Meaningful ore deposits in SE2 - Core game mechanic

Implement improved ore deposits in Space Engineers 2 to encourage exploration and dynamic gameplay rather than the "set for life" mega-deposits from SE1.

In Space Engineers 1, finding a single large ore deposit often provides enough resources for an entire playthrough. This creates several issues:

• Trivializes resource management - Once players locate one mega-deposit, resource gathering becomes a solved problem requiring no further thought. Mining vehicles then remain unused and abandoned having served their one time purpose.
• Reduces exploration incentive - After the initial discovery phase, there's little reason to venture beyond your established area
• Eliminates logistics gameplay - Players simply "stock up and go" from one location.
• Undermines territorial gameplay - In both multiplayer and singleplayer, controlling resource-rich areas is not meaningful when single deposits provide infinite resources. Also they are abundant.

Proposed Solution

Redesign ore generation with a depth-based distribution system:

Surface & Shallow Deposits (0-100m depth)

Small, scattered nodes - Trace amounts suitable for early game

Easy to detect - Designed for discovery without technology:

• Size: 200-2,000 units per deposit
• Frequency: High, especially in geologically logical locations players would expect such as:
• Caves
• Cliff faces & canyon walls
• Rocky outcroppings & boulder fields
• Crater rims
• Visual cues: Rock discoloration, shiny fx

The "Bootstrap Guarantee": Within 1km of any spawn point, players will find enough visible deposits (300-800 units total across multiple ore types) to build initial infrastructure without frustration.

Quick depletion - Exhausted within 0.5-3 manual mining sessions

Mid-Depth Deposits (100-500m depth)

• Size: 5,000-25,000 units per deposit (10-50x larger than surface deposits)
• Frequency: Medium

Moderate detection difficulty - Requires vehicle-mounted ore detectors. These deposits are completely invisible without detection blocks, creating a clear value proposition for technological advancement.

The quality jump: A single mid-depth vein contains more ore than 10-20 surface deposits combined, making the investment in a mining vehicle.

Deep Core Deposits (500m+ depth)

• Size: 50,000-200,000 units per deposit
• Frequency: Low (rare but substantial)

High detection difficulty - Requires deep-scanning and digging.

Justifies permanent infrastructure - Rich enough to warrant building mining bases, extraction systems (elevators), conveyor networks, and vehicles dedicated to mining (including rovers! Show some love to mining rovers). And may extend time spent in playthroughs in a fun way.

Benefits:

• Continuous exploration - Players must regularly scout for new resource locations

• No more pointless infrastructure - Encourages building dedicated vehicles for underground exploration.
• Territory control - In multiplayer, controlling resource sites may actually become strategically important

Synergy with SE2 Features

• Dynamic world - Creates reasons to build in multiple locations and explore different biomes/depths especially with SE2's wider biome variety and novel cave exploration.
• Multiplayer economy - Facilitates trade and territorial conflicts over resource-rich regions

Implementation Considerations:

• Scanning blocks may prevent frustrating needle-in-haystack searches
• Visual cues for surface deposits (rock discoloration, ore outcroppings, shiny fx)
• Ensure players can always find something nearby and in a place they would expect, even if not optimal
• Make deep deposits genuinely rewarding to justify the investment
• These rules may be bent for more unique ores like uranium or platinum (if they are in SE2) or depending on the planet, to make each environment feel that much more unique.
• Eg: "How do we make the ice planet special?"

Conclusion:

Smaller, strategically distributed ore deposits transform resource gathering from a one-time checkbox into an ongoing gameplay pillar. This change would encourage exploration, reward engineering creativity, and create meaningful territorial dynamics - all core pillars of the ideal Space Engineers experience I would want to have and I hope others realise they might want to have aswell.

The goal is to make resource management meaningful throughout the entire playthrough compared to SE1. This was a major flaw in SE1 that I hope gets expanded on substantially in SE2.