Hey everyone! 👋
First off, I want to apologize for the silence over the last couple months. Balancing a full-time job, game development, and the holidays, I kinda slowed down public updates. Moving forward, I’ll do my best to keep you all updated more regularly!
Despite the quiet period, work hasn't stopped! I’ve been hard at work taking all your feedback from the demo into account and pushing the scope of Physio even further! Today, I’m excited to share a major update focused on deepening the overall atmosphere and immersion, featuring new environments, reactive NPC behaviors, a dynamic weather system, interactive vehicles, and a complete overhaul of the combat mechanics!
🗺️ New Maps
(in-game footage)
I'm working on 7 brand-new maps to the game, and 1 of them is already fully integrated in-game (cf: gif above)!
I don't want to spoil too much! But here are some footage of some maps I'm working on from real place in Paris or its suburbs.
(Images taken in Blender)
🌧️ Dynamic Weather System
(in-game footage)
Environmental conditions will now shift across four distinct weather states: clear, cloudy, light rain and heavy rain (with "realistic" surface wetting and drying cooldowns), and thunderstorms!
Also, weather isn't just visual, it directly impacts gameplay:
Crowd Impatience: Rain makes people waiting in line far less patient, putting more pressure on your queue management!
Bystander Reactions: When it starts raining, pedestrians on the street will start running to find cover!
🚃 Public Transport
(in-game footage)
To make the city streets feel more active and dangerous, I’ve introduced functional public transport across some maps:
Interactive Tramway: On one map, a fully operational tram runs through the street! It rings its bell when obstacles are detected on the tracks and can knock down both bystanders and the player if you aren’t careful!
Parisian Metro Line 6: Another map now features the iconic elevated Metro Line 6 passing through the neighborhood, adding to the urban ambiance!
🚶 Living Streets & Reactive NPCs
Instead of just making NPCs "smarter", I completely overhauled street behavior to make the environment feel truly alive, natural, and immersive:
Group Dynamics & Natural Movement: Group behavior during street walks received a massive upgrade! Characters now talk to each other as they walk, look at each other intermittently, and follow much more natural pathing, moving away from the old behavior where they frequently hugged walls!
Street Life & Encounters: You'll now encounter people hanging around corners, groups standing in realistic walking formations, residents commuting home or to work, dealers hanging at some spots and buyers coming to get their products.
Natural Interactivity: When two residents cross paths, they might pause for a chat, and, on rare occasions, start a street brawl!
🥊 Combat System New Iteration
The combat system received some valid criticisms during the demo for feeling clunky and weird, so I reworked it from the ground up to make fights responsive, readable, and incredibly satisfying!
Animation Easing & Telegraphing: Animations no longer run linearly! I gave hits a real weight with a wind-up time, allowing players to actually anticipate, read, and block incoming attacks.
Intuitive Controls & Combo System: Scrapped the old controls for a clear Light/Heavy system!
Left Click (Light Attack): Fast light jab combinations (Left, Right, Left, Right)!
Right Click (Heavy Attack): Heavy power hooks (Left, Right, Left, Right)!
Mix & Match: Alternating between light and heavy attacks unlocks unique, fluid combo strings!
The result is still not perfect, but more easier to take in hands for most players
Impact & Hit Feedback (Hitstop): Added precise hitstop frames on impact so every punch feels meaty and impactful when it connects!
Dynamic Visual & Audio Polish: New camera shake effects, custom particle systems for saliva and blood flying on heavy impacts, and overhauled sound design with fresh vocal reactions for NPCs taking damage!
Bug Fixes: Resolved underlying input bugs and fixed blocking inconsistencies detected in the demo
📜 Story & Lore Progress
On the narrative side, the main story loop is nearly complete! The overarching narrative takes place in a dystopian world governed by escalating state surveillance, set against a backdrop of mounting rebel movements and public protests. A few final details are still being polished, but the foundation is solid!
As always, thank you all so much for the support, patience, and honest feedback!
I'll keep your more often in touch.
See you soon!