Dev Blog
Hi, this is the Stranded III development blog (see also Forum Thread, Comment Thread).
Entry 54 - Crafting Poll Result Evaluation - August 7, 2016
Coding Stuff
I'm currently busy preparing the basic multiplayer system so I can set up a test version. This will be a minimalist version without much gameplay. Basically moving placeholder player objects and chatting, collecting and dropping items.
This version is crucial to test the multiplayer system. I hope it works well on Win, Linux and Mac with a normal player client and - which is also very important - also with a headless client so people can run their own servers on actual servers without GPU.
Don't ask me when this version will be available. Unfortunately I have and had very little time to work on Stranded III this month.
Crafting Poll Result Evaluation
Last week I asked you about your opinion regarding how to do the crafting system in Stranded III and I received a lot of awesome and very useful feedback! Thank you very much!
The results of the poll at UnrealSoftware.de are (as of 07.08.2016, 6:51 pm, UTC+1):
about 2/3 (60 people, 65.93%) voted for the old SI and SII guessing approach
and 1/3 (31 people, 34.07%) voted for a list of combinations.
There's a ton of great comments as well. At UnrealSoftware.de and here in the Disqus comments.
Here are some of the most important points I extracted from the comments:
Mix both approaches
Many people said that they would like a mix of both approaches. So once a combination has been found out, you can select it from a list and don't have to combine it again manually.
Hints
There were maaany cool ideas and comments regarding hints to make the game less frustrating.
Hints in item descriptions (this already was the case for several items in SII).
Hints when crafting failed. e.g: Saying which items might be wrong or missing.
A dynamic list of craftable items (or only their contours if they have not been discovered yet) based on the selected items. Could also show items for which you would have to select some more items.
A count for each item, saying in how many crafting combinations it is used so the player can safely ignore some items while trying.
Blueprints
Blueprints could be part of the game, directly unlocking specific combinations so you don't have to find them out manually. They can be actual items which an be shared and traded. This could even be a multiplayer setting, controlling that you own/know specific combinations already so you don't have to "learn" them again manually in each new multiplayer session.
Option to toggle
There could also be an option to toggle completely between both approaches so everyone can play the way he prefers.
A thought from me on this: It would actually be pretty interesting to implement this in early releases and to track how many people use which setting...
Crafting Skill
A crafting skill could influence how good you are at crafting and how many hints you get.
So... what will I go for?
After reading all the comments, my current plan is the following:
Stranded III will use a mix of both approaches but you will have to find out combinations by trial and error!
There will be a much more sophisticated hint system:
When selecting items for crafting you will see a list of possible combinations which contain these items (it updates instantly when selecting other items)
The results (resulting items of crafting combinations) are grayed out unless you discovered them already
You will also see combinations which need additional items or which only have some items in common
how many combinations you see and how big the difference from the selected items can be is governed by your crafting skill, making it easier to discover new combinations when you have a high crafting skill level
I will also keep a list of combinations you already discovered so you can easily craft these things again.
It will probably reset with each new game to keep it more fair.
It will be possible to find/buy/trade blueprints to learn new, complicated combinations.
Optionally: Crafting skill influencing crafting speed / allowing to craft batches of items / higher quality items
Optionally: An icon or color code in the inventory, indicating that an item is part of no/one/multiple combinations (this could also be a perk/skill related thing)
This is the basic principle for crafting without workstations / required tools. Those however could be treated just like regular crafting ingredients in the hint system.
E.g.: A combination is only possible while standing at a forge. In that case the forge will be displayed as required item by the hint system. The forge itself will automatically be treated as a selected item when you use the forge (which then would basically open the player inventory with a little info icon/text saying that you're currently using a forge).
Or for tools: Maybe they would be "passive ingredients" meaning that you won't have to select them as part of the combination. They would however be displayed in the crafting book and in the hints, with a little icon indicating that they are required but that they are not ingredients and won't be spent when crafting.
Let me know what you think and thanks again for your valuable feedback! You are awesome!
I'm currently busy preparing the basic multiplayer system so I can set up a test version. This will be a minimalist version without much gameplay. Basically moving placeholder player objects and chatting, collecting and dropping items.
This version is crucial to test the multiplayer system. I hope it works well on Win, Linux and Mac with a normal player client and - which is also very important - also with a headless client so people can run their own servers on actual servers without GPU.
Don't ask me when this version will be available. Unfortunately I have and had very little time to work on Stranded III this month.
Crafting Poll Result Evaluation
Last week I asked you about your opinion regarding how to do the crafting system in Stranded III and I received a lot of awesome and very useful feedback! Thank you very much!
The results of the poll at UnrealSoftware.de are (as of 07.08.2016, 6:51 pm, UTC+1):
about 2/3 (60 people, 65.93%) voted for the old SI and SII guessing approach and 1/3 (31 people, 34.07%) voted for a list of combinations.There's a ton of great comments as well. At UnrealSoftware.de and here in the Disqus comments.
Here are some of the most important points I extracted from the comments:
Mix both approachesMany people said that they would like a mix of both approaches. So once a combination has been found out, you can select it from a list and don't have to combine it again manually.
HintsThere were maaany cool ideas and comments regarding hints to make the game less frustrating.
Hints in item descriptions (this already was the case for several items in SII). Hints when crafting failed. e.g: Saying which items might be wrong or missing. A dynamic list of craftable items (or only their contours if they have not been discovered yet) based on the selected items. Could also show items for which you would have to select some more items. A count for each item, saying in how many crafting combinations it is used so the player can safely ignore some items while trying. BlueprintsBlueprints could be part of the game, directly unlocking specific combinations so you don't have to find them out manually. They can be actual items which an be shared and traded. This could even be a multiplayer setting, controlling that you own/know specific combinations already so you don't have to "learn" them again manually in each new multiplayer session.
Option to toggleThere could also be an option to toggle completely between both approaches so everyone can play the way he prefers.
A thought from me on this: It would actually be pretty interesting to implement this in early releases and to track how many people use which setting...
Crafting SkillA crafting skill could influence how good you are at crafting and how many hints you get.
So... what will I go for?
After reading all the comments, my current plan is the following:
Stranded III will use a mix of both approaches but you will have to find out combinations by trial and error! There will be a much more sophisticated hint system: When selecting items for crafting you will see a list of possible combinations which contain these items (it updates instantly when selecting other items) The results (resulting items of crafting combinations) are grayed out unless you discovered them already You will also see combinations which need additional items or which only have some items in common how many combinations you see and how big the difference from the selected items can be is governed by your crafting skill, making it easier to discover new combinations when you have a high crafting skill level I will also keep a list of combinations you already discovered so you can easily craft these things again. It will probably reset with each new game to keep it more fair. It will be possible to find/buy/trade blueprints to learn new, complicated combinations. Optionally: Crafting skill influencing crafting speed / allowing to craft batches of items / higher quality items Optionally: An icon or color code in the inventory, indicating that an item is part of no/one/multiple combinations (this could also be a perk/skill related thing)This is the basic principle for crafting without workstations / required tools. Those however could be treated just like regular crafting ingredients in the hint system.
E.g.: A combination is only possible while standing at a forge. In that case the forge will be displayed as required item by the hint system. The forge itself will automatically be treated as a selected item when you use the forge (which then would basically open the player inventory with a little info icon/text saying that you're currently using a forge).
Or for tools: Maybe they would be "passive ingredients" meaning that you won't have to select them as part of the combination. They would however be displayed in the crafting book and in the hints, with a little icon indicating that they are required but that they are not ingredients and won't be spent when crafting.
Let me know what you think and thanks again for your valuable feedback! You are awesome!