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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.
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
May
This week, an in-depth look at Item Kiosk Shopping, and a new Ship Shape installment featuring the menacing Vanduul Blade.
You can purchase CitizenCon tickets here: CitizenCon 2948 Announcement - Roberts Space Industries | Follow the development of Star Citizen and Squadron 42
You can find the April 2018 Monthly Report here.
Apr
…
Fuel Mechanics
How It Works Today and What’s in Store for the Future
With the introduction of the Origin 100 series and its unique AIR system, we wanted to spend a little time talking about the current and future role of fuel in Star Citizen. The career of Refueling, and by proxy the gameplay of fuel, is one of our many non-combat driven gameplay loops and key to creating a believable universe.
This piece is a primer to the Refueling design and career, which will be discussed more in the build up to its release.
Fuel Mechanics in Star Citizen Alpha 3.1
In Alpha 3.1, all of our ships have a Hydrogen Fuel Tank and most have a Quantum Fuel Tank, snubs being the common exception. The ship’s thrusters consume fuel stored in the Hydrogen Fuel Tank and convert it into thrust with a small draw from the Power Plant. When in Quantum Travel, thrusters use the fuel contained in the Quantum Fuel Tank.
A common
Jul
…Here's another round updates to
Howard Day's
WC1-inspired engine. There's some very interesting work happening with the fighter pilot AI. The
current buildshave been using the simplest version of his four-tier AI setup, and there's already been some fascinating scenarios that have dynamically emerged. Future updates will include randomized personality factors that will continue to make dogfights feel unique. Additionally, graphics for the startup sequences have also been put together that help set the tone very nicely! He's got a launcher screen that resembles the original game's menus, and there's even a parody of the Origin logo ready to go.
Huh...I can't likely show the Origin logo when this thing starts up...I guess it's time for a dad joke with some mid-nineties logo and icon design!
State of the AI - right now friendly and enemies are using only one single level: Novice. I've been building
Jul
…It’s Summer Time, Captains, and the living is easy. It’s time to sit back, relax, enjoy a Jipper or two, and take a break from all the time you’ve spent defending the galaxy on the planet’s ultimate vacation destination, Risa. And while you’re at it, why don’t you save a whole lot of Zen, too? On all three platforms, from July 3rd at 8am to July 8th at 10am, you’ll be able to save 25% on everything in the Zen Store on PC and PS4! This includes some of our newest additions, like the T6 Starship Coupon Gift, so now is the best time to surprise your friends and family with a starship of their very own! Don’t get too comfortable in the sand and warm sun, you wouldn’t want to sleep on this opportunity. .share-footer a { margin: 20px 10px 10px 0; background: url(d7afaaa14e96d0d973f76157ae31ec5b1466398539.png) no-repeat 0 0; opacity: .5; display: inline-block; height: 60px;
Apr
Klavsis back to tinkering with his iconic
Hornetdesign. In the progression shots below, you can see how he's got the overall spaceframe super solid, there's some neat engine nozzle action happening, and he's even got a new take on the fighter's familiar long bore laser cannons. Looking good!
Starting over!
Dec
…The Secret Ops
Model Upgrade Packis itself getting an upgrade! One of its earliest ships, the Tigershark, has been revamped and looks better than ever.
DefianceIndustrieshas cooked up several variants including a generic Confed skin, Diamondbacks Squadron version for WCP and a throwback green livery for Secret Ops. The renders below look fabulous, of course, but the in-game shots are just as pretty! Stay tuned for another significant playable release due out soon.
Admission time: I dislike the MUP Tigershark. I did it along time ago without the benefit of the actual mesh only loose guesses based on the renders. So while it's passable, it's not my favorite. So... what to do? Make a gen 2 Tigershark model!On another note, I've begun packaging up the files for the next MUP release. I'll update everyone when we have the next package ready to go as well as the full changelog and feature updates.
Look
Oct
…The Close Encounters Corps has announced its intention to construct a scientific megaship in the BD-12 1172 system. The new vessel will allow research teams to map and explore the planets of the surrounding nebula.
Admiral Anton Vern of the Close Encounters Corps issued the following statement:
"A number of survey groups have expressed interest in mapping the nebula surrounding the BD-12 1172 system. This new scientific vessel will act as a base from which they can research the abundance of unexplored planets throughout the nebula."
To facilitate construction of the megaship, the Close Encounters Corps has placed an open order for muon imagers, and has promised to reward pilots who deliver these commodities to Crown Prospect in the Kagutsuchi system. The organisation has also placed a kill order on all ships on its wanted list, to ensure that those contributing material can do so safely.
The
Feb
…A Federal High Court jury has found Fleet Admiral Lucas Vincent guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and treason.
The court heard how Vincent worked with Core Dynamics CEO Jupiter Rochester to sabotage Starship One and assassinate then-President Jasmina Halsey, in order to increase military contracts.
The Federal Times's crime correspondent Ethan Takahashi observed:
"Within minutes of Vincent receiving a life sentence, Federal Intelligence Agency teams arrested several co-conspirators in the Federal Navy along with some government officials."
"Jupiter Rochester himself has evaded arrest by fleeing to the HIP 54530 system, where loyalists within Core Dynamics are establishing a breakaway faction named Jupiter Division. Industry analysts believe that this corporate split has long been planned, but is being accelerated because of the trial."
"Rochester's responsibility for the Starship One
Feb
…Mass Effect legendary Edition is officially on the horizon, as revealed by the recently released trailer from BioWare. With the remastered trilogy just three months away from release, details are beginning to pour out regarding the differences between the original trilogy and the remaster. One of the more notable changes is that the lengthened and improved ending to Mass Effect 3 from the ‘Extended Cut’ DLC is established as the canon ending to the trilogy thanks to its inclusion in Mass Effect Legendary Edition.
For those blissfully unaware, the original ending of arguably the best space-faring video game trilogy of all time fell notably flat, with many criticizing the ending of Mass Effect 3 for not reflecting the multitude of impactful choices players made throughout the three games. The new and improved ending from the Extended Cut DLC somewhat remedies this, and as such it was seemingly an easy
Aug
…Star Trek Online is running a special weekend event where you can earn bonus Dilithium Ore by playing content throughout the game! It’s time to hit the drills, Captains! The Dilithium Ore event runs from 8AM PT (17:00 CEST) Thursday, August 27th to 10AM PT (19:00 CEST) Monday, August 31st. During the event, bonus Dilithium Ore will be provided for the following content: Vlugta Asteroid Field: 100% Bonus Dilithium Ore for Daily Mining Missions 100% Bonus to all Rich Dilithium Claims Fleet Dilithium Mine: 100% Bonus Dilithium Ore for Daily Mining Missions Everywhere else in the game 50% Bonus Dilithium Ore Dilithium rewards from completing Event Reputation Projects no longer receive a bonus. This excludes Event Reputation Projects Please note: The Dilithium Weekend does not effect rewards from the Endeavor system. We hope you enjoy this special event and
Jul
…Due to popular demand, ODVS has put together and posted a complete set of enhanced Wing Commander 3 videos! There is not yet a method developed to integrate these directly into the game, but it's still an awesome trove of cutscenes to play around with. These are based off the Playstation version, so the source material is slightly higher quality. Then ODVS used his AI/machine learning process to increase the quality substantially. It's certainly not up to modern HD standards, but it's a huge improvement over the original footage. There are a couple of new test videos as well as download links below. It's highly likely that a superior iteration will be released in the months ahead, but this provides a fun collection of clips to play around with now.
Well, thanks to AD and EmuMusicFan's help, here's the first batch of remaster/comparison clips lifted directly from the PSX discs.The overall
Oct
…Starting with the release of Age of Discovery this Tuesday, October 9th, new Battlecruiser-class vessels are being made available on the C-Store for Federation characters, and its allied members among the Romulan and Dominion factions. This new vessel will be available in both Non-Fleet and Fleet variants. Special Introductory Pricing Discount! From release until Monday, October 15th you can get this ship for 20% off. Thereafter, it will return to their normal pricing at 3000 ZEN when. Fleet versions of this Battlecruiser will unlock upon completing your Fleet Starbase’s Tier 5 Shipyard. The standard Fleet Module discounts apply if you have purchased the ship from the C-Store. Europa-class Heavy Battlecruiser [T6] The Europa-class Heavy Battlecruiser is well-suited to the frontiers of the Federation, whether the mission is one of exploration or defense efforts. It is named after the U.S.S.
Oct
Display MoreThe
Maslas Brothersposted this reminder and tantalizing teaser for tomorrow's tournament. There's already lots of awesome ships to fly in
Flat Universe, but there might just be one more tomorrow! Hop on at
16:00 UTCto find out!
Saturday, 6th of October, 16:00 UTCTwo days are only left from the FlatUniverse: Tournament.And ONLY the lucky ones who will JOIN US will fly this BABY...
Sep
…Hello everyone,
CitizenCon 2948 is right around the corner! Only last week, the 3rd Wave of tickets hit our store, so make sure to secure yours to celebrate Star Citizen live, in Austin, Texas on October 10th. Find out more on our CitizenCon website, and while you’re there, enjoy the event schedule and retrospective video with memories from past events.
We also recently revealed Crusader Industries latest ship, the Mercury Star Runner. Built with the same engineering and design principals that have made Crusader the go-to manufacturer for galactic transport on any scale, the star runner chassis sets new standards for data and cargo conveyance. Find out more here.
The MISC Prospector Commercial Contest is still ongoing! We’ve seen a number of incredible entries come through so far, and eagerly await more. Find out all of the details here.
Lastly, we’re currently running
Aug
…Today
DefianceIndustriesgave fans a sneak peek at the centerpiece of his next update to the Secret Ops
Model Upgrade Pack. His highly anticipated TCS Midway is now ready to go! There's some gorgeous shots of it in action below, but the new carrier is just the beginning. Ships across the board will start to get new emit maps for new glow effects. This update should also be followed soon by another iteration that will include the Nephilim Hydra. There's lots to look forward to! Get your hands on the latest at the CIC
Birthday Partythis Saturday!
So good news and bad news. First the bad: we ran out of time on converting the Hydra for this release - (BOOO HISSSS - I know) the upside though is that it's almost ready and could be added as a fast follow on. Now the really good news: The package is ready and being assembled so we can release it in time for the CIC's Birthday party next weekend!
Jun
Apr
…*Pilots Federation ALERT*
Data deliveries are required by competing initiatives to increase or decrease civilian surveillance in the Federation.
President Zachary Hudson has asked the public to contribute to making the Proactive Detection Bureau more effective:
"The PDB requires access to lesser-known comms channels where terrorists and criminals lurk. Supplying it with data from multiple sources will allow us to root out more potential threats."
To counter this campaign, Shadow President Felicia Winters aims to protect personal communications from being intercepted:
"My duty is to help citizens preserve their constitutional right to privacy. If enough data can be gathered for baseline testing, we will distribute legal technology and techniques to secure against government intrusion."
Both campaigns require deliveries of the following data types: anomalous bulk scan data, exceptional
Screenshot by 6Muffin6Man6
