Our highly anticipated Autumn update is coming, and we’re taking a closer look here at another major change coming to the live game. This brand-new mechanic adds a powerful new tool that can fundamentally change the many ways players approach modern combat. Introducing the Command Overlay.
Please remember all assets shown are currently a work-in-progress.
We created GO! Commands because it must be as easy for you to give orders to your team as it is to fire your weapon. Old-fashioned radial menus slow things down too much to be real. You must be able to point and tap a button. It’s about speed, efficiency, and command and control.
Hundreds of thousands of players have played Six Days, and we’ve watched their gameplay very closely. For the trained military veterans in our community, diving into our simulation of modern combat is like another day in the office. Actions and strategy are like breathing; real-world tactics are second-nature.
DEVELOPER COMMENT
In real-world combat, you don’t have time to think. Just do.
Our new Command Overlay offers three big advantages:
- It instantly reveals tactical options that are unique to each situation.
- It broadens the number of commands you can issue your team.
- It lets you issue complex orders with a tap.
Previously, when holding the GO! button, players could execute one of four specific fireteam commands we’ve been calling “GO! Commands.” These are Suppress, Watch, Move, and Form Up. Now, besides offering this same set of GO! Commands, holding the GO! Button will also display 3-5 commands within the game world itself that are unique to each situation. Pointing at one of them and releasing the GO! Button executes the command. It’s that simple.
Commands are recommended to the player based on their specific combat circumstances. For example, commands suggested when house-clearing vary from those suggested when fighting in Fallujah’s city streets. Consider these “smart” suggestions in the field that take the many, many factors for both the environment and combat into account.
What’s more, these suggestions can be executed, or not. The choice is yours. But, we encourage players to at least consider the many tactical options at their fingertips.
DEVELOPER COMMENT
The Command Overlay is designed to make issuing complex commands easier than ever before, providing additional ways to command your fireteam without removing functionality. For example, with the Command Overlay you can now order your fireteam to clear staircases, rooms, and corners with just one tap. More of these kinds of commands will be added in future updates.
For those worried the overlay will “play the game for you”—we’re not interested in hand-holding. We’re interested in making it as quick and simple for you to issue orders as possible, and in broadening the tactical options in front of you. Rather than tasking your mind with how to issue an order, the Command Overlay lets you focus your attention on making the best tactical choices. In all cases, which option you chose is entirely up to you.
Finally, this is the first iteration of the Command Overlay. We plan to support this system over time, adding more fireteam commands that provide the real-world tactics required for mission success.
The Command Overlay will only be as useful as the fireteam executing your orders. As a reminder, players can expect an upgraded version of Fireteam AI with this update. Improvements include:
- Pathfinding
- Replaced Unreal’s navigation system with a third-party solution
- Significantly reduced the number of gaps in our nav mesh, causing Fireteam AI to get stuck less often
- Smoother movement between Fireteam AI characters
- Less harsh collision between Fireteam AI characters
- Replaced Unreal’s navigation system with a third-party solution
- Movement
- Fewer cases of blocking the player
- Will go around or behind
- Improved positioning when both holding and firing
- Previously occupied the most optimal firing position (which could sometimes be where the player was standing)
- Improved room clearing
- Now follow exterior walls instead of cutting straight through rooms
- Properly pan doors, staircases, and windows
- Fewer cases of blocking the player
- Combat response
- Reduced cases of not properly engaging enemies
- Reduced cases of repeating the same lethal action leading to AI death
Join the community conversation and offer us feedback on our official Discord server!
https://discord.gg/SixDaysGame