As far as I know the plan is to have new technologies be discovered by players (warp gates and such) and maybe even hard speed and size limits raised eventually if game engine improvements allow for that. How would be that handled in the grand scheme of things? Once discovered\invented, would the new technology be universally available? I know warp gates will probably require moon-specific resources to function\be built but other than that it seems like nothing is stopping you from having warp gates (or some even better tech down the line) anywhere and everywhere.
Is this a problem? Well not really, but we could make things more interesting.
Let's take a look at the Vernor Vinge's "Zones of Thought" concept. In short, the farther you are from the center of the universe, the better the technology that can exist and function, like higher than human-level intelligence AI, FTL travel and so on.
How could this be applied to Starbase?
We could have the state of the game upon release be the baseline level of technology. Every new technology could require being farther and farther away from the starting point, similar to how we supposedly have to reach the moon for warp gate technology. Of course, making a high technology ship and then going back to the center\starting point should still be possible, but with disadvantages like deteriorating effectiveness (FTL making shorter and shorter jumps until it stops working completely or bigger than baseline ships slowly losing durability similar to corrosion, etc.) or high-technology components just outright being non-functional after crossing a zone threshold. Some tech could be gradually deteriorating, other threshold-based, there's a lot of possibilites for mixing and matching what works and what doesn't. It could work the other way around as well, slowly raising the baseline 150m\s speed cap the farther you go from the starting point, for example.
How would this affect gameplay?
It would create some interesting, in my opinion, aspects of ship building like having to make hybrid ships with backup low-tech systems if you intend for your ship to be functional in multiple technology zones. Imagine making a last-ditch effort to lose a pursuer by FTL-jumping from a high-tech zone into a low-tech zone where FTL is impossible and you need to rely on conventional technology to get back.
It would also allow new players to retrace the steps of the previous "generations" in getting farther away from the starting point and discovering new technology instead of getting every improvement at once as long as you can pay for it. Naturally, "rediscovering" wouldn't take as long as it did originally due to some infrastracture already being in place like interim refueling (or otherwise useful) stations to get to the moon, players knowing new tech exists and how to get it and so on.
It would at least somewhat preserve the original feel\gameplay the game had on release instead of (invevitable, I hope) size\speed improvements and other technologies being available to new players as soon as they start the game.
Of course this is just a poorly thought out outline of what could be implemented, but the potential is there. It doesn't necessarily have to be too restrictive, adjustments could always be made to make it easier or harder in terms of high-tech to low-tech (and vice versa) zone transition.
Is this a problem? Well not really, but we could make things more interesting.
Let's take a look at the Vernor Vinge's "Zones of Thought" concept. In short, the farther you are from the center of the universe, the better the technology that can exist and function, like higher than human-level intelligence AI, FTL travel and so on.
How could this be applied to Starbase?
We could have the state of the game upon release be the baseline level of technology. Every new technology could require being farther and farther away from the starting point, similar to how we supposedly have to reach the moon for warp gate technology. Of course, making a high technology ship and then going back to the center\starting point should still be possible, but with disadvantages like deteriorating effectiveness (FTL making shorter and shorter jumps until it stops working completely or bigger than baseline ships slowly losing durability similar to corrosion, etc.) or high-technology components just outright being non-functional after crossing a zone threshold. Some tech could be gradually deteriorating, other threshold-based, there's a lot of possibilites for mixing and matching what works and what doesn't. It could work the other way around as well, slowly raising the baseline 150m\s speed cap the farther you go from the starting point, for example.
How would this affect gameplay?
It would create some interesting, in my opinion, aspects of ship building like having to make hybrid ships with backup low-tech systems if you intend for your ship to be functional in multiple technology zones. Imagine making a last-ditch effort to lose a pursuer by FTL-jumping from a high-tech zone into a low-tech zone where FTL is impossible and you need to rely on conventional technology to get back.
It would also allow new players to retrace the steps of the previous "generations" in getting farther away from the starting point and discovering new technology instead of getting every improvement at once as long as you can pay for it. Naturally, "rediscovering" wouldn't take as long as it did originally due to some infrastracture already being in place like interim refueling (or otherwise useful) stations to get to the moon, players knowing new tech exists and how to get it and so on.
It would at least somewhat preserve the original feel\gameplay the game had on release instead of (invevitable, I hope) size\speed improvements and other technologies being available to new players as soon as they start the game.
Of course this is just a poorly thought out outline of what could be implemented, but the potential is there. It doesn't necessarily have to be too restrictive, adjustments could always be made to make it easier or harder in terms of high-tech to low-tech (and vice versa) zone transition.