Latest revision as of 10:33, 19 March 2026

This is an example of a Sandbox. This page can be used to write out drafts for new pages or used to experiment with new templates and features. It uses templates from the wiki, but does not override or conflict with wiki content.

Interaction

Interaction is a gameplay mechanic in Starship Simulator revolving around the player's actions and their effects on the game environment. It occurs on multiple levels, including physical object placement and the actions of non-player characters. Interaction can primarily be performed by either clicking on objects or pressing the interaction key.

Overview

Most interaction mechanics are divided into two methods: default and options. The former is done instantly whilst the latter allows more options, including advanced actions.

The default action is mapped to the Left Mouse Button. This performs the basic interaction with the target object, such as its intended purpose. For example, the basic action with a chair would be to sit in it, whilst the action with a prop would be to pick it up.

Advanced options is mapped to the F key and offers more complicated options, such as communication options like orders and emotes. Different options are offered for different objects. For example, pressing it on the helm station will bring up a menu suggesting whether to take place there or summon an NPC to man the station, whilst interacting with the officer will bring up a menu offering command options and the ability to dismiss them.

Types of Interaction

Technology

Most interaction with technology is done with the default action. Most forms will prove the player with an interface that can be used to control the device. This often takes the form of a control panel with multiple options. Panels come with buttons which interacts with the ship and alters the system. For example, a Fusion Reactor Controls controls a ship's Fusion Reactor and pressing buttons to activate the Vacuum Pump and change the reactor operational mode. Buttons that can be press are highlighted in blue, whilst those which cannot or are in operation are highlighted in grey.

Panels are interacted with by pressing the Left Mouse Button whilst the cursor is over a pressable button. This operates a control associated with the button, such as activating a light, opening a valve or activating a device's function. If the player wishes to keep their view, they can hold the E key to freely move the cursor without altering their view. This will allow them to press controls without altering their view of the console.

Props

For more information, see: Props

Interaction with props is currently limited. The player can pick them up by holding the Left Mouse Button and move them around as by looking around the environment. Their distance from the player can be altered by moving the Scroll Wheel either forwards or backwards. Props can be rotated by pressing the Q key, with moving the mouse changing the rotation of the prop. A prop can also be throw by holding them and pressing the Right Mouse Button. Their functions are currently not implemented, with future updates likely to add different interactions to each prop.

Non-Playable Characters

For more information, see: NPC Gameplay and Command (gameplay)

Interaction with a non-playable character is currently limited to orders. After pressing the F whilst the cursor looks at an NPC, a menu is displayed of different interactions the player can give to the character. Depending on their department and station, these orders can vary depending on the function: for example, a pilot operating the Helm can be ordered to fly to a selected target whilst a sensors specialist can perform surveys on a selected object. NPCs can currently be either summoned or dismissed whilst hovering over a station. At times, orders also work from stations and devices such as the Holo-Display.

Development

Object interaction has been a major part of development in Starship Simulator. Device and prop interaction have been in place during the 0.223 dev build cycle. During original cycles, Left Mouse Click was used to interact with technology and pick up props. Meanwhile, F was used only to take seat in chairs and bridge stations.

In dev build 0.225.0.109, interaction with bridge stations and NPCs were added, with actions mapped to the latter button. This added further options, such as summoning NPCs in specific stations and issuing orders to NPCs. In the upcoming dev build 0.227.0.8, interaction with NPCs is set to change to a menu.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 This is an example of a [https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Project:Sandbox Sandbox]. This page can be used to write out drafts for new pages or used to experiment with new templates and features. It uses templates from the wiki, but does not override or conflict with wiki content.
-=Categories=
+=Interaction=
-'''Categories''' are indexes containing a list of pages. This wiki uses categories to help with both navigation and sort pages into relevant subject matter. This page is intended to help explain category implementation, how they are organised, policies related to them, and provide a category tree to present how we've implemented them.
+'''Interaction''' is a gameplay mechanic in ''[[Starship Simulator]]'' revolving around the player's actions and their effects on the game environment. It occurs on multiple levels, including physical object placement and the actions of [[NPC Gameplay|non-player characters]]. Interaction can primarily be performed by either clicking on objects or pressing the interaction key.
-==An Overview of a Category==
+==Overview==
-A category is a select group of pages or items that relate to each other. These are often sorted by what is relevant to the page and what is relevant to other pages, such as gameplay features, starship types, ship systems, crew departments, stars, planets, alien species, et al. Categories help break up the wiki, making pages more manageable and helping simplify navigation.
+Most interaction mechanics are divided into two methods: default and options. The former is done instantly whilst the latter allows more options, including advanced actions.
-Categories are added as pages, where they can be viewed. They are often created with the namespace "Category:", with this implementing code needed to turn them into a category page. Categories will begin with a description, then implement a list of pages and media that have been added to it. Clicking each object in the list will take you to the page that has been added to the category.
+The default action is mapped to the <code>Left Mouse Button</code>. This performs the basic interaction with the target object, such as its intended purpose. For example, the basic action with a [[chair]] would be to sit in it, whilst the action with a prop would be to pick it up.
-On a page, the categories it has been added to will appear at their bottom. When these are clicked, the browser will take you to the category. A general rule is that pages can fit into multiple categories, but no two categories must be the same in terms of contents.
+Advanced options is mapped to the <code>F</code> key and offers more complicated options, such as communication options like [[command (gameplay)|orders]] and emotes. Different options are offered for different objects. For example, pressing it on the [[helm]] station will bring up a menu suggesting whether to take place there or summon an NPC to man the station, whilst interacting with the [[Pilot|officer]] will bring up a menu offering command options and the ability to dismiss them.
-==Category Help==
+==Types of Interaction==
-===Creating a Category===
+===Technology===
-Categories are created like pages through the "Create New Page" function. However, they require the "Category:" namespace in the title. The category will require a small description for what goes in it, for example "Category:Starships" will require a short description to say that this page is intended to be starships.
+Most interaction with technology is done with the default action. Most forms will prove the player with an interface that can be used to control the device. This often takes the form of a control panel with multiple options. Panels come with buttons which interacts with the ship and alters the system. For example, a [[Fusion Reactor Controls]] controls a ship's [[Fusion Reactor]] and pressing buttons to activate the [[Vacuum Pump]] and change the reactor operational mode. Buttons that can be press are highlighted in blue, whilst those which cannot or are in operation are highlighted in grey.
-===Sub-Categories===
+Panels are interacted with by pressing the <code>Left Mouse Button</code> whilst the cursor is over a pressable button. This operates a control associated with the button, such as activating a light, opening a valve or activating a device's function. If the player wishes to keep their view, they can hold the <code>E</code> key to freely move the cursor without altering their view. This will allow them to press controls without altering their view of the console.
-Sometimes, there is too much to go into a category and adding pages may over-clutter it. As such, the better option is to create a new category which features as part of the existing category and move relevant pages into it. This is called a sub-category, and it is used to break up categories where many pages can fit into it. For example, [[:Category:Technology]] can refer to any form of device developed in the game, so this is broken up further into various categories such as [[:Category:Vehicles]], [[:Category:Power Systems]], [[:Category:Robots and Androids]], and so much more.
-===Adding Categories to Pages===
+===Props===
-Categories are added to pages by typing in <code><nowiki>[[Category:Category name]]</nowiki></code>. We put these at the bottom of pages as they will often appear on the footer when they are added to the pages, therefore making it more neater to look at. When added, the category will appear at the bottom of the page. If the category is recognised on this wiki, it will appear in <span style="color:royalblue">Blue text</span>. If it is not, it will appear in <span style="color:red">Red text</span>. The latter means that either the category will need creating or has been spelt wrong.
+:''For more information, see: [[Props]]''
+Interaction with props is currently limited. The player can pick them up by holding the <code>Left Mouse Button</code> and move them around as by looking around the environment. Their distance from the player can be altered by moving the <code>Scroll Wheel</code> either forwards or backwards. Props can be rotated by pressing the <code>Q</code> key, with moving the mouse changing the rotation of the prop. A prop can also be throw by holding them and pressing the <code>Right Mouse Button</code>. Their functions are currently not implemented, with future updates likely to add different interactions to each prop.
-===Linking to Categories===
+===Non-Playable Characters===
-It is possible to create a link to a category in a page's text. To do so, you need to type in <code><nowiki>[[:Category:Category name]]</nowiki></code>. Like our [[Help:Manual of Style#Links|linking]] policy, it is possible to add a mask by adding <code>|mask name</code> to the link. For example: <code><nowiki>[[:Category:United Nations Space Fleet|a link to "United Nations Space Fleet" category]]</nowiki></code> will create [[:Category:United Nations Space Fleet|a link to "United Nations Space Fleet" category]].
+:''For more information, see: [[NPC Gameplay]] and [[Command (gameplay)]]''
+Interaction with a non-playable character is currently limited to orders. After pressing the <code>F</code> whilst the cursor looks at an NPC, a menu is displayed of different interactions the player can give to the character. Depending on their department and station, these orders can vary depending on the function: for example, a [[pilot]] operating the [[Helm]] can be ordered to fly to a selected target whilst a [[sensors specialist]] can perform surveys on a selected object. NPCs can currently be either summoned or dismissed whilst hovering over a station. At times, orders also work from stations and devices such as the [[Holo-Display]].
-==Category Policies==
+==Development==
-*Break up categories: Generally, categories can sometimes get too large and become excessive. As such, it is sometimes necessary to move pages into another category spawning from it. Only create a sub-category if there are multiple pages relevant to it.
+[[File:Commands Helm.jpg|thumb|300px|NPC commands prototype in dev build 0.225.0.117]]
-*No duplicates: Duplicate categories can lead to confusion. As such, we'd ask that duplicate categories are avoided and please check whether there is a similar category before you create a new one.
+Object interaction has been a major part of development in ''Starship Simulator''. Device and prop interaction have been in place during the 0.223 dev build cycle. During original cycles, <code>Left Mouse Click</code> was used to interact with technology and pick up props. Meanwhile, <code>F</code> was used only to take seat in chairs and bridge stations.
-*Overlapping: Categories can overlap if a page or another category fits into it. However, if the page fits into two categories in the same hierarchal structure, we'd ask that it be removed from one depending on how relevant it is to the category.
-*Category limit: There are currently no limits on how many categories can be added to a page.
-*Relevancy: To be added to a category, the page must be relevant to the category. For example, "Communications" is relevant to "Category:Gameplay features" because it is a gameplay mechanic, but not relevant to "Category:Starships" because that category is for starships only.
-*Page limit: A category must have more than one page to feature on this wiki. A category should be a collection of objects, not a description for just one of them. Any pages which have one or less will be considered irrelevant and deleted.
-==Hierarchy==
+In dev build 0.225.0.109, interaction with bridge stations and NPCs were added, with actions mapped to the latter button. This added further options, such as summoning NPCs in specific stations and [[Command (gameplay)|issuing orders]] to NPCs. In the upcoming dev build 0.227.0.8, interaction with NPCs is set to change to a menu.
-Categories are often part of a hierarchal structure. This means that multiple categories can be members of another category, with this category possibly being another member of another category. This helps with organisation, as it can mean that we can manage the categories better and reduce the possibility of duplicate categories.
-Our top level category is the [[:Category:Starship Simulator Wiki|Starship Simulator Wiki category]]. All categories feed into this one at some point, either directly as a subcategory of it or as one of the lower end categories within many other categories. As our top level category, please do '''NOT''' edit it or add it to any other category. This would affect our category hierarchal structure massively if this does get added.
+<!--[[Category:Gameplay]]
+[[Category:Interaction| ]]-->
-The following are the top level categories and their main sub-categories:
-*'''[[:Category:Starship Simulator]]''' - This category is for the game's content, such as gameplay features, lore and other objects you can find in the game.
-**[[:Category:Gameplay]] - This category is for gameplay features, including mechanics, world generation and other materials that the game uses.
-**[[:Category:Lore]] This category is for societal information in Starship Simulator, such as locations, technology, organisations, and pre-set alien species you encounter.
-**[[:Category:Game Versions]] - This category is for versions of Starship Simulator available to the public, such as demo versions, early access builds, and full releases
-**[[:Category:Development]] - This category serves as a location for anything related to the development of Starship Simulator, such as people and studios involved with the creation. This category is shared with the Real Life category.
-*'''[[:Category:Real Life]]''' - This category relates to pages and information that relates to outside of the game.
-**[[:Category:Development]] - The same category as before, since it covers information regarding real world people. This category is shared with the Starship Simulator category.
-**[[:Category:Community]] - This relates to the game's community.
-*'''[[:Category:Help pages]]''' - This category is for the Wiki's policies, game tutorials and other pages intended to help you with Starship Simulator or on this wiki.
-*'''[[:Category:Lists]]''' - This category is for list pages, where objects are placed in a list. These often link to other pages which fit into other categories.
-*'''[[:Category:Wiki Media]]''' - This category is for media files used on the wiki, such as images, videos and audio clips.
-*'''[[:Category:Templates]]''' - This category is for templates used on the wiki, often for formatting information or objects that can be viewed on multiple pages.