Serious suggestions from a new player
Kaia
Join Date: 2015-05-03 Member: 204098Members
Join Date: 2015-05-03 Member: 204098Members
So I've been playing the game a bit, and I have a few suggestions I wanted to make. I find myself very attracted to the game, but also quite daunted, and often frustrated with confusion.
1.) Resource Respawn - While perhaps not the most realistic of things, one man should not be able to deplete the ocean. This seems especially true of items that fuel decreasing percentages, like fish and salt for food and water, copper and acid for batteries, etc. I got quickly turned away from survival mode when all of my salt was going to food, and both salt and fish seemed to be becoming rarer and rarer. Fears of running out of power, when I struggled to gather the resources for that fuel cell, also discourages my use of vehicles.
2.) Passive Fishing/Recharge - This ties into the above a bit, but also to a more important idea. I want to be able to not just survive, but thrive. To do that, I need to feel that my accomplishments are allowing me to overcome my initial hardships. On the most limited level, I feel the game really needs this for resources that fuel those same "decreasing percentages". Food and Water should have passive sources, and batteries/power cells should be rechargeable. A few ideas:
3.) Navigation - As a new player, I find it really, really easy to get lost whenever I try to explore beyond a the safe shallows. This quickly makes for a bad user experience. The fact that the compass requires silver (for a computer chip) is equally daunting. This should be one of the first tools you can make, to give you an early navigation tool. Later, I could image creating a sort of sonar mapping tool that lets you get a feel for how the different biomes come together. Doesn't have to be a detailed map, just enough to let you find your way around.
4.) Predator Density - So the only other biome I've found thus far is the Kelp Forest, which is my early source of silver. Except that the Kelp Forest is teeming with Stalkers that I can't seem to outrun, fight off, or even avoid because of how many of them are swimming around. Exploring with the Seamoth is difficult, and is discouraged by the aforementioned power limits. I realize that there's some sort of temporary pacifying mechanic with Stalkers, which I think is great for an early predator, but I shouldn't be forced to figure this out with a terrifying predator that can kill me in 3-4 hits. Ultimately, the dangers of this ocean need balance: enough presence to keep you wary, but not so much that it discourages the sense of exploration.
5.) Personal Defenses - I've quickly realized that there is a very vocal section of this community that hates the idea of lethal weapons. And I can understand this, though if predators were tough to kill and respawned within a couple days I think this would be negligible at worst. But even in the realm of non-lethal, I think the game could use more than play dodge the alien shark and freeze the alien shark. Perhaps a repellent gun, that startles the predator into fleeing a good distance away. Aggressive use could drive it away from whatever resource you're after, whereas defensive use could save your skin when you've been blindsided by something viscous. And naturally, the biggest, scariest, and rarest predators could be immune. Additionally, some form of damage reduction would be a helpful counterbalance to some of the sense of lethality everything has. (Before anyone mentions that lethality is good and accurate, I agree, to a point. Again, I want to feel I can overcome challenges, but not ignore them.)
6.) Clock - Add a wristwatch to the game. It can be a really simple one, just give me something that lets me get away before nighttime mode descends and the Stalkers go on murder sprees. Bonus points if it includes a one-hour AI voice warning. As is, the text message seems to only tell me "It's night now, hope you're not someplace deadly.
7.) Story & Encyclopedia - Seen this one floating around, but I highly recommend it. And there's so many ways it could be implemented too. Read character journals as the days pass. Receive notifications from your trusty AI as you explore. Find logs from the Aurora amongst the scattered debris that speak of her final moments. Cultivate a database of information about the flora and fauna of the planet as you explore and collect.
8.) Radiation spread too subtle - I think we need some further AI voice messages to communicate that radiation is spreading after the Aurora detonates. Unless the player happens to notice radiation spread to an area he used to explore, he's just going to think it was always there. This could quickly turn deadly for a player if it encroaches on the life raft.
1.) Resource Respawn - While perhaps not the most realistic of things, one man should not be able to deplete the ocean. This seems especially true of items that fuel decreasing percentages, like fish and salt for food and water, copper and acid for batteries, etc. I got quickly turned away from survival mode when all of my salt was going to food, and both salt and fish seemed to be becoming rarer and rarer. Fears of running out of power, when I struggled to gather the resources for that fuel cell, also discourages my use of vehicles.
2.) Passive Fishing/Recharge - This ties into the above a bit, but also to a more important idea. I want to be able to not just survive, but thrive. To do that, I need to feel that my accomplishments are allowing me to overcome my initial hardships. On the most limited level, I feel the game really needs this for resources that fuel those same "decreasing percentages". Food and Water should have passive sources, and batteries/power cells should be rechargeable. A few ideas:
- A fish trap that passively collects food. Naturally, this will sample from all types of local wildlife, so active fishing will still be best for when you need to pack efficiently.
- Aquaculture farms could provide a great, long term supply of food and water. Again, this food could be relatively poor quality (maybe 5 food 5 water), so it's no good for carrying around, but great for feeding yourself when back at base. I feel farming should be tied into seabases only (adds purpose) and that food should be dependent on the biome your base is in (adds reason to build based in other regions)
- A desalination module that creates filtered water and salt from the literally endless supply that is the ocean. Again, the more space-savvy Disinfected Water can be reserved for active creation.
- A solar panel that recharges batteries/power cells that can be added the life raft. Gives it a unique upgrade in the late game, and having this process take time will still encourage keeping multiple backups.
- A hydroelectric generator, simple little battery/power cell recharger that is fueled by ocean currents. Fits well with Seabases.
3.) Navigation - As a new player, I find it really, really easy to get lost whenever I try to explore beyond a the safe shallows. This quickly makes for a bad user experience. The fact that the compass requires silver (for a computer chip) is equally daunting. This should be one of the first tools you can make, to give you an early navigation tool. Later, I could image creating a sort of sonar mapping tool that lets you get a feel for how the different biomes come together. Doesn't have to be a detailed map, just enough to let you find your way around.
4.) Predator Density - So the only other biome I've found thus far is the Kelp Forest, which is my early source of silver. Except that the Kelp Forest is teeming with Stalkers that I can't seem to outrun, fight off, or even avoid because of how many of them are swimming around. Exploring with the Seamoth is difficult, and is discouraged by the aforementioned power limits. I realize that there's some sort of temporary pacifying mechanic with Stalkers, which I think is great for an early predator, but I shouldn't be forced to figure this out with a terrifying predator that can kill me in 3-4 hits. Ultimately, the dangers of this ocean need balance: enough presence to keep you wary, but not so much that it discourages the sense of exploration.
5.) Personal Defenses - I've quickly realized that there is a very vocal section of this community that hates the idea of lethal weapons. And I can understand this, though if predators were tough to kill and respawned within a couple days I think this would be negligible at worst. But even in the realm of non-lethal, I think the game could use more than play dodge the alien shark and freeze the alien shark. Perhaps a repellent gun, that startles the predator into fleeing a good distance away. Aggressive use could drive it away from whatever resource you're after, whereas defensive use could save your skin when you've been blindsided by something viscous. And naturally, the biggest, scariest, and rarest predators could be immune. Additionally, some form of damage reduction would be a helpful counterbalance to some of the sense of lethality everything has. (Before anyone mentions that lethality is good and accurate, I agree, to a point. Again, I want to feel I can overcome challenges, but not ignore them.)
6.) Clock - Add a wristwatch to the game. It can be a really simple one, just give me something that lets me get away before nighttime mode descends and the Stalkers go on murder sprees. Bonus points if it includes a one-hour AI voice warning. As is, the text message seems to only tell me "It's night now, hope you're not someplace deadly.
7.) Story & Encyclopedia - Seen this one floating around, but I highly recommend it. And there's so many ways it could be implemented too. Read character journals as the days pass. Receive notifications from your trusty AI as you explore. Find logs from the Aurora amongst the scattered debris that speak of her final moments. Cultivate a database of information about the flora and fauna of the planet as you explore and collect.
8.) Radiation spread too subtle - I think we need some further AI voice messages to communicate that radiation is spreading after the Aurora detonates. Unless the player happens to notice radiation spread to an area he used to explore, he's just going to think it was always there. This could quickly turn deadly for a player if it encroaches on the life raft.
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