Inventory system 2.0 Imagine

Game Talk The Drawing Board
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Cataclysmdda, A great game!
This is my whimsical ideas.
Inventory system 2.0!!

*When you drop your backpack, the item will still be inside,Will not fall to the ground.
*Fast access slot(¿).
*Operating from items outside the quick access slot will consume a lot of time!
*When you are in a melee, it is impossible to find a bullet and fill a gun from a messy backpack!!
*Press E to open the backpack of other survivors.
*Press the O button to open the backpack on the ground.

Photoshop Rendering:

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Inventory system 2.0.png736×788 84.8 KB

Such as the tactical vest below this picture
Has 5 fast access slots(¿¿¿¿¿),and a small backpack on the back(Volume 5L)

I am very glad that you took the time to read my article.
Hope can be achieved :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes:
-From Google Translate

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There’s a project for updating the inventory here:

The general parameters of an improved inventory system are mostly known. The next step is for someone who cares about it to start submitting patches to fix it.

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That idea kinda looks like an improvement. I’d personally (and mechanically) think the number of “slots” should only apply to storage with pockets/hooks on them, such as belts or additional storage on clothing. When it comes to backpacks, it should be volume limited only still.

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That was my first thought as well. I don’t like limiting the number of slots in a given bag, it sort of undermines the volume system.

And if I had a bag, in real life, I wouldn’t be limited by ‘you can’t put more than six items in this bag’, I’d be limited by ‘you can put as many items as will physically fit’.

I love that Cata goes by volume and weight, rather than inventory slots and I’d hate to see that change.

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That will not change, inventory is going to continue to be broken down by volume.

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Yeah,That will not change. Just added a quick access slot (pocket) to the volume.

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How about staying at Volume per container worn and carried?

Optimal compromise.

Any garment worn can carry X. X being the size and weight of an item as already exists The item just gets assigned to worn locations(lights, mult-tools, etc ammo and clips already have this). The player worn items would be and can be used on the fly where the garments like a back pack on the back would take more time to add/remove items(take off, put down and add/remove pick back up and wear as optional).

Similar to the way some items already function. Fire Fighters Belt is a good example.

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Except that (if I’m understanding your explanation correctly) that would require making large use of the unload and reload actions which are quite screwy to use. I think it would be far better to just separate the different wearables by volume and have everything reorganise itself as necessary, but keep the actual inventory systems as they are.

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The image is a nice possibility for GUI (and I would hope code).
The current system would still work, with total volume. Each additional system being added/optional depending on the coding time and when things are added:
Then optional (as a mod?) limit to each pocket volume.
Then the option to move things between the pockets/into/out of the pockets. With more volume limits on those.
Certain pockets would be quicker access (seconds in game), some clips could only accept certain things (as with ammo pouches etc).

The player could quickly move around as with the categories listings currently. Instead of listing per category, it would list per slot/pocket/backpack etc. To move things between pockets, instead of selecting each pocket/backpack/box/bag (which would take forever), just have a “up/down” option to push things up or down the list to the next pocket.

While it is a couple of key presses, it would all be done in one screen, instead of multiple screens per backpack or trouser pocket. You would have similar look to the “worn items” list. But instead it’s own list, and under each worn item name with a pocket, tabbed underneath, the items inside. Then a key to push items up or down the list into other pockets (or a button to go to the bottom/biggest/etc). (To put a worn item in a pocket, you would have to take it off first).

If not a worn item, it would still be in the list, but could be stacked more so… I’d assume with either numerical listing or tabbed listing, to show what is “in” what. Like so: (One half of the advanced inventory screen, so you could also move to other places easily)

Carried Containers
10.0/35.0 kg 10.0/20.0 L
Name (charges)
[Backpack] 5.0/10.0 L
Book
chocolate
|| towel
[Trousers]
|| pocket knife
asprin
[Swag bag]
(tab) [cardboard box]
(tab) more books
(tab) pencil

(Tabs don’t seem to work in discourse… the world is “progressing” I guess. :wink: ).
The more difficult thing would be coding it with the appropriate flags that when dropped, all the items in it get dropped. I’ve no idea if that would be a numerical system (backpack = 1, trouser pocket = 2, shirt pocket = 3: Drop shirt, only drop items flagged 3?), or a variable/per item one (tag=backpack1, tag=shirt, etc?).

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Basically the way Project Zomboid handles Inventory. Which is nice.

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Project Zomboid does not have a very good inventory system. You can drop bags full of stuff, which is nice, but moving stuff between bags is tedious. The kind of thing that is quick and easy to do in C:DDA - like loot a big pile of stuff from a house, toss into the back of your car, pick some of it back up and sort it out at your home base - takes forever in Zomboid.

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I completely disagree. Project Zomboid handles their inventory system EXTREMELY well. I mean, moving anything is tedious, but they get a + because you can move multiple things at once. I feel like that’s rather a nitpick of just the inherent nature of moving things from A to B then of an actual con of PZ Inventory system. There is no difference between moving stuff from a zombies inventory to your inventory, and moving things from 1 bag to another (at least not from what I can tell). Also, I mean, I’ve never had trouble or thought it took forever to do that stuff in Zomboid. The way I see it, Zomboid does inventory management FAR more efficiently than C:DDA

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Assigning a volume to a spesific container/clothing sounds great. Reminds me of Dwarf Fortress inventory system.

This can really diverse the game experience:

  1. Go bags can be self made and specialized (just put stuff you need into a backpack).
  2. When container destroyed only its content will fall, not just random stuff (which is frustrating in CDDA).
  3. More fun and intresting inventory managment.

But (there is always a “but”) this will be a hard undertaking for a coder, cause a lot of stuff are tied with current inventory system: crafting, construction, trade, NPC inventory managment and (my favorite) advanced inventory managment (’/’ - key).

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This is kinda what I meant.

It doesn’t need graphics either which is great!

Besides making the items sectioned to the containers. There wouldn’t be much in the way of recoding. Time consuming, yes.

I didn’t even think how nice it would be to have only the contained items fall, instead of random items. I like my idea even more now! xD

edit:

As for the “tedium”. I also must disagree on this. Taking off my back pack in real life and rifling through it would be far more time consuming that reaching into any of my pockets. I really think the time constraint while running for your life is not only a tension mechanism for the game. But a game changing one at that. I can reload a pistol from loose ammo mixed in with other bullets in a few seconds. Ignoring worn items like a wrist ammo container. Mean while that monster just chills and waits while I do this…how the heck does this make sense? If I have all the current ammo containers and clip containers on me for “on the fly” reloading. This changes what we wear. What we carry loose in pockets and even the logical sense of which ammo type is where. I never thought about it before now, but having 100 random bullets in my inventory and my toon just finding them at random seems silly to put it kindly.

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Maybe it’s just me, but I spend a fair bit of time, surrounded by pulped zombies corpses, briefly picking some minor loot, moving it to some other location, and then forgetting about it until I need to craft with it. I don’t care and I don’t want to be forced to care where the 7th flashlight is in my inventory: maybe it’s in my trenchcoat pockets, maybe my cargo pants pocket, maybe my backpack.

I’m all for having a system where I can guarantee that the medkits, bandages, and aspirin that I always carry are in my survivor runner pack and won’t drop away if drop my backpack when I’m at max volume. But I don’t drop my backpack at full volume very often, whereas I pick up minor loot that I don’t care where I’m carrying it all the time. Gaining a useful benefit for a rare instance at the price of spending more real life time doing something that I do all the time is not a good trade-off.

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Agreed. I like the one Kevin apparently laid out, where you can choose where everything goes but stuff still gets automatically stuck where it fits and reshuffled so you can always pick things up. Set it up like that with an option to mark which pockets/inventories I don’t want auto-reshuffled and I’d be a very happy survivor.

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The option is still a good idea.

Summarize:
Pockets/pouches worn = fast access + markers for what can/'t be shifted by incoming new picked up items.

Unmarked worn slots can be fast pickup friendly and when full, defaults to hand held or worn backpack. A marker can also be used to default dump all new picked up items to the backpack ignoring fast access garments. ; I think having more garments behave like tool holders for commonly used items be applied to every garment that can logically give access to such items. A lighter in my pocket. A small sewing kit. Hell irl I keep a medical kit and a multi-tool on me(just use to accidents in factory work),

Bags/Backpacks = hand carried or worn should have an optional marker to use as default inventory dumping area with a respective time constraint on every items for size+type+shape+weight or any easier combination there of for removing said items.

Tossing crap into a backpack is fine. The problem I have is when I need to remove anything(especially mixed ammo). It makes no sense at all to instantly grab the item/s you need like a magical bag of holding, ala D&D.
It isn’t annoying having my shirt hold my aspirin and lockpicks or whatever while assuming my other pockets have sorted ammo and other items in different garment areas. The one area dump as we have it currently is something I really dislike. Requiring a backpack of some kind makes sense for this purpose and having a variety of these containers as we already have is nice too. It is a measure of requiring the usage that we lack.

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Something else to add, once a container is flagged, that flag could be accessible in some way from the autopickup manager.

You could, for example, make all your brass casings go to the same container when picked, or your arrows to go straight to the quiver. You could make, for example, that when you pick up a specific magazine or gun, because you dropped it just to shave a little more time while being attacked, it goes straight to the vest pocket or holster.

It might be possible to be even fancier: if you can flag containers in inventory, not just worn, you could, for example, flag plastic bags, and then use the autopickup manager to make certain things, like, say, food, go into the bags rather than loose in the inventory.

@TheZoneWizard: I’m seriously not worried about ‘assorted items on pocket’ being hard to find. Chances are, either the character was smart and placed them on that backpack in an organized way for ease of access, or the objects are varied enough in size that you should instantly be able to pick the right one.

Ammo in the pocket? A shotgun shell, a rifle bullet, and a pistol round are all of considerably different size, you should be able to just grab the correct bullet on touch. Oh, sure, if you got slugs and buckshots in that pocket you’re shit out of luck, but it doesn’t take a genius to solve that issue. A rubber band, some plastic or paper, or even just marking them with a knife would let you separate them on the pocket or tell the difference. I do not believe we need to model that, particularly because it’d just be added tedium you’d need to do before doing anything remotely interesting, so it’s better to just assume the character has a brain than force the player to waste half an hour of every game session on brainless inventory sorting.

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No i meant in a realism sort of way. If you or I had assorted items of similar feel. Simply reaching into a container without much notice to grab a specific item wouldn’t be anything other than a gamble.

If you actually ever had assorted ammo in your pocket you wouldn’t question =P

You wouldn’t know the difference between a 9x18 and a 9x19 or a .45. I think a rifle round looks different. I know it looks different. Yet toss in even 5 of each I mention and it stump for a moment professionals.

No tedium whatsoever if everyone (not just you) understood my idea =/

How about for all to see an example what it would look like…as the game is text anyway.

Hands:
Shotgun w/ Shoulder Strap (3/5 Shot)

Worn Garments:

T-Shirt

Wrist Watch

Lab Coat;
–Lighter
–Tailoring Kit
–Lock Pick set

Blue Jeans;
–20 9x19 bullets

Leather Belt;
–Multi Tool (attached)

Drop Leg Pouches;
–Beef Jerky(1/3)
–12 Shot Shells
–20 Batteries

Back:

Leather Back Pack; (Default New Pickups)
–everything not in worn fast access worn garments and requiring more time to access in terms of turns.

The only time any items are placed in or removed from the other garments worn(not back packs) are when you want those particular items at the ready. Such as commonly used items. Lighters, bandages and bullets for examples. No tedium at all.