{ Status }
We've decided on November 16th, 2023 for our Early Access release date!
While we know everyone knows the game is in development, we wanted to give ourselves enough time before the first Early Access release to provide enough experiences on launch for players to clearly see the potential of where the game is going. Content and features will obviously continue to be added during Early Access but the initial experience after purchasing early access should be enough that when you reach the end of the available areas, you can easily imagine the possibilities of what new terrains, challenges, feature expansions and vehicles could be coming next.
When you get early access, you'll be initially getting a small % of the completed game's content but moreso, we understand that it's a vote of confidence in the game. It helps us directly to make the game better but also invests you, as a player, in the game's future. So we want to make sure when people decide to buy early access, from even the first release before any updates, they will be able to experience enough to feel like it's a project worth supporting.
{ Vehicle Customization }
We've been working on a very robust vehicle customization system to improve upon the current few sliders you get now. The vehicles are very physically modular because of how they're simulated. This provides the FEEL of physicality in the game to the vehicles but it's also allowing us to create a pretty wild customization system.
Vehicles are made up of parts that branch off of the chassis or frame. So the player will unlock frames/bodies of vehicles but they'll also unlock vehicle parts, from a variety of in-game companies. These may be larger components like axles, transmissions or wheels.. but they also will include parts like an engine's cylinder's valves, an exhaust system's O2 sensors or portal gear lifts. Larger parts will come with "stock" parts inside them but every part we are simulating will be swappable.
The goal with the customization is to allow people who want to get into the weeds of it to explore and tune in high detail but also let people who just want to raise up their vehicle more or swap tires to be able to without diving deep.
{ Plants & Trees }
Another system we're improving is the plants and trees. Currently, trees don't move and bushes that are large enough slow you down and break down until they're destroyed.
From underbrush up to large trees, we want the plants in the game to be able to be overcome in the process of making a trail. So the idea is that these plants will be able to bend a certain amount, eventually breaking. When they break, some will leave behind objects, like trunks and stumps. There is also a system for uprooting so if you want to hitch your vehicle to a tree and pull it out, you're able to with enough force.
In the most exciting scenario, you could use those logs to then build a structure, like a bridge, that you place nearby.
All of these changes to the major plants in an area will be saved so a cleared trail will always remain so or cut down trees will stay cut down. We have ideas for balancing the ecology of this, so an area may face consequences (like way more mud, poor air quality...) if you take down ALL the trees versus if you just take down a few for a trail, it rebalancing naturally by growing a few new trees. In real life, much like hunting regulation, tree removal and logging are all about balance and strategic choices to allow the health of the wilderness to maintain.
{ Optimizations }
As we move through improving systems, we're also optimizing. For example, we just finished up making it so the player respawning requires no load screen anymore which is a huge improvement in player experience. The next update to the demo will include that.
We're continuing to work to improve and deliver in early access general performance of systems, expanded graphics and physics options as well as some simple tools for players to gauge their game's performance.
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Thanks for reading! The next update will likely be a small update to the demo along with some more info about how Early Access is coming along!
