WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO!
Greetings, Trailheads new and old!
It's been a while. Sorry, we didn't mean to leave you hanging.
With the latest dev log, we wanted to give you an update on what we've been up to!
Last year, when planning for the melee update, we confronted the possibility that we might really actually want the full, IK body for Wendigo. We had made a long-standing promise to users for years that we would give this an honest try, and we decided it was time. So we spent some months on this. We created a fully realized, modeled and costumed Wendigo character, and built a system that featured much of what people expect from IK bodies in VR. But even after all that work, when looking down that path there was still a very long way ahead. Along with fundamental issues with complex physics that plague all game engines, there were joint misalignments, clipping and stretching issues, and a laundry list of features and fixes that ultimately just did not feel worth it.
We determined that the IK body system was not feasibly workable in a reasonable amount of time and we canceled that particular project.
The primary goal after that was the melee update. We pored over the fighting system and how it should work. Doug crafted complex AI behaviors specifically for unarmed melee, while I made (and continue to make) a boatload of new animations and systems to support them. This is ongoing work, but as you can see, we're getting close to a point where we can share this update with you.
This wasn't all we did, either. We redesigned and rebuilt the menu system, which will make its debut in an upcoming update. This will allow us to have customizable weapons, modular map lists, story-related menus, and more while fitting them all into a more cohesive aesthetic. We also spent time refining the enemy AI, and creating new unannounced features that will be used in more upcoming updates and the story campaign as well. Things we are really excited about and we can't wait to share with you soon.
Thank you for being loyal fans, Blood Trail would be nothing without you all.
See you #soon!
-Caleb
(Now please enjoy the new dev log!)