HEY! LISTEN!: Take everything I say here with a grain of salt, probably two. I haven't seriously played CM in months, and while doing research for this topic I made a few very quick searches through the forums, gitlab, and wiki. I have no idea what, if any plans are out there for the Almayer reactor. From my perspective this is a topic that hasn't been touched on at all, so I'm gonna try to be the first.
Hey there, remember me? You probably don't, but that's okay. I'm here today to talk to you all about something pretty important: the S-52 Fusion Reactor.
To be perfectly blunt here: it sucks. I don't wanna be too mean and I'm sorry to those that worked on it, but hopefully by the end of this discussion you'll understand my grievances with it. So, why does it suck?
Point numero uno: It's too easy
You might think I'm crazy making this a point. Maybe I am. But honestly, I think the fusion reactor is too easy. You spend some time fixing them up, then pop in some fuel cells and magically get power. Eventually the power cells run out of juice so you take them out and put them in a device which magically recharges, then pop them back in. Occasionally they'll break and require repairs before you can have them continue to produce power. Near as I can tell that's all there is to them. It's not engaging, it's tedious, especially repairing them all at the start of the round. The only strategy I can see with them is trying to balance how many reactors actually need to be on for maximum power efficiency. The reactor is a job, and not in a good way. The engineer would make much better use of his time wandering the ship trying to RP.
Point zwei: No room for experimentation
If you've played anything other than CM, you might know about all the other engine designs. The supermatter, the singulo, the tesla. All good engines you can play around with and push the limits of. You cannot play around with or push the limits of the S-52. The simplistic nature of it has backed it into a corner where there's not much you can do with it besides maintain it.
Point tree: It's too safe
If you didn't think I was crazy before, you probably do now. Hear me out. What I find great about the previously mentioned engines in the rest of SS13 is that there's a danger factor with each that keeps people on their toes. I know fun is subjective, but having an engine that can go boom is a lot more engaging than one that...doesn't. SS13 and by extension Colonial Marines is a game where things are expected to go wrong, and that's half the fun of it. Having an engine that is completely safe has the side effect of no longer being fun.
Now look, I'm not stupid. I've been around since Sulaco times, I can understand why the admins and devs want a pillow fort-tier engine these days. But the problem with such an engine is that there's a lot less to do with it, and the effect it has on the round is practically nonexistent. Granted, back when CM still used the supermatter engine it might have affected the round too much. Hull breaches, radiation, atmospherics fuckery, and the problem of what to do about power if the core had been ejected. I can't imagine admins enjoyed dealing with it, and I don't think I would either. But the key thing here is that the supermatter was fun. It wasn't a glorified prop. You could experiment with it. You could torch xenos (and marines) with it. It created fun stories and memories. The S-52 does none of those things.
So what do we do, huh?
Well mister, if I had my way we'd have the supermatter back within a week. But that's obviously not going to happen. Nor should it. The amount of grief and problem potential there is too much for current CM to handle. But we can learn from it. And with that in mind, there are two ways this could go:
#1: Give the S-52 an overhaul
or #2: Give the Almayer a whole new engine
If we're rolling with the first idea, I believe the first thing that should be done is make it seem like it's not producing power magically. How about adding in a heat aspect? I'm pretty sure the reactors are thermoelectric generators, so it makes sense. The reactors produce excess heat that can cause them to break down faster (or cause fun explosion things to happen, but I'll get to that in a moment). To counter this, add in a cooling loop that you can fill with different types of gas for more or less efficiency (and fun). And/or how bout using that excess heat to power a turbine? As for the danger aspect, what about having it emit radiation? Put the radsuits to good use. Maybe have seriously broken down reactors shock unprotected lifeforms. I'm just spitballing here, but hopefully you can agree these ideas are already far more engaging than the S-52 in its current state.
The second idea is going to require a lot of coding and spritework, so I can understand not picking it, but it would add a bit more freedom in terms of what to do. If we want to stick with the theme of fusion, how bout something like the gas turbine generators on most regular SS13 generators? Get some big turbine in the back room of the Almayer that needs to be fed with a certain mix of gas to produce fusion and power. Different gasses can be used for different power outputs. Or a proper nuclear reactor that requires careful management of fuel rods to secure a balance between safety and power.
I realize these ideas aren't terribly fleshed out, which is why I'm making this a discussion and not a suggestion. The point here is that the current Almayer engine feels too much like a prop than it should be, and that something should be done to turn it into an actual engine like the supermatter or singularity from vanilla SS13.
TL;DR: S-52 reactor boring. Too easy, not dangerous. Plz fix.
Thoughts/comments/clarifications/insults?