Goonhub
02-13-2017, 07:44 PM
Time to address this.
Why was this change made?
Two major impacts.
1. Crates and lockers render the other transportation options on the station pointless, which is sad because the other transportation options are fun. One of the really cool selling points of Cogmap2 was the belt-hell system cutting across major hallways. Belt hell isn't used because just running a crate across the station, lightning-fast error-free and pinpoint to destination, is better. Mulebots are great to see trucking across the station and maybe run over an assistant or two. The forklift is neat to see. The cargo tugs are fun to hitch rides on or hijack. Even the cargo transporter causes sparks that can trigger accidental fires or set off fuel tanks.
All these fun things don't get used because pulling crates/lockers is perfect. I did not think it was possible to improve any of these transport methods to the point that they'd be preferable to the standard method, much less all of them. The cargo teleporter is instantaneous and it still doesn't get used. So pulling speed had to be nerfed in addition to working kinks out of the fun methods. Consider exactly what it would take to get you, personally, to use any one of these, in preference to the old pull speed.
2. Dragging people. Keeping someone stunned with a baton/flash and shanking them with a fork while eluding sec, all at a full speed sprint, isn't great gameplay. Even if you call out "LING STUNG ME BAR" the changeling has bolted out an airlock with you in tow before the AI or sec have finished reading the line. Or the assistant who unscrews the nuke and vanishes into the ether in an eyeblink with it while the syndies are distracted for a split second.
It's a change that cuts both ways. Antagonists will find themselves having to choose between retaining a victim or making a getaway instead of both, but pulling people out of danger will take longer too. To alleviate some of that, the teleporting sleeper Port-A-Med (which is not the Port-A-NanoMed) has been brought back. Security already has a Port-A-Brig.
Why didn't you ask the players before making this change?
Because it's a nerf. It's not a thing to expect positive reactions to, even when it's a good idea. The will and drive to code is a fleeting thing, easily quashed by opposition. People resist change by default, and this is not some cool new toy to get excited about. It's a nerf.
Is this just some added realism thing, because that is stupid.
No. Realism is and will never will be a goal in this farty spaceman simulator, because realism is tedium. The change was made for gameplay reasons, and it's just a nice coincidence that it lines up with what intuition would suggest happens.
What's up in the future?
Planned changes: Dragging an upright person who is on help intent will go full speed as it will be assumed consensual. Further refinements to the other transportation methods, like the Mulebot changes. Good suggestions in this thread or #goonstation.
Why is dragging tiny thing not fast, tiny thing is tiny!
1. Dragspeed for most things you can pick up is now almost indistinguishable from full speed.
2. Do an experiment. Put a screwdriver on the ground and try dragging it. Moving backwards and bent over double, making sure that the tiny thing leaves most of its weight on the ground. It's not fast.
3. Pick it up, doofus.
And if all else fails...
You can still PUSH things at a decent clip. It's just kind of awkward to have to open doors for your crate.
Why was this change made?
Two major impacts.
1. Crates and lockers render the other transportation options on the station pointless, which is sad because the other transportation options are fun. One of the really cool selling points of Cogmap2 was the belt-hell system cutting across major hallways. Belt hell isn't used because just running a crate across the station, lightning-fast error-free and pinpoint to destination, is better. Mulebots are great to see trucking across the station and maybe run over an assistant or two. The forklift is neat to see. The cargo tugs are fun to hitch rides on or hijack. Even the cargo transporter causes sparks that can trigger accidental fires or set off fuel tanks.
All these fun things don't get used because pulling crates/lockers is perfect. I did not think it was possible to improve any of these transport methods to the point that they'd be preferable to the standard method, much less all of them. The cargo teleporter is instantaneous and it still doesn't get used. So pulling speed had to be nerfed in addition to working kinks out of the fun methods. Consider exactly what it would take to get you, personally, to use any one of these, in preference to the old pull speed.
2. Dragging people. Keeping someone stunned with a baton/flash and shanking them with a fork while eluding sec, all at a full speed sprint, isn't great gameplay. Even if you call out "LING STUNG ME BAR" the changeling has bolted out an airlock with you in tow before the AI or sec have finished reading the line. Or the assistant who unscrews the nuke and vanishes into the ether in an eyeblink with it while the syndies are distracted for a split second.
It's a change that cuts both ways. Antagonists will find themselves having to choose between retaining a victim or making a getaway instead of both, but pulling people out of danger will take longer too. To alleviate some of that, the teleporting sleeper Port-A-Med (which is not the Port-A-NanoMed) has been brought back. Security already has a Port-A-Brig.
Why didn't you ask the players before making this change?
Because it's a nerf. It's not a thing to expect positive reactions to, even when it's a good idea. The will and drive to code is a fleeting thing, easily quashed by opposition. People resist change by default, and this is not some cool new toy to get excited about. It's a nerf.
Is this just some added realism thing, because that is stupid.
No. Realism is and will never will be a goal in this farty spaceman simulator, because realism is tedium. The change was made for gameplay reasons, and it's just a nice coincidence that it lines up with what intuition would suggest happens.
What's up in the future?
Planned changes: Dragging an upright person who is on help intent will go full speed as it will be assumed consensual. Further refinements to the other transportation methods, like the Mulebot changes. Good suggestions in this thread or #goonstation.
Why is dragging tiny thing not fast, tiny thing is tiny!
1. Dragspeed for most things you can pick up is now almost indistinguishable from full speed.
2. Do an experiment. Put a screwdriver on the ground and try dragging it. Moving backwards and bent over double, making sure that the tiny thing leaves most of its weight on the ground. It's not fast.
3. Pick it up, doofus.
And if all else fails...
You can still PUSH things at a decent clip. It's just kind of awkward to have to open doors for your crate.