The Phoenix

We knew in advance about the launches of two immensely huge games Battlefield 1 and Civilization 6 occurring more or less simultaneously, which is why we attempting to launch the game much sooner than it did. However there is a new approvals system which requires several additional review and approval steps before you're allowed to launch. Probably a good idea of Steam IMO and we support their decision to do so. However by the time it was our turn in the queue three weeks had passed since the day we originally wanted to launch and sure enough, it ended up launching late night pretty much the same day both of these huge goliath games launched.

Now I know how Weird Al must've felt finally launching UHF at the same time as Indiana Jones, Honey I Shrunk The Kids and Lethal Weapon 2; A sapling among the redwoods as it were.

But it didn't end Weird Al, and it won't end us.

In Divergence's 300 years of lore, I've had more than a few people ask me what the emblem means and where it comes from. They're curious as to why the emblem for the game appears to be the emblem of one of our three factions; VRTek. Does that imply favoritism?

In the lore (which we'd love to have the time to actually be able to freaking expose players to), it's referred to by most as the "Pasare de Foc". Translated into English, it essentially means "Bird of Fire"; The Phoenix.

In Divergence, Omicron is a civilization based on scientific advancement, federated and democratic rights for all. Darius Conrad (Conrad in Year Zero) is based on improvement through "The Bottom Line", meaning through (economic) growth. Viconye Ritek (Viconye in Year Zero) is a society based on personal reinvention through adversity in all things, which is why it takes the image of the phoenix as it's sigil. It requires no advertisement, no description, no words. It simply means, "Rise From The Ashes. Right Now. You son of a bitch".

To me. That's what it means, to me.

In the story, characters liken to all sorts of permutated variation on the same theme. "Viconye" is commonly known to be synonymous with "Perseverance" or "Endurance", etc.

You can see why we chose this emblem to represent the game. Games. Both games.

Five months ago, Divergence didn't have horses. Three months ago, it didn't have vehicles. Last month it didn't have cooking and fishing. Regardless of when sales are up and when sales are down, it has always maintained to be "better than it was the month before", and that's simply what we're going to resolve to maintain at any cost until the game(s) is/are at a state we feel comfortable "fulling launching".

Honestly, Year Zero will probably be launched first by virtue of the fact that it's less complicated. Divergence: Online, to do it the way we want to do it, requires completion and refining of systems requisite for things such as our military-synthetics (AKA Mechs) and the like that Year Zero doesn't depend on.

Over the next several weeks, you're going to notice these changes taking place. Things that look like crap will look a lot less like crap. We're adding new areas, new weapons and weapon types, and as soon as we're able (and this depends entirely on sales and our ability to pay for help) combat and mobs will be polished, polished, and polished even more.

And so without further ado; Our Roadmap:

City 1

Horse Stables where players can consign and checkout how much fun it is to ride a horse in our game. With fossil-fuel being such a rare commodity, all three factions (Including the lawless Wasteland Warriors) rely on horses as a cheap and reliable means of getting around. The stables are where horses are bred, fed, and cared for. If you like, you can even take one for a spin around a dirt track and see what you think!

Firing Range where players can work up them marksman skills without having to shoot animals or strangers in the face to do so.

Vehicle Depot where players can checkout some of the vehicles in the game, buy one, and even take one for a spin around the track to see if they like it's characteristics.

NPCs

We're working to introduce more NPCs in City 1 like our Vendor dude. These NPCs will be both factional and nonfactional and populate several areas including gunshops, various weapon and armor stores, and colorful interactions with dialogue. They'll also represent the different professions and give players a description of what it is they specialize in to help players decide on professions.

Halloween Event

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like we're going to be allowed to run a Halloween event as planned for Year Zero. It fits all the criteria, but our submission still hasn't been approved and the deadline was tomorrow. Regardless of whether we're allowed to be included in the sale or not, we'll still be running a Halloween event involving a specific Halloween-themed area (Think Darkshire) and rewards for contribution such as props, weapons, and even costumes.

Thanks a ton for all your support guys and gals - Expect big things in the near future :)