Hey Movers,
Last time we shared our love for all the helpful folks who put their hands up to test the game, so today we thought we’d give you some excellent eye-candy and deep-dive into FX Land!
Games are such a mix of art, design and tech and FX really is the quintessential blend of all three. With Moving Out, game-play really drove the FX, but sometimes the reverse was true as well. Our tech artists really had to stretch themselves to achieve some of the effects you get to see and experience in the game. From smoke to fire, fluid to… bodily fluids… ahem… sweat, we have it all!
Being in the realm of Technical Art, FX can be /really/ technical, but we know you’ll be able to follow along, so let’s jump in with a SPLASH!
Fluid bodies and liquids play a big role game-play wise in Moving Out. Sometimes they’re death traps, sometimes they’re a requirement of other game elements. We really like it when game-play shows us that we need to make something to ‘fill a hole’ visually – an entire self-levelling fluid system was built because the game-play and story called for fluid-filled, deliverable objects. Our tech artists were really proud of their solution here – it’s all shader-based and conceptually it’s pretty neat.
Now, here’s something else to blow your mind. Did you know that our smoke, flames, and fluid splashes are all made the same way with the biggest difference being… gravity?! Don’t let anyone tell you that physics isn’t fun again.
Sweat was another game-play driven effect. We iterated a lot on this because it really is a visual indicator for the game mechanics. The sweat is a clue that you’re doing something in a less-than-efficient way in the game, and hey – you might need some help if you want to smash that time! Originally, we were more literal with the treatment: it looked like water, it was a little sluggish and tear-drop shaped. This didn’t really communicate the urgency that the sweat needed to though, so we made the sweat particles smaller, longer and speedier. This got the idea across cleanly and acted as a seamless, visual cue for players, one that we think is pretty elegant and effective.
At the end of the day, FX really bring the game to life. Smoke chugging from car exhausts, conduits that light up for game-play – all these effects help to really build the world into something that’s visually appealing and simultaneously communicates super important game-play elements. We think our tech artists did a great job of making the world feel extra polished and we hope you do too.
Why not tell us in the comments what effect you’ve liked most that you’ve seen so far and let us know how excited you are to interact with these in game!
Until next time!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/996770/Moving_Out/