Dixotomia News

We don't disappear from the radar! Today the Dixotomia VR team is sharing the development totals for April! 📃

[h3]Game Design [/h3]
In game design, we've got a lot of updates again:
Vampire's new ability, Blood Spear. The ability will form a spear in front of your hand that will fly in a straight line and deal damage to enemies. The trick of this mechanic will be the damage, it will increase depending on the number of targets killed by the ability.The ability can be upgraded to a charged attack. The charged attack will have a high damage initial damage, but it will not pierce the enemy, his target is only one.

The ability of the first mission's boss, Duncan, has been finalized.

New mechanics, increasing difficulty and dynamics of the first boss fight. Duncan will use his energy revolver with laser sight to deal impressive damage to the player. Duncan will aim the scope at the player for a while, before loading a shot and firing it at the hero's location.

In certain situations during combat, Duncan will use this teleportation ability with a boosted melee attack. It will work like this: the boss will teleport in front of the player, make a dash straight towards him and deal melee damage. This ability is designed to complicate the fight with the boss and give the player the impression that it is impossible to escape from Duncan.

Also spelled out a lot of new dialog, branches, tutorials, and different response options.

[h3]3D and Animation[/h3]

New hand animation
Here we didn't get anything for a long time. And we should have gotten cool new hands, in which you can see the forearm, and the hand is unlocked. There is no such thing on the market today, and all the examples of how it should work were only in my head. We did a lot of calling, drawing and trying to explain to each other what we wanted to get as a result. One head is good, but five heads are even better. We finally managed to make something sane, haha. No, the hands are really on fire, we'll show you a little later on our social media!

In addition to the fact that the hand can now be rotated in all directions, it doesn't shake, it doesn't break, we've fixed the simulation of the elbows position in space. This greatly increases immersiveness in the game. We also unlocked the ability to make a very flexible weapon recoil system with this feature. Are you sure we did that? It seems like we're really cool.

There's one more thing to do with the arms: it's the addition of Meta Sound when the arm bends and unbends. It's not magic, it's Dixotomia. I'd also like to mention again that we did this because of our combined effort and knowledge. The team may be decentralized, but we keep each other very tightly informed and constantly in touch. Sometimes it's like an assembly line, where everyone knows what they need to do and we get a cool product at the end.

The plan was to make a master material for ERM and ORM cards at once, which would reduce the total number of materials in the project many times. But there was a question whether it will not reduce productivity.....



Animations for locations.
Door animation:


New door:


Screens of new locations:

New month - new month's results! Here are the latest Dixotomia VR development notes 📝
[h2]Game Design [/h2]
April was rich in new systems for our project!
Enemy spamming system
The essence is to create a challenge for the player, in which he takes turns eliminating waves of enemies eager to destroy him.
The system can contain several modes:
Mode 1. Spavn opponents after the last opponent is eliminated. at the same points;
Mode 2. Spavn opponents after the destruction of the last enemy, in other points;
Mode 3. Spar opponents on a timer, in the same points;
Mode 4. Spavn opponents on a timer in new points;
Which mode would be the most interesting?
Dialog System
The very thing that all decent games have, but it is not as easy to implement as it seems! And we, as self-respecting developers, are obliged to add it!
For greater immersion in the game world, interaction with it and obtaining key game items, the hero will have to actively communicate with non-player characters!

Dialog System
The very thing that all decent games have, but it is not as easy to implement as it seems! And we, as self-respecting developers, are obliged to add it!
For greater immersion in the game world, interaction with it and obtaining key game items, the hero will have to actively communicate with non-player characters!

Additional bot behavior traits
To make the combat system more interesting, we (or rather our game designer) decided to add unique traits for enemy mobs.
Now for more details: we have added a system for detecting hiding places. Bots can analyze the space around them and find the best position to attack. They can also run between shelters, sit in ambush and throw a grenade if the fight is delayed. The system is quite well optimized and does not cause frame sag. So far the change has affected only shooters, but we are working on other bots too. In particular, an update on the boss will be released soon.
These features are designed to diversify the battle, create a more dynamic environment on the battlefield, well, and of course, complicate the life of the player (:
Destructible Objects and Interactions
Since we still respect ourselves and the player, the game must have exploding barrels (not bayan, but the base!), well, and similar objects. Again, so that life does not seem like honey!
Throwing objects of the environment
In addition to interacting with exploding objects, decided to add objects of the environment, which can be thrown at opponents! More variety on the battlefield!
[h2]3D и Level Design[/h2]
Worked on the audio component! Now such events as hitting the shield, shield explosion, various swings are accompanied by very atmospheric sounds. But let's skip the details of such unnoticeable, at first glance, but not very important changes, as the elaboration of light and sound on the locations, and go straight to the more beautiful part!

Screenshots of improved locations
We continued working on the location "Factory", we have already finished all geometry and all modular objects. This month we will do texturing and assembling of the location and its surroundings (wait for juicy screenshots), but for now so:

Created new environment items, conveyor belt for the new location "Factory":

Showcases for Vivien Tower. There was an idea to make them destructible during the boss battle, but so far this feature is only on the pencil:

And a juicy holographic table to go with it:
All in all, it's been an interesting and busy month, the work is boiling 🔥
And we're still waiting for your feedback on the game, any feedback is important for us and will help us to make the game better!
See you soon!

February has passed with its frosts and warm days are ahead, so it's time to tell you what new things we managed to do last month!

[h2]Game Design [/h2]
As we know, every mechanic or feature starts with a concept document. February was productive for working out the gameplay component.

So, what we came up with:

1. Falling ammunition from enemies and crates

We did not depart from the classical standards, we decided to realize them in the form of boxes. At the moment in the game there are three types of ammo for different weapons. The boxes will differ in appearance and color.

2. New weapon - Duncan's Revolver (possible uber gun for the player)

A special weapon that the player will get as he progresses through the game. The revolver has two firing modes. Normal shot uses up one cartridge and kills a normal enemy at a time (if hit), powerful shot uses the entire magazine, but the damage will be much higher. It will be impossible to create a replica revolver, so we advise you not to lose it!

3. New Player Ability - Shockwave

Our answer to Skyrim's Fuz-Ro-Dah! Only in our warrior will not shout, and epically waving his hands. And for epicness we decided to add collision of flying enemies with solid objects. The damage, of course, will be greater.

4. A couple of new enemies

The first is the Shieldbearer. This character (unexpectedly) has a shield, but he will prefer to fight at a medium distance, using firearms. The shield will not be left lying around, so it's better not to get close to him to avoid getting hit in the face with it.

The second new addition to the Dixotomia monster world is the Melee Mutant. Shorten the distance to the player and engage in hand-to-hand combat! Not the strongest opponent in the game, but in any case it is unpleasant to be pawed by some mutants.

[h2]3D and Level Design[/h2]

Let's move on to the 3D and level design novelties.

We continue working on the "Vivien Tower" location, where the player will spend a lot of time. That's why we want to work out everything to the last detail. The month started with building and working out the floor. By the middle of the month the alpha version of the location was built, and the month ended with the development of sub-levels.

New modular elements.

And some colorful screenshots for your feed (keep in mind that this is still an alpha version):


By the way, music lovers, check it out


When we asked if it would be possible to play this piano, the programmer rolled his eyes for some reason, but we hope it will be possible!

In February we started working on another not small location - Dinerite Factory. And while the level designer was putting a blockout in the engine, the 3designer was working on the appearance of the location.

No colorful screenshots yet, sorry. We are waiting for next month!

From the smaller details - scattered interior objects on the ready locations, and added those boxes with ammunition in the game.

Let's summarize. Even though February is the shortest month, we managed to work hard on the game!
We encourage you to play the demo, add the game to your Wishlist and write your honest review. We are getting better every day!

Another month of development has passed and once again we keep catching the feeling that the more you know, the more you realize you don't know anything. Along the way we've tried to keep up with the times and if we saw an engine update come out, we wanted to sooner install everything new and start using it. However, there are pitfalls everywhere. We've done this more than once and usually everything went well, but this time we felt the pain when we saw how the old version of Anril worked better than the new one )
Also, the transition process went in parallel with us posting demos to the oculus store, where there are a lot of requirements for the app that we have to meet. And it seems now we just have to be perfect about what objects we have in the scene, what textures they are made of, how many will be in the scene in one frame. Any deviations are strictly penalized by the store itself. Players would forgive a 10fps jump, but not the meta store )

We also tried to implement a helmet position reset feature. The home button on the right controller. And yes, it doesn't work in the game. It works, but it doesn't work the way it's supposed to. We tried to implement plug-ins or refer to existing functionality. But nothing worked ) And when all options were exhausted, the answer was found almost by accident. And OH WONDER, everything works! :)
It remains to make super stable fps. We're on our way. We're on our way!
From the smaller tasks, I wanted to mention the updated shooting system. We added a scope and recoil. And a small rebalance of ammo on some locations. Two-handed grip ahead )

We didn't forget to record and document new mechanics and features. Expect them in the near future! And it's also worth mentioning the interactive sphere, the mechanism of which is the same, both for doors and for any interactive component. We always keep an eye on those who help us test the game. You are under our supervision! We care about where you look, what you poke at, and what makes you excited. We remember that we are making a game first and foremost, and we are constantly tuning ourselves to the state of the player. A state where time flies and you don't know exactly what time it is 😉.
Our artists haven't slept either!
We've made several character models, including Viviana Eidenhart and Butler. We'll be sharing more details about them on our social media soon. Subscribe, by the way (if you haven't already)!

Of course, we didn't forget about the environment. New assemblies for the location "Vivien Tower" (where our heroine will live) were made according to the principle of modularity, so that then you can assemble the location like a lego constructor, but without instructions)

A small slice of the final location 👇🏻

Worked on the lighting and design of existing locations (the item is short, but a lot of work has been done!)

We didn't forget the table! Tell me it looks cool!
And here's the thing about animations! For our game it is planned to create 28 unique characters (maybe we will make more!).
And as they are being created, the problem of different sizes and proportions of the characters themselves has arisen.

There would be at least 10 animations for each character, which would mean that the finished project would have at least 300 identical animations for the same skeleton, but with different proportions. In our conditions of production under VR it is extra weight and human labor, which we wanted to get rid of.
Attempts were made to make do with a single skeleton, without paying attention to the proportions of the character, they led to funny results and this idea was immediately crossed out of the possible options.

After some time we came across a solution that allows us to retarget animations in real time. This means that we will only need to store animations for one character, and on the rest we will only copy them in real time.
This system has not been implemented yet, but we are actively testing for FPS reduction, so far, however, no reduction has been noticed( We will get to this issue in the near future and we sincerely believe everything will work out with this system!
In general, the month of development was full of creativity, improvement of mental and teamwork. We try for you!

[h3]🌟 3D Art Innovations:[/h3]
• We're thrilled to reveal that we're expanding our in-game arsenal with a variety of weapons.
• Following the introduction of a customizable pistol, we're now developing an automatic rifle. We're currently finalizing its geometry before moving on to the painting phase.
• This addition is set to enhance the combat experience with more tactical options for players.


[h3]
🎨 Level Design Breakthroughs:[/h3]
• Our team has revisited the modeling of one of the upcoming locations, refining its design and layout.
• We've updated the Whitebox models, adding vibrant colors and meticulously planning architectural elements and props.
• We've also introduced interactive gameplay scenes, further immersing players in our dynamic game world.

[h3]
💻 Coding Advancements with GAS Integration:[/h3]
• We've successfully adapted the Gameplay Ability System (GAS) to suit the unique requirements of our project.
• This integration includes a character progression system, featuring a skill tree with four distinct abilities.
• GAS allows for the creation of versatile effects and conditions, applicable to the player, allies, or enemies.
• The system’s ease of management enables our programmers to focus on other areas, delegating skill assembly to game mechanics specialists.