To be or not to be a complete space station

Game Play & Game Design
#1

I have been working diligently to build my space station for my game. My inital thought was to build a space station with full facilities…banking, trade, repairs, refueling, bars(to get jobs, hear gossip, etc) and more…

But the more I think about it, banks should be independent so players would have to manage how many credits they carry with the looming threat of other palyer attacks, piracy, etc…

Then thoughts of this lead to having all separated:
Trade Ports(trades and bars here)
Banks
Repair Facilities
Refining Facilities
Fuel Depots
Ship Yards
Political Offices/Ambassador facilities(offices and bars here)
Defense Stations
Player Bases(and/or planetary ownership)

all extending SpaceStation for graphics rendering, etc.

This would cause players to move around and not be able to do everything in one place, promoting travel, exploration, piracy, teaming up for protection in numbers(alliances?), border crossing, dealing with other races, etc…

I havent explored all of the possibilities of planets/moons due to size, but…
they could have multiples of each of the above on their surface…but thats much later on.

Thoughts?

#2

Sounds like a good idea, though it will be a lot of work. With that said, it should be worth every moment for its final build.

Good luck with that,
James Vaughan ~ Project leader of “The Spirits of Luna”

#3

The trouble is that (I am guessing you are moving towards Eliteville with your project) you need to think about having a credible environment as well as the player mechanic. I find it hard to imagine that things like banks would still have a physical location in any future where current trends continue.

You can possibly play to this too, though - you may be able to communicate directly with larger dealers or trade companies but if you want a really good deal you need to head out into the dodgy backstreets to find the little places with local sources or the specialist engineers who can do you that bit extra. Give people an opportunity to play it safe but real incentives to take risks- I think that way you appeal to everyone.

#4

thanks breakfast…I like that idea. Each normal/regular/safe space station has a banking terminal. Backwater trade ports, etc…don’t! You may earn 2 credits per ton profit for an item the “safe” way, but selling that same item as a risky port in an unsafe sector may earn 14-16 credits profit per ton.

thanks