...one life to live....until I die and do it all again...

[bbushh]

I have an idea I thought I might share regarding life and death in voxel games. There needs to be some tension introduced so you really don't want to die so here's a thought. When a player spawns the game generates a lifespan for them between, for instance, 70 and 90 days. The player starts out a bit weak and inexperienced but at the 20 and up to the 40 day mark or so they get a series of physical bonuses (faster move, faster block breaks) which simulates the peak of their fitness. From the 40 to 60 day span they get skill based bonuses (faster crafting, additional skills) which simulates their maturation. From the 61 day until their "natural death" between 70 and 90 days they experience a gradual decline of physical skills and in the latter part their mental skills as well with the odd message telling them of "aches and pains" and "I keep forgetting things". Finally the player dies and must resurrect......however there is some sort of skill and attribute bonus for surviving a full "life". Thoughts?

 

[Tyron]

I don't see how that could be a useful game mechanic, I'm afraid.

[Saraty]

If I understood it correctly - player dies inevitably no matter of what he does every 70 - 90 days right? That would mean being prepared to die anytime during span of 20 days? If we go for classical classical penalty of death (loosing all items and levels gained), then it would mean that players at their "old age" could not go far off from spawn point, and needs to avoid carrying valuable items.

I would personally fit this idea (or some parts of it) under Wilderness & survive! There are several reasons why we cannot implement it in Survival, but first and foremost is because we already have an underlying story which offers a very different perspective of what Player is. The concept of "life and death" of the player has a story based, historical explanation which can be learned about during the course of playing this game.

Wilderness & Survive, on the other hand, has no story. Simply said - it is meant to become the center of various epic nature related challenges that we and you guys are wishing for! So I kinda like the idea that player does start off with being weaker and gains his strength by day by day. Not sure about unavoidable death yet. My personal preference would be setting off a counter of days survived so people can compete and have fun showing their records!  How does that sound for You?

[UmbraCreations]

I think this is a very interesting idea. It kinda sounds like an automated "incremental idle game" system that is used by so many games like "clicker heroes" but i don't think it is a good feature for a game like this. The "forced" death alone is something i dislike and many would agree on that.

It does not fit into the normal survival/adventure and explore atmosphere. Now that's the problem. If you agree on a limited lifespan just to increase you abilities and skills and overall stats, you have to do that in order to achieve something more special than just "easier survival". In the normal survival mode, as much as i understand now, you will have things you can achieve by getting stronger, but as i said it doesn't fit.

If there will be this mode where survival is the main goal, i think a limited lifespan would also question the logic behind the whole gamemode itself. "You have to die to survive"

 

 

Yes for a mode mainly focussing on a more intense if not even more realistic survival, a counter showing the amount of days you survived will be very good as it gives you something more defined to work for.

[bbushh]

...."do you want to live forever".....quote from Valerian in the excellent Conan the Barbarian film.....

 

Just to clarify, there would be a considerable benefit to the player built into the game IF they survived to a "natural" death.....it would be disadvantageous to continually die because this benefit would not be realized. My intent was to produce a motivation in game for players to not want to die and I thought a carrot (in the form of some sort of reward) was better than a stick .I am not wholly attached to this I am merely throwing it out there....thanks for all the comments....especially the ones that thought it was dumb

 

....the idea of a "life counter" for players to compete on seems fine to me....I like the idea of having a friendly competition.

 

Cheerio.

 

[Luk]

Hey bbushh, I'm a little late to the party, but I'm also someone who's usually looking for ways to make life and death more intense and valuable in games. I think your idea would be a cool step to further increase the realism and tension, but I could also see a lot of players being very unhappy with it. If something like a natural, permadeath system were to be implemented, I think it would be best realized as a separate game mode, with a counter for how many days survived like Saraty suggested (and maybe include an online ladder to compete with others for the highest score). Then I would want to build from there, making the game like a multi-generational city developer in the same vein as Dwarf Fortress or Crusader Kings II. So when your original character dies, you would then play their child or something like that. Buuut I think that might be a far cry from what's intended for Vintage Story.

At the risk of advertising other games, I'd suggest looking at Chronicles of Elyria and Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines. I find they most accurately fit the mechanic you're looking for. And then, of course, I'd suggest coming back to build some awesome castles and towers in Vintage Story!