Progress Report: 0 "The Last Year"
Over the past year, the Cosmic Vessel project has grown from an early idea into a structured development project across multiple areas including design, programming, art, narrative, and audio.
This post looks back at what we have worked on so far and where the project is heading next.
Laying the foundations
The early stages of development focused on building the core systems for the class and making sure everything had a clear direction.
We started by designing and implementing cantrips and early level spells, along with the first version of the transformation system. At the same time, narrative planning began with the origin character, quest structure, and how everything could fit naturally into the existing world.
Weapons, armour, and items were also fully designed during this stage before any modelling began. This helped ensure consistency across the project and gave each department something solid to work from.
This phase took time, but it was important to get things right early so later work would be smoother.
Expanding the project
As development progressed, more content and more people were added to the project.
Spell development continued through higher levels, with a focus on keeping abilities interesting while still balanced. At the same time, new team members joined across art, programming, writing, and design.
This is when visual development properly began. Concept art started for armour, weapons, icons, and characters, and early 3D modelling work followed from those designs.
Narrative work continued in the background, gradually moving from broad planning into more detailed structure.
Overall, this was a period where the project started to take clearer shape.
Strengthening the core
A large part of development was spent on work that is not always visible.
We spent time improving workflows, restructuring parts of the project, and making sure everything could scale properly as the team grew. This included better organisation, clearer pipelines, and making it easier for different teams to work together.
We also brought in a dedicated sound team, which allowed us to start work on music, ambience, and audio design.
While this phase did not produce a lot of visible output, it has made a big difference to how smoothly the project now runs.
Building a public presence
As things became more stable internally, we started preparing to share the project more publicly.
Work began on the Cosmic Vessel website, which will act as a central place for updates, artwork, and information about the project.
At the same time, we started developing a project showcase. The goal of this is to give a clear overview of what Cosmic Vessel is and what we have been building so far.
Where we are now
The project has now moved into a more active production phase, with multiple areas progressing at once.
The showcase video, which has been in development since late last year, is now in its final stages of editing and will be released soon. It will also be featured on the front page of the website.
Our writing team has moved fully into production. After spending a long time planning and structuring the story, they are now writing quests, dialogue, and narrative content.
Music development is underway, with new tracks being created both for use in the project and as standalone pieces.
The team has grown to around 36 active members, along with a small number of advisors. We are continuing to expand as needed across different areas.
We are also in the early planning stages of a new explorable location that will play an important role in the narrative.
Art development continues steadily, with more concept work being created and ongoing progress in 3D modelling.
VFX work is beginning to come together, which will help bring the spells and abilities to life visually.
On the programming side, we are close to finishing the core class spell list, with over 100 spells developed so far.
We are also preparing a broader marketing push, including new social media accounts and dedicated spaces to share behind the scenes artwork and development progress.
How we approach the project
We are not a professional studio, but we are trying to approach this project in a structured and thoughtful way.
That means planning things properly, taking time to refine ideas, and making changes where needed instead of rushing work out. A lot of what has happened over the past year has involved revisiting designs, reworking systems, and improving earlier decisions.
The goal is to create something that feels complete and well thought out, while also giving everyone involved a chance to learn and build their skills.
Looking ahead
With the showcase and website release, the project is now much more visible.
We will be sharing more updates, artwork, and development insights as things progress. This blog will also be used for more updates going forward as well as short summary updates available in our Discord Server.
Getting involved
As the project grows, we are always open to bringing in new people who want to contribute.
We are looking for people who are interested in being part of a collaborative project and who want to help improve what we are building.
If that sounds like something you would enjoy, feel free to reach out and apply here.
Thank you to everyone who has supported the project so far. Whether you have followed along, shared the project, or contributed directly, it all helps.
We are looking forward to showing more of what we have been working on soon!
The Cosmic Vessel Project Team