As we come to the end of sprint 20, the web team remained focused on adding improvements to the Veil News Network (VNN) feature, and squashing bugs. Scrolling across the front page with test data currently, VNN will provide players with near real-time news about the most important events going on in the game. We plan on adding filtering features allowing you to see news specific to you, your friends, and your House (providing your a member of one), in the near future.
Jared worked on the news story templates to make them clearer, and added some more to cover all the different kinds of stories we plan to include. We discussed at some length different ways to ensure that the automated system randomizes language sufficiently. We want to avoid the feed getting bogged down with repetitive stories and alerts. It’s a nontrivial problem, and we came up with a few ideas to improve the service. We have a way to go before it’s working as well as we’d like, but it’s off to a good start.
In addition to the functionality work, Jesse did a lot of work on the newsticker look and feel. He adjusted some of the text size and color to make things more readable to old eyes like Chris’s. He also adjusted the speed of the newsfeed so even non-speed readers will have a chance to read the alerts. Of course with every new project a few bugs pop-up, and VNN isn’t any different. We found a few overlapping/rendering issues that Jesse should have fixed soon.
The spawning area got a lot of attention as well. With the first pass at an underground spawning area complete, we talked at length about improvements, and the look and feel of the next iteration. The art team showed off a few concept drawings for a future restart area. We discussed what that place should look like, and what should be available for players before they return to the wilds of Lahaina. We looked at a number of variations of the technology that restore players physical bodies, the Nuuskin machines, too.
We continued work on adding new slides to freshen up the look of the front page. A few new callouts will be added to explain some of the more complex systems in the game, and highlight important features. While everything you need to know is in the FAQ, we want to make everything as easy to understand as possible.
Finally, there’s some good news for everyone likes to sleep all night and work all day. Your Lahaina lumberjacking dreams can finally become a reality. The animations for chopping down trees is done, the harvesting system is working, and we’ve worked out our lingering wood bug. Previously, when a player tried to chop down a tree, every tree in a huge radius would produce wood. While it was great for clearcutting enthusiasts, it wasn’t exactly what we had in mind, and was ecologically unsound. As you can see from the shot below, there is no shortage of harvestable wood and vines for your arts and crafts needs, providing you know where to look.
We’ll be back with more updates, pictures, and the latest logging news later this week.
