Project & Development Update #14

July 11, 2022

Good afternoon, pilots. It's time for a silent sustained reading of the next project update.

We’ll start by going over what's been completed since our previous announcement, and what remains to be done. From there, we'll share an exciting update about the team and give some details about Storybook and how it relates to our GUI. As a closer, we'll summarize the state of the project and give a overview of what you can expect in the near future.

Let's dive in. 👇

🔹 Progress

• Completed all of the load testing scripts for the construction bay
• Completed all of the load testing scripts for the wallet verification system
• Published the updated whitepaper
• Published The Citadel Library
• Completed several additional sample proposals, including contract upgrades
• Created the scripting library to reduce friction for creating contract automations
• Added all non-contract data to the client library so that it's easily accessible
• Created the citadel-static CDN to serve as a fast mirror for all images used in the game
• Added thorough natspec docs to all of the contracts and got the audit updated (bet you didn’t notice!)
• Finished coordinating the bug bounty with ImmuneFi
• Finished the art refresh for the in-game map
• Finished additional in-game map assets (tiles, blackholes, outposts, faction helmets)
• Finished the art for officer ships
• Finished the officer ship animations
• Finished preparations for the playtest

🔹 Remaining Focuses

• Finishing the GUI + Storybook Tool (We're deciding between two final styles at the moment!)
• Finishing the soundtrack and SFX
• Finishing launch preparations
• Completing Day Zero Proposals
• Completing Citadel Game + DAO Website

🔸 GUI + Storybook

What is Storybook?

Storybook is a tool for building and testing UI components in isolation. Once components are built, it creates an organized showcase where users can see each component, along with documentation and examples of how it is used. Within each example, users can modify a component's inputs to simulate any scenario that is possible from within the game.

Curious? Check out their website!

What we're doing with it

When building each component of the game, we've intentionally been starting with Storybook, and then proceeding to integrate. Coming from the world of prototyping, this process has definitely been an adjustment for us, but there’s no question that the results have been worth it. Even internally, the structured documentation has been a big help as we’ve been building on top of each other’s work. When we release the game, we plan to make the Storybook a part of The Citadel Library.

What it enables

We see the Storybook as the perfect complement to our client library. The client library provides developers with all of the logic necessary to pull game data and create mechanics, in a nice package that’s convenient for us to update. The Storybook provides developers with each piece of the game UI, with attached documentation and a playground window for adjusting their parameters.

Our hope is that by providing both in tandem, we can create a near-painless developer experience for building into and on top of the game. For example, if someone wanted to build an extension to show travel times next to all ships on the map, they could use our travel utilities directly, and use StandardWindow to create a display that flows seamlessly with the existing UI. Without the client library and storybook, creating this same extension would require digging through the game repository and manually pulling out the relevant components and logic.

We believe that the Storybook, in combination with the client library, will help reduce the reverse engineering portion of modding, allowing developers to spend their time on what matters. ㅤ

🔸 Team Update

At the end of this month, the development team will be permanently relocating to Los Angeles to form Citadel Gaming House v2!

After seeing the results of the temporary move-in that we tried in March, it has become clear to us that there’s nothing better for the project than having everyone in the same office. We’re confident that having everyone in the same place will allow us to create higher quality content and deliver with better speed and coordination.

We're incredibly stoked for this new chapter, and we’ll share some office pictures once everyone is settled in!

🔹 Launch Preparations

"Listen to me, Aang. There are options in fighting launching, called jing. It's a choice of how you direct your energy." - Bumi

The Citadel follows the neutral jing, waiting and listening for the right moment to strike. Our goal for launch is to ignite forward momentum that will continue post-release, rather than create a sharp peak of initial hype, to be followed by a cliff after launch.

At the moment, we’re working on lining up:

Coverage for the Playtest

The main purpose of the playtest is to catch bugs and get feedback earlier. However, we believe that it may also be a key opportunity to turn people on to The Citadel. As such, we’re working on gathering some pilots with larger followings who can stream their experience with the game. We'll be inviting people from both the Citizen-01 & Genesis Citize roles to join in on the play-test alongside the architects. Expect more details soon.

Twitter Content

Launch is coming soon, and we want to ensure that we have a barrage of high-quality content prepared for Twitter. To this end, we've been working with our artist team to prepare new pieces that explore the lore of the game and unique concepts within the project. Our plan is to put out quality content in a consistent stream as we approach launch (starting from playtest) instead of resorting to unhealthy engagement farming.

SNEAK PEEK 👀

The Bug Bounty

We’ve already had our contracts audited, but we believe that there is no such thing as being too serious when peoples’ finances are at stake. Soon after the playtest, we will launch a community bug bounty through ImmuneFi. We’ve taken care to coordinate the bounty with them in advance, so all that’s left to do is bring it live. We’re confident in our contracts, but more eyes are always better. For anyone that’s able to find anything, we’re offering rewards up to $50,000 .

A Set of Day Zero Proposals

While we expect governance to start slow and steady, we want there to be solid proposals to consider from launch day forward and showcase the significance of the DAO to the community and those interested in considering joining.

To kick off the process, we have started work on a set of “day zero proposals”, which we plan on publishing immediately upon game launch. They will include upgraded contracts that would add animated ship metadata, additional alternate auctions styles for new ships, a new tactic for further economy stability, and special methods for dealing with Steve Aoki dare he ever set foot in the Citadel. We hope that they will help start discussion and set a good example for the proposals to come.

🔹 State of the Project

Whispers of a Cardinal Sin

In recent weeks, we've been meeting with some well-known entities within crypto and exploring a few ideas for elevating the project to new heights.

While we generally consider it a cardinal sin to give vague descriptions like these instead of actual information, we feel that it is best not to share any details until things are set in stone. Feel free to theorize though in station chat for fun.

Alongside a battle with COVID (spoiler: we won), this has been one of the team’s main focuses over the last few weeks, and one of the main reasons things have been a bit quieter than usual. Rest assured, though: if everything works out, it will be well worth it for the project, community, and the DAO.

Thank you

Since the beginning, The Citadel has first and foremost been a passion project for us. To see what it has grown into even before launch, with multiple people who started out as community members now on the core team, and thousands of others shaping the project by providing ideas and feedback, make us unbelievably excited for the future of The Citadel.

From the whole team, thank you sincerely for your continued support and patience as we work to create the strongest product possible for launch. Despite the delicate nature of the current market, it’s our priority to ensure that we deliver the project that you deserve. Thank you for sticking with us throughout the whole development process. There’s no community we'd rather have at our side as we push toward new frontiers.

What's up next?

To be brief, we’ll likely be spending the remainder of this month completing the GUI and Storybook, and ensuring that the development team’s relocation to Los Angeles goes smoothly. You can expect the GUI and Storybook to be showcased and detailed in the next project update.

Following our current trajectory, the playtest will commence in August, once the full team is here and settled.

You know what's next after that.