Game Insight on the development of Starborn Wanderers Universe: users will ask – so we'll redo it again

Last week, Game Insight announced the open development of the PC project Starborn Wanderers Universe, a client MMO developed on the basis of the mobile Starborn Wanderers. We asked GI about the project.

Oleg Bazarnov, the project manager, answered our questions.

Hi! The original mobile project has been compared to “Space Rangers” more than once. Do I understand correctly that the MMO is an attempt by the developers of Starborn Wanderers to realize the dream of fans of the Elementary Games dilogy?

Oleg BazarnovHi !

He was compared to the “Space Rangers”, for the most part, because of the similar graphic style. Otherwise, the game was very different. But, in general, the statement that the developers want to realize the dream of KR fans is true. His dream, the dream of Space Rangers fans and fans of many other space universes.

What did the novelty get from Starborn Wanderers, and what from KR?

From “Starborn Wanderers” the game inherited only the setting. From the “Rangers“ – yes, in general, directly – nothing. This game is worth thanking, rather, for the fact that it has raised a generation of people whose eyes light up at the word “Cosmos”. She, like many others, inspires the development team.

What other projects did you draw inspiration from when developing Universe?

The game is created by a team of enthusiasts, fans of space simulators. These are the people whose dream of space has been formed for a long time and was reinforced by space “sandboxes”, simulators and adventure games – these are classics like Elite and Escape Velocity, and the already mentioned “Space Rangers”, Star Conflict, Star Trek, Freelancer, games of the X series, Parkan, EVE. In general, name any good game about space exploration – in each of them there is something interesting for us, something that we would like to keep.

At what stage is the development (I played with the project, but it gave me the impression of being very raw)?

The game is under open development. In fact, we give players the opportunity to fly into outer space, explore the Galaxy, fight with other players, upgrade and improve their ship. What happens next is up to the players. In particular, it is already obvious that most now lack quests. This means that we will work on this first of all – to develop and implement a system of tasks and reputation. Of course, work on other elements of the gameplay will go on in parallel, but quests will be a priority.

Mobile Starborn Wanderers was very often scolded for the unsuccessful combat component. Have you changed anything in Universe and if so, what exactly?

In the Starborn Wanderers Universe, we changed a lot, including the fight. Made it much more dynamic. Roughly speaking, as in SW, the character has several types of firing, several attacking skills of the Wanderer, but their mechanics are completely changed. In addition, our spaceships are divided by specialization, which leaves a significant imprint on the gameplay. In addition, such chips as tactical mode, mass battles, arenas, and so on are in development. The combat system should be harmoniously integrated into all these modes, so it’s not a fact that it will survive until the release in its current form. Well, again, this is an open development. Users will ask – so we’ll redo it again.

One of the main features of the Universe is positioned to work closely with the community. Could you elaborate a little more on this point?

Our users are the ones who decide what the game will be. Almost all aspects of the game are put up for discussion. We reward for interesting suggestions and active participation in the discussion of the gameplay, consult with players about the introduction of new chips, communicate and listen carefully. It’s not for nothing that I listed so many games a little earlier – each of them somehow catches the player, leaves a solid impression thanks to the mass of possibilities. We want to take those elements that not only we like, but also the players, while discarding everything superfluous.

Thanks for the interview!

PS In a conversation with us, Maxim Donskikh, Vice president of marketing at Game Insight, noted that a mobile version of the game is also planned.