fraction of it is actually used.

Just imagine the possibility to board enemy ships with a combat system a la Darkest Dungeon or Deep Sky derelicts. There are so many things that could be added to the game, I don't know, it's sad that probably only a very small fraction of its potentiel will be used.
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Megas

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #1 on: March 28, 2020, 11:17:34 AM »

That sounds like the boarding mini-game, which Alex does not want to spend time trying to build.  I would not want it if it is tedium or if it is shoddy enough to exploit for unfair advantage.
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Sandwich

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #2 on: March 28, 2020, 11:25:18 AM »

1) Too bad. Not only would it be extremely fun if well done but it would make the game reach new heights since it could be applied in a lot of situations, not only while boarding ship. What about land combats ? Random events that could occur while visiting a planet, leading to a fight in a bar for example ? Stuff like that. As I said, the game is cool, it has a lot of potential, but unfortunately, a lot of this potential will remain unexploited, which is sad.

2) Boarding ship is only one of several ideas I proposed in my post. What do you think about the others ?
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Mondaymonkey

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #3 on: March 28, 2020, 11:25:39 AM »

Well... You are correct, there are huge potential. There a bottomless diversity of a features, could be added.

Problem is, this game is developed <mostly> by a single man. And he is already making all he can to maintain and expand that skeleton of a game. Huge amount of content is added by mods.

Upcoming update (soontm) should make game more personificated, convert monotonous campaign  into a story. Who knows, perhaps it will satisfy some of yours demands. If not - feel free to install some mods or even create one.

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Just imagine the possibility to board enemy ships with a combat system a la Darkest Dungeon or Deep Sky derelicts.

*cough* Halcyon 6 *cough*
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Sandwich

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #4 on: March 28, 2020, 11:33:04 AM »

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Problem is, this game is developed <mostly> by a single man. And he is already making all he can to maintain and expand that skeleton of a game

Yup, I know, huge respect to this man, I have a lot of admiration for guys like him or the ones who made Kenshi and Dwarf Fortress. Developing a game alone is hardcore.

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Upcoming update (soontm) should make game more personificated, convert monotonous campaign  into a story.

Oh ? Sweet. I didn't know that.
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Terethall

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #5 on: March 28, 2020, 07:48:21 PM »

Random events in space (like an argument between members of your crew) or while visiting a planet ?

My own personal fantasy is Paradox-style event chains in Starsector, along with expanded crew morale/management systems.
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arcibalde

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #6 on: March 28, 2020, 11:53:27 PM »

So basically what others said just wanted to add, yeah it sound cool and nice and to be done like it should, and I believe Alex would do it right, it would be not just mini-game but game in game, my eyeballing prediction is like, at least 3+ yrs to finish it. Don't forget that you could always add something cool, nice, interesting, immersive and then we and up in neverending development cycle. For me, that part of the game in bars etc. is the one i roll-play for myself  ;D 
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Sandwich

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #7 on: March 29, 2020, 01:25:39 PM »

Random events in space (like an argument between members of your crew) or while visiting a planet ?

My own personal fantasy is Paradox-style event chains in Starsector, along with expanded crew morale/management systems.

Yup, same. Paradox-like events + mechanics that would lead you to actually get attached to your crew and your lieutenants would be *** heaven.
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Igncom1

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #8 on: March 29, 2020, 01:32:46 PM »

I always felt like this game would have been great for some text based adventures, like an expanded version of the current scripted missions (Red Planet.)
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Mondaymonkey

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #9 on: March 29, 2020, 02:10:57 PM »

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text based adventures, like an expanded version of the current scripted missions

I am surprised there are no mod to add this feature. I am aware it is a really complicated mechanic to create, but, I mean, it is already possible to make a text quest as there are interface and instruments. That would be well-demanded mod.
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Igncom1

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #10 on: March 29, 2020, 02:22:46 PM »

In the Legacy of Arkgneisis Mod there is a mission to seek out and restore an ancient wrecked starship filled with unique technology which is really cool. It even has at least 1? battle before you get your prize, a broken down hunk of junk that when restored gives you a unique and powerful cruiser that can't be replicated. But what can be replicated are it;s guns that after a timer to 'decode' unlocks some unique gun blueprints for some special energy weapons.

It's honestly the most unique and fun part of the mod and I wish there was more to find and discover! Or even branching pathways for different rewards and outcomes.

I want more of that, and to possibly even tie in the 14th battlegroup Legions and to tell their story and how they ended up there, ruins of the first AI war and all that.
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Midnight Kitsune

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #11 on: March 29, 2020, 05:13:42 PM »

It's honestly the most unique and fun part of the mod and I wish there was more to find and discover! Or even branching pathways for different rewards and outcomes.
AHHHHHHHH!!! NONONONONONO!
I've worked with modders to help them test mods, and doing this is nearly exponential work... >.<
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Harmful Mechanic

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #12 on: March 29, 2020, 08:01:45 PM »

Yeah, branching paths are incredibly hard to debug in a game as open as Starsector. even mission structures as simple as 'go and meet Fleet X at Point Y within Time Z' are harder to implement than you'd think (what happens if Fleet X gets attacked while you're in transit? What if the player has to hunt around for it because it moved off station? etc. - remember that while a player may never or very, very rarely encounter a given failure state, we still have to plan for it.)

I am aware it is a really complicated mechanic to create, but, I mean, it is already possible to make a text quest as there are interface and instruments.

Missions aren't a trivial amount of writing work, either (and assuming that Starsector ends up with a Star Control-style metaplot driving the universe, missions need to be coordinated with that). Most modders with an active faction mod have ideas for quest/mission chains and are working on them, but the vanilla game is likely to change these features as well, so my bet for seeing a lot more missions in the game is after the base game has more story content in it for us to play off, both as working examples and to let us know what we can and can't do.

But rest assured my little black notebook has a bunch of ideas I'm itching to get into the game.

That would be well-demanded mod.

Tartiflette's Seeker mod is intended to do this. That it's taken so long is a testament to just how complicated this sort of modding is with the current state of the game.
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Prolbo

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #13 on: March 30, 2020, 04:01:47 AM »

While RNG events and some minigames (gambling den: get rekt for cheating too much) would be nice, I fear it would consume too much dev's time and effort and delay development even further.
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Thaago

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Re: The game is awesome but it lacks some roleplaying options
« Reply #14 on: March 30, 2020, 02:49:05 PM »

As things stand, modding quests is possible and a few have done it. But its rather telling that the ability to do so has been around for years and there aren't many: making even linear quest chains is quite difficult, needs a lot of writing and coding, and requires understanding several different, mostly undocumented systems. The results are also more difficult to copy, because there is no one "right" way to make a mission: I expect that every current mission that a modder could look at as an example uses different methods and structures.

Wisp has been making a huge effort to make things more manageable, and is writing a guide here: https://starsector.fandom.com/wiki/Modding_Quests

It isn't complete yet, but it outlines most steps of what is needed and gives crucial documentation.

Wisp has also been working on a library to make things easier, and I believe at this point it is relatively complete. Its written in Kotlin, but I believe they are working on a Java port to make it more accessible.

I am hoping that next SS version has many more missions to go along with the introduction of story points, and that things will be cleaned up under the hood and made more accessible.
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