Hello SSC,

I am a 34 yo professional game developer with a background in graphic design. My hobbies are music, philosophy, cycling, writing, computer engineering, cosmology, metapatterns, yadda esoteric shit yadda, and I'm from Eastern Europe, and that alone hopefully explains a lot (being this much crazy, non-rich, and too versatile is kinda bad for health :banghead:).

As my nick implies, I have always had a great passion for space and anything related to it. As a kid I devoured scientific and popular literature, encyclopedias, as well as games that even touched the topic, but as the time went by, somehow the entire world turned its back on me and my interests. Of course, nowadays I'm hooked on the Internet, but that just makes me knowledgeable about stuff I can't do anything with.

To cut the story short, every decision I've made in my professional career, and every skill I've trained so far, has lead me one step closer to being able to make games on my own. Almost every second of my spare time would be spent in making some sort of ludicrous mathematical prototypes, crazy-looking mundane applications, artistic minimalism, UI and UX, and experimenting with new kinds of visuals and multimedia.

I wasn't that lucky with my professional work, you see. Living in Eastern Europe has its economic downsides when it comes to anything related to imagination, almost as if noone understood what's the point of having a dream in the first place, especially during the nineties. So the best work I could get was the print and advertising, and much later I got to code cool stuff in Flash (even though I'm coding since I was 7, but as you all know there is no diploma for being talented).

And at the time, 10 or 15 years ago, it seemed as if the whole world was struck by some virus that killed not only imagination, but sheer intellect as well. The games went from dry to sorrowful, from souless to completely idiotic, from bad to the worst possible, from DLCs to microtransaction, and as "the suits" completely took over the industry, sci-fi (if it actually got through) turned all glittery and magicky to appeal to these new trends and demographics.

 

So I'm glad that somehow changed, and moreover, I'm glad that since recently, I see more and more signs there are others like me, who actually crave for what I think is missing (well ok, not entirely, but there are still a few wishes unfulfilled) -- a deeply immersive, smart sci-fi sandbox game. I know that's the tricky one to make right and to leave any mark at all, but I am old enough to still remember the most of the good ones if it helps.

Elite (and Elite: Frontier), Wing Commander (series), Tie Fighter, X-Wing, Descent: Freespace (1, 2), Hard Nova, Star Control (1, 2), Exodus 3010, Reunion, Iron Seed, Master of Orion (it came out a year after I've decided on my pseudonym), were just some of them.

 

I got a little carried away yesterday when I saw someone on this site asking for a game similar to "FTL with actual controllable gameplay" so I've registered and immediately BABBLED my-oh-my-so-preciously-precious game concept which I've designed around some of the key points I feel undervalued on the scene, whether it's indie or otherwise. It was a basic reply, but it got reeally long, because I'm a lunatic who's destined to be endlessly babbling about his ideas and concepts, especially the ones I'm working on. Sorry moderators!

 

And that's the thing, last year I finished a year-long commercial game development for a gaming studio I worked for. I have fulfilled my dream, and believe me when I say that's really something when you grow up in a third-world country, uneducated, underappreciated, and broke most often than not. I have transcended the place of my origin, so to speak, ready for the new frontiers.

But somehow, over the course of this endeavor, and although this project fared quite well, I developed a strong urge to detach from the commercial way of thinking. My imagination was all in the wrong places, as I caught myself thinking about how to trick people into greater retention numbers, balancing the grind so that the microtransaction pays off.... Was that my dream? Who was I?

 

We could've made something much more greater, but we in fact couldn't, so I've quit.

Fuck mobile industry.

 

This year I am making my own game, I even got some small investment to keep me rolling, and got myself some friends in the business. That means I'm all in, and it's really a big deal for me. Right now, I think it's ok to share with all of you what I've been doing, as I've been making a prototype for several months now.

 

Like I said, it is a twitch-based sci-fi sandbox survival game set in space, but a cleverly designed one, and I intend for it to grow, and to be infinitely replayable.

 

I resent any kind of generic content, as well as anything that feels too abstract, and really any form of mindless grinding, so don't expect these to pop up unexpectedly. I'm turning full indie so no microtransations either, no free-to-play, no MMO, and no DRM.

 

Just a straightforward singleplayer experience that lets you be out there, gives you tools, a proper world to explore, and a meaningful storyline, all while trying to be as (scientifically) accurate as possible (I like games from which people can learn from), as well as imaginative.

 

Of course there are a couple of things to make this game stand out on its own, and I feel there isn't a great deal of games that provide the method of customisation this thoroughly. So here's the long post I've posted earlier:

 

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Hello there,

I simply had to join up, because I am currently developing a game that fits well into a space-sim sandbox-survival genre, and it is nice to see there are others who feel the same as I feel -- that the world needs less minmaxing and more exploration.

I haven't purchased a domain yet so I cannot disclose the name (although it's the working title, and will most surely change at some point), but let's call it "T6" for the sake of communication.

 

Basically I'm looking for a sandbox type game (honestly doesn't matter if it's 3D or top-down 2D, as long as it's not ancient), that puts you in control of a ship which is preferably a large ship, but if it's a 2D top down game then imagination can go a long way  :).

 

Well, T6 is essentially a sandbox survival game with a top-down 2D view (but with dynamically-lit textured 3D assets).

The ship I've started toying around with has about 1,800 metric tons (that's the mid-sized tug class). The game also simulates physics quite well -- that includes the thrusting forces as well as the true scale of the solar systems. There is no direct interaction with the major celestial bodies however, but planets and natural satellites tend to be pivotal for the game (and will be hanging in the background, once the player is well inside the gravity well). T6 will include 2D orbital motion of all major system bodies.

I'm doing my best to make the game quite entertaining and not tedious, so given the scale some faster-than-light technobabble is a requirement (especially if I get to make the multiplayer mode), but I am currently aiming for a hard-ish sci-fi type of singleplayer experience, with an immersive Cowboy Bebop (& Firefly) -inspired space odyssey (featuring FTL-like storytelling and mandatory permadeath).

You might think of it as twitch-based Don't Starve set in space.

Or, even better, FTL meets Star Control space sim.

 

I'm not really interested in 'dog fighting', which is what 90% of the space sim games seem to revolve around, but rather a game centred around exploration and random procedural generated events and what not. Of course I don't mind combat, but every new game out there these days seems to be 'accept trade mission or fight pirates mission, rinse, repeat'.

 

A good example would be FTL with actual controllable gameplay.

 

 

It is true. That's why I had this feeling this was the best of times to start a project like this. All other space games focus too much on combat, strategy, or 4X. I wanted a game that conveys that feel of belonging to something bigger, yet out of reach.

I want for the players to feel curious, and to occasionally feel so alone in space til they turn back for the bustling stations, mining outposts, and pirate-ridden clouds. Clearly I want a game in which you're not a God, but you can become a Space Hero if you have what it takes.

 

However, I wouldn't like any of you to get a wrong impression of T6, as it's not similar to SPAZ or Space Rangers, so let me disclose its key (non-abstract, non-narrative) aspects. Because the game is driven by physics, the "meat & potatoes" of T6 lies in its engine: a modular assembly of its ships constrained by the actual physics, and some other equally fair limitations:

 

To expand from the fragile and rigid Pod design, the player is free to stumble upon new or used ship modules, all of which may be entirely unique to the generated map. These are not pure boxes, but feature somewhat industrial and sometimes complex LEGO designs, with materials and visuals of their own (that look good in various combinations, and represent somewhat industrial look; pictures will come later, sorry).

 

In terms of parameters, on the other hand, think of Borderlands weapons, for example. These modules might drop from other vessels upon destruction, or they are to be found in stores and factories. Some can be even manufactured by the player alone.

 

All of these modules have a clear purpose (and a manufacturer, who is tied to a faction and might stick to some kind of a business strategy -- think of the keywords: cheap, high-end, thrusters, pods, weaponry, crappy, top-notch, cooling, banned...), allowing the player to bring together interesting designs that represent the optimum solution for the overall role of the vessel. Form vs. function is the puzzle of this game, enabling the underlying engine to stress-test the whole thing in a simulator-ish fashion.

 

The rules of the ship assembly already cover many systems that have to be engineered independently but simultaneously, such as Drive, Life support, Energy, Hull, etc. Each of these can be viewed as biological "systems of organs" overlapping each other in some cunning ways (to fit the module capabilities), however a critical malfunction of some part might lead to a collapse in ship functioning, fuel leakage, radiation, and whatnot, and this really pronounces what I've set to be the key concepts of T6 -- creative engineering, radical malfunction, and improvisation.

 

So the best ship is not the one that has the most armor or weaponry, but the one that fits the best your needs for survival and progress, while facing the threats and challenges that may be known or unknown, as a consequence of your prior actions or as a new event of some sort.

 

For example, one might put an armor shell to protect his most vulnerable modules (as well as the Pod itself), but this may increase the internal heat that is not easy to dissipate in space, so the player now has to install a cooling unit which requires a coolant tank, but there is no space for this tank in the already protected modules, so it becomes a vulnerability in itself if left exposed... On the other hand, the center of mass shifts due to armor, so the ship becomes less good for fighting, requiring more thrusting power and more fuel to compensate. Burning more fuel means more expenditures and less space for cargo...

 

Someone foolish enough could place a thruster in such a way to burn his other modules. Someone else might use a powerful thruster only to burn others. Someone else might salvage a burnt derelict by grabbing one of its intact modules and hauling it away.

 

-  -  -  -  -  - 

 

And, if that's not enough, T6 prototype already features an incredible and never-before-seen User Interface (UI) which lets you fully customize the on-screen widgets format and placement (widgets are provided by the equipment) that will serve you as mid-flight instruments.

 

So whether you'll use the ship for mining, combat, piracy, exploring, or simply to haul cargo and passengers, you can make your HUD (heads-up display) appear very specialized in that context. HUDs can become incredibly complex (in the hands of an experienced player) and they'll also produce some stunning and memorable perils (a destroyed piece of equipment is essentially a lost widget signal, suddenly leading player to even more immersive experience, because he can't rely on his instruments anymore).

 

I'm hoping to see many a YouTube video based on the ship builds, HUDs, and adventures from this game, as it truly gets to feel special and quite personal. Having a system that's built one piece at a time is not new (think of the typical hero in RPG titles), but a system that has to be ace-piloted through space in order to keep your character alive, is.

 

Physics and HUD can also communicate the emotion and flavor throughout the game, because flying a ship from some other faction feels differently on so many levels: it has a different mass and CoM (center of mass), it has different equipment and vulnerabilities, and it has a unique and different HUD widgets with different sounds, and so on... So many good things emerge from having a good groundwork, a sandbox quanta, so to speak, like Minecraft voxels.

 

Many of the modules are interactive (think of thrusters, weapons, mining drills), and may even rotate (think of turrets) or change their shape (think of transformers), providing embedded functionality that can be freely bound to mouse or keyboard, so the UI learning curve is really in the hands of those who play the game (the prototype uses WSAD and LMB atm). The more the player understands the underlying engineering concept, the better and more robust his ship designs become.

 

The game essentially scales as much as the player wants to get involved.

 

And all of this is really just a tip of an iceberg.

 

Right now I am developing a prototype which is pretty good -- enough to showcase the most of the game which I will do in a couple of months (in October if all goes according to plans). There will also be a Kickstarter campaign next year (TBA).

 

I'm also planning for the crews, the shared player ship designs, the multiplayer modes (completely separated from the singleplayer, but leaning onto the singleplayer discoveries, designs, and achievements), various starting characters (each with their own Five Chapters assortment), and a unique KS backing plan.

 

It makes me really happy if I'm not alone in this yearning for a quality game, as I am sick and tired of watching the sci-fi genre degenerating into magical fantasy with unrealistic backgrounds.

 

I plan to deviate from the usual atmospherics of the genre, to make it stand out even more. Some radical changes in the way the space genre is presented nowadays is much needed to freshen the scene. I also believe there are ways to make things that are traditionally seen as a taboo to work.

For example, one of the key things in the atmospherics department is the game sound:

It will propagate realistically, but the players will have access to in-game equipment that synthesizes incomplete or inaudible sounds in space. So there are nice trade-offs that might feel like a game in a game for some people. That way, not only you learn something new about space, but you also get to customize your sound scheme. How cool is that?

 

Next time you'll play the campaign just to get that soundset module from the YouTube video you've seen 🙂

Or at least, I really hope that would be the case. Tell me what you think.

If you have questions, I'll be more than happy to answer.