Hello subROVers!
We've finally completed the dives revision!
What's New
This revision puts most(*) dives in line with the improvements already present in the certification dive 03. As a recap,
- We've increased the amount of already existing objects overall, and added many new ones in the form of small stones and particularly trash (cans, masks, etc).
- We've improved the distribution of objects over the terrain (e.g. not placing them on the outer rim of the map).
- We've improved the transitions between sand and rock (the little patches of sand on top of rocks specifically), and have better control on the textures' distribution.
- Sea cucumbers are now placed independently from the general pool of bottom dwellers. You won't notice this as a change, but it increases both the number of cukes and other dwellers.
(*)We haven't revised the certification dives 02 and 04 just yet. In 02 we might limit the ability to get to the seafloor since it's not part of the dive's objectives; 04 could become a general tutorial for tools taking place in a dock or test pool, so we're holding off changing it for now.
Moving Forward
We had planned to focus on the Hoel wreck dive right away, but we are going to make a detour to add a cutting-edge tool to the game -SOLARIS!
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2975342773
FULL GALLERY
We got in touch with scientists onboard Falkor(too) a few weeks ago when they were working with SOLARIS on the field; they sent us the CAD model of the instrument, and to make the most of the situation we started work on a game-ready 3D model right away. Now that the model is finished and the dives are revised, we'll work on the handling and gameplay of the tool. Once this is done, we'll release 0.7.35, have it in beta for a few days, and then we'll roll out all the changes since 0.7.31 to everyone. After that, we'll go full-on with the Hoel.
In all, this update is a big step forward in our ongoing effort to make the dives more interesting and livelier. We hope you'll like the results -Happy subROVving! 😁
Full Log
New Features/Improvements:
- Dives: Revised object distribution, object density (all except for cert02 and 04).
- Dives: Revised every dive's terrain (tessellation, smoothing, global texture).
- Dives: Added small stones and over 50 types of trash items.
- Dives: Increased seafloor creatures' icon time and added map icon.
- Other/Internal: Revised static objects' configuration & other performance tweaks.
Bug Fixes:
- Dives: some coral's SONAR icons are displayed too off-center depending on the slope.
Get In Touch
Here's a list of the many ways in which you can reach us:
- From the game -press F8
- Through the forum right here on Steam
- Through our Discord Server,
- Through Twitter,
- Through mastodon,
- By email (info 'at' sqr3lab.com)
Support subROV
If you enjoy subROV and would like to support us, please consider leaving us a review. Steam is a deep ocean, and reviews really help us stay afloat.
PS
We would appreciate it a lot if you let us know how do the dives feel now, and if you encounter any "anomalies" whilst diving, particularly misplaced objects.