DLC Vehicle Ideas
Q_bert
inactivelavart Join Date: 2018-05-08 Member: 240607Members
inactivelavart Join Date: 2018-05-08 Member: 240607Members
So I was thinking about some ideas for terrestrial vehicles for the upcoming DLC, and here’s what I came up with.
Land vehicle- akin to a Snowcat, possibly able to tow a trailer with a Seamoth or my second idea.
Air vehicle- a pontoon helicopter, would need to dodge giant carnivorous birds. Running out of power whilst airborne would leave you no choice to parachute out, or die in the crash. This would make for emergency landings when low on power, thus requiring a walk/swim back to base.
Images:
A Snowcat, there are many varieties but the Subnautica version should be slightly different or include elements from all of them.
A pontoon helicopter, there are smaller ones but this was the best picture I could find.
Land vehicle- akin to a Snowcat, possibly able to tow a trailer with a Seamoth or my second idea.
Air vehicle- a pontoon helicopter, would need to dodge giant carnivorous birds. Running out of power whilst airborne would leave you no choice to parachute out, or die in the crash. This would make for emergency landings when low on power, thus requiring a walk/swim back to base.
Images:
A Snowcat, there are many varieties but the Subnautica version should be slightly different or include elements from all of them.
A pontoon helicopter, there are smaller ones but this was the best picture I could find.
Comments
ICEMOTH
Early-mid game another zippy seamoth type thing for under ice exploration. Ideally this would have roll control for slipping sideways into narrow cracks in the ice. At a pinch you could stealth-evade a bottom predator by flipping over 180 degrees and attaching yourself to the underside of the ice-shelf.
This time I'd give the moth two tough constraints for the sake of a gameplay mechanic I'd enjoy: limited fuel and limited air. To make progress you'd have to actively search for openings in the ice, in order to recharge your solar cells and refill your sub's air tanks. Go too far and you're trapped under the ice - another Altera popsicle. However, you'd get plenty of advice from your PDA when you should be turning back (but you might often find yourself travelling the last bit with everything switched off including your headlights). Of course there would be plenty of blueprints about to extend you range - bigger tanks, fuel cells, building limited refill stations for O2 and energy. And the odd abandoned PDA leads on hidden openings left by survivors / Predecessors
SPIDER SUIT
Mid game you'd get your driller suit. Pretty much like the PRAWN, but you could also use it to drill new blowholes for your Icemoth to use. Of course it would have to stick to the underside of the ice sheet during drilling. So maybe it looks more spider like than prawn. Or perhaps cooler still for it to look like a mechanical rock puncher that clubs its way through?
RAZORBACK
Late game you'd get another big ol' bus like the Cyclops. But this one comes equipped with big toothy spine capable of smashing through the ice sheet in places. Of course you'd have to find deep enough water to get the sub up to ice-breaker speed. If successful, then it's a case of a mighty impact. alarms going off, spot fires to put out and sprung leaks to plug up.
The other vehicles are really cool, but too focused on the aspect of "breaching the ice surface". I think the game excels at not tying you to the surface, although we are still tied to the bottom. The exploration follows the topography and that's an aspect I would like to see modified. Imagine crossing vasts regions akin to the "dead zone", in which the bottom cannot be reached and you have to navigate without it.
Collecting and studying resources within the water column, such as exotic fish, leviathan pimples and the water itself, which might have different properties from place to place.
Floating bases, both above and underwater, without the need of being close to the floor to build.
I don't mind the original subs.
My personal explore-the-blowhole-network nightmare wouldn't work if you could just fill up your storage panniers with dozens of energy cells and travel non-stop under the ice. How many could the Seamoth carry, 64 was it? The imagined Snowmoth would need a non-removable power storage that you'd charge only by solar exposure or by 'plugging in' (e.g. to a power plant, battery bank, moonpool etc.)
But I'm not saying fill the whole game up with this biome. But a challenging midgame barrier to late game biomes might be a more engaging experience to players who found exploration in the first game a little too easy. But then maybe I've been playing to much Sunless Sea lately.
This game has no barriers. It is meant to be accessible even to the greenest of casuals. I appreciate harder difficulties, as long as they do not impair new gamers experience.
The idea of breaching ice is nice, but I don't like the idea of having a vehicle tied to, and two others with mechanics related to, it. This requirement of forcing the player to resurface to charge would be fun at first, but get old fast.
There are a few more shortcomings, would said sub be able to refill at a base? If so, instead of swapping batteries we would probably stick to current mechanic of charging at a base or at a Cyclops (after the changes I simply stopped carrying extra power cells and I do not use the solar charger, since by the time I'm running out of power my inventory is full and I have to return home anyways).
Oh yeah, I forgot that the Seamoth has a solar charger module. I never tried that one. Do you have to surface to use it? Or is it depth adjusted like the habitat solar chargers? (which I discovered still works OK in dark caves, lol).
Heavy-duty ice drill: A massive drilling arm, the module adds large stabilizers to the trailer along with a robotic arm with a drill, larger than the PRAWN suit’s. this would be used to break open massive ice blocks (or drill tunnels through glaciers) to excavitate resources or even fossils.
Towing bed: A relatively flat trailer with a hook at the front end and magnetic clamps along the sides, used to transport a seamoth to landlocked areas (such as deep lakes, like the one in the glacier concept art) or to move a large cargo box (constructed seperately with a land-based vehicle bay) that can hold an insane amount of cargo. Could also be used to transport excavitated fossils.
I’ll probably have some more ideas in the future.
The first would be a large submersible called The Posiden and would have 3 decks. The lower deck would function as a hangar and take up about 3 quarters of the length of the ship. It would have 2 docking ports arranged across from each other with a walkway in the middle running lengthwise. A vehicle upgrade station could be placed at the end of the walkway with the option to modify either vehicle. At the other end of the walkway could be a charging station for batteries and power cells as well as a fabricator to make more. A storage unit would be kept at the same end to store surplus batteries and power cells.
The middle deck would house the Reactor and a water purification system and the hatch for the player to enter without a vehicle. There would also be a Alien containment module and a way to eject any creatures inside it out of a hatch and into the ocean ( for those times that something nasty hatches). The bridge would also be located in the middle of the vessel so you would have a general idea of where the ship is at in the water while maneuvering. Directly behind the bridge would a sensor station to help locate wrecks and other items while exploring.
The upper deck would be the smallest deck at 2/3 the length and in the middle of the ship. It would be the "living quarters" of the ship and be left bare so the player could customize as they wish. The front of the upper deck would be made to be an observation room of sorts for when the ship is stationary, and the player wants to enjoy the view.
The ship would be somewhat slow considering the size but could have an upgraded emergency escape mode for when the neighborhood gets a little too rough. The emergency system would allow the ship to run at a speed greater than what the Cyclops is capable of. The catch is that this would only be possible to run safely for around 20 seconds, after that the engine would overheat. If the player ignores the overheating engine fires would start. If the player continues to ignore the overheating ( a fire suppression system could handle the fires), they would risk damaging the reactor due to the excessive heat. This would cause the reactor to be ejected to keep the ship from exploding and would require the player to create a new reactor and provide fuel for it before they could operate the ship again.
The ship would have all the upgrades the Cyclops would have with a few extras to increase the sensors or ad torpedo tubes for emergencies.
The second option would be The Atlantis. It would have three decks but would not be able to dive more than 150 meters. This would be because it uses solar panels to help offset the energy consumption the increased size would require. This would also ensure that the Cyclops would still have a use in the game. It would have the same floor layout as the Posiden but with the addition of two more vehicle bays in the lower deck, another containment module, and a second reactor. A supply room would also be added to the middle deck. The main difference for this vessel is that located aft of the four vehicle docking bays would be an oversized docking bay for the Cyclops. This would allow the player to relocate the base as needed for any DLC or to find more resources while keeping all their vehicles in one place for easier access. The addition of 2 more regular bays would allow the player to have a backup of both the SeaMoth and the PRAWN for when accidents happen ( and we all have them).
These vessels could in a sequel as well, especially one where co-op is available. These ships would be great for supporting multiple players or for endgame survival in deeper and more dangerous waters where a stationary base wouldn't be practical.
This is all just an idea I had and have no problem with critiques and criticism so feel free to add to the idea or bash is as you see fit!