Buggy Game was always supposed to be hard as nails, but I do see it turns off a lot of players, at least initially. So I decided to change some of the default values to make the game a bit less unforgiving. Also, I added the possibility to change the damage multiplier. By default, damage is now half of what it used to be, CPU skill is set to 90% instead of 100%, and the camera is zoomed out a bit more. As a bonus feature, I've added slipstreaming; as you drive behind another car, you will profit from having less air resistance, which can help with overtaking. However, the opponents also have this same advantage when driving behind you! Full changelog: - lowered default CPU skill to 90% - decreased default zoomlevel for better foresight - decreased default collision damage twofold - added slipstream effect (configurable) - slight physics tweaks, should improve pure fwd/rwd cars mostly

[ 2023-10-02 20:40:17 CET ] [ Original post ]

We are now Steam Deck approved! This is great, as this game had Steam Deck written all over it from the start. v28 includes: A small update that makes the AI behave more convincing. They tended to be a little 'blocky', needlessly braking on straights a tiny bit, which felt frustrating and unrealistic to race against. Also, they crashed too much on higher drift style levels, and on slippery tracks. This has also been improved. Keep in mind this results in the AI being generally faster - there's an AI difficulty slider in the gameplay settings if it became too difficult!

[ 2022-08-21 15:26:38 CET ] [ Original post ]

For all you night owls: drive buggies at night! This is a purely cosmetic update. Day/night selection is random by default, but you can change this behaviour in the graphics options. This update also includes some motivational messages during the race. Cheers! Bastiaan

[ 2022-05-22 15:44:40 CET ] [ Original post ]

I had been eyeballing some potential physics upgrades for a while, but the thing is, changing any of the physics that affect the default buggy setup (nisson), implies having to re-do all the time attack developer ghost cars, which may be inconvenient for those used to the original ones. Also, changing the cars in a big way will 'invalidate' your player records, in that they become either easily beatable, or unreachable. There was another problem that bugged (heh) me, which was that cars with higher drift styles turned out quite a bit faster than the base cars, which meant that only the higher drift styles are usable to break your time attack records, which hampers replayability, as well as annoy people who prefer a lower/non drift style setting. So, it was time to address both these issues at once, so that all the inconveniences happen in one go :P So, what has changed?

• The physics engine has had some tweaks, mostly noticeable in that cars retain some more grip while going a bit sideways. I shall spare you the technicalities, but basically, some more things that happen in real life are now added to the simulation, related to load transfer, the tyre model, as well as having a more realistic torque curve.
• The basic buggies have had an extra injection of torque, making them roughly as fast as drift style buggies (the big difference remains that the latter have more power, but less grip, resulting in a different style, whilst being equally fast overall)
• The drift style setups have been changed to retain more of the character of the base cars. I felt they were all a bit too samey - now they have more personality. That also means there is more of a difficulty curve in car setups: the elite drift style version of the nisson is way easier than the elite drift style version of the toyato, for example.

As was necessary then, I have re-driven the developer ghost cars, and your old records are now probably easy to beat with the cars being generally faster. I do think the base cars overall are more fun to drive now they are a bit faster, so I hope this makes up for the annoyance. 2 other notable changes are somewhat of a logical step, based on the now faster cars.

• There are settings for zoom & dynamic zoom in the graphics menu. Dynamic zoom means on higher velocities, the camera zooms out a bit, so you have a better view on what lies ahead.
• There's corner warning arrows (configurable) that will signal there's a sharp corner ahead, so you can plan your racing line accordingly.

Having to redo the ghost cars also gave me an opportunity to change another aspect that was just dumb to start with - the biomes had the same amount of grip. That is now (if slightly) different. The arctic is now the most slippery biome, followed by desert, forest, savanna, with mesa being the most grippy. Also, the 'slippery' tiles for each biome are different in grip - I will leave that for you to discover ;) Here's the full changelog: - physics improvements (more realistic effect of load transfer on tyre model, steering ackerman angle, torque curve more realistic) - drift style cars are now less samey, and retain more of their 'base car' personality - rebalanced low drift styles to be similarly fast as higher drift styles (btw, drift styles == more power, but less grip) - because of physics/car changes, I have re-driven all dev ghost cars in time attack mode (all using default nisson + default tweaks + no drift style) - slightly different grip levels per biome & surface type - larger minimum track width on forest biome when racing against AIs (campaign / single race) - more realistic (automatic) clutch, makes for more powerful starts - made slower AI drivers a bit faster again, they were separating a bit too early - slightly randomized AI skill per race, so they have a 'form', which is meaningful in campaign mode - AI now use various car setups instead of only default nisson - improved sprite scaling for non-common resolutions - zoom levels, and dynamic zoom (configurable) - corner warning arrows (configurable) - player car visibility hint, to recognize your own car in the crowded pack (configurable) - new music track 'embassy' by bitplanes - weenie mode is now on by default, to not discourage newcomers - ever so slightly more health - menu 'back' sound effect - ambient lighting (hardly noticeable, but influences atmosphere)

[ 2022-05-17 18:31:40 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello buggy racers! This update is a bit bigger than usual. Most notable are the cosmetic improvements and the new car, but it also features a bunch of smaller fixes and improvements. Also, more steering wheels should be supported now.

• added cosmetics: wall/track transition shading, track wear before corners, trackside houses, adboards
• overhauled input system. should support more joysticks/wheels now.
• overhauled toyato86: less wobble on accel, but also less stable, harder to drive
• moved toyato 86 & audo quattrus to new difficulty class, added new car to it too, the chevra comora
• improved obstacle placement algorithm. should be less in the way
• AI crashes into walls a little less often during battles
• dust particle intensity a bit higher, configurable in graphics options
• built with newer unity version, let me know if you notice any regressions!

I hope this version is to your liking, and if not, let me know! Especially if you have any problems/regressions with your controller/gamepad/steering wheel - since a lot has changed in the input code, Cheers! Bastiaan

[ 2022-04-11 22:55:56 CET ] [ Original post ]

Sorry, just a small in-between update, not the planned cosmetic updates yet! - tweaked sounds a little, a bit richer engine sounds, better opponent sound level calculation - nerfed mercados some more (that thing keeps being too fast) - boosted fort pumi a little - some more minor balancing to various cars Cosmetic stuff has to wait a bit longer, as I'm having a sort of vacation first, got a bit overworked in the last month. Cheers, Bastiaan

[ 2022-03-26 13:05:26 CET ] [ Original post ]

Some people apparently found the default buggies a bit too restrained. Or maybe that was just me. So I'm introducing 3 new drift levels, that can be unlocked by finishing campaigns. When you select a drift style, all cars (including AI) will be more powerful, while the tracks are made more slippery. Cars are adapted in other ways as well; for example, since front-wheel drive cars have a hard time drifting, they are given some rear-wheel power, too. Basically, the cars get an internal tuning based on the selected drift level. Using a gamepad already was recommended; with drift styles, I IMPLORE you to use a gamepad :P Other fixes in this version: - nerfed mercados a bit, and fixed exaggerated brake - tinkered with mercados, mazdo & toyato a bit to make them more balanced and exciting - lowered surface micro-roughness for more stable drive (mostly noticeable on desert) - AI each have a little more varied drivestyle. also skill spread a little wider, so later in the race there's less of a 'pack' The next version will feature cosmetic updates! Have a great weekend, thanks for playing! -Bastiaan

[ 2022-03-18 21:22:10 CET ] [ Original post ]

Made some of the car setups less sluggish and grotesque. cars affected: mercados, mazdo, audo quattrus, toyato These were probably too hard to drive. For the people who liked them as they were before; I'm sorry! I try to keep my hands off the car setups as much as possible, as people get used to them. So don't expect these kinds of major changes all too often, but I felt this one was needed. Enjoy! Bastiaan

[ 2022-03-12 22:37:33 CET ] [ Original post ]

Here you go guys and gals, the first update to the Buggy Game! Thank you all for buying this game and I hope you are enjoying it! v21:

• more lower difficulty levels, as many people are having a hard time learning the game, and it can get frustrating to drive last! keep in mind the car is supposed to be a simulator and to be hard, so my recommendation is to increase the difficulty slider once you do git gud!
• improved track generator, aiming at a better flowing whole. curvy sections are less extreme, while longer straights now have more bends. keep in mind the time attack tracks are still using the old generator. those will always remain in the game, though at some point I may add an extra set of trial tracks using the then-current generator.
• rebalanced cars; tried to make all cars' average performance more equal. also tried to make some cars more fun to drive.
• fixed floaty obstacles, allowing for more obstacles in smaller sections
• improved some of my dev ghost cars times on some short tracks. mostly because those are the easiest to learn, so a better par time keeps it challenging for a bit longer. ps., I drove all ghost cars using the nisson (default buggy) with all tweaks on default.
• hide mousecursor on keyboard/gamepad activity
• made the car <-> car collisions a bit less 'sticky'.

Enjoy! Cheers, Bastiaan

[ 2022-03-11 22:55:41 CET ] [ Original post ]

Oh boy, don't we all dream of sliding around on the beach in a dune buggy, or drift over icy plains in an overpowered kart sometimes? Well, now you can! At the heart of this retro styled game is a properly simulated car, so this isn't going to be easy for everyone! Luckily, there's various cars to unlock, so there's bound to be something that feels right for you. You can't just crash your way to the finish. You're going to need to work your way up the pack with style and grace. And a little bit of well-timed aggression, because the AI is very competitive. [previewyoutube=p-eZy29CSDA;leftthumb][/previewyoutube]The main event is the campaign mode, where you try to become champion by collecting the most points while racing procedurally generated tracks through 5 biomes, but beware - if you damage your car too much, it's all over. There's also a time trial mode, with ghost cars from both your best run, and the developer's par record. Are you better than me? Only one way to find out! Buggy Game is out now!

[ 2022-03-09 18:04:19 CET ] [ Original post ]