That's a good question. i havent timed it specifically but the first adventure "Love & Tin" lasta a half hour to an hour depending on how you play, and the second adventure "The Ballad of BrightRidge" lasta an hour or two depending. Then there's also "Explorateur" mode where you can just explore and mess around with options But beware there's issue on iPhoneX and maybe iphone 8+ (see above) i am working on an upgrade to fix this, but it may be a while.
My new images: https://twitter.com/curtneedsaride/status/932821369489952768 https://twitter.com/curtneedsaride/status/932821456601473024 Answers up above in your post! Glad it helps.
This is amazing - thank you Curtis I'll use this to make fixes for the next beta. I decided to upgrade my software - i think the benefits outweight the cons at this point. The updated software should include a fix for the shadow glitches, and with the information youve given me i know how to fix the resolution changes. Ill try to send you a link to a beta as soon as possible
Hi Curtis. There is a 7.7 build 7 on Testflight. You should get an emil about it. It contains what i hope fixes these iphone X graphics glitches. I can't fill the entire screen yet, but i can change the resolution inside the letterboxing. So ive updated the OPTIONS > SETTINGS > QUALITY > RESOLUTION buttons. Could you try it and tell me if it works without squishing things? For iPhoneX im starting the game in the following defaults - but if you think any could be higher please let me know. Resolution starts in Medium 1024x576 - but if you think either the thrird or fourth resolution button works still with a good frame rate please let me know Occlusion is off by default since on these super fast devices it seems to just slow things down I put a high shadow distance and high grass density and the highest grass distance. Ill send this via email too Thanks for your help Forgot to mention options>settings>quality>resolution theres a new option for real FULL TEXTURES - could yoy try it ot and let me know if it gets crashy or affects performance?
Hi Nullzone There's a 7.7 build 7 beta on testflight. Would you mind testing it whenever you get a chance? for ipad pro 12inch i start resolution at 1536x1152, but i think i can go higher? One new thing is triple textures - options > settings > quality > resolution > FULL TEXTURES. Do these make the game crash or does it work well? (or the half textures, which i am pretty sure ipad pro can handle) One more thing - if you goto options > settings > inreface > fps so you can see franes per second Then goto options > settings > quality > effects > unlimit frame rate so it can go beyiond 30fps (i might leave this checked by default, might as well go higher if its available) Then finallu options > settings > quality > resolution > OCCLUSION OFF and see if teh frame rate is better? on iphone 8s it seems to run better without occlusion. I wondering if thats the case for ipad pro too. Ill email this to you also - thank you so much.
Hi Robert, whoa, another huge update, color me impressed Of course I'll test, should have time for that today.
A big thanks to Curtis for helping me test on iPhone X I have a new beta coming probably tomorrow. Here's the current list of whats new: NEW + IPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, and iPhone X detection + Improved default quality for iPad Pros + Massive performance increase across platforms + Reduced memory usage by 50% + Updated 3d Engine core + Feet splash in rivers + Multi world project structure for new games to share BrightRidge architecture (for sequel Nimian Legends : Vandgels) + over the shoulder camera view option + New camera control settings: camera tightness and camera follow + improved occlusion performance removing occludees + added Moon Jump and Classic Jump options + updated ambient intensity to work with skybox colors + Added higher x16 Texture resolution option + Show Region names + Soft Particles: Options > Settings > Quality > Effects > Soft Particles + New Loading Screen + Stats Component : Set animation speed independent of Running speed to account for different humanoid sizes + Added detail sub texture to barbarian head statues + Using Numbers and Icons for quality level buttons - more universal that text + Upgraded Ambient Intensity options to work with new game engine - now operates on Sky, middle, and ground light sources + Increased default texture resolution x4 for iPhone 8, iphone 8 plus, iphone 7, iphone 7 plus, ipad 2017, ipad pros 2016, ipad air 2 + Increased default texture resolution x16 for iPhone X and iPad Pros 2017 + Increased default resolutions for most devices FIXES + shadow and resolution fixes for iPhone 8, iPhone 8 plus and iPhone X (thanks Curtis for testing) + Fixed anilogo fade out at start + Fixed looking up breaking on camera height changes + Clouds were static/local in flight - changed to World position CHANGES + Sped up default running animation speed + add auto quality settings by device for iPhone 8s and X + Updated default quality settings for devices + Added back camera height options + Audio controls now logarithmic + No atmospheric scattering at night + Multi world splash screen design - all worlds are in master splash screen to help translation and upgrades faster + Removed lens distortion from spirit view + Removed trail in spirit view - will replace with hunt target + lose, medium, far zoom presets are smaller now + Replaced standing stones with Igri Head Statues + PLAYEROFFSET x from 1 to 0 to centre camera, improve control + removed setting auto zoom height with presets + Sunlight Intensity changed 2 > 1 for more realistic lighting and less blowouts. Compensates for changes in light treatment in new engine + Lens flare default brightness increased to compensate for reduced default sunlight intensity (effect appears the same) + Removed Toon Outline Filter - Broken in new engine - will look for replacement + Default shadow quality increased to Medium on iPhone X and 2017 iPad Pros + Changed default start resolution for iPod Touch to 480p OPTIMIZED + All rivers share one texture and river flowing manager + Removed master reflection probe from scene - will add back to rivers and puddles independently + Shadow quality options now control directly - allowed removal of redundant quality levels + Huge texture memory optimization - reduced startuptextures from 33mb to about half + Disabled occlusion on Iphone 8, 8+ and X by default (faster - thanks Stu Mitchell) + Optimized WATER and ATMOPSHERE particles now mostly culled and not occluded + deleted sceneObjects variable from adventureselect.js and removed disabling of scene objects on scene exit - not needed and added complexity + Removed deprecated assets + Removed redundant splashes particles +disable tween animation on options screens - faster and performance and broken in next upgrade anyways + Removed redundant colliders from procedural detail rocks
Thanks to Curtis from the US and Benjamin from Germany the performance issues and glitches have been fixed on iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X. And to Nullzone for his continued, super-motivation and encouragement to stay healthy while I do this In general the performance of the game is much better in the next version compared to version 7.6 so im very excited. Im going to do another beta or two over the next week, and then release this new update which im pretty happy about Then it is back to Vandgels the sequel (where a lot of these improvements trickled down from) to finish the landscape, and then it is the story. I've been reading a good book about writing stories, ive already done the story for Vandgels but I wanted to give it more polish. I've also consulted with a few Ministers from the Church because the story of Vandgels deals with religion and faith, and I wanted to make sure that it reflects the views from several sides. Im really excited about the story in Vandgels too. And third i am also working on expanding the engine for the third game, Nimian Legends : Residi Bay. Ive been working on a procedurally generated world for Nimian Legends for a few years, and it is taking shape. The goal is to actually have further games going forward be written in combination by me and the computer, with me as the director and the computer handling the heavy lifting in a way thats still engaging. like a continent sized No Mans Sky but in an RPG. ill have more details about that soon. I'm really grateful for everyone who has helped because the game is more than it would be because of the contributions and encouragement so many people ahve made, here on Touch Arcade and beyond.
Thank you for all the hard work on this! Your dream is shared by many of us. So glad to help in any way I can.
Just hopping in really quick to say sorry, didn't get around to testing on the weekend. Life got in the way, as usual Give me a few days (will be really busy tomorrow, not sure yet about rest of the week), and I should have something for you.
No worries I just submitted a new build version 7.7 build 10 Basically the last build was great but i wanted to add in a new terrain texturing - the new build blends terrain textures using heightmaps - so isntead of a smooth blend between them you get like snow creeping into the mud. it also lays a framework for future translation. I think the texturing is a bit more intensive so i want to make sure it still performs well. Whenever you get a chance is cool You can see in this pic ive removed the grass, and you can see how instead of a smooth blend, the snow now blends into the dirt road using heightmap blending:
Just went over your test notes, saw that you call triple textures "full textures". Unless there is no higher level (e.g. 4x textures), I'd use the most descriptive name i.e. "triple textures" instead. Oh, and if you need more input on the religious stuff, just holler. Yeahyeah, I'm Atheist. But that doesn't mean I don't know squat about them. I even helped create one ... and instigated a schism later
Thanks Yeah, thats tricky with the textures. The first game displayed textures at 1/4 the default size. But i also shrunk the default size for iphone before i did this. So basically super low textures for spped. The in last years version i added 1/2 default size textures, since newer devices could handle it. I just called it FULL TEXTURES and renamed the original setting half textures. Now i find devices can handle the original full default texture size (which is still shrunk a bit befoire it enters the game - complicated i know Also i learned that if I call settngs low, medium, high, ultra, i get a lot of people upset that ultra settings are choppy - but most of my ultra settings are higher than xbox one So the naming is part psycholigical. I think its good to go with something like you said - just double and triple textures for simplicity sake, even though its more like full, half and quarter to be technically correct. Im gonna think it iver, but its very easy to change. With the new memory optimizations even my iPhone 6 can handles double textures (or half textures or whatever it is, its the middle ones) and so i will also be increasing the defualt texture sizes eventually, bring in an even bigger texture set, so i should settle maybe on something like just low, med,hig, ultra since it'll be a moving target. This is why the game is ooo much work - even a little thing like this takes a lot of consideration Ill likely pass the story by you when its all on the page - i am not religious but i wanted to write a story that takes several points fo views into account, and that has a message that i find important which is basically that religions and faith are not inherently bad, but that religion, like almost anything, can be used for bad things in the wrong hands, and that there are positive things about faith as well. Its more complex than that - hopefully ill be able to do it justice ANyways when you do get to try it, i just want to make sure it isnt crashing. Build 7 was SUPER stable, but so far build 10 i feel is a "bit" more unstable because of this added texture to the terrain, and the translation framework for new languages among other things, but i am reoptimizing pretty well and so far its running nice on my hone again. More updates tonight
Test results... whoa! Before I get to those, about the labeling: If it's complicated like you write, just pick whatever you feel good with. However, I would not use "full textures" for a simple reason: what do you when you crank it up another notch, call the next quality level(s) "fuller/fullest textures"? I tested with build 7.7b10 U564p1. Oddly enough, I only had options for "Low, Medium, High Textures". No "Half/Full Textures" there. Some general observations first: 0) No crashes. AT ALL. Yee-haw 1) Switching iOS Nightshift and/or TrueTone on/off didn't make a difference for the FPS (I expected a drop). 2) Switching all pets on did not have a framerate impact either. I guess they don't need much processing power, even when they are all visible? 3) When I start Brightridge, all buttons are distorted at first. After I change the resolution once, they display fine on all available resolutions. Will send you a screenshot tomorrow. 4) Same for Occlusion on/off, no visible difference. Even at the lowest FPS (10-15, got that with all effects on), nothing changed. 5) Deferred or Forward Render also didn't have any impact on the FPS. 6) Even with the lowest fps of 10-15, it still felt smooth enough to me: Ran around and enjoyed the scenery without noticing any real difference to 60 fps. I can only guess I am somewhat handicapped here, as other people told me they definitely notice a difference between 10 and 60 fps (in general, not specific for BR). So, best have more people test this and provide feedback. 7) Related to #8 below in the results: When I flew toward the Terrapin, fps very briefly dropped to 15-16 (didn't note at which distance, sorry). When I got close by, fps went up to 25. Flying further on and away from the Terrapin, fps dropped back to 15-20 again. 8) Battery: Sweet holy f***: Playing with all blingbling on drains battery like no tomorrow. I forgot to note down my starting point, but I think it was still ~60%. After maybe half an hour, I am down to 32%. Ah, here we go: iOS Battery info tells me BR used 31% for 47 minutes of playing. So with full iPad Pro battery, I can play for roughly 3x45=135 minutes / 2 hours. Not exactly good, but expected with all the extra stuff on. So I wouldn't worry about it for now. For comparison, 2 hours of Planar Conquest used 35%, and 3.5 hours of reading in Safari (no videos or such) used 29%. 9) The physical Apple keyboard for the Pro is a joy to use, feeling perfectly fine and comfy typing all this TEST RESULTS: For all tests I used adult Giska, starting at the stone platform near Grand Gate (look at the wall with the bugs on it, then turn right). From there, I walked in parallel to the wall on my right, past the Ents and the Powertower, dropped down the hillside until I reached the water, swam through it and emerged on the other side. Then the same way back again, only with jumping up the hillside instead of falling down. Nothing else running in the background. Didn't bother to reboot. Results: 1) Default settings, only resolution set to max of 2048x1536: 30 fps with limited framerate, 60 with unlimited (physical display limit) . I *think* it dropped to a mere 59 once or twice, but that went so fast I'm not sure about it. From now on, I just keep adding stuff, i.e. switching more and more blingbling on. 2) Scattering all to max: 60 fps 3) Objects all 4 pets: 60 fps 4) Shadows all to max: 55-58 fps 5) Effects all on (yes, ALL of them ); massive drop to 15-20 fps, average 18. I didn't get around to testing the effects individually, might still do that later. 6) Terrain: those were all on max already, no change. 7) Grass all to max: Stable 15-18 fps. Only dropped down to 10 fps once or twice, and in some areas to 12-15 (but only briefly). 8) Water: I picked "High Reflect Waves", sounded like the most fancy and CPU/GPU-intensive option to me. I jumped home to the Inn, turned Dragon and flew to the ocean. During the flight, I had to switch the fog off again, I couldn't see a damn thing Flew to Thedrale, then followed the ocean till I hit the world border (somewhere near that huge pipe that goes into the sea). From there, I just took a cross-country flight to the Terrapin and past it: 20-25 fps, average 22.
Feature requests Got some new stuff out of this quick run, maybe you can add it in? 1) Camera: For some reason, I tried to pinch in/out to zoom the camera in/out. This currently doesn't work. If that's not too difficult, would be a nice-to-have. 2) Support higher resolutions. Native resolution for the 10.5" Pro is 2224x1668, for the 12.9" 2732x2048 (both at 264 ppi). Considering my test results, I see no reason to not add those.
Wow thanks for all of this I will absolutely add in those resolutions. Ive fine tuned the detection system, so theres no reason i cn have custom low/med/high/ultra resolutions per device. Ill add it next beta The squished buttons on start i think mean im starting it on your ipd in the wrong aspect ratio. When you get a chance, could you close the app, restart it, and go straight to OPTIONS > SETTINGS > QUALITY > RESOLUTION and tell me what the resolution at the bottom is so i know aht its starting in? After my page of trple texture stuff you're right - i already put low/med/high Ill leave them as is,a nd add in an ultra soon - this way as i increase textures because of generations improving the math behind them dosent need to eb considered in the naming. Yeah so it sounds like i can start it on the iPAd pro in 2048x1536 as the default and that gives some room for effects. i THINK im going to unlimit the frame rate by default. I mean, if it can go above 30fps why shouldnt it, i dont know if there is some kind of performance penalty for that but from these tests it seems like it doesnt hurt. This version fixes the broken iphone 8, 8 plus, iphone X issues (thank goodness) I think i can pump up the ipad pro 12inch shadows default too at start, ill leave effects off and they can be on a person by person basis. Its really the resolution and the textures that affect the look the most. BTW did you try HIGH TEXTURES? (i think i turned it on at the start by default) Thanks so much Nullzone - between you and Curtis, and a player form Germany, i am going to be able to launch a much better start verison for high end IOS devices now my iphone 6 and air 2 feel dated in comparison.
Whoa!!!! Nullzone wins in the thorough department. Man, what amazing testing work! I dont know if my memory will allow me to remember and document as much on the iPhone X, but since Im finally done working, Ill fire it up and give it a little time. Thanks for sending the test out!
He's pretty comprehensive isnt he No worries though - even just seeing if the game works without crashing, and what resolution it works at helps.
