Greetings!
We would like to share information on an important topic about the development process and a short video about the content of the next updates and new infrastructures.
Game Engine Upgrade
Throughout the early access process, we have tried to reflect to our players that we are meticulous about providing content with a smooth and technically quality infrastructure as much as possible. In this direction, we would like to announce that New Cycle, which we developed on the Unity game engine, has been migrated to the Unity 6.000, the latest version released in recent months. Unity has developed this version for a long time. It contains innovations that provide better solutions and gains in many ways. For this reason, although it took some time and hard work, we wanted to further open up the New Cycle universe with this upgrade by running a careful transition in parallel with our routine development processes.
The outputs arising from this step and a summarised presentation of the details of the development process:
What it means and why it is important?
The New Cycle universe is naturally limited by the framework of the game engine on which it was developed. As this engine gets stronger and offers a more efficient infrastructure, we will be able to develop our game with more content and a higher quality presentation.
- With an improved and upgraded engine, we have an infrastructure that supports new mechanics, gameplay elements, and more content that we want to add to the New Cycle game universe.(Physics-based water simulation - new vehicles - larger playable maps - Different types of ambient illumination and sky etc. )
- With the Unity 6 update, we will have the chance to integrate new supporting technical solutions for a more stable performance delivery, and we hope that these will allow us to take our service quality up a notch.
- The new version includes several improvements in terms of rendering cost, and we will be able to introduce new optimization methods that allow us to further improve the visual satisfaction of the game world, such as the introduction of DLSS and similar technologies and the presentation of more powerful and dramatic light-atmospheric volume.
- The chance to push potential limits. Throughout our project, adaptation has always been one of our most important capabilities. Pushing our limits and reshaping the future more inclusively, especially in response to feedback from our community, has made the work we love to do even more enjoyable. With this engine update, we believe we will have the chance to expand our horizons even further with performance gains and improved tools.
We have been cautiously running parallel tests on unstable versions of this engine version throughout our development process to keep ourselves as ready as we can for a smooth migration when the time comes. The migration took some time, but it went smoothly, and we were very careful not to introduce any unexpected new problems in the gameplay that this upgrade might cause.
Next in line
Instead of our usual development log format with visual assets and extra detail, for this announcement we would like to give a series of general summary headlines that we have completed over the past months and are still working on for the next content update and beyond.
New biome varieties and playable maps
New maps with a focus on the aquatic biome will allow you to access resources through new structures and vehicles.
New consumption expanding
We have added one more step towards finalising the importance of ‘houses’ in the New Cycle universe and their impact on gameplay. You will now need to distribute a portion of new individual needs according to the houses and the number of inhabitants.
While needs such as food, water and clothing will be preserved as they are, external items such as fuel types, cleaning components or extra furniture, which can sometimes be considered luxuries, can be distributed through ‘houses’ and this will bring extra gains to the community depending on your success. Or losses and penalties for deprivation.
Migrant regulations
Migrant management in the universe, which in its simplistic form depends only on participation and the player's take/reject output, becomes one step more complex.
The migrants you have turned away and refused to accept to your city will now be able to demand different things from you. And depending on your preferences, you will be able to progress to situations that can open a side branch that will affect the game flow in several ways.
New structures and products
New unique structures of aquatic biomes, as well as new structures for the production and processing of new consumer goods and the raw materials required for their production.
First aesthetic components
Assets of different scales and types that the player can freely place in their city, depending on their preference. Wood, metal, fabric-based outdoor assets and units that can be separated as industrial or living spaces to support the aesthetic appearance.
New lighting system
A number of new subsystems and operating patterns have been added that affect the overall light processing and the final appearance. (Preserving our original hazy appearance for some biomes.)
In parallel, volumetric fog and ambient lighting have been improved. New methods have been implemented for visualising more distant and wider areas (in line with the New Cycle reality presentation line). New forms for seasonal and weather transitions have been added, allowing for a more realistic and organic presentation.
Adjustments, improvements and modifications
From water production to ageing, death/birth balancing, Cycle transition method, road placement and assist improvements, to a series of consumption and production formula revisions, adjustments are made mainly based on community feedback and the need for universe expansion.
New settings
New features, in addition to existing ones, that allow you to customise gameplay and run at arbitrary intervals.
Most of the content mentioned above has been completed in parallel with the engine update. Except for some end-game components (such as the large freighter you see in the concrete harbour) that need advanced mechanics such as extended trading etc. due to their nature.
We have a few weeks of translation and testing tasks left for the next update. With the completion of these, we will announce the release date and detailed update notes in the near future.
For later on;
Apart from these, we are about to finalize a fundamental change for the Cycle transition flow. Instead of just a particular population and knowledge accumulation, there will now be a method more dependent on how the player manages their city. There will be more unique transition requirements for each Cycle, such as having certain buildings, the population, and developments directly tied to player performance.
Development Tree changes. We are working on a format modification where the linear flowing development tree, which expresses development processes, can be shaped more according to player preference. In this direction, we aim to offer more customizable gameplay with this new arrangement, where you can upgrade some base enhancements according to your choice. In addition, you can choose between specific paths and methods during these upgrades.
These two massive gameplay changes will not be available in the next major update but will be in the one after that. (It will be introduced probably early next spring.) We wanted to share these two significant changes up front, as they are among the game mechanics the community gave the most feedback on during early access.
We hope that both the upgrades and the new features convey the direction of the development and show that we are moving in parallel with the community feedback. Thank you again for your support and participation as we approach the completion of the first year of early access.
Although a little early on this occasion, we wish everyone a Happy New Year and a Merry Christmas to those who celebrate.
Alp