Developer Update - April 15

Welcome, Pilots!

We've enjoyed watching players old and new explore the exciting additions in our Neo update. Now, as spring blooms, our team is hard at work on the next milestone, "Orion" - So do us a favor and enjoy the warm weather and touch some grass for us!

Without further adieu - Welcome to the April 2023 edition of the Project Genesis Developer Update!




Art & Environment:

• Working on new dynamic systems to add depth and variety to biomes
  
• Load-In generation of landmarks, skydomes, times of day, environment FX & structures

Design:

• Reviewing new early high-poly weapon models
  
• Working on making weapons fit better into new animation efforts

Animation:

• Fixing issues with animation meshes and rigs
  
• Updated Movement Systems
  
• Building a new basic control rig for animation retargeting
  
• Crouch walk Re-Work

QA & Bug Fixes:

• Addressed issues in areas of UI, audio, model positions, and general quality of life fixes.
  
• Fixed the XP gain issue, allowing you to surpass level 100

Community:

• Affiliate Feature (New!)
• Special Thanks
  
• Super fun [REDACTED]
  

[h3]“The Times They Are a-Changin'”[/h3]
Our Art Director, Mark, has been working on some stunning visual improvements for our biomes. He's experimenting with new looks and atmospheres to make them feel more realistic, focusing on composition and layouts.
We're also working on new dynamic systems that will swap out landmarks, skydomes, time of day, environment FX, and building facades, creating different "scenarios" assigned when you load in. Check out some examples from our new [REDACTED] biome below.




For those of you with a keen eye for architectural design, (or perhaps a background in it like Mark!) you can look forward to seeing more exploration into a monolithic style when it comes to buildings and structures scattered across the landscapes too.

Our goal is to increase not only the wow-factor of our in-game environments - but also increase replayability while getting a sense of how mixing up various superficial environment assets enhances the experience.


[h3]“Weapon Of Choice”[/h3]
We are currently evaluating some Early High-Poly versions of weapons - and wanted to give you a sneak peek inside of our arsenal.
These are the *first* versions and we have several more iterations to go before you’ll see them in game, but I’ve chosen a couple of my personal favorites to share with you!



The final goal is to see if we can make the weapons a touch sleeker, and make some adjustments so they better fit the work we are doing with our characters' animation rigs.

What do you think so far? (Come tell us in our Discord Server!)


[h3]“Bring Me To Life”[/h3]
If you’re in our Discord community already, you’ve probably already had the chance to meet Andy, our new Animation-Guru! Since he’s come on board, Andy has been tackling the challenge of correcting some underlying issues with meshes and animation rigs, implementing changes and preparing for a more scalable future.
Here are some highlights of what’s being done to make our Avatars feel more “alive”:

• Updated Movement System: We've gone from a 4 axis movement system for animation walk/run to an 8 axis system, making characters look and feel better while moving around in the world.
  
• Basic Control Rig: Creating a basic control rig for our Genesis Skeleton that makes animation retargeting from MoCap sources easier.
  

One of the most noticeable changes you’ll be seeing in the next milestone however, is an update to the crouch-walk animation! Goodbye to the awkward squat-walk, and hello to a more realistic way to get around!

Andy will be continuing to build out the animation system under the hood to support adding more animations across all of the incoming weapons and systems that the team has been working on.
We are thrilled to have Andy on the team, and very excited about everything he is working on to make Project Genesis “run smoothly”. (Get it?! HA!)


[h3]“Between Angels and Insects”[/h3]
Our heavenly QA team and Test Pilots have been working hard to identify and exterminate some of the bugs crawling around in Project Genesis. There isn’t too much to share right now, as many of the things being focused on new things you haven’t yet seen - but here’s some highlights of the things from the current version of the game that we have ironed out.

• The “Finding Match” banner no longer overlaps essential information in the main menu
  
• First and Third person perspective weapon audio now sounds more impactful and similar
  
• Throwable icons appear correctly in the game UI
  
• Passive ability descriptions now appear in the flight deck
  
• Bishop weapon model no longer appears at a 90 degree angle
  
• Weapon racks in the firing ranges now replenish themselves faster
  
• Animations for ladder climbing have been added
  
• Spider Turrets have different SFX when being damaged, spawning and walking around.
  

However, we do have one exciting fix to share that will make everyone happy: Players will now be rewarded proper XP gains when near level 100, finally allowing you to continue your grind! (Hooray!)



As always, a huge thank you to all of our amazing Test Pilots for their help in making Project Genesis the very best it can be!


We have been taking some time to find new ways to engage, share with, and collect feedback from our community and I look forward to getting these initiatives in place in the coming weeks. Personally, I’m very excited to have more opportunities to “Get The Party Started” and spend more time hanging out with you all very soon!


[h3]Affiliate Spotlight:[/h3]
Welcome to the brand new affiliate spotlight - where we introduce you to one of our Affiliate friends from the Ambassador, Creator or Test Pilot programs. I’m excited to have the opportunity to showcase some of the truly amazing people who have joined our squad, and allow them to tell you a bit about themselves, and Project Genesis in their own words.

Introducing *drumroll* Rogue Rolen! Shauna: So Rogue, tell us a little about yourself?
Rogue Rolen: Well, I'm Rolen, I have been streaming Project Genesis for about 6 months now and have been on Twitch for close to a year. So I am a wee baby in the streaming industry! I work full time in the medical field, I'm a devoted father and husband. I am a total geek, and volunteer at one of the biggest gaming conventions in my general area with my family every year, and have a variety of other hobbies as well!
[expand]
S: How did you hear about Project Genesis?
R: My Brother was watching one of my streams, where i was playing some open beta and said that he knew of a tight knit community that was pre-alpha testing a futuristic FPS game and that i could meet them through his "connections" AKA You!

S: You're both a Creator and a Test Pilot - What made you want to join the programs, and can you tell everyone a little about what you do?
R: So after I learned of Project Genesis, Played a little, and joined the discord. I saw the applications to be an affiliate. seeing how much I was enjoying the game, i made the decision to make Project Genesis my primary full time streaming game. I applied to be a streamer, as well as I sent my application to be a test pilot in on a whim. Low and behold, I was introduced to the community as both roles, so I stream the test sessions, where we get together, and break anything and everything about the game! Aaannndd then document it, because the only real difference between goofing around and science is that science is documented. but in all reality we play a metaphorical whack-a-mole where when one bug is squished, another lurks around the corner to surprise you.

S: From your experience with Project Genesis, can you tell everyone a bit about the game in your own words and why you think they should check it out?
R: Simply put, if Call of Duty, Halo, and the 2007 Star Wars Battlefront II had a child.... you would get this lovely child. If you like fast paced arena gameplay, sprinkled with some PVE action, you'll fall in love with the game.... and if you are interested in the community? It is one of the least toxic communities I have interacted with by a long stretch!

S: At the time of this post, you're currently #2 on the leaderboards for Overall Score so you obviously know your stuff - can you tell us what your favorite Avatar/Ship and weapon loadout is, and why?
R: *laughs* That's due to the friendly rivalry between ItanoCircus and myself that pushed me to the number 2 spot on the leaderboard. But I digress, my current loadout is either the Autotac 7 with the R1 secondary, which i use primarily for close quarters gameplay with occasional medium distance engagements, or the Mirage with the GTL for those juicy headshots from a distance and the occasional need of a fast firing close quarters secondary.

S: Thanks so much for taking the time to chat with me, and for everything you do for the game and the community. You're the first Affiliate Feature - So you have the stage. Anything else you'd like to tell the fine folks of the internet?
R: *Waves awkwardly* Hi Rasha! *laughs* just kidding! In all seriousness, whether you are a keyboard warrior, or a joystick junky - you have a place here in the community. So come and hang out sometime! [/expand]
You can find out more and meet Rogue Rolen for yourself on Twitch, YouTube and TikTok!


[h3]“In The End"[/h3]
To close out this DevUpdate - We want to give a shout out to the creators who featured Project Genesis on their channels to celebrate our Neo Milestone Update in March. We had a great time watching and meeting your communities and appreciate all of your time and feedback!
BurtsBeat Sgtsmithgaming Stinkyfeet_gaming Krumz Northbrennan officialcushgaming RakkMark Asesinoarmygaming LexisCloset DeziSkylark TheSinisterAbyss KairiJaye ActuallyASpud OldFartsGamingTTV Buckeyeboxing69 DullahanHel C8YHD Rogue_Rolen KaptainKoolWhip

If you’re interested in getting a promo copy of Project Genesis to check it out on your channel, please join our discord and get in touch with me (Cherrry) and we can make it happen!

That does it for this month’s edition of the Project Genesis Developer Update - Thank you so much for not only taking the time to keep updated on all things PG, but indulging my bad-jokes. Before I sign off, you may have noticed a little recurring theme throughout this issue - and I have a Steam gift card for one lucky person who caught on! For a chance to win - Join our Discord server and check out the #contests-and-giveaways channel for info on how to submit your guess!

Until next time, Pilots!

-Shauna (Cherrry)