Rheksetor News

Ahoy!

The RTS mode worked well! However...I started to realize that limiting the scope of gameplay to just that bird's eye view perspective would never truly offer the kind of immersion and engagement that I want for this game, and for this fictional world that I'm building.

As a result, I've decided to bring the project back to it's roots as a first / third person survival / exploration experience. Don't worry! The strategic map perspective and functionality will likely be recycled in some form later for something like an interactive map room / specific modal or menu that the player would engage in.

What you'll see in the this update is newly updated ship piloting controls that are similar to what existed a few versions prior, but now much smoother, with higher fidelity models and textures, and powered by Unreal Engine 5! Yay!

Hop on board your starter vessel and start exploring the world of Rheksetor.

Enemies will be coming VERY soon!

Version 0.7.18.1 - Patch Notes:

• changed to third person orbiting perspective
  
• added intuitive ship controls: WASD for movement, Q / E for yaw, and CTRL / SPACE for altitude
  
• full day / night cycle with atmospheric lighting effects (speed controlled by left / down / right arrows)
  
• vast open world, soon to be populated by a variety of explorable / lootable points of interest and plenty of enemies defending them!
  

V 0.7.17.1 - Patch Notes:

Added a maximum distance to the camera pan, so player perspective stays within city area

Version 0.7.17.0 - Day / Night Cycle Update - Patch Notes:

• added day / night cycle and controls to alter simulation speed
  
• added real time lighting / shadow changes according to relative sun position, including daily shadow traversal, and yearly change in shadow pitch / length due to planet declination
  
• rearranged UI elements to optimize visibility of the game world
  
• fixed bounding sphere of structure models to prevent visibility glitches at certain zoom levels and view angles
  
• improved load time of full city
  

It's been a minute, but there's lots of changes in store with this update, including core combat mechanics between the defending player and invading sentry forces, some UI overhaul, economic elements, and a few new models. Check it out and see if you can survive!

Version 0.7.15.0 - Patch notes:

• new models for structures and invading sentries
  
• new music tracks added for a bit of atmosphere
  
• basic movement and firing mechanics for enemy forces, and firing mechanics for defending player
  
• reorganized UI to keep most of the obstructing elements along the bottom of the screen, freeing up the top of the screen so the player can see further towards the horizon
  

Happy Hunting!

Greetings!

After much consideration, planning, and questioning the nature of the universe, the decision was made to rebuild Rheksetor as a Real Time Strategy game. I know...it's crazy!

There is a very long winded explanation for why this is happening, and maybe, in a future post, I'll figure out how to articulate my rationale in a way that doesn't just sound like I've lost my marbles and I'm herding a small army of frantic squirrels around to try to catch them, but they keep getting distracted by acorns and barking dogs...unlike that entire sentence...okay never mind.

FOR NOW...the first experimental build is live, and here are the notes. There's a boat load of content on the way (like...actual boats), and new features, and it's gonna be awesome!

Version 0.7.14.0 - Patch Notes:

• total overhaul of control scheme to reflect expected behaviour of an RTS
  
• total overhaul of camera controls...for the same reason
  
• added a minimal selection of buildable structures, with resource production rates
  
• added zone/city layout map (press M)
  
• updated resource menu (press V)
  
• updated structure preview menu (press B)
  
• updated multiplayer functionality to allow zone selection and loading in cities from an initial lobby
  
• players can build or delete structures at will
  
• total rebuild of all current models and textures used
  
• cleaned up the sound design a bit
  
• added construction animation
  

Happy Constructing!