What's really missing from KSP? A campaign mode.

[mikegarrison]

OK, so I'm enjoying 1.0.x. I've been playing it totally stock so far, and I haven't even tried out the new stuff like science labs and resources.

But having played through many career mode games (both stock and modified) ever since they invented career mode, I think what's really missing now is a campaign mode. Here's how I envision it.

Some cutscene cinematics maybe featuring kerbals in balloons or bi-planes or what have you. Then someone (John F. Kerman?) starts the Kerbal Space Program. Yay! Cheering kerbals.

Scenario 1: You have a fixed amount of cash and the level 0 tech. Goal of the scenario is to escape the atmosphere, but you need some launches and recoveries to get a little more tech. (So far, this is basically the same as career mode.)

Scenario 2: You are given a few more parts to work with, some more money, and now you must get a kerbal into orbit and back again.

Scenario 3: Unmanned probe to the Mun. Again, you are given some cash and a limited set of tech. Goal is a crash.

Scenario 4: Unmanned Mun flyby and return.

Scenario 5: Manned Mun flyby and return.

Etc. Rather than grinding cash and science using contracts and experiments, each scenario would give you the tech and cash you need.

You could have scenarios like Apollo 13, where something goes wrong and now your job is to get your kerbals back home. You could have a mission later on where there is already a base on the Mun, and you have to deliver supplies and/or scientists. Etc.

Of course you could still just play with the existing game modes, but these campaign scenarios would be fun if they were plotted out imaginatively.

[Alshain]

The whole point of KSP is you make your own campaign. Even in career mode, it's still a sandbox game.

There is a game called Tropico, Tropico 4 to be precise. I bought it thinking it was going to be a SimCity-like builder game but instead it had a campaign like you suggest. I found it was too restrictive, despite being a fine game and a lot of fun, I still desired a SimCity style game. You see where I am going with this? KSP is all about making your own story, and making your own campaign, just like SimCity 4 was. A campaign would seriously bug me in this sandbox style game.

(... and then SimCity 5 came along, and I still desired a SimCity style game... but I digress)

Edited May 3, 2015 by Alshain

[mikegarrison]

The whole point of KSP is you make your own campaign. Even in career mode, it's still a sandbox game.

There is a game called Tropico, Tropico 4 to be precise. I bought it thinking it was going to be a SimCity-like builder game but instead it had a campaign like you suggest. I found it was too restrictive, despite being a fine game and a lot of fun, I still desired a SimCity style game. You see where I am going with this? KSP is all about making your own story, and making your own campaign, just like SimCity 4 was. A campaign would seriously bug me in this sandbox style game.

I'm talking about adding a game mode, not taking away anything that we already have.

[rodion_herrera]

I have been arguing that you can even make a sort of "career" out of Sandbox mode, and it doesn't even have to involve using mods. Simply trying to create tables and matrices depicting flight envelopes or launch ascents is a career in itself, and the reason you can do this is that every part is available for your tests. The rewards are even greater--if you keep doing this over and over again, you'll eventually get to be really good in the whole business of aerospace travel, because the data is just a glance away.

[Merinsan]

The whole point of KSP is you make your own campaign. Even in career mode, it's still a sandbox game.

There is a game called Tropico, Tropico 4 to be precise. I bought it thinking it was going to be a SimCity-like builder game but instead it had a campaign like you suggest. I found it was too restrictive, despite being a fine game and a lot of fun, I still desired a SimCity style game. You see where I am going with this? KSP is all about making your own story, and making your own campaign, just like SimCity 4 was. A campaign would seriously bug me in this sandbox style game.

(... and then SimCity 5 came along, and I still desired a SimCity style game... but I digress)

I disagree. If the purpose of KSP was to make our own campaign, why introduce career mode? I think(hope) the devs have something more planned for career mode. Currently career mode is virtually pointless as it is.

[panzer1b]

Given that 80% of what i do in KSP involves ship-ship combat, i have to end up making my own campaigns anyways (my recent one is basically 3 sides combat, and i just keep ship costs in a spreadsheet to balance stuff).

And while im not going to complain if they add campaign, im prolly not gonna bother much myself given how i already find career and science mode way way way too restrictive for my style.

[Galileo Kerbonaut]

(... and then SimCity 5 came along, and I still desired a SimCity style game... but I digress)

Go Cities Skylines!

[Vanamonde]

This suggestion for the game's development has been moved to Suggestions and Development Discussion.

[TothAval]

to op: this could work as some sort of tutorial guideline, a connected tutorial and after the last scenario you have all the evidence of your previous scenarious still around and are now going to

enter career with some basic tech and knowledge already accomplished. i would love that as an introduction option in career for new players. This could also be a recipe for a good mod, combined

with my ideas on science and funds. i would prefer something like this in stock, but a mod would also be a viable option for stuff like this

[John FX]

I think what you want could be introduced with a series of missions that build upon each other starting with 'launch a craft' and eventually requiring a grand tour.

Have you tried contract configurator and mission controller 2?

I found them to be fairly satisfying.

contract configurator has mission packs that have a good range of missions and mission controller 2 has a series of historical missions that build on each other for a feeling of progression.

[tater]

A properly thought out career mode could work this way---or take other paths by player choices.

[mikegarrison]

I think what you want could be introduced with a series of missions that build upon each other starting with 'launch a craft' and eventually requiring a grand tour.

Well, the contracts do serve as sort of a proxy for this, but there are two problems. 1) They are offered randomly, so there is no sense of a plot or a story. 2) There is nothing with any sense of urgency. Even "rescue missions" are basically just "put your ship into this orbit some time in the next 7 years".

My idea, though, was based more on the typical "campaign" game of a RTS game. You would have a series of more limited scenarios, with victory conditions for each one, but they would be linked together by a story arc.

It's great that we can make up our own stories in KSP. But I think I would also enjoy playing through someone else's story.

[tater]

In that sort of mode I'd like a foil… a Space Race, complete with opposing craft in flight (ideally those awesome stock alike soviet parts).

[thereaverofdarkness]

This isn't the thing for Squad to make I don't think, but it'd be great if someone else made a mod for this! Then again, I wouldn't really complain if Squad made something like this.