The Universim: Kickstarter updates

Update 2 - 28/04/2014



Due to an overwhelming number of requests, we are including add-ons for many of the rewards. Please take a look at the list below to see if you would like to add something! We will release surveys at the end of the campaign to confirm your selection depending on the extra amount pledged.



ADD-ONS

• All tiers: Purchase extra copies- Add $20 for the beta tier, or $30 for the alpha, beta, and soundtrack tier. (Refer to the image below for what each tier includes) Want multiple keys? Grab yourself 3 more $20 keys for an additional $50, or 3 more $30 keys for an additional $80!

• Thinking about purchasing the $50 tier for a friend? Throw in an additional $50 for one, or swoop up 3 for an extra $130.

• Boxed copies: Receive a special-edition boxed version of the game for an extra $40. For international shipping, add $10.
• Purchase the soundtrack: Add $15 to your tier for the digital soundtrack.

• Throw in a T-shirt: Requires a minimum base pledge of $15! Add a T-shirt to your order for $35 each. Choose from three designs! For international shipping, add $10. Grab 4 T-shirts for $120 and $20 shipping for international backers! Already paying for the shipping of an item? The first extra T-shirt shipping is included. Simply add $5 for each one that follows.

Please let us know in the comments if you would like more add-ons!

Update 4 - 30/04/2014



For backers only. If you're a backer of this project, please log in to read this post.

Update 6 - 02/05/2014



Hello PayPal Backers!

Thank you for supporting The Universim via PayPal. We know that it may be a little difficult for you to make payments through Kickstarter due to Amazon, so we are glad we were able to help you in this regard. We just wanted to let everyone know that your transactions will have the same benefits and rewards as Kickstarter backers. If you want to change your pledge at any time, you can always do so by simply donating the difference between your initial transaction and the new pledge which you would like to upgrade to. Yesterday we announced a few new Reward Tiers, which can be found in the update below! Keep in mind that if you already pledged more than the amount listed on the new pledges, you automatically receive them as a bonus for your awesome support!



Shout-outs


Outcast Reboot HD



"Taking one of the most engrossing open-world action adventure game ever, and bringing it to the modern age of video-gaming."
This new reboot, brought to life by Fresh3D Inc, aims to recreate the vast freedom offered in the original Outcast. With a fresh start and a new coat of paint, Outcast Reboot HD appears to be on the right track. Check it out here: www.kickstarter.com/projects/outcast-reboot-hd/outcast-reboot-hd


Hover : Revolt Of Gamers



Does the word 'Parkour' mean anything to you? Ever heard of games like Mirror's Edge or Jet Set Radio? If so, Midgar Studio has just the game for you. Experience complete freedom in a massive futuristic open-world. You can even join up with friends in Multiplayer! The game has already been funded, so it's a great time to help them reach their stretch goals! Check it out here: www.kickstarter.com/projects/midgarstudio/hover-revolt-of-gamers

Update 8 - 04/05/2014






Dearest backers

We want to thank you all so much for your awesome support! In only 11 days, we have reached 50% of the total goal! With the support of over 6000 people, YOU are making The Universim a reality! Your positive feedback and comments have been amazing. They keep us motivated and make us invest even more time and effort into The Universim each day! However, the battle is not won yet! We are only halfway there and we need your assistance more than ever to help us make it the rest of the way.

Share The Universim with your friends, relatives, and on social media websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and gaming forums. Be sure to check out our new tiers as well! You can upgrade at any time. We may have more awesome rewards coming soon for you all, so keep an eye out! We love you all and really appreciate your comments and feedback! We listen carefully and look forward to building the game alongside you!

Be ready for tomorrow’s update. We have a feeling that it is right up your alley!

Update 10 - 05/05/2014



Prometheus In-Game Engine



Many of you wanted to know a little bit more about gameplay, particularly some of the more innovative elements in the game, so in today’s update we wanted to present you with a few of the in-game features that we are currently working on. Core mechanics are on the hotplate in this humble serving of in-game tech, particularly our new simulation engine which will be responsible for the simulation of dynamic, living worlds in The Universim. We have named it the Prometheus In-Game Engine™.



Prometheus will simulate various environmental conditions and changes on the planet, based on the season and timeline. On the first planet, “Mother Planet,” we will have 12 months in a similar manner to Earth. Temperature and weather effects on the planet will vary, based on the different environmental biomes. For example, the temperature in deserts will be much higher than that found in other biomes. Our goal is to make everything dynamic in respect to the particular simulated environment you are playing in. Every time you place an Epicenter (City), it will grow differently based on the conditions around it. Temperature and other conditions will affect population growth dramatically. If it is extremely cold, and you don't have the proper research to counteract this, such as fire and/or cloth to name a few, you will begin losing your population to the bitter nature of the environment. The same kind of effects extend to things like food. You will not be able to harvest much food during winter, this primarily affects the earlier stages of development, so you had better store food in advance. Some winters will last far longer than others. For example, one year you might experience a mild winter, but it will last longer than usual. The next winter could be extremely cold, but it will only last for a month or two. However, there is also a chance to experience ‘deadly’ winters which can ravage your civilization for up to 6-8 months. Research, planning, and preparation will always help your civilization to fight off whatever winter may come.





Prometheus will also simulate different kinds of dynamic events, such as tornadoes, storms, earthquakes, meteors, disease, and more. Things like meteor impacts will not only leave craters on the planet and wipe out everything around it, it will also trigger fires and various secondary effects. Trees around impact-zones will be set on fire, and this fire will spread dynamically, making it extremely dangerous for nearby Epicenters, farms, and other structures. You can stop this fire from spreading too far by wielding your Creator Abilities, which allow you to do things such as dragging storm clouds to affected areas. You could also be lucky enough to have Prometheus simulate rainy weather conditions around the impact zone, causing the rain to snuff out the fires. New clouds will be generated above oceans and they will travel dynamically. Clouds have a dynamic nature as well and possess the ability to become storm clouds at any time, producing rain and lighting which can also trigger fires. Based on wind direction and speed, it will change the position of the clouds and control the spread of fires. But remember, you are a god and you will have the tools to control this. However, you had better be prepared to face the consequences for changing environmental conditions too often.



Every planet you encounter in the game will be dynamically generated by Prometheus. We will also have a number of predefined ones to experiment with new gameplay and conditions! Planets will have a certain set of characteristics, such as size, biomes, temperature, atmosphere, and resources. All planets will also have varying environmental model sets such as stones, trees, mountains, animals, and so on. Every planet will be suitable for terraforming and colonization. We can’t wait to see what kind of planets you discover and how you handle them! Certain planets will be highly unstable; for example, you may come across a planet that will have a ticking timer attached to it. These planets usually have incredibly unstable cores that are ready to explode, or their sun is going to go supernova in a few minutes. It is up to you to decide if you want to risk it all and attempt to harvest the precious resources from the planet before time runs out and transport them back home, or just let it die in peace. Some planets might have unsuitable conditions in this scenario and you will need to terraform them first. You will most likely need to place atmosphere generators to generate air and thermal controllers to regulate and alter temperatures on the planet. It is not going to be an easy process, but the reward may just be worth it!





Planets will also likely be inhabited by living creatures. You may come across incredibly friendly animals in your travels, which just so happen to be a great source of food for the deadly predators that will stalk your crewman from the moment they arrive. You will encounter many planets with alien wildlife that you have never seen before! The same thing applies to the flora and vegetation. We will have a massive variety of trees, bushes, and other plant life. Including, yes you guessed it, predator trees with teeth and a thirst for blood. Your people had better not come too close to these beasts! Trees will be linked directly to the oxygen level on the planet. Without them, your people will not be able to survive! Every tree will generate a certain amount of oxygen based on the planetary conditions.



We plan to add a lot more detail to the different planets in the game. We will have tons of easter-eggs and secrets on the surface of the planet for you to discover. We all understand the importance of performance and stability in a game of this size, and our developers are investing a lot of time into the optimization and proper implementation of these features. Prometheus should become the main platform for absolutely everything in the game, and that is why it is our primary concern at the moment. We want to eventually create tools that will help the community mod the game and improve it down the road as well. We know you guys can be unbelievably creative and we plan to keep the doors open for you!



Share this update wherever you can! Send it to gaming news blogs, your friends, share it on social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, and so on. We need your help and we know that we can build something really awesome together with you. Thank you all again for your continued awesomeness and support! You have all been amazing!

Crytivo Games Team

Update 12 - 08/05/2014



$15 Beta Clarification

For backers only. If you're a backer of this project, please log in to read this post.

Update 14 - 10/05/2014



Greetings all!

We have a small update today while we prepare everything for next week. Expect to see a lot of activity!

Captain Bull Anderson approves this message.



With each new day comes new possibilities!





Over 60% Funded!

Thank you all so much for your continued support! The campaign is still going along at a steady pace, but we have a lot planned to pick it up next week. You should see many new faces around here soon! We have 13 days left to make The Universim a reality! Please continue sharing the page with everyone you know and whatever gaming forums you are a part of. Many of you have been upgrading your pledges as well and we cannot thank you enough for that! We definitely need all the help you can offer. We still have a ways to go, but things are going to get really exciting very soon!



Gameplay Prototype



One of the biggest requests we have been receiving lately is for us to show some more gameplay. We are not too comfortable showcasing some of the major systems yet as we do not have a proper UI in place at the moment. We want it to be acceptably polished before we show something cool! There may be another build showcase coming with more features turned on, but for now we hope this will wet your appetite.

This is a very early look at a few basic systems working on 'Mother Planet'. Biffa2001 will be showing it off to you! We have placed a number of the assets from different eras for you guys to have a look. There are a number of dynamic events playing out, but we disabled most of the features for this build as we aren’t ready to show them just yet. Take a look here:





T-Shirts

We recently revealed the T-Shirt Designs, but we are getting a few questions regarding sizes and colours. The shirts will be available in white, black, and sky-blue. We will be sending out surveys after the Kickstarter to confirm your design choice, colour, and size! The sizes will be available in the usual variety ranging from small to very large. We are sure we can accommodate whatever size you need! Unless you plan on getting one for your car. That could be problematic…






Thunderclap



We started up a Thunderclap Campaign a little while ago that will be shaking the internet next Friday (May 18th). You guys helped us reach the goal within 24 hours! Dare we say it was quicker than lightning? We currently have a social reach of over 125000 people! This will definitely help us out a lot when the time comes!





We Partnered with Curse!



We are proud to announce our partnership with Curse for The Universim’s official Wiki page! You can find the Wiki page here, but it is still under construction. It will be developed alongside the game and should be fully fleshed-out by the time the game launches!



New Reward Tiers! (2)

$130 Physical Strategy Guide. When weaving your path through the universe and shaping the future of your civilization, it can be great to have a few useful tips on-hand. This informative guide will help you understand the mechanics of gameplay and assist you in making crucial decisions.



$160 Physical Artbook. Receive the stunning physical artbook created by the game's artists! Watch the transformative journey of The Universim unfold through beautiful concept art, designs and shots that capture the evolution of the game's graphics.





New Reward Tiers: *

$40 Crytivo Industries Lab Extension. Unlock the Cowtivo Industries Skyscraper, a subsidiary of Crytivo Industries, that will allow you to experiment on cows and send them into space on missions. Sound a little crazy? Well that’s probably because it is.





$60 Exclusive Mystery Planet. You will receive an exclusive planet available only for Kickstarter Backers! The mystery planet will feature unique 3D models and environmental characteristics. One such characteristic is floating mountains ala Avatar! The planet will be visible to your friends in Multiplayer if the Multiplayer stretch-goal is reached.





$80 Receive a rocket-shaped USB Drive with The Universim Logo! It comes preloaded with content found in the $50 tier; such as the Art Book, Soundtrack, and exclusive Wallpapers!





$120 (250 limited) Design your own custom sign (kinda like crop circles in the form of a stamp) for UFO visits! Every now and then, UFO’s will visit your planets and proceed to steal people or animals and leave this custom symbol/sign behind. The sign will be in the final game and visible for everyone!





Shout-out to OfficialMaiconi

A big thanks goes out to Maiconi for the great videos he has been making about the game! Be sure to visit his channel for a rundown of all of the updates so far!
Take a look: www.youtube.com/user/OfficialMaiconi

If you have anything more to ask, please do so in the comments! Have something personal to ask? Feel free to drop us a message! We will keep you guys updated as things progress! There will be more gameplay updates coming next week as promised, so stay tuned!

Thank you all again!

Update 16 - 13/05/2014



Home Straight





Dear Backers

We would like to take the time to thank you all so much for your tremendous support! These last few weeks have been nothing but amazing, and we couldn’t have done it without you! As of this moment, we have 10 days left to reach our goal and we need only 100k to make The Universim a reality. Whatever additional support you can offer, from increasing pledges to get some of the great new rewards to a simple shout out on your social networks and gaming websites, will be an immense help. The last few days before take-off are definitely going to get pretty heated!

On our side we will keep up the communication and answer as many questions as we can, while also covering our plans with you guys. We have been incredibly busy contacting the press and creating new updates for everyone to get a better look at the game. As we said, The Universim is our ‘Baby’ and we cannot wait to get it out to everyone that is as passionate and excited as we are! But we really need your help, so let’s work together to make the best Planet Management God-Game ever made!

Click here to Tweet about The Universim

Support The Universim on Thunderclap

A big thanks to everyone! You guys rock.

Update 18 - 15/05/2014



In-Game Object Editor



Hello Everyone!

Today we have some more great news to share with you! Object editors are awesome, and judging by all of your comments and feedback we can all agree that The Universim absolutely needs one. After a lot of discussion with our team members and developers, we decided to begin working on an in-game Object Editor. We promised to develop this tool if we reached the $400,000 stretch goal, but we believe that this system will add a lot more customization and fun to the game so we want to develop it either way. We are therefore replacing our $400,000 goal with a brand new era instead: the Dinosaur Era - arrrwww arrwww , right? - Right. If we hit the $400,000 mark, you can expect to deal with the T-Rex, Triceratops, and similar prehistoric creatures on Mother Planet before the Stone Age begins!





In-Game Object Editor



The remainder of this update will therefore cover more info about the new in-game Object Editor. It will not only assist you in customizing your worlds and making them as unique as possible, but also allow you to modify and create special vehicles. You will be able to customize the look of your species, change the color of their clothes, and even add new clothing elements that make them stronger. The editor will even allow you to upgrade and customize buildings! For example, you can upgrade your living facilities to have gardens on the roofs, which is really useful if your civilization is expanding quite quickly and your workers are cutting down too many oxygen-producing trees. These gardens will help you to raise oxygen levels and improve the overall air quality. You will also be able to add additional floors to make your buildings taller and create more housing for the population. Certain add-ons and customization features will be unlocked from the very beginning, but a good portion will require your time and resources to research them.



The editor will also play a crucial role in planet colonization. You will need to equip the exploration rover with the right technologies in order to collect important information about the planets you plan on colonizing. You probably shouldn’t attempt to send the rover on missions without adequate environmental protection for example, especially if you plan on investigating something like a molten planet. You may lose your rover to the harsh conditions, along with time and resources spent on its construction. On a side note, you will be able to drive rovers on alien planets! But we will talk more about the colonization process in our next update.



Another thing that you will be able to customize and improve are the Resource Transportation Shuttles. You can improve their travel speed and stability with newly-researched propulsion engines that come equipped with something like the signature Crytivo Industries high-speed quantum fuel-injection mechanism. You can even increase their cargo capacity and customize the overall look and feel of the shuttle, which includes the ability to add custom decals to the paint job!



We want to give you the tools to build unique worlds on each and every planet and offer as much customization as we can. Once you research airplanes, you will have the ability to design its overall look by messing around with stuff like the wing styles. You can select whichever style you want, attach your choice of the various engines, and slap it on the body. You can decide the quantity and type of engines you place as well. Would you like to place two or possibly even six of them on a single airplane, or would you rather research one super-badass marvel of aviation? It is your choice how crazy or innovative your civilization will end up looking. We cannot wait to see what you come up with!

We hope you guys are as excited about this tool as we are! As always, we want to thank you all for your awesomeness! There are only 8 days left to reach our goal and make The Universim a reality, so we need your help more than ever. We are getting really close now! Those of you who are raising you pledges to help us out, thank you very much! We hope you enjoy all of the awesome rewards. Be sure to share The Universim with your friends, Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, gaming websites, and even support us on Thunderclap.

Thank you all so much!

Your Crytivo Games Crew



Shout Outs

Shiness



"Shiness is an RPG adventure game based on a manga novel with a unique graphic design and which features a strong storyline, non-linear gameplay and innovative combat system. In a world where every land strives for power, two Wakis named Chado and Poky, traveling aboard a flying boat, accidentally land on a very dangerous island. Prepare yourself for an epic journey into a huge universe that will stay with you for a long time! With its unpredictable storylines and frenetic gameplay, Shiness is waiting for you to play the story imagined 20 years ago by our Creative Director and finally brought to life."
Pay them a visit here



Codemancer: A Fantasy Game that Teaches the Magic of Code

"Aurora must learn Magic to rescue her Father, but Magic in Aurora's World works the same way that Programming works in Ours."



Codemancer is an innovative education game that is aimed at younger audiences, but enjoyable for adults as well. Players will learn, and utilize, the magic of code to advance through a dangerous fantasy world. Sound interesting? Be sure to check it out.



Adventures of Pip

"Help Pip evolve from a single pixel with only a hop to a full-fledged sword wielding hero as he defends Pixel Kingdom from evil!"



This is a world that takes pixels to a whole new level. Wield the pixel-absorbing powers of the adventurous Pip as he undertakes a journey to find the Dark Queen and recover the Kingdom's stolen pixels. Check it out here



The Way

"Journey to another planet and spend your life discovering its secrets in order to bring back your loved one."



The Way aims to bring back the glory days of the 2D puzzler with its detailed alien environments, intriguing story, and interesting gameplay. Take a look



The Agents

The Agents is a strategic card game of clever tactics & critical consequences, set in a world of spies, sabotage, secrecy and subterfuge.