The Desert Biome
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Over the course of the last year, we have mentioned numerous times that the action in The Riftbreaker will take place in various biomes on the surface of Galatea 37. Apart from a couple of screenshots and some short clips, we haven’t shown you a lot of those. Today we’d like to change that and explain why creating a new biome is such a lengthy process. Let’s take a look at The Riftbreaker’s desert biome.
Our approach to this area was not to use the washed-up plateau covered in sand, dunes and an occasional oasis. The Galatean desert owes much of its characteristics due to high levels of ionizing radiation coming from natural deposits of radioactive elements. The decay of these elements causes chemical bonds to break, affecting even the protective layers of the atmosphere over the desert. As a result, solar activity here is much more intense. Some species of plants and animals have adapted to survive in this wasteland. They are few and far between, but they are surely some of the most resilient species found on this planet.
Such an approach gave us the opportunity to give our vision of the desert some interesting properties. First of all - there are a lot of verticalities here. Numerous cliffs, craters, sinkholes and caves restrict the freedom of movement. Ashley can use that to her advantage, by setting up her base in such a way, that it is protected by natural obstacles and focus on actively defending the most accessible parts It is also possible to build the base on the occasional sandy plateau, but the lack of stable ground poses an additional problem. Luckily, the Riftbreaker tech has something that can help - base floors. They fortify the ground beneath, serving both as a foundation and protection from sand. There are very few problems that the Riftbreakers can’t overcome.
Secondly, the abundance of wildlife years ago left nature with a lot of remains to play with and create something new. Strange crystalline formations can be found all over the place, with mineral composition unlike anything else. This makes the desert a worthwhile research area for Ashley. She will be able to learn the history of the planet, as well as find rare resources that can be later used to modify the base equipment.
The research opportunities come at a cost, though. Solar activity in this region is very intense - prolonged exposure damages the buildings and Mr. Riggs’ armor. Before venturing into the desert, Ashley will have to manufacture proper defensive systems. There is also little to no wind in the desert. Wind turbines might work from time to time, but they can’t reliably power the entire base. The solar panels, on the other hand, can generate even more energy than usual. Storing the excess energy to last through the night will be necessary. This solution will keep the base operational around the clock, ready to repel any attacks from the native inhabitants of this strange land.
We want every biome in the Riftbreaker to have a unique look and feel not only when it comes to visual design, but also gameplay properties. Coming up with unique sets of rules and props for each biome can be a lengthy task, but we are sure that this will make the world of Galatea 37 much richer and believable. Join us tomorrow (Thu April 16th 3PM CEST) on Twitch to see what the desert looks like for yourself!
Useful links:
www.facebook.com/exorstudios
www.twitter.com/exorstudios
www.mixer.com/exor_studios
www.twitch.tv/exorstudios
www.youtube.com/exorstudios
This piece of news is also available in the vlog form:
[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
Over the course of the last year, we have mentioned numerous times that the action in The Riftbreaker will take place in various biomes on the surface of Galatea 37. Apart from a couple of screenshots and some short clips, we haven’t shown you a lot of those. Today we’d like to change that and explain why creating a new biome is such a lengthy process. Let’s take a look at The Riftbreaker’s desert biome.
Our approach to this area was not to use the washed-up plateau covered in sand, dunes and an occasional oasis. The Galatean desert owes much of its characteristics due to high levels of ionizing radiation coming from natural deposits of radioactive elements. The decay of these elements causes chemical bonds to break, affecting even the protective layers of the atmosphere over the desert. As a result, solar activity here is much more intense. Some species of plants and animals have adapted to survive in this wasteland. They are few and far between, but they are surely some of the most resilient species found on this planet.
Such an approach gave us the opportunity to give our vision of the desert some interesting properties. First of all - there are a lot of verticalities here. Numerous cliffs, craters, sinkholes and caves restrict the freedom of movement. Ashley can use that to her advantage, by setting up her base in such a way, that it is protected by natural obstacles and focus on actively defending the most accessible parts It is also possible to build the base on the occasional sandy plateau, but the lack of stable ground poses an additional problem. Luckily, the Riftbreaker tech has something that can help - base floors. They fortify the ground beneath, serving both as a foundation and protection from sand. There are very few problems that the Riftbreakers can’t overcome.
Secondly, the abundance of wildlife years ago left nature with a lot of remains to play with and create something new. Strange crystalline formations can be found all over the place, with mineral composition unlike anything else. This makes the desert a worthwhile research area for Ashley. She will be able to learn the history of the planet, as well as find rare resources that can be later used to modify the base equipment.
The research opportunities come at a cost, though. Solar activity in this region is very intense - prolonged exposure damages the buildings and Mr. Riggs’ armor. Before venturing into the desert, Ashley will have to manufacture proper defensive systems. There is also little to no wind in the desert. Wind turbines might work from time to time, but they can’t reliably power the entire base. The solar panels, on the other hand, can generate even more energy than usual. Storing the excess energy to last through the night will be necessary. This solution will keep the base operational around the clock, ready to repel any attacks from the native inhabitants of this strange land.
We want every biome in the Riftbreaker to have a unique look and feel not only when it comes to visual design, but also gameplay properties. Coming up with unique sets of rules and props for each biome can be a lengthy task, but we are sure that this will make the world of Galatea 37 much richer and believable. Join us tomorrow (Thu April 16th 3PM CEST) on Twitch to see what the desert looks like for yourself!
Useful links:
www.facebook.com/exorstudios
www.twitter.com/exorstudios
www.mixer.com/exor_studios
www.twitch.tv/exorstudios
www.youtube.com/exorstudios
