But you're kind of a shithead.
The issue people have been having with patching is because my host, who I've been with forever, instituted a "filter" a while back to keep people from using "too much bandwidth". What this basically entails is, if any IP address draws too much data, it locks out that IP and you get that "NEGATIVE CAPABILITY: Can't download stuff" error that has been pissing people, including myself, off as of late.
I've given them over two months to successfully remove us from this system but even after dozens upon dozens of emails and phone calls, it still happens, so I'm saying the hell with it and moving on.
The entire contents of our host, which means many files required for the website, the patcher and all files, forums, and databases, will have to be migrated to a new host. I've already set it all in motion and solidified a battle strategy, so now it's just a matter of switch-flipping.
This will not require the game itself to be taken down and will remain online through the entire process. It will however, prevent the game from downloading new patches, so we're trying to get as many updates as possible out for you guys before the site is taken down pending migration.
Also, since the forums haven't been used much as of late, I'm going to be taking this opportunity to do a much-needed update to their database structure for security-sake and probably wipe them - Or at the very least, archive all the threads and posts and start anew with a fresh system once we're ready to begin our new campaign and new users begin to flood in.
Now onto the updates!
Alpha 0.062 :// Hoppers!
Keeping with the spirit of the breakneck pace we've been able to chuck out updates over the last few weeks and months, 0.062 was completed, as usual, ahead of schedule, releasing the basics of an innovative new feature that we hope will help put us on the map; Hoppers.What is a "Hopper"?
In Divergence, "hoppers" are one of, if not the, most important item or structure that exists. They provide a linking point between the actual game world and your character in that, unlike some other games, in Divergence, you can build on any land you damn well please. No ridiculous "zones" or "areas" that are pre-flattened and space-determined. If you like that spot on that hill, make it your home. No bullshit, just do it.But how does one get from "I've made walls, how do i make them into a home?" to a respectable property?
The answer is with a hopper.
In the world of Divergence, a "hopper" is a piece of electronic machinery between the size of a PC tower or even a home itself that, when online, allows any and all objects placed within it's range to become one with it on a molecular level.
The item itself is contained within the hopper on a molecular level - Condensing every atom down to a fraction of what it was within the hoppers internal storage.When you pack up a hopper, removing it from the game world and placing it back into your inventory, the hopper compresses all objects within its responsibility down to mere fractions of what they were before so that an entire property-worth of possession can fit into a space smaller than a washing machine.
The only limitation is mass. The more mass the hopper must compress, the more energy it must utilize. Additionally, merely reducing the space between subatomic particles does not reduce the actual mass/weight of an object, it merely makes it more compact, so there is a limit to how much each hopper can manage. The better hopper you make, the more stuff you can have and at a cheaper upkeep rate.
Am I limited to just one hopper per character?
No, you are not. Right now, you can have as many as you like but keep in mind that again, they will, very soon in the future, require upkeep; money. If you let your hopper's upkeep or maintenance pool drop to zero, it will begin to take damage to it's condition, which when it reaches zero, will explode, taking all contained items with it.What types of hoppers are there?
Hoppers come in four sizes:- Small (The size of a PC Tower - This one is used rarely)
- Medium (A size suitable to contain an average-sized home)
- Large (A size capable of hosting a large home and surrounding property)
- Civic (A huge hopper used in cities to allow things such as street-lamps to be saved to the city hall, instead of the individual person's home)
Can hoppers be moved?
You bet your ass. If you'd like to move your life to another corner of the game world, all you need to do is access your hopper and pack it up with the pick-up command. The hopper and all its contents will then be reduced to a small item in your inventory that you can take with you wherever you go, and expand once again wherever you please. Keep in mind that this process eats a lot of maintenance, so it can get costly depending on the amount of stuff you have inside the hopper.
What about, can they move "in the game world" or are they purely stationary objects?
We built our systems from the ground up to be the best around, and keeping with that spirit, virtually any object in the game world can be built to contain a hopper of its own. A few examples would be:
Guns can be hoppers as well, allowing attachments to be saved to the gun itself the same way as anything else.
Vehicles such as boats and land vehicles can be reconfigured to the creators whim. Put lawn chairs on your yacht, a BBQ or remove the top and make it a convertible. Do whatever you like.
An example of this functioning right now in the game world is the absolutely huge DC ship parked on the ice of Arabast. The ship itself is one huge hopper, built to allow its owners to completely designed the interior as they see fit. Don't believe me? Fucking log in and see for yourself.
Am I the only one who can add and remove stuff on my property or can my friends help?
As of patch 0.062, Divergence now has a fully-functional "Admin System". This allows you to access and add or remove the names of any character currently in the game world that you'd like to also have the ability to add and remove from your property. You and your friends can collaborate on that big base just the way you were hoping, but be forewarned, the temptation to stab you in the back and steal your stuff will be great.
What's next?
Now that we have this beast wrangled, we're already knee-deep into developing functionality for both power generators (to power your fancy lights and base defenses) and automated harvesting installations. Expect to see those features outlined in our next devblog post.
