Pre-Alpha Devblog #13 (Experimental Build 0.8.22)

Hello all,

Thanks for checking out our 13th devblog! We’ve released the initial 0.9 build to our experimental branch on Steam. There’s a lot of testing and breaking to do so go at it! Below you can find our patch notes.

We’ll be updating to default once experimental is tested and stable along with a devlog update video showcasing all the 0.9 feature improvements and additions. Please do your best to check against the list of changes below and report bugs here.

General 

• Disabled Container spawned loot in favor of all physical loot.
• Fixed issue where other players would snap to different rotations when they were idling.
• Fixed scenario where the player could get stuck in 'Loading' state when connecting to another server while already in one.
• First join UI no longer plays while still loading into game.
• Melee headshot damage multiplier reduced.
• Added new bat melee weapon which can be crafting from wood.
• 'V' now works for activating flashlights. Also works with new headlamp.
• Lock highlights now move correctly with the doors when open.
• Max inventory weight is no longer reset after rejoining a server.
• Particles are now pre-loaded during initial game load to help performance.
• Flashlights now play put away animations. 
• Item dropping and picking up server side performance improvements.
• Items dropped from the inventory are now placed where the player is looking rather than a fixed drop point. This functions as a quick way of placing items and stops players dropping objects through walls.
• Improved proxy aim accuracy.
• Can no longer open the inventory while in placement mode.
• Altered physical loot system to allow more control of spawned items.
• Changed all battery variants to stackable.
• Updated descriptions for AA and D batteries to show their usage more clearly.
• 9V and C batteries disabled. Only D and AA batteries will be used for now.
• STN logo removed from game screen.
• Weapon avoidance is disabled while playing the grab affect.
• Added ability to slam doors open/closed by pressing Interact key on the door panel. (Handles still function as a way to open doors normally)
• Door handle interaction time is now quicker.
• Door handle colliders are now bigger to make interaction easier.
• Headlamps and low level battery powered items now use AA batteries.
• AA batteries are now harvestable from new battery stand.
• New AA battery stand can be searched for batteries.
• Sound sliders in menu now fully work!!! (sorry this took so long)
• Hatchet now break correctly when reaching 0% condition.
• Reaching and grab animation now plays when trying to harvest items.
• Weapons no longer always spawn with 0 condition.
• Flickering reflections on weapons reduced.
• Resolution drop downs now fixed so that players can always select an appropriate resolution.
• New headlamp drop added to the game.
• Zombies no longer climb out of windows during the day without reason.
• Second log of oak tree no longer breaks.
• Picking up an item now cancels the animation for consuming.
• Fixed issue where the player would fall through the ground when joining the server.
• Radiator fan box no longer appears really close to the player.

Headlamp

• New headlamp added as a starting item which which is designed to make night gameplay easier.

Cooking Improvements

• Cooked pots and meat variants now have clearer textures to indicate when cooked.
• Cooking objects now transition to cooked state in the same position rather than just above.
• Placing objects on the cooking surface now start cooking quicker.
• Items can now be picked up from cooking surfaces.
• Added notifications to cooking which aid the player as they learn the system.
• Clearer cooking pot variants to indicate when a pot contains uncooked, cooked or burnt items.
• Cooking burnt meat no longer spams errors to the log.
• Grill now snaps into position over the fire when in placement mode so that it's easier to get it in position.

New Notifications System and Hover Info

• Old notification system removed as it could become cluttered and confusing.
• New unimportant notification systems added which is located in the top left of the screen. This handles repetative information that isn't always needed by the player.
• New Hint system added which handles important information the player needs. Located in the lower right corner of the screen.
• Added system which limits the amount of times any single hint can play.
• Removed old item hover info which we felt was too big and confusing.
• Added new hover system which includes icons that animate to show further information when looking directly at them.
• Improved notifications for missing parts when trying to place locks.
• Player now gets a hint showing the tool they are missing when trying to search for items.
• Added new frying sound.
• Updated cooking particles to make it more clear what cooking stage an item is in.
• Added new boiling sounds for items in pots.

Crafting Visual Overhaul 

• Added info string in the bottom of the inventory that displays the current inventory weight. Field dynamically adjusts to show button for placing when you hovering over the [drop] item button
• Removed the [Add] [Minus] buttons next to the item name in the crafting window.
• Added [Search] and [Recipe] buttons next to the item name in the crafting window.
• [Search] allows the player to 'search' for any recipes that include that item.
• [Recipe] show the recipe for that item.
• Updated the 'How to craft' section of the crafting page to make it easier to understand.
• Craftables that can't currently be crafted now show in the craftables list as grey.
• Craftables in the craftables list now hover red to show that they can be clicked on. Grey recipes also hover ready and can still be clicked on to show the player why they cannot craft the item at this time.
• Added a string in the crafting list view that explains what the search results reflect.
• Added label to craft-able screen that says 'Items produced' so that it's clear you're about to craft.
• Changed the functionality of the [clear] button in the crafting page to mean 'clear search' since recipes in the old way are no longer used.

Inventory Improvements

• [Take] buttons now go grey when you can't take from the container.
• Top title on the items page now says the category name instead of just "Backpack" on all tabs.
• Added read out when hovering over consume buttons that display how consuming that item will affect your players stats.
• Inventory items now sort automatically on pickup rather than getting added to the bottom of the list of items.
• Stats button in the inventory now points to the correct page.
• Added support for placement mode right from the inventory. Activated by holding shift while in the inventory and pressing the [place] button.
• Added highlights to top category tabs in the inventory that indicate when you have new items per category.

Navigation Improvements

• Zombie path finding iterations tweaked. AI should now be faster at calculating closest point to player when they are unreachable.
• Zombies can now get on sofas so that players cannot stand on them to get out of reach.
• Zombies can now get on dining tables so that players cannot stand on them to get out of reach.

Environment

• All house interiors redesigned to improve aesthetics and player/ai navigation.
• Redesigned Gas station interiors.
• Tweaked Gas station models to improve looks.
• Added AA battery harvest points in Gas Stations.

Quality of Life