First let's start with the fact that I missed last month's update due to a new baby in the family. I've just had a little boy, growing our family to 4.5 (2 adults, 2 kids and a dog!). Needless to say, that is absorbing a lot of my free time, much more than I had actually anticipated. I've had the past 4 weeks off, so despite the time pressures at home, we have actually made some more progress...
Research & technology
Let's start with the main piece of work, research. I showcased some of this in my last devlog, and that work has slowed considerably the past few months. However, some good news to share is that we're now getting very close to wrapping this up. I've got a few more things to resolve on the backend, and we're tweaking the UI/UX to make it look nice and polished. If I can get enough time (1o or so hours per week), I think we could be looking at a pre-alpha test phase toward the end of June. Time will tell!
Game content
Outside of the programming aspect, I've spent more time in developing my 3D art skills. As I mentioned previously, this kind of focus is very different to the technical and mentally challenging aspects of software engineering, so when I have 15 or 20 minutes here and there, I try and focus on the 3D artwork.
What this means is that I'm getting close to showcasing some in-game planet designs (the current planet art you've seen in images and devlogs is just placeholder art for now). You may be asking - why 3D, considering it's a 2D game? Well, the answer to that is that I have aspirations beyond 2D, and I'd like to be able to use the same assets for both the 3D models/textures and the 2D images - that's why!
My next challenge is figuring out how to wire up cameras/scenes so that I can generate images of these planets for the game. In all cases what I'm looking to do is ensure that the camera is at the right distance from the planet, that the lighting is similar.etc. Being a programmer by trade means this skillset is just not something I've ever developed, but I have some 3D art friends that are helping out in that regard 😀
Pre-alpha test phase 2
I'll know in the next few weeks how close we are to this, and plan to give you all another update later in the month. If you haven't already, and are interested in playtesting the game, make sure you have signed up as a tester, here.
In conclusion, research and technology is getting very close, but like everything, a lot of time is spent in that last 10%, resolving bugs, polishing up the UI and much more. But, we are now in a place where I can confidently say (time permitting) that our next test phase is just around the corner ;)
Until next time, Travellers!