Allow Metal Salvage to be Harvested from Large Wrecks Using Laser Cutter
mikeloeven
Join Date: 2017-04-14 Member: 229623Members
Join Date: 2017-04-14 Member: 229623Members
I would like to see the ability to dismantle large wrecks with the laser cutter allowing the user to essentially cut apart larger pieces of metal into manageable salvage This would also open up the posibility to create new access points into a cargo container by cutting through the hull instead of just being limited to predefined door seals
Comments
Unlike dirt, you can't just do a squash-and-shove on the polygons of a wreck; you end up with metal spaghetti, and that'll look awful. So you need to ID polygons to remove when the player chops away at position X. But, since on large wrecks one polygon could cover a significant distance, you'll need to remap them so you're not knocking out an entire wall with your little laser cutter. Then you have the problem of orientation. Some game models are only meant to be seen from a given perspective and aren't modeled from the other side (usually appearing transparent). You can't have that if you're going to be hacking out walls, so those will need to be fixed. You also can't have items just floating in space when the wall they were attached to is cut out, so you need a check and procedure routine for those cases.
Also, from a level-design perspective, it takes the risk-and-reward wreck exploration model, which involves a player keeping track of route, oxygen, and obstacles, and reduces it to, well, this:
All in all, while the idea certainly has merit, it also has a lot of downsides. Besides, while it's believable that the laser cutter can burn through a few doors, is it really within expectations that a battery-powered handheld tool could cut through the major structural members of a starship?
That's easy to explain. The Drill Instructor looking at his stopwatch was cropped out of the shot.