Soapy5
Gallente Eve University Ivy League
|
Posted - 2010.06.22 00:02:00 -
[1]
Edited by: Soapy5 on 22/06/2010 00:07:44
tldr; waawaaa PI is a clickfest i quit.
Ok, to begin with, here's my thoughts on the whole extractor system. Imo, there is no strategy in choosing an extractor pull type aside from trying to predict when you'll log in the next day. there is no brainsweat involved, and just rewards poopsockers. some might argue that if you are willing to work out your index finger then you deserve more planet goo, but i call shenanigans. I would prefer having a system that rewarded a good strategy instead. How would such a system work? ... uh I'm actually not sure... but I can throw out a suggestion:
Since we know that extractors deplete resource areas, and that hotspots drift around, we could use that mechanic. Say a certain hotspot has 1,000,000 units of resources available. If you have your extractor plant set to the maximum pull rate, it will deplete the pocket at a rate of 2000 units/5 minutes but gives you only 500 units/5 minutes. however, if you set your extractors at the minimum rate, you pull only 150 units/ 5 minutes, but work more efficiently and deplete the resource pocket at a rate of 160 units / 5 minutes. As the pocket is depleted, have nearby areas develop hotspots. So once you finish pillaging the local lands, you'll have to tear down your extractors and relocate them to the new hotspot. Couple that with an increased cost for extractors, and you'll have to think whether you want to suck a pocket dry in a few days and lose 75% of your potential yield, or slowly sip away over the course of a week and get a juicy 90% yield (or any setting in between). In other words, you'd have to develop the best strategy for a given planet and resource that yields the best resource pull that is not nullified by the cost of having to constantly tear down and buy new extractors. That way you can either play casually and get a slow but steady trickle, or become a dedicated pibear and roam the planet and deplete pocket after pocket of resources...
now why do i think this is a good idea? well, personally, i have a blast setting up the colony, but once that's done, it becomes a case of "now what?" for me. there is not much left to do aside from the tedious clickfest of refreshing your extractors. with the proposed changes, PI will a bit be more about the fun part: building and improving the infrastructure.
finally, while we're at it, some random bits:
this would greatly increase pvp, since two players on the same hotspot deplete the resources at twice the rate.
instead of tearing down extractors, maybe have them be mobile (and move em at a cost). then you can crushinate all the peons that stand in the way between you and the next juicy pocket
for some added strategy, increase the export tax for cc and launchpads the further away they are from the equator. and/or add a space elevator pin that can be placed only on the equator and has no tax.
also your standard pi complaints: make cc's upgradable, make cc's useful, make storage useful, more informative pins, etc, etc.
Imo even my suggestion does not completely mitigate the "reward grind vs strategy" problem, but its a start by replacing the clickfest with a rebuild-your-infrastructure-fest. So, any suggestions, complaints and trolls welcome.
PS: it must be really windy on those planets, cause those clouds are ZOOMING across the landscape... and by windy i'm talking on the order of supersonic speeds...
|