RoVerse Development Newsletter # 70

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

This week has been an intense week for backend progress, with lots of work on the Dogfight Alpha Capital Update, bringing it that much closer to release; We've got another teaser for ship systems, with an improved UI that's starting to take shape; and some more lovely building and environment work from Vedrakkerous. Let's get started!

​​Idyllic has been hard at work coding one of the more important aspects of the updated ship UI - the Radar! After a few simple iterations, we think we've found the right balance between simplicity, and usefulness. Currently, it tracks locations relative to the forward facing direction of the player's ship, so it's useful at any angle. It also tracks the vertical rise and fall, helping you level out with whatever you're aiming for.

And it works quite well. Tracking and eliminating targets at a distance has never been easier! 

Though it does get a bit more interesting when a fleet of a thousand ships shows up ready to crush you. You better get used to watching your 6 for any Space Turkey fleets coming after you.

We managed to stress test the system, and it works quite well with a higher-than-expected number of markers, so you can look forward to using this sci-fi game staple soon.

Ved has been working on the Capital ship hangar for the Capital Update, and has made some lovely progress.

Custom designed to hold all shapes and sizes of ships.

And it makes a few ships look very, very small. 

​On other fronts, Skinny has been developing another ship, and has been fixing a few issues with our custom sun flare script with Sutic. Lordrex has continued work on backend systems, and we've started integrating those scripts into some nice fancy UI elements that Ved has been developing, which we'll be showing off soon.

It's getting close to a busy time of year for most developers again, but we'll keep working hard to make this epic game a reality.

If you haven't already signed up for the Dogfight Tournament, now's your chance to do so. You can find the form here: 
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/17KKApFQwTK-EW0uWbNQlWvq0i7OXem1Hf4YVh4SVOn4/viewform?edit_requested=true

We've got a few 2v2 teams signed up, but not enough of the larger teams to have a full tournament. If you sign up now, you'll have a pretty good shot at winning the prize!


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: At character creation, will you select a clan right away and never be able to leave?

A1: We're looking to find the middle ground between locking you into one clan, which we don't really want to do, an allowing anyone to clan hop all over the place which is all too common with your standard Roblox groups. Getting fired from a faction or subfaction will definitely be possible, but there might be some sort of fee incurred if you start laving groups too often.

Q2: Will custom animations for different species possibly be supported?

A2: We're still working on finalizing the details on how fancy our character system is, but once we do that we will be able to give you solid information on that, but right now it looks to be restricted to a humanoid form, both for fairness, and for ease of implementation.

Q3: If you have a family bloodline, will that be recognized as a subfaction?

A3: While you wouldn't get special treatment just for having a family bloodline, there's nothing stopping you from building your own subfaction, and operating like the mafia. Anything less official than that would have to be character names, clothing, alliances, all left up to you.

Q4: Will I be able to behead someone?

A4: If bloxxing someone is your goal in life, who are we to stop you from doing that? I'd expect people in RoVerse explode the same as anywhere else.

Q5: How's the devlist coming?

A5: Its nearly completed, will all the items we want factions to develop to fit their own unique style, but we're still working on setting limits for everything from size to minimum and maximum dimensions, which will take a bit more work, and collaboration between nearly every department.

Q6: Will there be grenades that can slow people down?

A6: We're looking to develop a comprehensive set of weapons that cover anything a faction could desire, from giant armored tanks to rocket launchers and railguns, anything with any sort of scifi theme is up for grabs, and that includes specialized weapons like frost grenades. I can think of one clan that would love to use those.

Q7: What will the server limit of players be?

A7: This is one of those details that we won't know until right up to release, but our goal is to get as many people as possible into every game, so that space is full of non-stop action, if you want it, and enough far-off planets for those who prefer solitude. Once we get everything coded and optimized, we'll let you know.

Q8: What are the requirements to form a corporation?

A8: Just like in real life, there are two primary things you need to start a corporation - a lot of money, and be able to provide some service, from manufacturing to security work. Once you have enough money to found a HQ, and hire on some members to run things, you can take on all sorts of tasks, from protecting borders or shipments, to producing the best gear in the galaxy.

Q9: Will there be a rarity list of all minable minerals?

A9: We're not quite sure yet if we'll be releasing that sort of information, partly because it ruins the mystery and exploration aspects we're hoping for, and because the rarity of minerals will vary significantly from system to system. Take spice for example - a staple in the core systems, and a valuable luxury in the outer systems.

Q10: Will mined minerals have to be picked up like minecraft, or automatically sent to an inventory?

A10: The way minecraft deals with mined items is probably the least efficient method for going about it, and more suited for the stone age. In RoVerse, in the era of galaxy-spanning empires and spacefaring civilizations, I'm sure someone would have perfected the technology to mine with lasers the put things right in your inventory.

Q11: How will sending orders to fleets and armies work?

A11: Faction leaders will have access to a few in-game systems to help with directing their armies and fleets as they battle for control of the galaxy, but relying exclusively on systems on our end might not be the best choice - I recommend setting up a faction battle discord server or channel, for the higher ranks to direct players by sending messages to a wider audience, or taking advantage of the voice chat features.

Q12: How will you tell who has declared war on who?

A12: We'll be setting up a comprehensive system for tracking who's at war with who, and with a special system of battle cycles taking place over a week, at set times and for a set duration, we can avoid the confusion that occurs with the current ways of doing things. At the beginning of the week you'll know when and where you'll need to send troops, and which systems you'll have to defend.

---

​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!

Any fans of the science fiction genre on Roblox can join the Science Fiction Genre Discord and find other fans and developers like you.

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, or by contacting an Administrator in the community Discord! Don’t worry, we don’t bite!