Star Citizen's food and drink mechanics - new datamined info

invalidData · Mar 12, 2020

Crymsan said:
I can see the point of needing stuff to go and explore (or long range mining trips whatever)..... just realistic can be a chore and work which only a few will enjoy. It will also be another negative when people spend hours flying to one planet effectively doing nothing and then have to fly back to eat etc, i.e. this will add to the travel time complaints. Not speaking personally since I do not bother to log in to the "alpha".

What do you do on a road trip?
You take some snaks and premade food along and you plan some stops at restaurants.
You don't drive all the way back home just to get some water and a banana...

Crymsan · Mar 12, 2020

Well that's what I meant, some ships will be set up with cargo space? What do you do with the others? Hand wave it? Or send them home? Do they need to have a base ship? If you can assume ration packs in their suits then why do you need cargo space for rations on other ships? Or is it just the length of time, i.e. okay up to 4 hours? Implementation and whether there is any fun in this realism is key to how it will be accepted. So far they need to add more fun not work.

Vashpede · Mar 12, 2020

I am actually surprised so many people hate this. I really do not think it is going to be as tedious as people think it will be. I personally got really excited reading everything about having to eat and drink, but I also love survival aspects and this is a space "simulator". They have mentioned many times that they will balance "realism" and "fun". Watch the latest star citizen live, it might take a person 5 minute to eat a hamburger in real life, but in SC it might take 3 bites, they specifically said they want to balance it so it does not intrude on game play, but people think it is going to be this crazy game altering aspect.

As far as ship cargo goes, when we have 100 systems, a gladius or other ships that do not have much storage will probably not even be able to fly far enough to have to worry about food.

Thalstan · Mar 12, 2020

Lienna said:
My first reaction to the food/drink stuff was negative.

But I spent 1 hour playing SC this morning and I'd guess 10-15 minutes of that was spent in quantum. The game needs things to do during QT and if its get up off your chair, head to the kitchenette and have a microwave meal and glass of recycled water then so be it!

It also adds to the design of small vs large ships. A gladius has no interior, so all you can carry is a canteen and some energy bars. Fine for a patrol, but no good for long distance without a carrier to land on to restock.

Move on to a long range fighter like the vanguard, you have a living space with room to store enough food and drink for long hauls, you don't have the supplies for a proper meal, but it's good enough.

The big ships like a reclaimer have full blown dining tables, expect nutritious meals that give buffs and make you perform better, and you have enough scu on board to store months worth if you need it.

They still could screw this up and make it a pain to do, but done right this could not only help with immersion, but encourage multi crew activities and intelligent ship selections for missions!

Sorry, I can certainly see this as a role play mechanic, and yes, it should provide buffs...maybe even a meaningful buff that you will want to have even for the most basic food, but to require it or die? No thank you.

here is how I see food being an important part of the system

NPCs will “want“ it. The better the food you have stocked in your ship, the bigger morale boost. Fresh fruit would have the biggest boost, while freeze dried MREs would have the lowest. Lack of food would have a negative reaction and could lead to a mutiny. Since we have more ships than people, NPC crews are going to be important.

Players will want it. Food provides increased health, stamina, G-force resistance, and resistance to environmental and physical damage. Water is recycled via your flight suit (mini-still suit for you Dune fans).

Since many times you can’t remove your helmet, food should not be a requirement to survive. Yes, you will eventually lose your buffs, but that is much different from death.

it is so much easier to implement mechanics that people will want to follow, rather than implement stuff that will force people to follow.

Bambooza · Mar 12, 2020

Crymsan said:
Well that's what I meant, some ships will be set up with cargo space? What do you do with the others? Hand wave it? Or send them home? Do they need to have a base ship? If you can assume ration packs in their suits then why do you need cargo space for rations on other ships? Or is it just the length of time, i.e. okay up to 4 hours? Implementation and whether there is any fun in this realism is key to how it will be accepted. So far they need to add more fun not work.

The small ships with no cargo space will need to stop often to refuel anyways so while your ship is refueling you can go to big bennies and pick up a snack for the next leg of the journey. The other aspect is that they fully intend for you to not be traveling all over every system daily. I would wager that the intent is for most peoples a few hour play periods they would log in and do a few missions that take place within the planet/moons effect and not even travel all over the local solar system let alone go through a jump gate. So when you log in you'll just have to check that you have food and water as well as your ship is fueled and rearmed.

From the AMA