Objectives

[rbsanford]

An issue I've seen a lot of people have with ATS is that, once all the roads have been driven, all the cities discovered, all the garages purchased, etc., there's less incentive to play the game. To keep that incentive going, I figure there could be this system that may have already been discussed before, but I searched this section of the forum, and I haven't found this exact idea, so here goes: objectives. The way I figure it, there could be three different types:

Daily Objectives
A number (maybe 3-5) of small, randomly-generated tasks that change every 24 real-world hours. These would involve simple things like:

• Deliver a cargo to (X city).
• Drive (X) miles on (Y highway) while on the job.
• Deliver (X cargo).

Rewards would be small amounts of bonus cash and/or XP upon successful completion. Nothing too challenging, appeals to casual players.

Normal Objectives (better name pending)
A large amount of more difficult tasks, requiring more playtime. This would be a set list of objectives, and could include the objectives laid out in the Steam achievements, as well as:

• Deliver a cargo to/from every business in (X city).
• Drive 100,000 miles in any truck.
• Complete 100 Daily Objectives.
• Discover 50% of the map.
• Complete 25/50/100 deliveries for (X company).

Rewards would be moderate amounts of cash/XP, along with maybe a small trophy, like a cabin accessory (for example, a state flag for discovering every city in that state). Not too challenging or too easy, may have mass appeal.

Grand Objectives
The most difficult tasks, requiring much more dedication, appealing to the hardcore players. These would include:

• Discover 100% of the map.
• Hire every possible employee at once.
• Drive 100,000 miles in every truck available.
• Drive 1,000,000 miles in any truck.
• Drive a total of 238,900 miles on the job (the distance between the Earth and the Moon; this is already a WoT achievement).
• Complete 1000 Daily Objectives.
• Complete all Normal Objectives.
• Become a billionaire.

Rewards would be large amounts of cash/XP, as well as a large trophy, such as a special paint job or other customization option (if garages could be customizable to some degree, this could come into play), or even a unique, exclusive trailer, or even truck (a rarity or novelty; anything common or realistic should be available to all players from the start).

Maybe this sounds too arcade-ish, or like a mobile game, but goals like these are what prevent burnout and keep people invested. Obviously, improvements to the game do the same and should come first, but how about this system?

[nautofon]

The biggest problem with objectives is the reward. Unless you play with a reduced income, you won't need any money or XP. Not sure how to solve that.

But I really like the daily objective idea!

[flight50]

I like the thought actually. I can see more people keeping interest with such. I think something like this ties into WoT. Pavel once mentioned a full time team doing events on a more regular basis. Currently that team is suppose to be working on a new WoT in parallel to the one we have now. Nothing has been said about it several years since Pavel mentioned it though. But if its every gest up and running, its rumored to be be a bit more hardcore than what we have.

As far as rewards, I agree that XP and money are pointless. I think the stick with plush toys, cabin accessories, truck/trailer parts, skins, new sounds like horns, blinkers, etc. If we ever get customizations to garages or something, maybe even decor for it.