Hey everyone,
I know it’s been a while since the last update. Probably longer than most of you expected. I wanted to take a moment to explain what’s going on and show a bit of what we’ve been working on behind the scenes.
I know you’ve been waiting a long time, and the reason for the delay is pretty simple. We’re overhauling a lot of systems at once. It’s not just a new feature or two. It’s a full rework of how things like buildings, production chains, and environmental interactions function. Because we're working on all these big changes, we haven't been able to put out smaller patches. They would make things messy or break stuff that's still being worked on.
The plan is that once this update is out, we’ll be able to shift to smaller, more frequent updates going forward. That’s something we couldn’t really do before, but we’ve got a bigger team now, which should make that possible. First, though, we need to get this big update out. That’s the focus, and we’re working hard to make the wait worth it.
Here’s a quick look at some of what’s changing.
Affinity System
We wanted a more in-depth relational system between buildings and other buildings, as well as between buildings and their environments. We prototyped what building games usually do - effects applied in a radius, or in specific zones, but found out that the Manor Lords' flexible plot system doesn't play very well with placing stuff in areas, especially when they are circular.
Fitting rectangular plots into circles is not pleasant, and it reduces the creativity the player has. The solution we settled on is a system based on areas of different environmental types. The environments we have so far are Meadow, Woodland, Farmland, Rural, and Urban. Buildings have different Affinities; for instance, Apiaries will benefit from a large Woodland area in the Region.
Experimentally, we made it even more complex, and some buildings can buff the Affinities of other buildings. For instance, having Apiaries can increase the existing effect that Pollination Orchards get from Meadows. For another example, placing houses or other structures will also increase Urban Affinity.
As you chop down forests, your Woodland affinities will start disappearing, so if you value forest-based industries, you may want to take care of your forests more.
Note: Everything is a work in progress and subject to change.
New Shop Fronts and Artisan Workstations
New map: “Divided”
We're working on a new map (“Divided”). The east and west sides are divided by a small mountain range (the region's names have not been decided yet).
See-through Fortifications (experimental)
We have been experimenting with see-through fortifications.
New Development Perk Card Style
This is how we want the new development perk cards to look.
Reworked Building Cards
As always, thanks for following and for all the support. Really appreciate the patience while we’ve been working through this big update. I’ll keep posting here as we get closer and share more along the way.
Have a good one!
Greg