With the Steam Next Fest well out of the way, I am back working on the game. Since last updates I have completed the following tasks:
Fixed missing cargo info on ship info for player
Changed duration of jettisoncargo
Fixed problem with station missions
Fixes to last story mission (earth)
Renamed NPCFather2
Fixed more to missions and added gold star to prim missions in target dialog
Fixes to hyper mission
Fixes to mission 2, 11 and 13
Added missing groundobj to HUD radar
Fixed 2 engines, so they go faster
Fixed logging in passenger ship
Fixed bug in mission 10
Fixed bug in shelter mission
Added zoom for select hyperjump
Fix to selected target and shelter
Fix to buying goods
Fix to ship on mission 10 + added zoome to hyperjump select
Added stock graph indicator on mouse over
Fix to transport accounting, buy/sell first mining freighter. Pay crew from withing mining station
Added NPC logging. Fixed bug in planet generate in hyperjump
Added landing lights to farm
Add snake kill counter to player. Fixed unique prod codes
Fix to mining freighter not moving then off planet
Fixed missing mining freighter after jump
Fix ground below buildings, fix for station on boundary and fix for miniature of station on boundary
Fixed mission8 missing end text
Fixed spike strips, primary missions in correct line and load screen
Fixed bug with snake without tail
Fixed bug in load game + added more speakouts to target player npc
Fixes after gameplay
Small fixes after game play
Fixed bug in Star helper
Lots of bug fixes
Fixed bug with missing countdown on blackout
fixed bugs with hyper jump screen
Added bounty to target player npc
Changed parcel mission
Fixed livestock mission bug
Added stars to dialogs
Added texts for groundfarm
I have spent a lot of time playing the game through (which by the way takes a lot of time!) and while doing so, fixing bugs and coming up with a lot of new ideas I want to include in the game.
On of the better ideas was to have witnesses to crimes. This means that if a ship sees another ship attacking a third ship, this ship will report it to authorities once it lands on a station. This will lower the reputation of the attacking ship and increase the ship's bounty. Of course if the witness-ship gets killed on its way to the station, nothing will be reported... As no one saw anything ;-) - I like the idea because this means that if you want to be a pirate, make sure no one sees your crimes or be ready to kill all witnesses nearby.
DEMO has been updated with bug fixes
You guys have been so nice sending in bug reports when you have encountered them. Thank you so much! It really helps quality ensure my game.
Since all NPC's in the game do their own things in their own pace, it can be difficult to test every corner case, so your bug reporting really help so much!
Thank you!
I've updated the demo to version to 0.78 which includes bug fixes to the most common encountered bugs you have reported. I hope you will update the game, and give it another spin :)
DEMO updated to version 0.76 in preparation for Steam Next Fest
I'm excited for being part of the Steam Next Fest which starts october 1. But this has also put some stress and anxiety on me, as I really want my game to be polished and really playable without bugs or annoyances.
Here's a list of what I've been up to, on the game:
Added new compartment: Laser extender - Extend the length of your current laser
Fixed a bug in the pearl collecting mission
Fixes regarding the story missions and progressing
Fixes regarding lights not dissapearing
Added tutorials to the first mission and to the pearl collecting mission
Added more malfunctioning compartments, if not serviced properly
Fixed bug in passenger mission
Fixed bug in share totals
Added more music and sound effects
Begun working on achievements
Changed the way mining crew gets paid. No longer automatic, you have to do it in the mining report
Added space snakes to all void areas
Added new goods item : snake skins - Very rare and very expensive. You might get a skin, when you kill a snake
Changed the way prices are calculated on stations
Fixed black graphics on some planets
I will be ready and looking for feedback and bug reports the entire week, while you are playing the demo.
Steam Next Fest LIVE streaming of DEMO
I will be streaming the game for an hour or so and if you have any questions regarding the game, feel free to drop by. I'll be happy to answer all questions :)
DEMO updated to version 0.74
I have just uploaded a new version 0.74 of the DEMO for Stardust Origins - Go grab it right away! :)
What have changed:
The entire code for handling hull space and compartments have been rewritten to give more options and add flexibility
Added missiles to some police ships
Added E.C.M to kill incoming missiles
Attached E.C.M on certain NPC's
Added Plasma array to kill incoming missiles and cripple nearby ships
Added a top mounted gun you can attach to your ship.
Updated tutorials when starting a new game
Added ingame cursor, instead of the system one
Added pause option when in stations
Fixed missiles hit - They were sometimes off
DEMO updated to version 0.71
I have had some good feedback from the demo (thank you to you all!) and have prioritized adding some of the requested items plus fixed a number of bugs (a few game breaking).
Fixed timeout on mission 1
Fixed bug regarding updating reputation
Changed reputation factor on non-goverend planets
Added more graphics to some planets
Added more tutorials for new starters of the game
Added a lot more sound effects
Added new parcel delivery missions
Added a star on planet and star map indicating where missions occur
Added a mine on planet and star map to indicate where you have mines
Added NPC hunter for some parcel delivery missions
Fixed bug with black laser
Fixed a bug with selected rectangle on ships
Updated tutorials for when in a station
Fixed a bug where the quick command wheel wasn't initialized
Added a previous seen date for wanted ships
Added ranks to player. Rank is updated according to number of wanted kills
Added more random tips in the main menu
If you haven't already, you should really give the demo a try and let me know what you think of it. I know it's still a work-in-progress, but it is very much playable and good for a few hours of gameplay.
August 2021 devlog - All stories are done
Hi there,
This last month has been hectic with the release of the demo for the game. The demo consist of the current very playable state of the game and is only limited in how far you can get in the story. You really should check it out, and maybe even help getting the game better by providing in-game feedback.
The most feedback for the game was that it is too difficult to get into. So I've spent a lot of time adding helpful tutorial texts to various areas of the game. I am planning to also create a FAQ or a "How to play" page on the Steam page. More on this at a later time. I admit that it IS difficult to start with. But since I have tried to create it in the spirit of the original Frontier Elite II it SHOULD be difficult. You would have to think about how to get further in the game, but I can see now that the learning curve might have been too steep. So this has changed, and will be even more changed during the coming months.
The release of the demo has been overwhelming to me. Almost 3000 of you steam users have added the demo to your library and I hope many more of you will give the game a try, though keeping in mind that is still is a work in progress.
The development
During this last month I have been working on the following areas:
Story missions
All the story missions are now placed in the game. This means that I have a fully playable and completable game. This was a big milestone for me, as I now can concentrate on all the side missions, the "eyecandy", all the upgrades and the NPC's.
Reputation
The actions you take in the universe will affect your reputation on the stations you visit. A good reputation opens up doors for more missions, for loans and stock trading, while a bad reputation quickly closes the doors. You build up a bad reputation by cancelling missions, shooting at innocents and generally being a bad apple. A good reputation is built by completing missions, aiding in fights and protecting innocent vessels and by donating money to worthy causes.
Rank
You will rise in federal ranks by removing unwanted elements from the universe. As a bonus you also get bounty vouchers, which can be converted into money on stations.
Parcel delivery missions
Added a new type of missions, the parcel delivery missions. These missions are an easy way to earn money and a good starting point, when you ship is small and your laser puny. They come in all kinds of deliveries and rewards.
UI improvements
The UI has gotten updated with more icons and better text to make it easier to see where your mines are located and where missions are occuring.
Tutorials
Throughout the game I've added small tutorial dialogues which will popup when certain events occur. This should hopefully make it easier to see and know what to do in a given situation. These tutorial dialogues can quickly be removed by pressing the Escape key.
In the coming month the main goal is to implement all upgrades to your ship and then I need to do a lot of testing of the game. Speaking of testing. Do you want to be part of the test team for Stardust Origins? You get access to the current development build and you will receive a free key to the final game. Join my Discord and let me know :)
I believe this was all for this months devlog. I'm really looking forward to begin working on the "how-to-play" guide for the game, as I believe this document will be a goldmine in conquering the Stardust Origins. Thank you very much for reading.
DEMO is available for a limited time
Today marks the release of the first public DEMO for Stardust Origins! I'm very excited! The game has been underway since 2018 and gone through a lot of changes and evolvement.
The DEMO will showcase the core gameplay of
Goods trading
Buying ships and upgrades
Getting missions and side quests
Fighting freighters and pirates (collecting bounties)
Hyperjumping from planet to planet
Discover new star systems
Mining for ore and selling it
Buying and selling stocks
... and a lot of other things happening in the game
I hope you will enjoy the game, and feel free to use the ingame feedback button F1, which is accessible at all times. I really appreciate all your comments, feedback and maybe bug reports :)
July 2021 devlog - Things are shaping up
Welcome to the devlog of july. This past month has been used to fill more of the small gaps I still have in the game, and updates to already working parts.
More story missions
From the beginning of the game you're tasked with a mission. To find your way back and confront your father. For this you're getting story missions which slowly but surely will get you closer to this end goal. The stories in Stardust are varied in challenge and size and some of them, needs a lot of money to succesfully execute. I wont spoil anything regarding the story line, but I can assure you, that they wont be boring. So far I've done some 70% of the story missions, so it's all shaping up. I'm looking forward to developing the grand finale, and you're in for a treat :)
Autosave
Whenever you land on a planet, the game will be saved in an "autosave"-slot. This is to help you quickly get back to the last planet if you should have the misfortune of dying there.
Tutorials
After the first alpha-tests of the game, it became clear that the player has a hard time figuring out what to do when starting out for the first time. So I've spent some time adding tutorial dialogues to various areas of the game, which will popup and give a small introduction to the action at hand.
Planetary information
All stations provide planetary information, which give you valuable information about the place you're visiting. This can also give you a clue as to what commodities to bring along for a better price.
Universal average on prices
Speaking of commodities. Now you can see the universal average on selling prices for all commodities. This is good information when deciding whether to sell your stuff on the current station. It's all about profit, right?
Fullscreen/Windowed
I've also added the ability to change between fullscreen and windowed mode for the game, as I know some people enjoy playing in windowed mode.
All the other stuff
Apart from the areas mentioned above, I've also been working on the following:
More reporting on your income/expenses, bankloan and shares
Alien critters to infest various parts of the universe. Some are nice, and others a real pest
Bug fixes from reports from the test team
UI improvements
I believe this is all for this devlog. Hope you've enjoyed reading it. And as always, feel free to give it a thumbs up or comment it.
You are also welcome to join the Discord here to chat with the developer and the testers
June 2021 devlog - Now we're getting somewhere
So another month has passed by and its time to dive into all the areas that I have been working on for the game. As the screenshot above shows, I have added stock markets to selected stations. This is stations on planets with a high teck level and on planets with a decent amount of civilization. On the stock markets you can buy and sell shares to help increase your wealth. Shares doing great will payout dividend once a year.
The main focus of this months development have been to add music and sounds to the game, but also to add a lot of missing information dialogs. I will briefly go through some of them below.
Service ship and compartments
It is essential that you service your ship at regular intervals or it will start to fail at the most crucial moments. You can risk misjumps when you fly to other planets or systems, you can risk loosing cargo or even your life, is service is neglected. So pay attention to the service intervals.
Bank
Some stations contains a bank where you can get a little extra money at (maybe) affordable rates. Choose the loan you wish to take and enjoy that extra cash. But be warned. Not paying back a bank loan will get you some nasty ships on your tail.
Revised the commodity market
I've changed the way you buy and sell commodities on the market. Now its done using a slider, giving you better precision on how many you want to buy and sell.
Income/Expense report
All income and expenses are now saved in the income/expense report, so you can keep track of your money spendings and income. It will show the last 60 entries.
Cargo hull inventory
The cargo hull inventory shows what you currently have in your cargo hull and it gives you the possibility to jettison some of it. Jettison'ing some cargo can be a great getaway if you have pirates on your tail.
Other additions and improvements
In addition to sounds and dialogs, I have also worked on other areas of the game:
Changed the way NPC's fly. They now use newtonian physics meaning that they use their thrusters to break and turn just like the player
Added a new NPC passenger carrier. It will fly between stations or between planets with passengers
Added more key bindings and options for the options-screen
Added pause mode, where you can either save the game or change options
Added new star system discovery - Once in a while new star systems gets discovered, expanding the universe
Translated the game to German and Spanish. More languages are in the pipeline. I'm using Localizor for crowdfunded localizations
Join my Discord server for more updates and friendly chats with the developer ːsteamhappyː Discord
I believe that is all for this devlog. Hope you enjoyed reading it and as always give a thumbs up or a comment if you have anything on your mind.
