Hi ! I hope you are all doing great ! This update is entirely dedicated to all of you, posting on the forums, finding bugs and suggesting improvements and features ! Let's get to it.
This update is one of these times when one thing leads to another. As you know, wheel support was a little bit clunky, and to be honest I was never truly happy about it. That was just the best solution I could come up with at the time. So, many tries later, new version is finally here ! Now you can use multiple input devices, H-shifter and bind buttons ! I will add a new thread on the forum to track supported wheels and any issues with this new system.
Wheel support rework led to another major issue of how the cars were driven. Let me clarify, before this update wheels were driven by determining their rotation (not torque applied). This was fine in most cases and allowed for having locked differentials. However, having rotation determined by function posed a problem, how to simulate open differential behavior. The solution was to torque driven and to put an actual, fully physics driven differentials with locking option and it worked ! Now everything regarding drivetrain is pure physics !
Another long awaited fix are the brakes. Before, they were composition of applying reverse torque and predefined rotation. Now they are driven by the actual friction on discs brakes !
With all that implemented, there was finally a good time to finish up UI. It had to make room for key bindings, hence improved wheel support , so I touched it up across the game too.
Full list of changes:
more lift options
fixed bug with customization data tables
new options menu
improved suspension stability
vehicle select no longer kick back to main menu
improved navigation in customization menu
options menu stores previously selected settings
gear up/down binding for wheels
new torque based physics
new brake system that is proportional on controllers/wheels
physical differential
improved wheel/device support
wheel support key bindings
H-shifter support
camera sensitivity option now has more range
selected vehicle is stored as default
new map/stage UI
removed level cap and timer from levels
Thank you again for all the suggestions that led to this update ! I hope I solved most of the main issues you had with Pure Rock Crawling. I am now jumping straight back to making a new map ! Cheers !
DEVBLOG
Hi ! I hope you are all doing great ! It's time to reveal part of the upcoming update which is the new map !
As you may remember I visited USA to capture photogrammetry assets for my game. I finally feel confident to show you how its coming together. Many things changed during this time, new engine versions, new ideas, new techniques that I had learned, it all allowed me to put this environment together.
Still, a great deal of work ahead of me. I want this update to be complete not only on the visual level. More on that when the time comes ;)
Thanks for your patience ! Take care !
CUSTOMIZATION UPDATE
Hi ! I hope you are all doing well ! This update finally fills customization options with skins and vinyls for the trucks !
You can now customize trucks with vinyls to go with base color or totally change the appearance by choosing skin. This concludes how I wanted the customization to look like in Pure Rock Crawling.
Of course more content for customization will be coming in the future !
Other update notes:
Items are now previewed before buying
Fixed bug that caused unlocked diffs to not be fully unlocked - now turning radius is greatly improved when riding on unlocked
Have fun customizing your trucks, as always I am open to suggestions ! Take care !
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ! - customization update
Hi ! I hope you are all well ! Pure Rock Crawling is celebrating 3rd birthday ! To celebrate this, all remodeled vehicles are getting new parts for visual customization !
With this update new menu is finally being filled with new items for you to equip on your trucks ! Enjoy new bumpers, roll cages, fenders and doors.
So one year ago I wrote this:
"And for the future plans, first lets take a look at what i wrote a year ago:
update car models, as well as suspension, i think i can do much better now
rework customization, I want to make something that would really let you feel like building dream rock crawler. Different tire sizes/types, axles that actually change something, being able to chose between spring or leaf suspension, more cosmetic items etc., so that's something that i want to work hard on.
different progression system, since i find levels/credits in current form a little annoying
multiplayer and mod support, so these are the tough ones. Don't get me wrong, I want both in game as soon as possible ! Both require the game to be more finished than it is right now (especially mod support) so first things first. Once i settle on how the core mechanics work, I will start working on these features. Cant say anything for sure but I will try as hard as i can :)
So yeah, I am quite happy with the progress! I think that besides smaller updates you have suggested, one of the important things will be adding more maps. Join me in the next 12 months of updates ! :)"
And I am still happy with the progress, I didn't even thought that multiplayer would be possible, sure it is in beta and have its issues but still, huge milestone for me. Along with the other things like new menu, improved tire physics, decals, manual gearbox, trailer - which were all impossible for me to even think of when I first released the game.
That's all thanks to you and your support which is incredible. Hope you'll all stick around for another 12 months !
So, let's make a new list for me to check in the next year:
improve multiplayer experience
add more customization elements
new cars
new map
more gameplay elements / different progression system
fixing bugs mentioned in the forums, regarding steering wheels, UI navigation etc.
mod support, still tough one and highly unlikely but definitely worth trying and looking for solution to make it happen
Take care and have fun !
PICKUP UPDATE
Hi ! I hope you are all doing well ! This update brings reworked model of the pickup truck !
So, I just finished long awaited rework of this model which was untouched since day one. Finally it has all the details I want in my models. Now that its completed, next step is to add more customization parts for all of the vehicles - which will happen in the next update.
This is one of this shorter updates, I will write more in the next one ;) Have fun and stay safe !
WINTER UPDATE
Hi ! I hope you are all doing well ! It's been a while since last update so let's jump straight into what's new :)
First of all, the game has now new and improved UI. Main menu is now much cleaner looking giving you best view on your car. Customization was completely reworked, everything is organized in categories that are now much easier to navigate, which conforms to better experience while personalizing your vehicle.
Speaking of customization, decals are finally here ! You can also change vehicle skins, and add bigger vinyl stickers. For now there are only few of them since my vector graphics skills are a little bit rusty, but stay tuned for more visual items !
Now about regular update stuff. Issue with excessive suspension flex/stretching is now fixed, this results in much more realistic suspension travel. Tuning tab from main menu is removed, you can now access vehicle height in the upgrades menu - suspension stiffness is adequate to suspension type you chose.
As always, if you have any suggestions or find a bug, please let me know in the forums !
I hope you like the changes ! Happy Holidays !
MULTIPLAYER BETA
Hi ! I hope you are all doing well ! Big news ! Multiplayer is finally in the game !
This is a really amazing moment for me, since it shows how much your support here impacts Pure Rock Crawling development. When I first started working on this game, I would have never imagined that it could become multiplayer one day. But here we are today, with your support and motivation on the forums this day finally has come, thank you all !
Now, it's still a beta so expect some bugs and imperfections, if you encounter one - please report it here on the forums. In order to play with someone you have to be steam friends and have online status. One person creates a server others join via server search tab. Servers are max 4 players. To better identify who is driving I added number plates that are generated from your Steam nickname.
Minor changes include some tweaks in vehicle handling, lighting tests on winter test map and on a sad note I had to remove terrain deformation from desert and winter map - until I find a better solution to replace it, so stay tuned for that.
I hope you will have tons of fun with your friends ! Stay tuned for future updates ! Take care !
DEVBLOG
Hi ! I hope you are all doing great ! It's time I finally get to reveal what I was working on behind the scenes.
And yes. It's multiplayer !
This post is in DEVBLOG format, since I still have a lot to do. I am planning to release the update in the next month or so, if everything goes well, so keep fingers crossed ! :)
I have to admit that this must be the hardest thing I had to do in this game. I was always more of 3d designer, and programming this game was one hell of a challenge by itself. Still, it was nothing compared to things like : network replication, server side, client side, etc. Few times I really thought that this is too much and I won't be able to pull this one off.
But, it WORKS ! It's not 100% completed yet and I will probably call it "beta", since I bet there will be a lot of bugs hidden. But I try my best to test it thoroughly. As soon as it will be playable, I'll invite you all to test it with me :)
Few more words from me. I spent on this a lot more time than I wanted, but I find multiplayer essential, and a huge milestone for this game development. Having this in mind, I know that not everyone plays multiplayer games and might feel abandoned right now with the lack of content updates. I can only count on your understanding - of course there will be more content updates in the future. Thanks in advance !
Take care and stay tuned !
FIXES OF IMPROVEMENTS
Hi ! I hope you are all doing great ! Smaller update with some fixes and improvements !
First fix was very much in need, for all who had problems with new gearbox. There was an issue related with mouse sensitivity which in some cases led to inability to change gears at all. I hope this will fix that.
Now shifting gears is more fluid - i hope you will find shifting gears much easier.
Next problem was on controllers - in few cases when shifting gears, select cursor was stopping before reaching next gear - fixed now. Also sorry if this was not clear at the beginning - you have to hold left mouse button while shifting (left bumper on the gamepad), and release it when hovering over preferred gear.
For wheel users, as suggested in the forums I made some changes to the settings menu. Now the game is scanning for all available axis in your setup, I hope this will allow for more wheel support. Your current settings may be gone and require you to setup your wheel again. I added visual representation of selected axes and option to invert them if required by your setup.
Also as suggested in the forums, engine braking is now more pronounced and gear related.
All in all I am happy with the new gearbox - and for now it will definitely stay as it is since I want to shift my focus on new maps and vehicles. But if you have any suggestions on how it could be improved please write on the forums !
Take care and thanks for such great reception of the previous update!
QUALITY OF LIFE IMPROVEMENTS
Hi ! I hope you are all doing well ! This update brings you a lot of improvements ! From manual gearbox to tire deformation.
Let's start with the most important, manual gearbox is here ! This, I must admit should be in the game from day one. But developing this system was far more complicated than I would have ever thought. Now you can change gears using your mouse and the controller. Of course there is still automatic mode for you to select.
I want to thank all of you who pushed me to implement this feature in the game ! Now I cant imagine the game without it ! If you have any suggestions regarding gearbox please let me know in the forums.
Alongside gearbox being in the game, now there is a proper break. Thanks to having now reverse gear separated from brake - I know, finally :) This lead me to another improvement, vehicles now don't stop after reapplying throttle which results in a much smoother gameplay.
Another key improvement is the fix of excessive tire deformation. Rims are not deforming now and side ways deformation was reserved only for skinny tires - on the other ones it was replaced with angular deformation which is far closer to real tire deformation. This also fixed excessive side slipping. Thank you for spotting these problems !
Next is suspension simulation. I changed the way suspension is being simulated. Previously there was linear drive forced axles to stay at given height with set force. This was a problem because once the suspension was raised it became stiffer. Also it didn't quite worked as spring should. Now there is a proper spring simulation for the suspension, and raising is performed on other constraint resulting in equally soft suspension whichever height you choose.
Fixing this made me realize that part of the code responsible for better flex simulation was not working since last update. Its fixed now.
Full list of changes:
manual gearbox
excessive wheel deformation fix
side to side deformation replaced with angular
vehicle no longer stop after reapplying throttle
new engine load calculations
vehicle are less prone to side slipping
new spring calculations for suspension
fixed suspension getting to stiff when raised
fixed bug that caused different suspension types act the same
changed method of height adjustment
brake and throttle separated
brake work proportionally to input
new textures on other two vehicles
ability to map steering wheel buttons in options menu
fixed challenge start bug on snow map
fixed random game hitches that happened every ~60sec
fixed level sometimes failed to load
As always, thank you all and have fun in the game !
