Abiotic Factor News

[h3]Greetings esteemed colleagues,[/h3]

It hasn’t been that long since our last Status Report, but we already have a ton of stuff to show you!

[h2]A tablet a day keeps the radiation at bay![/h2]

Or something like that.

As an employee of the GATE Cascade Research Facility, you’ve got a PhD… probably. And as a doctor (of something) you know health is important. But that won’t have prepared you for the insanity that’s broken out in your workplace and caused less-than-ideal hygiene conditions.

Luckily, we have some tips for how to avoid (and treat) sickness and disease!

Is your food raw or rotten? Don’t eat that! Or there will be consequences.



We hope this goes without saying but, if you want to avoid getting sick, try to avoid your co-workers’… sick. But if for some reason you find yourself in the line of fire,” hunt down a water source to rinse yourself off.



Frequenting an irradiated zone? Wear some protection or pop some iodine. And be sure to keep in mind where you’re sourcing that food from. Is it from space? If it’s from space, it’s probably got some radiation on it.


Careful with that space food.

And now, before anyone gets sick of this topic, let’s hear from our developers about their work!

[h2]Deep in the Field[/h2]

Here’s a few words from our team about their latest endeavors!

[h3]Kecko, 3D Artist[/h3]

I'm really happy with how the security cart turned out, I especially like the diamond-plated metal parts.

I was rooting around in my big ol’ folder of ancient stock textures when I came across some scuffed up diamond-plated metal and thought: "Perfect, time to turn this into a brush." The storage compartment was also a fun detail. It adds a bit of depth to the model and makes the side seem a little less barren!

I've got some armor sets too!

Security Armor

I'm really happy with how this set turned out! The helmet design is a lot of fun with the half visor, and I think it hits a really perfect mix of clean and tactical. I love how chunky and bulky it is with our style, and I imagine it's a pretty cozy fit too… if a bit warm. Definitely isn't going to make a scrawny scientist into a soldier, but it might make you feel like one.

”Forge” Armor

I love the texture work on this one, and the faceless nature of having a huge welding mask on makes me feel waaay more confident than I should be, just a big buff construction dude smashing heads! Utterly fear inducing.

Hazmat Suit

Not as fancy as some of our armor, but man it feels cool being all suited up in this thing. It was a lot of fun making all the folds and wrinkles, really adds to the baggy look. The blue stripes also add a nice splash of color, and the way the visor catches the light is a lot of fun.

[h3]Hailey, Level Designer[/h3]

This place we call the "Fusion" underground, for reasons we can’t quite share yet. A dark, radioactive hellscape - this space has a unique feel compared to elsewhere in the GATE Cascade Research Facility.



Designed around a central fusion reactor (of sorts), this level has players traversing through a range of inhospitable areas, roamed by volatile aliens, corrupt machines, and the haunting presence of a mysterious third-party. As my first major area that I “owned” as a level designer, I worked on the layout plans, through to the completed greybox. It is extremely rewarding, and I can’t wait to reveal more of the Fusion underground in the future!


[h3]Jacob, Gameplay & Systems Programmer[/h3]
Batteries

Batteries are a new powered deployable that can hold a charge, so you can power your base when night comes. You can also adjust their behavior to work in the day or night, or on a timer.



Food spoiling Food spoiling is a new system that slowly degrades perishable over time. To start off, we're using this system to turn raw/cooked food into rotten food if it's left on the ground or in a container for too long. You’ll be able to slow this down using a fridge, or if you’re feeling real creative, maybe just keep your food in a regular ol’ crate, but store that crate in a very snowy portal destination…



The system can also be configured the other way around, e.g. coffee goes cold unless it’s kept in a hot container. In the future, we can even use this for non-food items, maybe in the Reactor sector (the what?), where you need to keep items at a certain temperature or…



VOIP VOIP is pretty straight forward, alongside text chat we also want to support voice chat. Currently it's global voice chat but my hope is we eventually change it to proximity voice, complete with flappy mouth-holes. Overall I'm quite happy with the initial implementation, but sometimes it breaks and player voices become cursed. We’ll probably fix that by launch.



[h3]Connor, Art Director[/h3]
We’ve recently integrated third person animations (what other players see when your character performs an action) for several common actions, to bring much more life to your fellow fanatics of science, and better readability to what your teammates are doing. ABF is a social game where you’ll want to coordinate with your team. We want you to be able to look over at the other players and know what they’re doing without having to ask.



Seen here are some eating, crafting, and rooting around in your backpack. Gone are the days of standing around in the base asking your friends what they are doing, now you can see them doing it!

We also have an animation coming up for holding your backpack out for others… I wonder what that’s all about?

Thanks, Team! We’ll catch up with you even more in the next Status Report.

[h2]Also tracers and muzzle flashes pewww![/h2]

You work in a lab, you’re not the most proficient when it comes to firearms. But it does make sense that you’d be able to invent one! So we’re working on that now.



[h2]Stay Tuned[/h2]

When you descend into the GATE Cascade Research Facility you’re going to be facing challenges you won’t expect. Follow these Status Reports for tips, insights and strategies to keep you safe as well as fun looks-behind-the-scenes at our development!

We plan to continue doing these about once a month, with lots of surprises in between.

You can also subscribe to our Newsletter to keep up-to-date on news about Abiotic Factor, and gain exclusive access to testing environments. Oh, they’re coming.

[h3]Wishlist Today![/h3]
https://store.steampowered.com/app/427410/Abiotic_Factor/

See you next time, Scientists!


You can also join us on Discord!

[h3]Greetings esteemed colleagues,[/h3]

This month we’re coming to you with major announcements, as well as adding a brand new Behind The Scenes section to our Status Reports where we look at recent contributions from the Deep Field team!

But first…

[h2]Future Games Show[/h2]

On August 23rd (so soon!) Abiotic Factor will be appearing in the Future Games Show at Gamescom with a brand new gameplay trailer! Tune in live or keep an eye out for it on our Steam store page.



You can tune in to the Future Games Show at Gamescom on Wednesday, August 23, at 11am PT / 2pm ET / 7pm BST / 8pm CEST.

[h2]Do You Have The Time?[/h2]

Time is an integral part of life at the GATE Cascade Research Facility, so you’re going to need a way to keep track of it. That’s where your handy dandy wristwatch comes in!

Worried about getting caught out of your base after dark? Just check your watch before nightfall! Need to know the day of the week or monitor the ambient temperature? How about a little compass-y help for the directionally-inclined?

Your state of the art digital watch has all those features too! Time may not be on your side, but you can at least even the odds a little...



And for those of you hoping to go more retro with your timepiece, exploration of certain vignettes can prove most rewarding. Keep that thought in your pocket.

[h2]Deep in the Field[/h2]

We checked in with some of our fantastic artists who wanted to share some of their favorite pieces from the past month or so.

Kecko, 3D Artist

I've been super duper happy with how the Robot Charging Pod came out. It's been a lot of fun to work on, and it has a lot of little mechanical details, which I love to make. I took inspiration from the older Mechwarrior games and Battletech for some of the electronics and the mechanical details, as well as Unreal (1998) for the general way I shaded and faked the depth of the texture.



“Look, it’s true we’ve had some issues, but here’s the thing - it’s a security bot. You want ‘safe’, you want ‘zero harm’? Build something else. It keeps the facility clear at night. We just need to fix a few bugs, then it’ll be ready to protect malls, airports, even schools.”
~ T. R. Enderson - Immurement Manager

Jenny, Tech Artist

There's quite a few things I've been working on that I'm really proud of, but I think the Peccary Charge Blast FX is currently my favorite. The blast ability bears a resemblance to the Exor Monk's Shockwave, with a touch of extra brutality, as it emanates straight from its skull. The addition of a distortion after effect ties everything together, displaying the deadliness of its power.



Connor, Art Director

Disclaimer, our Art Director is very busy so I, Anonymous Blog Dev (definitely not Criss), will be standing in for him this round.

Hi, I’m Connor! I do art and the polygon stuff! Recently I created the models for several of our crafting bench upgrades and they look super cool and make their unique uses and bonuses apparent to the player at a glance.

That’s probably what Connor would say if he were here.



[h2]In Case You Missed It[/h2]

[h3]Interviews from the Archives[/h3]
We’ve started a new series of videos, interviews direct from the GATE Archives! Join Abe and Janet to learn more about the Immured Subjects (IS) kept within the Facility, as well as Immurement Candidates (IC) – otherwise known as the ones that can’t be contained… Yet?

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[h3]New Dev Vlog![/h3]
Dev vlogs are back! Come see the latest one where we learn to get defensive.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h2]Stay Tuned[/h2]

When you descend into the GATE Cascade Research Facility you’re going to be facing challenges you won’t expect. Follow these Status Reports for tips, insights and strategies to keep you safe as well as fun behind the scenes look at our development!

We plan to continue doing these about once a month, with lots of fun surprises in between.

You can also subscribe to our Newsletter to keep up to date on news about Abiotic Factor and gain exclusive access to testing environments. Oh, they’re coming.

[h3]Wishlist Today![/h3]
https://store.steampowered.com/app/427410/Abiotic_Factor/

See you next time, Scientists!


You can also join us on Discord!

[h2]Greetings, scientists![/h2]

We've got some great news to share SOON, but due to these new developments, we've made a few changes to our planned schedule: we will not be featuring Abiotic Factor in Steam Next Fest this month. To everyone who's expressed excitement about playing the ABF demo - THANK YOU, we can't wait, even if it's a little further down the road.

If you want a chance to playtest the game, or just stay up to date on development, sign up to our newsletter - and as always, be sure to wishlist ABF on Steam, and tell your fellow scientists to do the same!

Talk to you soon, colleagues.

During your time in the Facility, you may find yourself needing to venture out for crafting resources, ingredients and items you won’t find just anywhere. In fact, you’ll only find them outwards of anywhere. In this Status Report, we introduce Vignettes!



“We’ve gathered so much data since our first expedition to Anteverse II. It has become clear that there is a large entropy differential between our universe and theirs. This explains why their biota grows so fast here: the available energy is so much higher. It’s like a feeding frenzy.”
Suan Tengku - Report to Keystone, Sept 1991



A central, if secretive pillar of GATE activity is the study of universes far beyond our own. In pursuit of this research, the GATE Cascade Research Facility has created what may best be described as a ‘massive multi-perforation’, leading to a host of alternate dimensions and strange destinations, both on earth (we think) and worlds beyond.





While immensely diverse, these vignettes all have one thing in common. They experience strange fluctuations in time, a temporal tethering of sorts. While resources in an office – especially a secret, underground one – may be finite, resources in this myriad of destinations are abundant, and periodically undergo "resets" that replenish their supplies. So while it may be dangerous, perhaps even lethal, exploring through a portal will always yield reward.





Want to learn more about the GATE Cascade Research Facility? Follow our video series - the Archives - where GATE details the many strange things they store and study in their facilities. This status report, we'd like to highlight The Time Bomb, the first in a new series of interviews with your favorite GATE staff members - Abe and Janet.

https://youtu.be/3WX8YzIbuQc



When you descend into the GATE Cascade Research Facility you’re going to be facing challenges you won’t expect. Follow these Status Reports for tips, insights and strategies to keep you safe.

You can also subscribe to our Newsletter to keep up to date – and gain exclusive access to testing environments – and be sure to add Abiotic Factor to your wishlist.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/427410/Abiotic_Factor/

See you next time, Scientists!


You can also join us on Discord!

[h2]Greetings esteemed colleagues,[/h2]

In this installment of the Status Report we’ll give you a glimpse into the day-night cycle and electrical systems of the GATE Cascade Research Facility. Understanding how to work with power and light are essential to surviving what the Facility throws at you!

[h2]Night and Day[/h2]

During core work hours, the Facility is illuminated for the safety and productivity of its employees. But each night, once staff return to their dormitories, the power is switched off, and nightfall descends; making your way around becomes a new challenge.



If you need to control light levels during daytime, simply flick a switch – outside those hours, you’re going to need to get more creative. (Hint: just starting out? Small office lamps are your friend and flashlights are indispensable).



[h2]Power ON[/h2]

A large range of equipment and apparatuses need heavy power to function – from standard GATE gear to repurposed items and inventions, crafted by the great minds of its staff.

Need a work-bench? Gotta power it up. Want to cook a meal for friends? Connect that cable to your makeshift stove. Looking to recharge your flashlight? You guessed it…

Need more range or sockets, use a plug board! And don’t worry - the lights may be out, but the power sockets stay on all night long.



[h2]Change of state[/h2]

When night sets in, security protocols change as well, and you’ll need to proceed with caution. There are many projects at the GATE Cascade Research Facility, and some are still under development and testing. You can’t always be sure they will differentiate friend from foe.



[h2]Darker = Colder[/h2]

When the darkness sets in, so does the cold. Facility ventilation (and heating) drops dramatically at night. When the lights go off, you’ll need to watch your temperature more closely, especially in heavily damaged sectors.



[h2]Stay tuned[/h2]

That’s just an introduction to lights and power in Abiotic Factor. For more information, watch our dev logs, and sign up for the Newsletter to jump in on future playtests and see for yourself!


See you next time, Scientists!


Join our Discord:




Wishlist Abiotic Factor today!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/427410/Abiotic_Factor/