Frequently Asked Questions

What is Stellar Dawn?

Stellar Dawn is an upcoming sci-fi MMORPG currently under development by Jagex (source). It is a reboot of the MechScape project which was cancelled around August 2009 (source). The official Stellar Dawn website is available at www.StellarDawn.com. 48 Jagex employees are credited as working exclusively on Stellar Dawn including two dedicated writers (source) and Andrew Gower is reported to be “overseeing the project and working very closely with the team to build Stellar Dawn” (source).

What is Stellar Dawn Central?

Stellar Dawn Central (SDC) is a fansite for Stellar Dawn. We are classified by Jagex as a “platinum level” recognised fansite (source) but are independent of Jagex. We are the first MechScape / Stellar Dawn fansite and used to be known as “MechScape World” and “MechScape Central” (see announcement for an explanation of our name change).

When will Stellar Dawn be released?

Stellar Dawn is currently on track to be released in 2011 with a closed beta beforehand (source). Pre-release information will be available on the official Stellar Dawn website as well as on Stellar Dawn Central.

What will Stellar Dawn be like?

Stellar Dawn will be a sci-fi MMORPG set in an alien star system and is confirmed to “have a PVP aspect” (source). Players will be able to “explore vast worlds of futuristic environments and engage with an extensive backstory” (source). MechScape was a 4X MMORPG (inspired by games such as Master of Orion and Ascendancy, see thread) which means Stellar Dawn may be too. However, Jagex have stated that a lot of the gameplay will change from MechScape (source) so they may have moved away from 4X. According to the official FAQ, Stellar Dawn will be a “combat-driven MMORPG with a rich sci-fi storyline” (source).

Stellar Dawn centres around four different species, although it has yet to be confirmed whether all of them will be playable upon launch (source, source, source). The four species are Human, Pliigi (plant-type, alter DNA to make living vehicles), Mortiga (rock-type) and an unnamed “technology” race (source). Jagex CEO Mark Gerhard has stated that the technology race is based on the “sci-fi, robotic, and mech-like” concept for MechScape and MechScape concept art has has led to speculation that this is a cybernetic species. The word Pliigi means “increase” or “augment” and Mortiga means “deadly” in Esperanto (a “constructed language”, see Wikipedia).

It is unknown if Stellar Dawn will include traditional MMORPG elements such as skills, experience and levelling. It was stated in a 2009 article that MechScape would not (source), though Mark Gerhard admitted in a 2010 article that “that wasn’t true. That was an ambition, it wasn’t a reality” (source). In answer to which traditional MMORPG elements Stellar Dawn will include Gerhard said, “It will have an, er, accumulation mechanic” (source).

For an idea of what Stellar Dawn will be like check out the hi-resolution Stellar Dawn concept mood artwork and MechScape mood and concept art.

What is Stellar Dawn’s target audience?

It will have a 13+ age restriction and is aimed at a more mature audience than RuneScape (source, source). “Stellar Dawn will certainly be (aimed at an older audience) than RuneScape, and play to a more core gamer audience. It’ll still be casual, it’ll still be accessible to most people” (source). Jagex is “keen to distance this title from RuneScape” (source) and Stellar Dawn “is deliberately aimed at a different audience from RuneScape, and while I’m sure there will be some RuneScape players that will enjoy Stellar Dawn, we expect the growth in this game to augment our existing community rather than split it. I believe Stellar Dawn is more likely to appeal to and acquire players from the traditional MMOs out there rather than RuneScape” (source). According to Mark Gerhard the audience Jagex thinks Stellar Dawn will most appeal to are “the same people playing World of Warcraft” (source).

What is the technology behind Stellar Dawn?

Stellar Dawn will use Java and be browser-based. We expect that like RuneScape there will be a downloadable client for players who do not have Java installed. It will be based on RuneScape’s “RuneTek” engine (source). It will have a higher polygon count than RuneScape and will probably make better use of the engine than RuneScape as it will be using its full capability from the start of development. We expect Stellar Dawn to support DirectX and OpenGL (source).

What will the system requirements be?

According to Jagex “Stellar Dawn will be widely accessible and playable on almost any PC or Mac with an internet connection” (source). As Stellar Dawn is based on the RuneScape engine (source), Stellar Dawn should be playable on computers that can run RuneScape in high detail. The minimum system requirements suggested by Jagex are “256Mb RAM, a 1Ghz processor and a graphics card at least equivalent to Nvidia GeForce 3″ (source), compared to RuneScape’s High Detail requirements of “256Mb RAM, a 1.5Ghz processor and a graphics card at least equivalent to Nvidia GeForce 3″ (source). However, Jagex won’t confirm the system requirements until closer to launch (source).

Will there be a beta?

Yes, there will be a closed beta and you can sign up for a chance to be part of it here. We know that “there will be a number of criteria and [Jagex] will be aiming to get as wide a mix of players as possible” (source) and that it will not be first come first serve (source). According to Mod Markg they can’t confirm how many will be part of the beta but “imagine it would be a sizable number” (source). Previously, it was suggested that subscribers to both RuneScape and FunOrb would be automatically allowed into the beta, however this no longer seems to be the case (source). It is possible that there will be an open beta once the closed beta has been completed, however this has not been confirmed. The only place to apply for a closed beta spot is StellarDawn.com, please be aware of scam sites claiming otherwise.

The five winners of a short story competition and the six winners of an art competition, both run by the Stellar Dawn Community Management team, are currently the only confirmed beta participants (source, source).

What will the payment options be?

In Stellar Dawn a “large proportion of the game will… be free to play” (source) with “extra areas and opportunities available to subscribers” (source) suggesting a payment structure similar to RuneScape. It has been suggested that the pay-to-play option will be more expensive than RuneScape though there has been no confirmation of this (source). It is also possible that there will be a discount for players who subscribe to multiple Jagex games, as is the case with RuneScape and FunOrb, though this too is unconfirmed. Jagex have so far neither confirmed nor denied speculation that some form of microtransactions could be included in the game (source).

What happened to MechScape?

MechScape was cancelled around August 2009 because “the game certainly did not meet all the objectives and specifications established in the original game design document and therefore it would be better to go back to the founding principles and build the game we always wanted” (source). Official comments on how much of MechScape has been kept or re-used in Stellar Dawn are inconsistent, ranging from “Not everything’s lost. We’re able to reuse the engine and actually most of the game in fairness” and “So whilst the content and a lot of the game play will change from what was previously built almost everything else will go straight back into Stellar Dawn” (source) to “While Stellar Dawn is also based on a science fiction storyline, everything else was reinvented with the exception of some concept art” (source) and “The game meta-view, story, concept remain the same. We still loved the story, it was just the implementation” (source). It is expected that the engine, many of the graphical and audio assets and various aspects of the backstory and setting will remain but the gameplay, level design and storyline will be reworked, reinvented or replaced as required.

What does this mean for RuneScape?

According to Jagex CEO Mark Gerhard, “RuneScape will live forever! We have dedicated teams behind each game and the launch of Mechscape [now Stellar Dawn] or any other title for the matter will never undermine the continued investment in RuneScape” (source). According to Jagex, RuneScape HD was made possible “by the advancements in MechScape” and “RuneScape has and will continue to benefit from the development of the new title” (source, source). To quote Mod Markg: “There is more than enough room in this universe for RuneScape and Stellar Dawn and a whole host of other games” (source).