Lionhearts News

[p]Welcome once again to the weekly Development Log for Lionhearts, an up-and-coming project on Steam created using Unreal Engine 5.[/p][p][/p][p]This week brought steady progress across all teams as we worked to push the Belmont Castle demo forward.[/p][p][/p][p]On the level design team, significant headway was made on the church, castle, and town areas of the map.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Next, the 3D animation team completed all blacksmithing animations.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Additionally, the 3D art team finalized a handful of assets still required for the demo, including vineyard assets, olive farm assets, baking assets, and logging assets. They also made some improvements to the playable character’s outfit.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]The 2D art team continued work on user interface, namely for the prayer and shadow systems.[/p][p][/p][p]On the technical side, the programming team polished the NPC shadow tasking system and implemented new shortsword blocking and tree-felling animations.[/p][p][/p][p]They also imported the new ESC menu UI the Shadow Spectate HUD. Some bug fixes were also made, including for "bunny hopping" (a speed glitch) and tab targeting.[/p][p][/p][p]Thanks for reading, and please remember to join us again next week as we move into Week 16.[/p][p][/p][p]Please join us on our Discord server for forum posting, where you can ask questions and participate in our growing community![/p][p][/p][p]To support this project, please follow our Kickstarter campaign, which will be launching soon![/p][p][/p][p]Our Steam Page is also up, be sure to wishlist it![/p][p][/p][p]Written by Credenzio Studios Staff[/p]

Welcome once again to the weekly Development Log for Lionhearts, an up-and-coming project on Steam created using Unreal Engine 5.

This week saw significant progress and a few setbacks across our Creative and Technical departments.

On the level design team, efforts on the Belmont Castle map were disrupted by persistent technical issues with Unreal Engine's multi-user editing plugin, leading to some version reverts and loss of work. To tackle this, we’ve partnered with M3DS Academy, an Unreal Engine Academic Partner, to resolve the plugin issues and get the demo back on track.



The 3D animation team wrapped up short sword blocking and wheat harvesting animations.

The 3D art team completed our remaining foliage assets and wrapped revisions on some of our older assets.



The game design team enriched the Game Design Document with clearer visuals and references.

The 2D art team completed all favor tree icons. They also began crafting concept art pieces to showcase the creative process for the Kickstarter and other promotional media.



On the technical front, the programming team added advanced graphics settings, sword/shield holstering, and continued refining NPC combat.

They also polished shadow tasks, added some outfits, added resource respawning, and a new intro sequence where players start by spectating their shadow as the Lord.

Thanks for reading, and please remember to join us again next week as we move into Week 15.

Please join us on our Discord server for forum posting, where you can ask questions and participate in our growing community!

To support this project, please follow our Kickstarter campaign, which will be launching soon!

Our Steam Page is also up, be sure to wishlist it!

Written by Credenzio Studios Staff

Welcome once again to the weekly Development Log for Lionhearts, an up-and-coming project on Steam created using Unreal Engine 5.

Week 13 marked incremental but meaningful progress across the board as the team pushes closer to a polished demo.

The level design team encountered delays on the Belmont Castle map, prompting the creation of a new prefabricated house blueprint pack to streamline the process.



The 2D art team began work on the second half of the trade icons for the favor tree.

3D animation efforts expanded with new sequences for bowing, standing at ease, and olive gathering.



The 3D art team began overhauling some of our older assets to better match the project’s finalized visual style. They also continued work on foliage/terrain assets and finished all Kickstarter backer rewards.



The programming team continued work on NPC shadows, which can now sit in chairs. Additionally, several shadow task animations received final polish. Footsteps also now feature realistic sound attenuation.

Combat saw some small additions. Namely, a minimum attack threshold was added.

The ESC menu now includes a feedback button linked to a survey (pending form creation).

Work began on a settings backend to allow volume adjustment.

Some work was also done on systems supporting resource respawning.

Additionally, favor tree UI icons were added to the tree.

Finally, the demo was prepped for internal playtesting.



Thanks for reading, and please remember to join us again next week as we move into Week 14.

Please join us on our Discord server for forum posting, where you can ask questions and participate in our growing community!

To support this project, please follow our Kickstarter campaign, which will be launching soon!

Our Steam Page is also up, be sure to wishlist it!

Written by Credenzio Studios Staff

Welcome once again to the weekly Development Log for Lionhearts, an up-and-coming project on Steam created using Unreal Engine 5.

Week 12 saw focused progress toward finalizing the demo experience.

The 3D art team continued work on assets including a crown for the cinematic trailer, more foliage, and premium assets for KickStarter backer rewards.



The level design team continued refining Belmont Castle.

The 2D art team also began work on the latter half of the military icons for the favor tree.

The programming team continied work on combat, which received further polish, plus additional polish for NPC combat behavior.

Landmark discovery and ambient zones were introduced for a more immersive experience.

The NPC Shadow system expanded to include new tasks such as baking bread, training, and harvesting from orchard trees and grapevines, paired with newly implemented animations. Also, NPC Shadows can now greet the player.

The favor tree was adapted to support starting as a "Lord" in the demo.

Additionally, the groundwork for resource respawning was laid.

Each piece contributes to a more complete, polished demo as development accelerates.



Thanks for reading, and please remember to join us again next week as we move into Week 13.

Please join us on our Discord server for forum posting, where you can ask questions and participate in our growing community!

To support this project, please follow our Kickstarter campaign, which will be launching soon!

Our Steam Page is also up, be sure to wishlist it!

Written by Credenzio Studios Staff

Welcome once again to the weekly Development Log for Lionhearts, an up-and-coming project on Steam created using Unreal Engine 5.

Week 11 marked significant visual and gameplay progress across the board.

The level design team finalized the blockout for Belmont Castle and began placing assets to bring the environment to life.



On the 3D animation front, new movement cycles were completed, including sitting and standing transitions.



The 3D art team wrapped up a modular architecture asset pack for kitbashing, continued work on agricultural and foliage assets, plus premium assets intended as exclusive Kickstarter rewards.



On the 2D art side, the religion icons for the favor tree were completed. Additionally, new HUD user interface elements were finalized, including a compass, dropdown menus, and status bars. These UI elements were also implemented.




Combat saw polish with new VFX, hit markers, camera shake, and corrected animation swing directions, while sword blocks now trigger a bounce effect.

The NPC Shadow system also advanced with newly implemented harvesting tasks for grapevines and orchard trees, alongside the foundation for NPC greetings. 3D animations were also implemented for existing shadow tasks.

As we continue development, the focus remains on refining both visuals and systems to showcase the core experience.

Thanks for reading, and please remember to join us again next week as we move into Week 12.
Please join us on our Discord server for forum posting, where you can ask questions and participate in our growing community!

To support this project, please follow our Kickstarter campaign, which will be launching soon!

Our Steam Page is also up, be sure to wishlist it!

Written by Credenzio Studios Staff