You know what would be interesting? A mode where the eagles flew less randomly, more in sync with each other, and you were not hunting but attempting to fly in their formation -- if there are points, then they would be scored by staying close, maybe not bumping into other birds. A more "peaceful" mode, etc. I think that would be fun. "Birds of a feather." Just a notion. bp
There will be different modes in the finished game for sure. I've been really back and forth on the hunting part, as I would like a completely non-violent mode also. I was thinking a free-mode, but of course a score-generating mode would be cooler. I'm not totally sold on the formation part, as formation flying is extremely hard without the ability to brake and I think your proposed scroring system is a bit abstract, but it could be done... The idea just needs a bit more refining. Your idea sparked another idea in me: What if you had to follow the eagles (or other birds), not to score points for formation flying, but there was a practical reason. Big birds like that seeks out thermals to stay aloft without much effort, and what if you had to do the same? A non-violent mode where you basically had very little power to flap the wings (recharing very slowly), but had to rely on soaring. The scoring would be based on how far you flew. What do you think?
I've put out another update (still called 0.4.1) with slightly slower eagles and a new water-animation. Enjoy!
The Volcanic biome!! Arguably the hardest biome in the game, sharpen your flying skills and you might barely survive this treacherous biome!
I know terrain generation is good when I start seeing a lot of faces, but I guess boners work also...
It did seem potentially complex, and the scoring system I mentioned as an afterthought. Really, it was more about just a non-violent mode that's a little more interesting than just soaring with nothing else going on. That seems like a great mode. I could see enjoying that greatly. That would be a nice addition to the final release. bp
Volcano biome looks beautiful. I've only just gotten on with the betas, and am not sure how it works -- will a release all of a sudden feature a different biome, with the old / last one gone? Is that how you're rolling them / testing them to users? bp
I will absolutely try to find some cool non violent modes to the game also... I'm not totally sold on the hunting as main mechanic either, it's a work in progress... That's why I want to include people this early in the process, because I don't know what "Fugl" will end up being in the end... That seems like a great mode. I could see enjoying that greatly. That would be a nice addition to the final release.
It's a little bit up to what people want, as I don't want to alienate the regulars here. But I guess I won't suddenly remove the canyon, but gradually introduce features and biomes.... We decided on adding some more gameplay elements before eye candy, so that's what I'm doing now... I will add a wind system and some more birds and finish up the tree generation part. I will make a rudimentary start screen/option screen. Then I'll start adding content I guess. First off making the different biomes, and then adding a lot of stuff to them. Then polishing, tweeking, balancing and then hopefully release! So when we get to the biomes, there will just be more of them, one coming after another like I have planned, and seeing how they work together and which of them needs added content or adjusting... I hope to make them as distinct as possible, but they will of course share a lot of the underlying structure. The trick is making them vertically challanging, so you can't just fly over them... There will probably be some strong wind high up going in the wrong direction to force players down (or some other mechanic), but I'm looking for other ways of forcing the player down into the terrain...
Hehe, love your drawings Marco! Maybe we should try a non-voxelized version for the icon? It could work.... I have also removed the collision detection for the wingtips, to avoid those situations where you think you got though, but then barely touch and the bird goes all limp for no good reason.
Appreciate it man! Yeah that will definitely help a lot especially in of the tightest spaces I'll keep the icon in mind
As a huge Melodive fan, I can't wait for Fugl. Seems like the game's really coming along nicely. I've held off on testing because I want to experience the finished product as purely as possible. Regarding music, I'd like to request/suggest audio options (where the music can be muted but sound effects remain). I think almost every game should have this feature, since even the greatest music can become repetitive if the game is played enough. And I expect to play Fugl a ton. Just an idea. Keep up the great work!
I am running Fugl on an iPhone 6 and an iPad Air 2. The game is very smooth on both, but the iPad experience feels more immersive. Maybe it's the larger screen alone, or the beefier hardware making subtle differences. But, are there aspects of the game that scale in or out based on the performance of the iOS device? Are you specifically disabling or enabling some rendering aspects depending on the metal, draw distance, say? Thanks. bp
