A plea for not adding too much stuff

I'm rather new to Starbound (and this forum in particular), but I think a lot has already been said about making existing items and materials useful which currently don't really serve a purpose. I just want to say that I believe this is an even more important desing task than introducing new content until the game will be released.
Of course new content is always cool and exciting, but the novelty wears off. What makes a game inherently complex, variable and thus replayable are relations between the objects and states/functions of the game world.
I'm not saying each block type or item must have a use (aside from decoration), but I think improving the ratio between stuff you can already find and its usability should be a high priority.
Just think of burning coal blocks. How excited I was when I found out I could carry those home from the first underground structure I encountered. I believed they would enable me to build an underfloor heating - but no...
They should. While this is only one little point (just give them a "light" attribute?), a relatively small number of such additional relations or uses would improve the game a lot. Of course this means some work, you need to think about it carefully, but this game deserves a strong foundation. Remember the old motto "form follows function".

I remember when lapislazuli ore was added to Minecraft. So deep down in your mines, along with gold and diamonds, you could happily find a new rare block - with a solely aesthetical purpose. And that happened at a time where you could hardly find a use for all your gold already. IMHO that was a mistake, and from that point on Minecraft started "overcompensating" its little basic flaws and wasted potentials with that nether-portal-enderdragon storyline and all the game mechanics which were introduced on behalf of it. I would not like to see Starbound taking a similar direction.

The game world of Starbound is gigantic by design, and its procedural randomness is a great asset if it leads to different experiences and playstyles depending on where you go. To achieve this you basically need 2 things:
- a more dense network of relations
- a less equal distribution of objects in the universe (also per sector)

What you do not necessarily need is:
- more materials or uncraftable items
- more storyline

However, you may sell us this kind of additions later
Herewith I rest my case.

 

Sir. This is a beta.

I think your plea, considering what I saw on the thing for Starbounds future, isnt going to be heeded. That said, expect alot of CHANGE in the games current infrastructure. And when I say expect alot, youre playing a prototype compared to what theyre gonna do to it.

 

I'm well aware of this, and I have read the "Future of Starbound" statement, but I think it doesn't address what I tried to say because it talks about a different level of game design.

EDIT: And by the way a beta is not a prototype...

 

I have downloaded Industrialization, FrackinFlora, MadTulips, and Variety is the spice of the Universe, all of which add a lot of materials and crafting items. I am also eagerly looking forward to storyline quests based on race, so your ideas conflict with my own.

 

Yes it is. Hence Beta.

 

BETA:
: a nearly complete prototype of a product (as software) <released in beta> <the beta version>

 

This is someone who probably sees Beta as part of something used by most F2P games to act as a shield, and Starbound is actually in Beta (and that's being generous) and it's like the truth of participating in an actual Beta is a huge shock to them.

 

I for one can't wait for more items and story.

The game is growing and the more choices and directions it has, the better for the game overall. Everyone seems to know what path Starbound should be taking, but seems to ignore the fact it is already on that path and many more

 

A "prototype" is defined as follows:
"a first, typical or preliminary model of something, esp. a machine, from which other forms are developed or copied."
So it's actually quite applicable to use it in this context. Starbound is currently in less of a beta phase than it is in an alpha phase. Though it may be playable, a large amount of the progress has not yet been made. It's simply called a beta because that's what most people call "unfinished" games, and it's a term recognizable to most of the audience.

 

Hehehe reminded me of this: http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com.br/2010/04/alot-is-better-than-you-at-everything.html

 

This discussion about beta and prototype seems entirely irrelevant to the OP.

R. Dee's concerns deal with the level of useability of objects and materials that are already in the game. The OP is pretty specific in it's scope for discussion. This forum is read by the dev's to see what the community likes, hates, and wants to see more/less of. So, complaints about the types of suggestions that people post in regards to the game are completely unwarranted.

The argument, "this is beta" is redundant, unnecessary, and unproductive. We know. We're aware. Thank you for the reminder.

 

My god
A thread with common sense and no drama?

War...has changed.

But yeah, its still a beta buddy
Right now we cant really tell where they are going.

 

lol, which is why this is a good time to make suggestions and discuss what we like or want to change about the game.

 

i sure there be more changes this is beta after all

 

I agree with your main point, but I think the issue at hand may be a misunderstanding of who does what in the game development. If there are people who just make art assets, who just code game systems, who just write lore, why cant we have all of it happen at the same time?

The people that make art assets probably know how to code them into the game via code blue print or small programming knowledge. If the lore writer just writes lore, and the artists just do the art work, then what do these people do in the mean time while core mechanics are being worked upon, nothing? They should still contribute their skills to the game while core mechanics get worked on. I don't think it detracts from the development process.

 

Of course it does all happen at the same time, but still resources are limited and choices must be made. I'm just a bit anxious about it because of experiences I had with "early access" games in the past. People tend to love new content as it's always good for news and gives a strong impression of progress, so refining what's already there might get neglected. I'm not assuming this will happen here, but we haven't been told otherwise either.

 

more story i don't care about your dumb blocks :/

 

I believe the OP's main point was to enrich the existing structures, which is valuable feedback and is, IMO, indeed superior to adding more stuff. Not to say they shouldn't add more stuff, but making all the stuff matter is what counts for more.

Certain mods add complexity, but I concur that vanilla elements should tie into each other as much as they can.

 

a) Well he certainly presented it badly if that was the main point.

b) Refining is already in the works if anyone bothered to read the Starbound plans. For Gods sake, half the updates up 'till now were about rebalancing and story/quest stories are in the works.
This isn't a plea, by those standards. This is:

Just a more complex version of this statement, which is just whiny impatience.
It's been said it's going to be made, so far I have the impression that the devs aren't really "neglecting" much, moreso setting up stable ground for what's to come.
If you want to build a story with little to no resources to support it, then good luck to you mad men.

Don't know why I even bothered. You basically just presented a perfect version of what I even fathomed of saying. My salute to ya.


EDIT: Also to the comment of Minecraft, I actually truly enjoyed the Enderdragon fight and the story at the end was something I truly loved. So much that I jotted it down.
So try presenting something a -little- more factual. Little changed in the video game world because of opinions.

 

I'd say it was the main point. Sorry if my post was that hard to understand.

Factual? I honestly can't see any facts around here. But I don't mind, opinions are completely sufficient.