The Frontier
Ver. 0.17.0 Change Log
For those of you who would like to play the newest version anyway, you can switch to the beta branch by doing the following:
- Right click on The Frontier in your Steam library and select "Properties..."
- Select "BETAS" from the menu
- Then from the dropdown, select "beta - Public beta branch" (no password is required)
Now on to the changes for this version.
Change log:
- Updated Java version to 11
- Updated libGDX framework version to 1.9.8
- Implemented my own ECS (entity component system) game framework/engine (a small portion of the game now runs with this)
Changed the equipment usage system:
- Removed the left-side equipment slots
- Added a highlight to the top inventory (hotbar) for the currently selected item
- Added controls to change the selected item with the mouse scroll
- Added controls to change the selected item with the number keys (when item is a tool)
- Added the ability to select a healing item and then click on the player to consume it
- Changed for tools to be auto-selected and used if they are present in the hotbar and meet the requirements for harvesting the field object (i.e. if you don't have the Axe selected but click on a tree, the Axe will get auto-selected and used if it's present in the hotbar)
- Changed the limit for tools to 1 per slot in the hotbar
Made the following changes to controls:
- Removed regular map size zoom from mid-mouse button
- Removed ability to zoom map in/out with mouse scroll
Warning:
- Due to changes related to implementing the new ECS framework, saving and loading will be broken for the time being.
This version has a lot of internal changes to it, so please let me know if anyone has trouble running the game. Also, if you have any questions, thoughts, or bugs to report, please leave a comment here or over in the forums.
Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone keeps safe.
Nikku
Patreon Launch
If you're interested in supporting my game development for The Frontier (and other games) more directly, then please go ahead and have a look.
Among other benefits like access to the latest playable versions, your contributions can earn Steam keys for The Frontier (if you haven't picked up a copy yet or maybe one for a friend), as well as keys for future titles. I also have plans for expanding the benefits further as I'm able to secure more development time.
If you have any questions regarding the Patreon, feel free to ask in the comments.
Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone keeps safe.
Nikku
Quick Update on the Next Release and Patreon
As it's been a little while since my last post, I wanted to give a quick update on some of the things I mentioned I was working on.
So first off, Patreon. I've been spending some time setting up my page, and I plan to make an announcement about it early next month. If you're interested in becoming a patron and supporting my game development directly, please do keep an eye out for that. Also, if you have any rewards you might be interested in seeing, please let me know in the comments.
As for the next release, the new update I mentioned last time is ready to go. However, I'll be releasing it on Steam as a beta branch, so it'll take me a bit of time to figure out how to get that to work. The reason for this is that the save/load system no longer works in the newest update (due to the new framework), and that issue will continue for the foreseeable future. So I figured it'd be best for new players and everyone's current saves to release these updates on the beta branch until I can get this fixed.
This new update should be coming out in the coming weeks, and I'll also explain how to access the beta branch when I make the update post for it.
Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone keeps safe.
Nikku
Update on The Frontier's Development Status
Some of you may have seen me comment about this over in the forums, but one of the reasons for a lack of updates is that I ran out of money shortly after releasing the game, and had to go back to working full-time (which I had been doing until earlier this year, more on that later). However, working a full-time job was really only part of the problem. The biggest issue was the terrible state/quality of the game's source code.
Those of you that have been following The Frontier since its early days may be aware that I started this project as a way to practice and learn how to program in Java. I had no previous programming experience at the time, but after going over a few online tutorials I decided that actually working on making a game would be a more effective way to learn. It certainly was effective, and what I gained from that was The Frontier that we currently have and the programming job I had been working over these past three years.
However, as you could probably guess, learning how to program as I go results in not the greatest of code. I didn't know any better at the time, but I was building a mess of code that broke pretty much every best practice rule. This was manageable while the source code was small, but as it grew it became worse and worse, until I was left with terrible code that was extremely difficult to make changes to. My job as a programmer also taught me a lot and pulled me away from the old, bad code I used to write. So the combination of code that's difficult to change, and not enough time each week to really understand what my bad code was actually doing, led to a situation where any time I spent on developing The Frontier resulted in very little progress. In fact, the game had been mostly broken (negative progress?) for these past several years.
I'm sorry for the long explanation, but I hope this helps explain what's been going on during this long period of silence. I know from the outside it looked like I had simply stopped working on the game, and I apologize for that, but do know that certainly wasn't the case. It's just that any work I did do, I had nothing really to show for it. I don't mean for this to serve as an excuse though, just an explanation, so I don't think it's unfair to still be angry and disappointed about the lack of progress. Again, I apologize for that.
Now, having touched on the past years for a bit, I'd like to focus next on what's been going on with The Frontier recently, and what's down the road for it. As you probably figured, this isn't just a post for me to apologize and then go back into hiding; I do have some more stuff I'd like to share.
So as I mentioned above, I had been working a full-time job as a programmer until earlier this year. I have since switched to being a freelance programmer, and although it hasn't been going as well as I had hoped, it does afford me more time than my previous work arrangement. I have also had periods of time in-between work that I have been using to refactor some of The Frontier's source code. In addition to refactoring, I have been mainly building my own ECS (entity component system) framework over these past few months to use for my game. The ECS approach to game (code) design is something I have been experimenting with over these years as a potential solution to my terrible code, and I'm quite satisfied with the framework I've built up so far. I've gotten the game close to the state it was (before I broke it), with parts of it running in the new framework/engine.
From the player's standpoint I know this isn't much progress at all, but the new framework will play a significant role in The Frontier's development going forward (as well as future games I make). Using what I've learned over these past 3 years, I'm building the framework in a way that will allow the source code to be changed and added to with a lot more ease. It'll still take a while to convert over the old code (some of it I may even leave as is), but the new framework will make development on the game much easier and quicker. Although it'll be a small update, I have already started working on the next change, which will remove the separate equipment slots on the left-side of the screen (which I think was a confusing mechanic for a lot of players).
So as for the future, progress is being made on the new framework/engine, as well as the next update. I am also planning to launch a Patreon account in the coming months for anyone who might be interested in supporting The Frontier's development. I have some plans to try to make this as worthwhile and appealing to supporters as possible, and hopefully as support grows I can shift more and more of my time towards game development. I should be making a post about this next month, so please keep an eye out for that if you're interested.
Well, sorry for the really long essay, but hopefully this update gives everyone a pretty good idea about The Frontier's status. I appreciate you taking the time to read this, and I really appreciate the continued interest in this game over such a long period of time.
I hope everyone keeps safe.
Nikku
Ver. 0.16.01 Change Log
I plan on working on housing for Workers next, but unfortunately, I can't make any promises regarding a timeline. The next update shouldn't take as long as this one did though, since I finally have a consistent amount of time on my weekends to work on it.
Change log:
- Increased the max capacity for all storage chests.
- Thread has been changed to Vine as an item you can get as a random secondary resource (the CHECK icon).
- Rare Resource Bundles are no longer required for the City's population to grow.
Bugs:
- Fixed Bundle Seller and Bundle Buyer exp categories to properly gain exp.
- Edited the message displayed when unlocking the Long Distance Trader skill.
- Fixed exp category bug that caused them to level up only once even if you gained enough exp for more than one level.
- Fixed game not pausing after restarting from a game over.
- Fixed bug allowing buildings to be built on top of workers (sometimes trapping them).
- Fixed inventory bug that allowed items to be added to the player inventory above its capacity when receiving multiple items at once (such as clearing the bundle inventory).
- Fixed Import Storage bug: any unused bundle value is now kept, and a message is displayed if the entered amount is too low to unpack any items.
- Fixed Courier bug that caused them to move on to the next storage before they tried to pick up as many items as they could.
As always, thanks for reading, and if you have any questions, please let me know in the comments below.
Nikku
Quick Post on The Frontier's Stalled Progress
So first off, the easiest explanation for why progress has stalled is that I ran out of money. After leaving my previous job, I was using my own savings to work on The Frontier. I'm happy that I was able to release the game, but unfortunately, I don't have the money to keep working on it full-time. This doesn't mean the game will be cancelled though, or that I'll stop making updates; however, progress will be a lot slower going forward as I'll have to divert most of my time to other work.
I'm not sure when I'll be able to start working on The Frontier again, but when I do, I plan on working on the following updates.
- Ver. 0.16.01: small bug fixes, including ones causing Workers and Harvesters to stop working.
- Ver. 0.16.10: housing for workers.
- Ver. 0.16.20: conveyor system to transport items.
- Ver. 0.17.00
If anyone has any questions, please let me know in the comments below.
Nikku
Ver. 0.16.00 Change Log
First off though, I have a warning for any players that are loading saves from a previous version of the game. Your save files will still work, but due to the changes in this update, the following data will be lost.
- Any hired Workers and their production.
- Any workers available for hire at the Town Hall.
- Any items being crafted at Specialists.
Change Log:
- Removed Specialist crafting times and increased the crafting fee to 10% of crafted value. (Items will now be crafted instantly.)
- Adjusted the requirements for all unlockable skills to be easier.
- Added new tutorial quests for Harvesters and Couriers.
- Moved the Workshop tutorials to the Harvester tutorial branch (unlock path).
- Adjusted text and rewards for some tutorials.
- Increased the daily number of available workers at the Town Hall to 15.
- Lowered daily tax for Workshops from 100 to 50.
- Increased the upper stat limit for workers to 110 (from 105).
- Temporarily lowered worker wages until housing gets introduced.
- Added new character sprites for all workers.
Workshops and Workers:
- Revamped the Workshop system and UI.
- Workshops and Workers now run on an order system. You can give each Worker up to 5 orders to produce a certain amount of an item. You can also tell Workers to repeat their production cycles.
- Workers are now displayed on the map, and will leave the Workshop to pick up and drop off items at the linked storage.
Harvester Huts and Harvesters:
- Added the new Harvester Hut building. Harvester Huts can be crafted at the Carpenter. The daily tax per Harvester Hut on the field is 40.
- Added the new Harvester worker type. Harvesters can be hired at the Town Hall and require a daily wage.
- You can assign Harvesters to work at Harvester Huts and they will automatically gather resources within a certain range. For each Harvester, you can set how much to harvest (All, Growth, or None) and the priority/order for resources.
-Harvesters receive a gathering bonus of roughly 10 pieces per 1 amount of resource (depending on their stats). This means the amount of a resource will go down 1 after a Harvester gathers roughly 10 pieces from it. This is opposed to the player, who only gets 1 for 1.
Couriers:
- Added the new Courier worker type. Couriers can be hired at the Town Hall and require a daily wage.
- Hired Couriers can be accessed from the new "C" icon on the right side of the screen.
- Couriers can be assigned up to 5 transport tasks. For each task, you can choose the storage to pick up from, the storage to deliver to, up to 5 items and their amounts, as well as special conditions to help you control your logistic flow. These conditions include: how much of an item should be left in the pick up storage, how much of an item is needed at the deliver storage, and how much of an item the Courier should wait to pick up before leaving.
Bugs:
- "W" key no longer closes UI and has been changed to "ESC" key (to avoid closing UI when renaming buildings).
And that's about it for this change log. Unfortunately due to time constraints, I had to cut the introduction of housing and the conveyor system from this update. The plan going forward is to finish implementing these before moving on to the 0.17.00 update (which I'll share my plans for at a later date).
If anybody has any feedback or experiences any bugs with this new update, please let me know in the comments or over in the forums. I hope you all enjoy the new update, and please let me know what you think.
Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone has a happy New Year!
Update Ver. 0.16.00 is now live
Sorry for the wait. The new Ver. 0.16.00 update is now live!
I'll post the full change log sometime tomorrow.
Nikku
Preview for Ver. 0.16.00 update
The new update isn't quite ready for release yet, but I should be able to get it out in the next week or so. I hope you're looking forward to it.
If you have any questions or comments, please let me know, and if you're interested in seeing more WIP pics and videos of what I'm working on, you should check out my twitter account @nikku_nomura.
Thanks for reading!
Ver. 0.15.02 Change Log
Change Log:
- An icon and an amount is now displayed when the player gains an item in the field.
- Improved the bundle making system and UI to make it easier to make bundles.
- Tutorial quests are now automatically accepted when they're unlocked. (This won't apply to tutorial quests that are already unlocked in your save file.)
- Changed "Exit" to "Close" for UIs.
- Added the pick up SFX to fishing and gathering water.
- Added a simple autosave system (just in case the game crashes). The game will now autosave every 10 minutes and keep the three most recent autosaves. (Please note that the current setup is just a temporary solution. I plan on expanding on it in a future update. In the rare event that the game crashes, you can find the autosave files in the same folder as the save files. You'll need to copy and paste the autosave you want, the most recent is "autosave1," over the current save files, and then reload your game.)
Changes to the controls:
- Removed functionality for the "UP" / "DOWN" keys.
- The mouse can now be used to control movement as well (click or hold).
- Can now use the "WASD" keys for surveys as well. (The directional keys can still be used.)
- Secondary resources on field objects can be checked with either the left or right mouse button.
- The "W" key can now be used to close windows.
Bug fixes:
- NPC shipments will no longer block shipping lanes for the player.
- Fixed the progress bar display when using a hammer on buildings underneath the character (such as paths).
- Can no longer break down bridges underneath the character.
Lastly, I wanted to make a quick note about what's coming next for The Frontier. Unlike the last two updates, the next update (Ver. 0.16.00) will be a large update with new features, in addition to smaller fixes. These new features will mainly pertain to Resource Workshops, or automatic resource mining, and the automatic transport of items. I'll be creating a new thread in the forums to go into more details about these new features and to ask for feedback, so please keep an eye out for that.
Well that's it for this update. If you have any questions or comments, please let me know below in the comments section or in the forums.
Thanks for reading!