Picking sides is never easy, especially in the space-based MMO Star Atlas. With three primary factions to choose from, each one offering different benefits, players have a few things to think about when they sign up. And now, newly revealed documents provide details on how faction aligned companies affect players’ ship building abilities.
Factions aren’t just for a decorative badge in Star Atlas. Picking a side has consequences. Whether it be the human government known as MUD, the alien faction called ONI, or the sentient androids from Ustur, each player must make a choice. And while we don’t know how much faction alignment will really affect the overall gameplay, we have learned about faction aligned companies.
Faction Aligned Ship Manufacturers
In the universe of Star Atlas, there are eleven different ship manufacturing companies. Each one aligned with one or more factions. This includes the three main factions and also three minor factions. The minor factions feature a diverse cast of characters including space pirates, radical bombers, a ‘metagenic’ species, and a highly advanced civilization of light-based creatures called the Photoli. While the primary factions dominate the safe and medium risk zones, gaining loyalty points with a minor faction will require more dangerous adventures.
Each manufacturing company has a selection of proprietary blueprints only available to those with high enough loyalty in the associated faction. Some manufacturers have connections to two factions. One major and one minor alignment. Players in the minor faction gain loyalty at a slower rate than those in the major faction. Players gain loyalty points through quests and missions.
The team mentions also mentions faction passes. These allow players to accumulate loyalty from other factions. We don’t know for sure, but I would imagine loyalty gain through faction passes would be slower than normal. We also don’t yet know how these players will acquire these passes.
Owning and trading ships from these blueprints is allowed across all factions. No limitations aside from the standard trading fees. So, in another bid to keep proprietary ships somewhat faction oriented, the specific resources needed for these ships will be more abundant in the aligned factions’ sector of space.
Resource gathering, crafting, and a functioning economy are all up next on the Star Atlas roadmap.
What is Star Atlas?
Star Atlas is an upcoming space-based, massively multiplayer online game. Built on the Solana blockchain, all game logic, transactions, and ownership are stored on-chain. Star Atlas will be a grand strategy hybrid space game with serverless MMO gameplay. All gameplay runs in real-time, and uses the blockchain to give players ownership over in-game items. Star Atlas plans to add economic-based gameplay mechanics and implement an economic system inspired by decentralized finance.
All ships, space stations, and land installations have weapons and shields for attack and defense. Gamers upgrade space stations and installations through community efforts. While space ship commanders assign crew members to improve the ship’s performance. The choice for your crew influences your career, ranging from data runner to bounty hunter.
Even though the official AAA game release is some ways out, players can already choose sides and stake their ships to earn rewards.
