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Freerunners Flow Update | Camera Rework & Gameplay Improvements

[p]Hi all,[/p][p]First off, big thanks to everyone who has bought the game or taken the time to share feedback. It’s been really great (and very useful) seeing and hearing your thoughts.[/p][p][/p][p]Originally, I planned for the first patch to focus on fixing a few smaller bugs I noticed during my own playthroughs. But after watching people play and reading feedback, I decided to dig deeper and address some bigger things as well.[/p][p][/p][p]This patch is live now, so the next time you play you’ll get all these improvements.[/p][p] [/p][h2]Biggest Changes:[/h2][p][/p][h3]Camera Rework[/h3][p]The camera previously followed the character’s pelvis bone, which could cause slight jolts and a feeling of slowdown during certain moves (like the dash vault). The camera now follows the actor capsule instead, resulting in smoother and more consistent movement while interacting with obstacles. I also adjusted the code to reduce camera micro-jitters and smooth things out even more.[/p][p][/p][p]It's only subtle, but if you watch the video below a few times, you'll see how the camera changes help with the feeling of flow:[/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p][/p][h3]Early Game Rebalancing[/h3][p]Originially the start of the game was intentionally slower to simulate the player being inexperienced at parkour and to contrast with getting better later.[/p][p][/p][p]In practice, though, I realised that this made the opening of the game feel a bit sluggish and worked against the feeling of flow that I wanted to give players.[/p][p][/p][p]So to fix this, for the early game, I sped up the player and some early obstacle moves, and increased the player’s maximum stamina. I also adjusted the spacing of some obstacles in those early levels to help the flow feel better right from the start.[/p][p][/p][p]Below is a behind-the-scenes editor view showing how the levels are built (triggers, Obstacles, and other gameplay elements).[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h3]Level Fixes[/h3][p]While playing through the whole game to test the camera and balancing changes, I also found and fixed numerous smaller issues that were getting in the way of the flow.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][h2]Full Patch Notes[/h2][h3]General Improvements[/h3]
  • [p]Player camera now tracks the actor capsule instead of the hips, resulting in smoother camera movement through levels[/p]
  • [p]Reduced camera micro-jitters[/p]
  • [p]Rebalanced the early game to improve flow (slight increases to player speed and stamina)[/p]
  • [p]Adjusted star rating times for early levels to reflect the balancing changes[/p]
  • [p]Slow moves now play at 75% of their original speed, rather than using a fixed speed reduction[/p]
  • [p]Improved slope detection to prevent jittering[/p]
  • [p]Sped up several moves to improve overall movement flow[/p]
  • [p]Step-ups are now more responsive[/p]
  • [p]Improved breakfall animation blend-in and blend-out[/p]
  • [p]Improved the blend transitions for the sliding state[/p]
  • [p]Prevented a speed boost when exiting an obstacle onto sloped surfaces (this could previously cause the player to bounce off and die)[/p]
  • [p]Stamina no longer drains when sliding down slopes while holding sprint[/p]
  • [p]Tricks no longer consume stamina[/p]
  • [p]Improved environmental LODs to reduce popping while running through levels[/p]
  • [p]Improved character heads and hair LODs[/p]
  • [p]End-of-level next unlock text now wraps correctly instead of appearing squished[/p]
  • [p]Removed a duplicate additive out-of-breath animation that caused popping[/p]
  • [p]Removed collision from some small landscape meshes, such as sticks and rocks[/p]
  • [p]Improved the dog profile image used in the intro/outro text sections[/p]
  • [p]Added more sound variation through additional modulation on several effects[/p]
  • [p]Miscellaneous art improvements across multiple levels[/p]
  • [p]Increased the weight of falling air-conditioning units so they feel more realistic[/p]
  • [p]Tweaked various intro and outro level texts[/p]
[p][/p][h3]Level Specific Fixes[/h3][p]Chapter01 [/p]
  • [p]Level: Getting Better[/p]
    • [p]Moved some obstacles around for a better flow[/p]
    • [p]Fixed an obstacle where the Fast / OK / Slow message wasn’t appearing[/p][p][/p]
[p]Chapter 02[/p]
  • [p]Level: Put It All Together[/p]
    • [p]Adjusted the design slightly to make the step-up easier to use[/p]
  • [p]Level: Rooftops [/p]
    • [p]Fixed a bug that stopped predictive move selection from working on a climb-up[/p]
  • [p]Level: Too Fast Too Furious[/p]
    • [p]Improved grab detection on the lorries
      [/p]
[p]Chapter03:[/p]
  • [p]Level: Thanks For The Lift[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a bug that stopped predictive move selection from working on a climb-up[/p]
    • [p]Added a death-area camera adjustment trigger for a better view[/p]
  • [p]Level: You Spilt My Drink[/p]
    • [p]Removed an incorrect camera adjustment
      [/p]
[p]Chapter04:[/p]
  • [p]Level: Which Way[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a climb-up that wasn’t working correctly with predictive move selection[/p]
    [p][/p]
  • [p]Level: Breath Of Fresh Air[/p]
    • [p]Fixed an issue where the slide after the machines could throw the player off and cause death when performing a fast move[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a ladder climb-up that caused a jolt[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a ledge grab that caused an upward jolt instead of a smooth transition[/p]
    [p][/p]
  • [p]Level: Drug Lab[/p]
    • [p]Fixed the end camera volume position so it now triggers consistently[/p]
    [p][/p]
  • [p]Level: Don't Shoot[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a camera adjustment volume placed incorrectly at the end of the level[/p]
[p][/p][p]Chapter05[/p]
  • [p]Level: Skip The Queues[/p]
    • [p]Improved the starting area camera pop on first play[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a bug that made grabbing one of the Ferris wheel cages difficult[/p]
  • [p]Level: High And Low[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a spot where the player could get stuck while climbing into the sewer[/p]
  • [p]Level: Almost There[/p]
    • [p]Fixed an issue with a ladder climb[/p]
  • [p]Level: Found Tim[/p]
    • [p]Fixed an issue with the swing pole[/p]
    • [p]Added an additional camera volume at the start of the level[/p]
    • [p]Fixed a ledge that caused a pop-up[/p]
    • [p]Changed the animation when climbing out of the elevator to a more appropriate one[/p]
    • [p]Adjusted an early AI so it now blocks the player’s path instead of chasing them[/p]
[p][/p][h3]General Fixes[/h3]
  • [p]Fixed some bad looping animations on background characters[/p]
  • [p]Miscellaneous environment art fixes across multiple levels[/p]
  • [p]Fixed an issue where the main menu audio fade-out and fade-to-black did not trigger correctly when exiting the game after returning from a level[/p]
  • [p]Fixed a small sprint animation bug[/p]
  • [p]Fixed textures on vans that were using the incorrect world position setup[/p]
  • [p]Fixed a bug where part of the end-level menu UI would flicker and change shape when revealed[/p]
  • [p]Fixed a skinning issue with the white T-shirt and long-sleeve T-shirt combination[/p]
  • [p]Fixed several spelling mistakes in the intro and outro texts[/p]
[p][/p][p]And there you have it, a range of improvements and fixes all aimed at making the overall experience better and the movement feel smoother and more fluid.[/p][p][/p][p]Let me know if you have any more feedback or suggestions.[/p][p][/p][p]I also updated the demo with these fixes, so if you're curious about the game, give the demo a try and see how it feels.[/p][p][/p][p]Thanks again for all the support,
[/p][p]Cheers,[/p][p]James[/p]