Dev Blog #6
Hello again, everyone!
Welcome to another development blog. We've been working a quite a lot since the last one and are excited to share some of it with you. Check out what we've been up to last month...
[h2]From the Ball of the Lead Hamster[/h2]
Greetings Dragons (and you Elementals over there), as summer continues to pass us by we are reminded just how quickly time flies when your working hard. Indeed we have been working hard on getting the Genesis update out to you all with the First Five, the Flame Stalker, Shadow Scale, Inferno Ravager, Magma Elemental + the Acid Spitter DLC. Speaking of our first five, it is not looking like we will have them all finished and animated by late summer like we had hoped and will be moving our target date back to late Fall. The Acid Spitter is done and being animated as you will see below, the Shadow Scale model is finished and waiting to be rigged. Magma has entered the sculpting process, and our other 2 dragons will be worked on later this month and into September then rigged and animated. So hopefully by late fall we will have Genesis out to you all. It will be worth the wait and will blow everyone's expectations out of the park!
Speaking of which, our 1st iteration of the new UI system is nearly completed, it's been a lot of work, but I think we have a clean, user-friendly, readable, non-obstructive, and organized UI for players with a couple different options. One of the options recommended by fans was to have a "Streamer-mode" where the location coordinates of the player don't show up on the screen to prevent stream sniping. We liked that idea and put it in. There's also both a Survival style and RPG style HUD to choose from. The character panel has a ton of info in it, including Genetics, Mutations, Heritage, Biology, Vitals, Armor Resistances, Habitat, and a Compass! We even have waypoints in the game now, you can have 1 waypoint per region for a total of 4! Pretty beawesome right? We'll talk more about the genetics and mutations later. But all these systems are already in the game.
Something else that we have in the game is timezones! Each region has its own night and day cycle which vary a few hours from one another to give it a East/West timezone feel. If you are in a night time and want to see daylight, go to a different region! I think that's cool. You can also move around with the character panel up, and it does not completely block your view so you can still see which helps prevent you from getting eaten while checking your info.
If you haven't checked out our Patreon, we invite you to check it out, it is loaded with behind the scenes development content, the lore writer's blog, an exclusive Red Dragon skin, development pipeline updates, and more. Check out our patreon here.
There's a lot of cool stuff we can't wait to show off in our next Dev Livestream. Thank you to all of our supporters for believing in us, together we are building the dragon game we always wanted!
- Jao the HamsterBall
[h2]A Player-friendly User Interface[/h2]
A user interface, or UI, is an important part of the game and can take a bit to design and code. We are working on making sure the UI is as player friendly as possible.
[h3]Character Select[/h3]
Some of you may have already seen this one in our last livestream. Players will be able to select their species, gender, and unlocked skins through this menu and learn the basics about the species they have chosen. Server owners will be able to add information and rules that appear in this screen so players know what to expect before entering each server.
[h3]Chat[/h3]
We've streamlined and improved the chat system. Players will be able to choose if the chat is toggled on/off or if it fades after use. On top of that, you will be able to cycle through several chats or view all the dialogue in one. The chats include Global (all players can see), Local (only players in rendering range can see), Group (only group members can see), Clan (only clan members can see), and All (includes all dialogue). What's the difference between Groups and Clans you ask? Well, you will need to wait for the next dev blog for that ;)
In the meantime, check out the images below for examples of the new chat coming in our "Genesis" update.
[h3]Damage[/h3]
Players will be able to choose from two difference Heads-Up Displays, or HUDs, which include Survival or Roleplay. In survival, players will get a more natural and immersive experience. Damage will show as different degrees of blood screens and other indicators will be displayed only when necessary.
The Roleplay HUD will allow players to see all of their important stats on screen at all times in a small display in the corner of the screen, ideal for players who don't want to be distracted or have their view blocked by the damage screens.
Check out more pictures of the damage screens below! Please note that they are still being worked on and may have a few changes before the release.
[h3]Admin Panel[/h3]
This one is for all of our lovely admin and server owners. Gone are the days of typing in long and confusing usernames. Server admin will be able to select the players from a convenient list that shows the players Steam ID, username, ping, clan, location, species, age, and sex. We want to make managing your own server as user-friendly as possible.
[h2]Acid Spitter Animations[/h2]
Over on the other side of development, our talented developers have been hard at work on bringing our dragons to life.
[h3]Acid Spitter Animations[/h3]
Acid spitter has some new moves including the "nope" (backing up) and the "good boi" (sitting). While the animations are still being perfected, check out just a handful of what's new below.
[h2]Status Effects[/h2]
There will be a large variety of status effects in the game, with the first ones being released in our "Genesis" update. While which ones that are going to be included has not been finalized, here is an example of just a few we have in mind.
[h3]Burn[/h3]
Any fire based attack will have a chance to cause the negative status effect of Burn on another player. Burn will deal damage as well as reduces the player's armor.
[h3]Acid Decay[/h3]
A trademark of the Spitters, Acid Decay drains a players armor and stamina, leaving them vulnerable to other forms of attacks. Being hit by or walking in the bile of an Acid Spitter has the chance of causing this effect.
[h3]Bleed[/h3]
Not only bile based attacks can cause negative status effects. Bleed can be caused by physical attacks using claws, teeth, or spikes. For those without good grade armor, bleed will decrease the health of players while increasing their torpor.
These are only a few of the projects we've been working on to prepare for the "Genesis" update. Stay tuned for the next development blog for potential information on clans/groups, the Shadow Scale, and much more!
Want a bigger part in bring the dragons to life? Sign up for your chance to become a closed tester by clicking here.
And now for some highlights from our discord community.
[h2]Dev Q&A Livestream[/h2]
Our next Q&A livestream has not yet scheduled. Stay tuned and watch for updates to find out when the next one will be!
[h2]From the Community[/h2]
Each blog post, we pick some of our favorite screenshots and artwork posted by the community to showcase here. Want a chance for your submission to be showcased on our next blog? Post it in the appropriate channels on our discord!
[h3]Some of our favorite recent screenshots...[/h3]
by NatureLVR576#0120
by 🌻KyraG🌻#6415
by Death Wing#1646
[h3]Some of our favorite artwork from the community...[/h3]
by DragonBridage#6368
by KIVI#9599
by Kezran#0001
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for more news about the upcoming "Genesis" update!
~The Day of Dragons Development Team
Don't want to miss out on updates? Follow us on our social media accounts or become a patron to get updates before they are released!
Discord | Twitter | Youtube | Instagram
Welcome to another development blog. We've been working a quite a lot since the last one and are excited to share some of it with you. Check out what we've been up to last month...
[h2]From the Ball of the Lead Hamster[/h2]
Greetings Dragons (and you Elementals over there), as summer continues to pass us by we are reminded just how quickly time flies when your working hard. Indeed we have been working hard on getting the Genesis update out to you all with the First Five, the Flame Stalker, Shadow Scale, Inferno Ravager, Magma Elemental + the Acid Spitter DLC. Speaking of our first five, it is not looking like we will have them all finished and animated by late summer like we had hoped and will be moving our target date back to late Fall. The Acid Spitter is done and being animated as you will see below, the Shadow Scale model is finished and waiting to be rigged. Magma has entered the sculpting process, and our other 2 dragons will be worked on later this month and into September then rigged and animated. So hopefully by late fall we will have Genesis out to you all. It will be worth the wait and will blow everyone's expectations out of the park!
Speaking of which, our 1st iteration of the new UI system is nearly completed, it's been a lot of work, but I think we have a clean, user-friendly, readable, non-obstructive, and organized UI for players with a couple different options. One of the options recommended by fans was to have a "Streamer-mode" where the location coordinates of the player don't show up on the screen to prevent stream sniping. We liked that idea and put it in. There's also both a Survival style and RPG style HUD to choose from. The character panel has a ton of info in it, including Genetics, Mutations, Heritage, Biology, Vitals, Armor Resistances, Habitat, and a Compass! We even have waypoints in the game now, you can have 1 waypoint per region for a total of 4! Pretty beawesome right? We'll talk more about the genetics and mutations later. But all these systems are already in the game.
Something else that we have in the game is timezones! Each region has its own night and day cycle which vary a few hours from one another to give it a East/West timezone feel. If you are in a night time and want to see daylight, go to a different region! I think that's cool. You can also move around with the character panel up, and it does not completely block your view so you can still see which helps prevent you from getting eaten while checking your info.
If you haven't checked out our Patreon, we invite you to check it out, it is loaded with behind the scenes development content, the lore writer's blog, an exclusive Red Dragon skin, development pipeline updates, and more. Check out our patreon here.
There's a lot of cool stuff we can't wait to show off in our next Dev Livestream. Thank you to all of our supporters for believing in us, together we are building the dragon game we always wanted!
- Jao the HamsterBall
[h2]A Player-friendly User Interface[/h2]
A user interface, or UI, is an important part of the game and can take a bit to design and code. We are working on making sure the UI is as player friendly as possible.
[h3]Character Select[/h3]
Some of you may have already seen this one in our last livestream. Players will be able to select their species, gender, and unlocked skins through this menu and learn the basics about the species they have chosen. Server owners will be able to add information and rules that appear in this screen so players know what to expect before entering each server.
[h3]Chat[/h3]
We've streamlined and improved the chat system. Players will be able to choose if the chat is toggled on/off or if it fades after use. On top of that, you will be able to cycle through several chats or view all the dialogue in one. The chats include Global (all players can see), Local (only players in rendering range can see), Group (only group members can see), Clan (only clan members can see), and All (includes all dialogue). What's the difference between Groups and Clans you ask? Well, you will need to wait for the next dev blog for that ;)
In the meantime, check out the images below for examples of the new chat coming in our "Genesis" update.
[h3]Damage[/h3]
Players will be able to choose from two difference Heads-Up Displays, or HUDs, which include Survival or Roleplay. In survival, players will get a more natural and immersive experience. Damage will show as different degrees of blood screens and other indicators will be displayed only when necessary.
The Roleplay HUD will allow players to see all of their important stats on screen at all times in a small display in the corner of the screen, ideal for players who don't want to be distracted or have their view blocked by the damage screens.
Check out more pictures of the damage screens below! Please note that they are still being worked on and may have a few changes before the release.
[h3]Admin Panel[/h3]
This one is for all of our lovely admin and server owners. Gone are the days of typing in long and confusing usernames. Server admin will be able to select the players from a convenient list that shows the players Steam ID, username, ping, clan, location, species, age, and sex. We want to make managing your own server as user-friendly as possible.
[h2]Acid Spitter Animations[/h2]
Over on the other side of development, our talented developers have been hard at work on bringing our dragons to life.
[h3]Acid Spitter Animations[/h3]
Acid spitter has some new moves including the "nope" (backing up) and the "good boi" (sitting). While the animations are still being perfected, check out just a handful of what's new below.
[h2]Status Effects[/h2]
There will be a large variety of status effects in the game, with the first ones being released in our "Genesis" update. While which ones that are going to be included has not been finalized, here is an example of just a few we have in mind.
[h3]Burn[/h3]
Any fire based attack will have a chance to cause the negative status effect of Burn on another player. Burn will deal damage as well as reduces the player's armor.
[h3]Acid Decay[/h3]
A trademark of the Spitters, Acid Decay drains a players armor and stamina, leaving them vulnerable to other forms of attacks. Being hit by or walking in the bile of an Acid Spitter has the chance of causing this effect.
[h3]Bleed[/h3]
Not only bile based attacks can cause negative status effects. Bleed can be caused by physical attacks using claws, teeth, or spikes. For those without good grade armor, bleed will decrease the health of players while increasing their torpor.
These are only a few of the projects we've been working on to prepare for the "Genesis" update. Stay tuned for the next development blog for potential information on clans/groups, the Shadow Scale, and much more!
Want a bigger part in bring the dragons to life? Sign up for your chance to become a closed tester by clicking here.
And now for some highlights from our discord community.
[h2]Dev Q&A Livestream[/h2]
Our next Q&A livestream has not yet scheduled. Stay tuned and watch for updates to find out when the next one will be!
[h2]From the Community[/h2]
Each blog post, we pick some of our favorite screenshots and artwork posted by the community to showcase here. Want a chance for your submission to be showcased on our next blog? Post it in the appropriate channels on our discord!
[h3]Some of our favorite recent screenshots...[/h3]
by NatureLVR576#0120
by 🌻KyraG🌻#6415
by Death Wing#1646[h3]Some of our favorite artwork from the community...[/h3]
by DragonBridage#6368
by KIVI#9599
by Kezran#0001Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for more news about the upcoming "Genesis" update!
~The Day of Dragons Development Team
Don't want to miss out on updates? Follow us on our social media accounts or become a patron to get updates before they are released!
Discord | Twitter | Youtube | Instagram
by Death Wing#1646
by SaphyKat#4570
by Shaman#7817
by SaphyKat#4570
by Vahzen#5030
by AsteriTheVeloci#2870
by NatureLVR576#0120
by Lex Luthor#1646
by Kimmy#6669
by Horus#9404
by Valcora101#2515
by Zanna#1395