Lounge Opening
Ambient Dark launches on Monday 10th March. In this devlog I detail all the improvements and changes based on demo feedback, plus I explain what "early access" means for the game.
Improvements
Second Screen
When the mouse moves outside of the game window/frame, the game no longer moves the camera. As well it is possible to right click to lock the camera and move the mouse around freely. This should make it much easier and more practical to have Ambient Dark on a second screen or as a window on a widescreen monitor, and still do other things on the other/main monitor.
Monitors
I added in airport-style departures boards showing the various spaceships coming and going. This was already accessible via the menu but having it in the world as well adds to the spaceport lounge feel and is a bit easier to access or even know it exists.
I also added in a jukebox-style screen in the bar for changing the music, again to make the experience a bit more immersive. Thanks to those who played the demo and suggested this!
Lower Plants
The plants in the bar area (upstairs mezzanine area of the lounge) are now much lower to allow players to see more of the view outside the window. Before, it was difficult to spot any spaceships between all the foliage, making it less interesting as a place to sit.
Early Access
Ambient Dark launches on Match 10th into an "Early Access" phase. This just means that I'll be adding more environments, rooms and music to the game over time. The game is very much ready to be experienced and enjoyed right now as it is.
The full game will feature an additional 3 music albums that were not in the demo. The demo will remain available after launch but any new environments / rooms / music that I add to the full game will be locked and inaccessible in the demo.
As for when and how often the game is updated, I will always prioritise fixing bugs. For content updates, I can't make any guarantees simply because my job is very busy and I especially don't want to rush adding new rooms and environments. Instead I want to give each new room or environment the creative space to breath and develop an identity.
That said, I will keep these devlogs going in the meantime with updates on progress so you have a reasonable idea of when to expect new things to appear in the game.
New Spaces
Spaceport Expansion
I have a couple of ideas for additional rooms in the spaceport lounge environment - i.e. other places in the same spaceport. These will be a bit like "levels" in a video game, where players select them from a menu and then load into them.
My plan is to also use these for testing the level loading that will later be used for other environments (other planets, spacestations etc).
As well, as mentioned in the previous devlog, I want to add even more spaceship traffic and things happening outside the spaceport window. I'm going to experiment with the current spaceport lounge first, plus the two new rooms I have ideas for. My aim is something like a virtual fishtank, but spaceships instead of fish.
New Worlds
Also as mentioned in the last devlog, I have an outline plan of what additional environments I want to add to the game long term. I'm currently thinking of doing 3 different planet-based environments, and 1 further spacestation based one:
- Desert Planet Spaceport
- Deep Forest Micro-Habitats
- Antarctic Mountain Industrial Facility
- Space Mining Platform in Asteroid Belt
These are all very much "on paper" and not guaranteed at all, but hopefully give an idea of the direction I'm thinking.
Feedback and Bugs
If you want to give more feedback, I made a feedback thread here: https://steamcommunity.com/app/3396470/discussions/0/727997144358725480/
As well, I'm sure some bugs will emerge once the game releases, so please do let me know about them here, so I can fix them: https://steamcommunity.com/app/3396470/discussions/0/727997144358727138/
And if you want to discuss more, you can hunt me down on social media, e.g. via discord: https://discord.gg/hYSbQwFQZQ