29
May
Today is Wing Commander creator Chris Roberts' birthday! He's looking pretty good for fifty - video game development seems to suit him well. Still, hopefully he's able to take a break and enjoy the weekend!
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28
May
…When Victory is Life launches on June 5th, the players of Star Trek Online will be taking a trip back to one of the most beloved series in Star Trek history, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. We’ve already heard from so many of you how much you love the brand new interior of the venerable space station at the heart of that show, but we wanted to share the experience with some of the people who actually lived it. J.G. Hertzler, Chase Masterson, and Max Grodenchik all came by Cryptic Studios to record their voice parts for Victory is Life, and we had our Environment Artist Nick Duguid take them on a tour of the environment team’s meticulous recreation of the sets where they spent seven years. Take a look at the experience that Chase Masterson described as “coming home again.” .share-footer a { margin: 20px 10px 10px 0; background: url(d7afaaa14e96d0d973f76157ae31ec5b1466398539.png)
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28
May
Every week, designers, engineers and other developers from our five offices around the world answer backer questions submitted on SPECTRUM and voted on by YOU. This week, we address questions on why ships come dirty, the status of player-facing ship modularity and UI visibility updates.
You can submit your questions for consideration in future episodes of Calling All Devs here
And for info on becoming a subscriber, go to: Subscriptions - Roberts Space Industries | Follow the development of Star Citizen and Squadron 42
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28
May
…Hello Citizens,
Last Friday, MISC reflects on its 50 year legacy and looks to the future of speed, both on and off the track, with the release of limited-edition Razor chassis. You can still pick up Warbond versions for a limited time here.
Help us make the How to Play section of the Star Citizen website even better, starting with Star Marine and Arena Commander. Take part in the contest for a chance to win prizes and leave your mark on the official Star Citizen website.
Lastly, CitizenCon 2948 tickets will be available again in the near future if you haven’t picked one up already. Make sure to follow us on Twitter, or subscribe to our newsletter to find out when the next phase of ticket sales will be available.
With that, let’s see what’s going on this week:
Monday is a holiday for US and UK offices, but we’re still releasing a brand new episode of Calling All Devs. Each and every week,
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29
May
Contents [Hide]
Events
Faction Rallies
- Information concerning Faction Rallies will be made available on 5/31 in the “This Week at Bungie” blog article.
Sandbox
Exotic Armor
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Hunter -
29
May
…A few months ago, we added a brand new feature to Star Trek Online. In partnership with Gameprint, we gave Captains the opportunity to make a 3D printed, fully customized, hand painted collectible of their favorite starships in the game. Now, we’re incredibly proud to announce that starting June 1st, the types of ships you’ll be able to order will be expanding. Gameprint is launching a brand new line of full-color, resin, 3D-printed starship models. Unlike the hand painted collectibles that started this line, these new models are printed in color in a variety of new sizes. You’ll be able to order these brand new ships in three new sizes, 4”, 7”, and 12”, fully customized to match your ship in the game, at starting prices of $20, $99, and $299, respectively. Check out some examples of the Pathfinder shown off in these new sizes and this new printing style below. You can order these
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29
May
…The Founders and the Hur’q are both exceptionally old races. Odo is certain that the other Changelings know more about the deadly insectoids than they are sharing with him. He’s found a lead on an ancient Dominion station that may hold secrets the Alliance can use to defend the entire galaxy. Will everyone be ready to reveal the truth held within? “Doomed to Repeat” will be the fourth episode in our new Gamma Quadrant story arc. Characters must have already completed “The Search” to play this episode. “Doomed to Repeat” will be available to all players (Romulan players must have selected a faction). You can easily access this mission when Victory is Life is live by accessing your Mission Journal (default key ‘J’), selecting the “Gamma Quadrant” episodes tab, and choosing to ‘Hail’ your contact for the mission. We will not be preemptively announcing any other Victory
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29
May
Display MoreJump Point Now Available!
Attention development subscribers: the May 2018 issue of Jump Point is now available in your subscription area. You’ll learn about the development of the Crusader Industries Hercules, meet Star Citizen’s optimization team, learn about Radegast whiskey and more!
Interested in becoming a development subscriber? You can learn more here.
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30
May
…The Socho system, headquarters of Aegis Core, has been overtaken by a criminal faction. The system is now in a state of anarchy.
A courier carrying a message from Aegis scientist Dr Mia Valencourt managed to escape the system. The message was then broadcast by the Rewired news service:
"This is an urgent call for assistance. Regional security forces have been overrun, and this vicious gang – they call themselves the Socho Gold Raiders – they're in charge now. They've shut everything down. Apparently they're convinced we're building some kind of super-weapon, so that's probably what brought them here."
"They were so clever. We picked up what looked like a Thargoid signal and the security forces went charging in. Everyone was terrified that the Thargoids had come to Socho. But it wasn't the Thargoids – it was a trap. The Raiders were waiting, and they cut those ships to pieces."
"Please, if
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30
May
Display MoreThis report presents the latest data on starports experiencing technical issues as a result of Thargoid Sensor related interference.
The following starports are currently closed:
Stackpole City, Lugger
Maausk, Maausk
Mitchell Dock, Meene
Meanwhile, the following starports are on the brink of closure:
Pirate's Lament, HIP 17519
Schwann Port, Hajangai
Darwin Orbital, 82 Pegasi
Landis Orbital, Prajau
Rafferty's Mobius, Azrael
Ciferri Enterprise, Hidatsa
Kennan Vision, NLTT 14879
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31
May
…Wing Blenderhas gotten its first update in more than a year. The program is a
Blenderimporter/exporter for ship models that allows for easier manipulation of the items in Wing Commander Prophecy or Secret Ops. It's been a useful app for fan project modders, and the new version 2.2.1 can easily cut import time in half! You can grab the program
hereand get tips on its use at the
CIC Forums.
Anyway, if you've tried to use the importer, you'll know that it is sluggish as hell. I've been trying to work on that. I made a few optimizations to the importer recently, which mostly involve using flat typed arrays instead of lists of lists, and it turned out to be MUCH faster than what I had. With my most recent optimizations, I was able to cut the import time in half! Well, at least for the more detailed meshes. AST_S_01.IFF hasn't shown much improvement in terms of import time, but that's because the other
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30
May
…
< Transmission Begins >
“The more things change, the more they stay the same.”
This epigram has been around for centuries, but it still rings true today. Despite the technological advances that have fueled Humanity’s expansion into the stars, a person swiping their mobi on a Moscow street corner right now isn’t much different to someone standing there hundreds of years earlier. Both are bones and blood, sinew and sweat.
Certain inalienable truths can’t be denied. Join me, Parker Terrell, on this journey to uncover the Plain Truth.
Our starting epigram relates to more than just people. It also applies to the UEE Government. Leaders and laws may change, but it remains the same – crippled by corruption that’s rotten it to the core.
Look no further than the Oso system for proof. Oso II is teeming with unusual and unique lifeforms that the UEE swore to protect from human intervention under the Fair
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31
May
Display MoreA fund has been set up by the Aegis Research to repair starports in the Pleiades Nebula that have been damaged during the Thargoid conflict.
Senior engineer Lilith Galloway made this announcement:
"We've had the worst of it here. The Thargoids have given us a bloody nose on several occasions. But we are strong, we will heal, and you can help."
"We're asking for pilots to deliver as much as they can fit in their holds. We're going to rebuild our starports better than ever. Let's get the Pleiades fighting fit once more."
Traders are requested to deliver construction materials to The Oracle in the Pleiades Sector Ir-W D1-55 system.
The campaign begins on the 31st of May 3304 and will run for one week. If the final target is met earlier than planned, the campaign will end immediately.
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31
May
The Autocracy of T'iensei has announced that its campaign to clear the T'iensei system of agitators has been a success. Hundreds of pilots responded to the appeal, taking to their ships to eliminate the criminals operating in the system.
Authorities in T'iensei have extended their gratitude to those who participated in the operation.
Pilots who contributed to the initiative can now collect their rewards from Dzhanibekov Port in the T'iensei system.
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31
May
Los Chupacabras have announced that their plan to host a music festival in the LFT 926 system has been enthusiastically received by the galactic community. Scores of pilots supported the initiative by delivering commodities to Meredith City, the organisation's base of operations.
Los Chupacabras thanked those who supported the campaign, and confirmed that a second festival is already being planned.
Pilots who contributed to the initiative can now collect their rewards from Meredith City in the LFT 926 system.
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31
May
Following Thargoid strikes on the fringes of the core systems, a new initiative to restore damaged starports has been announced.
Chief administrator Carter Armstrong spoke on behalf of Aegis Core, which is coordinating the campaign:
"We've set up this fund to reassure citizens that normality will continue, no matter what. I would like to appeal to the galactic community to restore services in the core systems to their previously high standard."
An open order has been placed for construction materials, which will be shipped to the affected starports and used to make repairs. Pilots are asked to make their deliveries to Dantec Enterprise in the Socho system.
The campaign begins on the 31st of May 3304 and will run for one week. If the final target is met earlier than planned, the campaign will end immediately.
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31
May
…Aegis has announced that its Eagle Eye initiative is proving to be a great success, and has helped to repel Thargoid forces from systems in the Pleiades Nebula.
The Eagle Eye orbital surveillance installations were established earlier this year to monitor transmissions from known Thargoid surface sites. This data is then made available to independent pilots.
In an interview with The Federal Times, Admiral Aden Tanner remarked:
"I have no doubt that without this surveillance data, more starports in the Pleiades would have been attacked and damaged. Only last week, Thargoid incursions in the Lwalama and Lalande 4141 systems were vigorously resisted thanks to the early warnings provided by Eagle Eye."
"We all owe a huge debt of gratitude to those brave Commanders who have engaged the Thargoids in battle. Aegis was established to help protect the galaxy, and with the help of courageous members of
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01
Jun
…Former Origin veteran
Raph Kosterhas just published a new book titled
Postmortems: Selected Essays Volume One. Mr. Koster was lead designer for Ultima Online and went on to develop
Privateer Onlinebefore its unfortunate cancelation. He then was hired by Sony as Chief Creative Office for Star Wars Galaxies, Everquest and many others. His new book goes back to look at the "postmortems" of the many projects throughout his career - after-action reports, lessons learned and critical analyses about what games did right, did wrong or could be improved on in the next iteration. It promises to provide some fascinating insight behind the scenes of game development. And in the run up to its impending publication, Raph has released a handful of snippets that tease various sections. Today's example provides a glimpse at his reflection of Privateer Online! The full book is available at
Amazon.
My new book
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31
May
"Reunion"
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…Odo and the young Jem'Hadar haven't gone very far past the wormhole in the Gamma Quadrant when a Dominion patrol ship neared. "Well, you've been waiting all your life, short as it may be, to meet your people,” Odo said to his traveling companion. “Now, you'll get your chance. I hope," Odo paused, looking for the right words, "I hope you'll be happy." "Are you sure you want to go back to the station,” the young warrior asked. “Don't you belong here? Your people are here – you are a Founder!" Before Odo could convince himself, again, that he made the right decision, the other ship hailed them. He sighed, "On screen." A female Vorta appeared, "Greetings, Founder. Did you change your mind? Are you coming home to us at long last?" "I see word of my existence has made it throughout the Dominion. Hmph." "It’s best said that such information is at a ‘need to know’ status, Founder.
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31
May
…Greetings Captains, Tim ‘Suricata’ Davies here! One of the highlights of my job as a marketing artist is when I occasionally get to work on the Okudagrams for Star Trek Online. Back in 2014 I created the MSD for the Voyager bridge, and over the years I helped out here and there, such as with the Engineering LCARS for the Galaxy class interior and, more recently, with the huge array of Cardassian panels on the DS9 revamp. With the upcoming Expansion ‘Victory is Life’, it seemed like a good time to take on a side project I’d had on the backburner for a while, a new Defiant MSD to give out as a poster at our conventions! I’ve always been a huge fan of the Defiant so it was great to finally get around to working on this poster. Instead of just releasing the wallpaper though, I thought it might be interesting for some of our players to actually see the process that goes into creating these
