Campaign Polish, Vehicle Showcase, and Last Day for Trebuchets + Catapults
Version 0.125 is now live on Steam. It mostly finishes the remaining tasks with the updated campaign, with Bonus Discounts and Star Ratings having had a full balance pass. Showcase vehicles have also seen some updates, and various missions were updated a bit as well. To highlight some of the new stuff, here's a new video showing off some of the recent work (and showcase vehicles in particular):
This marks the last significant build for a while, as I'll be focusing on new game elements (see the previous update for more details) before adding more new islands. I'm glad for the change of pace, as managing/updating/revisions this many islands, missions, and showcase vehicles is a lot to keep track of.
[I'm still undecided about a build with just new parts before the new gameplay elements are done. Leaning towards doing it, but don't want to commit to it quite yet.]
TREBUCHETS AND CATAPULTS
Just a quick reminder that today is the last day to enter your vehicle in July's Featured Vehicle contest. I'll be playing through them all tomorrow morning, and I'm glad to say that I've been looking forward to it. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about having a monthly commitment like this, but so far I really enjoy checking out the creations, and having someone helping out with videos means I don't have to worry about spending the extra 4-8 hours of video editing that comes with each theme.
Still haven't decided on the next theme, and I'm always happy to take suggestions for future themes, so let me know below if you have some ideas for future themes.
0.125 CHANGELIST
Let's wrap up this update with the changelist from version 0.125: * Added/updated bonus discounts for all missions * Added/updated star ratings for all missions * Updated some showcase vehicles (10+) * Updated some missions/objectives * Made mouse cursor not disappear when using gamepad in menus * Fixed Showcase vehicle labels not always correct (how they unlock) * Fixed YouTube-created vehicles being locked * Fixed issue with secret objective on Centaurus * Fixed built-in structure loading issue with custom islands
Playable Islands: Upgraded to 17 (from 10)
Version 0.124 continues the work that 0.123 started, with 7 of the 8 new islands going from a prototype with 1 mode to near-final versions with 3 modes (and 3 showcase vehicles). One of the 8 initial prototypes didn't receive any attention, but the 7 others all showed promise, and I spent a good amount of time playing and revising them until they all felt worthy of inclusion in the game.
[Full changelist at the end of this update]
7 NEW PLAYABLE ISLANDS
Each of the 7 new islands took about 5 or so hours of work to go from prototype to near-final version. 2 of the islands were added to the start of the game (Pisces and Taurus), while the other 5 were added to the mid-to-late section of the map. I'm pretty happy with how they all turned out, though I'll be playing through everything again over the next day or so to record footage, tweak the showcase vehicles, and finalize a couple more things.
[I'll continue to add even more islands as previously stated, but there's stuff I need to do before that. See below for more info.]
The things I need to finalize soon are the star requirements and bonus discounts. I did a quick first pass for Pisces and Taurus on the star requirements, but haven't touched the bonus discounts at all, nor the star cutoffs for the other 5 new islands. I'll be updating bonus/secret discounts for all the normal missions. I'm calling them "bonus" discounts even though they're still "secret" in the game. They will be made slightly more obvious, but will remain separate from the main objectives. Bonus Objectives were a bit too tedious previously, and I want to avoid making players feel like they need to worry about the bonus discounts unless they really want to. They'll remain strictly tied to giving you a boost or challenge for getting 3 stars.
SIDE NOTE: As I add more islands, I'm having doubts about the celestial naming convention. I have trouble remembering the names, and it would probably be easier if they just had some other kind of designation. Numbers might be answer, even though the islands don't need to be played in a particular order, especially towards the 2nd half of the campaign. Something to think about, but not a high priority to change at the moment.
WANTED: MORE VARIETY AND OBJECTIVE TYPES
17 islands is a decent amount, certainly better than 10, but I want to eventually get 30 or more for the main campaign, and arrange them in groups/clusters. Before I get to that point, it felt pretty obvious that I need more *stuff* in the game before I keep adding more content. By stuff I mean obstacles, interactive objects, and new kinds of objectives to complete. New parts (for flying/etc) will be part of that, but the other things are less certain. I have to try a bunch of different ideas, and see what's working and what's not.
I'll also be looking at other vehicle building games to see what types of missions they use. I haven't played Besiege in years, but I should probably check it out again and get past the 1st world, or at least watch some YouTube videos that do. Lots of people have also asked for Blast Corps-style missions, so I'll watch a playthrough of that as well. And of course I'll check out the various Red Faction Guerrilla activities and missions for even more ideas. Though I don't plan on making the player's vehicle take damage/break apart, combative obstacles/enemies of some sort are something I plan to try creating.
I'm sure there are plenty of physics-based puzzles the game could benefit from as well, though those may wait for a special group of islands (with more restrictive building guidelines/etc). Anyway, feel free to throw out ideas for what you want to see in future islands/missions, whether it's just using the current set of elements (such as more terrain-traversal-centric missions) or new game elements you want to see in Instruments of Destruction.
NEXT VERSION AND 0.124 CHANGELIST
Version 0.125 will likely be out next week, with updated star ratings/bonus discounts and other small balance tweaks. The winners of the Trebuchets & Catapults Theme will also be announced. Any stragglers have until next Monday to get those entries in.
No idea when the version after 0.125 will be out. Need to do a decent amount of gameplay prototyping, and that could take a while. If it goes on too long, I'll probably do an interim update with some cool/fun parts to help keep the game fun/interesting (maybe some projectile firing weapon updates).
Version 0.124 includes the following changes: * Polished 7 prototype islands to near final status * Added 7 challenge and 7 expert missions * Added 14 new showcase vehicles * Rearranged the world map to fit the 7 new islands * Increased the UI animation speed * Fixed some explosions applying way too much force * Added initial auto-focus to the world map (centers on an unlocked island first time you open the map)
8 New Prototype Islands + Normal Missions Updated
Version 0.123 is now live, and it includes the most significant campaign changes since the game launched in Early Access. We'll start with the changelist, then break down the major changes and give an overview of upcoming changes.
Changes in version 0.123: * Rearranged world map and changed how islands unlock * Added 8 new prototype islands (normal + sandbox mode only) * Removed normal mode budgets and all bonus objectives * Added specific part requirements to all normal missions * Created/updated showcase vehicles for all normal missions * Added option to detonate fixed bombs with an input (in addition to impact) * Fixed editing a custom island forcing you to always play it in Play mode
WORLD MAP AND UNLOCKING
The singleplayer campaign now uses a data file to create the layout for the world, and link the various islands together. Previously each island stored its location, and which XP level would unlock it, as well as whether or not it showed up in the campaign. Now there's a specific data file that makes arranging islands/etc a lot more centralized, and completing an island now unlocks other linked islands. It's not a major change for players, but it makes adding new islands a lot easier, particularly ones earlier in the game, and it's a bit easier to tweak how islands unlock and are grouped. How the map is drawn has been updated a bit, though the changes are fairly subtle overall.
NORMAL MODE STREAMLINING
I've gotten pretty consistent feedback that the gameplay was a bit tedious at times, and I think this was especially true for Normal mode. The bonus objectives in particular could be time-consuming to finish, or they made accomplishing the main objectives more of a chore (such as on Virgo). So all the bonus objectives are gone. Budgets in Normal mode are also gone, and in their place are Part Requirements. You'll be required to use a specific part for each normal mission. This gives a lot more freedom overall, and it kind of forces you to learn the various parts and how they function. It will also create more distinction between Normal mode and Challenge/Expert. Challenge and Expert mode will remain roughly the same, though specific missions will be tweaked, and the showcase vehicles for these modes will receive an update pass soon.
Speaking of showcase vehicles, all the vehicles for normal missions have been updated, with some having all new vehicles. After all the showcase vehicles have been gotten an update pass, I'll record footage of them all and highlight some of my favorites in a new video.
8 NEW PROTOTYPE ISLANDS
Creating new islands is always exciting, and there are a lot of them in this update. I doubt all 8 of them will be sticking around, but most of them have turned out pretty well. The ones that are more polished are the ones that I think work best, and I'll continue to refine the others, possibly cut/redo a couple, and add more prototypes. I'll be targeting 20 total islands by the end of this refinement period. Normal mode is the primary concern with these islands, but eventually I expect most of them to have missions for all 3 modes. Having all 3 modes is no longer required with the new campaign structure, though each island must have either Challenge mode or Normal mode to appear on the map.
NEAR-TERM PLANS
Now that I've got some good momentum going with the campaign refinement, I'll be continuing to work on various aspects of it until there are 20 polished islands. I'm not actually sure what I'll be doing next, but here are the things remaining to be done:
* Add more prototype islands and refine the less-good ones until there are 20 good islands. * Refine Normal missions and vehicles as needed (not expecting to change a lot except for most of the ProtoX Late islands, and adding/refining secret discount objectives). * Add Challenge/Expert missions for all prototype islands. Might not do all 3 modes for every island, but I'll have at least 2 per island. * Refine the challenge/expert missions and showcase vehicles for existing islands. * Updating all the Star requirements for every mission.
That doesn't look like a lot, but it's a lot of islands and playtesting (and vehicle refinement), so it may take a while. I'll continue to do incremental updates as things go along, so expect a new update once a week until the 20-island campaign is polished. I'll eventually go beyond 20 islands to 25 or more, but I'll want more parts before going beyond 20 islands (particularly aerial movement parts), as well as other gameplay elements to play around with (new objectives, new obstacles, some sort of enemies, etc). Either way, I'll worry about the long-term plans and other big new features (multi-select in build mode, angled blocks in buildings) a bit more after this phase is complete.
TREBUCHETS + CATAPULTS REMINDER
Just a quick reminder to upload your Trebuchets and Catapults to the Steam Workshop (and set the Featured flag as the Vehicle Origin) by July 20th. Still got some time, but there's no harm in uploading sooner than later if your design is complete, and there are no new parts expected before the 20th.
Dropping Tracks, Tanks, and Shadows
Lots of quick little things to go over in today's announcement post.
SOUNDTRACK ON SPOTIFY AND SOUNDCLOUD
Let's start with the biggest and most exciting news to fans of the soundtrack: Part 1 of the Instruments of Destruction Original Soundtrack is now available to stream:
Auvic has done an amazing job on this music, and I'm glad to have most of the songs now easily accessible away from the game. Part 2 of the soundtrack will include the songs not present, along with new tracks coming to the game in the future (no ETA on part 2 yet).
TANKS VIDEO
The TANKS Featured Vehicles video is now ready, so you can see the awesome winners and honorable mentions in action without having to download them all yourself. Thanks to my new video editor Ryan for cranking through the editing of this footage so quickly, and much appreciation to everyone who entered!
VERSION 0.122B - DROP SHADOWS!
Next, a small-ish update went live just a little while ago. Here's the changelist for version 0.122b: * Drop shadows added to most text that had no background * Tripled max delay time for release connector and bomb * Increased XP needed to level up (only affects new players) * Fixed gamepad not controlling camera with Gamepad In Menus turned off
The first one doesn't sound like much at first glance, but it affects the game's look fairly significantly, and is something people have been requesting since the game came out. I finally went through the UI and added drop shadows to nearly all the text that didn't already have some sort of background. I wasn't really excited for drop shadows because it changes the "style" of the UI to be less cohesive (IMO), but it's such a minor stylistic change, and a major improvement to readability, that I have to admit it's an improvement overall no matter how you look at it. If you find any text you think still needs tweaks just let me know.
PROTOTYPE ISLANDS COMING SOON
Last minor announcement is that rather than building out only a couple highly-polished islands at a time (slowly), I'll be taking a different approach to new islands. I'll be generating lots of prototype islands as quickly as I can, and getting those playable in the main campaign for you guys to try. These rough islands will available in play mode, probably to the northeast (up and right) of the current islands. I hope to get lots of prototype islands out over the new few weeks, and refine those that are the most fun.
There's a little under-the-hood work to do to make the campaign more flexible in how islands are sorted, but it's easy work. If all goes well, you should start seeing new islands this week, with many more to come soon.
TANKS Theme Winners and Next Theme: TREBUCHETS + CATAPULTS
The previous Featured Vehicles theme was Skids, and there were not a lot of entries (less than 20 IIRC), so I chose a theme for June that would be a bit more straight-forward and hopefully gain more attention from the community. The change in theme worked better than I expected, and there were 98 tanks to look through by the time I collected some of the stray tanks created over the last month.
Due to the number of entries, the bar for both Featured Vehicles and Honorable Mentions was quite a bit higher than previously. This meant that both style and usability were quite important, and some vehicles that would normally have merited some mention were left off the lists. I don't have a strict 1-entry-per-person policy, but it did end up this time that no one got 2 vehicles onto the main Featured Vehicles section, though a few people had vehicles making both lists. Let's take a look at the lists first, then a little more discussion about what stood out:
FEATURED VEHICLES
Walking Tank 777 - Pyroteknikid
Railgun Tank - pephoro
Not a Guntank - Kozuel
Lasifyer - surgexs123
SST Rail - Iro_art_
Starwars Droid Snail Tank - Dangospark117
Bridge Tank - Astronaut
H-377 Peacekeeper - Neo_Runner
Comfortable Laser Tank
Cylontknight Scanner Tank - wc4513
World Shaker Minigun Tank - Kaijp
Rocket Tank - TheUsualSuspect
CSL-26 Croiseur Terreste - StRaNgEr
Raider Tank - ZyberFairy
Tornado - FiniX
Salutaris - detaal
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Railgun Tank ARMAGEDDON
Tonk!
First Huge Tank
U.H.T - Goliath
False Screw Tank (Fire)
Walking Tank
MANTIS Missile Tank
Scorpi-Tank 3.0
Saw Runner Ultima V2
S0519-Lux.Rad-Tank
Samurai Tank
Tiny Tank
Iron Warden
Realistic Tank
Realistic Tank (big)
M5 Armageddon
Heavy Armored Tank
Twin Tanks + Control Car
Pulsar Reactor
AZL1 Strike Tank mk.2
Illuminati Pyramid Tank
Tank Dozer
STUG
Rototo X3000
Imperial Wall Breacher
The Futuristic Tank
The Rhino Tank
Smash A Whirl XL
[If someone wants to create a version of the list with the creator names of the Honorable Mentions, I'll update the list above so it has them listed. Steam doesn't make it quick/easy to see creator names in the search results.]
There were a lot of very impressive custom-built treads among the entries, but unfortunately most of them really bogged down my fairly-decent PC, while others just had trouble sticking together with the default physics settings (turning up joint stabilizer would just kill the framerate more in most cases). There were also a number of large cannons/weapons that happened to have treads as a means of propulsion, and only a few of those made either list. I tended to favor vehicles that were more tank-like, as well as those that were relatively easy to use effectively. So some more stylish vehicles that could barely turn/aim or were very difficult to utilize correctly didn't rank as high as they would have otherwise.
Either way, I really appreciate the collective efforts that were put into this Featured Vehicle theme. The creativity and engineering used in these vehicles is inspiring, and I'm happy to spend the time trying out all the entries each month.
JULY'S THEME: TREBUCHETS + CATAPULTS
The theme for July's Featured Vehicles is Trebuchets + Catapults. The deadline will be July 20th for entries, which is exactly 4 weeks from today. The intended island to use is Test Island. If your vehicle is intended to be used on a different island (such as Sandbox Resort), please mention that in the 3-line description.
The "vehicles" this time don't need to move in any particular way. Whether they need to be attached to the ground or not is up to you (using attachers), but the objective is to damage/destroy the large building at the center of Test Island with a vertically swung/tossed projectile. The projectile(s) can be explosive. [Note that we'll have a separate ballista/crossbow-like theme later, so save those kinds of ideas/designs for later.]
Rockets/magnets/etc are allowed as part of the throwing mechanisms, but preferably not used on the projectile (unless used creatively). Using physics/gravity/ropes rather than powered parts will probably give you an edge in the final judging, as will having a limited number of buttons needed, but sometimes complex machines can be surprisingly effective/cool, so I don't want to rule anything out as long as it's tossing the projectile using a swinging motion of some kind (underhand or overhand is preferred to side-arm). Really looking forward to seeing what you guys come up with for this theme!
CAMPAIGN FOCUS
There's been a lot of focus on advanced user features and new parts over the first few months of Early Access, but not a lot on the main campaign. There are some other advanced features I want to get to sooner than later (multi-select in vehicle building, and angular/rotated blocks), but I think I've neglected the campaign for too long, so I'm going to be focusing on improving the existing islands/missions as well as adding new islands for a while. I want the first hour of the game to be more enjoyable for new players, do a better job of introducing parts over time, and give the game a bit more meat for those who want objectives/goals to aim for rather than sandbox-focused building.
The vehicle building learning curve is also pretty steep, so I need to figure out some way of smoothing it out a bit more. The built-in (showcase) vehicle list also could use some updating. I'll need to think about these things a bit more, but either way, expect some changes/additions to Play mode in the next few weeks.
WHERE'S THE VIDEO?
This post was supposed to have a video along with it, but when I went to export the finished version from Davinci Resolve, it refused to export. So I saved the project and restarted. That's when I discovered the project file itself was somehow corrupted. All but the first 15 minutes of work on the video was gone. Around 8 hours of editing/etc was lost to a bug of some kind. Definitely one of the worst feelings when you create digital work. Not sure saving to a backup project would have helped, but I'll be more cautious with the program in the future.
I still have all the raw footage from the testing, and hope to have a video created by sometime next week. Redoing work is usually faster the second time through, or I may get someone to help out with the editing process. Sorry for the delay.
Version 0.122a Changelist
Changes in Version 0.122a: Added variable strength to Ultra Heavy part (affects mass) Fixed aiming laser advanced mode label Fixed vortex push mode being a bit weaker than it should have been Fixed Vacuum/Vortex not reversing correctly in Normal mode Brightened the impact effects of aiming laser More building collapse tweaking Update bomb model (more cylindrical, slightly narrower) Fixed Bomb now detonates immediately less often Fixed some geometry being duplicated on 2 panel parts (created blue flashing on spawn)
New Part Party: Fixed Bomb, Turbine Vacuum, Vortex, and More
Development has returned to a normal (aka faster) pace the last few days, and this update has coalesced into one that features some significant new parts. Let's get into the changelist first, then we'll get into the new vehicle parts. [As has been usual recently, I made a video to focus on the newest features, so if you prefer that to reading, check it out below the changelist.]
Version 0.122 changes: * New Part: Fixed Bomb - Attach it to anything, it'll explode on a hard impact (strength affects how hard the impact has to be). * New Part: Vortex - Generates a gravity field that pulls or pushes on all nearby objects/structures/etc. * New Part: Turbine Vacuum - Works similarly to the Vortex, but has a strong directional element. * New Part: Drill and Drill XL - A spinning tool of destruction. * New Part: Aiming Laser - Line things up, more or less. * Added 2 new build music tracks (cycles through them each time you go to build mode currently). * Minor updates for 2 gameplay music tracks (Destruction Complete and Manic Designs). * More code adjustments to make buildings disintegrate even less than before. * Fixed an issue where blocks acted like they were falling in water (when they weren't). * Structure Editor: Probably fixed an issue where saving a structure would appear to overwrite the old one (until you restarted the game).
Here's the video highlighting the new parts:
Many of these parts have been highly requested, so hopefully they live up to everyone's expectations. The Aiming Laser in particular is one I never imagined, but there were a number of requests for a way to visually line things up, so it made sense and was quite simple to add. The rest were a bit more work.
The Fixed Bomb had many potential directions to go, and I decided on the attached and collision triggered version. I will likely add a way to detonate it with a button, as I'm sure there will be requests for that, but I think this design provides the best basic interaction that lends itself to many uses. It's a simple part but does create some new design options and potential challenges (in the future) for the main campaign.
The Turbine Vacuum and Vortex use the same basic code, though each uses a number of different settings/functions for interacting with other objects. I think the Vacuum is more interesting because of its directional nature, and the Vortex is essentially a magnet of sorts without the metal requirements. Both of them are reversible and can be overdriven, and the way they push or pull buildings apart is quite satisfying.
Finally, the Drill (+ Drill XL) is a frequent request. It uses the same code as the Circular Saw, but I added a new way to destroy stuff faster when it's spinning (which was also added to the saw). It works, but I don't think it's particularly cool or going to create new design possibilities the way the other parts will. If you have any ideas on how to make it better/more satisfying, I'm definitely open to suggestion.
Tanks Slight Delay
Due to a family trip I forgot about when setting the deadline, the next Featured Vehicles theme (Tanks) won't be reviewed/updated until June 21st/22nd or so. Sorry for the slight delay, but I'm really looking forward to seeing what everyone has come up with this time!
Next Update Plans
After flailing around for a few weeks, I finally feel like I'm back on track for the most part. It feels good to get a new update out with a good amount of quality content in it. At the same time, I do have that family trip coming up, so the next update will be a couple weeks out at least. My goal is get least 2 new islands (and 6 new missions) into the game 2-3 weeks from now.
Beyond those 2 islands, I want to re-balance the single player campaign so it has more interesting challenges and "forced" uses of certain parts to highlight their utility. I think shorter missions with straight-forward objectives are also the way to go. The current missions are not that bad, but they can be tedious at times.
Virgo's Normal mission, for instance, takes way too long to complete. In theory, having to destroy a target without destroying the surrounding ruins is fine, but having to destroy so many tough walls with fairly high precision just isn't that fun. I think I also need to use the environment/islands to create more challenge/interest without making the islands too claustrophobic.
When all this re-balancing happens, it's quite likely the star score cutoffs for the current islands will be changed, and the unlocking order for parts/etc will be changed too.
Big Building Update
Version 0.121 is now out! It features a bunch of new large structures, 3 new/updated Sandbox islands, and some improvements to how destruction works (particularly with large structures). Here's the full changelist:
* Added a bunch of new large structures (towers, office buildings, warehouses, and bridges). * Added a new Sandbox island to test bridges (Bridge Tester). * Updated Structure Zoo 1 + 2 and made Structure Zoo 1 the default. * Improved structural collapses so buildings insta-crumble far less often. * Reduced debris flying up way too fast from a block breaking into pieces. * Improved particle debris so it doesn't bounce crazy high. * Fixed some sides being damaged (or not) when they shouldn't be as structures break apart. * Changed how treads collide so they glitch out far less often. * Island Editor: Improved how built-in structures are referenced so custom islands won't lose references in the future (See ISLAND EDITOR NOTE below). * Structure Editor: Added a warning if decals are not connected to a block. * Structure Editor: Added a button to select disconnected decals. * Structure Editor: Fixed sound fading out over time in the test mode. * Island Editor: Fixed multiple small issues with the ground editor.
ISLAND EDITOR NOTE: If you've built a custom island that references built-in structures, those structures will be incorrect. Adding/changing new structures to the built-in list broke them, sorry! This shouldn't happen again in the future (after the level is saved), even as more structures are added.
To show off the new stuff, I made another video. I think this format works the best for me because I don't have to worry about VO and that makes them fast to record/edit (recording also doubles as extra testing session).
Some of you may notice this is not the 0.121 update I had said it would be. Here's some background on why that is:
After the 0.120 update, I planned to work on new islands for a while. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with the new islands, so I procrastinated by working on a new version of Draco to test all the new terrain features and find any other issues with the in-game editors. While that new version of Draco isn't in the game yet, the editors did get some refinement, and I felt ready to figure out some island ideas.
While working out what new island designs/concepts to build, I decided I wanted to push the limits of how large buildings could be in the game and have these massive buildings/structures be the focus of some new islands. I started to work on the larger structures, but kept running into small problems. The limits of the game were just a bit too low, particularly the number of maximum links between pieces in a structure. So I increased some numbers, but as I worked on large towers and such, debris was not looking as natural as it should, with too much stuff flying up randomly, and small particle debris bouncing far too high.
The particle debris was easy enough to fix, but it took me way longer than it should have to figure out where the fast-flying medium debris was coming from (it was mostly from incorrectly initialized variables). Once that was finally resolved, I spent a while tweaking numbers to prevent the instant-crumble phenomenon that happened pretty frequently when larger towers started to collapse.
Eventually I got some new towers in, and a couple new office buildings (one of them is not in the video/sandbox island because it's not very unique and will likely get revised). The warehouses and bridges took a bit more time to get right, as they required yet more destruction/stress tuning (as well as general experimentation).
I realized while working on all these structures that they should be the focus of this update, and I'd work on new campaign islands after. So new islands are still coming, but it'll be a little while longer.
Long-Term Structure Improvements
Now that this update is done, I think it's pretty obvious I need to make a significant change to allow much better long-term variety in structures. That change is adding support for some sort of wedge or skewed box as part of a structure. As everything about structures and blocks uses a standard box shape, it's not going to be an easy change, but I can think of a few different approaches that might help make it a little easier to add.
I'll also make it possible to rotate blocks/building arbitrarily once that happens, but there's no rush quite yet. I doubt I'll be adding many new structures after this update (until the change happens), as the structural style will change quite dramatically when it happens. I need to think more about the problem before I commit to any sort of timeframe. There are also other dramatic changes I might want to do first, such as multi-select in vehicle build mode.
Adventures in Failing to Focus
To be honest, the past few weeks have been a bit of struggle in terms of my work consistency. Some of the things I've been working on have been pretty tedious, but my productivity problem has been more mental than anything else. I've been doing less programming lately, and that means I have a harder time focusing. Working on structures/islands/art/etc is relatively straight-forward and my mind has always wandered while doing that kind of work. I won't get into details, but that's lead to more problems and distractions than usual lately.
Some of the recent struggles are just due to burnout from working 10+ hours for 6 months, and part of is a natural cycle I tend to go through. Usually the best thing for me to do (when focus is hard) is to just work on anything on the game, regardless of whether it's important or not. Just need to find something that seems fun and easy and do that. Eventually the focus will return and my abnormally high productivity with it.
May Featured Vehicles: Skids Edition
May's featured vehicle theme was Skids, and and I was quite impressed with the quality of the vehicles submitted. I played them all and selected 5 honorable mentions along with 8 new featured vehicles. Like last time, I created a video to showcase the selections:
Though I don't rank the vehicles, the highlights for me this time were Skid Rides, Crazy Speed Skid, Santa's Sleigh On Steroids since they nailed the overall direction of utilizing skids in a fast and unique vehicles.
Next Theme: TANKS
The monthly timeframe seems to be about right to me, so I'll be sticking with that for the next theme. The deadline for TANKS will be June 15th, and I'm looking for a focus on style and usability. Destruction power is nice, but not much of a challenge with all the parts available. A vehicle that is fun to drive and use (and moderate destructive power) is much preferred over something with 20 lasers, for instance.
Upcoming Updates
I've been a little slower on the update front lately, as I've become a bit obsessed about trying to diversify the terrain style a bit more, and have been experimenting with various combinations of settings using the ground editor. I've been doing some significant edits to Draco in particular, and expect to see a new version of it soon.
A new update with various fixes/improvements is coming this week, and I'll be adding at least one new island in that update. I expect 2-3 new islands in the near future, then will add some more parts. Beyond that, I will be figuring out how to get custom islands to work in non-Sandbox modes (more of an interface issue than a technical/code one), and add Steam Workshop support for custom islands.
Thanks for everyone's patience while the editors have been getting worked on. They are heavily geared towards my workflow over ease-of-use, and I hope to create some videos of me using them soon-ish. The upside is it's a lot easier to make new content now, so I expect to double or triple the gameplay content by the end of the year (while also adding/improving lots of other stuff).
Version 0.120 Changelist
* Added ground editing to layout editor * Changed how ground data is saved in game * Added objective editing to layout editor (currently hidden) * Added warning message for too much grass/rock generated (layout editor) * Extended reflection probe so it reaches the full height of the sky (and far beyond) * Fixed default control customization UI not working * Fixed deleting objectis in Sandbox also deleting treads * Lowered base laser sound volume
