Coming Next: Seabases - Subnautica
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Join Date: 2013-01-29 Member: 182599Members, Super Administrators, Reinforced - Diamond
Join Date: 2013-01-29 Member: 182599Members, Super Administrators, Reinforced - Diamond
Coming Next: Seabases - Subnautica
There’s two big pieces of Subnautica news today. The first is that we’ve got a whole bunch of work-in-progress seabase stuff to show you. The second is that we’ve just...
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Oh and on a separate note my preferred resolutions are 1152x864 for games that have the higher end graphics and 1280x1024 for games that don't have high end graphics. I'm running a 650 GTX and i still have issues sometimes.
I have to say I'm completely addicted to building in this game. It still needs lots of work and tweaks, but I love the terra-forming tool, upgrading things on my ship, etc. If they include multiplayer and defense setups for personal bases...*mind explodes*
Some things I would love to see incorporated eventually:
Underwater drainable airlock doors- Example: (player 1 is operating base inside, gets a radio call from player 2 to allow them access. The outer door opens,closes, water drains- player 2 then enters base. It should be possible since you can already flood your submarines in a similar manner.
Deadly underwater monsters or natural elements like lava/acid/electricty that could potentially harm your compound if encountered. This can be done now to an extent, at least against terra-formed base creations. The submarine can absolutely destroy entire wall sections without suffering much hull damage
(lesson learned)
After finding out the base building tools are only found on Experimental, I switched over. However I'm still having trouble finding the blueprints to create rooms, walls, etc. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Do I need to locate the fragments first?
Note: There was an update to subnautica experimental and it is now impossible for me to access items under blueprints/inventory/submarine. Circle icon remains frozen to the center of the screen, but functions normally while looking around/ interacting with environment.
But for variety, how about a modest selection of special large modules? Like a greenhouse/tree dome. Or a hangar for the Seamoth. That would help break up the monotony of identical repeating tunnels.
Thanks for the tip. I've got the builder, but apparently there's only the fabricator and the locker available to be build. Am I missing something, or were base parts removed from the current experimental build?
Big Edit: You have to start a new game. Even if the previous game was on the experimental branch.
However, you can get the builder from the fabricator. It's also apparently the only way now to build the locker and fabricator.
The base building itself is a...nice proof of concept. I was quite disappointed with it actually. No windows, no vertical movement, very limited space (putting a locker in the hallway eats up half the hallway and looks ugly/makes my OCD sense tingle) and the annoying fundament is very restrictive. Multiple levels are possible, but the struts then float in the air (well, I guess water) and there is no connection between different levels.
But this is just my assessment of what there is at this very moment, I completely understand that is far, far from finished, but that doesn't mean I won't criticise it or give feedback.
Also apparently, the straight pieces can't turn (or I haven't figured out how).
Yet. Sadly, there's not much to see, depending on where you build. I like to build a 1-platform minibase on one of the red-grass pillars to get a better view of the reefbacks, but the view distance is so short I doubt I could see any anyway.
We do want to eventually have more shapes then just the cubes, but for now the cubes work the best. They are easy to stack, whereas domed ceiling rooms are not. They are easy to put next to one another and create a much bigger base, that is uniform in look, rather then a bunch of oddly shaped modules jammed next to one another. It also provides more useable space inside the rooms, then say a round shaped room, which becomes problematic for building modules on the walls.
We'll be trying to round off the corners on the cubes, and we'll probably try and eventually have tubed shaped hallway connector pieces, and maybe some specialized rooms, like a spherical "observatory" style room. But the more shapes we add, the more art time to make the pieces and the more programming to implement them, so we need to find the right balance between visuals and practicality.
You will be able to dock your Seamoth, and we are hoping even your Cyclops.]
Cory, you won me over with cubes and tubes and then you dropped me like a wet paper bag! :P Honestly the ISS style was what I pushed for in the beginning so I can't complain too loudly although I do wonder if a certain amount of customization and creativity is lost in this new design. I was admittedly very disappointed when first reading the report because it leaves the impression that all our bases will be is a series of interconnected tube corridors. While that is the much more plausible and realistic design, it looked very claustrophobic and constrained. Now I have read this additional note on steam in regard to bases and my "worries" have subsided somewhat.
[Squeal Like a Pig [developer] 20 hours ago
this is just the first implementation. We plan on adding more shapes and larger sizes, such as large domes, so that there can be larger interior spaces.]
Perhaps something similar to this... http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=400338604 ? Very rough draft model I made there for representation, don't judge too harshly :P ...and the walls on the domes I purposefully made high to account for fabricators, lockers and other things that need them.
My opinion is that I want to use the corridors as corridors and nice ocean viewing walkways - not main pieces where I would try to set up research stations and fabricators. I do see where that might come in handy when you just want a very small outpost though...I hope there is always the option to use them in both those capacities respectively. Might we still get vertical corridors with access lifts in the future?
I am a big fan of the art style and the look and feel you guys have with the Cyclops, the base pieces, and everything in general and I understand the need for a system that maintains a certain level of realism, uniformity, and connectivity (I actually like that aspect of it), but I do not like those foundation pieces.
I wish you were able to go into more detail on the whole thought process involved with the design decisions and also give us more insight into your vision of what it might look like in the end, but thanks very much for the update! Still excited to play with corridors and looking forward to what is coming in addition to them. The concept art and 3d modeling is outstanding! Cheers.
*Edit* And props to Dushan for making it all come together as noted in the post. No small task indeed!
Either way, the sooner I can build my 2x2-vertical-tower-atop-a-pillar with an observatory where I can gawk at reefbacks without humping a lazily textured straw like a fish with mental issues, the better. Also a chair. My gluteus needs a break after flippering for seven days straight.
The other problem winds up being when windows come into play. The only place you can set up a base and have a 'view' are the shallows due to the light level and biodiversity. The kelp forests are too irregular for foundations (and murky), and the visibility and biodiversity of the other biomes is sorely lacking still.
The only functional base right now is a single I-tube with power generator, a couple lockers, a fabricator, and a beacon/crates outside. Everything else is pretty much excess space for the time being.
Yes, we've been discussing removing the platforms and would like to do some prototypes of that, once we have this first pass on the bases implemented. Something along the lines of this quick paintover I made a few days ago https://www.dropbox.com/s/4klnz8v9jik9wmj/NoPlatformsLongerLegs.jpg?dl=0
Thanks for the additional info Squeal and consideration on the support style topic...always enjoy seeing the great concept art you and the team create during the process.
I know it's crazy I'm the advocate of realism in this case, but it's also a matter of aesthetics-- it may look better with more fancy supports, or what have you-- something to improve the integrity of the structure is an added benefit, nothing more
Edit : Though I do appreciate the effort at trying to make my idea come to life En9a9e :P