RoVerse Development Newsletter #79

Hello everyone! Welcome to the seventy-ninth 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 pretty quiet, with most of our devs being extremely busy, with school, work, or other engagements. On top of that, there was a major disturbance in the clans and guilds community that required some intense discussion on our future, the clan world's future, and how best to proceed.

IdyllicDestroyer has continued to work on planets, with some good progress on spherical gravity using lineforces to pull objects in, like a real planet would. Though it is still in its early stages, the outlook is positive. Several problems still exist to be solved, including how to get humanoids to properly work on a sphere and how to simulate several celestial bodies in one server, in the case that we want a small moon to be accessible from the surface.

And since this week was really quiet, he put together a nice demo of the planet generator, and the gravity effecting objects, for you to try out:

https://www.roblox.com/games/1347788382/Planet-Gravity-Tests

Let him know in the community how it works out.

In other news, many of you have heard by now about the situation VAK faced earlier this week. Though the problem has since partially resolved itself, there is no immediate problem, but it has caused us to look into our options when it comes to clans. If you don't know, the group VAK was locked from user access under conspicuous circumstances, with a coincidental update to the ROBLOX Terms of Service. It appears that ROBLOX will be taking a harsher stance on copyrighted material, as well as groups that appear to align with ideas espousing Nazism. While it is certainly acceptable to lock out groups who seek to truly represent those ideals, it is as of yet unclear where ROBLOX moderators will be drawing that line, so in the meantime, it is best to keep the more exotic elements of clans to a minimum.

Since VAK has been re-instated as a group, though its assets have been content-deleted, there should be no problem with their eventual planned entry into RoVerse, so don't worry, you'll still be able to declare war on everyone's most hated of enemies when the time comes.

For now, though, the RoVerse Devs have begun to consider their options about integrating clans into the RoVerse game more extensively, to avoid these problems in the future to a degree, as well as provide more options for clans moving forward. Since it seems that ROBLOX doesn't intend to add or improve group features any time soon, we make take it on as a project of our own. It could have its own benefits, but it would definitely have its own costs as well.

If we were to integrate clans into the game itself, it would require significantly more work, both in developing the systems to operate clans, and to create the backend to support the amount of data that would create. It would reduce the visibility of clans to new and visiting users, who would represent the next generation of clanners, by requiring players enter the game before they can interact with groups. It would interfere with clan independence, requiring them to commit to a system outside of their control, which many would not be agreeable with. All these things would reduce the impact of both RoVerse, and the clan world, and there is no guarantee we would succeed.

On the plus side, we could be responsible for implementing those features clans have always wanted, but the site operators never seem to care enough to implement. A more robust ranking and permission system, better clan communication, integrations with outside communication and management systems, like Discord.

These things have been discussed over the past week, and as of yet we have made no decision - we will await further information on the status of Groups on ROBLOX, as we proceed. Whatever the final decision that we make, it will always be what is best for you, the players.

Lorenzo has been working on another ship for the line we debuted a few weeks ago, with a S Capital to fill in the ranks. With it's own unique shape, matching its larger counterpart, this ship will surely make your fleet stand out. What it lacks in firepower, it makes up for in armor, with a thick hull to deflect any projectile.

A size comparison with the larger ship in the line.
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​We'd like to wish SkinnyThePimp a happy birthday this week, and we hope that the next year of his life is as exciting as ever. 



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: What sort of opportunities will there be for smuggling? Will we be able to smuggle weapons and rare minerals past faction defenses?

​A1: Smuggling will be one of the most profitable, as well as dangerous professions to have in RoVerse. While it wont be officially sanctioned by any system to simplify the process, there will be ways of evading the controlling forces of systems, avoiding paying taxes when shipping through their territory, and avoiding anyone else who wants a cut of the product. And any daring player who knows this information, how to get around without being seen, will be able to make great profits shipping all sorts of items all over the galaxy - from black market weapons and stolen faction-exclusive ships, to contraband items and minerals, its all up for grabs.

​This week there were no unanswered questions in the community, so there won't be any other answers. Thanks to the community members who answered the questions of new followers that had already been answered here.

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