I haven’t found any sort of roadmap to features in development, so I hope this isn’t a waste of time, but I would love to see a mechanic added to bury and dig things up. There are a number of additional content options that can be attached to this feature. It wouldn’t be very difficult to add, either, as it would utilize the existing crafting system.
New tool: Shovel. (1 stick + 1 plank scrap or possibly just 2 sticks + 1 lashing)
Recipe unlocked: Burial Spot (action = create new container “bury spot”). While wielding shovel, press crafting button to show recipes for “Burial spots”, with the two options: “mound” and “invisible” (the only difference is cosmetics - the invisible container has a hit box but no visible model). The mound model should just look like a freshly-buried pile of dirt or sand, if possible, modified based on which terrain it is buried in.
The Burial Spot is a one-time use container that, as soon as it is created, opens an inventory window that can be used with the player’s inventory to transfer items, but as soon as the inventory window is closed, can no longer be interacted with as a container, it becomes a landscape item instead. If the player forgot something or put something in they need out, they have to “Dig” the spot up and re-bury it.
Function unlocked (while holding shovel): Dig - swinging the shovel (new animation “dig” required), at a burial spot will alter the appearance of the spot (similar to how hitting driftwood changes the driftwood model with each hit) until the container opens, spilling its contents in the world, and leaving behind a temporary “hole” (new model) that disappears after a brief period in game (simple enough to have a crater mound model that slowly sinks into the ground until it is removed from the world).
This would add a lot of options for treasure maps, temporary item storage for players and even some new loot options: Turtle eggs! Buried Treasure Chests! Think about how much fun island designers could have by creating buried treasure challenges!
Hope to see this and more features in the game some time!
