Money is the ultimate motivator in the space-future. Far Away’s Federation Alliance sends their explorers on missions not, for the pure advancement of science, but for the potential to turn a profit. We don’t want players to mistake this capitalism for malice. The Federation isn’t evil. They are an underfunded bureaucratic organization that needs to prove why they deserve funding next fiscal year. We want to players to feel the same drive for financial stability the Federation does. So, we’re adding the concept of Federation Credits (FC).
These credits layer on top of the existing branching mission structure. Each Far Away mission can be played independently of the others. There’s no explicit “campaign” narrative. However, completing missions and their contingency subplots unlocks other things in the game. This provides a sense of continuation. It also slowly increases the number of options explorers have while wandering around the planet. As their personal experience grows, so does the greater gaming experience.
FC builds on this growing experience. Each player tracks their FC earned (or lost) as the result of their decisions and abilities. Aside from acting as a “score”, FC works as an in-game currency. Players can buy upgrades for the mission. If you’re having trouble with a mission, you can replay it after buying a couple starter drones. Lucky players are incentivized to go the extra mile in easier missions to secure funding for harder ones.
Legacy games have changed how we think of games. We came into Far Away knowing we wanted to explore this concept, without fully committing to the “tear up cards” part. We want players to feel like Far Away grows and changes as they play. We’re hoping the open-path mission structure, branching contingencies, and persistent FC rewards give a sense of achievement and uniqueness to everyone’s Far Away.