“The engineers of the future will be poets.” –Terence McKenna
We love a story…this is the type of statement we could enter were we vying for understatement of the galaxy. Our ongoing mission, that we wholeheartedly chose to accept, was to fill the universe of Tau Station with endless narratives and engaging adventures! To that end, we bring you another segment of Mission Dispatches to tease some upcoming, incoming, tales!
Continue reading "Mission Dispatches: Chapter IV"
The latest game update featured new artwork. Previously, we added many new 3D images for stims, weapons, armor, and special epic items that can be found in Syndicate campaigns. But there are also various more everyday objects that are part of life in Tau Station: items you can find while scavenging in the Ruins or crucial items needed to complete discreet work.
The clock just passed Cycle 200! Read on to learn more about what the survivors of the Catastrophe celebrate today, uncover gifts for active citizens (as the administration said: activity pays off), and discover a new mission for everyone.
Lost your way in Tau Station? Languishing with a lack of direction? Keep your eyes open for the Action Flag!
The Action Flag is the small orange icon that you’ll see on some of the game’s tabs. This little symbol serves as your compass to the people and places that have possible actions awaiting you.
Continue reading "Closed Alpha: Tip of the Day #13 – Action Flag"
“Hey, you, adventurer. I have something for you to do. I lost my energy hammer in the ruins, right above the Pit of Eternal Suffering. Can you retrieve it for me? If you succeed in this task, I’ll award you with a brand-new energy hammer!” Sounds familiar? In today’s Tip of the Day, we’re going to talk about missions!
Continue reading "Closed Alpha: Tip of the Day #7 – Actions in Missions"
It’s been some time now since our last batch of Mission Dispatches, and that’s because our narrative team has been busy writing ’round the clock (thanks to time zones) to provide great stories on every station for you to explore. Today’s Dispatch covers three missions from Cirque Centauri, home of the Greatest Show in the Galaxy, and harborer of dark secrets.
More than simply linear paths or interactive stories, our missions in Tau Station provide a unique adventure in immersion. To advance through the universe of Tau Station, many difficult decisions await. Missions are one of the main sources of experience in the game, and completing them will help you to understand the Tau Station universe better. Passing them won’t be easy, however.
In order to provide the narrative team with enough level of creative freedom, we are constantly improving and developing new features for our mission authoring tool: Mission Builder. Now it’s time to uncover some of the internal details and show what goes on the behind the scenes while playing in Tau Station.
We love great stories! It’s something we simply cannot overstate. A couple of months ago we brought you our first batch of Mission Dispatches. Our narrative designers have been busy crafting tales and stations, and while we sometimes find ourselves wondering about the worrying giggles emanating from their brainstorming sessions, we feel it’s time to bring you another glimpse into some of Tau Station’s upcoming stories!
We love a good story. The art of storytelling predates even that of the written word, and we’re pretty sure humanity’s tales will be here long after we’re gone, possibly for some alien race to pore over and ponder what kind of weird and wonderful creatures we once were.
More specifically, the narrative is one of the core pillars of Tau Station and we consider it in every aspect of game development and universe building. Through Tau Station’s missions you’ll discover the stories of its universe – its histories, its people; the living, breathing, and evolving culture of a human civilization on life support. Below, we’ll give you a peek at three of these missions that deal with different aspects of a galactic post-apocalyptic society.
Continue reading "Missions – Your Window Into Tau Station’s Universe"
You’re exploring the shipyard of København Station when you bump into Kane, the distraught owner of Citizen Shipbuilders. He’s recently challenged his rival, Chamberlain, to a contest to prove who can build the fastest ship, but now the day of the race has come and he knows he’s going to lose. He doesn’t really care how you do it, but he needs you to get the race called off and will pay you a reward to make it happen.
As you navigate Tau Station, your character will be offered missions. There’s nothing really unusual there; missions are pretty common in MMOs. A non-player character (NPC) has a problem and hires you to solve it. You do the work, get your pay and experience points, and move on. But we see every mission, even the short ones, as a chance for the player to interact with the game world and make meaningful choices through their character.
A mission is a story, and Tau Station is a game built around stories.
Continue reading "Even Side Missions Should Provide Meaningful Choices"
