Momentum Mod
Momentum Mod Dev Q&A Stream #10 (January)
Just like last time, you may ask us questions to be answered and or discussed live in our Discord server, inside the #qna-live channel! Note that while we may take some questions during the stream, it is better to get your questions in beforehand in the #qna-live channel in the Discord.
We hope to see you there, but just like last time, if you can't make it, we will be uploading the VoD with timestamps to our YouTube channel!
Cheers,
Momentum Mod Team
Momentum Mod Dev Q&A Stream #9 (December)
Just like last time, you may ask us questions to be answered and or discussed live in our Discord server, inside the #qna-live channel! Note that while we may take some questions during the stream, it is better to get your questions in beforehand in the #qna-live channel in the Discord.
We hope to see you there, but just like last time, if you can't make it, we will be uploading the VoD with timestamps to our YouTube channel!
Cheers,
Momentum Mod Team
Defaulting to DX11 Backend
We're defaulting to the DX11 rendering backend that Slidybat and SCell have been hard at work on making. This backend is a completely native DX11 renderer that aims to better take advantage of your system's GPU than DX9 did.
You can note some serious performance improvements, especially in borderless fullscreen mode!
The DX9 backend is still going to be a launch parameter, but keep in mind we are planning to fully remove it in the next couple of months!
Please let us know of any problems you may have in the DX11 backend in our Discord server!
Thanks,
Momentum Mod Team
Momentum Mod Playtest Available for Signup!
Momentum Mod’s 1.0.0 release is going to be pushed back to 2022. More details can be found below.
HOWEVER,
Momentum Mod Playtest is now available for signup! You can find the button on our Steam Store page, under the Wishlist button. Click the “Request Access” button while logged in to the Steam account you’d like to play on, and we’ll be gradually and regularly (weekly) granting access over the upcoming months of development!
Now, those are two huge pieces of news that I’d like to break down, so let’s dig in!
What is this “Momentum Mod Playtest” thing?
Momentum Mod Playtest is the full build of Momentum Mod that players with keys have been enjoying. We’re utilizing Steam’s “Steam Playtest” feature that was recently released as a means to make it easier for players to get access to the build.
This Playtest release is NOT 1.0.0! The Playtest build is still an active Alpha, but instead of it being private, it is now accessible by the public, making the Playtest build the Semi-Public Alpha build. 1.0.0 is considered to be the Full Public Beta. 2.0.0 will be the Full Release of the game. The Playtest build will only last until 1.0.0 releases, where it will deactivate in favor of players moving over to the actual, main Momentum Mod AppID.
You may be wondering, “how’s it easier to grant access?”
Steam Playtest has a dashboard that lets us grant access to a number of players without any discretion other than the number and region where the players are from (effectively “shotgunning” it). All without having to request any keys! This effectively means that it’s no longer a “super secret select VIP club'' to get access, it’s instead more of a “first come first serve” basis to get access!
We’re taking this approach so we can rotate playtesters into the game to get further feedback on core features that are starting to require larger and larger sample sizes (large lobbies, cosmetic systems, rank systems, etc).
Please note that this Playtest build is far from production ready! Since this is the same Alpha build that key-holders play, it has the same bugs, and the same expectations that you’re aware of -- the game is in active development!! The leaderboards will still be fully wiped by 1.0.0 to provide a fresh start, so instead of grinding times, we encourage players to grind the game, specifically breaking as many things as possible before our 1.0.0 launch!
Still, our hope is that this satisfies those that have been looking for access. The public now has a way to try out Momentum Mod before 1.0.0 easily, if they’d like to!
I signed up for the Playtest, when do I get to play??
We will be granting access weekly, with the first drop starting on December 4th! We want to give people enough time to sign up and spread the word, as well as gauge interest and get an overall number of people signing up.
Each access grant will be proportional to the number of players that have requested access. So the exact number won’t be known, but the idea is to use some function like:
f(grants) = 50 + ( requests / 50 )
or something. These numbers aren’t final, and will absolutely be scaled based on the amount of interest and requests we have!
For reference, Momentum has roughly 14,000 wishlists. Assuming all 14k people sign up for access, we would scale it to be something like 150 + ( 14000 / 50 ) which is roughly 430 grants a week. If we’re feeling more confident, we’d increase the base grant number (150) up to something like 250 or so. Or perhaps on a special December day 🎅, we could feel generous and drop 1000 grants! It just all depends, really.
The reason we aren’t doing fully-open access is because the non-stop, unlimited feedback would be absolutely overwhelming for us. Similarly, our server hardware is currently not scaled for potentially thousands of people at once, and may not handle it well yet! We may fully open access if we find an effective way to manage the newer player count and the feedback being received from them, but for now it’s going to be a “staggered” release following the formula above.
Also note that we will still be using manually-generated keys to “fast track” very important players that meet key requirements! So if you fit any of the requirements below, reach out to Gocnak on Discord with proof to get access faster! Otherwise, you’ll have to wait your turn.
Momentum Mod Dev Q&A Stream #8 (November)
Just like last time, you may ask us questions to be answered and or discussed live in our Discord server, inside the #qna-live channel! Note that while we may take some questions during the stream, it is better to get your questions in beforehand in the #qna-live channel in the Discord.
We hope to see you there, but just like last time, if you can't make it, we will be uploading the VoD with timestamps to our YouTube channel!
Cheers,
Momentum Mod Team
Momentum Mod Dev Q&A Stream #7 (October)
Just like last time, you may ask us questions to be answered and or discussed live in our Discord server, inside the #qna-live channel! Note that while we may take some questions during the stream, it is better to get your questions in beforehand in the #qna-live channel in the Discord.
We hope to see you there, but just like last time, if you can't make it, we will be uploading the VoD with timestamps to our YouTube channel!
Cheers,
Momentum Mod Team
Momentum Mod Dev Q&A Stream #6 (September)
Just like last time, you may ask us questions to be answered and or discussed live in our Discord server, inside the #qna-live channel! Note that while we may take some questions during the stream, it is better to get your questions in beforehand in the #qna-live channel in the Discord.
We hope to see you there, but just like last time, if you can't make it, we will be uploading the VoD with timestamps to our YouTube channel!
Cheers,
Momentum Mod Team
Momentum Mod Dev Q&A Stream #5 (August)
Just like last time, you may ask us questions to be answered and or discussed live in our Discord server, inside the #qna-live channel! Note that while we may take some questions during the stream, it is better to get your questions in beforehand in the #qna-live channel in the Discord.
We hope to see you there, but just like last time, if you can't make it, we will be uploading the VoD with timestamps to our YouTube channel!
Cheers,
Momentum Mod Team
Momentum Mod Dev Q&A Stream #4 (July)
Just like last time, you may ask us questions to be answered and or discussed live in our Discord server, inside the #qna-live channel! Note that while we may take some questions during the stream, it is better to get your questions in beforehand in the #qna-live channel in the Discord.
We hope to see you there, but just like last time, if you can't make it, we will be uploading the VoD with timestamps to our YouTube channel!
Cheers,
Momentum Mod Team
0.9.0 Release - Portals, Panorama, and more!
Howdy! 🤠
It’s that time again, and as described in the 0.8.7 blog post, we are marking our 0.9.0 release today! While our playtesters may have been on this code for a while, the effort done by the team bringing all of the goodies below deserves to be highlighted!
So without further ado:
Speedy Thing Goes In, Speedy Thing Comes Out
The biggest, most exciting part of this update is Aperture Science’s very own secret sauce: Portals.
Using the linked_portal_door entity, mappers can now create some mind bending maps, or just seamlessly connect two separate parts of their map. While there are some bugs and limitations, and mappers should still be cognisant of how they’re using them, we’re extremely excited for the potential our mappers now have to create unique gameplay.
If you’re a mapper with a key, Hex has written a guide on how to use these new portals on our docs site! If you’re a mapper without a key, join our Discord server and let Gocnak or Aux know about your skills!
Panoramic View
0.9.0 marks the first release towards implementing our full Panorama UI. With this update, Fingerprince and SlidyBat have implemented a Panorama main menu, settings, and loading screen, with much more on the way!
Up next on the docket is: menu drawer panel, map selector, and of course, the HUD. We will also be implementing more original panels and UX after we finish porting, so stay tuned for those!
Savestates Just Got More… Explosive
Savestates, commonly known as savelocs or checkpoints, have been updated in 0.9.0 to store explosives. Having trouble hitting that quint? Did you fail your super-secret full triple sticky setup? Do you just suck at juggling concs? Have no fear, saved explosives are here!
This is just the start for more work to be done to Savestates. We understand that for mappers and players alike, savestates are the ultimate tool, so we have a lot more planned for Savestates in the future, stay tuned for updates!
What a View (Model)
Our wonderful 3D artist False_ has touched up the Rocket and Sticky launchers, bringing the design more in line with how the 1.0.0 art direction is planned to be. Utilizing PBR to the fullest, these default weapon viewmodels really show how a more modernized rendering pipeline can make the game look better and better!
Rocket launcher:
Sticky Launcher:
Try to Be More Social
We’ve started to expand our social presence as we start to approach our 1.0.0 release.
First off, we’ve created a LinkTree with all of the important Momentum Mod links, all in one spot! If there’s any Momentum to bookmark, this would be the one.
For all the zoomers in chat, we’ve created accounts on two more platforms and plan to add some quick showcase-style content to:
TikTok
While we’re testing the waters on these platforms, the main chunk of content will come closer to and well after 1.0.0, so slap that fatass follow button follow us if you’d like to!
Help Wanted!
The Momentum Mod team is looking for help! We’re in high need for: