Linux First
Hypno is now being developed as Linux-first. The entire stack has been moved to a Cachy OS workstation, the Holo Deck used for Hypno Tournaments is running on a slim Cachy OS build, while the entire game has been optimized for Steam Deck running Steam OS since the very beginning.
The reasons for this decision are equally of ethical and practical nature.
We cannot in good conscience continue to rely on proprietary operating systems that are increasingly intrusive and bloated with features that are often being forced upon the user without any prior consent, while implementing aggressive data harvesting algorithms and unreliable codebase generated by LLMs that often introduce system-wide vulnerabilities and instabilities.
Holo Deck
Hypno originally started as an audio-visual live performance tool - a crossover between DJing and VJing intended for big stages of electronic music parties and festivals. But then we thought, what if we turned it into a game and brought it to masses? That thought defined the development of Hypno up until several months ago, when an opportunity to bring the original concept back into the picture appeared.
In case you didn't know, Hypno is being developed in Koh Phangan, Thailand. A tropical island known mostly for its Full Moon Party with EDM venues lined along its epic Haad Rin Nok Beach but also with its own less commercial techno and trance scene scattered all around the island.
We believe Hypno could thrive in this environment so we rented an entire building where we're putting together an immersive experience chamber designed around what we're calling a Holo Deck.
It's essentially a custom made table that implements several optical concepts to deliver a unique social experience that we also intend to use for our parallel project here on the island. For Hypno, there are several use cases:
Duel with two players facing each other
Arena with up to four players at the Holo Deck
Solo play facing large scale projection screen
Performance mode facing the audience with large scale projection behind
Hypno Tournament
Once we have the chamber up and running, we plan to start organizing little Hypno Tournaments utilizing several of the above mentioned modes
Solo play for qualification runs
Duels for tournament bracket
Arena for final games, or its own tournaments
Hypno Arcade
The current Hypno Demo already works perfectly as an arcade game so we intend to build multiple Linux based cabinets with dedicated arcade controllers and set up an entire Hypno Arcade once we have the Hypno Tournament tuned to perfection and ready to contain larger amount of players.
Hypno Festival
There are plenty of venues on the island that could already host a dedicated Hypno Festival. This is our ultimate objective intended to bring players from all around the world to participate in what would work as a regular electronic music festival but with the twist of it also being a gaming tournament anyone can qualify for, compete in and win at, while standing on a big stage with crowds cheering on the dance floor below.