Honorable Knights,
Today I have an update for you on the progress of the upcoming version "Alpha 3.fun". If you've been following, you might remember that this version was named after its purpose, which is to make the game even more fun.
To recap: while version Alpha 1 was a demo of the homebrew engine, Alpha 2 was a demo of the gameplay, though still very limited.
Alpha 3 then extended the gameplay significantly, but many things were still missing. Up to then, it was mostly about making the game "run"; now it is about making it "fun".
Although "3.fun" still has the previous version's number in its name, it is the biggest update yet and it is well on track to accomplish its goal.
We are about halfway through the dev cycle, the scope is now finalized, and I'm ready to share it. So - what's in there?
1) Character progression
Making your character grow and improve is a core feature of any RPG. In the previous version, you were able to choose and customize your character, but there was no way to gain skills or level up during the game. No longer so! Character progression is now implemented, full blast.
At the beginning of the game, you will choose your character class from three possible options, setting your general approach to life challenges - will you, for the most part, take advantage of your physical strength, nimbleness and skills, or your wits?
When, after some playtime, certain requirements are met, you will be able to choose a profession - each of the three character classes will offer three different options here (so nine in total). But we're just getting started - you will also be able to further specialize in one of three "profession branches", which are unique to the each profession. In total, this means you will be able to choose from 27 different roles in the game, and they all come with individual advantages, titles, and unique perks! There will also be different quests tailored to each of them.
Perks are new, too. There are some basic personality characteristics that can only be selected at the beginning of the game, but most perks can be earned later on when their requirements are met, which for some might contain holding a certain profession or branch.
The Character Growth Tree: trunks are professions, branches specializations, and leaves represent perks
The character creation process has also been improved in many ways. Based on the character class you choose, you will now start with some experience in relevant skills. Most characters will be able to ride normal horses from the beginning, and everyone will be able to swim. In fact, the "swimming" skill has been removed altogether, but you will still be able to get better at it through a swimming-related perk.
The removal of swimming is not the only change to skills - several of them have been changed for more fun and balance.
Since we're talking about characters, there have been numerous other improvements which are not related to progression. As an example, the logic to determine relations between characters and whether they know each other has been overhauled. NPC behavior has also gone through some improvements, while further improvements will be the focus of the release after this one.
2) Story mode
Alpha 3 was mostly a sandbox game - there were a few isolated quests, but no main story. That's no longer the case. Story mode has been added to the game, which means it is now (finally!) broken down into chapters. Each chapter represents one season (= three months) and comes with a main quest. If you manage to solve that quest quickly, you can choose to fast-forward the remaining chapter time. This is useful if all side-quests have already been solved, or if you just want to move on. Alternatively, you can play out the rest of the season and keep side-questing or explore the world free-style.
When the chapter ends, you will be rewarded for actions during the season and might level up.
Alpha 3.fun will contain the first three chapters of the game, which cover summer, fall, and winter of year one of your adventure. For the first time, players will be able to enjoy all seasonal visuals - they have been part of the game all along, but until now, there was no way to experience them... so far it had always remained summer.
New quests have been added, too, and permadeath has now officially been made optional. The intended way of playing is still with permadeath enabled (I explained in the previous post why that's the case), but you will be able to choose a more relaxed mode at the beginning of the game which will allow you to reload after your character dies. This comes at a penalty though, to keep death meaningful - you should still have a good reason to keep your character alive.
3) Combat
In the past, each new version came with improvements to tactical combat. This is true this time as well, but there's more than that. I added a brand-new "quick resolve" combat mode, which can be chosen in most cases. Tactical combat is fun, and if played smartly, can give you an edge over your opponents. But this is an RPG, and there will be plenty of battles to fight, including some against inferior enemies. Having to make every move in a battle where the winner is pretty much clear from the beginning can quickly turn into a chore. And remember what this version is all about!
Quick combat will play the combat out in an overview panel. It is a real battle that's going on there, just much faster, and you can adjust the speed if you are involved. The panel includes information on all participating combatants, the combined power of each side, and (if you are involved yourself), an overview of your injuries. If things get too spicy, you can intervene and choose to escape - but it's best not to wait too long, as your chances of getting away will lower with any sustained leg injury and when there are fewer combatants remaining on your side.
NPC groups will also fight against each other on the travel map, and you can watch their battle from a safe distance, or join in.
We're going to stay on that hill and grab some popcorn
Another notable improvement to combat is the change of the size of local wilderness maps. When you run into enemies outside town, tactical combat will start on a procedurally generated wilderness map. In the past, those have been fairly large, which meant there was quite a distance to cover before you got to your enemy. By reducing the size of those maps (which, at this stage in development, was a complex change affecting many parts of the code), the frustrating few first turns where everyone was just running towards each other are a thing of the past.
4) A new type of dungeon
This part isn't done yet, but I am working hard to get it in. So far, there have been two types of dungeons in the game, but many more are still on the list to be added. All of them come with unique visuals and are in an advanced state, but they aren't quite ready for release yet.
A new dungeon also means new music and sound effects, new characters who inhabit it (including their portraits, animations, and behavior), and new items, so this isn't a small thing. I'll see that I get one of them in this time though.
5) New objects, items, and characters
Alpha 3.fun introduces new map objects and usable items. You will now be able to light your way using lanterns and candles, for example, not just torches. There are also new types of armor and many other things. Cities now contain street signs to indicate which city quarter is adjacent to the current map. Also new is the concept of having to identify special items, which is not automatically happening anymore.
A number of new characters have been added too. I don't want to give everything away, but I can say the faction of the Undead has grown.
It's safe to assume that those guys are going to cause trouble
And finally, some long-missing animations have been added - children can now also go to sleep!
6) UI additions
When something interesting happens, a small message about it might appear at the bottom of the screen. Those messages used to be a bit of a mess - depending on the map's background color, they were sometimes hard to read, and there was no way of going back to earlier messages. The feature was also a bit buggy, and messages sometimes overlapped. That's no longer the case now. Like in many other RPGs, those messages now live in a dedicated panel, which can be scrolled to show earlier messages.
Another interesting UI change is your satchel, aka the "quickslots". The satchel has always been available on the inventory screen, but until now, you weren't able to use items from it during combat, which really is its main purpose. Sifting through your backpack to use an item while a troll keeps hitting your head with a club is (and was) not an option during combat. Now though, you will be able to use items from your satchel, a small bag at your belt which is easy to get to. Just like before, the satchel will start with three slots, but now it can also be upgraded (the low number of slots, by the way, is fully intended. Tactical combat should be won by avoiding overpowering enemies and making smart moves - not by hauling around a huge number of healing potions).
Two of the new UI parts: message panel and quickslots
Many other UI changes were made, including a custom mouse cursor which changes its appearance based on the default interaction of the entity you are hovering.
7) Audio additions
New music tracks and sound effects have been added, but the bigger audio change is something else. I don't think anyone really knew this, but the game includes a custom speech engine which allows the PC portrait to speak with realistic lip movements. I once posted a video about it, but it didn't get much attention. The speaking PC portrait was implemented years ago and it always worked, I just never got to really use it. It's a fun feature, and this is version "fun", so the time has finally come for it to be unlocked. Your character will now drop the occasional comment when something interesting happens, and in the future, he will have more and more to say.
8) Technical improvements
Lots of internal improvements have been made. This is tech stuff not everyone is interested in, but I will highlight some of the more important changes:
- Automatic crash reporting: since no one enjoys clicking their way through folders to locate obscure error logs and send them by email, I added a new feature which will send crash reports automatically. This can further be improved over time, but it's already working and will provide me with essential troubleshooting info without asking players for more than an approval click.
- Seamless loading of animations: new characters appearing on the screen used to freeze up the game for a moment while animations were being loaded. This is no longer an issue - they are now being loaded bit by bit in the background between renders, and the new character will appear when everything is done.
- Map change performance: improvements to memory management and the processes of loading and saving the map have massively sped up the process of changing maps, making the game more fun without a doubt.
- 20 leftover bugs from Alpha 3 have also been fixed.
That's it for today. There has been a lot going on lately, especially around the partnership with D&D design legend Robert Kuntz, but there are more news to share soon - stay tuned!
Martin