Hello everyone! Welcome to the fifty-second issue of the RoVerse Development Newsletter, where we keep you updated on the progress we've made over the past week!
This week marks the 52nd edition of the newsletter, which makes it the 1 year anniversary of these helpful little updates - though work began on RoVerse before this date, and the newsletters didn't come out every week with a break after the Alpha Released, now is as good a time as any to review how far we've come in a year, as well as look forward to the awesome stuff we have planned for the future! This newsletter will come to you in two parts - the typical update and news portion, and a special portion full of the development team's favorite stuff from the past year. We've had another busy week full of progress on a variety of fronts, including more updates and refinements to the Capital Ship flight systems, we have some promising work on the User Interfaces, we wrapped up work on some of the outpost module types, as well as a new vehicle and the beginnings of a new ship. Let's get started! Part 1: Weekly Progress Introducing new players to such an advanced game as RoVerse will be a vital step in getting players interested, from both clan and non-clan backgrounds. We are trying to walk the line between these two groups, catering more advanced features for those members of factions who take pride in the clan world, and to get players who may not have any idea what the clan world is to dive in. The most important part of our development, then, is the design of the tutorial. Where many Roblox titles in the past have relied on dropping a player directly into the game, with a trial-by-fire tutorial, so to speak, with a game like RoVerse that won't work too well. We don't want someone with no clue what they're doing blundering into a pivotal battle, or to frustrate them into abandoning the game. So it is only fitting that we design a separate space specifically to teach players about the game mechanics, as well as the universe they will soon be entering. You may have seen some of the pictures we've posted about the work Andross has been doing on a space station interior - this station will not be a part of the 220 star systems available for faction control, where if it were, it would influence the control of star systems. Instead, it will be hosted in its own separate server, cut off from the rest of the galaxy. This will allow us to control the spawn points of new players, placing them safely away from the action until they get the hang of things. This week, we have spent quite a bit of time refining the layout of the tutorial - what features to demonstrate, like character creation and customization, tools and equipment, and ship purchasing, as well as working on the design of the level. Along with the technical aspects, this 'front door' of RoVerse needs to also be really cool to attract players to the game, and get them immersed in their own story. IdyllicDestroyer and Vedrakkerous have poured their hearts into new portions of the tutorial level, including an area that introduces clans and factions to the player, and an area for the customization of clothing and weapons.
In the coming weeks, we will be discussing more details on the tutorial, and hopefully showing off more completed building work.
VitreusAeulous has been working on a few more helmets for players to customize their character, each with their own style and effects. We wouldn't want the entire galaxy to be filled with yellow-headed lego people, now would we?
SirJesuKristi/Drahsid5 has been working on ground vehicle mechanics, and nearly has a tank-track system working, except for when it encounters slopes... So look for more on that in the coming weeks, once we work most of the bugs out of it.
JangoFettAlex has completed another ground vehicle, in a completely different style than the 3 previous.
This vehicle looks like it sacrificed some armor plating for a bit more maneuverability than the 6-wheel vehicles we've seen so far.
IdyllicDestroyer also worked on wrapping up the final details of 4/5 outpost variants, completing corner and vertical modules for the military and corporate versions. With these final modules completed, he was able to add them to a rudimentary Outpost generator, that places modules randomly connected to each other, that shows us how a completely inefficient and randomly designed station would look. Military -
Pirate -
This system is extremely rudimentary, ignoring collisions and overlap, but it gives us a very good visualization of what an average station of that type would look like, allowing us to make tweaks to the exteriors, and influence the designs of the interiors.
Of course, being Idyllic, he took the system and cranked it up to 100, generating outposts with hundreds of modules each that no faction would ever be able to create, just to see what would happen. The results are below.
As you can see, the Military Outpost, even in its most random configuration, retains a bit of order, remaining flat and linear. On the other hand, the Pirate Outpost becomes a complex web of rocks and struts, but looks as impenetrable as any fortress could be.
Each week we compile a Q&A section here whenever there are any new questions posted on the RoVerse Community group wall or in the Community Discord Server. Be sure to join if you have any questions about RoVerse: ROBLOX Group: https://www.roblox.com/My/Groups.aspx?gid=2948290 Discord server: https://discord.gg/npxBGwJ Q1: Are we allowed to keep our faction lore a secret in order to use it for ingame reasons? A1: For your faction application, you will have to describe the official lore of your faction, but if you were interested in spreading false lore throughout the game, we could probably accommodate you. A mysterious faction that no one knows about, with members of opposing factions slowly finding the truth, would be interesting, as long as every faction doesn't try to do that. Q2: Will ores mined have variations on purity, effecting their resale value? A2: This is an interesting idea. For crafting purposes, we will probably keep the use of resources simple and straightforward, just so players don't get frustrated by going to build a ship and having the wrong purity of iron. For resources that are purely for sale and resale, this could be an interesting idea we could look into implementing. Q3: Will there be a possibility for pets or ride-able animals? A3: While we are still working on confirming whether we will be able to add AI animals or enemies, pets or ride-able animals would be cool, but probably something added to an expansion at a later point. Q4: Will there be space kittens? A4: The galaxy is a very big place, full of planets and stars untouched by the hand of man, nor seen by his gaze. There are untold wonders and terrors out there, you'll just have to get out there and explore! Q5: Will mechs and walkers be a thing? A5: Word has just come in from HQ saying affirmative. We're looking at adding a variety of vehicles for ground combat, just to keep it interesting. No more battles between 20 copies of the same tank and jeep, though that might still happen. Q6: Will we be able to add cybernetic replacements to our characters? A6: Character creation will be uniquely involved, with plenty of selections for your player effecting only aesthetics so as not to give one species or faction an advantage over another faction, but there is the possibility for purchasable enhancements to give you a slight edge in battle or in certain environments.
Part 2: Year in Review There has been a lot of cool things we've accomplished in the past year, and it was hard to pick a favorite. We've pushed the limits of the engine, recruited the best and most creative builders in the clan community, and tested our coder's talents making a never-before-seen game that everyone who hears about it gets excited about. So without further ado, here's a selection of our favorite images, videos, and tweets we've released to the public over the past year. Planets:
From a colorful roundish blog of parts, to a smooth terrain sphere replete with mountains, continents, and weather systems, the strides made bringing realistic planets to Roblox have been quite astounding, and have been both a pleasure to watch and work on. And who could forget the great times we had searching for Frank the space turkey as a community?
Initial Dogfight Demo:
This video really caught the public's attention - up to this point, the game was only an idea, and like so many ideas that have gone through the forums before, could disappear in an instant. But when this video appeared, showing off an initial version of ship flight systems unlike anything done before, RoVerse became more than just a crazy idea scribbled in a notebook, it became a real possibility.
RoVerse Cinematic Trailer:
Such an important step in the realization of RoVerse. While not exactly an accurate representation of the final product, the initial trailer set the standard for everything that was to come after it. It laid the groundwork for planets and ships and stations, and it also threw in a bit of background lore and an interesting story to go along with it. It showed us just how far we could go with the Roblox engine, as long as we dedicated ourselves to overcoming any obstacles.
Capital Ship Combat Demo:
For months, we'd been making promises about all the features that RoVerse would have, and one of the biggest was the mixed combat that we always planned, with giant capital ships facing off, with squadrons of fighters flying about lighting up the darkness of space. Getting Capital ships off the ground brings us one step closer to our final vision.
Everything else:
It's been an exciting year for both us, and the members of the RoVerse Community. We wouldn't be doing this if it wasn't for your constant support and inspiration. As long as there are players who want to play a game like this, we will keep working to bring about this awesome game. I can't wait to see where the next year takes us!
You can support us by joining our Community Group or Discord server! So far, the community has been absolutely amazing, supportive, and very friendly. We are very appreciative of all the support you guys show us! If you want to catch any of our developers streaming, you can always follow our official Twitch channel here! Remember, we are always looking for new, talented builders, scripters and artists! If you’d like to help us you can always get in touch with us through RoVerse_Official on the ROBLOX website! Don’t worry, we don’t bite! Comments are closed.
|
Archives
January 2023
Categories
All
AuthorsVaktus: Leader of the Vaktovian Empire and head of the RoVerse Project |