Hello survivors! Update 0.9 is now available. Below are the changes made during this update:
Performance:
During this stage of development, a lot of time has been invested in optimization. To increase the realism of the environment, procedural generation stages have been added in the latest updates, with a consequent increase in load times. Generation time was not an issue initially, as the set of stages did not exceed 30 seconds, but it could become cumbersome if a game was loaded repeatedly in a short space of time. To solve these loading times, generation phases are now only performed when starting a new game. The data generated is stored on the hard drive, slightly increasing the size of the save file from a few kilobytes to around 5 megabytes, and reducing loading time by around 80%, from around 30 seconds to around 6 seconds. This work may go unnoticed since it is not visual, but it was necessary to speed up the flow of the game.
Constructions of old survivors:
To further enrich the game's environment, old abandoned bases from other survivors are now generated. In most cases these buildings are half-ruined due to lack of use, but all of them provide a starting point for starting a new base, since you can build using their intact parts as a starting point. All of these buildings are closed, their doors and windows are unusable, and there are always valuable items inside, so it is worth investing time in destroying a part to gain access to the interior.
The construction menu has been redesigned, doors and windows are now separate buildings, so you will first have to build a door or window frame. A new type of triangular wall has also been added to fill the gaps left by ceilings when built on odd-numbered walls.
Enemies and Combat:
Enemy AI has been significantly improved as detailed below:
- Extra checkpoints have been added to improve their vision and make them more realistic, they can now see the player even if only part of their body is visible behind cover.
- Repositioning has been improved when facing large groups, they no longer push each other to take the shortest path, they are always evenly distributed around the player.
- The maximum number of enemies attacking at the same time has been decreased to prevent them from blocking the player's movement.
- A displacement mechanic has been added, it is activated when performing a successful kick on an enemy, displacing him backwards and blocking his movement for a few seconds. The energy consumption of kicks has been considerably increased to avoid abuse and to make it an action to perform if you want to escape or reposition yourself.
- A stun mechanic has been added, hits to an enemy's head leave them stunned for 3 seconds, after which they have 10 seconds of invulnerability to stuns, this mechanic also applies to the player, if he receives a blow to the head he is stunned and unable to perform any action for 2 seconds, after which he has 10 seconds of invulnerability to stuns.
- Differentiated colliders have been added for each part of the player's body, in the same way that the enemies already had. These parts reduce the damage received in extremities and increase it in the chest and head, in this way the weaker enemies that attack the legs now do less damage, improving the learning curve of the combat.
- All enemy combat animations have been modified. Now, during an attack, they move or stand still depending on their distance from the player, since before the player only had to move backwards to avoid any attack, to focus more on this mechanics and increase the realism, the speed of the player has been decreased when moving backwards by 40%.
- Fixed some cases where enemies would not know how to behave around a player-owned building or a body of water or river.
Sound:
A lot of missing sound effects have been added, especially during different enemy actions.
Added or corrected the labeling of many materials so that the player's footsteps correspond to the material stepped on.
More ambient music has been added and the times between songs and conversations with Ashun have been lengthened.
Next update:
The next update will be 1.0, which will mark the exit from early access. It will focus on the end of the game, with the remodeling of the control center and the events that take place there. Other aspects of the game will also be polished, such as the visual effects of the summons, as well as their sound effects, the vegetation, especially in the mountain biome, and a general polish to the cinematics and animations.
I hope you enjoy this update!