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[DEV UPDATE] Things we're working on! - PART 1/2
🕑 Added 2019-11-17 23:11:14 +0000 UTCHey guys!
We haven't updated you in a while, we've been very busy with both the framework and the games. Finally got the opportunity to summarise what's new!
Why part 1/2?
The first part (this one), is by me(Ink) and focuses on framework features and updates.
TTrick will later post a second part, which focuses on the next version of LSS.
Before I go into the framework updates, a quick note about Duo:
With the amount of work on the framework improvements, I was unable to work on Duo's story. Since we don't want to go without a release for too long, TTrick kept working on his next version of LSS.
There's still a lot to be done on my end, such as a new UI for games and improvements to saves (both described later in this post).
What's New?
Emojis Update
Coming on the next game update
Getting the minor thing out of the way first - a small QoL update to Emojis!
Emojis are now larger and easier to read:
Also, we added a bunch more!
We were previously limited to 16 emojis. So we hand-picked 350(!) new, useful emojis using Twemoji set!
The new set will offer more convincing and immersive conversations between characters!
Save Game Management Improvements
Coming on the next game update and more down the road
It's been pretty hard to keep track of save files when playing multiple routes.
We are working on adding new methods to manage save files.
Kicking things off with simple, yet useful, save folders!
When saving a game, simply select a folder to save to that location. To move a save to a different folder, load the game and save it in a different folder.
More down the road:
- Folder renaming
- Save filtering: Filter by paths and variables.
In-game Phone UI
Coming on the next game update with new features added down the road
- feature preview, not an actual part of the game story
Both LSS and Duo were long overdue to a phone UI.
We've added new functionality which lets us add highly customizable and interactable overlays at any part during the game. The first use-case is what you see here - a phone UI.
The first phone version will have messaging functionality and access to Insta.
- feature preview, not an actual part of the game story (we are aware of the visual bug during rotation and fixing it before release)
More down the road:
- Contacts, phone calls
- Gallery, camera - allows both viewing of received photos and capturing photos during the game
- More "apps" and "mini-games" based on story requirements
In-game UI Overhaul
(Probably) coming on the next Duo game update
- mockup, still subject to changes
Both games are expected to get the new UI. Since LSS does not allow free-roam at the moment, this feature is mostly for Duo.
The image above might look somewhat like information overload, but do keep in mind - this is still a mockup, and we are still working on making it more readable.
We've been rocking a "temporary" game UI since Duo 0.1 which ended up staying for way longer than initially intended. It wasn't awful, but it couldn't support a bunch of framework features.
Feature breakdown
NPC Locations and points of interest:
One common feedback we received with Duo was how easy it is to get lost in too many open locations, and how hard it is sometimes to find the special events.
You'll be able to keep track of characters and special events through the navigation!
Sub-locations:
Locations may have rooms and near-by places (for example: navigating between bedroom and kitchen at home).
Those will be at the top, where "Entrance" and "Main" are in the preview image.
Day of week & Money display:
Allows us to add day-specific events and shopping.
On-screen interaction buttons:
We are adding on-screen interaction buttons to replace the bottom buttons (when appropriate). This reduces the number of clicks, adds more depth to the games, and generally easier to read.
Some use-cases are: talking to characters on screen or investigating(in Duo's case) particular objects in the scene.
Patching Support
One last little thing. We've added patching!
Patching allows modifying any part of the game story and variables. It can be used for translations, character renaming, and more.
Patches are compressed files with game data modifications. Having patches created outside the game means you can use a patch file made by anyone without doing the fiddling yourself!
![[DEV UPDATE] Things we're working on! - PART 1/2](https://img5.runfaps.com/storage/2/gp/hw/e9630c-019e856a-a326-78d6-9b63-7ce544e9ef08.png)
