Hi folks! Spring is here, and at Cats & Foxes, things are blooming on the development side too! Weve made a lot of progress over the past two months, and just last week, we welcomed two new faces to the team! We also have two exciting pieces of news to share more on that below :)

Towards a smoother experience

Weather now affects plants and trees in the game, making the outdoors feel even more alive! We even added a sandstorm effect, which was missing from our list of available weather options.
Another big milestone: we were able to test VirtualSociety on iOS (yes, including iPhones and iPads!!). Its not available for download yet, but its a small step closer to making the game accessible across all platforms! Great news the game runs pretty well on our devices!
To ensure a smoother experience, Nico also worked on optimizations to improve visual rendering on lower-end machines, while staying true to the games artistic direction.

These changes are especially useful on mobile, where the low-quality rendering is much better than before!

A pitch at LOrals global headquarters!

Nico had the honor of presenting VirtualSociety at LOrals global HQ as part of the Ppites des Ppites competition, where VirtualSociety was selected as one of the 10 finalists out of more than 150 projects!

New tools, new possibilities!

On the building side, Jimmys been busy too! Brand-new tools now allow you to create rooms and floors with more varied polygonal shapes almost in a single click!
These additions come with some technical improvements as well: certain bugs have been fixed, including the one that prevented floor creation, and another that allowed walls to be too small to be useful.

Making progress on paper too

In parallel, weve also been working on the more strategic aspects of the project: we submitted a grant application, and we took the time to revise our business model to better align with our long-term vision (especially keeping the game free for health-related experiences, which is something very close to Jimmys heart). Jimmy and Nico also completed a training session on intellectual property a crucial topic for protecting our ideas and the world were building!

UI on the move

The games interface has also progressed in recent weeks! There were still many parts that hadnt been updated yet and I tackled them! The login page has been redesigned, new screens were created for world selection and loading, and a new font is helping modernize the look (yes, another one!). Many new icons have also been added to improve navigation. As always, UI work is truly a team effort: I design the mockups, icons, and 9-patches, and then Nicolas works his magic to integrate it all into the game! The in-game phone is still being reworked but coming along nicely. The goal is to create an interface thats consistent with the games artistic direction, while remaining intuitive and enjoyable!

Welcome Nolwenn & Lenny!

Since the beginning of April, two new interns have joined the Cats & Foxes team and were so happy to have them on board! Ill let them introduce themselves:

Nolwenn

Hi, Im Nolwenn! Im currently in my first year of a Masters in Digital Interactive Media and Games (Game Design specialization) in Metz. I love experimenting with different digital and creative tools, and I aspire to become an art director, game artist, and 2D/3D designer! My goal is to create video games with immersive and emotionally engaging visual worlds. At Cats & Foxes, Im working on communication for VirtualSociety, particularly highlighting its potential benefits for mental health and autism spectrum disorders. Ill also be contributing to visuals for both the game and our communications. Another part of my role will be to assist Jimmy and Nicolas in meeting with healthcare professionals to co-create therapeutic and playful experiences within VirtualSociety

Lenny

Hey! Im Lenny, Im 20 years old and currently in my third year of a Bachelors in Computer Science. Ive been passionate about game development since I was 14, and Ive joined Cats & Foxes for a 12-week internship (maybe longer!). Its the perfect opportunity to learn and apply my skills to a project that truly matters. At Cats & Foxes, my role is to develop new features for the game.

One last thing..

As you know, since the start of the year weve moved to doing one livestream every two months. And for the next one, weve decided to do a live demo of the game! Were super excited to hear your feedback! Well keep you posted soon! And since were really eager for you to try VirtualSociety, weve set ourselves the goal of launching a closed pre-alpha by the end of the year! Thats all for this round of updates thank you again for following the VirtualSociety adventure with us! Were moving step by step toward a playable version, always with the goal of creating a welcoming, creative, and accessible space for everyone. If youd like to support us or just stay in the loop, feel free to follow us on Patreon and our other social media! See you soon with more news, Chlo

[ 2025-04-23 14:29:53 CET ] [ Original post ]