Hey everyone!
Today we're releasing the biggest update to the demo yet, introducing some massive changes to not only the look of the game, but the feel of the game.
Improved Lighting
We've overhauled the first level quite a bit visually, giving it a more darker tone overall. Interiors in the first level have gotten a huge upgrade visually. Before interiors we're very flat, only lit by SSAO. Now we've introduced a more hand-tuned lighting system, allowing us to get much more realistic and pleasant results. This change has no performance cost other than a slight memory increase. Ray tracing of course builds on this improvement looking even better than before, if you so choose to turn it on.
Bye-bye healing and grenade slots.
One of the big mechanical changes in this update addresses healing and throwables. Before, you had a slot in your inventory for both healing and throwables. Bandages would automatically be placed, and your first throwable would automatically be placed. After that, it was all on you. This was janky. We've now introduced a radial menu for both healable and throwables. This eliminates any accidental usage of items and generally just feels much better, while also solving the med-kit issue. The game speed is slower but not stopped, meaning you can still get hit in this state if you take too long or don't have cover.
Resource scarcity and management
One of the more inconsistent design issues we found was the amount of bandages and ammunition players we're ending up with at the end of the demo. This was largely dependent on play styles. If you explored every corner and looted every body, you ended up with way too many resources. If you instead rushed through to progress, you ended up with barely enough. This is a very tricky and complex game design issue and something we're always looking at. Here's how we've addressed it in this update.
All ammunition picked up has been reduced by 20%
On the 'Tactical' difficulty, ammo has been reduced again by 25%
Guns found now will drop a variable amount instead of being fully loaded
The changes above should address the over abundance of ammo, especially on tactical difficulty. As we see it, the tactical difficulty should be much more resource scarce than casual, resulting in a more intense combat environment. In the full game, we're probably going to go with a more dynamic system that will depend on how much ammo you already have for a certain gun, etc.
Gunplay and fluidity
One of the major initial complaints we received was about fluidity. We've addressed some of this in the previous small patches but we've made big strides in the gunplay department. Animations have been changed and modified to allow for smoother gunplay. We've animated new walking animations for each gun, and heavily modified all fire animations. We've also improved weapon audio, fixing a bug where the audio would be cut short. We've also completely changed how aiming works. Instead of coming from the barrel, hip-fire shots will now aim at center screen. To accompany this change, we've also added a crosshair option in the gameplay section. It is defaulted to off. Weapons have also been modified to aim a little closer in when aiming. Most notably the XM4 got a big buff in this aspect.
Human AI
Oh where do I begin. JK. Anyways, Human AI is going to be evolving constantly but we've put some work in to improve it's feel and make them more tactical. One of the big issues with the AI is the randomness. That's why some players think they feel great and some think they're... well not smart. We're likely to completely overhaul AI in the near future, but for now we've added a couple of new states.
Some AI now have set paths they can walk along in the bases, instead of just standing there.
AI can now see dead bodies and search the perimeter if not already in combat.
AI can now see better and act smarter when the player is leaning.
Previous patch added flanking and confidence systems
Increased difficulty on casual mode
We hope these changes will satisfy. If they don't, then feel free to talk sh*t in the community hub. I'll be reading.
Performance Improvements
We've managed to significantly improve the consistency of performance. We've addressed several issues regarding loading and saving, audio loading, and prefab warmups. We've also introduced a system that will constantly be cutting a cost of our CPU budget instead of creating a huge cost at random. This should resolve any major stuttering or consistent framerate issues. It's been a big goal to have buttery smooth performance and we're getting very close.
Looking forward
We're now entering into our content production phase. We will fully be focused on the full game from now on. We do have big changes planned for the demo, such as remaking the first 10 minutes of the demo. But this won't happen for a little bit. Of course if bugs arrive and are reported, small patches will go out. We'll be looking for testers for new content in our discord, and we'll of course be doing monthly dev-logs. Before I go, I'll share a little sneak peek of one of the levels in development. Screenshot is in game.
(Work in progress)
Many thanks,
Shadow Project Team