VS2.3 Feedback: Creating an Emergent Engineering World
For the TL;DR folks: The Thesis
Space Engineers already gives players some of the most incredible tools in gaming to build almost anything.
From my perspective as a player, one of the biggest opportunities for SE2 is not simply adding more blocks, more terrain, or more locations, it is creating a world that continuously gives players meaningful reasons to use those tools.
I would love to see planets and space become collections of regional engineering challenges rather than simply collections of terrain.
Not: "What can I build?"
But: "What should we build for this?"
The magic of Space Engineers has always been that the game gives us the tools and lets us solve problems our own way.
I don't think the future is turning SE2 into a traditional mission-based game.
I think one of the most exciting opportunities for SE2 is creating a universe that generates problems, opportunities, and changing world states (defined below) — while still allowing players the freedom to decide what matters to them.
Not a traditional mission-based game. Not a checklist. A sandbox where the world creates situations, and engineers decide how (or if) they respond.
The Feeling I Think Is Missing (as of VS2.3)
One of my favorite things to do in SE1 was build something with a purpose.
I built a large rover. Then I built a trailer that became a mobile base. I explored half a planet with it and had an incredible time designing and improving it.
Eventually, though, I reached a point where the engineering challenge was over.
The rover worked. The trailer worked. The problem was solved. There was no longer anything in the environment asking me new questions.
That is the feeling I hope SE2 can solve. Not because the building is bad — the building is amazing, but because the best part of Space Engineers is when the world gives engineers a reason to innovate.
This Is Not About More Vehicles. It Is About More Reasons To Build Them.
I love the idea of building ground vehicles, aircraft, ships, drones, and bases.
The engineering systems are already fantastic.
The game does something extremely important by not telling players exactly how to solve problems. That freedom is what makes Space Engineers special.
The opportunity I see is creating more situations where players naturally start asking:
- "Should we bring the rover or build a walker?"
- "Do we need drones for this?"
- "Can we automate this?"
- "Should we build artillery instead?"
- "Do we need a convoy?"
- "Should we attack now, or prepare first?"
Those conversations are the heart of Space Engineers for me.
The question then becomes: how does the game create those situations while preserving the freedom that makes SE2 special?
Planets and Space Should Have “Engineering Identities”
The: "Why would I design/build different things?"
I would love to see planets, moons, and regions of space encourage different styles of engineering. Not because the game tells us: "You need this vehicle." but because the environment naturally creates problems that require different solutions.
Example: Sandstorm Region
Constant extreme winds make aircraft unreliable.
Visibility is poor.
Long-range operations become difficult.
Players naturally begin designing:
- Rovers
- Walkers
- Sensor towers
- Mobile repair vehicles
- Ground-based logistics systems
(From the recent showcases, it looks like wind and sandstorm mechanics are already being explored. This is exactly the kind of system that can create meaningful engineering decisions!)
Example: Electrical Storm Region
Frequent lightning creates infrastructure challenges.
Large ships may require:
- Redundant power systems
- Protected infrastructure
- Backup grids
- Decoy systems
- Or just ground vehicles for if you get disabled.
While ground-based operations may become more reliable, the important part is not the storm itself.
The important part is that the storm makes players ask: "What do we build to survive here?"
Regional States and World Pressure Create Engineering Opportunities
The: "Why would those problems continue to matter after I encounter them?"
"I think a pressure system could create incredible emergent opportunities.
---Quick Clarification:----
One important clarification: when I say "pressure," I do not mean constant urgency or a system that forces players into a checklist of objectives.
The pressure should primarily affect the world, not the player.
A threat, environmental challenge, or faction conflict should change the state of a region. Ignoring an infestation might reduce productivity in that area. Ignoring pirates might make trade routes less reliable and generate more encounters. Ignoring a faction conflict might change who controls a region, prices at stations goes up.
However, these situations should reach some form of equilibrium rather than endlessly escalating until the player is forced to respond.
The goal is not punishment.
The goal is creating a universe where player choices have meaning.
At a point, the situation will create an equilibrium. By equilibrium, I mean that problems should reach a stable state where they continue influencing the world without endlessly escalating until the player is forced to respond.
- Pressure is on the world, not the player.
- Consequences are regional, not game-ending.
- Problems create choices, not obligations.
- Equilibrium prevents endless escalation.
---End Clarification---
I think this distinction is important. I do not want SE2 to become a game where players are constantly completing objectives from a checklist.
The magic is allowing players to choose. A problem should exist in the world, but the player should decide:
- Ignore it.
- Solve it immediately.
- Prepare first.
- Return later.
- Approach it in a completely unexpected way.
The goal is not to force players into every encounter. The goal is to create a universe where there are always interesting problems available for players who want them.
These systems could also create some of the most memorable multiplayer experiences. Not every problem should be something one engineer solves alone (though they could with some clever engineering). A regional challenge should naturally create moments where players say:
- "Anyone want to help us clear this infestation?"
- "We need engineers to build defenses before the next storm."
- "We need a fleet to retake this sector."
With the goal not being requiring multiplayer. The goal is creating situations where cooperation naturally emerges.
Example: Regional Challenges and Pressure Mechanic
Infested Region
An infestation exists in a region.
If ignored, it becomes more established and begins affecting the surrounding area.
- Small nests may expand or become larger. Mining operations may become less productive.
- Travel becomes more dangerous.
- Nearby colonies may struggle.
However, the infestation should not endlessly grow until the player is forced to stop everything else. Instead, it reaches a new regional state.
The area becomes more difficult and less productive, but it remains a problem the player can return to whenever they choose.
The player can decide:
Do we eliminate it early?
Do we fortify nearby colonies first?
Do we build automated defenses?
Do we bring drones?
Do we build a heavily armored assault vehicle?
Do we wait until enough engineers can tackle it together?
The interesting part is not the creature itself.
The interesting part is the engineering decisions leading up to the encounter.
A small digression: this also opens up boss battle type stuff where if left too long it can spawn a big monster that could take REALLY clever engineers or just multiple engineers to deal with. I want to watch youtube videos of Engineers taking on some big battle, their plan of attack, and how they fared.
Example: Rogue AI Mining Complex
An automated mining operation has gone rogue.
Mining drones gather resources. Transport drones feed factories. Defense drones protect the operation.
The player could attack directly.
Or:
- Destroy logistics first.
- Disable resource gathering.
- Build an infiltration vehicle.
- Create a drone counterforce.
Engineering, automation, logistics, and strategy become equally important.
Example: Faction Conflict / Civil War
Two factions are fighting over territory.
The player decides how involved they want to become.
Do they:
- Support one side?
- Remain neutral?
- Become a contractor?
- Trade with both?
- Take advantage of the conflict?
- Eliminate everyone?
A conflict like this creates reasons for:
- Defense construction
- Vehicle design
- Logistics
- Escort missions
- Base expansion
Again, the game does not tell the player the answer.
It creates the situation, the engineer creates the solution.
Unknown Signals Could Become Opportunities, Not Just Locations
Unknown Signals are one of the biggest opportunities for emergent gameplay.
Instead of always being locations to loot, they could represent situations:
- A colony needing help
- A stranded engineer
- A failed automation system
- A damaged communications network
- A hidden enemy base
- An opportunity waiting to be discovered
Example:
You discover a small farming outpost. The farmer needs water delivered from a nearby lake.
The player could:
- Build a water transport drone
- Build a rover tanker
- Create a pipeline
- Automate the entire process
The reward is not just a container of resources.
The reward is that the player changed the region/area. More or less is on the devs for how they think the reward should be weighted, given the challenge.
Persistent Problems Create Engineering
Engineering games thrive on pressure. Pressure creates innovation.
A regional problem should not simply be:
"Clear the hive. Done forever."
It could become:
"Clear the hive before it grows."
Or:
"Ignore it, and now the problem is larger."
Examples:
Malcontents left unchecked:
→ Establish stronger bases.
→ Trade routes become unsafe.
→ Colonies struggle because supplies stop arriving.
The important thing is not necessarily endless combat. The important thing is that the world continues asking new engineering questions. This prevents the: "I built one perfect ship and now I am done." problem.
Different Worlds Could Have Different Levels of Problems
Not every planet or region needs to be equally developed.
That could actually make exploration more interesting.
A moon may focus on:
- Survival
- Resource scarcity
- Extreme environments
A developed planet may have:
- Trade networks
- Factions
- Infrastructure
- Political conflicts
NPC systems will likely add an enormous amount of depth to this. This is simply the structure I think could create long-term replay-ability.
Level 1: Small Problems (the Unknown Signals?)
A newly discovered region.
Examples:
- Repair a relay
- Help a stranded NPC/faction
- Automate a farm
- Restore power
- Build a basic outpost
- Remove a small threat
Level 2: Regional Challenges
A developed area with larger problems.
Examples:
- Pirate activity
- Environmental hazards
- Resource shortages
- Faction conflicts
- Infrastructure failures
Level 3: Civilization-Scale Problems
Established worlds with major stakes.
Examples:
- Defending trade routes
- Expanding colonies
- Maintaining planetary defenses
- Managing faction relationships
Why This Belongs in the Base Game
Mods will always create amazing scenarios. That is one of Space Engineers' greatest strengths. However, I think the foundation of this gameplay philosophy is valuable enough to consider as part of the base game.
Not because mods should not exist. Quite the opposite.
A built-in framework for:
- Regional problems
- Factions
- Encounters
- Environmental challenges
- Persistent world events
would give modders an incredible foundation to build upon.
I’d also advocate that players could enable or disable these systems depending on the experience they want.
Why I Think This Fits Space Engineers
One thing I absolutely love about the new construction contracts is that they already move in this direction. Instead of simply telling me: "Go here and interact with something." They ask me: "Engineer a solution within these constraints." That feels fantastic! It feels like being an engineer instead of completing errands.
The opportunity I see is expanding that philosophy beyond contracts. The world itself should continuously create engineering problems.
A planet.
An asteroid field.
A faction conflict.
A trade route.
An unknown signal.
All of these should make players naturally ask:
"What do we need to build to solve this?"
That is where the endless replay-ability of Space Engineers can come from.
Not simply from having more places to visit (though I'll never complain about that), but from having more situations that challenge players to design, adapt, cooperate, and innovate!
I like this feedback
Engineering needs to emerge from simple gameplay rules.
Examples:
What you have proposed in this topic is even more advanced stuff. I like it. But it should be built on top of simple solid base sandbox rules. I like the concept of infested planets, but there has to be an actual reason to do anything on the planets in the first place. The current N1 "goal" in the early game is to get into space ASAP. Then you are going back to Verdure to do boring "colonising" missions. Colonise for what? What is an intrinsic reason beyond just following the orders of soulless "colonisation authority"?
If you design a game around colonisation, you inevitably make a worse free-form sandbox game, and as a consequence, all the possible emerging engineering needs.
Engineering needs to emerge from simple gameplay rules.
Examples:
What you have proposed in this topic is even more advanced stuff. I like it. But it should be built on top of simple solid base sandbox rules. I like the concept of infested planets, but there has to be an actual reason to do anything on the planets in the first place. The current N1 "goal" in the early game is to get into space ASAP. Then you are going back to Verdure to do boring "colonising" missions. Colonise for what? What is an intrinsic reason beyond just following the orders of soulless "colonisation authority"?
If you design a game around colonisation, you inevitably make a worse free-form sandbox game, and as a consequence, all the possible emerging engineering needs.
you have got a lot going here.
to eventually get se2 to the point where the player base is actively keeping pirates from becoming a colonization threat, where plants might overgrow and cripple trade routes for land vehicles, and where fauna could potentially take over an entire planet because nobody decided that the problem was worth doing anything about.
i very much like the direction you are thinking. and the potential for constant feedback from players doing contracts might eventually bring a completly uninhabitable planet into a less risk more gain scenario sounds brilliant for future game additions.
"The Colonization Authority has been picking up increasing activity from Renegades coming in from sector 13Alpha. Long range sensors detect what may be a dwarf planet they may be using as a base of operations in this sector. The CA has requested you set up a listening post to pick up comm traffic to gauge their numbers and activities."
you have got a lot going here.
to eventually get se2 to the point where the player base is actively keeping pirates from becoming a colonization threat, where plants might overgrow and cripple trade routes for land vehicles, and where fauna could potentially take over an entire planet because nobody decided that the problem was worth doing anything about.
i very much like the direction you are thinking. and the potential for constant feedback from players doing contracts might eventually bring a completly uninhabitable planet into a less risk more gain scenario sounds brilliant for future game additions.
"The Colonization Authority has been picking up increasing activity from Renegades coming in from sector 13Alpha. Long range sensors detect what may be a dwarf planet they may be using as a base of operations in this sector. The CA has requested you set up a listening post to pick up comm traffic to gauge their numbers and activities."
The players are in 4 groups (using a high-performance car analogy):
1. The Garage Tinkerer - Loves to design, build, and tinker with his car. The more tools he has, the happier he is.
2. The Car Enthusiast - Loves to collect, learn, and be a part of rare or interesting cars, and show them off.
3. The Race Car Driver - Loves to race cars, on regulated fair tracks, to attain accolades and fame.
4. The Road Warrior - Loves to test things. Break a rare car, cheat on the rules, modify the car into something else entirely if needed... the conquest with win or lose decides what needs there are.
Each group of people correlates to SE2 different player groups, and all are clamoring to be the 'true scotsman' that should decide what is good for the future and what is not.
Tinkerer wants more tools to build more things, the Enthusiast wants interesting things they can find and experience, the Racer wants rule on balance for different systems and more rewards for accomplishing things, and the Warrior wants meaning to his fights, a reason to strive and overcome challenges. So, what can Keen do to satisfy this?
1. Tinkerer - more tools and ways to modify things.
2. Enthusiast - More customization, more social connections/shows, more lore or history on things in-game.
3. Racer - More loot to grab, more rules and balance passes to enable other player combat be even and be more bounded in-game, more faction rankings, more achievements to have in-game.
4. Warrior - Change of ownership. ...Life, in-game. A living world.
So...which group will be of the greatest importance to the future of the world?
The Warrior.
Everything is a derivative from his ideas and motivations.
Tinkerer builds based on his requirements (why have a car faster than another?)
Enthusiast documents the changes brought by him to the world (German cars from WW2 are extremely valuable)
Racers demo a war to people in a closed system (Hot-Rod cars used by moonshiners running from police became racing cars, later)
You may dislike the Warrior, you may try to ignore him...but you have to respect him.
If you dislike this, this importance only applies to Survival Mode.
The players are in 4 groups (using a high-performance car analogy):
1. The Garage Tinkerer - Loves to design, build, and tinker with his car. The more tools he has, the happier he is.
2. The Car Enthusiast - Loves to collect, learn, and be a part of rare or interesting cars, and show them off.
3. The Race Car Driver - Loves to race cars, on regulated fair tracks, to attain accolades and fame.
4. The Road Warrior - Loves to test things. Break a rare car, cheat on the rules, modify the car into something else entirely if needed... the conquest with win or lose decides what needs there are.
Each group of people correlates to SE2 different player groups, and all are clamoring to be the 'true scotsman' that should decide what is good for the future and what is not.
Tinkerer wants more tools to build more things, the Enthusiast wants interesting things they can find and experience, the Racer wants rule on balance for different systems and more rewards for accomplishing things, and the Warrior wants meaning to his fights, a reason to strive and overcome challenges. So, what can Keen do to satisfy this?
1. Tinkerer - more tools and ways to modify things.
2. Enthusiast - More customization, more social connections/shows, more lore or history on things in-game.
3. Racer - More loot to grab, more rules and balance passes to enable other player combat be even and be more bounded in-game, more faction rankings, more achievements to have in-game.
4. Warrior - Change of ownership. ...Life, in-game. A living world.
So...which group will be of the greatest importance to the future of the world?
The Warrior.
Everything is a derivative from his ideas and motivations.
Tinkerer builds based on his requirements (why have a car faster than another?)
Enthusiast documents the changes brought by him to the world (German cars from WW2 are extremely valuable)
Racers demo a war to people in a closed system (Hot-Rod cars used by moonshiners running from police became racing cars, later)
You may dislike the Warrior, you may try to ignore him...but you have to respect him.
If you dislike this, this importance only applies to Survival Mode.
"Regional engineering challenges" sounds very promising. I am not a fan of working through to-do lists (aka contracts) and would rather see challenges that come across in a more "natural" way while you are doing your thing in the game world.
I mean exploration, research, production, logistics, automation, life support, surviving in hazardous environments, etc. These are the things that could be much more fun if they were implemented properly – and they could be even more fun if the world required different solutions in different regions.
Instead, what I actually see is that Keen wants to make many things as easy as possible to allegedly provide a better FTUE for new players. Unfortunately, this is the complete opposite of making the game more interesting, and it won't improve accessibility either (the real problems lie elsewhere).
Materials from environmental voxels everywhere, magic backpack building, a simplified production chain, an overpowered jetpack, etc... These are things that actually remove many possible challenges from the game and make things boring and unbelievable.
The game should be easy to learn but hard to master. SE2 doesn't reflect that very well right now.
"Regional engineering challenges" sounds very promising. I am not a fan of working through to-do lists (aka contracts) and would rather see challenges that come across in a more "natural" way while you are doing your thing in the game world.
I mean exploration, research, production, logistics, automation, life support, surviving in hazardous environments, etc. These are the things that could be much more fun if they were implemented properly – and they could be even more fun if the world required different solutions in different regions.
Instead, what I actually see is that Keen wants to make many things as easy as possible to allegedly provide a better FTUE for new players. Unfortunately, this is the complete opposite of making the game more interesting, and it won't improve accessibility either (the real problems lie elsewhere).
Materials from environmental voxels everywhere, magic backpack building, a simplified production chain, an overpowered jetpack, etc... These are things that actually remove many possible challenges from the game and make things boring and unbelievable.
The game should be easy to learn but hard to master. SE2 doesn't reflect that very well right now.
Engineering needs to emerge from simple gameplay rules.
Examples:
What you have proposed in this topic is even more advanced stuff. I like it. But it should be built on top of simple solid base sandbox rules. I like the concept of infested planets, but there has to be an actual reason to do anything on the planets in the first place. The current N1 "goal" in the early game is to get into space ASAP. Then you are going back to Verdure to do boring "colonising" missions. Colonise for what? What is an intrinsic reason beyond just following the orders of soulless "colonisation authority"?
If you design a game around colonisation, you inevitably make a worse free-form sandbox game, and as a consequence, all the possible emerging engineering needs.
Engineering needs to emerge from simple gameplay rules.
Examples:
What you have proposed in this topic is even more advanced stuff. I like it. But it should be built on top of simple solid base sandbox rules. I like the concept of infested planets, but there has to be an actual reason to do anything on the planets in the first place. The current N1 "goal" in the early game is to get into space ASAP. Then you are going back to Verdure to do boring "colonising" missions. Colonise for what? What is an intrinsic reason beyond just following the orders of soulless "colonisation authority"?
If you design a game around colonisation, you inevitably make a worse free-form sandbox game, and as a consequence, all the possible emerging engineering needs.
All of you guys are all over the target.
Thoughts: I need to figure out how the CA will interact with factions to give better input on how the build should work. I'd love to provide feedback here, but alas that will be for another time. It depends on how they implement any of this (if indeed they do).
"The kicker? A sector can 'degrade'."
The only thing I see that could cause "player strain" (an unfun experience) is to have the road you meticulously built disintegrating behind you. I have advocated for this, and my take is that only certain sectors can and should be that way. Like one of the sectors is the pirate stronghold. In truth, no matter what you do there, the pirates will keep spawning and spawning bigger and bigger/more ships. It's sort of "uncolonizable". So there's a section(s)/sector(s) that just has no way for you to put a foothold into it and that unresolvable threat will randomly pick a sector to start ticking down. Or maybe it will only select certain sectors. I would personally like to be able to hit M and look at the map after a good fight near the end of the game and see 100% colonization across all sectors. Get the trophy for it. Then take a remedial transport contract only to find that 1-2hrs of gametime later, the pirates have infiltrated the ____ sector with stolen Infestation eggs. Broods are starting to pop up across the ____ region on _____ planet. :). Do you do more contracts and let it get worse knowing how much of a BA engineer you are, or do you go address it sooner rather than later? Or do you ignore it and let the decay happen just to do it all over again because building and engineering is fun? Maybe you have 3 or so uncolonizable sectors with threats in them that will start ticking down on your Colonization score. You can pay Space Credits for mercenary/local faction "contracts" that will keep sectors safe.
"Faction vs Faction? Would be cool, but pirates or 'the bad guys' could be used."
I advocated long ago that we should be required to pick a starting faction. That faction will come with its own set of things you can ultimately build and you'd need to trade with other factions to get frames to build other things. 1 faction maybe has good weapons. One has good engines. One has good mining/production equipment... things like that. Maybe the Pirate faction comes with a bunch, but it's all stolen so it's limited... Who knows. Could be super fun. The question I have is what should the core game be and what could be a mod? If the core tenets in my OP was there, could the mods come rolling in? It would be killer!
"there was a map, and had sectors..." This is the dream for SE2... we already have the map. I'm super excited about this.
All of you guys are all over the target.
Thoughts: I need to figure out how the CA will interact with factions to give better input on how the build should work. I'd love to provide feedback here, but alas that will be for another time. It depends on how they implement any of this (if indeed they do).
"The kicker? A sector can 'degrade'."
The only thing I see that could cause "player strain" (an unfun experience) is to have the road you meticulously built disintegrating behind you. I have advocated for this, and my take is that only certain sectors can and should be that way. Like one of the sectors is the pirate stronghold. In truth, no matter what you do there, the pirates will keep spawning and spawning bigger and bigger/more ships. It's sort of "uncolonizable". So there's a section(s)/sector(s) that just has no way for you to put a foothold into it and that unresolvable threat will randomly pick a sector to start ticking down. Or maybe it will only select certain sectors. I would personally like to be able to hit M and look at the map after a good fight near the end of the game and see 100% colonization across all sectors. Get the trophy for it. Then take a remedial transport contract only to find that 1-2hrs of gametime later, the pirates have infiltrated the ____ sector with stolen Infestation eggs. Broods are starting to pop up across the ____ region on _____ planet. :). Do you do more contracts and let it get worse knowing how much of a BA engineer you are, or do you go address it sooner rather than later? Or do you ignore it and let the decay happen just to do it all over again because building and engineering is fun? Maybe you have 3 or so uncolonizable sectors with threats in them that will start ticking down on your Colonization score. You can pay Space Credits for mercenary/local faction "contracts" that will keep sectors safe.
"Faction vs Faction? Would be cool, but pirates or 'the bad guys' could be used."
I advocated long ago that we should be required to pick a starting faction. That faction will come with its own set of things you can ultimately build and you'd need to trade with other factions to get frames to build other things. 1 faction maybe has good weapons. One has good engines. One has good mining/production equipment... things like that. Maybe the Pirate faction comes with a bunch, but it's all stolen so it's limited... Who knows. Could be super fun. The question I have is what should the core game be and what could be a mod? If the core tenets in my OP was there, could the mods come rolling in? It would be killer!
"there was a map, and had sectors..." This is the dream for SE2... we already have the map. I'm super excited about this.
Im a big fan of the part about the whole Enviroments driving the design of "what do i need to solve this issue" and the need to explore those new Enviroments to get a new technology or resourse related to the solution.
As given by some Examples such as:
Earth Like:
-The easy planet with a little bit of everything, all solutions will probably work but only can find basic materials
-Only real goal is to get familiar with the game and prepare to go explore the game more
A Sand Storm Planet With Winds:
-Wind too strong to fly, at least not using something stronger like hydrogen.
-Let's build something more heavier and grounded.
-Unlock Bigger Wind power generators and some solicon for better spinny components
A Hot Planet:
-The surface is too hot to grow anything, non heavy blocks and parts get damaged over time based on exposure
-Need to cover builds well using heavy armor/structure blocks
-Unlock Heavy Armor and the resourses for it on the planet
Water Planet:
-The Air is toxic and too thin to use atmo thrusters and there is no land to drive on
-Travel by water and base under it to avoid the toxic air, Process water for air
-Unlocks some sort of Chemistry mechanics like poisons or some materials for speed upgrades or better/bigger batteries components
Storm/Lightning Planet:
-Constant lightning storms targeting grids and the ground, anything not grounded will take great damage
-Build hight points to catch lightning, Use decoys to save important parts
-Unlock some lightning catcher to generate power, Some material used to make new things like the catcher or Railguns
Planet with Heavy Gravity:
-A way of there idea of a planet very rich in resourses, no atmosphere and hydrogen will most likely fail too and leave you stranded and crashing, you'd want to use a drop pod equiped in basic tools and materials and do a small new start and build a base, movement slowed down and maximum storage of character and components cut proportinally to the gravity strength.
-Vehicles will fail, driving or flying, maybe if walkers are a thing they might be useful, but the idea would be to have a stationary base, mine using drills on pistons, move using around using elevators and some kind of assembly belts. To get off the planet you'd need to gather enough supplies to build A space Elevator.
-Unlock stuff, maybe just a planet made enterily of resources, or unlock optimized/compact storage to fight the reduced storage capacity on the planet, oh which outside it the compact storage will be an upgrade to the base storage.
Im a big fan of the part about the whole Enviroments driving the design of "what do i need to solve this issue" and the need to explore those new Enviroments to get a new technology or resourse related to the solution.
As given by some Examples such as:
Earth Like:
-The easy planet with a little bit of everything, all solutions will probably work but only can find basic materials
-Only real goal is to get familiar with the game and prepare to go explore the game more
A Sand Storm Planet With Winds:
-Wind too strong to fly, at least not using something stronger like hydrogen.
-Let's build something more heavier and grounded.
-Unlock Bigger Wind power generators and some solicon for better spinny components
A Hot Planet:
-The surface is too hot to grow anything, non heavy blocks and parts get damaged over time based on exposure
-Need to cover builds well using heavy armor/structure blocks
-Unlock Heavy Armor and the resourses for it on the planet
Water Planet:
-The Air is toxic and too thin to use atmo thrusters and there is no land to drive on
-Travel by water and base under it to avoid the toxic air, Process water for air
-Unlocks some sort of Chemistry mechanics like poisons or some materials for speed upgrades or better/bigger batteries components
Storm/Lightning Planet:
-Constant lightning storms targeting grids and the ground, anything not grounded will take great damage
-Build hight points to catch lightning, Use decoys to save important parts
-Unlock some lightning catcher to generate power, Some material used to make new things like the catcher or Railguns
Planet with Heavy Gravity:
-A way of there idea of a planet very rich in resourses, no atmosphere and hydrogen will most likely fail too and leave you stranded and crashing, you'd want to use a drop pod equiped in basic tools and materials and do a small new start and build a base, movement slowed down and maximum storage of character and components cut proportinally to the gravity strength.
-Vehicles will fail, driving or flying, maybe if walkers are a thing they might be useful, but the idea would be to have a stationary base, mine using drills on pistons, move using around using elevators and some kind of assembly belts. To get off the planet you'd need to gather enough supplies to build A space Elevator.
-Unlock stuff, maybe just a planet made enterily of resources, or unlock optimized/compact storage to fight the reduced storage capacity on the planet, oh which outside it the compact storage will be an upgrade to the base storage.
On a further note, dynamic vs static game content in contracts:
Currently, the contract system is curated. Which is fine, for the tutorial and the main story. Which players will do a couple times. Then you tie progression to this linear system, and players are made to go through the curated content each time they start a new game, instead of concentrating on organic/dynamic challenges the original poster so well enunciated on. That will create a disconnect between the two, and players will get annoyed progressing through, again, instead of working through progression challenges alongside organic/dynamic challenges, as posted above, whereas they fit beneficially.
Separate block progression from the tutorial/main story, and create a progression system that will progress 'with' the player, that will compliment them and their journey, as they work through the types of dynamic challenges that were posted above.
(edit) A way to do that with the contract system/unknown encounters, is to keep the different types, but incorporate a 'living' dynamic controller layer above, that directs their placement. Either faction based, planet based, or all combined, etc. A logic that keeps track of everything, so there is a 'reason' you encounter a signal, or a contract is populated. A system that controls, based on events that occur. A simple RTS mechanism, such as X4 and others have.
On a further note, dynamic vs static game content in contracts:
Currently, the contract system is curated. Which is fine, for the tutorial and the main story. Which players will do a couple times. Then you tie progression to this linear system, and players are made to go through the curated content each time they start a new game, instead of concentrating on organic/dynamic challenges the original poster so well enunciated on. That will create a disconnect between the two, and players will get annoyed progressing through, again, instead of working through progression challenges alongside organic/dynamic challenges, as posted above, whereas they fit beneficially.
Separate block progression from the tutorial/main story, and create a progression system that will progress 'with' the player, that will compliment them and their journey, as they work through the types of dynamic challenges that were posted above.
(edit) A way to do that with the contract system/unknown encounters, is to keep the different types, but incorporate a 'living' dynamic controller layer above, that directs their placement. Either faction based, planet based, or all combined, etc. A logic that keeps track of everything, so there is a 'reason' you encounter a signal, or a contract is populated. A system that controls, based on events that occur. A simple RTS mechanism, such as X4 and others have.
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