Goonhub
04-17-2013, 02:03 PM
With the recent improvements to the QM system, which actually makes the cargo bay one of the most busy places on the station, I've been thinking about how the poor, forgotten cafe/bar could be improved. As it stands, this fairly sizeable area of the station offers no material advantage to players, and is thus avoided.
I do not think that implemented a hunger system would be a good idea. It would add an inconvenience to the station as a whole in order to improve the game of 2 players - I think as a rule this kind of design should be avoided. For example, the money-making game is interesting if you want to play HoP/miner/botanist like that, but not participating in it doesn't really take anything away from one's experience of the game. Space debt collectors aren't going to make you walk at 1/2 speed because the payroll has to be suspended, and hunger shouldn't do anything like that either.
Rather, I think the amount of food and drink which contains reagents should be greatly expanded. Everybody knows that the drinks in the vending machines have a variety of useful effects, but I think this could be expanded to a variety of (mostly minor) buffs and debuffs from food and drink.
For example, hyperzine (the reagent in Robust-Eez) makes you run faster and is a good, balanced buff for people who know this and can be bothered to keep themselves stocked with the drink. While it can presently be injected into food and drink with some effort by the chef, why not cause it (or a new reagent which has a lesser or greater effect depending on the complexity of the food created) to appear naturally in created foods and drinks?
Spriting seems the greatest impediment after design - If the items use existing reagents, or new and simple reagents which alter existing variables, there shouldn't be much code work to be done. I'd be very willing to take charge of assembling a list of likely candidates for addition
Once again, I'm not suggesting a hunger system or anything. I admit I am jealous of the sheer range of food and drink on /tg/-station (although as far as I can tell little of it does anything but look pretty) but am looking for ways to improve what we have without copying anything wholesale.
I do think that on the whole the effects should be good, but relatively minor or amusing. Some things will be bad for you (or remain bad for you, in the case of The Monster or certain drinks), but the aim is to make food and drink useful for the crew.
I also think that these buffs and debuffs should be limited to processed food and not to ingredients - The latter would just mean that the chef's job gets supplanted by a lot of raw ingredients from hydroponics.
Oh, also: would it be ridiculous for Hydroponics to have a cargo transporter-esque device for sending produce directly to the kitchen, if this is implemented?
I'm going to start making a sheet of suggestions and posting them here once I've had a lot at what foods exist, and how they can be improved.
I do not think that implemented a hunger system would be a good idea. It would add an inconvenience to the station as a whole in order to improve the game of 2 players - I think as a rule this kind of design should be avoided. For example, the money-making game is interesting if you want to play HoP/miner/botanist like that, but not participating in it doesn't really take anything away from one's experience of the game. Space debt collectors aren't going to make you walk at 1/2 speed because the payroll has to be suspended, and hunger shouldn't do anything like that either.
Rather, I think the amount of food and drink which contains reagents should be greatly expanded. Everybody knows that the drinks in the vending machines have a variety of useful effects, but I think this could be expanded to a variety of (mostly minor) buffs and debuffs from food and drink.
For example, hyperzine (the reagent in Robust-Eez) makes you run faster and is a good, balanced buff for people who know this and can be bothered to keep themselves stocked with the drink. While it can presently be injected into food and drink with some effort by the chef, why not cause it (or a new reagent which has a lesser or greater effect depending on the complexity of the food created) to appear naturally in created foods and drinks?
Spriting seems the greatest impediment after design - If the items use existing reagents, or new and simple reagents which alter existing variables, there shouldn't be much code work to be done. I'd be very willing to take charge of assembling a list of likely candidates for addition
Once again, I'm not suggesting a hunger system or anything. I admit I am jealous of the sheer range of food and drink on /tg/-station (although as far as I can tell little of it does anything but look pretty) but am looking for ways to improve what we have without copying anything wholesale.
I do think that on the whole the effects should be good, but relatively minor or amusing. Some things will be bad for you (or remain bad for you, in the case of The Monster or certain drinks), but the aim is to make food and drink useful for the crew.
I also think that these buffs and debuffs should be limited to processed food and not to ingredients - The latter would just mean that the chef's job gets supplanted by a lot of raw ingredients from hydroponics.
Oh, also: would it be ridiculous for Hydroponics to have a cargo transporter-esque device for sending produce directly to the kitchen, if this is implemented?
I'm going to start making a sheet of suggestions and posting them here once I've had a lot at what foods exist, and how they can be improved.