Wednesday, May 7, 2014
TL;DR
Some final changes to the research mechanic will make research a highly-relevant and exciting part of LT. Theft and sabotage of technology is now possible, and the universe is filled with opportunities to incorporate technology into your strategic play, regardless of whether or not you're interested in engaging with the actual research mechanic.
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Yeah, you knew it was coming. We haven't had a good wall of text in a while
The new (and final?) research system is here. I'm making two major changes as I turn my previous theory into implementation: first of all, we're gettin' physical
All technology is embodied in physical commodities. Nothing is hidden. Next, we're turning one aspect of research into a continual process that feeds production. As I'll explain, both have really nice gameplay and balance ramifications.
NOTE #1 : I'm a bit scatter-brained because there's so much to explain. Sorry
NOTE #2 : LT will always defer to fun and rich gameplay over realism, but that's particularly true here in the research mechanic. Research is the highest-level gameplay mechanic that exists in LT, and also the most delicate balancing factor. We need to break reality fairly substantially in order to create balance and fun here, so try to think from the standpoint of gameplay rather than realism. It's important!
Let's start out with the two types of physical goods that comprise the research mechanic:
prototypes and
blueprints.
Prototypes
A prototype is the top level of research, the master piece of technology from which all else derives. You can think of it as a
master blueprint, i.e. the original technical description of an object. Imagine a data disk full of technical information and holographic projections of the object.
To research a new variation of a technology, you need to have a prototype. To create blueprints for production, you need to have a prototype. A prototype is the highest of high knowledge of an object, and ownership of it indicates that the owner has a full understanding of the technologies that power an object (because that understanding is contained within the prototype).
Prototypes are created in tech labs, and must either be created from 'first principles' (which is used to create the starting point for any family of object technologies), or from another prototype (which is used to create a new and improved variation of a previous-gen technology). This mechanism is the same as the technology nodes of which I spoke in the original research proposal. Nothing has changed there - procedural trade-off modifiers, slow vertical progress, etc. A prototype is just a tech node. But it's not some abstract dot in a tree - it's a real item, and you'll need to actually transport it to the location of your research lab if you want to use it.
Blueprints
Every production process now requires a consumable blueprint. A blueprint, like a prototype, is created in a tech lab, but comes from a prototype. Think of it as a sparse data disk of the object - it contains only enough information to manufacture the object, but not enough to give away the technology therein. The owner of a prototype uses that prototype to create blueprints, which can then be sold to others for use in production runs. Blueprints are programmed to self-destruct after a run, since the owner of the corresponding prototype does not want to give away unlimited license to produce the item. In this way, you can alternatively think of a blueprint as a license to produce a single instance of the item.
Blueprints are the primary way in which technology is traded in the marketplace. Creating a blueprint from a prototype takes time, but, unlike performing new research, it takes a fixed amount of time, meaning blueprint creation can be set up as a continual process. At an abstract level, the trade of blueprints in the marketplace really represents the continual licensing between factions to use one another's technology.
The consumability of blueprints might, at first glance, appear like an unrealistic choice (despite the explanation I gave). It is, I suppose. But we must look at the gameplay implications. It creates a direct and
continual connection between production and research, making research a
much more demanded facet of the game. To continually produce, you will need a continual stream of blueprints to feed the production process, just as you will need a continual stream of raw materials. That's a paradigm shift over the idea of research as a one-shot thing, where discovering a new tech allows you to capitalize on it ad-infinitum. Instead, we create a stable and continual process whereby production requires research. This directly translates into a tangible demand for research in the marketplace.
Reverse Engineering
This one's simple and requires very little explanation: reverse engineering is, as you probably already guessed, the process of taking a blueprint and creating a prototype. It is
significantly harder than going in the forward direction.
Technological Theft and Sabotage
To me, this is by far the most exciting gameplay consequence of everything I've detailed up to this point. It's the thing that really lights my imagination on fire and makes me say "yeah, research is going to be an awesome part of this game!" The gameplay potential that falls naturally from treating technology as a physical good is immense.
Since they're consumed by production, blueprints are now a ubiquitous commodity throughout the universe, just like raw materials. Therein lies substantial opportunity
Blueprint theft is now a very real and potentially-lucrative gameplay element. Like any commodity, blueprints can be pirated to resell. But even more interestingly, they can be pirated to use for yourself. Out-teched by a greedy enemy that won't put their tech on the market? Then don't go at them head-on. Be smart about it. Find the transportation link that connects their research plant to their production factory. Scope it out. See that the security isn't what it should be. Plan a hit-and-run to nab the blueprints. Now you've got the key to building weapons of equal power (well, at least a few batches of them)
But even better: prototype theft is now possible. This is huge. Unlike blueprint theft, prototype theft (or destruction) actually
damages the 'tech tree' of a faction. Prototypes are unique and non-copyable, so if you manage to steal or destroy one, you cripple the owning faction's technology. Technology can literally be destroyed. And
that, my friends, is the most critical piece of all of this. Sure, you can get big. But the bigger you get, the more valuable those prototypes that you're cranking out become. Like a massive box of diamonds just sitting around in your ship / station, they're going to attract attention.
Pay your escorts well.
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Whew.
It's going to be an exciting universe, wouldn't you say?