So i was really hyped about Starbound and bought it when it first released, I played it alot for maybe 3 weeks but then i stopped because it felt like i had done everything in the game. So what im wondering is, is it worth playing right now or should i wait more?
As much as there is to complain about, it wouldn't be worth complaining about if it wasn't good and/or very promising. Yes, the game is worth playing right now. It feels empty, but that may well just be because I've played it so much (though it IS pretty empty). Initially there was tons to do an explore by merit of a new experience. It gets a little old, but as a sandbox game with mod support there is always something new you can try however small. New things to build, new combinations to try however similar the results. Since your initial amusement has worn off, you should think of things to build and either A) start modding (Making or simply using) OR- though they aren't always exclusive to one another- start playing on public servers. I'd recommend playing on some normal servers first, then when that gets old look for modded servers that way you milk more longevity out of it. The only reason I'm still playing starbound is because of mod support, though who knows. I've never been able to play in multiplayer. Even without mods, multiplayer sucked for me because I disconnect every five minutes for some reason- assuming I can get it to start to begin with. Which is a real shame right now because I'd love to share an interactive creation of mine involving some roleplaying and puzzle solving to get through a little dungeon of mine.
If you've played before, you probably still know what to expect. I'd say only bother playing if you're willing to try the nightlies or mods. Stable had a few cool new things, (off the top of my head, the weather system, variable gravity, skyrails and I think the bone dragon boss was new?), but most of the really interesting stuff is still in progress, and the game balance still isn't where they want it to be at.
if you don't want to deal with constantly changing updates that may break current worlds or characters I wouldn't opt in to the nightlies, but that's where the real progress is being shown at the moment and not in Stable. I'm waiting until 1.0, maybe a little while after to get back into it, but I have a plethora of things to do in the mean time. I think it's case by case, do what you feel is right for you!
Bandit Hideouts, Colonies, Dungeoneer Dungeons, Starfoundry, Sabboth Lighting, and the various space mods (Variety, Spacebound, ect) really help change up the game. Other mods less central to the atmosphere of the game include things like Arcane Add Ons, StarMount, DragonBound, XS Mech, or so on. Custom races are lots of fun as well. More Bows of Power is a great mod as well if you get bored of the lame guns or samey weapons. (guns aren't inherintly lame, but they get really old eventually in Starbound). Lyetzi's Gunshop Mod adds quite a bit as well. And can give you some new goals. Combine that mod with JustExplosive and you can really get a sort of military commando vibe.
You've got a point, there are so many extremely talented people making mods for this game right now. I can only imagine after all of the different game systems are implemented. I think Chucklebros struck gold when they decided to build Starbound with modding in mind.
The stable build isn't worth playing because it hasn't been updated in months. So if you're looking to play starbound with any of the new stuff that's been discussed you'll have to play the nightly build. The nightly build isn't worth playing because whenever you die you drop all ore and bars you've gathered and it completely kills progression. So unless you enjoy playing hardcore mode, the nightly build is also unplayable.
