[Obsolete] SS2 Community Patch (SCP) Beta 1

[6743a36a8b4d6JML]

Imo building a few toilets here and there can really assist immersion.. For me the arguing why the Rickenbacker resembles submarines is absolutely fine and I'd love to see some toilets/ small cleaning supply rooms.

[6743a36a8ddc3System Shocked]

I'm seeing the release of beta 2 as Very Close. There are some rather ambitious fixes/enhancements that I have no intention of tackling for this release.

so we using Very Close™ now? definitely sounds shorter than Soon™.

Barely any orange lines left in the map and gamesys issue tracking for issues that can be easily addressed. Can't think of anything else that might hold us up.

How Imminent™ is the release of SCP Beta 2 ?  A nice window of opportunity is during the August 1st weekend  .  .  .  that's August, 2015. What's the probability that SCP Beta 2 will see the light of Sol, on or before Monday, August 3, 2015, EH ?

[6743a36a8e1b1RocketMan]

I think ZB is still adding days for every post you make...

[6743a36a8e442System Shocked]

I think ZB is still adding days for every post you make...

If that's the case, we'll be lucky to see SCP Beta 2 before the end of 2015. . . . OH CRAP! . . . ZB just added more days.
.

[6743a36a8ea0aDrone-Dragon]

Some suggestions I have here. If not for this release then maybe the next?

These suggestions are based on my multiple sessions of the game, all on impossible difficulty with the SCP in its current state installed.



First, enemies...

The spiders need to be better at hitting you and an attack that lands should be a guaranteed poisoning. Right now you can just wait for them to perform an attack animation then hit them, attack animation hit.

Rumblers need to be able to actually hit you. Even if you are slow as winter backing up they just run into you and don't attack you, making them pointless. If you do stop for a moment their attack animation takes so long that you can avoid it easily. If somehow they do manage to hit you they take forever to hit you again, keeping their claw up in the air like they are saying a villainous monologue before attacking..."Now I shall destroy you-oh you moved out of the way again."

Cyborg ninja AI needs tweaking, they back up for no reason making them easier to kill.

Midwives need to have a somewhat faster melee attack. They also need to stop sidestepping for no reason as it doesn't help them survive, just makes 'em easy.

Monkey AI is wonky. They seem to not know you are there even when you are right in front of them.

Hybrids need to respond to seeing you faster rather than seemingly be surprised. Grenade hybrids need to attack faster.

Sometimes robots shoot through walls. Also the fusion gun on the military bot needs to be more accurate and faster.

Enemies still go through doors sometimes before they have opened.

Psi reavers need to be harder to fight, and they get stuck in the walls too much . Faster respawn? The brain structures teleport away if you don't kill them fast enough? The manifestation teleports after you if you get out of sight? Something.

The Brain of the Many needs to be tougher. Add more 'defense stars' maybe, and make the brain tougher. With psi reaver brain teleporting that would be awesome. Maybe add an organic or psi based attack to the stars themselves. Also the enemies you run past in the tunnel that leads to the brain should be able to get to the chamber too for a tougher fight...it seems odd that they don't protect the brain.

SHODAN needs to be harder to fight, and the consoles should require at least lvl 4-5 hacking.

Also the enemy spawn should be increased a bit in all the ops deck areas, command deck areas, Rickenbacker, and Body of the Many. This should be considered in amount based on the other changes I have and will suggest. Maybe slightly in hydro areas too.

Second, items and systems...

The amount of health hypos needs to be reduced based on difficulty. Way too many.

The amount of medkits needs to be reduced based on difficulty. WAY WAY too many.

The amount of anti-toxin hypos needs to be greatly reduced.

The toxin removal added to the surgical stations needs to be removed or a greater cost added for it and the healing. A somewhat greater cost for healing needs to be added anyway.

Not sure how to work with Rad hypos...you need alot of 'em for the Body of the Many, but...you shouldn't be essentially collecting them all just for that, though that is about all they are good for since there are not many radiation areas in the game. I used the hazard suit too though, so...maybe reduce the amount of rad hypos to make people with low endurance take the haz suit when needed? Dunno.

Nanite cost for dieing should be increased based on difficulty. Hard should be maybe 100 nanites. Impossible should be maybe about 150-200 nanites.

Increase in cost of health, hypos, etc in replicators based on difficulty.

Third, weapons and upgrades...

The amount of incendiary grenades you find should be reduced.

Standard weapon damage is still too high. Way too high.

Sharpshooter upgrade needs nerfing...greatly so.

Crystal shard needs to have damage vs robots reduced a good bit, to make the laser rapier better for that.

Laser rapier needs just a slight nerf vs organics, mostly just annelid.

The bonus from the psi power adrenaline overproduction should be reduced significantly or reworked...OP as all get out.

Lethal weapon and smasher need a slight nerf, but not too much.

Laser pistol overcharge needs a slight nerf. You don't even need the emp rifle with that thing.

TMDA...too much damn ammo. Especially standard weapons, YOU DROWN IN THEIR AMMO!. The number of prisms in the game needs to be reduced a good bit also.

Increase cost of ammo in replicators or reduction of how much you get from them. Based on difficulty.

The number of maintenance tools needs to be reduced significantly.



I think that is all, though I always feel like I'm forgetting something when writing alot of stuff. I just want this game to be more what LGS intended as a survival horror RPG. The SCP is the best hope for that.

[6743a36a8ebe1voodoo47]

these are pretty much all difficulty/gameplay changes, something that's out of scope. also, while veterans do tend to swim in hypos and ammo through the second half of the game, newbies are almost universally starved, sometimes making the final fights nigh impossible (that's also why a rad suit has been added to botm on easy and normal - for a newbie, it's way too easy to not have enough rad hypos at that point, making the irradiated areas impossible to pass).

trying to tweak the overall difficulty is a slippery slope - no matter what you do, you will be making a significant part of the players unhappy. ADaoB tried it, and people hated it.

[6743a36a8f265ZylonBane]

I just want this game to be more what LGS intended as a survival horror RPG. The SCP is the best hope for that.

SCP is zero hope for that. SCP is a polish, consistency, and minor graphical upgrade mod.

[6743a36a8f567RocketMan]

ADaoB tried it, and people hated it.

Let's try not to internalize this as though it were a matter of fact.  To this day I have yet to see a single scrap of evidence in the form of a poll or discussion of statistical significance supporting this tenuous supposition.  I know exactly 2 people who "hated it"

[rant off]

Of course you're right about SCP having little/nothing to do with balance though.

[6743a36a8f6b2Djant]

It's unlikely people outside of these forums or System Shock 2 veterans would like a mod which increases difficulty though, given that System Shock 2 is considered to be a hard game as it is. I know of a System Shock 2 veteran who didn't like Secmod for instance because he thought it tried too hard to change the game and added a bunch of nonsensical changes, and also made the enemies too frustrating. Since the SCP is intended to improve the base game for every player and not just make it harder, I don't think they should try to rebalance the game too much.

[6743a36a8f7a6VanZant]

Yeah, I agree, keep it vanilla and everyone is happy. If you want to change things, I would say do it. Make sure it's updated to the latest SCP version if that needs to be done.

[6743a36a8f9f7System Shocked]

This ain't no guarded/timid or sorry-I'm-asking inquiry, as has been posted by many others, and basically thrown aside. I'll be so bold as to ask pointblank on what continues to be on the minds/lips of most all SS2 members/visitors, with NO disrespect.

So, SCP Beta 1 was released over nine months ago . . . tick, tock . . . plink . . . chik, chik . . . whirrr. Where are you all knowing and powerful Devs at, regarding the release of SCP Beta 2? During this extended development period, you've come close to its release precipice on several TM'd occasions, but up until now it's all been absent, banal, barren, benign, big yawn, blank, blah, bogus, dead, diddly, empty, flat tire, futile, goose egg, ho hum, hokey, hollow, hot air, humdrum, lifeless, limp, n/a, nada, naught, nein, nil, nix, none, nonentity, nonexistent, not, nothing, nowhere, null, squat, vacant, vacuous, vapid, void, wasted, wearying, yawn, zero, zilch, zippo, zot . . . . . is that enough synonyms for ya?     

I'm sure there are many that would like to play SS2 with SCP Beta 2 installed, a few times during what's left of Summer 2015, before returning to skool, aH yUp. So what's the latest buzz, lowdown, timetable for its release? What is there left to do?

I hope the delay isn't due to ZylonBane's new washrooms being backed-up, due to improper plumbing designs/mechanics.   Hey ZB, chill out, I've already stated that I'm a fan of incorporating your new washrooms. Adding new areas to SS2 can never be a bad thing . . . but, EEEWWWWW ! . . . . . what's that smell !? 

[6743a36a90601Olfred]

I'll be so bold as to ask pointblank on what continues to be on the minds/lips of all SS2 members/visitors, with NO disrespect.

Not on my mind.
And I don't like if people speak in my name.

And whatever drugs you take, take less.
Or maybe more. Whatever gives the better results.

[6743a36a90b45System Shocked]

Not on my mind.
And I don't like if people speak in my name.

And whatever drugs you take, take less.
Or maybe more. Whatever gives the better results.

SCP Beta 2's release is not on your mind at all, after more than nine months? My apologies for mistakenly including you within the majority. I forgot where your loyalties lie. I've amended my original post, to exclude you from the main herd.

Taking drugs? No drugs have been taken, except listening to the BeeGees Greatist Hits (Musically, Stayin' Alive . . . "Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha, Stayin' Alive, Stayin' Alive . . ."). It's an honest and ongoing question, not only asked by myself, but many others, only it's poised here in a somewhat more direct and serious manner. More drugs would be listening to Grand Funk Railroad Live.

I'm all for better results, provided it's within a reasonable amount of time. Within the last month, notable Devs have stated "We are close" and "I'm seeing the release of beta 2 as Very Close" and "so we using Very Close™ now? definitely sounds shorter than Soon™." Basically, all hot air.   

If an update isn't released for a while, as is the case, keep the community in the loop. Don't divulge notable/major specifics concerning newly implemented features, just provide the community with a periodic updated status report, akin to what member Join usss! does with his GMDX: Deus Ex Mod.
 
It really ain't all that hard to do this. It can only help in attracting attention to and increasing interest in this website, and drawing more persons to it, considering the few websites dedicated to the System Shock series. The more, the merrier.

It's a win, Win, WIN situation.

[6743a36a9101dJoin2]

akin to what member Join usss! does with his GMDX: Deus Ex Mod.

That's not fair to expect of anyone, expecting them to have no life, that is.

It really ain't all that hard to do this.

It takes time, at least if you're making videos and such. Modding itself already being a very time-consuming task. Just posting periodic changelog updates is quick, but there are multiple possible approaches to marketing. One such approach is to hold back information and drip-feed occassional bits, getting those susceptible to creating hype to kick up a fuss and "represent the majority". This seems to be the optimal approach.

[6743a36a91181voodoo47]

something slightly unrelated - maybe we should take the Halloween pic from the first post down - looks like there are people that won't install SCP because they think they will get pumpkin heads on the hybrids.

[6743a36a912a1RocketMan]

Really?  Who said that? 

[6743a36a91407voodoo47]

an youtuber. when people play modded but omit SCP, I usually try to find out why. it's "want better graphics, but strictly vanilla gameplay" most of the time, but there are exceptions, like this one.

[6743a36a91514ZylonBane]

So far, exactly one person.

[6743a36a9174cvoodoo47]

that we know of.

[6743a36a918aaMisaka Mikoto]

Ehh, just looking at the first post does make it look (but not read) as if there will be pumpkins for heads. Not a great intro to the project for those who can’t be bothered to read past a first impression.

[6743a36a919c7RocketMan]

Sou desu ne.  Soshite sono yasumi wa owarimashita kara tabun okashii atama o nuide dekiru to omoimasu.

[6743a36a91ac9Yankee Clipper]

Now I want to play a pumpkin head mod.

[6743a36a928f9voodoo47]

check in the next Halloween.

[6743a36a92be0System Shocked]

check in the next Halloween.

One can only hope that SCP Beta 2 won't be released until Halloween 2015, ONE WHOLE YEAR after the release of SCP Beta 1.