Dev Blog #22

27 Apr 2023Developer post

Source: Steam Community (opens in a new tab)

Hello, everyone!

It's been awhile. We apologize for the delay in Development Blogs over the past few months. We have been very focused on the upcoming update and have had to delay some things, like the blogs. Development, however, has been going strong during this time with some changes to our release schedule.

Many of those who are following our other social media accounts (such as Discord) are already aware that we have had to delay the development of the Mega Map. This is due to the current Unreal Engine version 5.1 which has caused issues with memory leaks and crashing when loading large worlds. Because of this, we have moved around our development schedule and are pushing the Mega Map back until Update 2.0 which will be our full release update when we leave Early Access. This will not, however, delay the next large content update known as Update 1.0 which we like to call "The Promised Update."

The 1.0 update will still include all other content as planned, excluding the Mega Map. The update will include FOUR new playable creatures, new AI, faction play, a new breeding system, a new skin crafting system, and a first look at questing. We plan to use several smaller maps in the meantime, including an updated version of the current Forgotten Forest map.

A Word From Our Lead Developer

It's been a bit since I last got to write a blurb in the dev blog. We have been busy. Livestreams, testing, and crunching to get Update 1.0 out for all of you to play. Speaking of Livestreams, our next one will be in May. We were hoping for April, but things happened that slowed me down, technical issues. Want to hear about my woes? It all started with a February Windows 10 update. I started getting random Bluescreens, which started happening at bad times while working. I then updated my PC again hoping a newer update would fix the issue and it got even worse, bluescreening 5 or more times a day, sometimes back to back. It got to the point where I had to reinstall Windows 10 and after handpicking my Win10 version and revision, I can happily say that I haven't had one bluescreen crash since reinstalling Windows. ːsteamhappyː

I do still get a lot of crashes in Unreal Engine 5.1.1, and I'm hoping that those crashes will be fixed in Unreal 5.2 which is the version we plan to ship Update 1.0 on. According to the UE 5.2 patch notes, the issues we have experienced in 5.1 are fixed in 5.2, so we are hopeful. UE5.2 also brings a lot of performance improvements to the new UE5 tech such as Lumen, Nanite, and Virtual Shadow Maps. I look forward to testing the framerates and performance improvements once the 5.2 update drops which should be any day now.

As for Day of Dragons, our animation team is nearly finished with all the animations needed for 1.0, and we're expecting to be starting our animators on Update 1.1 content in May. Most of the work remaining for 1.0 is programming, level design, tech art and a few sound fx. We expect Update 1.0 to release in the second half of 2023. When it does release, we will be shipping with a new launch trailer which we are in the early stages of producing. Be sure to check out our YouTube channel for some teasers.

Today we made the Emote Packs available for pre-order on our Store. Each emote pack will add 4 new emotes (Affection, Challenge, Distress, and Mourn) to the dragon for roleplay purposes. These emotes are purely cosmetic and provide no in-game benefit. These 4 new emotes make 9 emotes for each dragon if you count the 5 standard emotes and there will also be a new unlockable emote in the game players can get through questing which makes 10. Patreon's get an additional 2 emotes (Laugh and Rage) which brings the grand total up to 12 emotes. Don't worry, we're going to be adding an emote wheel to make it easier to use emotes, especially with controllers. That will probably come after 1.0.

Each week brings us closer and closer to Update 1.0 and we're excited! There is so much new stuff coming, Weather, Boss fights, Quests, new Dragons, Faction Play, new game modes, new server features, new skin system, new nesting mechanics, mutations, etc. We can't wait until you all play it. It's going to be our largest update ever with more content than all the previous updates combined. It's going to be awesome.

Creator / Lead Developer,
- Jonathan Slabaugh

Our team is hard at work bring the new creatures to life as well as doing some touch-ups to the current dragons. In this blog, we will look at where our team is on developing the new dragons as well as what we have done to touch up the dragons currently in-game.

New Playables Coming in 1.0

Inferno Ravager

As mentioned above, we will have four new playable creatures in the 1.0 update. This included the Inferno Ravager, Biolumin Dragon, Blitz Striker, and Magma Elemental.

The Inferno Ravager will be the third Starter Dragon in the game. Like the rest of the Starter Dragons, this species will be automatically unlocked on all servers and players will be able to spawn in as them right away. The Inferno Ravager is a fire wyvern and will be able to engulf itself in its own fire for its special ability. While on fire, the dragon will be able to burn away any acid decay and make itself immune to additional acid attacks.

We are currently in the testing phase for the Inferno Ravager. We have finished all of the required animations and models for its initial testing phase and have done quite a bit of combat polishing to balance it with the three current species. The next step in its development will be testing the baby and juvenile models and animations.

Biolumin Dragon

Our first Kickstarter Dragon to join the game's roster will be the Biolumin Dragon! This Dragon is a Kickstarter exclusive, meaning only Bio Dragon Key holders will be able to spawn in as this species. Other players will have to be nested in each time they wish to play as a Biolumin. This 100% cosmetic dragon will be able to hover like a hummingbird and is the fastest flier in the game. It's bile attack will be a bioluminescent spit that causes other dragons to glow.

Like the Inferno, the Biolumin Dragon's animation set is completed. There are still a few things we need to finish, however. We are in the process of creating its nest asset (continue reading to find out more) and are working on adding its bile attack into the test server. If you are interested in what the effect of the bile attack will look like on the different dragon species, you are see some examples in our last Dev Blog.

Blitz Striker

The final dragon for the 1.0 update will be the Blitz Striker. This dragon will be a DLC species and owners of the DLC Key will be able to spawn in as this species. Other players will have to be nested in each time they wish to play as a Blitz Striker. This will be the game's first amphithere and lightning element. It will be able to emit a powerful EMB and stun other creatures.

We are currently polishing the Blitz's animations and, once those are done, we will work on bringing it fully into the test server. We will begin the working on the baby and juvenile animations once the adult one's are polished. Like the Biolumin, we are currently working on creating a nest for the Blitz Striker.

If you would like to pre-order the Blitz Striker DLC, you can at our website.

Magma Elemental

Dragons won't be the only playable creatures in the 1.0 Update. The Magma Elemental will be the first Elemental species to join the DoD roster and will also intro faction play into the game. Elementals are the sworn enemies of dragons and players will need to figure out how to unlock these monsters in order to play as them. Magma Elementals will have multiple attacks and be able to throw objects to knock down flying dragons.

Watch video on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

The Magma Elementals are currently being testing in our development branch. We are working on perfecting the animations, combat, and faction play. Faction play brings a lot of exciting new functions to the game. Elementals will not be able to view global chats and neither faction will be able to understand the other in local chats. We will be featuring the Elemental in our next Youtube Livestream likely coming in May.

Retouching the Older Dragons

Acid Spitter

While we work on bring the new dragons into the game, we are also working on improving aspects of our current dragon species.

As many of you remember, our first dragon we brought to life was the Acid Spitter Drake. We chose this one because of its simple design compared to its winged counter parts. We were able to learn and experiment with creating this dragon and have thus been able to perfect our technique more and more with each species after. However, looking back, we were able to spot some things we could improve on for several of the species, including the Spitter.

Left: old, Right: new

The main issue with the Acid Spitter was its lack of armpits. The structure of its arms caused stretching in the torso when the arms are brought forward, like in walking movments. While not extremely noticeable, we felt this was a good time to fix this issue as well as touch up on the textures to give them more definition.

Shadow Scale

The Shadow Scale also had similar issues with its underarms. We had actually discovered this issue while creating the Flame Stalker, which is the dragons made after the Shadow Scale do not have this issue. In addition to the armpits, we noticed some other errors on this dragon that needed to be fixed.

Left: old, Right: new

Some players may notice an issue where the back scales do not move properly with the back of the dragon when walking. We tweaked the back of the model to help keep those spikes in place. We also removed an annoying chin point on the model that made it look a lower quality than it actually is as well as improve the overall textures. Check out the thumbnails above to see the fixes for yourself.

Flame Stalker

The next dragon to get a touch up is the Flame Stalker. We are currently working on the tweaks to its textures to give it a better overall look with more detail.

What's In the Works

Biolumin Wall Mounted Nest

The dragons themselves are the only thing that needs to be completed for the 1.0 update. We are also working on creating their visual effects and environmental assets.

We are currently working on finalizing the Biolumin's nest. This dragon's nest will have two different forms; a wall mounted and a ground mounted. The Bio's nest in the Shimmering Caverns where the flora and fauna emits a beautiful bioluminescent glow. The nest itself is made from the sticky saliva of the Biolumin's and emits its out light. This was inspired by real life swiftlets who make their own nests out of saliva in cavern settings.

The Blitz Striker's nest is also being worked on. It is inspired by fulgurite, the formation created when lightning strikes sand.

Blitz Striker Nest

The Biolumin egg is also getting its own special effects. Unlike other dragon's eggs, you will be able to see the growing fetus in the Bio's egg. As the egg matures, it will become less and less transparent until the egg eventually hatches in a cute Biolumin hatchling. To get this effect to work, our Visual Effects Artist had to sculpt a fetus version of the Biolumin Dragon to fit in the egg.

Biolumin Egg

Biolumin Fetus Model

In addition to dragon related assets, we are also working on environmental assets for the Shimmering Caverns and other landscapes. The Shimmering Caverns will be home to bioluminescent flora and fauna as well as natural structures that emit their own glow. This biome will be filled with environmental assets not found anywhere else in the world.

We are getting closer every day to the 1.0 update and the release of all the content it will include. Make sure to follow our various social media accounts for frequent updates and check back here for our next Dev Blog!

From the Community

Each blog post, we pick some of our favorite screenshots and artwork posted by the community to showcase here. Want a chance for your submission to be showcased on our next blog? Post it in the appropriate channels on our discord!