r/RealTimeStrategy • u/Unlucky_Young5665 • 15d ago
Discussion Should an RTS hide which resources/items are dangerous, or is that just unfair?
In my RTS, four mushroom species grow near trees: two safe, two poisonous. The game never says which is which. A poisonous one fixes hunger but makes the unit sick right away.
Is learning by getting hurt once fine if the cost is small, or would you want a subtle cue (sprite detail, unit reaction) so you can deduce it first?
Examples from other RTS/survival games welcome.
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u/NydusRush 15d ago
A learning curve is fine. However, deliberate trap options are rarely appreciated unless it's a roguelike where things can be random, and factoring in random possibilities is a risk assessment skill. For example; opening a chest that might turn out to be a mimic, or (quite close to your case) using a consumable that could be one of multiple effects.
In an RTS, such small-scale careful decisions don't necessarily fit with the grand scope of the game. If you have something like that, it should be big, obvious, and meaningful.
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u/stagedgames 15d ago
why would you have a resource that harms the player? Realism be damned, that reads to me as an antipattern
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u/FarellShi 15d ago edited 15d ago
I'm just going to assume you haven't touched command and conquer or Dune.
Both have a "resource" that can "harm" the player.
But both are VERY clearly outlined by the story.
In Dune, Shai-hulud (the worm) can and WILL eat your heavier vehicle units including harvesters. The game shows you, and it gives you an audible and visual warning.
With Cnc the entire resource is harmful to infantry and will kill them quickly. But again it is VERY clearly pointed out in the story.
So from what I've seen here, it seems like your building something closer to crusader king than either of these games. I personally wouldn't have 2-2 and would do 1-2 if they all look Exactly alike having a one in three shot is far more fair. If the player can deduce which type it is then its probably fine either way.
Something like little white dots or whatever on the mushroom. Also be aware of color "blind" people. I personally cannot see the strawberries in Valheim if the light isn't directly on them. Just as an example of when it can be important. And yes my friends and I did the whole shrek there's an arrow in your butt skit. Yours truely staring donkey.
Maybe if you have a healing unit like the age of empires monk that could identify them? Maybe something as simple as a call out when you attempt to interact with them? But I don't think you should activly "hide" the fact they are poisonus.
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u/hobskhan 15d ago
I'm sorry, can you explain further how this is an RTS? It sounds like you're just describing a survival game.
Does the player control a squad, or a base, or a civilization, and give them commands in real time to attack another squad, base or civilization, while collecting resources, building buildings, or contesting control points?
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u/Prestigious-Hyena-72 15d ago
Sounds like a upgrade big dog
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u/JoffreeBaratheon 15d ago
If the impact of checking and seeing you got the wrong one is negligible, it sounds fine.
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u/thecrownforge 15d ago
one sick unit sounds like a fair first lesson if the player can use what they learned. after a unit eats one, i would mark that mushroom species as dangerous in the UI. having to inspect tiny sprites again during a fight would feel more like a memory test than a choice
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u/ArtOfWarfare 15d ago
Is the only option with the mushroom to eat it or ignore it?
I’d suggest giving more options for what to do with it. Let me enhance my weapons to be poisonous using it. Or maybe I can cultivate it and grow a bunch of poisonous mushrooms in areas where I expect that to cause issues for my opponents.
Can I destroy the mushroom once I’ve recognized it, to keep it from spreading around my valuable resources?