Hi all,
Just thought I'd post something to bring you all up to speed with how development is going on SIR - what's coming next, what's happening with career and online etc.
Next Week
The latest patch, dropping next week, will concentrate on optimisation. With the recent updates to environments, customisation and graphics, the nuts and bolts needs tightening up a little. Hitting a solid 60fps is really important with a game like SIR, and this next update will help people struggling with that. For those already hitting 60fps, but with the occasional micro hitch, this will help smooth out the bumps.
The Hub
After this, work will shift to the map screen. This will be the new hub for the game, straight after the title screen. A map of the SIR solar system will be displayed, and you'll be able to select a location (e.g. Keres Lower Orbit) and choose your game mode directly from here.
The map screen will serve two important functions:
- It will be the launch pad for the career mode. New events will be highlighted on the map screen, and location unlocks will happen here. The map screen will help the player visualize their progression.
- It will contribute to the world building, giving SIR a sense of place and connectedness. Short descriptions for the locations will fill in the background and fiction for SIR.
Career Mode
After the map screen is in the game, work can start in earnest on career mode. It is likely that you won't see career mode drop all in a single update, but over several updates, allowing me to integrate your feedback.
Online Multiplayer
The next big piece after career is online multiplayer. This is the big one, and I've been waiting for us to get enough players into the game so that when we start testing this, we actually have a chance of finding a game. We're not quite there yet, and this is maybe something you can help with.
Growing the Game
To increase the user base for multiplayer testing, we need more players. And for that to happen, SIR needs more reviews. At the time of writing, the game has 20 reviews, 95% (19 / 20) of which are positive. 95% is an amazing score, but the Steam store page doesn't show a rating above "Positive" before the game gets around 50 reviews. So if you would be so good to leave a review, it would really help the game grow.
Public Appearances
Another way to grow the game is to get it in public eye, at conferences and conventions etc. I'll be stepping up this side of things, and to kick things off, SIR has been invited to be part of the Unity showcase at Unite 16 LA, on November 1-3 in the Loews Hotel, Hollywood. If you're there, drop by the booth, and I'll race you :)
Play the Original, Free, Right Now
Did you know there was an IMPOSSIBLE ROAD? It was the Apple's runner up Best of 2013 game on iPad, but it also works on iPhone. It's more of a simple score attack game, but the shortcuts and procedural generation are there. If you want to see where the game came from, IMPOSSIBLE ROAD is Apple's Free App of the Week, so get yourself over there to download it for free.
Okay, that's just about everything for now. If you have any questions, do leave a comment below and I'll reply to you there.
Cheers,
Kevin