The developers of Star Citizen, Cloud Imperium Games, provided updates on upcoming engineering and resource management gameplay features in a recent video. These features include repair mechanics, ship atmosphere management, and the ability to replace ship components, with a focus on gradually incorporating complexity and realism into the game.
In a recent video from Cloud Imperium Games, the developers of Star Citizen provided updates on the upcoming engineering and resource management gameplay features. They discussed plans for a big dev team and feature restructure in January 2024, with a focus on improving the persistent universe. The developers hope to release the structural salvage feature in the upcoming 3.22 patch and target the implementation of engineering and resource management gameplay for Q2 2024. This includes features like life support, fire management, and repair beams.
The devs addressed several questions regarding these new mechanics. They explained that soft deaths, where a ship is destroyed but the players survive, will eventually be replaced by a system where individual components can be destroyed or repaired. The size of the components determines whether they can be replaced by hand or require specialist facilities. While solo players can fly larger ships, it may be more challenging given the need for repairs and maintenance. However, NPCs and AI blades will be available to help operate these ships.
In terms of repair mechanics, the initial release will be relatively simple, but the devs plan to evolve and expand the system. Players will be able to repair and replace various ship components, deal with fires using extinguishers or venting, and perform subcomponent replacements. The layout and faults of a ship’s relays will vary depending on the manufacturer, and ships won’t typically explode unless a critical component has a catastrophic explosion. Engineers can potentially cause further damage or start fires, and they may need to navigate the ship’s layout to target specific components.
The devs also discussed the management of ship atmosphere and resources. Ships have tanks that store atmosphere that can be replenished on breathable planets. Life support systems primarily handle CO2 scrubbing and oxygen distribution, but the exact details are still under discussion. Components in need of repair will be displayed on multifunction displays, and pilots can perform manual repairs if they have spare components or redundancies. Finally, the devs mentioned the possibility of missions where players have to replace or repair subcomponents at specific locations.
Overall, the engineering and resource management features in Star Citizen aim to bring more depth and realism to the game. Players will need to consider repairs, damage control, and resource management while operating their ships. The developers plan to incorporate these mechanics gradually, with a focus on improving complexity and gameplay over time.