Essential features in a single-player space game?

[Paxton]

I'm making something. Basic mechanics should be ready for pre-alpha public testing soon.
Planet/moon surface exploration?
Trading?
Complex colony mechanics?
How would you like to see things like population growth handled?
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[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[luj1]

Freelancer.

 

[Mustawd]

It’s gotta take place in Space. Preferably.

 

[DraQ]

Actual space.

Most space games seem to be forgetting this part.

 

[Paxton]

You can run out of space on planets.
What do you mean by "actual space?"
I have currently implemented only one starsystem, with nonsensically arranged planets.

 

[DraQ]

What do you mean by "actual space?"

Space that looks and mostly works like space?

Are you at all familiar with the phrase "...like God, Isaac Newton and Heinlein intended"?

 

[Paxton]

Space is working properly.

 

[KlauZ]

Most space sims are missing the one thing that actually makes space so alluring in the first place: Breaking a New Frontier. In terms of gameplay i'd say it breaks up in two features: enviromental hazards (asteroids, hitting gas clouds on relativistic speed, sun flares, etc) and exploration of Wierd shit. Think of planets in Interstellar, Space whales, unknowingly catching Tribble on some planet who will eat wiring on your hyperdrive at the point when you decide that its time fly away from black hole's gravity pull...

Instead we mine asteroids, dogfight with pirates and build transport empires. Why even go in space for that shit?

 

[DraQ]

Most space sims are missing the one thing that actually makes space so alluring in the first place: Breaking a New Frontier. In terms of gameplay i'd say it breaks up in two features: enviromental hazards (asteroids, hitting gas clouds on relativistic speed, sun flares, etc) and exploration of Wierd shit. Think of planets in Interstellar, Space whales, unknowingly catching Tribble on some planet who will eat wiring on your hyperdrive at the point when you decide that its time fly away from black hole's gravity pull...

Instead we mine asteroids, dogfight with pirates and build transport empires. Why even go in space for that shit?

TBH I don't mind dogfighting pirates, but for WW1 style dogfighting space is entirely superfluous and if you decide to fuck reality anyway, then fake space fighters are about the least cool thing you can do - either go full with your sci-fi (the absolutely softest thing you are allowed to have if you really must is some sort of hyperdrive and you'd better cook at least some semi-plausible excuse regarding closed timelike curves then), or embrace the fact that you're making fantasy (if I can't play as jetpack equipped dragon traversing luminiferous aether I am unlikely to be interested in your fakespace "sci"-fi).

 

[Wunderbar]

Hot alien chicks

 

[ortucis]

I find trading in space games boring as fuck and honestly, fucking stupid.

SPACE, THE FINAL FRONTIER.. now do you wanna buy 500 wool? Who is paying more for 1000 iron?

 

[DraQ]

I find trading in space games boring as fuck and honestly, fucking stupid.

Stupid depends on what you're trading in but it should never be the focus of the game, more like pawning off vendor trash in RPGs.

 

[KlauZ]

I think trading can be a bit more interesting if there are dynamic systems in place AND a simulation of hype effect. If a system with unique xenomorph oil deposits got destroyed, then for a short time the prices for it should skyrocket beyond reasonable. Or you could speculate with some cheap toys on the verge of some national holiday.

Spoiler

OK that's pretty much all i've got from reading spice and wolf and witcher.

Also you could probably make some interesting things with unique government taxes and various trade lincences.

 

[ortucis]

I still wanna know why in the future, humans spend millions designing and buying next-gen space fighting machines, only to trade generic cargo from RPG universe (but renamed).

I understand if you make a trading simulator where players can buy cargo ships designed specifically to transport shitton of cargo from one planet to the other, but in games out there right now, you're transferring pathetic amount of cargo while the game ignores the cost of "space fuel" and "space repairs", a ship would have to go through while doing all that.

To be honest, I would ignore such things if the game was about trading on a planet. But we're talking about bloody SPACE here. So many things you can do, and you still want to design a fucking trading simulator in space? Bleh!

/rant

 

[Falksi]

Alien-tits

 

[DraQ]

I swill wanna know why in the future, humans spend millions designing and buying next-gen space fighting machines, only to trade generic cargo from RPG universe (but renamed).

I understand if you make a trading simulator where players can buy cargo ships designed specifically to transport shitton of cargo from one planet to the other, but in games out there right now, you're transferring pathetic amount of cargo while the game ignores the cost of space fuel and space repairs a ship would have to go through while doing all that.

To be honest, I would ignore such things if the game was about trading on a planet. But we're talking about bloody SPACE here. So many things you can do, and you still want to design a fucking trading simulator in space? Bleh!

/rant

There are few things that could conceivably be worth transporting interstellar distances rather than mined/grown/made on-site. Additionally trading tends to be a terminally boring affair (as anyone who's ever tried to afford a Panther Clipper by doing Barnard's-Sol milkruns with luxury goods and robots can attest).

For an owner of small ship and a mercenary/bounty hunter/odd job person it makes more sense to be engaged in low volume things like smuggling, courier jobs and pawning-off spoils and salvage.

 

[Burning Bridges]

A lot of things come to mind but if you ask me the 1 most important how to make a space game right, the first thing would be to make space black (not blue/green/orange like in most tryhard space games).

Also look at a lot of pictures from NASA and not from tryhard space.

You will see that if you want color, there is still plenty of it on the planets. (but not in fucking space!)

 

[ortucis]

A lot of things come to mind but if you ask me the 1 most important how to make a space game right, the first thing would be to make space black (not blue/green/orange like in most tryhard space games).

Also look at a lot of pictures from NASA and not from tryhard space.

You will see that if you want color, there is still plenty of it on the planets. (but not in fucking space!)

I follow a lot of "space games" on Steam and buy some every now and then. One thing I've noticed, majority of them aim for shittiest visuals possible. Cartoon-like textures designed for a cell shaded game, but "not really". So alien worlds don't really look alien or unique, they all feel so fake.

To be fair, designing a proper realistic game would require the developers to actually have some artistic capabilities/sense and most of the space games are designed by programmers first and thus lack any interesting environments at all.

For example, Osiris is one of the few games which try to actually have some atmosphere (despite still not being "realistic" visually):

 

[I'm Big Into Anal]

a decent UI for starters

 

[Jacob]

Seamless planet/outer space transition.

I am willing to accept a game that is only set in a single planet's orbit if it has that. And dont make the planet boring.

 

[Burning Bridges]

A lot of things come to mind but if you ask me the 1 most important how to make a space game right, the first thing would be to make space black (not blue/green/orange like in most tryhard space games).

Also look at a lot of pictures from NASA and not from tryhard space.

You will see that if you want color, there is still plenty of it on the planets. (but not in fucking space!)

I follow a lot of "space games" on Steam and buy some every now and then. One thing I've noticed, majority of them aim for shittiest visuals possible. Cartoon-like textures designed for a cell shaded game, but "not really". So alien worlds don't really look alien or unique, they all feel so fake.

To be fair, designing a proper realistic game would require the developers to actually have some artistic capabilities/sense and most of the space games are designed by programmers first and thus lack any interesting environments at all.

For example, Osiris is one of the few games which try to actually have some atmosphere (despite still not being "realistic" visually):

Osiris does the impression of being on an alien planet quite well, but unfortunately they also somewhat ruined it with megastructures like a giant sandworm skeleton and rock arches. In that respect I had to find the few bullshit-free places for my base to uphold my immersion.

Btw, Hellion is the only current game I know that presents all visual aspects of space right, without planetary landings of course (but they have asteroid mining)

 

[commie]

Joystick controls.

 

[KlauZ]

Just dropping in random thoughts.

Space Rangers 2 pretty much nailed down everything essential for a proper privateer game. Anything less will ring a bit hollow.

Maybe a proper orbital\newton physics? In 2d game it should be more managable than in 3d.

If you are going to have evolving universe, maybe actually ditch FTL-Travel? Spending months on travelling between planets will make changes more noticable, spending years between stars will even more drastic and intriguing.

If there is FTL it should be dangerous. Wrong destinations, shock to your ship systems, space-time collapse at a jump point that will have a potential of planetwise devastation, demons capturing your soul in immateriuim.

 

[J_C]

1. Space
2. Spaceship
/thread