Nice performance boosting patch is live today! Changelog below.
We've also been working on a couple videos that will post tomorrow. I made the current trailer a month before we launched Early Access, so it is about 12 months old and the game has made huge progress since then. The old models, sounds, and gameplay footage just aren't representative of the polish that is in there now!
NEW FEATURES AND FIXES
Major performance improvements - reworked lighting system, blocks, object activation, and shadows to drastically smooth the frame rate.
Fixed freezes in frame rate on game start and end.
Added sounds and animations to liven up the ready room
Fixed automatic positioning system so the workstation will match your playspace better by default
Added analytics system to help figure out where players get stuck or have uncomfortable moments
Added smoothing option to First-person camera on spectator screen
Added control panel button to turn off manager canvas (for cleaner streaming)
Fixed glitching sounds when new songs start
KNOWN ISSUES
A quirky once-per-second bug is triggering Asynchronous Spacewarp on Oculus and knocking it down to 45fps. Fix will be posted tomorrow, so you hopefully won't even notice.
The in-game control panel is not registering clicks sometimes (try moving your hand to point from a different place) and some black areas are pushing hidden buttons.
Multiple position adjustments getting to the workstation can be disorienting
Post-PAX fixes
PAX was amazing! So many nice people and happy workers for Bloq-O Industries. I recorded some testimonials and will be posting some new trailers here soon.
Also used the 4 days of testing time to think about a couple bugs and figure out how to squish them. Here is the first fix, next up will be some more performance fixes:
Fixed vest not facing the right direction
Fixed occasional crash on when exploding block fragments reset
Removed laser pointer as it was having trouble with switching between hands, and switched to just a laser coming out of your right hand whenever you push 'ButtonOne' - A on Oculus, top button on Vive. More work needed to polish this and get it working on both hands, but let me know what you think.
Fixed a couple performance bugs that should help it run smoother, but it needs more...I see no reason it shouldn't be 100% buttery!
Great to see the new leaderboards filling up. There were lots of good ideas from PAX playtesters that should keep the interesting updates flowing once I get the technical parts cleaned up a bit.
Until next time, keep packing!
The PAX Patch!
The team has been hard at work to bring you some big redesigns and feature additions in time for PAX West. There are so many changes that I'm only going to write high-level notes here. Enjoy these upgrades!
BREAKTIME (v1) game mode launched - look for the 'Take a break' button and block gun
FREE DEMO - making the PAX West demo build available for everyone! Training and 3 Deadline mode levels to whet your appetite.
Beautiful new factory machines installed at Bloq-O Industries
Customer & Order System redesign - 35+ different levels to conquer and many factory upgrades to unlock
UI revamp - Restyled the UI and branding to be consistent and clear
New Dressing room - see some of the factory machinery in action and get ready for your game (more functionality to come)
Teleportation using your pointer tool- needed to navigate new spaces
Improved lighting - worked on performance and visual quality
Improved settings panel - easier adjustment of your workstation position and height
New non-VR UI - buttons on your 2D screen that can be used to control spectator cameras and track your local leaderboard
Subtitles - a floating window by the speaker makes the manager's notes to you more accessible.
Known bugs:
An occasional crash bug popped up that I'm still tracking down and will patch as soon as I locate it! Just restart the game and wish me luck on the hunt!
See you at PAX West! Follow us on Instagram to check out our PAX10 booth: https://www.instagram.com/thinkonlabs/
Patch 7 - seeing a path to the finish!
Big progress this month, I fixed some old bugs, added a bunch of new features, and redesigned the flow to support new players and new platforms. Read on for the details…
The beginnings of ‘career mode’ are in place now. There is a screen in front of you that will help guide you through learning the game and seeing the different challenges available. It is just the basic functionality, and my next work will be balancing the levels, improving the graphics, and refining the flow to keep it exciting as you learn each new game challenge. It worked really well at BetaCon last weekend, so I’m hoping it is helpful to new and old players. I will need to reset the leaderboards to adjust for the new level length and scoring system, so expect that soon. I’ll probably need to reset one more time after balancing and adding the full set of levels.
NEW FEATURES
New grabbing system – got rid of the pointer/grabber finger in favor of a ‘Robo-Recall’ like system where distance grabbing is just always on. It feels very intuitive and will let me add hand gestures back in soon.
New ‘Career mode’ menu system – use the laser pointer to select which level you want to play. High scores are tracked by level, with 3 star goals and leaderboards per level. Graphics are just basic for now and will be improved for clarity.
Added Oculus SDK support so Steam players with a Rift can now play without loading SteamVR!
Improved camera auto-rotation. If you have friends over, or are streaming, push 'C' for camera then 'A' for Auto to have a nice cycling of the spectator camera.
Added variable scoring of blocks, so tougher shapes and advanced colors will score you a higher wage.
Added basic factory upgrade system - you have to earn some virtual money to unlock new block types. Later you will be able to buy factory upgrades to increase your earning potential.
Made blocks never burn while in your hands, only when on the ground.
BUG FIXES
Removed block storage devices until they find a new home on the control panel. They aren’t as necessary the way the game is flowing, and need to get introduced after the player has learned the basics.
Fixed a huge lighting bug that has been troubling me for 10 months! I can now control reflections again and have way more control over the lighting, expect more interesting behaviors here later, but for now, things look smoother, there is better performance, and the day/night effects are actually visible.
Fixed box closing sound being too loud.
Crushed a ton of other bugs.
PLAN
Improved graphics and more playful factory environment.
Subtitles and in game tips on the heads up display
Creative and Special Order mode integrated with career mode.
New rooms to view your factory upgrades and play around with blocks.
Adding safety vest to represent player's body.
Need a new trailer.
KNOWN ISSUES
Levels not fully designed, money value and difficulty balance is not right.
Lighting can be a bit dark.
Gun pointing direction is off on Oculus.
Patch 6 inbound
Just got back from GDC and wanted to get out some of the bug fixes and features I've been working on for the last couple months. Please enjoy this prettier, better sounding, and more stable build!
I've had a number of demo events over the last couple months and used the opportunity to refine the new player experience. There is still some work to do, but the changes below should help the game be easier to pick up and also prepare for the next stage of development. Next update will likely be a stand-alone demo on Steam.
NEW FEATURES
Pointer/grabber finger - push the trackpad to start pointing, aim at a block or box, then pull the trigger the item will zip into your hand. It is a really fun superpower that my brain started to want whenever I'm sitting on the couch at home :-) This required removing other hand gestures (for now) as a cross-platform compatibility compromise.
New 3D art, posters, and a new Bloq-O logo.
Block storage - watch-like devices (that don't yet attach to your hand) but can be used to store a block for later. You can pick them up and place them wherever is comfortable for you. Useful now, but much more important for upcoming game modes.
Improved audio positioning effects
Recent Scores panel - keeps track of your last 10 games and best 10 games locally. Designed this for running tournaments at events, so it doesn't really handle different game modes and levels well, but will be improved later.
Heads up display board - a better-positioned data display to keep track of level variables during the game. Still working on this one, but it is part of an effort to get all gameplay on 3 sides, so there aren't things you need behind you where tracking is bad on some systems.
Moved Abort button to center in case your room isn't that big
Added room adjustment controls for fine tuning your placement - use arrow keys to move in the room, R to rotate, and L to recall settings. This is a hack in case you are having problems, I'm working on a more user-friendly design.
BUG FIXES
Fixed conveyor belt collider slowly drifting away from player (so boxes would fall through)
Removed function from grip button to stop accidental presses screwing up new players. Likely future will have 'advanced mode' controls for experienced players, and 'everything is grab' mode for simpler gameplay.
Toned down the color in the loading room
PLAN
Radical redesign of game flow - everything will be reoriented into a 'career' to help guide you through all the types of content and level progression This will also include wage tracking, equipment unlocks, and two new rooms of the Bloq-O factory for you to visit.
Subtitles and in game tips on the heads up display
Creative and Special Order mode will be part of career mode update
Remove existing control panels in favor of 'callable' control widgets
Improvements to grab and locomotion system
KNOWN ISSUES
Some sound effects are out of balance (like box close) - use the control panel to reduce volumes on groups as needed. I will rebalance for next patch
Kaleidoscope VR and Coding Progress Update
No public patches in a while, but development is still moving on Ship It. Last week the game was featured at a few local events including the Portland, OR Kaleidoscope VR Festival and I've spent a bunch of time preparing a stripped down demo version of the game which can be played at conventions without any instruction. I'm trying to add a couple more features to it and then I'll make it available on Steam.
I've also cleaned up a whole bunch of bugs, added a new item that can store a block for later, added animations to the block spawning pipes, and started work on some of my long-term feature plans. 'Special Order' mode is pretty much done, but it is a lot of new content and I need to deeply test it before making it public.
One big change I'm considering is a more linear progression "career" mode that guides players through different challenges. This will hopefully include a daily check in mechanism that highlights fresh puzzles each time you play the game.
Let me know if you have any ideas on how to bring that to life!
As always, please leave a review to help others find Ship It!
The leaderboards were down!!! Patch 5 applied.
One of the last patches stopped submissions to the leaderboard, so sorry! They should be working again, so get in there and knock me off the top of all the boards!
PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW
If you read this, I need YOUR help to spread the word by writing a game review. Just click the link, it only takes a minute.
If you are really ambitious, make a video using the new in-game camera and share it on the community page in Steam.
PATCH NOTES
Major update incoming with Special Order mode, but Bryan noticed a simple but nasty bug that was preventing leaderboards from submitting! So here is the ASAP fix with some other helpful tools built in too :-)
NEW FEATURES
Handheld camera physics improved
Added screen and keypad to control panel so it is easier for a single player to control and stream
Updated text and scoring of missed blocks in Endurance mode
Switched grip button to do point gesture, useful for pushing buttons, everyone seems to use the trigger to grab anyway.
BUG FIXES
Fixed overlapping of early blocks on first game
Fixed leaderboards not submitting on normal branch. They will still not submit from the beta branch, in case I'm working on scoring changes.
Tweaked some things about scoring and high scores on tutorial mode
Updated hand system so grabbing objects has solid performance even if the framerate slows down
PLAN
Coming Soon: Special Order mode - Currently testing and doing basic balancing.
Better looking display panel for box value.
Particle effects and audio to guide new players through their first game.
Manager dialog for missing blocks and getting citations in endurance mode.
Add speed up to music in endurance mode based on citation level.
Give the manager some memory so he doesn't sound repetitive.
Create in game tips.
Add remote grab from point mode
Patch 4 is shipped
Biggest update in Patch 4 is a fix for the console movement bug...no more console encroaching on your personal space :-)
NEW FEATURES
New handheld camera is ready. Turn on spectator mode by pressing 'c' on the keyboard, then press '5' to activate the handheld camera. Still a little work to do on its display, but the output is working.
Added chimes to the tutorial when you complete a step
Added music fade out effects
Added super basic UI for spectator cameras
BUG FIXES
Fixed console crowding the player when sliding into the most conservative space inappropriately. Turns out it was a bug when your room size was big, like over 3mx2.5m. Tough to test all these different configurations!
Fixed first few blocks coming out at the wrong speed
Fixed conveyor belt speed changing due to legacy code
PLAN
Improved UX for manager camera mode.
Coming Soon: Special Order mode - Currently testing and doing basic balancing.
Better looking display panel for box value.
Particle effects and audio to guide new players through their first game.
Manager dialog for missing blocks and getting citations in endurance mode.
Add speed up to music in endurance mode based on citation level.
Give the manager some memory so he doesn't sound repetitive.
Create in game tips.
Enjoy!
Patch 3 live
Patch 3 is ready, with a few new features and fixes. Not as much in this one because I spent most of my time hunting down the nasty bug from last week!
NEW FEATURES
New zombie work poster just in time for Halloween!
Security cameras activated! Press 'c' on the keyboard to activate the manager camera. Press 1-4 to cycle through different security cameras. More UI and options coming soon.
Added effects to manager voice and reduced music volume when he is speaking.
Added safety goggles to protect workers eyes from dangerous exploding blocks.
BUG FIXES
Fixed save file breaking when logged in with a different Steam account on the same computer.
Fixed race condition bugs with loading of save file.
Fixed race condition bug with re-positioning of console.
PLAN
Improved UX for manager camera mode.
Coming Soon: Special Order mode - Currently testing and doing basic balancing.
Better looking display panel for box value.
Particle effects and audio to guide new players through their first game.
Manager dialog for missing blocks and getting citations in endurance mode.
Add speed up to music in endurance mode based on citation level.
Add stingers to game over events in endurance mode.
Give the manager some memory so he doesn't sound repetitive.
Create in game tips.
Have a spooky week!
Rolled Back to patch 1 :-(
Tonight I showed off 'Ship It' to my local Unity User Group, and was sad to run into two big bugs! I've temporarily rolled back to the first patch which didn't have these problems.
The two bugs I noticed were
Some kind of error preventing the Deadline leaderboard from loading, and slowing performance to a crawl. Boxes didn't spawn right, game didn't start right, etc. Endurance and Training mode seemed fine.
Console not adjusting to the room size correctly. I've noticed this on new installs, the game isn't detecting the room size correctly, and hence is sliding the console to the most conservative position, right next to the dispensers. It is still playable, but pretty annoying. Sadly it is working on my computer, so it is tough to troubleshoot a fix, i'll see what I can do.
I'll post the updated patch 2 as soon as I can figure it out!
The beta branch is open to the public now in case you want to check out my latest attempts to fix it.
