[A14] My thoughts.

[Vagabond]

Two things.

1) EdBs mods seem to have been mostly integrated, save the pawn editor from "prepare carefully". I think this should be put in game and integrated into the scenario-new game set up. Would make the start of the game more interesting.

2) More tech levels, with each tech level being able to afford appropriate healthcare, weapons/armor/equipment, survival, and happiness.

Humans are incredibly adaptable at all levels of technology throughout human history. Being able to thrive nearly anywhere, with whatever their level of development affords.

More than ever, I believe my suggestion for multiple requirements to a particular technology is needed.

Starting tech level is decided by the scenario, but it isn't just some arbitrary limitation. It simply dictates what kind of backgrounds you have available during pawn creation. It is the pawns, and their backgrounds that determines technology level. What this means, is that if you start out with primitive characters due to a scenario, then you must start from the very bottom of the tech tree.  If you start as with glitterworld pawns, then you start with all previous research researched, but must research glitterworld tech.

Each technology corresponds to a particular tech level, and has skill level requirements. Every tech "recipe" requires:

-Research of X
-Construction or craft of X
-other skill of X

So hydroponics would require research of X, construction of X, and farming of X. While something like mining lasers would require research of x, craft of x, and mining of x. The three colonist involved in unlocking and researching the tech would all have to be of the same or higher technology level of the technology itself. So in the case of hydroponics everyone would have to be at least of Indworld tech level or higher (ie, an indworld farmer, urbworld builder, and glitterworld researcher).

My reasoning behind this is that you need someone to have the idea (the farmer for hydroponics), someone who is capable of understanding the idea and devising a strategy to implement it (the glitterworld researcher for hydroponics), and someone capable of actually building or crafting the object or device from the researcher notes/blueprint/ect. (the urbworld builder for hydroponics).

This makes it sufficiently difficult to advance in technology level while not making it to easy, or just having an arbitrary limitation of advancement.

EDIT: To clarify- when one starts out a low technology level, and acquire pawns from a higher tech level, they don't automatically advance as if they started at that tech level. They must work all the way through the tech tree and the technology levels in order to advanced as opposed to starting as a higher technology level and already having everything before it already known and working up from there.

[b0rsuk]

Rimworld already seems to be heading in that direction, all recent alphas made the tech tree longer, if only by making base things require research and bumping the numbers. But I think your proposal goes too far into Civilization direction.

Aren't you happy with the Lost Tribe scenario ?

[winddbourne]

In a word, no . . . I'm not content with the lost tribe scenario.

I understand why veteran players would be. They bought Robinson Crusoe in space and got all of this instead. But that isn't what someone who just bought Rimworld on Friday was promised. They bought a colony simulation game. It's still very bare bones but it's got a solid foundation

New people don't want to escape the planet. This isn't some sort of temporary situation. We are playing a colony simulator, we expect to be here as long as we can survive. Our goal is to grow and develop our colony.  Eventually we should wind up with a thriving village or even a city. On that level this is definitely an alpha build.

We can't lay out roads. We can't plan structures and queue them up to be constructed in any set order. Trade is rudementary. Government doesn't exist. We can't even actively recruit guests, or advertise for colonists from nearby settlements or off world. I expect more of everything and a lot more tech levels.

To be fair Tynan had a nearly complete Robinson Crusoe simulation game . . . then he changed all the rules in alpha 14 and introduced THAT vision to a ton of new players. The expectations are going to be completely different from here on out. I'm not sure I agree with this particular suggestion but I definitely can't say I'd be content with just the lost tribes scenario.

[keylocke]

i think you got "colony simulation" confused with "city builder".

even among colony simulation games, rimworld doesn't fit snugly in that genre either, since rimworld also has survival simulation going on.

ie : a player can play rimworld even with just a single pawn like a survival sim, since there's no singular "correct" way of playing rimworld. some people may like to play similarly to you, while others might enjoy playing it another way.

i actually play it more from an RTS + colony building POV, with a huge emphasis on tactical battles and strategies, so i can relate with some of your sentiments.

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edit : also "roads" in rimworld are essentially just "floors". so check your floor tab.

my suggestion would be to play a bit more until you actually get a hang of it. google some guides if you're still a bit confused about the game mechanics.

[winddbourne]

A colony simulation is a village/city simulation with survival elements . . . you can't have a colony with just one person.

When you call something a colony simulator then people expect a set of options to be available related to planning out, governing, and otherwise managing a growing permanent settlement. Sure you can choose to disable those options for specific scenarios, or not use them if it doesn't fit your play style . . . but they need to be there.

Roads and paths, for example, aren't just floor tiles . . . they are priority pathing that help determine how pawns move through an area, and perhaps are designed to have more than 100% movement speed. This is important if you want to have large farming areas and quickly transport the produce to separate living spaces along well defended routes.

Do you HAVE to plan separate zones with different functions? Of course not. You don't even have to have roads in your settlement . . . but if I'm running a colony the option is expected . . . For that matter if I did want a "colony" of one wouldn't I require some government options to let me control immigration?

[makkenhoff]

Eh, I was just playing with one "colonist" and having quite a bit of fun. You just have to adjust your tactics. Being a cannibal, new joining wanderers make a great meal, not to mention all those escape pod vict...errr foodstuffs. 

[winddbourne]

Awesome . . . it is great that this game can get so dark and that's an extra I don't expect from a colony sim game. But what if you wanted to play a kind hermit? Or if you wanted to limit the growth of your colony to a set number of people without being a cannibal?

[Vagabond]

Rimworld already seems to be heading in that direction, all recent alphas made the tech tree longer, if only by making base things require research and bumping the numbers. But I think your proposal goes too far into Civilization direction.

Aren't you happy with the Lost Tribe scenario ?

There are continuity errors, I think. It is fun starting out as them, but there isn't enough content to promote play as a tribal people. You should be able to play a tribe and not only survive but thrive within that technology level, and once you acquire a sufficient amount of higher tech people, you should be able to begin advancing technology levels. That is what I think, anyways.

[keylocke]

A colony simulation is a village/city simulation with survival elements . . . you can't have a colony with just one person.

When you call something a colony simulator then people expect a set of options to be available related to planning out, governing, and otherwise managing a growing permanent settlement. Sure you can choose to disable those options for specific scenarios, or not use them if it doesn't fit your play style . . . but they need to be there.

Roads and paths, for example, aren't just floor tiles . . . they are priority pathing that help determine how pawns move through an area, and perhaps are designed to have more than 100% movement speed. This is important if you want to have large farming areas and quickly transport the produce to separate living spaces along well defended routes.

Do you HAVE to plan separate zones with different functions? Of course not. You don't even have to have roads in your settlement . . . but if I'm running a colony the option is expected . . . For that matter if I did want a "colony" of one wouldn't I require some government options to let me control immigration?

that's why i said rimworld does not fit snugly in the strict definitions of "colony builder". it is a hybrid genre. so whatever your expectations are about "colony building" it does not automatically mean rimworld should be exactly like that.

which is why playing with a single pawn is perfectly acceptable in rimworld.

as for roads vs floor tiles..

try to order a pawn to go from point A to B and connect those two points together with floor tiles, IF the travel time between point A to B is faster by going in a straight line than following your "road" then yea, your pawns will ignore your road and travel through the faster path.

^this is another indication why you shouldn't categorize rimworld strictly as a colony builder.

it has elements of colony building, but it does not necessarily strictly follow it's conventions.

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i think the easiest way to describe it is that rimworld is based on dwarf fortress and not sim city.

[Thane]

Tribe Built House. House stood strong!

Tribe plant Food. Food Feed us all!

Tribe be attacked by bad Tribes. Tribe win!

Tribe get sick. Tribe Medicine Man Beat Sickness Demons!

As a tribe we have decided to give up our nomadic ways and make a go at space travel. Bravo good chap!

^How the scenario plays out right now.

[keylocke]

you can actually customize the scenario and remove the ability to build any electric and space related stuff.

you can also disable the wanderer joins events.

a lot of these stuff are already available via the scenario editor.

[robohunterx]

On the thought of Tech-Trees, I would love to see an actual Tech, "Tree" in the game, instead of the flat list. While yes, the current list is broad at each level, (You can research like up to 10 things or so, so making a tree would most likely not look like a tree, but instead some flat square thing...) it would still make it more apparent the flow of tech that you're supposed to follow.