Hi Everyone I've been a lurker on here for some time and have finally decided to join the community and see if I could ask some burning questions that I have been pondering for a while now. This is the first. In the same vein as AmblingAlong's thread regarding "An Industrial Logistics Simulator for Everyone" I want to focus on a previous blog post that, to cut a long story short, shifted me from regularly monitoring the status of CE to finally purchasing the game some 6 months ago. Storytelling as Game Design is the blog post that really made me jump from interested to purchasing consumer (as an aside it is also, in my opinion, one of the best written posts). So the storytelling potential and ambitions of CE are what really appealed to me as I'm sure they have many others too. I have played (far too much) DF and without doubt what keeps drawing me back in is the random storytelling potential that I don't think any other game can match. Now CE is definitely moving forward in terms of the storytelling potential as interactions between colonists and the world become more and more complex so I am not too worried about that side of the gameplay but I do have a few specific questions relating to the overall theme of Let's plays, story telling and what cues you are (or not) taking from DF: 1. Will there be a game mode where there is no 'win state'? For example; the reason players of DF focus so much on their individual stories is because ultimately they know their fortress is doomed to failure (It's not the destination it's the journey). 2. A key mechanic in DF is that losing the game is typically determined by the player (I dig too greedily, I attack too zealously etc) - are there any intentions to have a similar system in CE? 3. I've noticed that almost all Let's Plays of DF have custom named characters to allow participation from the viewership - will this be a feature of CE? 4. I love Fey moods in DF and the idea of creating a totally random object out of random items due to the whims of the gods - is this something you could implement? I think that's enough for now, apologies for the wall of text and if some of the questions have been answered already. Off topic I have to say that I've purchased a few early access games and Gaslamp Games are the best in terms of responding and communicating with the community. Seriously hats off for that, you should get an award or something! Thanks in advance.
I agree with post of the OP - aside from the mechanical nuts-and-bolts of things (which I also find fascinating), I'm really looking forward to the narrative possibilities of Clockwork Empires. The linked blog post reminded how awesome the prospect of airship towers is.
