Devlog 03 - Part 2: Gameplay
We’ve been hard at work on some core gameplay mechanics for Pylon Defense. This update focuses on key features like the active reload system, cover mechanics, and more. Here’s a detailed look at our recent progress.
Active Reload Mechanic Update
The active reload mechanic for Pylon Defense is now fully functional, with only a few minor tweaks remaining. This mechanic introduces a strategic layer to the gameplay, requiring precision and timing for optimal performance. Here’s how it works:
Perfect Reload (Blue Square): Achieving a perfect reload by hitting the blue square will make your reload 170% faster and provide a 50% damage boost for a short duration. This can be a game-changer in intense combat situations, giving you a significant advantage over your enemies.
Good Reload (White Square): Hitting the white square results in a 135% faster reload speed with standard damage. It’s a reliable way to keep up your rate of fire and maintain pressure on your opponents.
Missed Reload (Outside Squares): Missing the target area results in a double reload time, which can be costly in the heat of battle.
No Attempt: If you don't attempt to hit the target, the reload proceeds at the standard 100% speed.
Mastering this mechanic will be essential for players looking to maximize their efficiency and effectiveness in combat.
Cover System Progress
Significant strides have been made in developing the cover system. Although still in the developmental stage, we wanted to share some footage to give you a preview of how it’s shaping up. The current screen recordings highlight the functionality of the cover system, allowing players to take strategic positions and protect themselves from enemy fire. This system is designed to enhance tactical gameplay, providing players with more options for navigating the battlefield.
Weapon Retrieval
Our latest videos showcase the weapon retrieval, where players can easily locate and retrieve new weapons. Once a player interacts with a weapon, they can immediately start using it. This setup streamlines the process of acquiring and utilizing weapons, ensuring a smooth and engaging gameplay experience.
Boss Spawning Test
We’ve been conducting tests on our boss spawning mechanics to ensure a seamless and impactful introduction of these formidable foes. In the shared video, you can see a boss spawning test where the camera circles around the newly spawned boss, showcasing its size and the level of detail we’re aiming for. This test is crucial for refining how bosses enter the battlefield and interact with players, aiming to create memorable and challenging encounters.
Grenade Throwing Mechanics
Our team is also working on refining the grenade-throwing mechanics. The goal is to make grenade usage intuitive and effective, allowing players to incorporate this tool into their combat strategies seamlessly. Improved throwing mechanics will give players better control and precision, enhancing the overall gameplay experience.
Enhancing Combat with Learning Agents
By integrating advanced AI capabilities, we aim to create more engaging and realistic combat scenarios. We are developing the AI agents to learn and adapt to player strategies, making each encounter unique and challenging, while reinforcement learning ensures enemies improve their techniques over time. By incorporating neural networks for complex decision-making and utilizing Unreal's simulation capabilities for realistic training environments, we are attempting to make a challenging, fair, and most of all fun combat experience.
Graphics Pipeline
As our team expands, we have consistently refined and enhanced our graphics pipeline to achieve exceptional visual fidelity with a compact yet highly skilled team. We've continuously grown our library of smart materials and in-engine shaders, ensuring every aspect of our game is visually stunning. We can’t wait to unveil our first level and showcase it to you all soon.
Developing the Loop
We have commenced iterative testing for the core gameplay loop, a process that, while lengthy, is crucial to our game's success. Refining this loop is paramount, as it directly impacts the quality of gameplay and the overall player experience. By meticulously fine-tuning each element, we ensure a seamless, engaging, and enjoyable experience that keeps players coming back for more.
Incorporating Unreal Engine 5.4 Toolsets:
We're working on integrating new features from Unreal 5.4, including a lot of truly amazing features such as Motion Matching. This will bring fluid, realistic character animations that adapt dynamically to player inputs, enhancing immersion and gameplay, while also drastically reducing development time on new characters (animations are a pain). We’ll show off a preview of some of these tools when we do our first character preview.
What’s Next?
As we continue to develop and refine these mechanics, our focus remains on creating a cohesive and immersive gaming experience. Stay tuned for more updates as we bring new features and improvements to Pylon Defense. We’re committed to making this game as engaging and enjoyable as possible, and we appreciate your ongoing support.
Thank you for being part of the Revolve Games community!