Hello everyone! Salutations from foggy San Francisco!
We here at Starboard Games LLC are nothing if not a developer of our word. When we said we were switching over to a weekly update model over a month ago, we really did mean it. Even with our PR Lead on the opposite side of the country visiting his sister in a hilly city with shockingly few video game stores despite its extreme proximity to the fabled Silicon Valley, he is still here to bring you your weekly-recommended dose of INT-related news. You are welcome.
And so, without further ado, here's the news.
A few weeks back we went over some of the rather forceful strategies that the UCE faction chooses to employ in their media campaigns so as to sway citizens and soldiers alike to join in and/or support the war effort. Today, however, we are going to take a large step back and look into those corporations whose great wealth and influence led to the creation of the UCE superpower that now controls the Sol System. These are the Jupiter Ten (J10).
Starting out as an automobile manufacturer, Zeus Industries expanded its vehicular product lines and its operations rapidly in the 21st century. Its joint research program with Hera led to the creation of the first Interstellar Drive System (IDS), enabling the planetary colonization boom during the 22nd and 23rd centuries. As the leader of the J10, Zeus is in a position to continue expanding its power and influence well into the future, particularly with the aid of its military-minded allies among the J10 directorate.
A former partner to Zeus Industries, Hera originally manufactured high-grade materials for terrestrial colonization such as all-terrain vehicles and transportation systems. Over time, the corporation expanded to become the leading provider of colonial infrastructure. From public-works projects such as hospitals and railways, to private homes and corporate offices, Hera has everything a colonial developer needs.
Aphros aggressively defended the corporations it held a majority stake in, and its stockpile of various currencies, during World War III. Bold commercial and residential development projects in war-torn areas provided the corporation with huge profits as well as the goodwill of the public. With investments in most of the major corporations, Aphros supplies loans and advice to enable the development of new technologies and colonies on ever-more distant planets.
When Zeus and Hera originally had partnered, they did so with Apotheosis as their joint research firm. But the dispute between the corporations over the development of the IDS opened a path for its independence. Apotheosis continued to work on scientific breakthroughs, including new fuels and an improved life-support system, to benefit mankind's race to the stars. With its long line of patents and its ongoing research, Apotheosis' projects will impact on the lives of colonists for the foreseeable future.
An American couple unhappy with the quality of weapons available after the end of World War III founded this corporation to provide rugged, inexpensive rifles and handguns to farmers for the "defense of their livestock and other civilian needs." Thanks to a contract with Aphros, ARS shifted focus and became the largest firearm manufacturer in the Jupiter 10. An aggressive growth strategy, combined with a reputation for rugged reliability, allows ARS to stay one bullet ahead of its competition.
Once a military contractor supplying fighter jets to the UN, Art Ship transitioned into space shuttle production after World War III. It now focuses on small, personal ships for interstellar travel between planets. Other corporations have moved into larger vessels, allowing Art Ship to fill a small but important niche in interstellar travel.
Demi started as a collective of farmers on Earth and continues to specialize in food production and delivery in the 23rd century. A patented freeze-drying system for meals, coupled with a method of suspending nutrients in an ultra-dense but healthy oil, allowed Demi to rise above other corporations providing meals for first-wave colonists. Demi Colony Group offers colonial farm construction and management services as well as a range of menus that cater to any colonist's dietary needs.
With its Mercury headquarters, the largest metal works in colonized space, Fist continues to set industry standards. In addition to offering shaped steel for corporate and private interests, Fist Heavy Industries provides large equipment for surface terraforming, heavy machines for manufacturing plants, large-scale weapons systems, and high-quality metal used in the production of weapons and colonial structures. The corporation, however, continues to scramble to offset the loss of colonial assets with the emergence of the ACP, which has commandeered many of Fist's operations in the Middle Colonies to support its war effort.
Three business purchased by Zeus Industries in the 21st century (Hellas, Arachne, and Rumor) were combined to form the preeminent tech corporation on Earth: Harm Arachne Rumor Metrics. Rebranded as H-A-R-M Information Systems after the merger, the conglomerate's various public-facing divisions continue to advance biometrics, infometric architectures, and artificial intelligence in the 23rd century. spaceship navigation assistants and domicile interfaces are specialties, H-A-R-M's maintenance and oversight of the J10’s and UCE's information sharing networks makes them a constant presence in the colonies. With its business and home software suites and a range of hardware devices for personal, domestic and professional needs, H-A-R-M keeps everyone connected and information protected with its subsidiary holdings.
Poseidon Extraction is the largest corporation providing water to the colonies. The corporation's services include planetary water management and direct water delivery from its network of asteroid mines, oceanic desalination facilities, and subterranean reclamation projects. By dominating the interstellar production and distribution of water, Poseidon stands among the most elite of mega-corporations.
Ever since our table for RavenCon 2016 was announced in last week's update, the entirety of the Starboard Games LLC team has been working harder than ever as we sprint ever-closer towards the release date for INT's demo. In fact, quite a lot of the buzz that has been circulating throughout our Skype channels these days has contained ecstatic updates, revelations, and triumphs as new parts of the game come together. This convention has done a lot to inspire us all.
Speaking of the convention, we are currently brainstorming what we might want to give away at our table. A lot of ideas have been tossed around these past couple of days - many of them involving our llama mascot - but there has not yet been a consensus as to what would work best. As such, we wanted to turn to you all and see what ideas you would like to receive as INT inspired swag upon meeting us at a convention. You can make your voice heard in this poll!
As per usual, we still have some positions open within Starboard Games LLC. If you are a dedicated gamer with some serious skill looking to enter into the exciting world of game development, make sure to check out our current openings on our website's careers page.
Since this update has been focusing its spotlight upon the J10 corporations, I was thinking that we might as well show off the primary planet around which this galactic superpower has formed: Jupiter.
This gas giant's substantial gravity fields have created the ideal conditions for the manufacture of Interstellar Drive Systems, the many labs orbiting the planet producing these devices to fulfill both military and commercial interests. This has led Jupiter to become the home to the UCE's fleet command center, the meeting place of the UCE admirals, and the Jupiter 10 themselves. While Earth may be the planet that first reached for the stars above, it was Jupiter that became the key to interstellar travel and the center of the Sol System's power structure.
