Jetpack ideas, loadouts, and more!

[Gonad Pony]

With @Grummz working hard on getting test versions of the jetpacks going I know he's been looking for a lot of feedback. I love jetpacking in games, and love being able to customize my character to no other, but what if there were different jetpacks to equip? Maybe some only acieveable by higher level characters that will show off, either cosmetically, performance wise? That said, I did have an idea on 2 basic models of jetpacks that any player can choose from, and perhaps have it as a piece of gear so they can be switched out, either depending on the mech equipped or just the loadout used.

1. Tried-and-True energy-powered jetpacks. These are the basic jetpacks everyone is used to, you can glide around and more or less be airborne for a while, but ultimately not fly because of the short-lived nature of these jetpacks, requiring the player to land or otherwise stop somewhere to recharge every so often. Good in longer runs, good for endurance but not necessarily good if you just want to get up and do an errand.

2. The newer (but admittedly technically would use older technology because cars) fuel-powered jetpacks. These jetpacks, like a car engine, would have a fuel gague like the energy based ones, but would drain slower, and maybe provide more thrust. However, since these can get you to higher places or get somewhere much faster by bypassing the need to take a break, these jetpacks would have to be "refueled" in a sense at any base or outpost (or something of that sort, what matters is they don't auto-refill) once you drain them completely, making them better for a quick there-and-back run or a sprint to another area.

This would give players more of a choice on what to do, and require more planning before going out on a mission, and could in turn allow for more modular areas as well, would you like to mod your jetpack for a bigger energy cell/fuel tank? Or maybe more thrust? Perhaps allow 1 optional mod slot in these jetpacks with a +/- stat tradeoff, like +20% jetting time -15% thrust

And finally, this would beg the question of loadouts. Would each mech, once crafted be its own mech, welded together to perfection and not be able to be changed, or would they be able to unequip old gear and equip new ones? Additionally would we be able to use the same parts between mechs, like I have my favorite modded jetpack on my main omniframe, can I use it on this new one as well? and inventory is just what items you can use? Or would I need duplicates of each thing in order to use it on multiple mechs?

In my opinion, having omniframes that can equip/unequip gear freely, so long as it's not destroyed or deployed would be best, along with not being able to use the same parts on different omniframes. So as long as everything is repaired and I want to go through the hassle, I could equip that jetpack on another frame and use it later, but perhaps a wait time to equip/unequip gear that can be rushed with hard currency? I think this will allow a happy section of very optional monetization that players wouldn't mind, and increase longevity of the game because players will have to re-run certain things to get the materials to make duplicates of those equipment pieces if they wanted to.

 

[Terib.Shadow]

I like this idea but i'd personally rather have the fuel jetpacks themselves be a module for our omniframe, as they're something that allows to get on top of large kaijus and get rid of their power cores/weaponry which is usually located on their backs, thus being a good module for those who want to specialise in taking out large kaijus. A fine idea for a module, would only need some balancing, mostly in duration/how long/how much we can use the fuel jetpacks.

 

[Omnires]

I like the idea of the modular system of jet packs where everyone gets a basic jet pack but there are a number of add-on slots we can use to mix and match different components to make the jet packs fit our own personal play styles. As for the system itself we can think about that later. So I'll just give a few examples of what I mean.

• Let's say you are a person who likes to hover a lot and stay in the air for a long time to help you scout things out and explore. So what components would you need for your jet pack?

1. Give your jet pack more energy capacity or fuel capacity to help you stay in the air longer.
2. Give your jet pack high efficiency in using energy or fuel to help you stay in the air longer.
3. Give your jet pack stabilizers to keep you hovering in place or to move at a even rate (lock in hovering height or flying speed).
4. Give your jet pack a backup emergency system to help you avoid damage. Like diverting all remaining power to shields at the cost of lowering your remaining flight time.

With this setup you can hover in place in the air for a long time and keep an eye on the enemy through your long range scope or just wait for a slow moving object to get out of your way while you are hovering over a pit of death in some deep cave. Because you are focused on flight time and stability logically you will not be as fast or as maneuverable as the people with more combat focused jet packs, but you'll make up for it in utility. And in terms of combat this would be good for players who like to hover in place high in the air while sniping the enemy.​

• Let's say you like to fight at close range so you need to able to close the gap to targets in a short time while also being able to dodge attacks. Because you'll mostly be using your jet pack in short bursts for high speed and maneuverability what components would you need?

1. Give your jet pack a high power generator or engine for more power output.
2. Give your jet pack better thrusters for more acceleration and speed.
3. Give your jet pack the components to make the thrusters directional or just add extra thrusters so you can move side-to-side, up and down, forward and backward, and be able to turn and spin around on a dime at a moment's notice.
4. Give your jet pack some kind of an overboost or afterburner for even more acceleration and speed at the cost of using up your energy or fuel even faster.

With this setup you can have unmatched speed and agility to allow you get into and out of range of the enemy both to do attacks while also avoiding attacks. You could dash right at an enemy with a heavy shield in front of it firing at you while you are dodging his long range attacks just to quickly fly past him and before he can turn around to try and attack you again, you stabbed him in the back with a blade or shot him in the back of the head with a shotgun. Because if your high energy consumption or fuel consumption you will not be able to fly or hover for as long as other players with less speed focused jet packs. Meaning when traveling long ranges you'll have to sprint in stages to keep up with a group. But as long as your jet pack recharge time or refueling time is short you can use your super fast dashes to keep up with people who have more energy or fuel capacity and/or efficiency.
​

Those are just two extremes I could think of off the top of my head. But you get the idea. You just add or remove components to your basic jet pack to change how it performs. And with a modular system all we have to do is find, buy, and/or craft the mods we need for the jet pack. And a good modular system would also have the added effect allowing people to make different looking jet packs too. Because some people are willing to sacrifice performance in favor of their own personal aesthetics. So some might just also throw on parts that don't have much in the way of stats, but it is ok to them just get that extra bit of flare they are looking for make their mecha look like a beast.

edited for grammar

 

[Torgue_Joey]

I like the idea of the modular system of jet packs where everyone gets a basic jet pack but there are a number of add-on slots we can use to mix and match different components to make the jet packs fit our own personal play styles. As for the system itself we can think about that later. So I'll just give a few examples of what I mean.

• Let's say you are a person who likes to hover a lot and stay in the air for a long time to help you scout things out and explore. So what components would you need for your jet pack?

1. Give your jet pack more energy capacity or fuel capacity to help you stay in the air longer.
2. Give your jet pack high efficiency in using energy or fuel to help you stay in the air longer.
3. Give your jet pack stabilizers to keep you in hovering place or to move at a even rate (lock in hovering height or flying speed).
4. Give your jet pack a backup emergency system to help you avoid damage. Like diverting all remaining power to shields at the coast of lowering your remaining flight time.

With this setup you can hover in place in the air for long time and keep an eye on the enemy through your long range scope or just wait for a slow moving object to get out of your way while you are hovering over a pit of death in some deep cave. Because you are focused on flight time and stability logically you will not be as fast or as maneuverable as the people with more combat focused jet packs, but you'll make up for it in utility. And in terms of combat this would be good for players who like to hover in place high in the air while sniping the enemy.​

• Let's say you like to fight at close range so you need to able to close the gap to targets in a short time while also being able to dodge attacks. Because you'll mostly be using your jet pack in short bursts for high speed and maneuverability what components would you need?

1. Give your jet pack a high power generator or engine for more power output.
2. Give your jet pack better thrusters for more acceleration and speed.
3. Give your jet pack the components to make the thrusters directional or just add extra thrusters so you can move side-to-side, up and down, forward and backward, and be able to turn and spin around on a dime at a moment's notice.
4. Give your jet pack some kind of an overboost or afterburner for even more acceleration and speed at the cost of using up your energy or fuel even faster.

With this setup you can you'll have unmatched speed and agility to allow you get into and out of range of the enemy both to do attacks while also avoiding attacks. You could dash right at an enemy with a heavy shield in front of it firing at you while you are dodging his long range attacks just to quickly fly past him and before he can turn around to try and attack you again, you stabbed him in the back with a blade or shot him in the back of the head with a shotgun. Because if your high energy consumption or fuel consumption you will not be able to fly or hover for as long as other players with less speed focused jet packs. Meaning when traveling longing ranges you'll have to sprint in stage to keep up with a group. But as long as your jet pack recharge time or refueling time is short you can use your super fast dashes to keep up with people who have more energy or fuel capacity and/or efficiency.
​

Those are just two extremes I could think of off the top of my head. But you get the idea. You just add or remove components to your basic jet pack to change how it performs. And with a modular system all we have to do is find, buy, and/or craft the mods we need for the jet pack. And a good modular system would also have the added effect allowing people to make different looking jet packs too. Because some people are willing to sacrifice performance in favor of their own personal aesthetics. So some might would also throw on parts that don't have much in the way of stats but it is ok to them just get that extra bit of flare they are looking for make their mecha look like a beast.

I THOUGHT JETPACK ARE ALREADY A MODULAR THING. LIKE THE WINGS.

I'D SACRIFICE THE WINGS ANYTIME FOR BIGGER JETPACK. SO I CAN AIR STOMP RABBITS.

 

[Omnires]

I THOUGHT JETPACK ARE ALREADY A MODULAR THING. LIKE THE WINGS.

I'D SACRIFICE THE WINGS ANYTIME FOR BIGGER JETPACK. SO I CAN AIR STOMP RABBITS.

Yes, but I was thinking of something more deep than most normal systems at the time. Have you ever played custom racing games or custom mecha games where one of the biggest draws to the game is that you have control over almost everything about your car or mecha? Like the weight differential, radiator, gears, even the size, shape, and angle of things like wheels. When you have a deep customizing system even things that seem like they are only there for cosmetics can be use to boost performance by those who understand how they really work.

I'll use a car for example. A lot of people seem to think that a spoiler on a car is only there to make the car look good. And this might be the case for cars that not really designed to move at high speeds. But in truth, a spoiler's job is to help give a car more traction at high speeds by pushing the car downward. This is why they often look like an upside-down airplane wing. The size, shape, placement, and even the angle of the spoiler will effect how the car handles at different speeds. If it forces the wheels down hard you'll have better control as traction goes up, but you might also lose a lot of speed as you have now have to overcome the extra down force. And if say rear spoiler forces the car down to much, you might lose control of the car because on some cars it might make the front wheels lift off the ground. And so adding a spoiler might help if you know what you are doing or it can really hurt you if you get things wrong.

The mecha games that have a deep customizing system in them are far and few between in my book. If I add wings to my mecha I don't just want to use them to fly. Going by what type of wings I have I want to also use them as a weapon and/or as a shield. For example what if I don't use physical wings, but rather I use special thrusters that shape the exhaust from the jets into a wing-like shape? Could I use the extra range of the exhaust to burn enemies that are to close to me while I'm flying? After all my wings are made of fire at that point. What if I use wings that are modeled after insect wings that make me fly by using high vibrations? Can I use the vibrations to make sound-waves that would hurt, confuse, and/or aggro the enemies within earshot of me?

I'm not saying this game needs to go super deep on the customizing side of things. I'm just pointing out that there are some of us who do think about these things. But it would be nice to have a system where even small choices matter and you feel like this mecha is really your own, rather than some mass produced thing that everyone has. It would be nice to look at someone's load out and get a sense of how that person likes to fight just based on what parts they have, without even needing to look at their weapons. But that is just me, I'm into the science of combat.