Hey everyone, back again for another dev log! As of last month, we completed all the backend systems that will be included in the initial release of Becoming Pablo. From here until we are ready to release, we are focusing exclusively on polish and adding interesting complexity and player decision making to already existing systems. The UI has also undergone a significant facelift in both thematic and immersive terms, and as discussed last time, we are continuing to build out our enemy AI systems to make sure you feel like you are truly up against cunning opponents.
First, let's talk about UI. As seen in these screenshots, we have reskinned the UI all throughout the game to have a uniform look and present a gritty feel to managing your drug empire. We have overhauled our UI several times before, but now that we have a full picture of what the game needs, we feel confident that this is the final push on that front. You will also be able to choose different themes or customize the colorization to your liking.
On the backend, all of the UI was rebuilt with a common base implementation so that every instance of common elements like buttons, menus, and sliders derive from the same prefabs. This means we can ensure consistent quality in the tactile feel of interacting with the game, and any bugs discovered can be fixed universally rather than hunting them down one by one. Some interface flows have also been modified and will continue to be refined as we test internally.
The battle system has received updates to make the interface more animated, though it is still very much a work in progress. We still need to plan out the animations, particle effects, and sound feedback to make combat feel truly satisfying to play through. The direction is clear, there is just more work to do there.
Next, let's talk about where the AI is. Right now, we are focused on implementing what we are calling "action plans", a set of weighted decisions that each enemy faction can evaluate and execute based on their personality type and the current world state. Spy actions in particular have been getting a lot of attention. The intent is that subterfuge has enormous impact, hampering or amplifying economic activity, defensive strength, and leadership bonuses. In earlier internal builds, only the player had any agency in using spy actions. Now that the AI is gaining real decision-making capability, the playing field is starting to even out, and I think that makes the game a lot more interesting.
On the world map, we have been making incremental visual and terrain layout improvements throughout. As a side effect of that, pathfinding fell behind and has been buggy for a while. We have gone back and handcrafted all of the navmeshes for the world, connection points, and ports. On top of that we have addressed false-positives for selecting destinations, units getting stuck in certain locations, and unexpected routing behavior. Since we do not intend to have sea combat, units crossing the ocean will also benefit from a significant increase in movement distance so getting from continent to continent does not feel like a slog.
A note on Steam Next Fest
Next Fest was our first real look at how the game lands with completely fresh eyes, and I can honestly say the feedback, while not easy to read, was exactly what we needed. The demo showed us where the gaps are, UI rough edges, onboarding that needs real work, and a strategy layer that is not communicating itself clearly enough yet. Those are now at the top of the list.
The demo has ended. What comes next is putting our heads down and building the version of this game that the concept deserves.
We are not far from being able to share when that will be. Keep an eye out.