System Shock Remastered RPG goals outlined by Nightdive

System Shock has easily surpassed its Kickstarter goal and now reach more than 1.1 million USD. Nightdive has decided to rejig the stretch goals and clarify their plans.

The latest update from Nightdive explains their new plans for stretch goals and have now “altered the 1.4m stretch goal to something a bit more manageable”. Concerned that the phrase “RPG Elements” was a little too vague, they believe that “deep system features” could be “dangerous” as stretch goals. The update reads:

“Now, the 1.4m stretch goal is something much safer for us to scale if we don’t make the goal. It’s to add content in the form of more maps such as Groves, floors of Citadel Station, and Cyberspace content. This will make it better for us to properly execute on our core vision of the game, while still being able to offer some more awesome content if we hit the stretch goal.”

The post then goes on to detail their plans for RPG systems:

• Stats are boring – Instead of letting the player feel stronger with stat boosts and level identification, we’re more in favor of ability and skill depth. As the player progresses, they will get more abilities/weapons, which will take skill to master (player skill, not skill points)
• Things should make sense – We want to have vending machines, but they’re mainly for food/drinks that the player can get to help heal themselves or provide a slight boost to their abilities. You won’t hack a vending machine to get a gun, since why would a vending machine on a space station have a gun?
• Upgrades are good in moderation – Throughout the game, the player will find upgrades to their abilities and find better weapons. We’re not going to get crazy with this one since the point of the game is to have fun, and not noodle around in your inventory. If something is tedious, don’t expect us to do it.
• Multiple ways to solve a problem – We’re going to assume our players are smart and want to find creative solutions to problems/enemies. We’ll provide the tools/weapons/abilities, and the player will decide how they want to solve the problem given their playstyle.

It sounds like they are being cautious so as not to disappoint backers and they are working to the the mantra of “What would Looking Glass do?” when trying to innovate with this remastered System Shock. The image below gives an idea of their plans.