Archive:Kickstarter AMA Video

Part One
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efu_129hI9o

Universe Size
(0:15) How big will the universe be at launch of the game?

The overall universe in Dual Universe will be quite large but the real question is how far you are going to be able to unlock the technologies that will allow you to expand and explore this universe. At start, there will only be the Alioth planet surrounded by maybe 10 to 20 other planets in the solar system that will be the setting for the release, and as we release further expansions that includes for example stargates you will be able to explore further and further away by building bridges to new solar systems all around you. So there is a difference in Dual Universe between the existing universe that will be very large that you can scan and that you can analyze, and the known universe that is the part that the players have actually made accessible through technology.

LUA Scripts
How will the amount of freedom given by LUA scripting be regulated and what will stop a player from creating self-replicating units or other scripts that are harmful to the server?

Scripting in the game is going to be done via LUA which is a simple programming language that will allow you to automate certain actions that you can do with your elements, that you could do normally but that will also be able to be done through scripting. There will be limits to what you can do through the scripting, for example that number of actions you can do per second, also the efficiency of those actions compared to you actually doing things, and we're going to think deeply whether we allow you to automate certain things or not. For example, there won't be automated mining because that will probably break the mining activity for players, particular beginner who are entering the game. So we are thinking about scripting to be limited and not having the possibility to break the game.

(2:05) With scripts executed client-side does this mean player's must be online and near items running scripts for them to work?

We can't load all the elements of all the constructs of all the players at the same time we have to display first those who are close by, and because scripts are going to interact with elements, you need those elements to be loaded and so you need to be close to where the action is taking place. That means you cannot be infinitely far away from where the script is actually running if you want it to run properly, it will be a limitation. We will think in the future whether we could have some kind of very limited action reaction type of script that could be running on the server with a low frequency so that you could still automated certain defense mechanisms for example, but this is not going to be in the release, and we will think about it and its not something we can guarantee at the moment.

(3:00) Are scripts connected only to individual players or can organizations with multiple players run scripts if any member is near?

Scripts are attached to control units and control units assets like any other assets they have an owner, and that could be you or can be your organization. That being said, when you want to use that asset you can use it either in your name if you have the permission given by the organization or you can use it in the name of the organization, again if you have the authorization to. Depending on that context, the script will be executed in the name of the organization or in your name and the consequences of everything it does will impact either the organization or yourself.

Environment
(3:50) Will planets have biomes, weather and will there be animals or plants in the game?

There will be biomes for the planets, actually that's what we're working on, increasing the number of biomes, which are building blocks to create planets with variety on it through procedural generation. So there will be a limited set of biomes that start that would extend as time goes on. Same thing for the animals that would be a limited set at the beginning and we will add more and more as time goes on through further expansions. Weather like rain and things like that is something that we're looking at might actually come at some point. Its a difficult problem because you have to simulate it at the scale of a planet its not like a local thing. The world is one real world so if there's a storm, we should see it from space. That makes it more complicated than just a visual effect. So we're looking into this and plants also will be generated part of the biomes. We will see whether you can actually collect those plants to make medicines. All these things are in the inner working for probably further expansions after the initial release to develop the gameplay for explorers.

Vehicle Mechanics
'''(5:00) Will there be ground vehicles like cars, bikes, and tanks? If so, could we make tanks with cannons, load them up in a spaceship then take them anywhere?'''

Wheeled vehicles will not be something we develop at first. It might actually come later in an expansion of the game, but what we will have at the beginning is hovercraft and capacity to build vehicles that fly at this low altitude and you can build some tanks or armored vehicles that way and you will be able to transport them into larger transport vehicles and use this as a way to attack forces at a remote place. This will be possible.

Pets
'''(5:40) What can an in-game pet do, is it useful? Will it be tradeable? Can it be duplicated? Can it die, be destroyed or stolen?'''

The pets that are a part of the kickstarter pledges would be pruely cosemtical, they wont have any game affect, and if you use them they will not die. It will follow you everywhere if you allow it.

The Deathstar
(6:00) You mentioned that players could build a Deathstar: could players build a structure capable of incinerating a planet or did you just mean that you could build something to look like the deathstar?

The deathstar, I'm pretty sure many people would want to build this and the good news is that its possible to build it. I don't know how long it will take. I think the amount of resources will be completely crazy but it will be technically possible to build it because we have the same technology to display planets and to display player made constructs. That's the good news and the bad news is that we are not allowing to have a death ray because that would be breaking our principal about fairness in the game that you basically understand why things are happening to you. So if you're on the planet and you suddenly obliterated you don't even understand what happens, you're unaware of the reasons. This would be unfair and we don't want to do this but nevertheless you can build a giant space station and call it the Death Star and I think a lot of people are going to try to do.

Bounty Systems
(7:00) Do you plan any kind of bounty system and if yes how would it work?

Yes, we're definitely working on the bounty system. The specifics of the future are still in the working, so we're going to talk about it later, to give you more details. But the idea that we want to make sure that universe doesn't turn into a free for all PvP, but there are some countermeasures, including this bounty system. So that you have consequences if you have more aggressive behaviors. So we're working on that's a very important mechanism and people will bring some new ideas on the scene regarding this system.

Blueprints
(7:40) Is there anything in place to prevent someone from purchasing a blueprint on the market, then making a blueprint of that construct to just resell as their own design?

When you make your blueprint from a given construct you have this so called master blueprint and this master group thing can be used to build copy difference that will be sold in the market, and whoever is