The Atlas Star ✧ Issue #18

We are back with another fresh edition of the Atlas Star, the Galaxy's most renowned newspaper of record, ready for another incursion into the Galia Expanse!

Just as we did in the previous editions (Atlas Star #16 and Atlas Star #17), we keep on delving further into the mysterious realm of economics. We are leaving behind the creation of in-game assets that we explored before in deep dives to resource extraction and the creation of supply chains to power the intergalactic markets, and turning to one of the community's favorite parts of the game: Destruction!

We discuss the many possibilities Star Atlas has for creating a fun and healthy game that enables the players to create and destroy value. The annihilation occurs through meaningful and clever use of player assets and skills in the numerous gameplay loops in the game.

You're going to have a blast learning about the different paths we are currently exploring, and we're looking forward to your feedback on our ideas and vision while we develop them. After all, Star Atlas is a decentralized collective dream, and you are an essential part of manifesting it into reality.

But that's not all! Economics is but one of many focuses of this edition: With massive events unfolding in our ecosystem recently, we have a lot of ground to cover!

Read on to learn more about The release of the first Star Atlas social campaign and the ascension of a most distinct Punaab, the display of force the Star Atlas community made with the Escape Velocity Brew Event, and you'll be up to speed with everything that happened --- and possibly some events that are yet to come through our roadmap update!

We recommend you help yourself to a refreshing beverage while our Ustur pilot methodically checks the engines for warping. We are about to take off, and we hope you enjoy your trip!

The Cycle of Value Destruction

In the physical realm, all creations that fulfill our desires require a certain level of destruction and sacrifice. If you want food on the table, you must wake up early and thresh the grains. If you want a hammer, you must withstand the forge heat to smelt the ore and bear the axe's weight to harvest the wood. If you want clothes, you must roll up your sleeves to harvest wool and work patiently to weave the fibers.

Still, the work of creation is never genuinely complete. Even the most beloved products are bound to wear off, spoil, or be outright destroyed by use or the actions of others.

This basic principle of reality makes owning things in real life meaningful. Of course, everything requires effort to be created, and even then, it withers away at some point in the future. Defying this rule is impossible.

The team developing Star Atlas with the army of economists in its ranks is fully aware of this reality, working diligently to refine the economic models of the Galia Expanse. The goal: To achieve the scarcity and depreciation that occurs in real life in order to maintain a healthy in-game economy, without the side effects. How do they do that? Keep reading to find out.

Before the deep dive, a disclaimer: The text below is a shared vision of the game economy design and is subject to change. No game mechanic or lever unveiled herein is guaranteed ever to be part of the live Star Atlas gameplay. Economics is a field of research that needs to be lived to validate its models.

Now, on to depreciation and destruction...

The Depreciation of Assets In Star Atlas Economy

Although a complex challenge, the mission Star Atlas economists face is to create engaging gameplay loops that allow players to forge their destiny in a real free market environment while safeguarding the economy's stability.

To do that, first, we need engaging gameplay loops, which allow players to have fun while producing value, and second, we need mechanics that preserve the value and scarcity of assets in systematic ways, linked with the risk/reward mechanics.

It's vital for the Star Atlas economy that there is a factor of failure in the player's endeavors. Things can go wrong due to player decisions, environmental conditions, or other players' actions, causing digital asset value to be outright destroyed in our ecosystem.

Nevertheless, there is a more subtle lever that helps Star Atlas on the quest to keep digital assets from spiraling out of control, and that is the phenomenon of depreciation.

Depreciation in this context is the loss of value of an asset or item due to use, damage, or general loss of efficiency. In Star Atlas, the many different gameplay loops will subject your assets to depreciation, requiring you to provide maintenance or eventually replace them.

For example, imagine you are flying with your shiny new Pearce X5 for the first time, only to be ambushed by Jorvik raiders while approaching planet Evisco. You manage to outsmart and destroy the attackers, getting some loot in the process but also taking considerable damage to your ship. This will require you to repair your X5 the next time you arrive in a space station, and the repairing will cost you ATLAS if you are using the services of third parties or resources and time if you have the crewmembers with the tools and skills to get the job done.

Although we are not always eager to deal with repairs, just as in real life, this system is very healthy for the whole ecosystem on many different fronts. The first and most obvious one is economics since this creates the many paths for in-game currency use, jobs inside our economy, and offsets the creation of assets with their destruction.

This aspect of the game reality also opens the path to very exciting gameplay loops, such as a variety of different in-game careers: Mechanics, medics, salvagers, and (of course) janitors, among many others, which will fight against depreciation in the various fronts --- just like in the real world.

Other depreciation cases might come from the environment and storage or simply be destroyed by sheer use. For example, some resources in Star Atlas will spoil if not consumed, used in recipes, or stored correctly. Imagine things such as fresh, exotic fruits or volatile components that could decay if not consumed quickly or stored correctly, so aside from being able to find those elusive resources, you would need to create the proper structure to store or transform them or rent the said structure from your guild or other players.

This, in exchange, will open up opportunities for raiders and pirates to try to steal from players, creating immersive experiences for both sides of the game while making said resources more scarce.

Ultimately, all those loops benefit the whole of the Star Atlas ecosystem and its economy --- and the destruction of the assets is no exception either.

The Destruction of Assets in the Star Atlas Economy

One thing that is always worth mentioning about Star Atlas is that the game's most fundamental aspects lie in making players face hard choices on how to employ their time and efforts and measure the risks/ rewards of their endeavors.

We are creating a whole galaxy operating under its own rules that follow a different logic depending on how far you are from the civilized seats of power.

Everyone will start the game in the safe zone where everything is predictable, with no risk of in-game assets destruction to the environment or other players. Even in the unlikely case of your ship getting attacked and destroyed, you will spawn once more in a space station over time or quicker by paying a small fee.

This acquaints you with the game's many mechanics, careers, and environments, a place of learning and relaxing gameplay with smaller rewards and more common resources.

However, outside this shielded zone, you need to start watching out for the consequences of your actions.

The second zone of Star Atlas is the medium zone, a place where civilization security forces are less efficient, and pirates and other players with a desire for stealing will appear more often. In this zone, although your ship or crewmembers won't be destroyed if you are defeated in combat, all loot you carry will, causing the majority of it to be burned and pieces of it to be dropped to the attackers to share.

On the other hand, this zone has increased and more rare resources, making your explorations and adventures potentially more interesting if you plan to make an intergalactic empire.

Finally, we have the high-risk zone, a place only advisable to the most experienced and risk-tolerant individuals. This piece of our galaxy contains dangerous environments, challenging enemies, and a very punitive ending for getting destroyed. Your ship, alongside everything that you are carrying within, risks being permanently destroyed if you are to be defeated there.

Needless to say, it's also where the most valuable secrets and resources can be found, so players that venture to this place will be taking huge risks but might strike great treasures as well.

This path, the involuntary destruction of value through combat, is the most apparent and upfront way in which assets will cease to exist in the Star Atlas metaverse. But it's not the only one.

Players can also deconstruct all creations in Star Atlas into their primordial components. There will be some loss associated with the skill of the one responsible for the job, but players will be able to voluntarily dismantle assets to recover resources and learn about the product properties.

The idea that we are exploring here is that, while destroying an object, let's say, a ship, you will get insight and acquire crafting knowledge while also recovering some materials, which will incentivize players that want to speed up their crafting learning curve to take apart ships in this process.

Although this is but one of the mechanisms and structures that are under our economists' consideration, it's a window into the myriad of ways to make our game economy healthy, balancing the freedom of crafting, meaningful gameplay loops with protecting the economy from volatility.

Star Atlas's many economic loops are a massive part of what makes this game unique, and we would like to hear your feedback on all the topics presented on the economic front so far.

Now, let us move to the second topic of our edition, Never Alone and Escape Velocity, our latest releases that have shaken the Solana blockchain!

Reaching Escape Velocity and a Quick-witted Punaab Who Is Never Alone

Since our last edition, Star Atlas deployed two major foundations of its metaverse. First, Escape Velocity — an on-chain movement smart contract that revolutionizes gaming by enabling players to use a coordinate system on the Solana Blockchain.

This small transaction-based movement is a huge leap forward for having a complete on-chain metaverse, and our players have been part of this historical moment by playing a treasure hunt we created to help us stress this new contract.

It has been nothing short of a seismic phenomenon in the blockchain world. As of May 15, Escape Velocity players have made over 13 million transactions since the launch on April 26th!

During one of the Atlas Brew shows in Discord, the Escape Velocity map was populated with over 35 Star Atlas DACs sending over 9000 fleets to play simultaneously, making up for over 8% of Solana's total blockchain transactions.

Whilst this is mind-blowing by itself, Star Atlas also released a yearlong social campaign called Never Alone. This campaign leverages the Zealy platform to tell the story of Saand, a mysterious Punaab who lost his memories after a massive ship crash, teaming up the player to recover his past while unfolding the secrets of the Star Atlas lore.

While you help Saand uncover his past by doing hundreds of quests, you will also get fragments of his memories, which allows you to acquire unique loot inside Star Atlas games and to participate, together with your friends and DACs, in an end-of-year competition that has prizes for up to 1.7M USDC (VWAP) for the taking, as you can see in the table below:

Never Alone will allow players to engage with all Star Atlas products and understand universe lore as we introduce new missions and gaming interactions for you to explore during the campaign.

If you are a fan of Star Atlas or good story-telling in general, this is a must-do for you.

Now, let us turn our attention to Galia Expanse’s most recent news, brought to you by the other notorious Punaab...

The Punaab Whisper — The Atlas Star Tabloid

Chaos, Blood, and War, Dear Readers!

As I write these words, I can see the Dawn Vanguard, one of the Council of Peace C11s, obliterate a Jorvik raiding group as he successfully rescues a Captain's ship through the tractor beam.

It is a scenario of war, one that surprises even high-ranking officials of the Council of Peace, as our sources have discovered. In the backstage, we hear whispers that the other Faction Leaders didn't want the conflict in the Medium Zone to turn armed, but Vaor Scarka, the leader of the ONI Consortium and the ruling secretary of the Council, seems to have managed to acquire enough support to sweep the Medium Zone, reestablishing order and protecting the populations of its worlds from Jorvik and ECOS oppression.

Although Vaor's methods are questionable, it's a fact that the rogue factions in that part of the galaxy have been attacking the Council's facilities and borders for a long time now, and his direct approach has harnessed a lot of support within the safe zone citizens.

Nevertheless, the opposition to his ruling says that this is just an excuse to forward the faction's elites' interests in the rich resources that can be found on those planets, now under the control of unfriendly leaders, to the Council of Peace Welfare.

Whichever is the case, the recent actions of the Council of Peace army took the galaxy, and especially their enemies, by surprise. In nearly two weeks of the campaign, most of the outskirts of the medium zone that connects to the Council territory has been cleaned of Jorvik and ECOS influence, and the most radical local warlords, some who dealt with slavery, have been arrested or killed by the Council's army.

This sudden attack caused the rogue factions to retreat to their Star Bases or to worlds deeper into the medium zone. Sporadic attacks can be seen on the Council's convoys, but that seems to be the limit of their reaction so far.

The biggest cause of concern right now involves the ECOS deciding to use their Titan Ship, Superphoenix, to repel the council's armies. This idea has been ventilated by the druidess of ECOS in the latest assembly of the Council, who claimed that the Council's new imperialist policy must cease at once. Otherwise, the ECOS would assemble their deep space fleet to counter.

After her declaration, reporters throughout the galaxy called for a comment from Vaor Scarka, which he obliged:

"So far as we can see, as wide as this galaxy may be, we are just repelling decades of unjust aggression and freeing worlds dominated by oppressors with oppression.

If any titan ship dreams of moving towards the Council borders or threatens our citizens, I will be left with no choice but to unleash the Cradle, protect my people, our people, and then, finally, might I add, there will be no scraps lefts of the ECOS or Jorvik to tell their story.

Nevertheless, I'm a defender of peace and a propagator of hope, so let us settle these matters in the most peaceful way we have at our disposal. My only condition is that the rogue factions understand and, more importantly, comply with the simple truth that the medium zone is not their playground."

The ONI leader is, of course, alluding to the Council of Peace Mothership, The Cradle. The strongest and most deadly ship ever created. It's said that even several Titans couldn't take the Cradle on, but we have yet to test those rumors since the Council of Peace has not approved any offensive action using this vessel.

This is a developing story, and your humble reporter and his assistant Libra.Iddt will keep reporting from the war front, counting on your undying support!

Until the next edition!

Ecosystem Updates & Events

The second part of the Atlas Star summarizes the latest updates and events since the last publication.

The Atlas Brew

The Atlas Brew broke every record in its history, with over 300 people participating in the special Escape Velocity Brew! Come feel the vibes of this and other episodes of our community's main weekly event!

Episode # 59 — TheoryCraft- Future of Claim Stakes — The Atlas Brew #59

Episode # 60 — Community Updates and Freestyle — The Atlas Brew #60

Episode # 61 — Economics — Interview with Chris on SAGE and ground racing — The Atlas Brew #61

Episode # 62 — Especial Brew — Escape Velocity Coordinated Treasure Hunt — The Atlas Brew #62

Episode # 63 — Politics — Lore and Species Politics — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6m2wFY2cdM

Roadmap Report

Project: UE5 Showroom --- R2.1

General /// Level Art: BUILDING /// Engineering: BUILDING /// Gameplay: BUILDING /// SFX: BUILDING /// Veh: BUILDING /// Characters: BUILDING /// UX/UI: BUILDING /// Animation: BUILDING /// VFX: BUILDING

Updates:

1. Marketplace implementation --- Testing ongoing. /// 2. Ship Flight Model Improvements --- Smooth cam transition between hover & flight mode. --- Ship 3rd person cam lag overhaul. /// 3. BP refactor 3.1. Gameplay Ability system --- Weapons not shooting fix --- Update Kinetic/Energy Weapon Damage Modifiers --- Correct Power Triangle logic --- done --- Abilities tend to get wiped accidentally --- in progress. /// 4. Dogfight mode rework --- in progress. /// 5. Testfly in Single player --- Hook up endpoint --- in progress. /// 6. Controller support --- updated. /// 7. EOS --- MP bug fixing. /// 8. Ground Race Track --- Polishing --- Gates resize for FL and Medtech --- Working on pickups spawning only when gates are shown --- Working on race pickup spawners replication. /// 9. Analytics --- Defined list of events with BI --- Implementing --- in progress. /// 10. General bug fixing --- dogfight --- [Bug] Race gates showing up in dogfight game mode. /// 11. Interaction system --- R&D for improvements. /// 12. Train --- QA done --- sit bug fixing --- bug fixing. /// SFX Levels --- Ground Race asset creation and implementation (passbys, chassis impacts, surface displacement) --- Train Experience asset creation and implementation --- Music for Train Experience SHIPS --- X4 HUD asset creation --- X4 Animation sync --- Ancillary locomotion sounds for Airbike, Jet, Unibomba, Lowbie, floydliner --- X4 Distortion Repeater revisions IMPLEMENTATION / SYSTEMS --- Ship template system + Flight model --- Ambience detection system --- Projectile / Surface impact system (in progress) --- Music State System (under revision.) /// Vehicles --- first Concept weapons ready and in progress as detached nft for future customization on each vehicle --- Opal Bitboat interior refinement blockout base mesh --- 6 ships almost finished. /// Characters --- Mierese Head tail and trinket dynamics. --- Made progress on MUD headgear. --- Punaab's first pass for a playable character. --- Ted animated bioluminescence --- Fully articulatable Ustur body construction moving to high resolution polishing phase. /// Environment --- Volant Station Improvements [2nd Floor section and rail tracks] --- Playable Ground racing environments in progress --- Experimental Map load outs- Modular landing zone areas [Updated the dogfight section with the new tech] --- Armstrong Asset Zoo Implementation [A collection of assets to improve the fidelity of all our levels]. /// Game Design --- Interior layout work for C9 --- Improved Power triangle functionality --- Implemented correct ship stats (HP, Shield, etc.) for flyable ships --- Improved player-controlled turret prototype --- Finalized all ship components and weapons (quantities/sizes) for the upcoming Ship Config V2 system.

Project: SAGE v0

Blockchain: BUILDING /// Web: BUILDING /// Game Economics: BUILDING /// Design: BUILDING

Updates: --- Reconciling blockchain programs (specifically Fleets Program) with game design requirements for upcoming Resource Extraction and Crafting release. /// Continuing Asteroid Belt Resource Extraction and Crafting UI layer and enhancing the UI. /// Worked on the Resource Extraction and Crafting rewards table. /// Working on Mining + In-Space inventory UI

Upcoming activities: Update programs and connect to Starcomm (MMO server). /// Continue refining UI layer and render Starcomm data when that connection is made. /// Finalize Resource Extraction and Crafting rewards table. /// Finalize Resource Extraction and Crafting rewards table

Note: all on-chain programs associated with SAGE will undergo cybersecurity and threat modeling prior to the official launch.

Project: Star Atlas DAO --- Usability Improvements

Product: BUILDING /// Web: BUILDING /// UX design: BUILDING /// Data: BUILDING /// Infrastructure: BUILDING /// Blockchain: BUILDING

Updates: Preparing for internal testing. /// Proposals design component and views in progress. /// Provided UX updates for subsequent release features. /// Building out dev instance and hardening production environments.

Upcoming activities: Internal demo. /// Authentication feature.

Project: Graphic Novel

Art: BUILDING /// UX/UI: BUILDING

Updates: Episodes 7, 8, and 9 are in progress.

Upcoming activities: Finish episodes 7, 8, and 9.

Project: Play.staratlas.com

Features/ Bug fixes: --- Live updated to v0.7.56 PRE-ALPHA --- Added Never alone landing page.

Features in pipeline: DAC Platform. /// Star-atlas-portal --- Orderbook history.

ABOUT STAR ATLAS

Star Atlas is a next-gen gaming metaverse emerging from the confluence of state-of-the-art blockchain, real-time graphics, multiplayer video games, and decentralized financial technologies.

Using Unreal Engine 5's Nanite, real-time graphics technology allows for cinematic quality video game visuals. In addition, blockchain technology using the Solana protocol establishes a largely serverless and secured gameplay experience. Non-fungible tokens obtained and traded within Star Atlas create an economy that replicates tangible world assets and ownership. To learn more, visit StarAtlas.com, join a faction at Play.StarAtlas.com, send your spaceships on a deep space mission by enrolling them in a Faction Fleet, harvesting resources with Faction Claims and download the Showroom on your PC.

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Disclaimer

The updates in this report are provided for informational purposes only about the Star Atlas game and metaverse, for which ATMTA, Inc. is the lead developer. Except for statements of historical fact, the statements included herein are forward-looking statements that are based on the beliefs of ATMTA, Inc.'s management as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to ATMTA, Inc.'s management. Although ATMTA, Inc.'s management believes these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. ATMTA, Inc. undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required under applicable law. These forward-looking statements are, by their nature, subject to significant risks and uncertainties and include, without limitation, statements about ATMTA, Inc.'s business prospects, future developments, industry and market trends and conditions, strategies, objectives, and goals. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and undue reliance should not be placed on them. No financial, tax, or legal advice is given or implied.