Can we please stop calling it Colonization when it's really not?

I very much agree with this thread. You hit the nail on the head. I was one of the early purchasers because of the whole colonization process. I agree to everything. After you have built buildings and such, they move in and you can assign them jobs to mine and cut and farm for you. then you could pay them a salary. Just something like that. Give it some more life. Teat's why Terraria gets exciting from the beginning, you get life with you. Not just yourself with your weak little manipulator and some pissed off monsters. It would be nice to be able to own a colony of Novakids. Make the Starbound Wild West.

 

I don't know, I think it's a great post. But it also doesn't come across as complaining to me, especially with the fact it's in discussion form with actual feedback and ideas. While I'm excited at least some form of colonization is finally here, I also share his concerns 100%.

Couldn't agree more! I've seen the potential depth colonization could have for a long time. My post HERE from awhile back has some ideas involving setting up trade routes, warehouses, bases of operation, etc (almost like an economy sim).

I too was (and still am) expecting more detail in regards to building. Like you mentioned, being able to designate actual purposes for the buildings (warehouse, town center, marketplace, etc) is all something I'd like to see. The good news is that, while this may not be a complete colonization system, I do see it as a good start. This system isn't robust, but it does lay the foundation in terms of codding/scripting that can be expanded upon. Already we see the code is there for specific items to be recognized within a building. And we see the code is there (via a colony deed) to recognize a building and check for requirements. From there it doesn't seem too hard to expand that to feature more depth.

I'd even settle for the ability to buy business/land deeds from the Frog Merchant that we can manually place within a structure to designate it. It could work just like the Colony Deed, and scan the building to make sure all the requirements are met. Then it's only a matter of recognizing all the buildings within an area of a "Town Center" in order to qualify said colony as a city, village, outpost, etc. From there give us the benefits of said buildings and colony. The code is there at least, which is encouraging.

And I'm with you in regards to making a colony system the main progression for the story. The only downside to that, and it's completely understandable, is that would not appeal at all to the more adventure-minded players who have no desire to build. Thus tying colonization to the main story wouldn't be the best method. That said, I think that as an alternative to the outpost, a colony should be able to spawn NPCs that pretty much offer the same progression quests found in the Outpost. I'll reserve my opinion on that though until after the storyline is complete (still all placeholder).

 

Before I say anything else, what is up with that avatar?Is nobody else seeing that it's a topless floran with sexy time eyes?Seriously, change it already, would ya?

Disregarding the nsfw avatar, all of your sugestions are quite fine, but, like just about everything in the game, its still something in active development with a high chance of a revamp later on.

Gotta start with something before you go big, we need concrete, electricity and food before we think of nuclear fusion and Space travel.Get where Im going at?

 

The colony system isn't intended to function like a city management sim.
For one thing, instead of managing a huge faceless mass, you're managing individual characters with personalities and it all feels a lot more personal. In my experience, I build a lot of stuff that I don't plan for my character to inhabit herself. I like that I can find tenants instead of just leaving those places abandoned. I really do need to get around to building a whole town.

The feature is going to be expanded upon in the future, too!

 

Any chance you can tell us what the expansions are planned to look like? Will NPCs have jobs? Will you be able to build armies?

 

This is the primary concern when people are making suggestions and criticism, people say "It's not complete therefore don't complain" but since the feature is so early in development we have no idea what the end product is going to look like we need to voice concerns to help steer it in the direction we desire.

 

Steer what? Taking over baking a cake when all they've done was crack the eggs is just a dick move. They havent even had enough time to do anything "wrong" and in need of steering.

 

Simplifying a development process to baking a cake really doesn't help anything. Here we have a feature called colonization where you can essentially make houses to rent out. People have a concern this might be all there is to this feature, in the end just being a more diverse HAPPY HOME DESIGNER which can end up lacking replay value. Because we have no end image to compare the feature to we have to make speculations. Making suggestions on early development of a feature only helps it become better, period.

 

They have repeatedly said they are not done. Nothing should ever be assumed to be complete unless they say it is, or its the official 1.0 release.

 

To sit and wait for something to be complete and then start asking for adjustments and changes can be much more troublesome and ineffective than steering the direction of development from the get go. This game is being built upon player feedback, not on 1.0 Release Feedback, we're here providing feedback on what currently exists, what is here, and what is planned.

 

Feedback on speculation is never good. We can only provide feedback for what we have, which is not enough to really goo off. I never said wait till 1.0 to provide feedback.

CF is baking a cake. They just cracked the eggs. Lets see how they start mixing things together before we comment on the direction development is headed. CF has a plan in their heads, and starting to try and "steer" them this early is a poor choice.

 

I disagree, we have the first part of the feature, which is more than enough to provide feedback on. If Chucklefish or any company chooses to leave more detailed info on their plans out of sight or easy access, it's completely reasonable to have concerns based on speculation, because that speculation is based on what the person providing feedback knows. I don't know any game that ended up becoming worse because it listened to player feedback very early on. Hence why player feedback on early game development only ever improves a game.

 

Feedback on something your are making up. That's what speculation is...

If you wanted to say "I don't think colonists should give you anything over time.", that is based on factual information. We know of this feature, we know how it works, so we can criticize it. To criticize features we know nothing about is misguided.

They said they have plans, so lets let them reveal them so we have more to go on. As it is, we have nothing.

 

If they have a plan then why not tell us? Informing players with concerns that are misplaced is better than telling them to stop complaining over something unfinished. If you don't want to provide feedback until you have enough information that you yourself is satisfied with then that's fine. But please don't criticize or tell others to do the same when they clearly want to provide feedback on what they deem is enough information. That being said this feedback is completely based on factual information, we know right now that colonization currently is, make house, get paid, and the concern is that the overall feature won't be more diverse, it won't add features upon this feature. And right now we don't know whether it will or won't but better off letting the developers know of your concerns now than risking the development of something that is unwanted.

 

Because they aren't ready to tell us?

Your factual information is under the assumption that it is ALL the system will be, which has been said several time, is not all there is going to be. Till we know more, making a claim of it lacking diversity is reification.

 

Why aren't they ready to tell us? If they have a plan then that inherently means there is enough information to pass onto players. What reason is there to not reveal that? We're told that the current feature isn't all it's going to be but what is it going to fully be? My factual information is based on this is what the feature currently is, and that we have no idea what the feature is going to be at the end only that it's going to be "better". You can tell someone to not worry all you want but if you're not going to give them a reason why when they ask then I think that's enough to worry about.

 

Your status message is extremely ironic.

That is a loaded question(s?).

 

It isn't a loaded question, it's honest criticism and concern. My point is, is that player x has a concern about the current status of feature y and and developer z says not to worry, that's not all the feature will be, we have a plan. Player x asks then what is the final planned feature? developer z gives no response. It raises a lot of questions which in turn justify the original feedback. You are trying to give reasons on Chucklefish's account and I'm having more questions based on those reasons. This is my point

 

You are right, it isn't loaded, is an appeal to ignorance. Obviously I don't know why CF isn't giving more details, but they have said they have a plan and more is to come.

Worry all you want, but don't inject that worry into criticism without knowing more about what the final system will entail. They are mutually exclusive at this point till we know more.