Status Update #1 - Learn about the remastered version | New Betty Lake Reveal!

08 Apr 2024Developer post

Source: Steam Community (opens in a new tab)

Hello Everyone,
it is time to drop some light on how the works over the “rework” are going! What did we achieve, what we would like to achieve and what things we are struggling with 🙂

So what does the “remaster” mean at all? What is it? What you can expect?

To be honest, it is a really complex matter that we divided into a few sectors but first things first. By the remaster, we mean that the whole game, especially the background code, scripts, and assets will get an overhaul while keeping the core gameplay mechanic in its current form (maybe besides cringe reel drag that is not working properly).

As we are still a small team (currently 4 people), we divided the whole process into phases, which I can publicly reveal to you.

Phase 1 - converting the project to the newest Unity HDRP LTS. Implementation of the new water system. New skybox.
Phase 2 - redoing VR so it works properly on the new Unity version (this one will need a LOT of testing)
Phase 3 - reworking all base game maps
Phase 4 - reworking all DLC maps
Phase 5 - replace all fish models from old to new ones
Phase 6 - adjustments in gameplay mechanics, improvements in UI/UX, re-doing lures & baits logic (to be more user friendly), improvements in SFX.
Phase 7 - re-working game networking and adding full multiplayer support so you can see other players.
… and more but I don’t want to reveal it right now as some things/features are not 100% confirmed, so I don’t want to promise anything.

As you can see it is a LOT of work but so far I have to admit we are doing pretty well.

We already finished Phase 1 but during our internal testing, we have some mixed feelings about new water & underwater visuals so this one can still change to another solution.

Phase 2 was already done, and tested on our internal VR headsets but it is a really important part of the game. We haven’t improved the input and visuals yet but right now it is fully functional and playable on Unity HDRP. That is why we will release the VR remaster (and other features) in an open playtest. You can sign for them already here:

Phase 3 is giving us a lot of struggles, and there are a few reasons for that. We want to keep the original shape of the maps where we can, improve visuals as much as we can, and most of everything - keep performance at a level, where everyone will be able to play as the old version.

For maps, we had planned to “refresh” most of them but it seems we will finish by re-doing 80% of them from scratches in Phase 3 :) One of the maps where we just did visual improvements, small terrain changes, etc. is Betty Lake.

Welcome to remastered Betty Lake!

Watch video on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Don’t think that we only did Betty Lake! We already finished over half of the maps from Phase 3 and we will regularly show you videos from Before/After and we will be more than happy to read your feedback.

The biggest change in all maps is that right now we are using real-life heightmaps for terrain and lakes/rivers/ocean bottoms (if this data is available).

Remember Powell Lake? It was a small map, now it is triple like that! It finally feels like Utah!

I can’t wait to show you St. Zenos Lake which should be a carp fishing paradise from the start, with proper booths and places for fishing! :>

And Pinas Bay? Oh dear, this one is huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge.

So when we will post an update?

Once we finish Phase 3 - we should release the first update publicly after playtests (remember you can take part in them for free).

Phase 4 - will be released in regular updates, map by map.

Phase 5 - In terms of fish replacement - this is a huge task. We have over 100 fish in the game, and replacing all of them with proper animations and textures required us lot of work to not mess anything up (remember Taupo Lake's new fish glitches? We don’t want to repeat that).

Phase 6 - will be most likely pushed in steps with earlier updates, so it can be that we will release part of Phase 6 with some Phase 4 DLC map remaster or between other updates. The priority is proper fishing behavior, spawn points, sound systems, UI/UX upgrades, reel drag, and more!

Multiplayer

Phase 7 - and this is the biggest and hardest task for us. As we posted in the roadmap we should release it somewhere in 2025. Many of you ask how it will be so here is some light for it.

Multiplayer will be implemented once for good which means:

Full 3D models
Visible other players catch, rods, fights, animations
and more! 🙂

The Gem that wasn’t polished - Florida DLC

Remember Florida DLC? It is the biggest map in the game that ever existed, we tried to do something better, something different with a really lot of reefs, iconic places, and depths with really big fish.

And we simply failed in many fields. We spent almost the whole of Christmas fixing the game, pushing patches, etc – believe me, we would prefer to eat pierogies with a “calm mind” :D

So lesson learned, and here is a short update about Florida: MAP IS TOO BIG, AND THERE IS NOT ENOUGH FISH (xd).

But for real here is our plan:

It will be updated to HDRP in Phase 3
We will add 3 more fish species:
- Sandbar shark
- Dusky shark
- Silky shark
- … and maybe one or two more.
We will add 10 more lures/baits, only available in Florida DLC that will be dedicated especially to fish in Florida (but will also work on other maps).