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[BeardLogic]

I imagine some people were curious as to where I was going with the mining when they saw my last video.  This video should clear things up a bit.  

I have a few more considerations to make, looks like I'll need to divvy the mesh up into chunks so that I'm not updating each triangle every time the mesh updates.  Additionally I need to add some code to separate the asteroid into separate meshes / components when they are cut in two.  Then I can add some resources throughout the asteroid.

[BeardLogic]

It's just something that crossed my mind - ...

Yeah I definitely like the idea, and would like to add it in :D

The two options I'm thinking about regarding skills at the moment are (1) the typical skill tree approach with various paths and (2) the Elder Scrolls approach where what you do increases your abilities in that particular skill.  I'm not sure either of these is ideal but I haven't thought of anything better yet either.

[Pixel Noise]

I always prefer the use-based progression - though I attribute it to Ultima Online

Or some combination of the two?

[BeardLogic]

Yeah, I'm with you on that.  I do like the use based progression systems.  I know 7 Days to Die has a combination system which is OK but I'm not sure I would want to use something like that.  Could do a use-based skill system and have a separate ability tree… Guess it’s hard to say until I work out a few more of the game mechanics.  It’s good to be thinking about though, and I definitely appreciate the input.

[BeardLogic]

Sorted out the ability to mine out resources.  Added some particles, improved the mesh disintegration.  Changed the materials / lighting.  I'm starting to really like the way this looks, this physics needs a bit of work but otherwise I think the concept has been proven :D.

[BeardLogic]

The hard edges between rock and the resources were bugging me so I wrote something to handle a smooth transition.  I like it way more now, what do you think?

Additionally I managed to get something working for infinite space travel.  I'm still not sure if I want to go for seamless travel or not in Forge On but at least now I know I can.

[Pixel Noise]

BIG improvement to the mining visual, I think. That looks a lot smoother and more natural now.

[BeardLogic]

Thanks man, I thought the transition was a bit jarring; based on your comment I'd say it was good to get it fixed .

[BeardLogic]

Creating more complex ship connections, I now have the infrastructure necessary to allow multiple parts to connect to a single connection area.  This is the reason I decided to go back and redo the connection areas in the first place.  I wasn't thrilled with limiting the player to a single connection per area.  

There are additional bonuses to doing things this way as well.  I will be able to introduce a more interesting build mechanic that involves placing parts on the nodes and getting bonuses based on how they are placed.  I will go into detail on this in future posts and as progress in this area continues.

I've also added "Travel Mode" for ship parts so that when traveling the circuit areas will be hidden.  I believe this makes the ships have a more finished appearance.  

What do you think?

[BeardLogic]

Connection areas are now able to support multiple connections.  This important for making more complex ship designs but it also will allow the player to augment their ships components.  I will be adding more part types as development progresses.  Anything you would like to see?  I have had a couple suggestions (1) Discs - Like a flattened sphere.  (2) Hard-Edged Hex/Oct Prisms.

Still needs polish and there are number of glitches to fix, but the core mechanics of the game are really starting to come together.

I'm very interested in hear anyone's opinions/suggestions on the build mechanics, or really anything else you might like to see out of a this game. 

Thanks!

[Zireael]

This looks very interesting, but in skimming the thread I didn't see a demo I could look at to give you feedback on the mechanics?

[BeardLogic]

This looks very interesting, but in skimming the thread I didn't see a demo I could look at to give you feedback on the mechanics?

Thanks Zireael!  I would really appreciated your feedback on the mechanics.  Yes, you're quite right, no demo yet, but I hope to have something playable soon.  I will be sure to put a link on the intro post when it is available so no one need go looking for it.

It could be a couple weeks yet but I would be happy to send you a direct message when it's available if you would like me to.

[Pixel Noise]

When you say "adding part types", and looking for suggestions, do you mean suggestions on cosmetic variations for current parts, or suggestions for newly functioning parts? I'm not actually sure what part types you already have implemented.

I guess it boils down to core game mechanics - there's flight/travel, mining...combat? I forget if there's going to be combat. Obviously that would open up a huge range of parts to iterate on. For the mining aspect - we've seen a laser so far, right?....what about like a claw or something, for actually collecting the resources?

[BeardLogic]

Hey Pixel Noise, I can see how my statement was a bit ambiguous.  What I was talking about was cosmetic variations for parts.  To be honest though I am very open to suggestions for various weapons and other part types.  Let me layout what I'm thinking here so we can share some head-space.

The idea is to have a few primary part types.  Currently I just have 2. (engines, and storage)  And then have various components that attach to the primary parts (weapons, shields, radar, augmentation devices, etc).  I'm up in the air about making engines components as well; the benefit of this would be having components to augment the engines as well.  Suggestions for weapon types, or other interesting component ideas would be welcome.

Each of the primary parts is generated using a particular shape (cosmetic variation).  Currently I have a cylinder that is scaled along it's axis.  I also have a half cylinder version along the same vein.  I would definitely like to make parts that have harder edges, which is why I like the idea of an oct / hex prism.  That's not much different than a regular cylinder to be honest so I was hoping people might come up with some interesting idea.  Another idea someone mentioned recently is triangular or rectangular pyramids.

Oh yeah, additionally a claw is a really good idea.  What I failed to mention was that I was planning on adding a tractor beam to move around minerals and other equipment.

[Pixel Noise]

OK, that makes sense!

If you wanted to break the engine down further, maybe you could break it into 3-4 component parts (not too many), to give the player more control over different aspects of the engine, as you mentioned. (I'm not mechanically inclined, so I'll let you figure out which parts to break into haha)

You could probably have a few variations on a weapons rack part type. So a more advanced weapons rack can hold bigger/more advanced weapons? Of course you're going to want your standard weapons...so lasers, etc...maybe as part of the whole part/system integration, you could also have some sort of modifier for certain weapons. So you've got your standard laser, but if you put modify part "X" with catalyst "Y", now you've got an ice beam (for example)

[BeardLogic]

Thanks for sharing your ideas!

Breaking the engine down is a cool idea, I'll have to give it some thought.  I may be able to accomplish the same thing with the augmentation components I was talking about. 

Same idea with the lasers, we are on the same page here, modifying behavior based on what pieces you put together is the plan.  Once again I hadn't thought about actually separating the components themselves into parts.  I'm going to have to consider this concept because I really like it, I just need to see if I can make it work without diving down a rabbit hole.  :D

[Pixel Noise]

Yeah I agree - you could easily overdo it here if you DO decide to go that way.

[BeardLogic]

This week was one of those weeks where the focus was on what I'm not going to do.  Still progress but unfortunately that means not a whole lot to show.

The big one this week was attempting to get the travel mechanics working the way I want them.  It's been more tricky than I was hoping.  Allowing the player to turn without drag (like you would normally in space) is not terribly fun.  I would like the player to have far more control over their ship.  Still haven't quite figured this part of the puzzle out yet but it's at the forefront of my mind.  Any ideas?

I've decided I don't really like the final result I got when allowing players to connect multiple parts to a single connection area.  I will still be keeping the connection areas; they should still make for a great way to augment various parts / weapons on the connection areas.  Weapons and other parts will likely still be able to placed multiple to a single connection area.  Guess that is something I will have to verify once I get to that point.

In order to try to show something off this week I did some work on the thrusters.  That's what I have show in this video.  To be honest I'm far happier with this iteration of the thrusters.  Thinking of adding a white core to the thrusters, thoughts?

[BeardLogic]

I've actually been working on ship movement again this week but I wanted to show you guys something cool so I added some fancy new lasers!  Far superior to the old ones I would say.

I have been trying to finalize some of the ship camera subtlety.  Seeing as it's one of the most important things in the game I really want to get it right.  There are a number of things I've been trying to incorporate including (but not limited to) quick combat / maneuvers, smooth and controlled motion, fast and sensible travel mechanics and controls that don't make the player feel like they have lost control over their ship.  Additionally I need the ship to handle based on how the player has designed it.  It's a really tall order.  One which I have been thinking about since my first attempt at this game 3+ years ago but I think I've got it!  The preliminary results are looking pretty good, just a few more tweaks and I can show it to you. 

Anyway, as promised lasers:

[BeardLogic]

I'm starting to really like the ship movement now.  The ships are now moving smoother with far more control.  I've also added camera nuance has also been added to make things feel more natural.  It has a little ways to go there are a few things about the movement that could feel better but I'm leaving it for now to working on more pressing problems.

Something I haven't even thought about yet are the sound effects.  That generally brings a game to life... yet another thing on my list .