Summer Islands News

You probably realize it yourselves: Something is not quite right with the updates.
Last update: September 2nd (more than 2 months ago)!!!

So I wanted to give you a quick update:
The latest update v0.9.0 is almost ready.

But there are still a few adjustments to be made, bugs to be fixed and tests to be run.

BUT unfortunately the "worst case" for an indie developer has occurred: Total failure.

After the last update, we went on a short vacation road trip. Then came a few business trips for my day job and just when you have roughly thought about a battle plan for the update, Corona comes over you.
Yes, Corona has knocked me out.

It's the first time I've had corona and luckily I've had a "milder" reaction. So I've been down with the flu for a week now.
Now that things are starting to pick up again, I wanted to let you know.

I hope to be able to publish the update next weekend (knock on wood).

Until then, here are a few impressions:



P.S. If you ❤️ Summer Islands, we would be very 🤩 about a 👍 Review.

Have fun https://trello.com/b/FbC1a19w/devboard-summer-islands

Additional changes 14.09.23

• Fix: terrain adjustment directly at roads and ports was wrong
  
• Fix: side quests were not displayed when starting a new game several times
  
• CHANGED: building menu has smaller building type buttons
  
• CHANGED: mouse over building menu was reduced in size
  

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Here are the features in pictures:



and many more.... ;)

P.S. If you ❤️ Summer Islands, we would be very 🤩 about a 👍 Review.

Have fun https://trello.com/b/FbC1a19w/devboard-summer-islands

[h2]FEATURES[/h2]

• ADDED: Corals inserted in shallow water
  
• ADDED: Mangroves expanded in shallow water
  
• ADDED: Turtle animation in water
  
• ADDED: Shark animation in water
  
• ADDED: More stones and bushes
  
• ADDED: Pixel Clouds
  
• ADDED: Parrot animation
  
• ADDED: Palms and trees animations
  
• ADDED: Game speeds as shortcuts
  
• ADDED: Select new random name for BOTS
  
• ADDED: Select new random SEED
  
• ADDED: Individual mouse button assignment
  

[h2]USABILITY IMPROVEMENTS[/h2]

• FIX: Mouse wheel button has no more building copied
  
• FIX: Click on utility building you could change rent
  
• FIX: Terraforming with teammates was calculated incorrectly
  
• FIX: Gamepad sabotage and demolition function failed
  
• CHANGED: Increase land out of the water is cost 10 times more
  
• CHANGED: Dark Pixel Clouds at tornado
  
• CHANGED: White Pixel Clouds at Meteorite
  
• CHANGED: Streets can be built over paths
  
• CHANGED: Terrain at building on the hillside can be leveled
  

The biggest changes in this update are in the stars menu: The awards and the reworking of the side quests.

The awards start every 2 years. There must be at least 2 players in the match (yourself and a bot or teammate as opponent). The award runs over 1 year. At the end of the year the winner is selected. The first 3 players get a reward, an improvement of your reputation.



As already mentioned, I have reworked the side quests. i.e. just below the main quests you will find the side quests. Here you can earn some extra money. When you select a side quest, the details are displayed and a small window opens in the upper right corner of the screen for constant tracking.
If there are new side quests, there is a small red number in front of the star symbol on the far left. You can see how many new tasks there are since the last time you opened the star menu.



An easier representation was inserted as Tooltip over the star Icon at the upper edge. This is your main task, so it should always be visible quickly.



The next feature has been around for a while. But only half integrated. But now you can find the footprint icons at every building that can have 3 fields distance to the street. These buildings are also reached by tourists on foot.



A special wish was to integrate different currencies that have changed to the Euro. (https://steamcommunity.com/app/731650/discussions/0/3820780544818931058/)
The following currencies can be selected under options:
Deutsche Mark (Germany),
Gulden (Netherlands),
Finnmark (Finland),
Franc (France),
Drachmas (Greece),
Escudos (Portugal),
pesetas (Spain)
Unfortunately, the Lire (Italy) was dropped out, because its exchange rate of Euro to Liere (1936.27) was too high.
As soon as 2002 is reached, the currency automatically changes to Euro.



I have added another item under in the help menu about the preference of the tourists. I think this describes something how the popularity of the buildings comes about and gives tips how to optimize it.



SO and the last point may not put a smile on everyone's face.
Since the textures in Summer Islands were created for a resolution of 1920x1080, a higher resolution (2k, 4k,..) will unfortunately not bring a sharper image.
I have therefore ordered the options to the resolutions with the aspect ratios and left only the 1to1 (for the created textures) inside.



For higher resolutions you should choose the appropriate smaller resolution and adjust the zoom level.
E.g. for Ultrawide Screen with 3440x1440 (21:9) take 2560x1080 and adjust the zoom level.
I can imagine that not everyone likes this. I'm also really sorry about that. I apologize for this. Summer Islands remains a 2D pixel game. Creating textures in different resolutions is not proportional. It requires different file types and a different game engine. So a completely new game. Possibly something for the future ;)



I hope you could still enjoy Summer Islands

Have fun https://trello.com/b/FbC1a19w/devboard-summer-islands

[h2]FEATURES[/h2]

• ADDED: Different currencies inserted until the euro is inserted: Deutsche Mark, Gulden, Finnmark, Franc, Drachmen, Escudos, Peseten
  
• ADDED: Side quests menu with filter button and selection for details and follow-up
  
• ADDED: Side quest window for the selected quest
  
• ADDED: Side quest counter over the starmenu icon
  
• ADDED: Tooltip with Details about the stars on the star Icon at the top
  
• ADDED: Awards are given every 2 years for the most money earned, most tourists attracted and most buildings constructed
  
• ADDED: Footprint icon for buildings that are accessible with distance from the road
  
• ADDED: Map movement with mouse on edge
  

[h2]USABILITY IMPROVEMENTS[/h2]

• FIX: Side quests no longer show the time progress except for time only quests
  
• FIX: Correlation menu could only be moved via building cards
  
• FIX: Cluster supply showed too high needed capacity
  
• FIX: Ships are stopped at the volcano
  
• CHANGED: Correlation menu movement also with Keyboard possible
  
• CHANGED: Main quest with percentage
  
• CHANGED: First launch sets resolution even with zoom level
  
• CHANGED: Higher resolutions have been removed. Still accessible via zoom level
  
• CHANGED: Tutorial text for quest and award
  
• CHANGED: Tutorial for Gamepad compatibility
  

[h2]Today is the calendrical beginning of SUMMER!!!
The longest day in the northern hemisphere🌍🌞

We celebrate this with an offer week of 35% discount 🎉[/h2]

In this update we added more natural disasters, fixed bug and additionally improved some small things.



I would say the most beautiful news is the volcano. A natural disaster that can just pop up in between. Somewhere in the nowhere or directly in the vacation paradise. First the volcano gets bigger and bigger until the lava runs out at the end. The lava always runs down the mountain. I.e. who reacts fast and builds a wall around it can prevent the spreading. After some time the lava cools down and the black lava fields remain. These can be built over. The volcano has no negative influence except destruction.



Pollution is not a nice event and has a negative influence on the surrounding buildings. It occurs near buildings and should be removed as soon as possible. This can be done with the demolition tool or you can build a palm tree or a building over it. There are fields that keep spreading. Therefore it is advisable to remove them as soon as possible. The pollution does not destroy buildings, but it destroys the roads. So beware: no tourist will come without a road.



A keyboard has also been added. Don't worry: For mouse and keyboard players nothing changes. For gamepad players there should be no more hurdles with this update. According to my estimation, a "Steamdeck Compatible" should also be possible with this update. But this must first be verified by Steam. So wait and see.

Apart from these features, there were a few minor improvements and bug fixes that also came from you. Mainly with resolutions of 1440p and larger. Many thanks for that to you guys.
Since I develop with a 1080p screen and therefore don't always use the larger resolutions completely I am always very grateful for feedback: [email protected]

Have fun https://trello.com/b/FbC1a19w/devboard-summer-islands

[h2]FEATURES[/h2]

• Added: Catastrophe: Volcano eruption
  
• Added: Catastrophe: Environmental pollution
  
• Added: Virtual Keyboard for Gamepad
  

[h2]USABILITY IMPROVEMENTS[/h2]

• FIX Resort Analysting
  
• FIX construction review offset with Zoom and >1080p
  
• FIX Street could be built in deep water
  
• FIX MapEditor Saving
  
• CHANGED Demolition Icon
  
• CHANGED all Inputfields editable
  
• CHANGED Positions of the trees are saved
  
• CHANGED Tree/Palm erases pollution and Tourist