Fully player-driven colonization - with emergent needs and schematics

Approximately a year ago I made a post and I wanted to flesh out the intention behind it (https://support.keenswh.com/spaceengineers2/pc/topic/50273-colonization-deserves-better-se-is-ignoring-its-best-mechanics), with a more concrete example.

Forget contracts for a while.

Let's say the game had the capability to evaluate a grid. Evaluate its location in the world, production and power outputs, its connected communication grids, the list of blocks used in its rooms and pretty much everything that could fulfill any need.

And let's say that players can decide to help the colonies, decide what to build, when to build it, how well to build it, what it contains, its scale, how to automate it and so forth.

And then let's say that needs are starting to emerge from what the player has built. Again, forget contract-like needs like "we need more x tons of y".

In practice:

Suppose the game initially asks for something simple - to boot-start colonization.

So the player decides to just build a mining facility and component factory in northern Verdure and designate it to the colonies. This mining facility turns out to be quite neat - automated mining, plenty of power, high output and a huge storage capacity for components. The game then picks that up and evaluates it.

Then a housing need emerges out of that evaluation - just like in real life, where industry booms and population follows. (Keeping the example simple with just one need emerging).

Again, the player builds housing and connects the housing facilities grid/grids with the production facilities via the communications network (doesn't need to be on the premises, they can commute like the rest of us!). The game evaluates the housing grid and its connection to the facility. These honest commuters won't live long without defenses or food though... and needs keep emerging.

At this point a colony of two connected nodes has been created. Which can grow like a tree without a predetermined order. Players might outright build an empire, or Megatron for all the system cares.

There are many things one could do with this system. For example the colonies that the players have built can sell new schematics, generate events and rarely contracts - if you love that system so much :) And these can depend on the decisions players took while building them, such as their location/biome. Schematics will essentially be player generated.

Last but not least, they will create a baseline for the emergent systems other users have asked for, meaningful ore deposits, reasons for engineering, vehicles and so on. It'll be a cinch to build compared to what Keen has achieved so far.