World Map and Visual Tweaks
This update adds the World Map so that you can easily see where all islands, ports and other places of interest are on the map.
Pretty straight forward to use, but please note that the world map does NOT show you your current location. This is very much by design. You can use your MFD GPS to get an accurate position but when plotting longer routes (as the GPS only zooms out so far) I want you to, much like a real skipper, plan your route using buoys & landmarks.
I shall also be adding GPS reliability/accuracy simulation so relying on your GPS too much may land you in trouble should it fail. To counter this I will be adding the ability to call in coast guard help (helicopter or aircraft) who will find you and then point you in the right direction if you get totally lost out at sea - for a cost naturally!
VISUAL TWEAKS
I've now increased the visual range from 5km to a much more realistic 15km for both VR & Non-VR.
I was pleasantly surprised that in most cases there was little impact to frame rates although some areas where you can now see 2 or 3 islands at the same time FPS can suffer a little bit. However, I can almost certainly improve on that by adjusting the LOD levels for buildings, trees and rocks and I think the trade off for the visual improvement is well worth it.
I've also added a better distant fog effect to VR & Non-VR which smooths the transition as islands come into view. You should now be able to see things like Maupiti's volcano loom in from the distance much more pleasingly.
However, if you find your system is now really struggling please let me know in the forums so that I can plan some graphics options that might help.
OTHER UPDATES
1. Maupiti now has an airport!
NEXT UPDATE
Next week will see the addition of a passenger and vehicle ferry and hopefully that will also be the update that finally makes it into the live build. I think there are now plenty of islands and vessels to show new players how the game is developing.
BIG THANK YOU
This is also a great opportunity for me to thank all the early adopters who have stuck with the game, given the updates those awesome "thumbs up", found bugs, helped fix bugs and who I have chatted to on both the forums and Facebook.
Without your support I'm not sure Powerboat VR would have got very far but now, when I look at the original version, it is surprising to see how far it has come and how much has changed.
Thank you to you all! ːsteamhappyː
Pretty straight forward to use, but please note that the world map does NOT show you your current location. This is very much by design. You can use your MFD GPS to get an accurate position but when plotting longer routes (as the GPS only zooms out so far) I want you to, much like a real skipper, plan your route using buoys & landmarks.
I shall also be adding GPS reliability/accuracy simulation so relying on your GPS too much may land you in trouble should it fail. To counter this I will be adding the ability to call in coast guard help (helicopter or aircraft) who will find you and then point you in the right direction if you get totally lost out at sea - for a cost naturally!
VISUAL TWEAKS
I've now increased the visual range from 5km to a much more realistic 15km for both VR & Non-VR.
I was pleasantly surprised that in most cases there was little impact to frame rates although some areas where you can now see 2 or 3 islands at the same time FPS can suffer a little bit. However, I can almost certainly improve on that by adjusting the LOD levels for buildings, trees and rocks and I think the trade off for the visual improvement is well worth it.
I've also added a better distant fog effect to VR & Non-VR which smooths the transition as islands come into view. You should now be able to see things like Maupiti's volcano loom in from the distance much more pleasingly.
However, if you find your system is now really struggling please let me know in the forums so that I can plan some graphics options that might help.
OTHER UPDATES
1. Maupiti now has an airport!
NEXT UPDATE
Next week will see the addition of a passenger and vehicle ferry and hopefully that will also be the update that finally makes it into the live build. I think there are now plenty of islands and vessels to show new players how the game is developing.
BIG THANK YOU
This is also a great opportunity for me to thank all the early adopters who have stuck with the game, given the updates those awesome "thumbs up", found bugs, helped fix bugs and who I have chatted to on both the forums and Facebook.
Without your support I'm not sure Powerboat VR would have got very far but now, when I look at the original version, it is surprising to see how far it has come and how much has changed.
Thank you to you all! ːsteamhappyː