Addicted to Reloading

[Sasuga]

I was playing and saved the game seconds before the Printing Pod had Dups ready for me to choose from.  I got what I felt was an AWESOME dup, and then I had a the bug where I couldn't change the priority on several machines because they were auto-disinfected.  I didn't save before reloading because I didn't know what caused the bug and wanted to go back to a save where I knew things were working correctly.

Well, the Printing Pod popped and when I opened up the pod to see my options, my "awesome" dup wasn't there. I immediately realized why.  I rejected all the dups and kept playing.  Then I decided I didn't want to be down one dup, so I reloaded the save again and got three new dups and picked one that was pretty decent.

Now when I play I find myself intentionally saving before the printing pod goes off, and then if I don't like the dups it gives me I reload. It feels a bit like playing a slot machine and reloading the slot machine is like putting in my coin. I don't want to keep doing it, but I keep "rerolling" my dups now over and over, and it actually gives me a headache but I can't quit (hence why I said I'm addicted). - I literally spent an hour one day reloading until I got a dup that I liked.

I would like the game to have a seed from the start so the same dups are presented each time the printing pod is ready, even if we reload either due to a bug, a power outage, or a cheating addiction.

Also, I think it would be neat if down the road we can upgrade the printing pod and have 5 options.

[chaos0720]

Yeah I discovered this a while back and was using it for a while. It's referred to as save scumming. Once I got better at the game, I stopped doing this and played as intended. For whatever reason, the way the game is, the dupes aren't generated until you actually open the printing pod. Thus, you can reload as many times as you want until you get the ideal dup.  The dupes should be generated in the pod when the pod becomes ready. That way you can't just reload if you don't like your dups.

Someone somewhere else (can't remember who or where) suggested that the dups be generated a few cycles ahead of time, that way you can't just go to the previous day to get around the first fix (the one I mentioned above). I think this would be the proper way to handle this. If dups are generated 9 cycles ahead of time and stored until the printing pod reaches their cycle, someone who is save scumming would have to lose 9 cycles of progress to get a new dup and if they were really addicted, they would be losing a lot of time resetting those 9 cycles.

[Oozinator]

9 hours ago, Sasuga said:

..I literally spent an hour one day reloading until I got a dup that I liked...

Gnihihihi ^^
But game is to easy then.

[Kasuha]

7 hours ago, chaos0720 said:

The dupes should be generated in the pod when the pod becomes ready. That way you can't just reload if you don't like your dups.

 

They should be pre-determined by the game's seed value. Whatever you do, you get the same sequence of duplicants regardless how much you save/load or how long you wait before you open the pod.

But I don't think it's a big issue. Trained duplicant (with high skill levels) is so much better than even the best "new" duplicant can be, and at high levels the differences in skill values don't matter that much. And most of their negative traits are insignificant in a well run base, I think the only which needs some real attention is loud sleeper.

[brummbar7]

6 hours ago, Kasuha said:

Trained duplicant (with high skill levels) is so much better than even the best "new" duplicant can be, and at high levels the differences in skill values don't matter that much. And most of their negative traits are insignificant in a well run base, I think the only which needs some real attention is loud sleeper.

But there's the two stats that can't be trained (Strength and Immunity) and Divers Lungs, which is a really good trait.  I can see how some people would save scum for those things.  I mean, ultimately its up to the player how much of their time they want to spend on that, doesn't hurt me any, so I guess I don't care that much either way. 

What's the matter with loud sleeper?  Other than that it appears to emanate from the dupe's butt, that is.

[Michi01]

12 minutes ago, brummbar7 said:

What's the matter with loud sleeper?  Other than that it appears to emanate from the dupe's butt, that is.

You have to design your sleeping area differently because of them. Since room requirements aren't in the game yet, people usually put up cots in a row and they can't do that with loud sleepers. I can't think of other traits that require a different design like that. Small bladder/irritable bowel dupes can be ignored or get extra restrooms, mouth breathers just need more oxygen production etc.

[brummbar7]

@Michi01 Oh right, when Kasuha said "attention" I was thinking he meant the mechanic was buggy or something, and needed attention from the devs.  Attention as in you have to respond to it, sure.  Though I'd add flatulence to that list.  You can't really just ignore that one.  In fact the one and only time I took one of them I decided it was the worst trait in the game, and an absolute no-go.

[Michi01]

11 minutes ago, brummbar7 said:

In fact the one and only time I took one of them I decided it was the worst trait in the game, and an absolute no-go.

I didn't include them because their natural gas production is pretty low and I thought you basically just need one pump and activate it once in a while to deal with the gas buildup, but at the same time I've never really given them a try and always just rejected them

[Michi01]

Perhaps there should be more of a benefit to those traits that players always reject, for example positive traits that only dupes with a very negative trait can have.

[brummbar7]

2 minutes ago, Michi01 said:

I didn't include them because their natural gas production is pretty low and I thought you basically just need one pump and activate it once in a while to deal with the gas buildup, but at the same time I've never really given them a try and always just rejected them

The problem is they move all over and create the single low pressure tiles everywhere, unless you dedicate them to a constant task like hamster wheeling or cooking.  They mess up your crops (so you have to fence them out of those areas), can cause sleep issues, and just generally everything that weird gasses cause.  Natural gas, being neither the heaviest nor lightest, is not as easy to capture as CO2 and hydrogen.  It's a real pain.

[Sasuga]

16 hours ago, Oozinator said:

Gnihihihi ^^
But game is to easy then.

Well, I considered that (as the first responding post said) when I get better I won't want to or care to, I mean the behavior makes me feel sick already.

 

Its not about making the game easier, its playing the slot machine. :-/

[Sasuga]

6 hours ago, Michi01 said:

Perhaps there should be more of a benefit to those traits that players always reject, for example positive traits that only dupes with a very negative trait can have.

Nah, I think the negative traits are fine. I like the way the game is designed and being designed so far, except the part where I can lose a dup I like in a power outage and keep reloading for dups until I get one I do like.

 

I can see how its none of the traits are a big deal late game, but early game when you've only got 4 to 6 dups, their traits can make a huge difference in getting to that late game.

[Michi01]

21 minutes ago, Sasuga said:

I can see how its none of the traits are a big deal late game, but early game when you've only got 4 to 6 dups, their traits can make a huge difference in getting to that late game.

Some traits do still matter in late game, loud sleepers force you to change your base design whether it's early or late game and flatulents put annoying pockets of natural gas everywhere and that also doesn't change in late game, so I think it would be justified to give players a reason to not always reject them (to be fair, loud sleepers will probably matter less in late game when room requirements are added).

[Sasuga]

On 9/5/2017 at 7:11 PM, Michi01 said:

Some traits do still matter in late game, loud sleepers force you to change your base design whether it's early or late game and flatulents put annoying pockets of natural gas everywhere and that also doesn't change in late game, so I think it would be justified to give players a reason to not always reject them (to be fair, loud sleepers will probably matter less in late game when room requirements are added).

The game is great for a working alpha, or whatever they're calling it!  

I remember when Abyssalite or whatever its was surrounded your hole base and you couldn't mind through it.  I love that we can dig further. I just hope the end of the dig is ultimately vacuum (if not something super special) instead of just more rock you can't mind through... After all, you're apparently inside an asteroid right?  Hitting vacuum would be a reason  you couldn't 'dig' any more.

I just wish for my sanity there wasn't the option to cheat, or perhaps an "Ironman Mode' - I've been trying to control myself, but something always happens and I end up playing the slot machine.