AColony News

Hi everyone,

it's time for a new update and this here is about the preparation of the alpha test version, animal attacks, the new time manager, the plant info menu + regrow system and more.

[h2]Alpha Test Preparation[/h2]
In the last weeks I've worked a lot on the project to get a playable alpha version of the game.
There is still some stuff to do, but it looks pretty good far.

Already done:

• Main menu is finished for a test version now
  
• Added a start screen which shows the latest updates
  
• Added a 'game over' event when all colonists are dead
  
• Fixed a lot of bugs while testing
  
• Added sounds (UI, working, weather, etc)
  
• Removed a lot of personal debug checkboxes, buttons, etc
  

Still to do:

• Alpha Trailer
  
• Hostile colonist attacks
  
• Better event manager / handler
  
• Balancing bleeding damage, resource costs, work times, etc
  

[h3]Tutorial[/h3]
To make the game a little bit more comfortable to learn for players which are not familiar with the genre, I have added a short tutorial menu which will be shown when a player starts a new game.



[h2]Animal Attacks[/h2]
Yes, animals can attack now. I have added a new event which get triggered by a certain chance when a colonist is attacking or hunting an animal. At the moment the chances are:

• Chicken (5%)
  
• Fox (25%)
  

This event is not only triggering a single animal, but also every other member of the group. If that happens, they are attacking every colonist (doesn't matter of which player) which comes to near to them. The event ends if some time without any colonists interaction has passed or if the player is killing every member of the group.



[h2]Time Manager[/h2]
The next point on the list was the finishing of the time manager and the connected network timer.
For test purposes I have set the time span of 1 year to 30 ingame days.

[h3]Network Timer[/h3]
The network timer was a little bit complicated to implement because it's not so easy to find a good way for 2 players to control the time. In the end I implemented the solution that both players can set their speed state how they want. But the real ingame speed will always be the lowest one of any player.

That means, if player1 (green icon on the left side) is in stop mode and player2 (violet icon on the right side) is in fast mode, the in-game speed is set to stop (middle icon). If player1 would go in play mode now, then the game would run in the general play speed. If player2 would get in stop mode then, the game would go back in the general stop mode.

Additionally I have added a function that a player can notify the others with a sound by pressing 'M', when the chosen time modes are not the same.



[h3]Age Weakness[/h3]
In connection with the new time manager I have also implemented the age calculation for the colonist as well as for the animals. If the age reaches a certain threshold a new status effect, called age weakness, is applied which has a negative impact on the run speed and the general work speed. With higher age these values are increasing. If the final age is reached (for colonists it's 80 years at the moment), the death is unavoidable.



[h2]Additional Stuff[/h2]
[h3]Plant Info Menu + regrow functionality[/h3]
While testing the game via steam I've noticed that it's not very good to click on plants and get no information or menu. The only way to see how much a plant has grown was over a plant zone but only with a very general and decent information. Therefore I have reworked the plants, gave them colliders and implemented a plant info menu which shows all related stuff now.

In addition I've added a regrow functionality for the plants which works in a similar way like for the trees.



[h3]Updated item zone menu[/h3]
The menu of the item zone is updated now, so that it's much better ordered and divided into sections for the different types of items. It's also possible to check now, if you want decomposing animals or colonists in your zone + if you want your own dead colonists or the one of others in the zone.

Note:
I have seen now, that I wrote Ohers instead of Others :p

[h3]Food Poisoning[/h3]
Usually your colonists are eating meals which were cooked on a campfire or a kitchen. But sometimes there are not enough meals available and in case of an emergency, your colonists will eat the ingredients. At the moment the following food can lead to a food poisoning:

• Raw meat
  
• Raw human meat
  
• Raw potatoes
  

A poisoning has a negative effect on the run and general work speed and will also impact the mood.



[h3]Small Updates[/h3]

• Added colors for the blueprints of different players
  
• Disabled interactions with building components of other players
  
• Implemented a better transparent mode (to go through the layers of buildings & terrain)
  
• Auto save option on exit game
  
• Added decomposing textures for animals (very simple ones)
  

Hope you have enjoyed this update,
Cheers!

Links:
Discord

Hi everyone,

it's time for a new update and this here is about the trait and the expectation system for the unique colonists.

[h2]Traits[/h2]
Every colonist can start with 3 or less traits and the main purpose of them is to give your colonists some special characteristics. They can impact the mood, the behavior and can allow to give you some special options for a certain colonist. These traits can influence the:

• Food consumption (vegetarian, meat eater, cannibal)
  
• Max health
  
• The increases or decreases of attributes
  
• Etc.
  

At the moment there are 12 different traits in the game which have also already a forbid-function for the combination of conflicting ones.

[h3]Examples[/h3]
Here I have 2 examples which will show how the mechanic looks like at the moment.

Note:
I have pixeled out the other traits because I don't want to spoil you everything :p

Killer
This trait is a very common one in games and it allows you to attack or kill your own colonists.
The effects of this trait are the following:

• You can attack / kill your own colonists
  
• +1 happiness when the colonist kills an animal (max x5)
  
• +2 happiness when the colonist kills a human (max x5)
  

Outstanding Scientist
This trait is has only to do with the technology part of the game and have the following effects:

• A scientific talent (+15 in research speed)
  
• Wants everyday to research something
  
• +5 on happiness when a new technology has been researched
  

[h2]Expectations[/h2]
The expectation system handles the wishes of your colonists and has an influence on the mood when they are not met. Everytime a new colonist joins your community the expectations of every colonist will be increased by 1.

But a new expectation is only applied when the colonists count is higher than the expectations count.
That means for example, if a colonist has already 5 wishes, but you only have 3 colonists left and get a new one, then there is no expectation applied.

At the moment these expectations are implemented:

[h3]Own Room[/h3]
This is the first expectation that every colonist has and it says that your colonists wants a own closed room. A special part of this expectations is, that it causes new demands when it's met. These are:

• The right room size (12m² wanted)
  
• The right room beauty (35.0 wanted)
  

Note:
12m² is 12 blocks.



[h3]Dining Room[/h3]
This is the second expectation and gets activated for every colonist when the player has 2 or more of them. It's a simple demand which says that your colonists want a dining room with tables which have enough seats for everyone.



[h3]Random Expectations[/h3]
After the player has 3 or more colonists, random expectations will be triggered.
These can be the following:

• Furniture for their room (from a random count of 1 to 3)
  
• A bigger room
  
• A more beautiful room
  

Important note:
For the furniture the "type" of furniture is meant. So if there will be later a more modern kind of bookshelf in the game - this would also met such an expectation.

[h3]Overview Update[/h3]
In addition I have also updated the mood & expectation panel in the colonist overview menu.
It's possible to see the count of open wishes now + the general status in witch direction the mood is going.



And here a full screen image of 3 rooms with different furniture for the colonists:



Last note: Like I showed in the last update, a negative mood can lead to a mental break down of a colonists which can appear in different behaviors.

I hope you have enjoyed this update,
Cheers!

Additional links:
Discord

Hi everyone,

it's time for a new update and this here is about the event manager which includes events like lightning strikes, the arrival of new colonist which want to join your colony and mental breakdowns.

But at first one thing:
I know that the last update here is a while ago and the main reason for this is that I'm usually recording one or more devlog videos and connect the steam update with them. But I have to say, this takes pretty much time and I am really focusing on my work on the game at the moment. Therefore I have decided to do more written updates now, not depending on any update videos.

In conclusion that means:
In the next weeks there will be a lot more steam updates in shorter time intervals, which will include the mood and expectation system, the cooking & eating mechanics, special traits for your colonists with nice effects on them, age weakness + other status effects and more (all that stuff is already implemented, so I will make a separate update about every topic) :)

[h2]Event Manager[/h2]
The event manager handles all incoming events and alerts the player when something important happens. Normally when an event starts, there is a small panel appearing in the upper left corner with a related icon. If the player clicks on it, a menu is opening where it is possible to react to it.



[h2]Lightning Strikes[/h2]
Lightning strikes are the first events that I have implemented and they can occur when the weather is rainy or stormy. At the moment there are 3 different types of them in the game:

[h3]On Machines[/h3]
If a lightning strike hits a machine or any other metal construction, it goes through the connected power cables and is effecting the first 12 components on its way. These effects can be the following:

• Damaging the components
  
• Overpowering machines which makes them non functional for a while
  
• Charging batteries (but damaging them when they are fully charged)
  
• Causing machines to explode when they are filled with fuel
  

[h3]On Colonists or Animals[/h3]
If a lightning strike hits an animal or a colonist, it has an impact on their status and immobilize them instantly for a certain amount of time. The added status effects are:

• A direct injury from the lightning strike
  
• An additional burning injury
  

[h3]On The Ground[/h3]
When a lightning strike hits the ground then the effect is very simple at the moment. The only things which can be damaged are plants. If they are growing in one of your zones, you will be notified by the event manager.

[h3]Lightning Protectors[/h3]
To prevent that these events can damage your colony, you are able to build lightning protectors which have a magnetic influence on lightning strikes in a given radius & height.
In addition I have also added a second type of it so that you can build them on the roofs of buildings.
That saves space and looks pretty cool.



[h2]New Colonists[/h2]
The next event on the list is a very important one and it is that a new colonist can join your colony.
Would be very boring if that would not be possible.
It works in the way that a neutral colonist, which is not controllable by the player, appears at the border of the map and is requesting you if it is allowed to join your colony. The player has 3 options then, which are:

• Yes (you get a new colonist)
  
• Maybe (you can decide later)
  
• No (the colonist disappears)
  

Note:
At the moment this event is triggered 1 second after the colonist appears. I am also thinking about the way that the colonist is walking to your base at first and when a certain range is achieved (to one of your colonists), only then the event will be triggered.



[h3]Additional note from me[/h3]
I have to say, there is a lot of work behind it that neutral colonists can appear in the world now - I had to completely restructure the owner system and some other stuff but it has a really cool side effect which is visible in the diplomacy at the moment.
It's possible to see all active players / AI players which are:

• You
  
• Neutral (is not attacking)
  
• Hostile (2x for testing)
  
• Default (is the owner of the trees plants and animals)
  

So the base for a real and functional diplomacy system after the Early Access release is already built :p



[h2]Mental Breakdown[/h2]
The last event is the mental breakdown of one of your colonists which leads to the loss of control and some other unexpected stuff. It gets usually triggered when the mood is 0 and the only way to avoid this event is to keep your colonists halfway happy.



At the moment there are 3 types of this event which can lead to the following behavior:

• Running and standing angry around
  
• Damaging your constructions
  
• Attacking other colonists
  

To end a mental breakdown the player can wait until the time has expired or it is possible to beat up the trouble causing colonist until the state of health is declared as immobilized.
But caution: they will fight back in melee fights and if you shoot at them, a few projectiles as answer are definitively on the table.



I hope you have enjoyed this update,
Cheers!

Hi everyone,

it's time for a new update and this one is about the final implementation of the weapons and their network functionalities plus the related combat system and some nice new blood effects.

[h2]Melee Weapons[/h2]
Melee weapons are an important part of the game and they are also very effective in higher technology levels. At the moment there are 3 different types of them in the game which are the:

• Axe
  
• Steel sword
  
• Modern sword

In relation with the melee weapons I have also added some tools to block them and these are the shields. Shields can not only block melee attacks but also range weapon attacks. The following ones are implemented now:

• Wooden shield
  
• Steel shield
  
• Modern shield

[h2]Combat Calculator[/h2]
The combat calculator decides based on some special factors if a hit of a melee or range attack is valid or blocked by a shield. If it is valid, an injury will be applied to the target taking the current damage value. If it is blocked, then a particle effect is spawned.

For melee weapons there are the following factors:

• Melee weapon damage
  
• Melee weapon force (penetration force)
  
• Melee weapon defence
  

The chance if an attack hits, is calculated by the weapon force and the defence value.
If both of these values are the same, the chance is 50/50.

For the range weapons there are the same values which are consisting of:

• Range weapon damage
  
• Range weapon force (penetration force)
  
• Range weapon defence

The calculator works here in the same way like for the melee weapons but with the difference that a shield is only protecting in a 180° angle around the front of a colonist. This means that arrows or projectiles can injure colonists when they are shot in their back.

Note: All values / factors are influenced by the related skill value of each colonist.



[h2]Bow & Crossbow[/h2]
The bow and the crossbow are the first available range weapons in the game.
Both of them are shooting arrows and like with all range weapons, it is also possible to fight in melee battles with them.


[h2]Firearms[/h2]
These weapons have a very similar functionality like the arrow shooting weapons.
The most significant difference is that they have a much higher penetration force which allows them to easily shoot through shields with a low defence value. At the moment there are the following firearms in the game:

• Pistol
  
• Shotgun
  
• MP5
  
• AK47
  
• Sniper rifle
  

[h2]Heavy Weapons[/h2]
The rocket launcher as well as the flame thrower are defined as heavy weapons and they are the only 2 colonist weapons in the game which require an additional item to can be used.
The rocket launcher needs rockets and is spawning an explosion at the hit point and the flamethrower needs fuel and is applying a burning injury to the target.

Note: At the moment, the flamethrower has only a very simple functionality because there is no real temperature / fire system implemented.


[h2]Turrets & Artillery[/h2]
Turrets are a very helpful tool to defend your colony. They have the same functionality like the pistol and the only requirement for their expected functionality is a connection to a power system.

The artillery is a long distance weapon and it nearby works in the same way like before, but I have added a new reloading functionality plus an aiming time which is also working over the network now.


[h2]Blood Effects[/h2]
In connection with the combat system I have updated the particle system of the blood impact effect and have added a new blood effect which can cover the body, clothes and weapons of a colonist.



[h2]Update Video[/h2]
I have also uploaded a new update video which shows all the weapons and their functionalities in action :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EooKigsRVHI

Hope you all have a good day,
Cheers!

Additional links:
Discord | Reddit

Hi everyone,

It's time for a new update and this short one is about the animals, doors, graves and the ingame log.

I have to say, I know a little bit of time has passed since the last update and the reason is that the most time of the last months went into the rework / full network implementation of the combat system and all related functionalities. It's nearby finished but I still have to do a lot of testing and therefore I decided that I will publish this shorter update at first.

The big update of the combat system with a lot of new content will come in the next weeks! :D

[h2]Animals[/h2]
Animals are an important part of the game because to hunt them is the only way to get meat. At the moment, there are only chickens in the world but the basic background systems are finished.



Normally animals can be found in groups in the world. These groups are pretty simple for now and can only do 2 things. They stay at a location for a given time or they are wandering to another place where they do then the first thing again.

I have also added a system which detects where construction elements are placed so that the animal groups will spawn in a distance to the player's colony.

An attack on an animal group has 3 characteristics at the moment:

• If a member of a group gets killed, a new one will spawn after a while (~2 days)
  
• If the entire group gets exterminated, a new group will spawn after a while (~3 days)
  
• If a member of a group gets injured, it is fleeing. While this action is active the member is no longer following the group, but after a while it gets integrated in the group again.
  

[h2]Doors[/h2]
One of the big problems in the past was, that everyone, even animals and hostile colonists, were able to go through any door. To prevent this, I have updated the move controllers of the creatures and have implemented a layermask in the navigation system which allows the player to define who can pass a door.

This is also working in online-coop, which means that the menu is automatically extending its checkboxes for every other player.


[h2]Graves[/h2]
After the implementation of the decomposing system for colonists and animals I noticed that there are too less ways to get rid of dead bodies - because the only other way was to butcher them.

Therefore I have added a new "construction element" which is the grave. It allows the player to bury one dead colonist per grave and can be removed / destroyed at any time.


[h2]Ingame Log[/h2]
At last I have reworked and updated the ingame log menu which shows the player information about the events in the world. These messages are for example:

• A colonist achieved a new skill level
  
• Someone died
  
• Someone decomposed
  
• An animal group has been exterminated
  
• A new animal group appeared in the world
  
• Etc.
  

And last but not least, I have added the functionality that the player can jump to the target location of an event if he clicks on one of these messages.



And here I have a new update video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_e4P8X82kRE
Btw, if you are interested in short videos and images about the things I am currently working on (like the combat system), feel free to join my Discord or Reddit.

Hope you all have a good day,
Cheers!