Aurora's Next Big Thing -- And Your Ideas For It

[Skull132]

So, the time, has come.

Since I've written up a large enough document explaining all of the technicalities, let me cover the general basis instead. We've been doing roughly the same thing for about half a decade now.

Well, the development team is now looking for ideas on how to change that. Specifically, we have a plan to implement larger scope projects in vain of the New Map Meme. We are looking for something which can be broken into chunks, implemented in an iterative and feature list based fashion. But, at the same time, such a project should change something about the core of the gameplay experience we've been enjoying for the past half a decade. Well, it should enhance it.

Note that originally this was considered a staff only thing. This is where the more technical requirements stem from. But since some members of the playerbase have expressed an interest in generating ideas like this, we decided that we might as well include the opportunity for the players to get involved.

The general breakdown of the plan is as follows:

• Submissions for this are open for 2 weeks. So expect a cut-off date at around 25-26AUG2018.
• Following this, the developers and the leadership of the server will go through all of this shit and create a concrete plan for what to develop. (Note we may pick more than one project, depending on their size.)
  
• Said plan will be reviewed publicly.
  
• Said plan will be executed in a bite-sized fashion.

 

With that said, here's the fuck-off form. With instructions on how to fill it and how to submit it.

General discussion here is welcome.

[Butterrobber202]

so is ERP still out?

pretty cool of the staff to take player suggestion into this, just wanted to say it’s probably appreciated by the vast majority players here.

Anyways so I was thinking, can we put forth projects that only affect one aspect of gameplay?

Like mining or Robotics for example?

[Skull132]

so is ERP still out?

pretty cool of the staff to take player suggestion into this, just wanted to say it’s probably appreciated by the vast majority players here.

Anyways so I was thinking, can we put forth projects that only affect one aspect of gameplay?

Like mining or Robotics for example?

 

Refresh the current gameplay loop or environment. The current gameplay formula and environment has persisted unchanged for about 5 years now. The purpose of projects like this is to alter the general flow of gameplay. To suggest a systematic change to how, where, or when the game is played.

 

This is more about server direction, than changing a specific mechanic or device.

[Jakers457]

Trade Hub or large mining vessel. Something independent that isn't bogged down by Corporate redtape. That'd be nice.

[Nortondk]

Baystation computers

[SeniorScore]

Trade Hub or large mining vessel. Something independent that isn't bogged down by Corporate redtape. That'd be nice.

 

Something along these lines, essentially, would have an easier time justifying interesting shit that could actually be related to lore occurring there.

Just turn the construction level into a space mall, throw a bunch of docks on it, have MOTHER FUCKING CONTRACTORS man shops on the level. Or NT employees, but being contractors would I think drive an increase desire in seeing other corporations actually doing things if people suddenly have to care about them for their characters.

[BurgerBB]

I seriously hope that plenty of players submit ideas related to the current antag problem on Aurorastation. The gameplay has remained the same for 5 years because the gamemodes themselves were never changed. For christ sakes, we still have MRP changeling in rotation despite it literally being a gamemode where your goal is to gank crewmembers.

[Snakebittenn]

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zeGCM_KkBJ_aJiZo1am5BVUdrqH_Ah3YIdnG1MoMWuk/edit?usp=sharing

MAP

ROTATION

[verynisepersin]

A cyberpunkish residential station would be nice. Everyone would be given their own apartment, and the apartments would be on a certain floor. On the next floor, you would have a bazaar of either venders you can buy from, or player run shops that could sell anything from cigarettes, to smuggled firearms that you bought down an alleyway. On the next floor, could be a hospital and perhaps a security station, as those are two vital things. I'm not sure how command would be done, perhaps the owner of the station, or an overseer would rule over it.

[LordFowl]

Please do not post a suggestion unless it follows the posting format provided in the original post.

[BurgerBB]

Honestly I'm a little concerned with the types of things people are suggesting in here. A new map won't make Aurorastation interesting. A single departmental overhaul won't make Aurorastation interesting. A new mechanic won't make the game interesting.

What Aurorastation needs is a serious overhaul on how roleplay occurs. There is a serious roleplay deficit on the server and it seems no one really gives too much of a shit about it. After playing here for a year, things are really starting to get boring since it's the same repetitive gameplay over and over again.

[RazorXLVII]

Hi.

I've been roleplaying in this server for six months, with long breaks taken in between due to various reasons.

I've been always focusing myself on the Medical Department, playing as the Paramedic Richard Baker, and occasionally in Security as CSI.

I am still largely unknown in the community and I am still struggling to learn the server lore as much as possible. I discover new things every single day, so that's something. Anyway, there are some points I'd like to mention: I have some considerable troubles in understanding what is Canon and what isn't Canon in the server between every shift. This is presumed to be a HeavyRP server, and character development is perhaps one of the most fundamental aspects of every roleplay-based game. That being said, nine rounds out of ten are solely focused on interactions and combat with the Antagonists, and per the rules of the server, everything that revolves around the Antagonists is ignored and voided for the next round. I understand this rule, really, but it becomes impossible, at least for me, to progress my characters in any direction.

Disregarding this rule would not improve the situation, but actually worsen it. After ten rounds of changelings/vampires/Syndicates/Raiders/Wizards, I'd expect the crew of the NSS Aurora to become nigh-unkillable killers.

I'd like different gamemodes to be introduced, some that primarily focuses on non-combat based events. The slow-paced action might give everyone new and more opportunities to roleplay with each other. What happened to the Meteor gamemode? Disease outbreaks? More extended rounds with small/big events or storylines ran by a willing Admin?

Second thing, this is to enrich the background of our characters. I'd like different factions have a stronger presence on the NSS Aurora. I'd like to see characters contracted and leased to the station. A prime example the wiki gives us is Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals lending their top researchers to NanoTrasen, and the NSS Aurora is their prime Phoron Research and Mining Station. From a RP perspective, this can open to a whole new range of interactions between crew-members. An Engineer employed by Hephaestus Industries could chat about the terms of his contract with a regular NanoTrasen employee. Or a scientist from Zeng-Hu Pharmaceuticals discussing scientific topics with a Roboticist of Necropolis Industries. This might, in fact, turn the NSS Aurora into an elite workplace designed for the interactions of bright minds hailing from the widest corners of the galaxy. And it sounds fitting for a research station.

Third thing. I've been hearing many complaints about the quality of roleplay as of late. I won't type down a large paragraph over it, this isn't the right place for these kind of discussions. But I'd like to say this: in my opinion, having the Admins turn themselves into fascist overlords with the playerbase is the wrong move. Roleplay comes and goes, and we all have a different mentality and approaches when it comes to portraying our characters. We can only roleplay to the best of our abilities and set a good example for the others to follow.

Went overboard and completely off-topic. I'll re-work this through the linked format.

Edited August 10, 2018 by Guest

[Scheveningen]

tfw when people don't read the main post and they post essays of opinions without a document format, and not realizing what this thread is actually for

Feels bad man.

[RazorXLVII]

tfw when people don't read the main post and they post essays of opinions without a document format, and not realizing what this thread is actually for

Feels bad man.

 

Yup, I've made a mistake, I apologize. I will re-edit it in the following hour or so.

If needed, the post above can be removed, unfortunately I no longer have the ability to do so.

[Scheveningen]

don't feel too bad, we all mess up super hard

[Nexusuxen]

So, I've been working on a specific idea for a while and this would be a great time to make a suggestion for it and flesh it out a bit more (I've already started filling that form out), but I'd like to just quickly share my little idea:

Essentially, instead of having a Research Department, a new station would have a Manufacturing department. One big department with various infrastructure and machinery for various industrial processes and constructions to be refined, built, packaged, and sent to Cargo for shipping. Round unique quotas and production targets that can be chosen based on the workforce available, with a potentially very high variety of stuff to be shipped out (Even if said stuff, mechanically, is useless, like a phoron nuclear fuel cell or phoron ship thrusters, and exists solely to be manufactured, packaged, and shipped out). There will still be plenty of jobs in this department, all the way from the lowly assistants who haul heavy freight and materials around, to the technicians operating the plethora of heavy machinery, to the overseers who guide production and ensure the staff are working. Certain Research Department jobs could continue existing on the new station as well, particularly Robotics (moved to Engineering) and maybe xenoarchaeology (moved to civilian) with visiting archaeologists doing their work (maybe a university paid a handsome sum to NanoTrasen for the valuable historical dig sites?)

After all, NanoTrasen has invested billions of credits into phoron extraction and research, so they might as well start making commodities and the next generation of, well, everything with it. The NSS Aurora will likely continue service, looking deeper and deeper into what mysteries phoron has, but the new station will be recouping the invested losses and likely providing a major source of employment for the Tau Ceti region, even if most of its employees are just freight loaders and transporters who don't work on the actual station.

Of course, highly valuable phoron intelligence will still be present on the station in the form of manufacturing blueprints and other forms. The Syndicate and NanoTrasen's competitors (and of course pirates) will still be VERY interested in the activities on this station, whether to actively steal blueprints or to steal valuable phoron based products, or to cripple NanoTrasen and halt production through some terrorism and sabotage.

I apologize for the lengthiness but it's a pretty big suggestion and I'm a ramble-y guy. I'm still working on the actual form (but if anyone else wants to make their own with their own ideas based off of this go ahead) but wanted a little feedback here.

[Ron]

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eMt7INL79EtO8wWbvIwalXgUvYCfkY34XteDe5vKSms/edit?usp=sharing

[Not Megatron]

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zeGCM_KkBJ_aJiZo1am5BVUdrqH_Ah3YIdnG1MoMWuk/edit?usp=sharing

MAP

ROTATION

 

MAP

ROTATION

[Scheveningen]

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dh04s8X9DugxOZeWEo4G9tk3wONo5ZIn7Hkk6dtlRo0/edit#

AWAY

MISSIONS

[Bygonehero]

Ckey: BygoneHero

Discord Username Syntax#1344

Overview

Project: Nebula will be nothing more than a complete overhaul of the systems people come to expect from SS13. It will change virtually every mechanic, and completely rework SS13’s gameplay loop. It will include a star map grid that provides players feedback on where they are going. It's important to note that the disillusionment people are experiencing with the game is because that no matter how you dress an update, or an overhaul, it still feeds into the same gameplay loop that SS13 has always had. The new gameplay will revolve around three static areas that do not reset round to round.They are as follows..

The Ship- The main base of operations for ‘at work’ crew and perhaps the most comparable to current gameplay. It will feature new jobs and challenges that will be covered in its own section if taken as a project. It is important to note that the ship provides the most emergent gameplay, as each jump into space will provide its own opportunities, or danger.

The Colony- The heart of round to round persistence within the new gameplay loop. The Colony will be a permanent home for players that begins as nothing, and slowly builds into something. The Colony will feature many new jobs, as well as features, such as player(s) residence and Day/Night cycles. These will be covered in detail in its own section if taken as a project.

The Station- The Supply/Personnel Depot. The station will provide Supplies, Ship Fuel Manpower,Technology and is generally the Colonies link to the outside world, with the Ship being the Colonies link to the Station. The Station will act as a warehouse, where ordered goods spawn and are readied for loading onto the Ship. In addition, This will also be the spawn point of Merchants, and newly spawned players, who, depending on their job, be it on the Colony or Ship, may disembark. Unlike the other two locations, the Station acts in much the way the Odin does currently. That is to say, it’s the dispatch location. It will feature mostly synthetics, with a few notable exceptions, The ‘Pit’ boss to name one. It will be further elaborated on in its own section if accepted as a project..

Goals

These three static locations, and their interactions with each other will make the core of the gameplay loop. This, in addition to monthly resets of these locations will focus more on the roleplay aspect of the game. In addition, it is planned at a later date to include rotations of different colonies with different stations, creating a truly unique gameplay experience between each and every month. One month you may have an Ice colony, The next you might have a colony on the cult Homeworld of Xenon. For Stations, it would change to reflect what area of space you are in. For example, if our Colony is within the Jargon Federation, the Station may be Skrellian.

Further Development Perspective

If accepted, this write up will be expanded to include every job and antags will be elaborated upon, but to illustrate for this section. The 'Wizard' Antag would change from an outside antag to an inside one. A colonist will suddenly begin to manifest Magical Powers, The Colony Coordinator, and the Colony Charter will outline that the capture of said individual or collection of their body will bring riches and wealth to the colony. Wizard powers may manifest adverse enviromental effects, rain, snow, heat. Its up to the colony to find the Wizard/Witch in their mists!

Additionally, Traitor/Renegade antags will be the only antag types to remain persistent. This means, if you complete a shift as a traitor/renegade, you will be one the next round if you play the same character. This also means that other antags will not be persistent. If you, for example, become a Wizard/Witch for a round, the game will save your character state from the last round you were not a wizard/witch.

Edited August 25, 2018 by Guest

[NerdyVampire]

Your ckey: NerdyVampire

Discord username with discriminator: NerdyVampire#3641

Overview

Taking some inspiration from Deep Space 9, I figure it might rejuvenate the game by overhauling three things; the visitors, the construction level and the merchant.

Instead of visitors being purely for roleplay, we add some subcategories to the role, making specialized visitors into VIP dignitaries not only accepted by NT, but invited by NT. This could be business dignitaries, research specialists or departmental consultants. To give them a reason (other than their own imagination) we let them spawn with one relevant item to their category, such as valuable research notes, a secure briefcase of business contracts or a new design for another department.

To house these visitors in a proper manner, we turn the construction level into a civilian wing, with one room for each type of VIP, as well as a few rooms for regular visitors. I would also propose some entertainment/service facilities, but I am unsure which would make sense since the station already have several.

Lastly, we would create a physical store for the merchant on this level with a randomized initial stock. The store would come with an office with a console for ordering wares (these would be sent anonymous with cargo), a backroom for storage (or illicit activities) and a showroom in the front. Even without dignitaries, this would give other players a reason to visit the level.

Project Goals

1. Visitor overhaul. Adding several subcategories with access to specialized rooms and spawning with specialized items.

2. Construction level overhaul. Adding several rooms with specialized access, including merchant's store, VIP rooms and visitor rooms, as well as other possible facilities (bathrooms, baths, etc.)

3. Merchants Store. Adding a showroom, a backroom and an office.

Requirements for Implementation

Mechanical:

1. Reconstruction of the construction level. This would require some beautification, expansion of the outer structure, electrical and atmos laying, and room division.

2. Implementation of new jobs and rewriting of the merchant. The visitors will require sub-categories that players can specialize into, that should give them access to their respective rooms and possible other areas (would a business VIP have special access?). They should also spawn with an item that they can offer the station, if they are treated correctly (high level research disc, business documents, designs ect.)

3. Merchant ordering console. Akin to the cargo ordering console, but extended for the merchant and anonymous. His order should show up on the cargo screen as an already accepted 'Merchants crate', keylocked to the merchant.

4. Merchant backroom. Like cargo, this should from spawn be stocked with some randomized crates the merchant can sell from. It should be usuable for illicit activities and as such without an AI camera.

Policy:

1. Departments and command staff would need to shift their priorities to include the visitors, who either directly or lore-wise would provide a boon to the station or its specific departments. It would not do for the captain/HoP/IAA to not treat the business dignitary as anything less than a VIP.

This change would be implemented naturally over time, as players realise that these visitors actually have something to offer.

Lore:

The station is already open to NT approved visitors, this wont change, though new lore might very well be developed!

Further Development Perspective

While this might rejuvenate the gameplay a bit, I don't feel that it goes all the way. Either anotther suggested feature could be implemented alongside it (such as the 'meta-research' suggestion, which would work well with a RD VIP) or maybe some additions to the civilian wing.

Possible additions to the civilian wing:

1. Zoo facility and zoo-keeper job: would be in charge of feeding the animals, could possibly work together with Xeno to make new interesting creatures or kitchen to provide specialized meat, or garden to provide animal feed. Good place to spread new exciting bacteria and bring spare animal crates.

2. Casino for crew and visitors to come spend their money, could be run by a neutral cyborg or a business-savy owner who would love to purchase reishi, moonshine or such.

Additional Notes

I hope I followed the format correctly and that you, if nothing else, appreciate my ideas

[Pacmandevil]

Your ckey: Pacmandevil

Discord username with discriminator: Pacmandevil#7291

Overview

Roleplay in general with Ss13 is very polarizing. you either do it, or you don't. it requires a lot more effort than it should TO RP, as well. Requiring several paragraphs worth of forums filled out, several paragraphs more of flavor text filled out, and more. this leads to inconsistency. as there's no standard for either of them. This is something that simply makes the learning curve of ss13 worse, as you have to deal with all sorts of inconsistent bullshit, and people being sweaty because your flavor text isn't "descriptive enough" or something like that.

However, I don't see a single reason why any of that *couldn't* be solved via Code. yeah sure "he doesn't even play" xd. but I genuinely feel that putting effort into automating, standardizing, and improving these features via code would make Aurora both an easier server to get into, and a much more consistent one. and would (ideally) effectively negate any HRP snobbery,

It's not impossible to do, either. as I've been putting extensive effort into doing it with my own projects. with promising results. there is however significantly more to do in an Aurora setting. I do however believe with enough effort put into it. it'd be viable to do. the best part of SS13 imo is not having to type things out, and just *doing* things, and doing this would be a great step in the right direction. If you HAVE to type out a "me" to do something. then that's not a good thing.

Project Goals

* Refactor emotes completely to be object based, with a selection list. This would use datums to detect what Emotes are possible to do, along with any variables that are part of the equation. eg: [user] slams [object] against [surface]!, this could be altered to stab sharp items into the surface if the surface is soft enough, etc. I've got a half assed prototype of this, but It's also really shit and needs to be completely redone before I'm happy with it.

* Automate medical/whatever records.

This isn't a *complete*, more like those "build your own story fill in the blanks" things that're given to mentally handicapped students instead of english homework. suitable for any ss13 player. This would allow them to follow a template, and in general be consistent. you could also force this as a requirement to join the round, as it'd be fairly quick to do.

*Automate Flavor text. I can see this getting a lot more flack than the above, but I still think it's a good idea to standardize it, as long as you got someone actually competent to write the description chunks instead of going the dorf route however, I can't see any reason why this would be a bad thing. it also allows m e c h a n i c a l s t a n d a r d i s a t i o n of characters. a holy grail. no more 4 ft pedobait lolis. a new utopia!

This would also allow integration with other things, such as if a stats system was ever added (unlikely) you'd be able to see how buff etc the lad is. this could also be forced before joining, to enforce character standards.

* Automate "pose" - this can be done easily. just alter do_after to have an optional "pose" var that gets set. this would allow descriptions to be set for things like welding/literally any action without clogging chat too much.

* "story" mode. - this one might not be viable, but I've been thinking about it for a while. it essentially toggles *extremely* verbose descriptions of literally anything. and I mean anything. ideally this would allow the chat log to be read more like a book. but this would without a doubt need a writer to not look like shit, and would be optional.

Requirements for Implementation

* Essentially any of the above can be done as a single chunk. except for probably story mode, but that'd be a massive undertaking on it's own. and someone would have to cough up the dosh for a writer for that.

Further Development Perspective

I'm sure people can think of more things to be automated in the future, but those are the only things that've caught my attention during my time playing Aurora specifically. I'm sure there's more to be done.

[BurgerBB]

I remember trying to refractor emotes before into datums. It should be easy for a single person to do.

[Tylaaaaar]

Everything seems so divided, imo. I haven't played here in a while so I could be completely wrong if things have changed but it seems that no departments interact with each-other for work related reasons. Science and mining barely talked to each other, security would only get involved if they could arrest someone, medical is just there to heal you and tell you to fuck off at the end of the day. *shrug

[Skull132]

As a short update, the development staff are having a meeting this weekend to decide on the initial plans of what's going to be implemented, and how. Stay tuned.