The team is making some improvements to the various ruins across the entire map. We’re regenerating every structure made with our procedural building tool to add a new automated furniture feature. Instead of the barren husks that have dotted the map in the past, players can expect now to find the finest furnishings inside houses from our “Apocalypse Sunrise” and “Lahaina Legacy” lines. The new furniture tool allows us to fill every automated structure with set dressing appropriate for searching for useful items or taking a break from the struggle to survive.
We worked out a few AI issues too. We had a number of problems with mutant movement and spacing. Occasionally they were getting stuck, or caught in a loop when trying to move to specific locations. The whole thing looked a little like musical chairs, with the terrors of the jungle vying for the same attack location when spotting an enemy. We added a slight delay to their overlap resolving, and improved the AI on AI collision performance. Mutants should now murder players in an orderly, well organized fashion.
Much of our work recently has been to The Thorcon Power Plant, the game’s social hub. We’ve put a ton of painting, decorating, lighting, and materials work to make the inside and out look like it had survived a cataclysm. We discussed what players will eventually be able to find inside, and planned out where some of our NPCs will be located.
A crafting/banking spot is already set up inside, including our newest crafting tool, the smelter. Players will be able to build tools and weapons as well as transform ore into usable metal in the area. We talked about a few crafting mechanics and made plans for some future improvements. In addition, we’ve begun working out our tiered items system. In the near future, players will be able to enhance certain item abilities. Things like: damage, recoil, spread, and accuracy will be able to be improved in the crafting area with the right resources.
Below are a couple fly-through videos showing all the hard work we’ve put into making the interior of the Thorcon look great.
