Chinese Frontiers News

Hi everyone, my name is Wojtek, and I’m the Level Designer and Technical Artist of our upcoming title, “Chinese Frontiers”. I would like to take you on a quick fly-through of the main level in the game - the player’s Village!



[h2]Walk through the valley of the Village[/h2]

Relax, take a deep breath, and feel free to dive deep into an ancient Chinese valley surrounded by mountains.

At the settlement level, you will be able to discover multiple biomes. Our Village is spread along the river at the bottom of the valley.
Near the water, you will find sandy beaches and bamboo forests. This is a good place to go fishing and take a look at the opposite riverbank, which you will be able to explore later in our full game. On the other side, the village is surrounded by a forest that you can delve into, gather wood and stones, pick up plants, which you can collect, farm, and use to cook original Chinese recipes.
Take a look at the rice fields, unfolding like a verdant carpet from the mountains to the river bay. This is a typical part of Chinese scenery. The whole scenery is surrounded by mountains with ponds, rivers, and waterfalls that you can visit, along with attractive places with magnificent views.

Who knows, maybe along the way, you will uncover some secrets?

[h2]Revealing the Untold[/h2]

Below, you can watch a short overview of the level we prepared.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

This is just a quick fly-through of the first level. Stay tuned, and if you want, I’ll take you on a longer trip through the working process, technical features, and specific areas of every level. Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you are most interested in.

Dive deep into the game and feel free to explore the whole level!

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Greetings, fellow adventurers!

Marcin (Commando) and Tomek here, excited to talk about our part in creating our upcoming game, "Chinese Frontiers." As game designers and programmers, it's our job to bring the game world to life and make it engaging for players.

In our previous devlogs, we showcased the game loop and the amazing 3D assets our talented crew has been creating. Today, we're here to talk about what we've been working on specifically - interactive assets, resource gathering, building, upgrading, crafting, and more!

[h2]Building and Crafting[/h2]

One of the core mechanics we've been working hard on is the building system. We had to make sure that it is intuitive and fun to use. You'll be able to upgrade buildings to unlock new features, craft tools and building materials to build even more stuff.



Crafting was an especially interesting subject for us as we wanted to add something more immersive for a player to interact with. Some of the crafting stations require more in-game actions from the player, rather than just selecting a recipe from the list. My favorite one is crafting bricks, and I am curious which one you like the most. Should we expand more on those ideas and add more crafting like this?



[h2]The Monuments[/h2]

Moving on, let's talk about the main goal of "Chinese Frontiers" - building the Great Wall of China. But before you can do that, you need to gather materials, process them, and build up your Village. When you are ready, you will embark on a mission to build monumental parts of the Great Wall of China! In your journey you will use various tools to create them, starting from the crane which will help you to pull up heavy building materials. From programming code to the visual aspect and ending on audio design, we've put a lot of effort into creating an immersive crane experience.



One of the most significant challenges in building the Great Wall of China is the height of the wall. That's where the scaffolding comes in! We've added the scaffolding mechanic to help players build at higher places with ease. You'll be able to stack scaffoldings on top of each other, allowing you to reach new heights and build impressive structures. But be careful not to fall off while you're up there! 💀 We wanted to make sure that players could enjoy building at higher elevations without sacrificing the fun factor, and the scaffolding does just that.



[h2]Caravan[/h2]

Another interesting tool that will aid you is the Players Caravan. It will allow you to transport necessary materials crafted in your Village to the Great Wall of China. The Caravan is connected to all workshops you place so you won’t have to transport all of the crafted materials in your own hands. Whenever you travel to the Monuments building site, your Caravan will be waiting for you with your materials ready. Hopefully, nothing will go missing during your travels! 😉



Making multiple intertwined systems that will allow setting up a monument of such a massive scale and will be easy to use for us, developers, proved to be an interesting challenge.

[h2]Skill System[/h2]

As the game continues, players will have the opportunity to improve their character's abilities through various skills. These skills can boost their carrying capacity, increase movement speed, enhance farming abilities, and more. As players progress through the game, they will have the chance to invest in different skills, which will allow them to complete tasks more efficiently and make the most out of their resources. The skill system will add a layer of depth and strategy to the gameplay, as players must carefully choose which skills to invest in based on their playstyle and priorities. We believe that the skill system will add another layer of depth to the gameplay and give players a sense of progression as they develop their character's abilities.
We're excited to see how players will use their skills to overcome challenges in "Chinese Frontiers"!



[h2]From Gatherer to Village Boss[/h2]

As your Village grows, you'll need to assign work to your cohabitants. This feature will be introduced in the early access stage of the game as we are still working on it. We want to make sure that as the game progresses, you'll start to feel more like a manager and not just a simple farmer, as you oversee the production and technology of your village.

[h2]There's More![/h2]

And that's not all. There will be different levels in the game, each with its unique challenges. For example, cooking original Chinese dishes typical for each area will be a fun way to experience the different areas.

We're excited to bring these mechanics to life and can't wait for you to experience them in "Chinese Frontiers"!

[h3]Thank you for following our journey, and stay tuned for more updates![/h3]

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Hello! My name is Iza, and I'm a 3D Graphic Designer for Chinese Frontiers. In today's devlog, you will learn a bit about the process of modelling the buildings (workshops) that you will soon be able to construct on your own in our upcoming game!

[h2]Research and sketching [/h2]

Like almost everyone on our team, I am an architect - and thanks to this, when designing buildings, I paid attention to historical accuracy with traditional Chinese constructions. Before the actual modeling, I spent a lot of time on research. I used old sketches, books and films to better understand the whole process. It was definitely a very interesting stage of my job. 😃

After the research, it was time for design. Work on each building started with a sketch of the functional plan - so that its final form would be derived from the function it is intended to serve. During that time I also made a lot of loose sketches, as a way of thinking about possible forms.



[h2]2D to 3D transformation [/h2]

The next, and really important step, was gradual transition from 2D to 3D. I created a lot of simple block models for each buildings - different alternatives - so that, even in 3D, before the final modeling, the scale, proportion, and arrangement of each building could be better sensed.



As a result, each of the buildings gained a blocky, simple form for further work.



Traditional Chinese wooden constructions often utilize intricate wood joinery techniques, where wooden pieces are interconnected without the use of nails or screws. Instead, interlocking joints are carefully crafted to create stable and durable structures. In Chinese Frontiers, you’ll be able to construct five different workshops, each of them has a different structure, tailored to the scale of the object and the function it is intended to serve.



[h2]Texturing[/h2]

Final step was detailed modelling and texturing. Here is a comparison between the initial sketch version of the building and its final form:







[h2]Upgrade your workshop[/h2]

One of the key features of the game is the development of buildings. As you progress in your skills, gain new technology and gather the necessary materials, you will be able to upgrade some of your workshops - from a primitive structure made of field stones and clay, to a more advanced and visually appealing one.







This is just a small portion of the objects that you will be able to build in Chinese Frontiers. Next time, I will tell you more about other assets that I have prepared for the game - as well as take a closer look inside the workshops to examine the crafting stations.

There is so much to discover ahead of you! 🤗




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Hello, Chinese Builders!

With our recently prologue playtest (available until the end of April 👉here), we got curious how much did you enjoy certains features and the overall experience of our game.

So please follow the link below to take part in the feedback survey and tell us which elements of the game you loved the most!





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Hello everyone, my name is Bartek, UI/UX Designer and Game Designer for Chinese Frontiers. If you have a little time I would like to show you all of the challenges and dangers awaiting you in the beautiful landscapes of ancient China. Are you brave enough?

Okay, so you wake up one day surrounded by beautiful landscapes, as you breathe in crystal clear air. You see a small but inviting settlement in the distance. Smoke coming from many chimneys. You don’t know why but you feel a sense that you belong here! Is this your Village?

The first mechanic of the game is your Village ( HUB ). At the beginning you and your village have very little to start. You get the basic fundamental infrastructure - but it hints at a great potential of growth. However, before you start working you have to think about few things:

[h2]1. Survival[/h2]

Living in simpler times wasn’t necessarily easier. You have to think ahead to survive. Food and Water are the most important elements. Fortunately for you, Chinese landscapes are filled with fauna & flora that can help you stay alive. Gather different kinds of plants, use a fishing rod made of bamboo to catch some fish, drink straight from the river - water is clear. Survival is key.




Being a gatherer is fun and all, but if I had to guess you are ambitious and would like to expand. Changing a small Village into a thriving city will require a lot of resources and work, but I have good news for you. Try:

[h2]2. Farming, Breeding, Cooking[/h2]

Work smart, not hard. Why run around all the time when you get hungry or thirsty. Turn yourself into an experienced farmer. You just have to pick a place for your field, get a hoe and some seeds and you are good to go! Remember every plant you gather gets you seeds that can be planted, but some of them are harder to find than others.

When it comes to breeding, in the Prologue, it's an experience that is a very stripped down version. However, we are currently working on a more advanced system where you will be able to take care of your animals. If you take good care of the farm you will be able to use animal products that you collect in multiple different ways (Food, Trade, Building materials etc.).

Combine these products in the kitchen to cook real local dishes from different Chinese regions.

Fun fact: The more complex the dishes are, the bigger reward you get!



When your stomach is finally full, you can focus on the bigger picture. Imagine yourself as not only a Craftsman but an experienced Builder and City Planer. The Village is your starting point - nothing is stopping you but your imagination.

[h2]3. Planing, Building, Crafting[/h2]

At the beginning when the game starts there isn’t a lot to work with. You have to create a Basic Infrastructure that will allow your settlement to grow. Use your surroundings to gather resources - cut down trees with a hatchet to get wood, craft a pickaxe and use it on mountain formations to get stone, look under your feet for clay and sand. Everything can be used. So look around every chance you get.

Fun fact: all gatherable resources can be highlighted!

When you feel you have enough resources open the Building Menu and pick your first project. There are a number of different buildings - Carpenter, Brickyard, Stonemason ect. Find a place where you want to place it and begin the building process. Basic materials are enough at the start, but with time, you will have to transform them into more complex, sturdy materials to upgrade your Village.

Fortunately, every building has crafting stations that will allow you to do exactly that. Some of them are simple, some require you to really work hard and get your hands dirty, for sure you will manage.



Finally, you have basic infrastructure to produce different kinds of building materials. Everything starts to look promising. Village is growing and people are happy! Nevertheless you don’t want to stay in one place. Why would you? Adventure awaits!

[h2]4. Travel, Build, Get Rewarded[/h2]

Open your Map to see all of the Monuments of the Great Wall of China that require your experienced help. Pack everything on your trusty Caravan, pick a place to go and start your next adventure. I promise you will not be disappointed.

Every time you finish one of the big projects, you will be rewarded. Not only with the highest honor and well deserved place in the history, but also with new technologies (that will allow you to expand your Village) and new locations (with new interesting, challenging tasks).

But if you need some rest from the big picture stuff, always remember to try the side quests that we prepared for you. It will pay off in the end!



So, to summarize REMEMBER:

With preparation you can survive anything.

With better materials you get better buildings.

With better buildings your Village gets more advanced.

With better Village you unlock new technologies and get more complex and fun challenges. (BUILDING MONUMENTS OF THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA)

Completing these challenges unlocks new technologies and materials.

If you play your cards right, before you notice you will be a true LEGENDARY BUILDER

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