Maybe 5500 is TOO far in the future.

[Tynan]

It's still a video game, it'll never be totally realistic. The goal is to make it interesting and basically believable; beyond that other concerns weight greater than fictional realism.

[Adamiks]

@Boston I must agree with this guy. It's like "but player lost his technology bla, bla bla" when normal pirates can fly on the orbit and send people in pods, so why they don't have any futuristic things? It's not logicial at all... It's like kids playing in "floor is lava", there is floor, but kids name it lava. Same in Rimworld. There IS futuristic technology in the player world, but you can't earn it. And what about weapon traders? They travel with a spaceship from planet to planet (in godspeed btw, how they can be space-traders in world without light speed, another thing that don't fit in the "lore"), but they sell fucking enfield carabins? For me it isn't logicial... "Hey, bro we can spend 5000 years traveling from planet to planet selling weapons from 2000 year!"

For me player should be able to earn more futuristic stuff, or game shouldn't have pods raiders and traders. Realistic don't always mean logicial. If you make sci-fi game that don't must be realistic i'm okay with that, but when player can only have weapons like Enfield, M16 etc. when pirates can pod-land into your base, but they don't have any futuristic weapons also then i'm not okay with that. It's so unrealistic.

[Elixiar]

It's still a video game, it'll never be totally realistic. The goal is to make it interesting and basically believable; beyond that other concerns weight greater than fictional realism.

Absolutely. I think it would a little absurd to say otherwise, and I just want to reel the thread in a little from its tangent.
Basically, if the game is set so far ahead in the future why is there not more future style elements? Guns would be the easiest way to make that apparent.

It all reminds me of a space age 'fallout universe' in which humanity has blown itself to bits. Sure you have people running around with clubs,
Some fire arms have been improvised or hand made,
Some people have found old world weapons like pistols and m-16s,
Then there's the brotherhood who demonstrate to us that lasers, plasma weapons and orbital artillery were very much existent before the world ended.

Everything needs to be more hodge bodge in the same way. Like Adamiks said it wouldn't make much sense if halo kept everything it did (slip space travel, giant cities, super soldiers) if they were still running around with M-16s.
That's not to say it must go, but considering every characters great differences.

A raider from 3201 (frozen for 2000+ years) should Be running around with a sub machine gun that in the lore is 3000 era tech.
Another from 2253 could be using an early survival rifle.
A glitterworld test lab soldier with a 4674 charge rifle.
(Different eras of technology and when it was made is the point here not guns matched to raiders.)

The 'lost for eons' tribal idea is great, it's just we can only imagine glitterworlds are the pinnacle of human achievement but we don't really get to see it apart from medicine and power armor.
Again, that's fine. But what about everything in between now and then?

If charge rifles and power armor are 5000 onwards tech what can we see from humanity's progress in the
3000 and 4000th era even if it's one item or knowing a catastrophic event happened in this time (humanity as a whole)?

If we don't or there is no intention of it, then that's why the post is titled what it is.

[CB elite]

It's still a video game, it'll never be totally realistic. The goal is to make it interesting and basically believable; beyond that other concerns weight greater than fictional realism.

I take no issue with the fact that a video game will never be totally realistic.
Part of the joy of video games is the fact that they aren't

The logic/lore you use to describe the existence of a tribals, outlanders, etc. is sound.
I have no issue with these groups of people existing, and quite enjoy their existence (even if some are utterly annoying in combat scenarios).

Mechanoid technological advancements are their own, and should be treated as such.

I can't ignore charge rifles and personal shields, though. These two technologies in human hands means that there are societies that we can interact with which are arguably advanced.

I don't know, Tynan. I just feel like there's this technological gap that should be filled at some point in the development of this game. That's not to undermine the hard work you've put into this game, trust me! The curve from neolithic weaponry to modern weaponry is fine, but the progression from modern weapons to spacer weapons seems a little... sudden? Also, it's important to note that weapons aren't the only form technology in the game; but, for me the weapons are such a huge, important aspect of surviving in RimWorld, that it's often the first example I turn to... sorry if that bothers anyone.

[Boston]

@Boston I must agree with this guy. It's like "but player lost his technology bla, bla bla" when normal pirates can fly on the orbit and send people in pods, so why they don't have any futuristic things? It's not logicial at all... It's like kids playing in "floor is lava", there is floor, but kids name it lava. Same in Rimworld. There IS futuristic technology in the player world, but you can't earn it. And what about weapon traders? They travel with a spaceship from planet to planet (in godspeed btw, how they can be space-traders in world without light speed, another thing that don't fit in the "lore"), but they sell fucking enfield carabins? For me it isn't logicial... "Hey, bro we can spend 5000 years traveling from planet to planet selling weapons from 2000 year!"

For me player should be able to earn more futuristic stuff, or game shouldn't have pods raiders and traders. Realistic don't always mean logicial. If you make sci-fi game that don't must be realistic i'm okay with that, but when player can only have weapons like Enfield, M16 etc. when pirates can pod-land into your base, but they don't have any futuristic weapons also then i'm not okay with that. It's so unrealistic.

Pretty much my point exactly. You can't really say "We are totally isolated", when there are interplanetary corporations sailing overhead (with plenty of stock to sell and cash to buy, mind you) every couple of days. With that in mind, due to the fact that you can talk over the radio to the various tribal groups and outlander towns, they have essentially NO REASON to stay the way they are, asides from some currently-unseen plot rationale. Considering how you can trade things like mined ores and animal skins to the bulk traders, the tribes and outlanders could do the same. Trade for tech, trade for equipment, trade for money, whatever. The point remains: the "isolation!" explanation falls apart under that rationale.

It would be "better" if tribals couldn't be talked to over the radio, and you could only "talk" to them either 1) when they came to visit, 2) by sending them an "envoy", or 3) offering them a place in your settlement (in the American Colonies, European settlers and various tribespeople would often live side by side, trading skills and materials, and often intermarrying. Look at  the Jamestown or Plymouth colonies)

Oh, and the whole "primitive, ancient" weapons-thing actually works, both in Rimworld and in WH40k, because the "old" stuff is TOUGH. And UNDERSTOOD. Seriously, in WH40k (38,000 years in the future, mind you, not 5000), the armies of humanity are still using bullet weapons, especially the M2 Browning HMG. Because it works. Yes, they have Laser (even though a lot of "fluff" about Las-weapons suggests they aren't lasers, but particle accelerators) and plasma weapons, but a "stubber" (in-universe term for a bullet-shooting firearm) can be left in the mud for months, then dragged out and smacked, and still work.

Personally, I would take a bullet-firearm over something fancy, even 5,000 years in the future. Less maintenance, for one, and easier to "understand".

[Adamiks]

I don't agree with "old" weapons that would "work" in 5000 year. Why? Because even now scientists are working on new, better material for armors. I'm really sure that 9mm bullet from normal pistol wouldn't "work" on futuristic non-kevlar armor. Even kevlar is good enough to stop some bullets, so what about materials from 3000-5000 year? Player have devilstrand and synthetic (how to write this? ;d) already so i'm really sure that humanity discovered new material for armor before player journey begin.

Btw i think that futuristic armors should look more like Nanosuit from Crysis, exoskeletonsuit or suti that makes your invisible (both exo and invisible suit can be made in like next 50-100 years from now, because we know how to be "invisible" ((kind of)) and we're creating more and more advanced "bionic" parts and robots every year, i don't know about nanosuits, but looking at Crysis lore these suits aren't really unrealistic, we would "only" need to find a way to produce energy from soldier's ass )

[Boston]

I don't agree with "old" weapons that would "work" in 5000 year. Why? Because even now scientists are working on new, better material for armors. I'm really sure that 9mm bullet from normal pistol wouldn't "work" on futuristic non-kevlar armor. Even kevlar is good enough to stop some bullets, so what about materials from 3000-5000 year? Player have devilstrand and synthetic (how to write this? ;d) already so i'm really sure that humanity discovered new material for armor before player journey begin.

Btw i think that futuristic armors should look more like Nanosuit from Crysis, exoskeletonsuit or suti that makes your invisible (both exo and invisible suit can be made in like next 50-100 years from now, because we know how to be "invisible" ((kind of)) and we're creating more and more advanced "bionic" parts and robots every year, i don't know about nanosuits, but looking at Crysis lore these suits aren't really unrealistic, we would "only" need to find a way to produce energy from soldier's ass )

In Warhammer 40K, they still use leather and steel and wool (hell, they even use PAPER), even though they have access to plasteel, admantium, and ceramite. Just because they have "access" to advanced materials, doesn't mean it is economically feasible to do so.

likewise with "primitive" firearms: they use them because they are cheap. Take a look at the WH40k lasgun, the most common firearm in the universe.(http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Lasgun) There are probably 100 lasguns for every human beings in the Imperium of Man, and yet, you still have gang members and Planetary Defense Forces and Adminsitratum police officers using "stubber" firearms. Why? Because stubbers are cheap.

Same thing with armor. Yes, WH40k has Power Armor that makes you next-to invincible, but the average Imperial Guard Trooper wears a Flak Vest that isn't all that impressive (well, they are completely impervious to bullets, but a las-beam or bolter-round go right through them). Why? Because Power Armor is expensive Hell, "Carapace armor". is expensive. (http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Carapace_Armour). Flak Armor is cheap.

And bullets are easy to make. You can crank out bullets in a machine shop, so long as you have the proper materials. A lasgun requires the supervision of a "Tech-Priest", and the charge-packs are supposedly rather finicky. Same thing with bolter-rounds. Dual stage projectiles, micro-computers that detect changes in mass, highly-pressurized jet fuel, explosive charges, all in something the size of your finger? Give me a bullet any day.

(although I do love me some lasrifles, yes)

[tommonius]

I really think the original poster is thinking to much on the concept of Humanity always advancing and I apologize in advance for the long post.

Look at the dark ages and how long it took for us to get through that time period, superstition and indoctrination to the "common normality" as well as persecution of those who thought out the box prevented advancement of a society.

Now consider Humanity spread over the stars and yet their is no "warp jumps" just the slow flight between worlds, that will cause communication to break down, now imagine a world suffers from some sort of disaster, say some colonists power cells or fail due to a solar flare or something to that effect, they have no way to contact others to get replacements and simply wait for a ship to come and do trade and it never arrives.

The next generation would view simple technology as wondrous where and the generation after that might view it as a gift from the gods.

Also you would not fall from current technology levels to say the iron age, after a few generations you would for the most part be in the stone age, people today for example have little day to day knowledge of the technology our ancestors used as it was rendered obsolete and forgotten.

Sure you might find a few enclaves with scraps of knowledge preserves and a few poorly maintained relics of the past but for the most part I foresee people wearing animal skins and wielding spears once more.

[A Friend]

Slightly change ballistic weapon art into a more techy style and make small changes to the description and viola... BS that can be accepted.

[Boston]

I really think the original poster is thinking to much on the concept of Humanity always advancing and I apologize in advance for the long post.

Look at the dark ages and how long it took for us to get through that time period, superstition and indoctrination to the "common normality" as well as persecution of those who thought out the box prevented advancement of a society.

Now consider Humanity spread over the stars and yet their is no "warp jumps" just the slow flight between worlds, that will cause communication to break down, now imagine a world suffers from some sort of disaster, say some colonists power cells or fail due to a solar flare or something to that effect, they have no way to contact others to get replacements and simply wait for a ship to come and do trade and it never arrives.

The next generation would view simple technology as wondrous where and the generation after that might view it as a gift from the gods.

Also you would not fall from current technology levels to say the iron age, after a few generations you would for the most part be in the stone age, people today for example have little day to day knowledge of the technology our ancestors used as it was rendered obsolete and forgotten.

Sure you might find a few enclaves with scraps of knowledge preserves and a few poorly maintained relics of the past but for the most part I foresee people wearing animal skins and wielding spears once more.

You do realize that during the so-called "Dark Ages", humanity actually ADVANCED in technology? The wind-mill, the crossbow, advancements in medicine, etc.

Anybody who calls the period "the Dark Ages" isn't taken seriously by historians, anymore. It actually wasn't all that bad.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Ages_(historiography)#Modern_academic_use

[Adamiks]

@Boston I still don't agree (about weapons). Things are expensive when people don't use some things everyday. For example robots. Try to buy any kind of inteligent robot (yes, we have them already). Try to buy any kind of robot 100 years from today. Prices are changing. People don't reasearch only weapons, they also reasearch cheap ways to make them, or way to find a "money" for them. When we will find a way to travel to another planets, EVERYTHING will be a lot cheaper. Dude, there are planets made from pure DIAMONDS! And it's not like that modern firearms are "cheap", our guns would be very expensive 100-200 years ago. I'm really sure that mankind will push and push to make their way into better technology, i think we will do it until we'll reach the Ultimate Knowledge. With your example people today should use blackpowder weapons. Why they're not using them? Because we have better guns and resources to make them, like people in future will have better guns and access to more and better resources for them. Blackpowder weapons "works" too, but even gangs are using normal guns anyway.

@tommonius. People get new knowledge even during Black Death. You see now? When things get worse than we're advancing faster. Most of simple technology have been "researched" during bad times, when people was hungry etc. It's working like that - do something or die. I really don't believe that futuristic colonists would land on new planet and they would return to stone age, because some asteroids came down. No, futuristic colonists would have technology that would help them in these situations. Even NOW we can protect ourselfs from asteroids! What about 1000 years in future? If asteroid would be size of Pluto then colonists would just fly to home/another planet, it's simple, isn't it? Saying that colonists would go back to stone age is hilarious, it's almost like saying that people discovered America using boat and they traveled without any food. It isn't working like that, when you want to spend next 2000 years flying to another planet you should make plans for situations that can happen on this happen or even what can happen to the planet in next 2500 years!

"Bus Ship-Crash number 524 is going to planet named... I don't fucking know, we're just traveling, if you want to spend next 2000 years flying just give us your cash. We have don't fucking idea about that star system and what can live there, no we didn't send any probes our use any high-tech telescops, because we're fucking idiots, our AI system is the best and it can fly over 50km without crashing!"

*New Game*

[Klitri]

Just gonna point out that the traders above aren't universe-wide traders.

It's already been explained (Can't remember where exactly) that they only travel to the closest stars or planets, they don't go far at all.

[Adamiks]

Just gonna point out that the traders above aren't universe-wide traders.

It's already been explained (Can't remember where exactly) that they only travel to the closest stars or planets, they don't go far at all.

Traveling to another star wtihout light speed may take your whole life, at very least.

[Kegereneku]

I once did an unofficial fan-explanation of why there is "regular spaceship going around".

It hinge around the following :
- Near the center of the galaxy inhabited star system can be around 2~10 light-years aways.
- Most spaceship are automated cargo, human passenger being cargo.
- There is a market for people to abandon even high-tech planet toward another one even primitive in hope of having a more fulfilling live, fleeing rules or ruling over natives.
- Spaceship are reliable only over 10/20 years of travels, so stopping near inhabitable planets for checkup is preferred.
- Spaceship AI/Pirates will trade worthless items/human for better/exotic one.

Though I wouldn't mind if there was a purely local trade-system, exchange of scavenged part from archaeological site and dropped container.

[Adamiks]

"- Near the center of the galaxy inhabited star system can be around 2~10 light-years aways."
Rimworld ISN'T in the center of galaxy, this is why it's called Rimworld.

"- Most spaceship are automated cargo, human passenger being cargo."
"- There is a market for people to abandon even high-tech planet toward another one even primitive in hope of having a more fulfilling live, fleeing rules or ruling over natives."
There is so much of them than you can have a ship every 5 days? You know how much more it takes to travel even to another planet, not talking about stars without light speed?

"- Spaceship are reliable only over 10/20 years of travels, so stopping near inhabitable planets for checkup is preferred."
Why? Ships in games have reactors that (i think) make fuel from nothing. And 10/20 years? If this would work like this player wouldn't crash on Rimworld.

"- Spaceship AI/Pirates will trade worthless items/human for better/exotic one."
Explain nothing. That they WANT something don't make it possible (sorry, your dreams will stay just dreams)

It's like creating "story" in FNAF that don't have any story. It's just working like that and it's not logicial, don't look for much sense when there isn't any.