Hey all!
Dan from Slug Disco here, the publishers for Adapt :)
We are going to start posting out updates about what has been going on behind the scenes as development progresses and this is dev update number 1!
Here's all the stuff we will be sharing in this months update:
- Attribute Redesign
- Attack Types
- Status Effects
- New Diets
- Part Rotator
- Optimisations
- Community showcase
So let's get stuck in!
Attribute Redesign
A major component of the 0.50a update was the redesign of the attribute system in Adapt; which basically includes all stats, genes, adaptations, and just about anything else that is composed of a name, values, and UI assets. This redesign was essential for nearly all other aspects of this update, and additionally serves to significantly simplify and expedite the introduction of future attributes of any kind, requiring almost no code to implement new stats, abilities, and genetics. This restructure also serves to lay the foundation for future mod-support by exposing all attributes and associated behaviors in an accessible pipeline. Here are some of the cool stuff that’s coming out of this change in this update.
Attack Types
Also thanks to the new attribute system, I’ve finally been able to implement something I’ve been conceptualizing for some time; which I think players will be very excited about. drumroll…
Separated Attack Types
With the 0.50a update, players will be able to cycle through multiple attack types, based on those available through their genetics. This first iteration will support the 3 current fundamental attack traits, Blunt, Pierce, and Slash, and will primarily be obtained through various Head/Mouth genetics; and cycling will work similarly to changing your mood; replacing the Q-E rotation with Q-Mood, E-Attack selection. The trade-off for this change will be that you can now only change your mood in one direction. An exciting aspect of the new Attack Types system, is that it opens the door for attack-related status effects to be evolved, which brings us to the next big addition for the 0.50a update.
Status Effects
The release of the Status Effects feature is a big deal for Adapt. Status Effects will directly tie into numerous systems in the game including habitation, combat, diet, and socializing; and will essentially replace some of the less conceptually obvious aspects of the game. (Looking at you, habitat meter).
New Diets
Two New highly requested dietary strategies are also on the way in 0.50a. Hemovore, and Nectivore Abilities will bring the total number of dietary abilities to the final total of 9.
The Hemovore ability will allow players to feed whenever they attack with the Piercing trait; and can be obtained through genetics associated with a piercing mouth, with fangs or a proboscis.
Part Rotator
While unrelated to the Attribute restructure. Part Rotation has been another highly requested feature, and one that I’ve been excited to get implemented for a long time. Players will now have complete control over placement, rotation, and scale of parts, allowing a new level of customization for their species. The Part rotator marks the first of a number of exciting editor improvements I’ve got planned.
Optimisations
Another huge, but arguably less ‘shiny’ initiative for this update was focused on improving performance. A significant portion of the last few months have been spent streamlining the games backend systems which update everything from food to physics, with more multi-core processing, and numerous fixes which could (in some cases) significantly impact performance. The result of these changes should mean a much more stable, and much smoother play experience for everyone; but will most significantly affect a subset of players who have been experiencing seemingly random frame-drops.
Community Showcase
Phew! That was a lot of updates, now let's relax and celebrate by showing off what the community have been up to :)
First up we have a video from the fantastic DarkEdgeTV where they play through the demo as an aquatic creature:
We also have the following from Blitz who tried to mate with EVERYTHING in the game:
Hopping over to the Adapt Discord we have the follow creature creations that we just had to share:
- Grog Chuggin' Huggins
- SmilePoneh
- InkStar
That's it for this update, stay tuned for our next one and update 0.50a which we hope to be able to share as soon as possible!