Miner Wars
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In case you guys haven’t heard of this epic looking game yet, here’s a little something something
CURRENTLY BEING DEVELOPED
aka everything you see in these vids is work in progresshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LywaJEmkvTo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33AjuIGx6_4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aruyeiqoj4E
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyog1hYsngk
Miner Wars Q&A
What is Miner Wars?
Miner Wars is a 6DOF underground and space shooter played in a fully destructible environment and is a combination of single player story game and MMO.
As a player, you operate an advanced mining ship in an open world asteroid belt area. You dig kilometers of tunnels, harvest the ore, travel the solar system, fight your enemies and discover mysterious alien secrets.
Game play is led by an epic story and is a combination of a single/multi-player game, cooperative, or you against everyone.
The story will introduce you to many types of missions: rescue, exploration, revenge, base defense, theft, transportation, stealth, search and destroy, pure harvesting, racing or just flying around and destroying everything you see.
Platform: Windows, Xbox 360 Live Arcade
What is 6DOF?
Six degrees of freedom is a gameplay style wherein there is often no gravity and players are free to move in any 3-dimensional direction.
Anything like Descent?
Yes, it will be lot like Descent.
When I think about Miner Wars, I see it as Descent / Forsaken (6 DOF) in space, with destructible environment, almost infinite game area and combined single/multi-player.
I love Descent. It’s strange why there aren’t games like this. Hopefully that will change
What are the minimum System Requirements?
CPU: 2.0 GHz
- RAM: 1GB (1.5GB on Windows Vista)
- Graphics Card: NVidia GeForce 6 series or better, ATI Radeon R520 (X1300-X1950) or better, Intel GMA X3000 or better. Requires at least Pixel-Shader 3.0.
- Video Memory: 128 MB
- Hard Drive: 1 GB
- Sound Card: DirectX 9.0c Compatible
- Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 or Microsoft Vista
- DirectX: DX9.0c or DX10
- Network: Active internet connection during installation and during game play!
Most important of all is if your graphic card supports Pixel Shader 3.0.
After first release we plan to release quick upgrade that will allow playing Miner Wars on cards that support only Pixel Shader 1.1, 2.0, etc. According to statistics from Steam, 10-20% people has non 3.0 graphic cards.
Will there be subscription fee’s?
No, you buy it and play it. There are no subscription fee’s.
HUD/View
Will there be a Cockpit view or First Person View, Zoom, or a Set view?
You play the game from the pilot’s point of view - e.g. like Descent/Forsaken/etc.
There is a classic HUD with cross hair, radar, damage display, weapons, mission objectives etc.
And there is a real time 3D map where you see what/who is near you - but only if you have proper locators.
We considered another types of view (e.g. third-person), but you can lost orientation easily if you enter narrow tunnel.
Will there be crafting of ships, guns, equipment, etc?
Sorry, but no crafting. The only way to upgrade ships, guns, equipment is by buying new or advanced versions of ships, guns or equipment.
What is the button layout (Controls)?
For PC it’s like in any standard game (e.g. Modern Warfare 2). That means AWSD keys for forward, backward, strafe left and right. Key C is for down, key F is for up. Shift is turbo/afterburner. Then there is mouse for aiming and buttons for shooting. And then there are other keys for specific operations.
Sorry for XBOX, but it’s too soon to talk about it. (Jan 23, 2010)
What happens when a player dies?
You will respawn at your baseship and lose some money (kind of penalty) and content of your mining ship (harvested ore or ammo).
And yes, others can steal from your ship’s corpse, but only for a limited time and only if it’s not completely destroyed.
How does mining work?
In Miner Wars, mining/harvesting is different process than digging. Therefore if you know that ore is inside the asteroid, you can digg tunnel, once you are inside, you use different device to harvest the ore. You can think about it as vacuuming.
Mining is realized by sticking a tube to the ore. This will initiate sucking process so it takes some time to plunder one cubic meter. Of course there is dust and dirt… and you can die during harvesting
Will be liquid resources to be mined such as oil. And if so will there be rigs we can setup and leave and comeback to to collect? That kind of stuff.
In the first version of game you will harvest the ore (only solid) directly by your ship.
With something like ‘siphon’.In next version we will make devices you can leave.
What era do the weapons originate from?
In first release we want to technological and scientific level as in movie Aliens.
Quick answer is that as Miner Wars is only 50 years in future, weapons will be almost like today (bullets and rockets). And this applies to shields too - no star trek energy shield, only strong armor.
However in our design document we have four energy/particle weapons. We didn’t implemented them yet, but if we will, they won’t be too futuristic. E.g. there is one radiation ray weapon that will send ray of killing particles through any obstacle. Or high energy laser cannon - that is something that maybe possible even today if we ignore energy costs a things like that.
Will we be able to use mining tools as weapons?
Yes, it will be possible to use the drill as a weapon (like when you stalk someone through a tunnel system) http://www.minerwars.com/ForumTopic.aspx?id=54
How will Single player and MMO Mode differ?
Single player game is happening in different world than MMO game. So single player game becomes multi-player only if you invite your buddies. Then in fact it becomes coop game.
In MMO mode, players can fight players, can join factions, etc. Belonging to faction has impact on missions you can do. In the first release, factions won’t be controlled by players, that means you can only server your mission. You can’t move base ship, trade, etc.
However for the second release we do have plans for features such as: players will buy share in a faction (or better is calling it corporation). According to their share they have vote right. They can elect corporation director and he can do some direct actions: move base ships, merge corporations, set mission goals, etc. These corporations will work like corporations in real world. Except no government will help them if crisis will knock on the door
What about Co-op?
From coop point of view there are two situations:
-Your single-player story, where you can invite your buddies, so you together fight against AI
-MMO mode where you and your buddies join same faction. Then you together fight against other factions (that are other human players or AI)
PvE mode will be implemented as single-player story. Or if you just enter sector where are no other human players.
How will players group as fractions and how will friends play together?
Players may join one of the fractions by accepting its mission. Players belonging to same fraction/corporation are assumed to be friends, so they don’t kill each other.
Any fraction doesn’t have to be enemy to other fraction, but it may.
Player will join different fraction during his single player story. It’s not mandatory, but if you want to finish the story, you should. After finishing the story, you can do whatever you want.
Can I play solo the whole game?
Yes, you can. But if you wish, your friends may help you (even if it’s solo mission).
How will we travel between sectors?
There are two kinds of traveling. In a sector and between sectors. Traveling in sector works by flying your ship. Using this you can leave your actual sector and enter neighboring. But that will take time. So other option is enter your base ship and instantly travel to any other sector. http://www.minerwars.com/ForumTopic.aspx?id=62
How many Sectors are there?
The exact number of sectors is unclear, but it will be a big number, like thousands or so.
How big is a sector and how are they generated?
All sectors are pre-generated. It’s not possible to go to a not generated sector. Of course, some sectors are empty, without asteroids. You can think about sector as a cube of size 100x100x100km or something like that.
More important is how long it takes to travel from the center of a sector to its border. If I remember correctly, it’s 16 minutes with turbo/afterburner. Which is quite enough, yet still not too big to be boring.
Of course, you can travel between sectors, so you this 16 minutes isn’t real limit. If you wish, you can travel forever.
Pre-generation: it’s quite random, as real asteroids. The algorithm that creates them is made like we think asteroids were really created - collisions, breaking, etc.
Can you leave an asteroid belt and land on planet earth?
Yes, you can leave the asteroid belt. In that case you will just fly to nowhere
And about flying to earth - this is good question. Right now if you try it, it will take you weeks or months in real life, but then you will just fly-through the earth.
Solar Wind
Our solar wind is quite volumetric, that means when it starts you see a flare/fire coming from the sun, then it reaches you and you see flare/fire passing you in all directions and you hear the sound of fire and wind… (of course this isn’t how real solar wind works, but you know, it’s game so it must be cool).
Our solar wind will harm you if you won’t hide behind something bigger. Also solar wind will run around bigger asteroids, so you can see a hole in wind’s mass after it passes an asteroid.
Solar wind can go inside the tunnels of an asteroid, but only if there aren’t obstacles. So if a tunnel’s entrance is directly visible from the sun, the entrance will be affected by solar wind. But after a corner in that tunnel, you will be safe because solar wind can’t get there.
How do Factions work?
At first factions will be preset. If you belong to a faction, you are restricted to rules of that faction and also to missions specific for that faction. But you can switch factions (in MMO). In story-mode it’s driven by the story.
You can also be freelancer, then you are neutral unless you don’t do something that police or space peace activists don’t want to see.
In future release we plan to have corporations - incorporated and governed by players.
Can we join the Space Peace Activists?
You can join Space Peace Activists. In fact you can join any faction. Some of them are friends with other, some are enemies. http://www.minerwars.com/ForumTopic.aspx?id=62 *************************************************************************************
Will a new player be able to compete with a veteran player?
Fighting with veteran doesn’t mean he will win because he has magic score, etc. If veteran wins, it will be only because he has better skills (I mean, the player as a person has better skills) and he has better equipment. But you can buy same equipment in quick time. You don’t need to reach levels, etc. http://www.minerwars.com/ForumTopic.aspx?id=62
How will the racing work?
The game will announce that race is starting at same place and time. All racers need to travel there and be ready. After start, players follow marks. Race will go through open space and tunnels. During the race, they can’t shot, but they can block others.
Non-racing players may watch, but not interfere.
How ya gonna fit a million players into one tunnel?
They cannot enter the race area. It’s like in normal car racing. People can’t (or usually can’t) enter the track. They can only observe from distance.
What determines who can race, and who’ll be watching?
You as a player accept a mission, which in this case is racing. You should come to start line. Anyone else can just watch.
How many racers will I see when I get to the starting line?
It will depend on how many players are allowed in one sector. You know it, every online/multiplayer game allows only limited number of players in one level.
As this game is open world, there aren’t levels. But there are sectors. You can travel between sector in your mining ship if you wish, or use bigger transporter ship.
But still, in one sector there can’t be too many players, otherwise the game will lag. This limit depends on result of beta testing, so right now I can’t say how big it will be. Probably similar to other games, circa 20-30 players. BTW, this number applies only to one sector, not whole game.
Are missions randomly renerated?
There are Single player missions and MMO missions. Although in MMO your faction will offer you pseudo-random missions you can choose from.
How do we find our way back to a certain sector or a specific asteroid we’ve been tunneling/mining?
In the game you have journal of all important events. There you can find name of a sector where you have been.
Is there a map or GPS or other visual reference I can refer to in the game to get back to a desired location?
Yes, there is a map of whole solar system. Its orientation is like any picture of solar system you have seen. There you see sectors, planets, etc. Sun serves as most important orientation point. All your mission important coordinates/places are highlighted too.
Can players place markers on their map?
Yes, sure. Markers are important (e.g. place with rich ore…).
Do the lights that are mounted on the ships serve any actual purpose other than looking good?
Yes, lights have real influence on the scene. What this means: if you turn off your reflector while being inside the tunnel, you will see almost nothing. You can see this in game intro - when brothers hide in a tunnel.
Some of the screens or video footage may look more bright because it’s influenced by sun light.
How do I upgrade my gear?
Hi,
I was wondering how it is we go about unlocking upgrades i understand that the purchase and installation of upgrades would probably occur at the base ship but how do we unlock them so is it going to be you have access to all upgrades at the start of the game but the best are very expensive or will we have to complete missions and whatnot to unlock more?If by upgrades you mean new weapons, tools or ships, then yes, you can buy them only at base ship. In the beginning of game you have only basic items.
Purchasing means having the right to use that item. E.g. you want new missile launcher. So you buy it and now you can use it. You don’t have to carry it with you in your mining ship if you know you don’t need it right now. You can just leave it at base ship.
So at the base ship you do this:
- purchase tools/weapons
- unload them from you ship (this is free)
- load them to your ship (this is free)
- other actions not related to tools…
I hope I explained it properly. One more thing: if you die, your right to purchased tools/weapons remains, so anytime you can enter base ship and load them to your mining ship, without paying for that.
Can you upgrade the armor for each Mining Ship? Or upgrade it to a certain level, or does armor upgrades mean getting a better Mining Ship?
In the game you have 10 mining ships. For each one you can upgrade the armor, but some armors are available only for the largest of them.
Better armor or more weapons means heavier ship, so you may consider upgrading your engines too.
When you get shot in the engine and your engine fails, can you move or can you or a team mate fix you up or do you just die?
If your engines are dead, you can’t move. Then you have these options:
- if you bought nano-repair device, it will fix the engine if few seconds
- wait till you buddies fix you
- wait till your oxygen runs out
- quick suicide
How will the Storage system work?
If you’re thinking about ship storage, it’s capacity has limits (big mining ship = bigger storage, small = smaller). You may store in it ammo, harvested ore, artifacts, etc.
It’s meant to be per-mission storage - e.g. you don’t need to take with you ammo for 2 days, or transport same ore.
Can we continue to kill lower level enemies throughout the game or do they stop giving exp/credit, things of that nature once I get to far above them in exp?
Levels of enemies won’t be implemented. We try to make it realistic - as in life. Of course there will be hard enemy, easy enemy, but that doesn’t relate to ore/ammo in ship’s containers.
In Miner Wars after you kill the enemy (ship), you can steal/take it’s harvested ore and ammo (this applies only if ship didn’t explode and you have time for stealing).
You can do it even to your buddy’s ship
So I can hide out and watch someone else mine up a ship load, then go blast’em and take their stuff, if I can do it fast enough.
Is there a goodguy role that can be played… A role for players who don’t want to engage in that kind of activity?
Yes, you can always do basic things like: mining/harvesting, rescuing, exploration, etc.
But right now I am not sure if you can finish single player story without fighting and killing. Probably there will be some fight.
Are players able to walk around the bases, ships or anywhere else?
No, you enter a docking station in your ship, then a hud comes up and you can resupply without getting out of the vehicle. But you don’t get to stretch your legs.
Where do I sell my ores, and to what end? What am I shooting for in the game?
I don’t want to spoil the surprise, so I say only that in every sector there may be more types of base ships. Each belongs to different group/fraction/company. Some are specialized in mining, some in fighting, or rescuing, or black market dealing, … and players can be friends with some and be enemies enemy to others.
Like in real life
******************************************************************************** Space Sim Central Interview Miner Wars Q&A with Marek Rosa http://www.spacesimcentral.com/miner-wars-f56/miner-wars-with-marek-rosa-t525.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Miner Wars is a 6DOF game. Can you describe what we can expect and can do in a 6DOF game compared to what is out there now for space games? By 6DOF we mean type of movement. In our case movement is similar to Descent / Forsaken. Difference to other space games lies mostly in that your ships will stop moving when you don't press the key - e.g. like car. So it's not like operating an airplane where you are constantly moving. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How fast can a miner actually dig into an asteroid? If I was out of view for a few seconds could a dig a hole to hide the ship in and maybe loose the NPC/human player chasing me? It depends on digging devices or explosives. But basically smallest hole after explosion is slightly larger than your ship, so yes, you can hide easily. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What can you do with your mined resources? And will a player ever have the ability to run their own refinery to make extra money from players? You harvest the ore, load to your cargo, carry to your mother ship and unload. After that you get money and can buy new stuff. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I read that there would be 20 different factions in the game. Are they spread out over the universe or do they claim/own certain sectors of space? And will the different factions attack each other or help you in a conflict? and will there be any reputation stats that would will need to worry about with the factions? You as player belong to some faction. Other members are your friends. But members from different factions are your enemies or in better case allies. Factions are like corporations and can spread through many sectors. There can be more factions in same sector. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I see you have a lot different missions types (13 types). Do you have to get these at a base like in Freelancer or can you get them from communicating with passing miners/stations? You get your mission in your base ship ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Do you loose radar lock on a target if it hides in a miner hole in an Asteroid? We are experimenting with different radar types, so I can't say yes or no. Reason is that without radar it's almost impossible to find other players (friends or enemies). The world is too big. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Will the world be persistent in a way that if you drill a hole or make a small little base in an asteroid will it always be there unless someone destroys it? Yes, world is persistent, although we may rebuild/reset a sector if it's too destroyed. This is from pure technical reason (too many holes = too much memory) ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- And to stay on that topic of bases. With there being billions of asteroids in Miner Wars could we possibly make a base and buy defenses or turrets to keep prying eyes out? We plan to have player controlled bases in future version, but in the first, user can only operate his ship and use base ship for cargo unload, buy tools, etc. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Is the universe really unlimited in size? And will the sectors have any nebulas, planets, meteor showers, solar flares or any other space anomalies? Game is played in our Solar system, in asteroid belt that is between Earth and Sun. Game will not constrain player from moving in any direction, but practically he will be able to fly only if he has enough oxygen or fuel. And yes, we have one whole system effect, it's solar wind. In our engine it looks like fire coming from sun. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Voxel Rage engine Keen Software created looks great, will players be able to use this engine to mod Miner Wars and will there be tools made available help with this? We plan to have mod tools, although not in the first version. Probably in the second. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Is Miner Wars a SP/MP game or a MMO? In the FAQ there is a mention of a persistant universe so I would think that it would be a MMO style game am I correct? Miner Wars is some sort of combination between single player and MMO. That means, whole game is played online, even SP mode. But these two worlds (SP and MMO) are separate - only you can play your single player story or you can invite buddies. Only in MMO mode world is open to everyone. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Is there a possibility for pre-order beta inclusion? We will have beta but we will open it close to release date. Beta will be only for pre-orders. I assume it will be in 2010\. -
Hey guys
I’m looking for some 3D artists that would like to contribute to this game with original spaceship models, atm there’s a need for new motherships.
If you’re interested in this and would like to know more pls check their website.Thanks
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Maybe you should correct the link…2 times http//
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Thx, it’s done.
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_"Dear game developers,
Keen Software House ltd. is proud to announce that due to the enlarged scope of their project called “Miner Wars” the studio is looking for authors of code, 3D models, art & graphics and music.
The studio is willing to offer its time investment fee program for any people who would like to choose to participate on the project.
Any person interested in game development is welcomed to come and discuss with us their possible project participation. The studio will value the willingness to participate as the No.1 factor for acceptance. The studio welcomes any people who have tried to make their own Indie game in the past or are just eager to start and gain some experience.
Keen Software House is looking for people with these skillsets:
Coders - Essential is the knowledge of object oriented programming, preferably C# experience (not mandatory)
3D Modellers - experience with any 3D modelling software like 3Ds MAX, modellers can start contributing their models in the game immediately. Experience with texturing the models is a big advantage.
Art & Graphics - the studio is essentially looking for anyone who wishes to contribute to the game with their own art or graphics style. Studio is especially interested in people with texture drawing experience.
Musicians - the musicians can contribute their work into the game under the watchful guidance of our Audio Director Dan Wentz.
How to apply? Please come the the game website www.minerwars.com and start a thread on the forums.
Additionally the studio would like to say that most of the current team has been recruited from the original fans of this game on its forums."_
