[Performance Patch!] Massive FPS boost for DoN. Please report your new FPS!
Now enjoy Drunk On Nectar with smoother frame rates!
If you've had any performance issues whatsoever with the game (or even if not), please download this patch and report your new FPS! The patch should massively boost your frame rates across mid-end, low-end and even high-end GPUs.
Please download this patch and report your FPS here or in the FPS Survey thread!
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Still having performance issues?
If your performance is still not satisfactory after this patch, please report your FPS and system details in the FPS Survey thread! straight away! That's the best way to ensure that sufficient attention can be devoted to your specific setup.
Improved Medium and Low video presets
High/Medium/low video settings have been vastly improved to deliver a much better visuals-to-performance ratio. This allows mid-range hardware to still run a good looking game while achieving consistently high frame rates.
High is the default video setting now. If you have a powerful system do take the time to up your video settings to Ultra(/Epic) to enjoy the best possible visuals the game has to offer.
Let's take a closer look
If you have any feedback on the new visuals, please post those too :)
Video Setting: High, Life Of Animals Mode, Ladybug,
Video Setting: High, Life Of Animals Mode, Dragonfly
Video Setting: High, Life Of Animals Mode, Jumping Spider
Video Setting: Epic, Nature Sandbox mode
Reminder: FPS Survey
Please post your new FPS in the FPS Survey thread! This will greatly help in validating the success of this performance patch, so do take the time :)
Before moving on to new content it is now imperative to ensure that players across different hardware are able to enjoy the existing product to the maximum, so the ongoing theme of polish, bugfixes and performance improvements will continue for at least a couple of weeks.
Feedback is welcome!
With ❤,
Venugopalan Sreedharan
[Build v2.6] Drunk On Nectar 2017 Trailer - "One With Nature"
Check out DoN's brand new trailer showcasing how far the game has come since its EA foray on Steam!
https://youtu.be/6c0GtCIB_w4
Special build v2.6 To celebrate the new trailer this build comes with a ton of bugfixes, enhancements and polish to the existing product. Here's a quick overview:-
Interaction Cues
Glowing highlights are now used to show creatures(/items) you can interact with. UI messages have been cleaned up to be more subtle.
Species Info
Walk up to any species and you'll now see the species name and its relationship to you on a new panel in the right side of the HUD. This also tells you if a creature is poisonous!
Sensory Alerts
Did an ant smell you?
Or did a spider sense your vibrations?
Or a Dragonfly perceived you with its keen vision?
Now you'll see exactly which creature sensed you and how on the lower left corner of the HUD. Use this in maps like the Ladybug/Beetle Creature Quest to plan your way around the ants!
Smoother camera transitions
Camera transitions are now no longer abrupt. Eg: If you're falling down the camera now smoothly follows.
Sandbox bugfixes
Nearly the entire trailer was made using DoN's powerful Sandbox mode, so to facilitate that a number of bugfixes have gone into this build. Quick mentions include: Brush mode throttling when the mouse position hasn't changed, outliner duplicates, camera issues while possessing a Sandbox creature and many more.
As a lot of changes have gone into this build, please report any issues should you run into them!
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Once again, here is DoN's 2017 trailer - "One With Nature":
https://youtu.be/6c0GtCIB_w4
Feedback / requests are welcome!
With ❤,
Venugopalan Sreedharan
Big Sandbox update - Brush mode + 16 new items
The Sandbox mode is a big part of DoN's offering while the other game modes continue to grow the Sandbox will not be left far behind.
This update adds a brush mode for placing creatures/plants (requested by the community!) and provides access to 16 new props (stones/branches/trees) that can be placed by you to transform the map.
Here's a full video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAidAMGOk8I
And to whet your appetite, here are some GIFs :D
1. Brush mode - planting made easy
2. Add creatures rapidly
Swarm of male and female Jumping Spiders :p
3. Ants placed with the new brush tool
4. New Trees available to plant:
5. Sandbox Baby caterpillars!
6. Of Ladybirds & Leaves:
7. Conclusion - Give DoN's Nature Sandbox a Go!
Again, here is the full video :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAidAMGOk8I
How can I save my Sandbox Creations?
This is a shortcoming that still needs to be addressed. There is no way to save your creations (yet). On the bright side, this will come in a future update. A Sandbox-driven Level Editor (create your own Creature Quests!) with Steam Workshop support is planned too. Once the current backlog of updates is cleared, save/load functionality will be taken up.
Feedback for Sandbox mode
The brush feature actually came about as community feedback, so if you'd like to see anything else in the Sandbox don't hesitate to ask! The more feedback the game receives about existing mechanics/features, the more rapidly it can grow and improve.
That's it for this update! In-Game tutorial maps for all creatures will be coming next.
With ❤,
- Venugopalan Sreedharan
Full Beetle Gameplay Video, Bugfix patch v2.4.3
Whether its dumping Ants in water, nailing airborne snatches on Mealybugs, or anything else Ladybird related, this 20 minute uncut gameplay video should have you covered!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0HyClx9N7Y
Future plans for DoN and how-to-play-as-an-Ant are also revealed at the end of the video so do check out all of it when you get the time :)
Bugfixes - Build 2.4.3
This patch contains the following bugfixes:
Rebinding keys via keyboard no longer causes Gamepad controls to show up.
Chemo Vision hint is now persistent until the player uses chemo at least once. This is to encourage new players to use chemo vision as the primary means of discovering creatures/items. When you're such a tiny creature it can take a really long time to explore by sight alone :)
"You Win! The Plants say "Thank You" - Victory text when you complete the Beetle mission now shows up properly (for those wondering why the Plants say "thank you" (this is story mode after all!), it's because Mealybugs and Plants are not friends! That's indeed the backstory behind the Beetle mission)
In-Game Tutorials
In-Game tutorials for all creatures will be worked on this week. There are many not-so-obvious mechanics in the game which are yet a big part of the gameplay experience.
As more and more new players come to Drunk On Nectar (DoN has enjoyed a huge growth spurt in the past month!), it is important to ensure that players are made aware of everything the game has to offer.
Feedback for Beetle mission
Do try out the Beetle mission (errm, Creature Quest) and provide your feedback! Your feedback is vital in ensuring that DoN continues to grow and improve on all fronts every single day!
With ❤,
Venugopalan Sreedharan
Patch released for Beetle quest, give it a try again!
Several bugfixes have been released for "The Curious Triad" Creature Quest (featuring Beetles, Ants and the Mealybug).
Time of day / Nightfall fix
* Night-time no longer occurs within the first five minutes of gameplay (this was a bug)
* Night-time Chemo vision is now vastly improved, so when night-time does occur you can rely on chemo vision to get around
Now dump Mealybugs in water!
You can now dump a Mealybug into the lake and it still counts as a successful strike. Previously you'd reach a stalemate if any of the Mealybugs fell into the water (this can easily happen when an ant bites you while you're grappling with the Mealybug)
Other improvements
* Beetle camera distance increased to make it easier to see. You can always use the mouse-wheel to zoom in/out too.
* Beetle flight speed now easier to control; deceleration boosted (press S/back). You can also press Space to hover in mid-air!
* The beetle no longer falls off while grappling ants
* Stamina of the ants is now shown when they're clinging onto you, so you can plan around tiring them out.
* Audio effects improvements.
* Added option to disable mouse for turning creatures upon user request.
If any issues are hampering your enjoyment of the Ladybird quest please report it! Your feedback is a vital tool to improving the product; if you find something off, just report it so it can be fixed!
With ❤,
Venugopalan Sreedharan
PS: Be the first one to get your name on the leaderboard :D
[Major Release] New Creature Quest is out! *Feat* Ladybugs, Ants, Mealybugs
Play it now!
Featuring Ladybugs, Ants and Mealybugs, "A Curious Triad" is the latest Creature Quest added to DoN.
How long will you take to nail down all the Mealybugs? :D The Leaderboards await your pleasure!
In-Game Tutorials!
The Ladybird Beetle comes with a fun in-game tutorial covering Flight, Chemo vision, Stealth, etc. Existing creatures will also get a tutorial in the coming days! Your feedback about the dated tutorial pages has been heard.
Visual Improvements - Detailed Textures
From landscape to leaf, all textures carry a lot more detail now. The challenge has been the size of Ladybugs/Ants; they're are so tiny (they make a Jumping Spider look huge) that detail which was sufficient for larger creatures were no longer detailed enough for them. With these improvements, now the tiny Monarch caterpillar also benefits from a better looking leaf :)
Performance Improvements
This major update also carries several performance tweaks. While there's still more room for optimization, this build significantly reduces the game's texture memory consumption on the GPU.
How do I play as Ants?
In this update, you play as the Ladybug. You can cheat around this in Sandbox mode by placing an ant and becoming it, but player gameplay for Ants hasn't been built yet. This will come in a future update. This build features A.I. ants farming scale insects in return for protection.
What's Next
Current focus is on polishing this update and monitoring your feedback for the new quest.
After that the possible options are to
1) Resume Multiplayer work (it's been coming along, but delayed due to technical issues) or
2) Add new quests for other creatures or
3) Finish Lifecycle work for all existing creatures in the game or
4) Add Praying Mantis / Lacewing to this Creature Quest.
Either way, future updates will be posted more frequently to avoid long periods in-between builds; Your great patience in waiting for today's update to come out is much appreciated :)
So keep the feedback coming, with so many possible directions to branch off into, knowing what excites you the most is always helpful in forging the road ahead!
With ❤,
Venugopalan Sreedharan
PS: Yes, the game needs a new trailer now that this update is out!
PPS: Use the beetle's flight ability to carry and dump Ants away from any areas you need access to. More advanced techniques like this are hidden for you to find ;)
[New Species Preview] Ants + Ladybugs + Mealybugs
Ants, Ladybugs and Mealybugs form a curious trio and they're arriving to DoN in the next update!
https://youtu.be/VK-YqUKRtTk
Check out this video to see what's headed your way :)
This update is releasing on 6th June 2017.
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Watch out for the Ants!
Ants are very protective of their scale insects whom they farm for a drink of honeydew.
So be careful when you go out there!
New Mechanics
Swarming/Clinging onto creatures is a new fun mechanic that the ants will employ.
Beetles beware! You'll need to shake off the ants....somehow ;)
More GIFs
Chemo vision will play a vital role!
An in-game tutorial is also being built to make these mechanics easier to learn.
Appreciate your patience in waiting for this update to come out, all efforts are underway to make the wait worth it for all of you :)
Grab this update next week!
With ❤,
Venugopalan Sreedharan
Ladybird Beetle WIP News + Major bugfix for movement
Announcing Venu's Garden: A new series of Creature Quests
Inspired by real-life Nature stories being enacted right now in DoN's living garden, comes the next series of Creature Quests:
War has been declared against the animal family Pseudococcidae, the dreaded Mealybugs.
Even as I type this, these mindless plant parasites eke a living destroying the very plants that support them. And they must be stopped, at any cost!
Form a crack-team of expert assassins
Whether your chosen battleground is Singleplayer or Co-op or Multiplayer, choose a squad of intrepid invertebrates to complete this quest, but choose wisely:
Your efforts will be thwarted by ants farming and protecting the Mealy ones. Spiders and other opportunists will be waiting for you and for your insect pollinators friends.
You win when the plants win.
* Eliminate the enemies of the plants.
* Provide a safe space for insect pollinators to complete an entire cycle of pollination.
* Ensure future generations of plants can grow, reproduce and thrive.
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Venu's Garden - Part I - Ladybugs meet Mealybugs
Ladybugs will take center-stage in the first Creature Quest in this series.
Play as a Ladybug mysteriously arrived in an undergrowth infested with Mealybugs. Ants will fiercely protect their cattle of Aphids and Mealybugs, so be prepared for a fight!
More news on this new Creature Quest will be shared as development continues!
Until then dream of Ladybugs climbing those tall wooden stalks!
With ❤,
- Venugopalan Sreedharan
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[PS] Milkweed update Video Overview:
For those who haven't seen the video overview of the Milkweed Release yet, here it is!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGWDWbOv7AA
Milkweed plants released. Sandbox mode gets new content!
Milkweed plants released
Huge, tall Milkweed plants have arrived. Apart from their dazzling flowers, they add great verticality to DoN's landscape; it takes a creature almost a minute to climb from base to the apex of a milkweed, that's how huge they are in-game!
A Milkweed Trip
Caterpillar gameplay revised
Monarch Caterpillars now spawn on Milkweed leaves (as they should). The view from up there is lovely and caterpillar gameplay now benefits from the Milkweed's morphology: you now need to travel along the woody stems of the Milkweed from leaf to leaf, something that was missing in the previous caterpillar gameplay.
Sandbox Mode finally gets new content!
You can now plant caterpillar eggs, 5th Instar caterpillars, adult Monarchs in the Sandbox. It's quite amusing peppering the map with caterpillars and watching them amble towards the nearest Milkweed :)
New Fauna Options
You can now also plant mature versions of Milkweed plants/Orange Lilies/Knapweed/Fern straight away to quickly fill a landscape. You can still plant saplings and watch them grow like before too.
New Flora Options
Paint-brush mode for quickly placing items onto the map is coming soon.
Misc
A video overview will be shared tomorrow so we can take a closer look at the Milkweed patch, there's a lot of improvements across the board gone into this build.
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Some major announcements on new content will also be shared in the next couple of days, keep your eyes peeled :)
