Monthly Update #5
Due to some issues with the experimental branch, we almost missed our 5th Monthly.
But as the saying goes, better late than pregnant, so here it is... almost 3 days late ːws_damanː
Last month we ended up taking a detour from our official roadmap in order to get the remaining major issues with the existing game worked out. Yeah, we get it, it's not as exciting as adding influencers, trippy events, and concentrates and s**t but it had to be done eventually, so this is what we've been up to:
Most of this was already covered in our "Weekly Update" so we'll keep it brief:
The character controllers have been redone in order to squeeze out a few extra frames when it comes to performance. We've ironed out most of the glitches with the movement, pathfinding, and animation transitions. The issues with the merch manager, farmers, and crackheads getting stuck and glitching through the walls should also be resolved.
The biggest and the most complicated change last month was done to the weed growing logic which was basically in a broken state since the game launched. Sure you could grow and harvest your plants, but the mites and mold didn't really do anything, the supplement and component boost values didn't add up, and there was no incentive to grow higher-quality weed.
A couple of weeks ago, @Cobretti137 came up with a blueprint for Grow Logic 2.0 and a new quality/value system to accompany it. Implementing it at this stage of development without breaking everyone's existing progress took some effort and a whole lot of testing. So for the past week, we've been holed up on the experimental branch with @Cobretti137, @StoneyGamerXX, and @Gerk, trying to cover all the bases. Thanks to their help, we've finally got the grow logic set up the way it should've been in the first place. Here are the core changes:
[h3]HARVEST QUALITY[/h3]
The pant's harvest quality now starts at 50%. This is now the baseline quality, meaning you'll get full market price selling 50% quality weed in your shop. Anything above the baseline quality will automatically have higher profit margins, which includes weed, packaged smokes, and the upcoming concentrates.
[h3]SUPLEMENTS[/h3]
The supplements are now added to pots instead of individual plants and do not get removed on harvest rather only when they expire. This way you'll be able to grow multiple plants in the same pot without wasting a long-lasting supplement. The max efficacy of the supplements is based on the plant's growth cycle and not some random numbers. Adding supplements at the beginning of the grow will yield max results whereas towards the end of the cycle- little to no results.
[h3]POTS[/h3]
Planting higher-level strains in lower-level pots will tank your grow quality instantly while growing in busted pots will reduce the harvest quality over time. Supplements and components containing the quality boost property can still counteract the broken pots though.
[h3]MITES & MOLD[/h3]
The mites have been split up into two types: Spider Mites & Russet Mites. Each type has its own preventative and cure supplements, however, Russet Mites are unaffected by the setup components.
Spider mites will slow down and then stop the yield, Russet mites will completely stop and then start reducing the yield, and mold will tank your quality. Infections will also spread to nearby plants if left uncured for a long time.
[h3]CHILL MODE[/h3]
If you hated the degenerates, chances are you're going to hate the new mite & mold system since it adds some depth and additional challenges to the gameplay. Ain't nobody got time for that, that's why we got it disabled in "Chill Mode" so you can just cruise through the game in autopilot till the influencers arrive ːws_damanː
The trippy event development was basically put on hold the last month while we redid the NPC controllers, the grow logic, and worked on adding a couple of new points of interest to the map. Now we're back at it tho and planning to have some of them ready for the big #6.
What about the influencers, you ask? While it would be really easy to just drop in a bunch of new NPC characters that buy more weed for more money which, at a certain point, you'd have nothing to spend on anyway, we've decided to go in a different direction and that meant a lot more work to get it all done properly. Without giving too much away, all we can say is that influencers will slowly start showing up once the trippy events are a thing, and will have a little more depth than your average customer.
STAY TUNED ːws_peaceː
But as the saying goes, better late than pregnant, so here it is... almost 3 days late ːws_damanː
Last month we ended up taking a detour from our official roadmap in order to get the remaining major issues with the existing game worked out. Yeah, we get it, it's not as exciting as adding influencers, trippy events, and concentrates and s**t but it had to be done eventually, so this is what we've been up to:
PUTTING THE "I" IN AI
Most of this was already covered in our "Weekly Update" so we'll keep it brief:
The character controllers have been redone in order to squeeze out a few extra frames when it comes to performance. We've ironed out most of the glitches with the movement, pathfinding, and animation transitions. The issues with the merch manager, farmers, and crackheads getting stuck and glitching through the walls should also be resolved.
THE COBRETTI EFFECT
The biggest and the most complicated change last month was done to the weed growing logic which was basically in a broken state since the game launched. Sure you could grow and harvest your plants, but the mites and mold didn't really do anything, the supplement and component boost values didn't add up, and there was no incentive to grow higher-quality weed.
A couple of weeks ago, @Cobretti137 came up with a blueprint for Grow Logic 2.0 and a new quality/value system to accompany it. Implementing it at this stage of development without breaking everyone's existing progress took some effort and a whole lot of testing. So for the past week, we've been holed up on the experimental branch with @Cobretti137, @StoneyGamerXX, and @Gerk, trying to cover all the bases. Thanks to their help, we've finally got the grow logic set up the way it should've been in the first place. Here are the core changes:
[h3]HARVEST QUALITY[/h3]
The pant's harvest quality now starts at 50%. This is now the baseline quality, meaning you'll get full market price selling 50% quality weed in your shop. Anything above the baseline quality will automatically have higher profit margins, which includes weed, packaged smokes, and the upcoming concentrates.
[h3]SUPLEMENTS[/h3]
The supplements are now added to pots instead of individual plants and do not get removed on harvest rather only when they expire. This way you'll be able to grow multiple plants in the same pot without wasting a long-lasting supplement. The max efficacy of the supplements is based on the plant's growth cycle and not some random numbers. Adding supplements at the beginning of the grow will yield max results whereas towards the end of the cycle- little to no results.
[h3]POTS[/h3]
Planting higher-level strains in lower-level pots will tank your grow quality instantly while growing in busted pots will reduce the harvest quality over time. Supplements and components containing the quality boost property can still counteract the broken pots though.
[h3]MITES & MOLD[/h3]
The mites have been split up into two types: Spider Mites & Russet Mites. Each type has its own preventative and cure supplements, however, Russet Mites are unaffected by the setup components.
Spider mites will slow down and then stop the yield, Russet mites will completely stop and then start reducing the yield, and mold will tank your quality. Infections will also spread to nearby plants if left uncured for a long time.
[h3]CHILL MODE[/h3]
If you hated the degenerates, chances are you're going to hate the new mite & mold system since it adds some depth and additional challenges to the gameplay. Ain't nobody got time for that, that's why we got it disabled in "Chill Mode" so you can just cruise through the game in autopilot till the influencers arrive ːws_damanː
TRIPPY INFLUENCERS?
The trippy event development was basically put on hold the last month while we redid the NPC controllers, the grow logic, and worked on adding a couple of new points of interest to the map. Now we're back at it tho and planning to have some of them ready for the big #6.
What about the influencers, you ask? While it would be really easy to just drop in a bunch of new NPC characters that buy more weed for more money which, at a certain point, you'd have nothing to spend on anyway, we've decided to go in a different direction and that meant a lot more work to get it all done properly. Without giving too much away, all we can say is that influencers will slowly start showing up once the trippy events are a thing, and will have a little more depth than your average customer.
STAY TUNED ːws_peaceː