MadSlapper

This isn't a game in the sense that they can just give you a copy of the code, and you get to play it forever.  It's an unfinished project that requires them to maintain servers so you can play in a shared persistent world.
 
Well not according to their advert which states:-
Dual Universe is a first-person Sci-Fi MMO built and driven by players, in a single persistent universe. You can build almost anything out of voxels, trade in a free economy, lead industries, travel through space, explore planets, or wage war in a fully editable sandbox universe. Subscription-based.
 
You will notice the game is NOT being tendered as an alpha, beta or any other non finalised game but a full game. The full advert page is on Steam and still shows non existing game play in the videos like mining below the surface, you can even spot JCs avatar in the advert.
 
As for server costs name one single game that does not have server costs or dev costs for any updates/patches. NQs CEO has even stated on the record they have taken DU as far as they will do and they are no longer treating it as something to work on as they have 3 other projects they are working on instead. 

What they forget is that if you want to be succesfull in masses you dont need high quality perfect voxel works, you need simple everyone can do it from tech advanced to 12 year olds with no computer experience.
If you want what is said by NQ to actually work yu need to concider making it as simple as sims.  A sims on different worlds with a world portal in every home would do it, with direct acces to other worlds all fully build on a preset by the developer.  Just like in the first Lego movie, any subject you can use should be a world, syfy, western, film noir, Umbrella corp.....  The idea is as simple as that but the actual development will be hell if you want to do it from scratch and dont want to pay high server costs and are too cheapassed to build your own data center with high class server accessability.
 
In short, unless backed by someone like Gates or Musk you will have a hard time. You dont need the wizzkids as sups you need the bored house wives/men. And if you cannot develop for that group, forget it.

They don't. They are part of a parent company. In this case Epic Games.

https://www.pcgamer.com/epic-has-made-easy-anti-cheat-free-for-game-developers/
 
 

I am retired but I have more to do with my time most days and if I have not my dear wife finds me something to do. 
 
It is not just the calibration timer we also have the log in reward that insists you wait over 24 hours in real time. Most online games get around this wait getting extended by simply classing a day as starting 12:01am at ending at Midnight server times. You still only get 1 award / recalibration in a 24hour period but it allows you to log in on day 1 at say 11am, day 2 at 10am, day 3 at 2pm etc etc and still get what ever it is. You also do not get the strange thing like my main gets the log in bonus at 9am and my alt can not get it till 3pm unless it misses a day and I can synchronise them.
 

Playing this game since first alpha is like being that jaded barman who watches all the fresh young ladies turn up at the bar giddy with hope of finding their “man”…
 
Five Jack Daniels and Rufie later and he knows exactly how their “romance” is going to end. 
 
So he sighs and just polishes another glass, trying to turn a blind eye to the emotional carnage and heartache.  

I am retired but I have more to do with my time most days and if I have not my dear wife finds me something to do. 
 
It is not just the calibration timer we also have the log in reward that insists you wait over 24 hours in real time. Most online games get around this wait getting extended by simply classing a day as starting 12:01am at ending at Midnight server times. You still only get 1 award / recalibration in a 24hour period but it allows you to log in on day 1 at say 11am, day 2 at 10am, day 3 at 2pm etc etc and still get what ever it is. You also do not get the strange thing like my main gets the log in bonus at 9am and my alt can not get it till 3pm unless it misses a day and I can synchronise them.
 

Dual Universe Launch is scheduled for Tuesday 13:00 UTC, 9:00 AM Eastern, 6:00 AM Pacific.  Please note that this time is highly subject to change if there are any last minute issues.
This of course is only if they have remembered to feed their poor hamster at the server farm.