Zetheros
Developer
Hey Exanimates,
This week we've been doing almost daily builds on the testing branch, further tuning the new weapon mechanics, but also core gameplay elements and physics. Madoc has been interacting closely with the community, gathering some really good feedback and discussing improvements. We're really happy with the current state of combat, all the changes have come together to make for some very noticeable improvements.
One area we focused on is thrusts and weapons that are optimised for thrusting. Thrusts are more consistent and easier to use effectively, the thrusting capabilities of various weapons are much better balanced and thrusts now have a clear role beyond just a different way to attack. This adds value to some underperforming weapons, like longswords which can now use thrusts more effectively against armour, two handed spears are now relevant and not overshadowed by supposedly lesser weapons and so on.
During testing we investigated and solved some pre-existing core physics issues with some surprising results. These were causing occasional glitches like weapons getting stuck in weird ways or making odd fast movements, or characters doing sudden spins, but it turns out there were less obvious symptoms like missed collisions, weird weapon handling and juddery motions. Fixing the root causes of these issues combined with the general animation improvements has made combat feel and look much more solid and fluid.
We will continue to make specific adjustments as we receive more feedback and experience things more ourselves, but weapons and combat are in an excellent place now and we can call it a wrap. The new very comprehensive systems and exhaustive data give us the tools to make adjustments, improvements and introduce new features easily. Having solid core mechanics that are well tuned was a very important step to continue to build on gameplay and itemisation features. We are now looking at packaging this up into an intermediate update as we switch our focus to force thaumaturgy and other story centric features.
Have a great week!
-the BM team
This week we've been doing almost daily builds on the testing branch, further tuning the new weapon mechanics, but also core gameplay elements and physics. Madoc has been interacting closely with the community, gathering some really good feedback and discussing improvements. We're really happy with the current state of combat, all the changes have come together to make for some very noticeable improvements.
One area we focused on is thrusts and weapons that are optimised for thrusting. Thrusts are more consistent and easier to use effectively, the thrusting capabilities of various weapons are much better balanced and thrusts now have a clear role beyond just a different way to attack. This adds value to some underperforming weapons, like longswords which can now use thrusts more effectively against armour, two handed spears are now relevant and not overshadowed by supposedly lesser weapons and so on.
During testing we investigated and solved some pre-existing core physics issues with some surprising results. These were causing occasional glitches like weapons getting stuck in weird ways or making odd fast movements, or characters doing sudden spins, but it turns out there were less obvious symptoms like missed collisions, weird weapon handling and juddery motions. Fixing the root causes of these issues combined with the general animation improvements has made combat feel and look much more solid and fluid.
We will continue to make specific adjustments as we receive more feedback and experience things more ourselves, but weapons and combat are in an excellent place now and we can call it a wrap. The new very comprehensive systems and exhaustive data give us the tools to make adjustments, improvements and introduce new features easily. Having solid core mechanics that are well tuned was a very important step to continue to build on gameplay and itemisation features. We are now looking at packaging this up into an intermediate update as we switch our focus to force thaumaturgy and other story centric features.
Have a great week!
-the BM team
