[LOT]

thanks for the feedback guys, we are currently trying to process all the feedback we are getting (there is a LOT of it now with the free week) and sorting it all out to figure what changes we can make to address some of the most common criticisms.

I think it is a fair ( or at least interesting ) debate to have. We had always planned on having a stripped down multiplayer demo/free version, unfortunately we have found out that is technically impossible through steam right now (2 different game builds can't network with each other). We hope to be able to do it down the road when it is supported, but right now there seems to be no way to have a fee version that can also play with people who have bought the game.

We do need to make money off the game somehow, otherwise we will have to go back to work at some faceless corporate game studio.

Not according to my girlfriend, she says I just play games all day 

Starting today, Zero Gear is available for pre-order! Players who pre-order will get 25% off the price of the game, as well as immediate access to the beta version! Visit the Zero Gear product page for pricing information. Zero Gear is slated for release on January 12th, 2010. Stay tuned for more release information in the weeks ahead, including a 4 package deal!



Also included in the latest beta update (which you can access by pre-order), is a new goal mode map, Hoops.



A special thanks goes out from us here at NimbleBit to everyone who has helped us beta testing the game. We hope you will pre-order and continue to be the foundation of the Zero Gear player community!

Core, we were planning on have a free version that limited some of the things in the game and still allowed you to play online, however we weren't able to try that out because of some technical limitations of Steam. It is something we still hope to experiment with once that limitation is removed.

yea, that was a one time thing as we switched over the file that stores that information to the steam cloud thing. Now if you log in on any computer your controls and character will be saved for you.

new build out on steam:

* Added Eight Iron race map
* Added Space Race race map
* Added Touchdown goal map
* 44 Achievements!!!
* The server browser now reports ping times for servers
* Added support to invite friends to the game you are in and added an "Invite Friends" button to the escape menu
* Experimental Steam Cloud support saves your kart setup and key layout between multiple computers
* "Find Game" button added to the escape menu to browser servers while in a server
* Friends only games now supported (your server won't show up on the server list, you must invite your friends into your game)
* Alt tab crash fixed (it appears there is still a problem if you have multiple monitors hooked up, will fix ASAP)
* Fixed problem with wheels rotating erratically when the client was lagging
* Added support for keys above arrow keys and in number pad
* A minimum resolution of 800x600 is now enforced correctly in the settings GUI
* Removed the dialog box asking the user if they wanted to run the game even though their video card doesn't support SM 2.0

New beta is live on Steam:

1.0.1.4 Change Log

* New race map added: Zero Circuit!!!
* Network bandwidth usage optimized, uses up to 75% less data
* Skate now has a simple point based game mode
* Puncher can be used behind kart, has better range, and causes the punched object to spin more
* Reduced the time it takes for a twister to become active once deployed from 2 seconds to 1
* Soccer ball mass increased slightly
* Forced race mode back to warmup if there is only one racing player left
* Camera follow rotation is now 3 times faster when the kart is moving slowly
* Changed quick play to look through the first 3 lobbies for a valid server instead of just the top lobby
* The server browser now only shows how many humans players are in a server
* Added dialog box to warn the user when they connect to a server running a map they don't have
* Texture filter mode now saves when changed in the settings GUI
* Other player's ping times displayed in the player roster GUI will be more responsive
* Upon detecting that the required shader model 2.0 isn't supported on the player's computer, it will ask the user if they want to try running the game anyway

here is a sneak peek of a map I just finished that will be in the next beta update (hopefully out by the end of the week)

This weeks update is live on Steam:

1.0.1.3 Change Log

* New Target mode map: PACHINKO!!!
* Experimental gamepad support, only tested with the 360 controller so far, please give feedback!
* Fixed the checkpoint random reset bug, you should no longer be reset while going through the correct checkpoint
* Stunt tracking added, you will gain boost after a sound and particle effect fire off after performing a barrel roll or flip
* Air steer force increased so it is easier to do rad stunts
* Pressing Apply in settings will now close the settings GUI
* Added a button to reset controls to default in settings GUI
* Servers in your country are specially indicated
* Removed ability to color player names so the names are colored according to teams in Goal mode (server names can still be colored)

Here's a short clip of a new pachinko type map that will be in the next build:

Just a few errors from yesterdays build to correct, and a few other things thrown in. Version 1.0.1.2 is now live on Steam.

1.0.1.2 Change Log

* The game will no longer throw error: "OGRE EXCEPTION(10:MyGUIException): ComboBox::setIndexSelected : index number 8 out of range [8]" if the min players is set to 8 in the server settings file
* The game will no longer throw error: "RaceServer.lua: 1042" when resetting at the start of a race map
* Quick Play now defaults to 4 min players and a random map order
* New default camera angle in the garage
* Added another checkpoint towards the end of Chill Mountain
* Red arrow point loss rate decreased from once every 2 seconds to once every 3 seconds, this means you lose less points while in red mode
* Point loss particle effects in tag now show the correct points lost
* Client and server log files added to error report in case of a crash

New build is up on Steam:

1.0.1.1 Change Log

* 65 MS of lag removed
* Increased the network sync time to 30 times a second from 20
* Quick play button added to the main menu which will join the best server or start a local server if there aren't any good servers to join
* Reverse speed increased slightly
* Soccer ball tweaked so it is easier to hit around
* Player karts colored based on their team in Goal mode
* Tag rules modified
* Spring and punch strength increased slightly
* Punchbowl tag map reduced in size and other tweaks
* Some trees removed from downhill part of Chill Mountain
* Min players now defaults to 4 instead of 0
* The score now sorts correctly in Target mode
* Significantly improved the performance of the collision detection code when there are many objects in the world
* Bandwidth usage improved now as time shift wasn't enabled in the last build (oops)
* Going in reverse at the start of Chill Mountain will no longer cause the player to get stuck at the starting line
* The number of bots can be adjusted during play by changing the minimum number of players in the server manager GUI
* The maximum number of player will not be exceeded on a server anymore
* The player list in the server manager GUI now updates correctly when people leaving/join the server
* Pressing connect at the server browser when no server is selected no longer tries to join a local server
* Mouse sensitivity slider added to settings
* New "auto" mouse look mode added as default, the old mode can be enabled in the settings if desired
* Bots ping times in the roster GUI are now listed as "BOT" instead of the real ping time
* Players in result GUI no longer display above other GUIs in Goal and Tag mode
* Kicked players now go back to the main menu after being kicked
* Players with names longer than 32 character no longer cause the server to throw an error
* Exit removed from the key binding list in settings
* XPadder profile added to the Assets directory for the PC XBox 360 controller

Also, you can help show your support for Zero Gear by joining our Steam Group we are slowly climbing the official game groups listing!

I like your idea for bot labeling. We would really like to list a ping but unfortunately we don't have that information. We are using the same lobby system as L4D, which is great because it can work without forwarding ports and all that stuff using a system that does a bunch of connection magic called nat punchthrough. That is all great, but that means we can't actually get a ping time from the server until it does all that magic and tries to connect. The best we can do is that it sends us the server list in an order that is supposed to be closest to farthest by actual geography. We added the country codes just to give some further information, since we can't display pings.

Eventually we are hoping to support dedicated servers that will have forwarded ports and stuff and will display a ping, but we are not sure how to list both lobbies like we have now with just a rank# and servers with pings in the same list.

added another gameplay video I had capped last week:

yea, either that or using a different color or something else simple.

Is there a way to distinguish players from bots?

Not currently, we have heard this desire from other people too though - it shouldn't be too hard to indicate them as bots somehow.

Doh, stupid me. I thought to "drop an item" meant to, you know, discard it. You probably should give a little more feedback on dropping items, make it slightly more obvious that the item indeed came out of your rear end. Maybe pull the camera back ever so slightly to give a better view.

On the toy track, where you race on tables and stuff, I get inexplicably reset a lot. Like I'm just driving as usual, and suddenly pop my car resets and I lose all my boost, for no apparent reason. Especially around corners and those jumps on the playing cards. - Odd thing about that... when I mentioned this to my co-racers, suddenly everyone got reset a lot. Could this have been the server admin resetting everyone? Or maybe someone cheating?

Small suggestion, I like how the cars are heavier now, but I think they still take off ground too easily. It's dangerous to drive over any inclines because you're likely to lose control in the air. (especially apparent on the dirt track, in that one section with the raised hills alternating on both sides, you have to go though the middle). So I think the cars should stick to the ground just a bit to discourage losing control.

One more thing, is there an actual gameplay difference between the different car parts? I've noticed that other players' cars seem to behave slightly differently from mine. Like they can turn faster, etc. or is this just me? (maybe they were braking)

Ah, I see what you mean. No, there is no way to discard an item without using it right now. I will keep an ear out for other requests for this feature.

There is a rather stubborn bug with the physics system that causes players to get reset when going through a checkpoint, it is really high on our priority list to fix.

What do you mean more specifically about losing control in the air? Do you mean that you feel like something goes wrong while you are airborne, or that when landing you lose control?

There is no difference between the different karts and items, they are purely cosmetic.

Just to add, in the tag, you should make it obvious that you lose -25 points if you reset!

There should be a "-25" particle that pops over your head just like the ones that pop over your head when earning points... although now that I think about it, it would only show up if you are IT, but you still get docked for resetting even if you aren't it. I will look into putting something up on the screen on reset.

If you get encased in an ice cube, then reset, you regain steering even though the ice cube is still on you for a moment. Thus, it's beneficial to immediately reset yourself if you get frozen. I'd consider this a bug.

Also, the mouse sensitivity is terribly low, including in the menu.

Yup, that is a bug - and the mouse sensitivity has been a common complaint from others as well, adding a sensitivity slider is on our list of todos.

Thanks a ton for all the feedback, the more feedback we get the easier it is to prioritize what to focus on with our limited resources!

[Need keybind for rear camera]

Ok, here's some problems I ran into:

• Need keybind for rear camera
  • I prefer playing with keyboard only, and as such couldn't look around
• Separate directional controls from acceleration/braking
  • I need to be able to press back to drop an item without braking as a result. Gas and brake should be separate controls from left/right/up/down
• Starting checkpoint glitch
  • Right at the start of a race, there was some colliding going on, and I got flipped backwards over and behind the starting line; And got stuck there. Every time I'd try to drive over the starting line, it would reset my character back behind it (this was on the snow race track, if relevant)
• Input stuck in chat
  • I started typing something into chat, but before I could hit Enter, the game changed level or the second round begun. The chat box wasn't on screen anymore, but my controls were still in typing mode. Pressing Enter sent the message and released the keys as expected
• Reversing should not affect camera
  • I find it annoying that when I reverse, the camera slowly rotates around; This causes me to be blind to both directions for a considerable time. If you feel that the camera must point backwards when reversing, at least make it instantaneous

-
Also, is it possible to drop an item (like a mine or a tornado) behind you? The rear view key and the separated down key requested above should trigger that.

Thanks for the feedback! The Q key will drop items behind you. You can see all the key bindings as well are re-bind them to other keys in the settings menu.

sorry, I don't think the game will ever support lower than 2.0 shader model graphics chips (which is still really low end for most 3d games!)

unfortunately the game will never be playable across continents, you will have to either find some people in your county / vicinity to play with, or play against the AI.

4 days after our beta went live we have a new update for everyone! Here is the changes:

1.0.1.0 Change Log

* Kart physics modified, the kart is much heavier now as well as other subtle tweaks
* Air steering is now only engaged by pressing the steer direction after leaving the ground
* Some maps updated to work better with new kart physics
* Camera adjustments, closer to kart, fixed distance, crosshair added to aim mode
* Ice cube will not ice the player who dropped it behind them when it obviously shouldn't
* Win score changed from 500 to 400 in Tag mode
* All players given springs in Target mode and bumpers removed until they are functional again
* Soccer ball/hockey puck larger and easier to hit
* Country code added to the server browser so you can see how close a server is to you
* Rank sorted correctly in the server browser now
* Setting added to enable the screen blur effect on boost as some players were reporting problems
* The game responds to input correctly after closing the settings or server GUI while in game
* The map change timer works correctly in the server settings GUI
* Map name and server name added to the player roster GUI
* Laps/Place GUI is now visible in spectator mode
* The goal GUI now tells the user which goal they need to shoot the ball/puck into
* The signal GUI will warn the user if they connect to a server with a very large ping
* Upon pressing the reset key, a GUI pops up to notify the user they will soon be reset
* GUI is now visible in Skate
* Newb loading screen key layout image simplified
* Music updated and Hyperduck accessory added (quack quack!!)
* Sound errors no longer print out to the log which seems to prevent the game from slowing down over time
* Bug in sound priority system fixed which should prevent more important sounds (music, engine noises, etc) from cutting out on some sound cards
* Fixed the "Failed to find receive data peer" bug that happened sometimes after exiting the game and starting it again quickly

Go check it out!