We are back! After quite a long time, we are coming out of space anabiosis and ready to share the news. September 22, we took part in GAMEDEV.HOUSE conference, presenting an updated build of the game which now have the renewed UI, the extended character animation; the most important thing about the event is that we got to know new people: they asked a lot about the game and played the build a lot.
We also got 2 awards, in the nominations: - New Hope - People's Choice Award
Many thanks to everyone who visited our booth and made their choice in favor of the game. There is still a lot of work ahead, which means that soon we will share more upgrades about the project and the future plans.
Remember that SPACE NEEDS YOU !
Development diary #5
Hi everyone!
Much time has passed since we last wrote about the development process. After participating in the May DevGamm 2019, the team entered the stage of creating content, deepening and expanding the game Universe. Therefore, it was hard for us to decide what exactly to tell you.
Up to the moment we framed the number of classes of fighters, types of weapons, the number of levels in the main campaign, the factions operating in the sector, and many interesting features which can completely immerse you in the space adventures of our Universe. In this issue we will:
1) describe a little bit more of the mechanics which will open to you from the very first minutes after start of the game: character customization.
The protagonist's avatar will be in front of you for most of the game. S/he will be the storyteller; s/he will comment on everything that happens and that will be his/her image that you will associate with the whole adventure.
In order to make it more pleasant and entertaining for you to play, it will be possible to adjust the character's gender, color of the skin, eye color and choose a face model and many other things.
Your adventure starts precisely with the choice of the protagonist's avatar.
2) tell you about «yesterday».
On June 13, we were lucky to participate in a small event called “The Moscow Mitap of Game Developers”: we showed the demo version again, with the updated character animation; got several practical UI tips and listened to an interesting report on game design.
Thanks to everyone who approached us at the Meetup, and played the demo build. Continue to follow the development process news and post you comments.
Be in touch!
Development diary #4
Good day for everyone!
Recently we haven’t updated the diary as we were preparing for DevGaMM 2019. On this conference, there was a stand for our game demonstration (showcase). DevGamm guests could see and play the build, have some conversation with the studio representatives and share their thoughts on the current state of the project.
SOS received a great deal of feedback reports and suggestions for the project development. They dealt with everything from the visual style to the gameplay. We were prompted many interesting techniques and solutions for improving UX and UI. We were given many examples of suitable mechanics from successful projects, and also told where it would be great to make a featurecut.
In a nutshell, DevGamm is a Klondike for any game developer :)
After the exhibition, our team gathered and revised the goals, objectives and ways to achieve them once again. We unanimously came to the conclusion that, for example, we should freeze and postpone space battles. The mechanics of the ships, their modernization and space flights will remain, but without fights.
However, in order not only to save resources, but to release a project that you’ll willingly play, we will develop the existing mechanics of spaceships movement . Let's make it fascinating, variable, influencing the events and atmospheric.
Development Diary #3
First of all, happy National Space Day to our followers!
Since our game is inspired by space exploring and Universes of Star Treck and Mass Effect as well as Alastair Reynolds’ novels and “The Three-Body Problem” by Liu Cixin, we are glad to celebrate this day together with you!
National Space Day is observed annually on the first Friday in May. This day is dedicated to the extraordinary achievements, benefits and opportunities in the exploration and use of space. The goal of National Space Day is to promote math, science, technology and engineering education in young people to inspire them to pursue a career in science, especially a career in space-related jobs.
In our turn we are willing to cover SOS Galaxy developing and touch on encouraging players to discover it.
In SOS there are some stellar systems (unknown at the start) you’ll have to visit to find new technologies and move further through the plot.
Each of system will include planets, station and other space objects. Evry of them have accessibility quest`s or points of interest. Searching accessibility will depend from executable order, received distress signal, taken information at battle or activating easter egg (yes, a fwe of these things will also be).
Each system includes a number of planets and stations, where some tasks and points of interest are available. Access to reseach depends on the mission, distress signal received, information obtained at the battlefield or “Easter Egg“ activated (yup, there will be some).
Each exploration of space objects may cause some consequences and give you or your enemies benefits like fight conditions, bonuses or surprising situations.
Stay tuned, we'll try to tell many interesting things about SOS.
Development diary #2
The second issue of the diary is devoted to LORE.
This diary will tell you about the world in which the events of the game occur, who their main participants are and how it all began ... :)
History of the world or the theory of saturated space.
Hypothetically, the space should be inhabited by intelligent life. Billions of stars maintain livable planets in their orbits. This assumption formed the basis of the “saturated cosmos” theory. This gave rise to exploration programs for distant corners of the universe.
Mankind, surprisingly, didn’t come into contact with alien civilization. Of course, there were viruses, animals, space finds, like eggs of anthropomorphic dinosaurs, carnivorous plants, different bacterium and the like. But a single developed species with their own culture wasn`t ever found.
The theory of "saturated space" suggested:
1. In unexplored space, anything can happen. After all, not all types, elements and laws of the universe have been studied.
2. Myriad of probabilities lead to a total loss of control. It eliminates all predictions.
Therefore, in order to preserve the human species in the new colonies, it was necessary to organize local armed forces or to provide protection by private corporations. From here originate local organizations, whose task was to protect colonies of people from external and internal threats.
One of these organizations, in which our fighters work in, is SOS (Saturated Outer Space): “We are saving the world for money!”
Other characters.
The colonists. The bulk of living in the sector. Those same lucky adventurers who have entered the program for the development of deep space. Peaceful. They build, treat, study, create, organize corporations and embryonic forms of government. Badly protected.
Miners. The basic working units of research and cargo ships, terraforming planetary settlements. They work mainly on corporations. Moderately protected, in combat they actively use the equipment of the mining complex.
Merchants. People who provide trade and turnover of loans. Interact with any settlements and groups. Badly protected.
Mercenaries. Defenders of the interests of local corporations. One corporation can use the services of several groups of mercenaries at once. They are well protected, armed and dangerous.
Cannibals. Rippers-eaters. A phenomenon that has a lot of theories explaining its origin, but never received a scientific definition. It is believed that a long stay in space can lead to irreparable cognitive impairment and partial loss of mind. As a rule, these are loners, less often small groups. Very dangerous and bloodthirsty.
NANO-Cyborgs. Cyborgs of new generation based on nanotechnology. Well-armed and very dangerous. Used by paramilitary groups to gain combat advantage.
BitReaper. Fighting computer virus, escaped from under control. The virus penetrates into technically complex devices: computers, tablets, nanomodules. Modifies the current program, setting it to the destruction of any biological form of life. It was originally developed to counter the NANO-Cyborgs.
What happens in the galaxy “Shen Ju”, the sector “Hecate” will tell the news channel UNS. Universal news service - the latest news of the universe!
«…According to our source, the cases of the disappearance of the colonists are becoming increasingly large scale. Entire settlements are empty and not a single trace of the people who lived here. There are a variety of rumors about what is happening: someone is talking about alien interference; someone is talking about a new biological weapon. According to unconfirmed reports, a special emissary of the Earth Federation arrived in the sector to investigate the incident…»
«...Moonlight path company announced that it has found a new form of biological life. And in the near future will present it to the public. A source inside the company claims that this form of life can be quite intelligent…»
«…The intergalactic trading company Onion Bond announces the increasing incidence of ships infected with the BitReaper virus. This is strange, since the spread of the virus was stopped even in the “Eris” sector. Following this statement, the Patriots of the future corporation announced a new generation of antivirus software that could stop this deadly virus. Such efficiency is not surprising given the genius of Mr. A…»
«…Another amazing case. Space trucker Mr. Tau Ing says that he was attacked by pirates as he was carrying a load of food for one of the colonies of Unlimited Mining Corporation. The cargo was completely stolen, and Mr. Tau miraculously escaped. But in this seemingly ordinary story, there is one moment, the victim claims that the pigs helped the pirates. People with pigs’ heads!!! Can you imagine that? Does the trucker tell the truth or is it just possible to try to become famous and justify the loss of cargo? Who knows, but representatives of the Unlimited Mining did not exactly believe Mr. Tau and claim that they would not pay back a single insurance loan...»
Development diary #1
This is the first entry in our diary, which will be regularly updated and tell you about the development of Saturated Outer Space (hereinafter referred to as SOS).
First of all, we want to tell you about our game-mechanics and its main activities.
1. Interaction with the world. The game is based on 3 basic principles: quest search, quest completion, development of your fleet and fighters.
Quests can be found anywhere in the form of coordinates, received in the open space as a distress signal with a request for help or by talking to an NPC.
The execution of quests in most cases comes down to the classic battles in order to save or neutralize. They are presented in two versions: space fights, with the participation of ships and ground battles, with the participation of squad members.
Space battles take place in a simple turn-based system. During the turn, the player chooses a point of movement and action (shooting, defense or otherwise). Depending on the ship modules installed, the nature of tactical actions may differ and change over time. The game-mechanics of ground battles is copied from X-COM and in fact is no so different, but it has much more options for equipping fighters, as well as inventory that can be used right on the battlefield, changing weapons and modules.
The development of the fleet occurs in the horizontal and vertical planes. First of all, it is possible to regulate the type and number of ships, and to manage the ships you need human resources (captain), which you have to look for. And further, various housing colors, ship implements (which need to be calibrated), armor and other modules will be available for customization. The development of fighters will base on a leveling-up system. At each promotion, several class abilities will be opened for the fighter, of which only one can be selected. However, there will be cyber implants in the game, which change the static characteristics or add new skills to the fighters.
Equipment and weapons will be available for purchase on space bases, obtained in battles or provided as a reward for contracts. All armor can be customized, and weapons upgraded with additional barrels, sights, butts and other accessories.
2. The reaction of the world to the player's actions. SOS is designed as a space sandbox. In this regard, each choice made by the player will change the course of the development of the galaxy. Thanks to the actions of your unit, the degree of influence of corporations, the fate of various planetary colonies, and the main plot of the game will definitely change.
3. The relationship between the worlds of different players. Although our game is single-player, it is planned to implement the basic statistics and rating system: from the number of killed space-pigs in the sum by all users, to the total account that determines the most powerful captain of the SOS universe. The rating will be informational only and will not give in-game advantages.
