GameGuru MAX News

[p]Hello, and welcome to our new monthly updates on what's happening with GameGuru MAX. This month, we've been focusing on a number of issues with the Save Standalone functionality reported by our community, We've fixed several Standalone bugs and quirks, improved stability, and added support for wide screen monitors for compatibility with more systems. [/p][p]In addition, you will find more improvements to AI, several behaviour updates, a number of visual improvements for both the engine, and the editor, and of course, more bug fixes.[/p][p][/p][p]All of these updates are currently live in the Devtest Build, and you can test them out right now before they are released in the official build.[/p][p][/p][p]Here's a full list of what's new:[/p][p][/p][h3]1. Core Engine Clean‑up[/h3][p]All legacy #ifdef blocks and dead code removed – the engine is slimmer and easier to maintain.[/p][p]Common.h tidied up and empty functions stripped out.[/p][p]Import tools improved: custom scales now work in batch imports and TSV files can include extra columns.[/p][h3]2. Smarter NPCs & Behaviours[/h3][p]New sense modes and external death triggers give AI richer perception.[/p][p]Critical fixes for detection, threat handling, and stationary characters.[/p][p]Fresh behaviours added:[/p][p]Mesh Sensor – detects object meshes (new icon).[/p][p]Updated scripts (npc_incover, npc_flashlight, helmet, atlas_cycler, resource_node, imageinzone, patrol) with bug fixes and new options (e.g., one‑time displays, sound‑activated patrols).[/p][h3]3. Performance Editor (PE) Boosts[/h3][p]Emulate Resolution – preview scenes in any aspect ratio (ultra‑wide, etc.).[/p][p]Resolution Scaling – lock visuals to a 1:1 pixel ratio regardless of screen size.[/p][p]Loop‑music support for storyboards, DPI scaling for 2D‑to‑3D commands, and “bullets pass through no‑collision objects” option.[/p][p]New Blood Damage shader (now envMap‑aware) and much faster win/loss screen loading.[/p][p]Numerous bug fixes (video playback, npc_flashlight load‑game errors, assorted PE quirks).[/p][h3]4. Visual & Gameplay Polish[/h3][p]Storyboard tools and shader pipelines refined.[/p][p]Minor internal tweaks across many behaviours and gameplay loops.[/p][p]What this means for you:[/p][p]A leaner codebase makes future updates smoother.[/p][p]NPCs behave more intelligently and reliably, opening up deeper gameplay possibilities.[/p][p]The Performance Editor now gives you precise control over how your game looks on any device.[/p]

[p][/p][p]We’re gearing up for our upcoming live broadcast, and we want your voice to be heard! 🎙️[/p][p]Got something you’re curious about? A burning question for our guests? Drop your questions in the comments below or send them to  [email protected] by the 5th of December![/p][p][/p][p]We’ll select the top picks and answer them live on air. Don’t miss the chance to shape the conversation![/p]

[p] [/p][p]Today, we’re excited to release a major restructuring of the way we release and host DLC that puts the community spirit front and centre, while also delivering a bold price reduction: almost all asset packs are now radically reduced in price.[/p][p]Over the past few years, DLC creation by the community has blossomed into a vibrant ecosystem producing countless assets, and we aim to support and encourage this for years to come.[/p][p]Below, we’ll walk through why we made this change, what it means for creators and developers alike, and how you can get the most out of the new model.[/p][p] [/p][h3]Why Restructure?[/h3][p]1. Community First, Profit Second[/p][p]By lowering prices, we lower the barrier for indie teams, hobbyists, and students to experiment with premium‑grade assets—ultimately expanding the audience that can benefit from community work.[/p][p]2. Simplified Pricing Tiers[/p][p]Previously, each pack carried its own pricing logic, called Booster, Asset, and Mini-Kit, at fixed prices.  The new system allows artists themselves to decide on the content and value of their creations, providing more flexibility and freedom to creators and more choice to users.[/p][p]3. Fairer Revenue Distribution[/p][p]With reduced prices, we have increased the royalty rate to all DLC creators to 70%, with the remaining 30% paid as commissions to help prepare and manage the Steam listings. DBS now only make revenue on core product sales. This ensures that the community continues to earn sustainably, encouraging all the talented artists out there to contribute fresh packs.[/p][p][/p][h3]Community Creations[/h3][p]Every single DLC currently available for purchase is community‑created. That means:[/p]

1. [p]Authentic Diversity:  The range of themes reflects the varied styles and cultural backgrounds of our global creator base.[/p]
2. [p]Rapid Innovation: Community creators iterate quickly, responding to trends and feedback far faster than traditional pipelines.[/p][p][/p]

[h3]Benefits for Developers[/h3]

1. [p]Budget‑Friendly Prototyping: Build proof‑of‑concepts or early demos without draining funds.[/p]
2. [p]Scalable Production: As projects grow, upgrade to higher‑tier packs for richer content while staying within budget.[/p]
3. [p]Support the Creators: Even at reduced prices, your purchases directly fund the artists who made the assets possible, fostering a virtuous cycle of creation.[/p]

[p] [/p][h3]How to Make the Most of the New System[/h3]

1. [p]Leave detailed reviews and rate assets: High‑rating packs gain extra exposure, helping creators earn more and provide feedback and encouragement to produce additional content.[/p]
2. [p]Participate in Discord Challenges: With the release of new, themed packs, you can engage in the Photo Competition on our Discord, with winners receiving general kudos and prizes![/p]

[p][/p][h3]So what happened to all the DLC created and owned by DBS?[/h3]

1. [p]We absorbed them all into a new Starter Kit: Admittedly, we only had 3 DLC, but in the spirit of the restructure, we have added Booster Pack, Aztec Game Kit, and Particles Pack to a new bundle and priced it as cheaply as Steam would allow.[/p]
2. [p]More DLC Absorbed: When we consulted with artists a few months ago about our plan, some blew our minds by offering their DLC for the Starter Kit too, 16 DLC to be exact. So basically, thousands of additional assets, all thanks to our amazing artist community![/p]
3. [p]The Latest: At the time of writing, it was not possible to set the absorbed DLC to FREE for the Starter Kit Bundle, this needs to be done by Valve. For now, we have set all the prices to $1 and created a discount that effectively makes "MAX + Absorbed DLC" the same price as MAX alone for new users. For existing users wanting the absorbed DLC for "completely free", hold tight on buying the Starter Kit Bundle and keep watching our DISCORD channel news for the latest. If we cannot make the Bundle work for you (our preferred route), we will round up all the absorbed DLC and make them available via a lovely ZIP file :)[/p]

[p][/p][p]Please let us know if we have missed anything! We invite you to dive in, explore the new Starter Kit Bundle and the newly priced packs, and let us know which assets helped bring your vision to life.[/p][p]If you’re an artist or sound designer and want to see your own creations as the next MAX DLC, please reach out to us at [email protected][/p]

[p] [/p][p]When we first started to introduce Model Packs as DLC for GameGuru MAX, the goal was to give developers quick access to high‑quality art, sound, and effects so they could spend more time building worlds and less time hunting for resources.  Over the past few years, that vision has blossomed into a vibrant ecosystem powered almost entirely by community members, who pour countless hours into crafting assets that inspire, empower, and elevate games of every scale.[/p][p]Today, we’re excited to announce a major restructuring of the way we do this that puts that community spirit front and centre, while also delivering a bold price reduction: most asset packs will now be priced at roughly 50 % of their previous cost.[/p][p]Below, we’ll walk through why we made this change, what it means for creators and developers alike, and how you can get the most out of the new model.[/p][p] [/p][h3]Why Restructure?[/h3][p]1. Community First, Profit Second[/p][p]By lowering prices, we lower the barrier for indie teams, hobbyists, and students to experiment with premium‑grade assets—ultimately expanding the audience that can benefit from community work.[/p][p]2. Simplified Pricing Tiers[/p][p]Previously, each pack carried its own pricing logic, called Booster, Asset, and Mini-Kit, at fixed prices.  The new system allows artists themselves to decide on the content and value of their creations, providing more flexibility and freedom to creators and more choice to users.[/p][p]3. Fairer Revenue Distribution[/p][p]With reduced prices, we have increased the royalty rate to all DLC creators to 70%, with the remaining 30% paid as commissions to help prepare and manage the Steam listings. DBS now only make revenue on core product sales. This ensures that the community continues to earn sustainably, encouraging all the talented artists out there to contribute fresh packs.[/p][p][/p][h3]Community Creations[/h3][p]Every single DLC currently available is community‑created. That means:[/p]

1. [p]Authentic Diversity:  The range of themes reflects the varied styles and cultural backgrounds of our global creator base.[/p]
2. [p]Rapid Innovation: Community creators iterate quickly, responding to trends and feedback far faster than traditional pipelines.[/p][p][/p]

[h3]Benefits for Developers[/h3]

1. [p]Budget‑Friendly Prototyping: Build proof‑of‑concepts or early demos without draining funds.[/p]
2. [p]Scalable Production: As projects grow, upgrade to higher‑tier packs for richer content while staying within budget.[/p]
3. [p]Support the Creators: Even at reduced prices, your purchases directly fund the artists who made the assets possible, fostering a virtuous cycle of creation.[/p]

[p] [/p][h3]How to Make the Most of the New System[/h3]

1. [p]Leave detailed reviews and rate assets: High‑rating packs gain extra exposure, helping creators earn more and provide feedback and encouragement to produce additional content.[/p]
2. [p]Participate in Discord Challenges: With the release of new, themed packs, you can engage in the Photo Competition on our Discord, with winners receiving general kudos and prizes![/p]

[p][/p][h3]So what happened to all the DLC created and owned by DBS?[/h3]

1. [p]We absorbed them all into the core product: Admittedly, we only had 3 DLC, but in the spirit of the restructure, we have added Booster Pack, Aztec Game Kit, and Particles Pack to the core.[/p]
2. [p]The core absorbed more DLC: When we consulted with artists a few months ago about our plan, some blew our minds by offering their DLC for the core product too, 16 DLC to be exact. So basically, thousands of additional assets, all thanks to our amazing artist community![/p]

[p][/p][p]These changes will take effect from the 13th of October 2025. When we go live, we invite you to dive in, explore the newly priced packs, and let us know which assets helped bring your vision to life.[/p][p]If you’re an artist or sound designer, and want to see your own creations as the next MAX DLC, please reach out to us at [email protected][/p]

[h2]August 2025 Update[/h2][p]Since our June release, development on MAX has been busier than ever — a flood of new features, dozens of updated and new behaviors, and a long list of stability improvements. This cycle saw an especially heavy focus on expanding the behavior system, giving creators more built-in gameplay mechanics, UI controls, and visual feedback options right out of the box. Alongside this, the editor gained several usability upgrades and optimizations aimed at making large projects faster and smoother to work with.[/p][p]Here’s a round-up of what’s now part of today’s release:[/p][hr][/hr][h3]Major Features & Additions[/h3][p]Behavior System Expansion[/p]

• [p]New Behaviors: Booster, Particle Toggler, XP Monitor, Objective Monitor, Freefall Object — plus many new icons (life/health, hand, disk, trade, switch, progress bar) for clearer in-game feedback.[/p]
• [p]Enhanced Existing Behaviors: Huge sweep of updates to quest, vehicle, door, switch, HUD, stealth, NPC, environmental, and combat behaviors — including fixes, optimizations, and new highlight/icon support.[/p]
• [p]Gameplay Mechanics: Improvements to object interaction (carry, break, destroy, hack, search, climb, etc.), better stacked object handling for destructible items, and refined flashlight logic (battery drain, auto turn-off, and specific use cases).[/p]

[p]Lua Command Additions[/p]

• [p]SetPlayerRun(v) — toggle player sprint ability.[/p]
• [p]Include(file) — load external Lua scripts into your logic.[/p]
• [p]MoveDown(e,v) — quickly shift entities in the world.[/p]
• [p]Multiple new player, HUD, and weapon animation control commands, including ForceGunUnderWater, SetGunAnimationSpeed, and full control of gun animation frames.[/p]
• [p]Added new g_UserGlobal entries for ammo, health, and lives tracking.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h3]Editor & UI Enhancements[/h3]

• [p]New Global Behaviors system centralizes common scripts for easier reuse.[/p]
• [p]Status bar and highlight colors now independently configurable.[/p]
• [p]Modern Dark theme refinements, plus re-addition of Darker Style.[/p]
• [p]Faster storyboard thumbnail and .fpe loading.[/p]
• [p]“Empty Level” grid controls with adjustable floor height.[/p]
• [p]Expanded editor menus for project management, toolbar layouts, and icon selection.[/p]
• [p]Improved import of remote projects and custom fonts.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h3]Visuals & Effects[/h3]

• [p]Added gun tracers for aircraft and below-barrel tracer options.[/p]
• [p]Optimized decal rendering for smoother animation.[/p]
• [p]New particle emitter rotation support and trigger types for more dynamic effects.[/p]
• [p]Improved handling of custom materials in standalone builds.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h3]Bug Fixes & Stability[/h3][p]Gameplay & Logic[/p]

• [p]Fixed numerous behavior logic issues (quest progression, stealth zones, objective visibility, NPC state changes, underwater detection, particle toggling, and more).[/p]
• [p]Resolved fog setting restoration after test games, weapon ammo handling, and custom material activation problems.[/p]
• [p]Fixed font loading, WPE resource validation, and workshop subscription edge cases.[/p]

[p]Editor & Standalone[/p]

• [p]Prevented freezes when saving/loading large levels.[/p]
• [p]Improved validation of duplicated entities in standalones.[/p]
• [p]Fixed missing skybank handling, crash cases from collection saves, and hot-loading object issues.[/p]
• [p]Enhanced VRAM management between levels for smoother transitions.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h3]Performance & Optimization[/h3]

• [p]DDS conversion and compression options to reduce texture memory use.[/p]
• [p]Freed VRAM between level loads, optimized material handling, and reduced “not responding” waits for big levels.[/p]
• [p]Faster decal, storyboard, and .fpe loads.[/p]

[hr][/hr][h3]New Swimming Arms in Global Behaviours[/h3]

• [p]Thanks to the awesome community contributions, you now have access to a new global behavior that, when selected, will employ animated swimming arms when underwater[/p]
• [p]You can find this behavior in the new Global Behavior feature titled "swimming.lua"[/p]

[hr][/hr][h3]General Observations[/h3][p]This has been one of the broadest updates we’ve done for MAX in terms of scope — from deep gameplay scripting tools to quality-of-life tweaks in the editor. The Global Behaviors push, the massive wave of behavior updates, and the addition of powerful Lua commands give creators more freedom than ever to build complex, interactive worlds without starting from scratch each time.[/p][p]As always, the best way to see these changes in action is to join our community on Discord — share your creations, test the new features, and help guide where MAX goes next.[/p][p][/p]