For the past few weeks we’ve been working on preparing Boundless to create a new trailer. Alongside this we want to make sure that everything going into the trailer is also accessible within the game.
We have the following features in the pipeline coming in the next release:
- Refactored Inventory API including overhauled Smart Stacking
- New HUD including:
- Status text above: players, creatures and machines.
- News flashes
- Reticule update
- Block breaking information
- Warp location picking
- Updated and polished compass
- Updated chat logs
- Achievements and tutorial guidance
- New Slingbow models with material progression to match the other equipment.
- Warp can now be maximum of 10 x 10
- Warp Conduit mesh + VFX
- Totem Location Polish + VFX
- New Torch VFX.
- New Totem aiming VFX
- New shooting VFX
- New block hitting VFX
- Many new SFXs
- Special starting world, referred to as a Temple in the past, but to avoid confusion we’re now calling it the Sanctuary. This will be used as the entry point into the Boundless universe.
- Smoothing of camera motion going up stairs / slabs.
- New 3rd person animations, including: shooting
- New creatures and creature variations:
- Wildstock + variations
- Spitter + variations
- Roadrunner + variations
- Hopper + variations
- Cuttletrunk + variations
- (The Hunter - but they’re unlikely to make the next release.)
- Lots of other technical items…
We have lots of moving parts at the moment and it’s extremely challenging to try and pull everything together. It’s a little like releasing the final version of a slightly smaller game.
Code
Work on the Sanctum (start of game) continues with more logic for how users join the game and the Sanctum’s content. More effect support has been added to decorate it as well as other effects for the weather and fog. The Totem behaviour have been reworked to show when planets are valid targets and integrate some new effects.
More portal transitions fixes have found to make sure they’re super smoother. We’ve also done a little work to make sure we can easily capture time-lapses of the world regeneration in action.
The HUD continues to be polished up and the rework on the inventory is been tested on the final few machines.
Further optimization and memory reduction have been made for PlayStation 4. The database work continues updating world builder and testing servers.
Design
This week has been mainly focussed on the trailer, and the features we want to demonstrate in it. Whilst the focus is the trailer, we are trying to implement features properly so that we can release them not too long after the trailer is finished. That way the trailer is representative of the game, with as little of the standard fakery as possible.
Luke has been working on polishing the Sanctum (our new name for the starting world), and preparing it for showing in the trailer as well as for use in the game.
Ollie has been helping to integrate new creatures for the trailer, as well as pinning down some design details, for example the grapple and the Sanctum.
Rob has been continuing to work with Marc on polishing the HUD.
Art
The art team has been beset with illness this week but we’re very excited preparing for the coming updates which will finally see some of our assets released for everyone to play with.
We’ve been making creatures, planning trailer shots, adding new VFX and generally polishing all areas of the game.
Preparing the Roadrunner and Wildstock for their Elemental variations:
Here is the Roadrunning posing in game:
Here is the Hopper Tier 3 in game:
Here is a work in progress VFX for some new block impacts:
(Ok ok ok - new record for the latest ever Weekly Dev Update - but been sick again!!! Pesky little patient 0.)
