Creative Mode (Beta)
Author: Laireon Games,
published 3 weeks ago,
[b]*This update is currently live on the beta branch only*[/b]
This update brings a Ton of new blocks and features, some of which can be seen here (please excuse the rushed/poor editing!)
[previewyoutube=ClXe94mfS30;full][/previewyoutube]
This house, as well as some other structures, will be uploaded to the Discord so you can have a walk around and get an idea of some of the things you can now build.
[h3]Creative Mode[/h3]
You can now choose if you wish to play in Survival or Creative mode. Creative mode gives you access to all buildable blocks, allows you to fly, makes you immune to any damage/hunger/drowing and access to the multi block remove spell. However, achievements can't be earned in Creative mode.
[h3]Block Picking[/h3]
Looking at a block in creative mode and pressing 1,2,3 etc will place it into that quickbar slot, if its empty
[previewyoutube=we2okV4PQsg;full][/previewyoutube]
[h3]Multi Block Place & Removal Spells[/h3]
These new spells will let you place or remove rows of blocks quickly
[previewyoutube=0EKUxGQfU8Q;full][/previewyoutube]
[previewyoutube=n5kwt2N2sGM;full][/previewyoutube]
They are available in Creative Mode by default but Multi Block Place can also be unlocked in Survival
[h3]Safety Crouching[/h3]
Crouching ensures that you never fall whilst trying to build. It can be used in both Creative and Survival modes.
[previewyoutube=Jj-8hAdXItY;full][/previewyoutube]
In Survival mode animals will now react to you at less range if you are crouching and more likely to react if you are sprinting past them
[h3]Tinting/Dyeing[/h3]
A tinting system has been added for some blocks like Couches, Rugs and Banners
[previewyoutube=MLnIOL7kb2c;full][/previewyoutube]
[h3]Flipping[/h3]
Some blocks can now be flipped so you have more options whilst building
[previewyoutube=Ottr1H1zeNE;full][/previewyoutube]
[h3]Snapping[/h3]
A new snapping system has been created so blocks like Railings don't need to always be in the middle of a block
[previewyoutube=7H5X7WfpYKQ;full][/previewyoutube]
Please note that only a few blocks have these options enabled and, currently, only half blocks can snap and flip at the same time.
[h3]Half Blocks[/h3]
I mentioned previously that these would be in a future update but I kept finding too many situations where they would make my example builds look nice and it annoyed me enough to get them crammed in.
[previewyoutube=_lUGuJfP5-4;full][/previewyoutube]
I've added them in a less performant way to save time and will return to optimising them in the future.
[h3]Tech[/h3]
The reason I tackled Creative Mode earlier is because I wanted more blocks available for the Tech/Milestone systems. This is where most recipes are now unlocked by spending a Tech point, which can be earned by upgrading your Totem or completing challenges.
[img]https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//41141580/67e41de62900c17524609efee5dc12270540bf10.png[/img]
In the future I'm planning to reward tech points in other ways such as in chests found in the Overworld/Lost Civilisation.
This system aims to solve the crafting menu feeling overwhelming once you craft a furnace and a Ton of new recipes unlock at once. It didn't really give you the chance to slowly explore what you can build and as a result a lot gets ignored.
[h3]Swamps[/h3]
Swamps have been given a mini overhaul. This started as me finishing a performance update with their meshes and I realised as I was doing them that the visuals could do with a second pass.
[img]https://clan.cloudflare.steamstatic.com/images//41141580/c7f016486fc1096b0d843123db8b67793c6a9ea6.png[/img]
I've also wanted frogs in there for a while so they have been completed as a first pass although some of their animations (swimming) are placeholder to be replaced in the future.
[h3]Player Controller/Movement[/h3]
The logic for the players movement has had various bug fixes/improvements around things like launching off of steps that turned into some fairly significant changes. Especially when coupled with things like flying mode and safety crouch.
The aim was to keep things feeling the same as they have until now but you might notice jump feeling slightly different. There are also likely to be bugs with scenarios I've missed since I've been more focused on new blocks etc so please reach out if you spot any and I'll get them sorted.
[h3]Essence Extractor (Dropped)[/h3]
This is a new block that was going to let you convert any block/item into experience but I've decided to drop it for this update. It was basically done but testing Every block/item had sensible values will be really time consuming so it will be finished in a future update
[h3]Roadmap Update[/h3]
I'm concious its been some time since I said I would tackle things like controller support and a rework of the toolbelt to address some pain points with it.
These are still high on my list but I'm debating exactly what the next update will be since it feels like I barely scratched the surface for what I wanted in this update. Most of the time spent was making new systems, so I'm tempted to add more blocks now that it will be Much quicker to do so.
Building things can be easiest in a flat world, so it could be a good time to work on giving more control over world generation for things like biome size, height, rivers size etc etc.
Playing with Steam Workshop and have it hosting structures would also be nice.
I've also spotted a way to implement a significant GPU performance improvement I've wanted to try for a while, which since all the new blocks will make scenes more expensive to render makes it seem like a good time to aim for more performance.
Finally after doing a big update like this, I typically spend time just fixing bugs to keep everything stable. I'm feeling a bit behind on the bug list so I'll likely spend a bit of time whittling it down before taking on any other big updates.
[h3]Changes[/h3]
[list]
[*] The visuals of structure previews have been improved
[*] Bookshelves can now customise their wood type instead of always being the same
[*] You can now sit in chairs
[*] Added more breaking versions for things that still had placeholder breaking effects (chairs and tables etc)
[*] Carpets are now tintable and their texture has been updated
[*] Fixed a typo for Fluttering Lavender
[*] Added frog legs as an alchemy item
[*] Frogs now drop a new cooking recipe
[*] Glowing Pollen is now Wax, which can now be used to make candles
[*] Updated the throne room carpets to be the purple rugs instead
[*] Transforming block data will now save/load. This is used to turn dirt into grass and to grow grass clumps/flowers
[/list]
[h3]Optimisations[/h3]
[list]
[*] Improved how multi threading schedules data in an effort to make performance more consistent
[*] Added a resolution dropdown to the settings screen
[*] Water has had some improvements to its performance
[/list]
[h3]Bugs[/h3]
[list]
[*] Fixed various issues with combined meshes that result in either seeing through the world or seeing an old block still rendering
[*] Fixed rain sometimes appearing to hit 1 block above ground
[*] Fixed metal blocks looking black
[*] Fixed magic light droppers not rebuilding their mesh as soon as they are placed
[*] Updated the hanging mushroom so its block placement makes more sense
[*] Fixed characters retaining their old position when spawning into different worlds
[*] Water has had various bug fixes/improvements
[*] Fixed animals being stuck in a checkonly collision state until next jump when halting travel before the currently running jump completes
[*] Fixed seeing day animals when first spawning into a world instead of them spawning as night animals
[*] Fixed single block previews always being green, even when floating in mid air
[*] Fixed multi block structure previews rebuilding each frame
[*] Fixed world seed not being loaded properly when using the continue button
[*] Fixed some issues with grass offsets which should make it look a bit more natural
[*] Fixed not being able to create double width steps without them trying to create corner steps
[*] Fixed the acaia gate showing the preview of a bed whilst trying to place it
[*] Fixed the breaking version of gates looking darker than intended
[*] Fixed breaking blocks not setting their rotation when they break instantly
[*] Fixed animals appearing in the wrong biomes more often than they should have
[*] Fixed decorations like winter flowers appearing less often than intended
[*] Many others not listed above!
[/list]