ROVERSE DEVELOPMENT NEWSLETTER #27

Hello everyone! Welcome to the twenty-seventh issue of the RoVerse Development Newsletter, where we keep you updated on the progress we've made over the past week!

This is Vaktus here, I'm finally back from a rough dose of tonsillitis! As most of you have likely noticed, we didn't release a newsletter last week, but do not fear! The reason for this was down to a combination of restricted real-life free time for our devs to work on RoVerse and myself being ill, unable to help with organisation and tracking the week's progress for the newsletter. This means everything will return to normal from now on, however the past couple of weeks has brought light to the issue of the newsletters relying on me being around. So to solve this from ever reoccurring, we'll be accepting one of the writer applicants to help me with the newsletters and keep things catalogued in the event I am absent. If you'd be interested in this, feel free to send a message to RoVerse_Official on ROBLOX, even though we already have writers for the job, there's always the chance you could help!

During the past week the dev team has been dealing with real life work, returning to studies after the winter holidays, but progress is still being made slowly but surely! Some of the most important work going on right now is Idyllic's coding of the planet generation, at the moment he's perfecting the desert biomes which will allow us to have massive deserts with dunes that spread out into the horizon. These are the initial versions though so you can expect to seem them smoother in the final versions.

​
​As for the Dogfight Alpha, Fireband hasn't been able to get to adding the new features and fixes yet due to his scripting work for VOID, but he'll be making plenty of progress on the Dogfight Alpha once he's available again you can count on that! In the meantime we've built a nice capital ship design for use in the Dogfight Alpha once capital ship combat is ready to be implemented, you can take a look at it here:

​
​Galbotrix got his PC fixed, so he's now able to return to the industrial outpost interiors! He's got to work on adding detail to the mineral sorting room and begun construction on the module's main room. Here's a screenshot of the current mineral sorting room:

​Then we have the second furnace room, which has a more open and dangerous layout for on-foot skirmishes:

​Lastly we have a sneak peak at his start on the module's main room, alongside a concept art picture of what it's planned to look like:

​With ArcticCitadel's PC now able to handle some building, he's redesigned the civilian outpost exterior (work in progress!) and will be working on the other modules when he's available from time to time:

​Alongside the planet generation coding, Idyllic has also made progress on the pirate outpost, this time it's the farm module: 

Some really cool new debris assets were also built during the week which will be used in future maps of the Dogfight Alpha. The most interesting of which is a massive freighter with a whole hollowed out interior to fly through, including a massive engine port and the power core of the ship:

Each week we compile a Q&A section here whenever there are any new questions posted on the RoVerse Community group wall, so be sure to join if there's something you'd like to ask about RoVerse:

https://www.roblox.com/Groups/Group.aspx?gid=2948290

Q1: Will you be able to crash large capital ships into other ships or space stations for massive damage?

A1: Yes you will be able to ram capital ships at the cost of massive damage and likely destruction. This tactic would usually only be employed as a last-ditch effort to take down an opponent with you, since the insurance cost to replace your lost capital is far too high to be viable in regular combat.


Q2: Will there be space obstacles such as black holes, red giants, etc, etc?

A2: Of course! There will be many different types of environmental hazards in space, such as explosive pockets of gas in nebulae and solar wind storms.


Q3: Does RoVerse plan on hosting multiple community events? If so, could you elaborate?

A3: If you mean during development, the main events would be streaming large updates to the Alpha or Beta tests. After the game's launch, we don't want to interfere too much with the "natural habitat" of RoVerse as we want it to grow and transform organically through the actions of the players and factions in the game. So most of the in-game events will be done by the clans and players themselves.


Q4: Will transporters be a thing? You know, 'beam me up Scotty!'

A4: Good question! When it comes to landing on a planet, starships generally employ short-range materialization to teleport the pilot from the ship to the surface beside the vessel. Long-range teleportation may be a feature however we don't want to detract from the fun that can be had entering a planet's atmosphere and flying through the clouds to land manually.


Q5: "The main goal of RoVerse is to revitalize clans." It is a well put idea, but before a neutral player aligns himself with a faction, is he required to join the group on the Roblox Website? If so, it would be unfair to newcomers in realm of RoVerse. Some factions have rigorous selection processes which prevent less experienced players from ever being able to join them. I assume the faction revitalization idea will be more like advertising, but I request the detailing of that process be more specific.

A5: We don't want RoVerse to become so popular as a game that the playerbase forgets it even has anything to do with clans, leaving the clan world none the better than before RoVerse. The plan for the game's system will likely adapt over time before release, but the basic idea is that clans will be able to allow people not in their group to start as independent civilians from one of the planets in their space. Either way, clans that are more peaceful/neutral and open towards new players starting in their space will be highlighted and likely given some bonuses to aid the newer players that aren't used to clans.


Q6: Will players receive a handicap for not being in a main faction, regardless of whether the player is aligned with said faction? 

A6: No, a player's ability to do things in RoVerse will be entirely down to how many credits they have and how far their aspirations take them. The main difference between players is what career they have, for example the military will have access to much better ground equipment than civilians do and the navy will have access to much better starships. 


Q7: With my personal goal being to create a mining tycoon, will it be possible? I.E. Creating your own big and bad mining ships. If possible, please give me detailing about the situation, and what outpost would best cater to the choice.

A7: Absolutely! One of the biggest end-game goals of RoVerse for an independent player is to create a sub-faction of their own by building an outpost station and gaining dominance in their sub-factions chosen area. Your mining corporation for example, you'd invest in constructing industrial outposts to act as a base of operations for refining your ore and selling it on the market, as well as constructing your own uniquely-designed mining ships. Then you can think of creating a corporate outpost to gain a better foothold in the market and begin constructing your own fleet of security ships to guard your mining fields. Or if you'd prefer to have some more experienced escorts you could contract a merc corp to guard your miners for you and split the profits. 


Q8: Customizable ships?

A8: Yes, this was covered in a previous question, but generally you can expect to customize your ship's nose and wing paint, outfit it with the weapons and upgrades that fit your playstyle and even name her to your liking.


Q9: What sort of performance are you expecting in RoVerse?

A9: We're building the game from the ground up to cater to even the lowest specs so everyone can enjoy RoVerse without needing to fork out piles of cash on a super computer!


Q10: What server size will you hope for?

A10: The largest we can get, which we can only find out through testing. We're hoping to get at least 32 players but we want to get as close as possible to the ROBLOX maximum of 50.

Q11: Will you use Universes/Teleportation between places?

A11: Basically, yes. RoVerse uses the ROBLOX Universe system to have hundreds of games within a single place. Each star system and planet will be its own game with servers for when they become full. You'll be able to travel between star systems through warp holes and warp gates as well as with warp drives on larger vessels.


Q12: How can RoVerse guarantee that the things that destroy clans today (unfair tactics) won't be replicated within your system?

A12: The reason ROBLOX clans have so much trouble interacting with each other fairly is due to every clan having total control over their own bases. There's no globalized system to delegate wars and ensure things are done with fairness and fun. Thanks to RoVerse being a neutral user-made game, we'll be able to ensure all clans are on the same leveled playing field. Unlike in clan forts where balance is questionable and high rank admins have total control, RoVerse will be entirely automated through in-game scripts like a real competitive AAA game and no clan can be given a bias advantage over another. Every sport needs a referee and computer system doesn't play favourites! Of course it should be noted that just because warfare will be universal on RoVerse it doesn't mean clans won't have their own cultural identity and diversity. Clans in RoVerse being faithful to who they are in ROBLOX is a top priority for us and that is why everything a clan uses in RoVerse will be built by the real clans themselves.


Q13: What is stopping people or clans from cheating within the system? 

A13: Well, the system we will use for warfare will be tested and ensured that there are no ways it can be exploited/cheated to gain an advantage. When it comes to hacking though, we will have moderators who will deal with hackers to the best of their ability, such as banning and even contacting ROBLOX directly thanks to our connections.


Q14: How would such a system guarantee an improvement in clans (as it has promised) rather than the perpetuation of the very attitude that has demolished clans in the first place?

A14: RoVerse is designed specifically to bring out the very best in clans, to protect and grow what makes the clan world so special and unique from any other online community on the internet. The attitude that is hurting clans is the uncompromising desire to win at any cost, and with control of wars and bases in the hands of these people there is nothing to stop them from sacrificing fun for wins on a scoreboard or a name on a defeated list. This will all change for the clans that join RoVerse, as they will never need to fear war terms, admin abuse or unfair forts. In RoVerse all clans will be treated equally and given their own space to make their own both culturally, politically and economically. Clans will be able to watch their actual real cities grow, their own planes soar across the sky, their patented bombs reigning on the enemy. RoVerse seeks to regulate clans just enough that they are safe from total anarchy, yet free enough to be themselves and be unrestricted in their enjoyment of the ROBLOX clan world.


Q15: What do you aspire to create within the clan community by using RoVerse?

A15: To put it simply, we hope to save the clan world from the plateau it has reached, we hope to finally bring back the passion of adventure and life that clans used to have when leaders were not afraid to risk defeat and just let their members have fun. In ROBLOX, clans can cheat their way out of defeat and as a result, clans that legitimately win are rarely believed to have done so without cheating somehow. Clans that join RoVerse will be proving the are not afraid of defeat, because in RoVerse there are no cheats to escape defeat, the open world sandbox gameplay ensures everyone is treated equally.

---

​We're sorry for leaving you guys hanging last week, we hope this week's newsletter will have made up for the gap. Thanks for your patience guys, and always remember that we're dedicated to you all and no matter what hardships we face, we'll see RoVerse through to the finish line and beyond!