Since the interview is one hour long and there's no transcript, I've tried to make some notes. Mostly it's things we have already heard before. Note that English is not my first language and I may have misheard something.
J.C. really likes EVE Online.
There will be multiple wipes before the release. Construct blueprints will be preserved.
"Information is sacred". If your ship gets destroyed and you had no blueprint, you still get a snapshot.
Everything is in first-person (for immersion). Third-person view may be introduced later.
There will be mysteries in the world to discover.
Everyone starts at the arkship. 20 km (minimum, may be expanded) safe-zone around the starship.
No artificial content (bosses or pre-built challenges). Emergent gameplay, meaningful experiences.
No quests. Organizations are expected to provide player-built quest/job boards.
NPC life (to hunt, etc) is challenging to do right. Will start with something simple.
Tech can handle 100 people on one ship. They can move and do things while the ship is moving. The goal is that one person can't run a 500 m long ship alone. 20 cannons = 20 people.
Pre-alpha has one system with 12 planets. Will expand that later on with more systems and unlock technologies to build stargates. Exploration won't be easy ("a journey").
Planets are real (giant balls, not flat). 65 km in radius at the moment. Everything is editable. If you have several months, you can dig out a mountain and see that it's not there from space. The game client downloads parts that are modified. Estimate: 1000 players, 8 hours/day, 19 years to dig out 1% of the planet.
There will be prospecting gameplay (scanning to locate minerals).
It will be possible for players to organize and defend themselves.
Biggest overcome challenges: server tech, recruiting people and building the dream team, financing.
Often can't use off-the-shelf tech. Started with Unreal engine but couldn't do what they wanted. Switched to another engine. Building not just a game, but a whole set of game technologies.
Marketing is important and they'll work on that in the coming months. There's lots of great games out there and no one knows about them.
They're trying to revolutionize the MMO genre.
You can "paint" by changing voxel materials. Elements (engines, fuel tanks) are static, but there may be multiple varieties later on.
Construct and avatar weapons are preset (not customizable), but come in many varieties. Maybe in a few years they'll think about customizing.
There will be a skill system like EVE Online (offline training). Still working on that.
No offline mining, but some industrial jobs will be running offline. Anything that requires interaction with the world will require you to be connected.
Mining will not be automatic so that beginners can have something to do and be competitive.
If you are touching the ship when it is destroyed, you die. In principle, you could escape in a smaller ship before that or just float in space with proper equipment.
Bases will require power (power generators) for certain parts. Not for lights.
Food is intended to be added later.
Everything is scriptable in Lua (for advanced players). Can automate a lot of things. You can play games inside the game.
For the moment, no underwater bases. Would like to add a bubble that creates a water-free area. Just a matter of time until they find a way to make underwater bases happen. No boats ("water ships"), hovercrafts instead.
Territory units will be expensive and there will be lots of gameplay to regulate how often you can claim territory. 1 km in diameter.
The only way to get anything is to craft it or to buy/get someone to craft for you.
Subscription allows you to get and enjoy the whole game (10-15 €/$ per month). There will be a free trial period. There will be a PLEX-like system.
Microtransactions: no pay-to-win, maybe cosmetic items only.
In-game money is called "quanta".
One aspect of the game that's not talked about enough: interactive elements (pressure plates, lasers, detection areas, force fields) allow you to make puzzle games (like Portal). You can invite friends or make a business out of it. Puzzle game are expected to be co-op (since there's no cube you can drop).
The federal reserve bank, is not federal, there is no reserve, and its not a bank. It is run by a board of directors. There were banks running just fine long before they created it. No we dont need this.
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