Can we expect to be able to detect mechanical malfunctions or problems with components before they fail, by audio cues? As components wear down, will there be subtle audio cues so that players know something's not quite right?
TL;DRJosh Bell says the plan is for components like power plants and life support to make sounds reflecting their condition, so players can judge their state by ear, as ship damage already affects sound.
Yeah, that's definitely the plan. We don't attach sound to any components other than thrusters and the quantum drive and stuff at the moment, but as we start to add sound to power plants and life support and avionics and all that kind of stuff, they definitely will make sound from the location where the component is and based on the condition of the component and all that kind of stuff, its degradation level, how much it's powered on. All that kind of stuff will definitely have sounds coming from those locations, so you'll be able to tell roughly the state of it based off the sound. We already kind of do this at the moment just based on the ship's overall health. So all of the movement sounds on the ship and even the ambience of the ship now change based on how damaged the ship is, and we also turn off the vibrations when the ship is more damaged, which is cool. That was a relatively recent addition, I think. Maybe 3.6.