Hello, everyone! After a bit of time off, weve been in full development mode since the open playtest, and we wanted to give you a quick update on one of the new landmarks were adding to Ardem. Phillip took time away from, well, being ill, to have a quick chat with our Community Manager, Chris, and show you around the work-in-progress downed plane that is going into Ardem. [previewyoutube=Z9KmmvLSPo4;full][/previewyoutube] Theres even more work going into the game in 2025, as we got a ton of helpful feedback from everyone who participated in the playtest. Its also worth noting that we currently have applications open for our Closed Alpha tests. As the name implies, they wont be open to everyone, but we hope to get as many of you in there as possible! Also, be sure to head to our Discord, as thats the best place to say a quick hello to the team and ask any questions you might have! You know, when theyre not ill! 2025 will be a big one for us here at Techtive Games, and we cant wait to see more of you again in Ardem! See you in 2025! - Techtive Games

[ 2024-12-17 15:03:25 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello, everyone! We learned so much from our recent open playtests that we wanted to open our Closed Applications again! This round of testing will be different to our recent open Alpha test as they will be held at very specific times. We are looking for people who can join us at set times in order to test new systems and the general stability of the game. Youll be playing with the dev team so we can get that valuable feedback right away! If this sounds like something youd like to be a part of, use this google form to sign up. We will let you know if you're picked and be sure to join our Discord server. There you will get a special role and most information will be posted there for you! If you were previously a part of the closed alphas you will need to apply again as this is a new wave of testing and your current Steam key will leave your account. We look forward to seeing some more of you in Ardem again! - Techtive Games.

[ 2024-12-11 14:27:38 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello, all! We wanted to say a heartfelt THANK YOU from all of us here at Techtive Games to everyone who played, streamed and made videos out of Alpha Test 3! The response was bigger than we expected and the amount of feedback we have received has been amazing. If you didnt get a chance, filling out our survey would be an incredible help to the team! It helps give us a really good indication of what youd like more and less of as we work towards the release of Ardem! If youre looking to follow the project, youre in the right place! We will be making more dev diaries with updates and generally keeping you all up to date! If you want a more direct line to the team, head over to our Discord server where we hang out! This is also the place to get more regular, smaller updates and contests! There will be more playtests before our late 2025 launch into early access and we can't wait to keep going on this journey together! See you on Discord! - Techtive Games

[ 2024-11-25 13:31:48 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi there! There's not long left for Alpha Playtest 3 and we hope you have all enjoyed having this early look at what we've been working on! We've got a lot to do, and thanks to all of your feedback so far! If you haven't already, we have a survey that you can fill out! It's not very long but it will be incredibly helpful in helping us shape the game as we continue development! We'd also love to see you in our Discord! We have news updates, and you can ask us questions or add your suggestions! Let's have some fun with the last few days of the playtest! - Techtive Games

[ 2024-11-22 15:04:42 CET ] [ Original post ]

We've got another patch coming your way later today!

• Based on your feedback, we're reducing the number of servers to one per region so there's more change of all of us playing at the same time!
• Creative Servers are here! With infinite inventory, building materials and no PVP / or survival mechanics. Build away!
• PVP Servers! Spawn in with guns, ammo, attachments and get ready for action!

These give you a taste of the kinds of servers you'll be able to run yourself in the full game, plus we really want to see so epic structures and battles so share what you record or capture in our Discord and enter our contest to win a key for the full game! Have a fun weekend in Ardem! - Techtive Games

[ 2024-11-15 13:58:48 CET ] [ Original post ]

Good news, everybody! We are extending the playtest until the 24th! We've already learned so much during the last few days that we wanted to get as much playtime as possible out of this playtest, so we're extending it by a whole week! So you have this weekend, AND next weekend to explore Ardem! In that time we will continue to fix bugs and push out as many little updates as we can! We've said it before but I'm going to say it again, thank you! All your support has been amazing for us and we hope you continue to share Ardem with friends and content creators you think might enjoy it! Also, if you have time, please fill out the survey that you are shown on the start screen! This helps us shape the game to be the game you all want! See you in Ardem! - Techtive Games

[ 2024-11-14 15:29:34 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello, friends! Playtest 3 is well underway, and we hope you're all enjoying seeing what we've built so far! But we want to see what you are building! Got Content? We Want to See It! During the playtest, if you plan to capture any epic moments, stream your adventures, or create content around Ardem, we want to see it! Share your clips, live streams, or any content you make in the Shared Content section in our Discord. We also want to feature your videos in upcoming videos we make, so show us your best moments! Win Steam Keys for the Full Game Well be giving away Steam keys for the full release of Ardem to our favourite entries! Whether its a hilarious moment, an intense PvP showdown, or a stunning base build, bring your best, and you might score a key when the full game launches. See you in Ardem! - Techtive Games

[ 2024-11-11 13:57:28 CET ] [ Original post ]

Friends, It's time to go back to Ardem! The Playtest is LIVE and waiting for you to jump in! Were letting in everyone who registered so it should be downloading for you right now! Just a few notes for those jumping in tonight If this is your first time playing Ardem, weve made a getting started guide which you can find here. BUG REPORTING

• If you find a bug in game, simply press * on your keyboard to submit a screenshot and a bug report!
• You can also submit a ticket in Discord.
• If the game crashes, please tick the box that lets it report the bug back to us.

Reporting any bugs is essential for us to iron any out as we continue to develop the game! We will be fixing bugs as the playtest continues so please have some patience with the team! SURVEY Youll also have a chance to fill out a survey, available on the start screen, where you can let us know what you think of this playtest and we would love it if you took a few moments to fill it out. Its this info that we use to help shape the game into the one we all want it to be! Finally, if you still have an old beta key youll still need to update to the newest alpha test here on our Steam page. Thank you for taking part in Alpha Test 3 and we cant wait to hang out with you in Ardem! - Techtive Games

[ 2024-11-08 17:04:23 CET ] [ Original post ]

Welcome to the third Alpha Playtest for Ardem! Ardem is a third person, survival game so if youve not been in one of our playtests before, or if youve never played a survival game before, weve put together this little guide that should help get you started! This guide should get you to the point where you know what youre doing and can begin to fend for yourself in the world of Ardem. There are many threats, from robots to other players. But theres always the chance you might make a new friend and build, survive and thrive together in the ruins of society. Its worth noting that the entire map is not available in this playtest as we are still actively working on the game so you will encounter walls as you play. Rest assured, this will not be in the final release. If you find yourself stuck, or with any other questions about the game, please head to our Discord where we, and the community, will be able to help you out!

First Steps in Ardem

Spawn Location As a new player, youll start on either the west or south coast, with spawn points scattered along the beaches. While each location has different distances to loot spots, the overall experience is similar. Gathering Basic Resources The beaches are a great place to find driftwood and drift metalessential for crafting tools early on. Tools can also be looted, but crafting lets you stay safe in the wild and avoid other players. Youll need wood, metal, and rope. For rope, either search or craft it yourself using plant fibres.

• Fishing rod: Helps with food.
• Bow and arrows: Good for defense.
• Axe: Essential for firewood

To bring up the crafting menu press tab on your keyboard and head to the crafting menu. Youll find most things you need in the tab menu! Its worth noting that not all tools are craftable, many of them youll have to find in the world. Securing Food and Water Early survival means ensuring you have enough food and water:

• Water: Drink directly from rivers or lakes, find bottles to fill, or loot canned drinks.
• Food: Find canned goods, gather forest berries, hunt fish or animals, and grill meat for higher nutrients. A grill grate is needed for proper cooking.

Night Preparation Be ready for nightfall with your flashlight and spare batteries, which you will spawn with. Campfires are useful for visibility but remember that light and fires can be seen from a distance. If you dont want other players to see you, be careful. Build fires with stones (found on roads or beaches), add wood, and use matches or a fire drill to ignite. Using Vehicles Vehicles are excellent for fast travel but require fuel and maintenance. Use a gas canister or an empty bottle to siphon fuel from wrecks and salvage parts with a wrench. Keeping your vehicle in good shape is essential to avoid permanent damage. Building and Storage As you gather loot, consider your storage options:

• Storage boxes: Place them in a secure location.
• Vehicles: Carry storage boxes for mobile loot.
• Bases: Build a small base for safer storage.

Base Building Basics To start building, find a hammer (available in industrial or residential areas) and open the build menu by pressing "X". In multiplayer, a plot pole is required first, located under the Misc category. Build frame walls first, and add wood, metal, or stone paneling by selecting them with a middle-click while holding the hammer. Electricity and Decoration To add lighting, youll need a wire cutter. Use the Electricity category in the build menu to install power components and find fuses to manage circuits. Decorate with furniture and customize your base. You can take any furniture you find in the world, simply pick it up and it will be packed into a convenient box for you. But you will have to carry this box back, so a vehicle might be important. Farming For a reliable food source, grow crops like tomatoes and eggplants by planting seeds on grassy or muddy ground, found in garages and sheds. Robot Dangers Beware of robots patrolling high-risk areas like cities and military checkpoints. You can either avoid or flee from them when encountered. You may, however, find weapons, which can be used to take these robots out as well as protect yourself from others, if needed. ________ With this, you should be ready to get started in Ardem! Most items can be found in places you might expect to find them. For example, car parts in a garage or food items in an abandoned homes kitchen. However, as we mentioned above, if you find yourself lost or confused, come and talk to us on Discord and we can help you! If you encounter any bugs, you can press the * button which will let you add details and a screenshot. If you get stuck and just want to know what to do, please also let us know in Discord! We hope you have as much fun playing as we have making this Alpha, thank you for joining us to test and shape the future or our first game! - Techtive Games.

[ 2024-11-07 14:33:50 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi there! You read that right, the next Alpha Playtest is happening on November 8th from 6pm CET! The test will run until November 17th and it couldnt be simpler to sign up.
Simply click Request Access right here on the main part of our Steam Page and youll get an email as soon as its open and ready to download! If youve already registered, youre set! To celebrate the next playtest we teamed up with the amazing Rooslahn to create this story trailer! We hope you enjoy it! [previewyoutube=ND8bxQ18LV4;full][/previewyoutube] As with the last playtest, were going to want your feedback and were going to find weird bugs together! We cant wait to join all of you in the game and find out all the cool things you do with the world were creating! See you in Ardem, - Techtive Games

[ 2024-10-28 16:14:22 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hi there! Over on our Discord we've been taking some questions about Ardem, coming off the back of our recent Dev Diary Update. So, here it is in full! Our Community Manager, Chris, sat down with Phillip and Simon this month and we will talk with other members of the team in the future! [previewyoutube=rE5OdHO2jlg;full][/previewyoutube] If you have any questions, head over to Discord, or leave a comment here and we will be sure to get them in the next video! Not long until the next playtest, but we will have news on that very soon! See you in Ardem, - Techtive Games.

[ 2024-10-24 12:47:06 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello, everyone! Its been a little while since our last dev update, but rest assured, this has been a productive time! Weve got a video covering some of the updates that have been added to the game since we last spoke, but here are some highlights! - Electricity System Added To Base Bulding You can now add the electricity system to your base. You can add fuse boxes, sockets, switches and hook up a generator to your house. This also includes upgrades that you let you add individual fuses so different rooms can run off different fuses. - New Area: Fishing Village We have added a whole new area based around a fishing economy. There are plenty of buildings and interesting new loot to find here! - Enemy AI Updates Robots now patrol certain areas as a part of the PVE component of the game. Some will attack on sight and, if defeated, will have different kinds of components you can loot. - Base Building Adjustments You can now create larger buildings without having to rely as much on pillars, thanks to a new stability system. You can also add more refinement to where you place walls and ceilings. You can also use different materials on the outside of the wall as you can on the inside, leading to more self-expression and customisation. - Liquid Fuel Systems Fuel can now be taken in containers from places like cars, stored, and added to larger fuel-holding containers with our liquid fuel system. You can now fill a barrel, load that barrel on the back of your truck, and take it back to your compound! You can watch all of these systems in action here. [previewyoutube=7SvSrOZ4oGo;full][/previewyoutube] This isnt everything, so we will make more of these updates for you as we progress. You can also expect Q&A videos and more minor updates on our YouTube channel, so its worth subscribing to! We will have more news about our next playtest soon, so keep your eyes on Steam and our Discord! See you in Ardem, Techtive Games.

[ 2024-10-07 14:19:36 CET ] [ Original post ]

Don't forget to join our Discord to always get the latest news on updates and events!

Attention, survivors!

We are excited to provide you with detailed information on what has happened since the last dev diary a month ago. If you havent noticed, we have changed the dev diary cycle from biweekly to monthly to give us more time to work on the report and have more to show. This edition will be quite large, and we are super happy about the progress we have made. As always, give us a thumbs up if you like it and leave a comment if you have any questions. Lets dive in!

Art

On the art side we have worked on two major aspects of the game. As we continue to unify our flora and fauna to make them as authentic and realistic as possible, we have focused on leafed trees this time. As you might have noticed in the playtests, there was a noticeable discrepancy between the highly detailed conifers and the low-poly leafed trees, which made the scenes in mixed forests look a bit off. We have now replaced these legacy trees with a brand new set that matches the conifers in fidelity. Since vegetation is a major part of our level design, this has been an important step in enhancing the overall immersion when moving through Ardem, especially in dense forests. The lion's share of the work went into the technical art of the trees, ensuring they properly react to wind and weather conditions and enabling players to chop them down. What might sound like the easy part actually involves a lot of work, including fine-tuning values and extensive testing until the visual appearance meets our expectations and blends seamlessly with our existing trees.
However, the level designers have already started working with the new trees and have fallen in love with them. Its a nice change and offers an almost biome-like variety of flora in these new areas. Many of you have been asking if there will be additional weapons, and the answer is - of course -Yes! The currently integrated weapons have been more of a placeholder to enable us to implement the weapon system and provide a means to defend yourself from enemy players or hostile animals. However, we have started working on the enhanced weapon system, which includes the first real weapons with attachments and more.
As Ardem is set in a fictional Midwest state of the US, we aim to depict reality as closely as possible, including the range of firearms you would find in such a state. When Ardem hits early access, you can expect a wide variety of guns and corresponding attachments to visually customize your weapons and improve certain attributes such as precision. More details on the enhanced weapon system will be covered in the programming section.

Leveldesign

With the fresh air of new trees being implemented, our level designers went into ultra hyperfocus mode and managed to design nearly 7 square kilometers of the map within the last few weeks. This corresponds to almost 10% of the entire map size, marking the most significant level design progress we've made on the project so far and bringing us one step closer to closing the gap on the south coast of the map.
The new area is full of unique and handcrafted points of interest, enabling players to explore and discover various places with their own stories. To provide players with more convenient guidance, we have added several landmarks and hiking trails that will lead them to key points on the map. With the new foliage in place, the entire area offers beautiful scenery with plenty of opportunities to hide and build hidden shelters in the dense leaf forests.
We are super excited about the progress we have made over the past few weeks and would love to show as many points of interest as possible. However, the area is just too large, so we will share individual locations in the next dev diaries. As mentioned in the last dev diary, we have now finished the flooded area with the collapsed bridge. The result is amazing, and we can't wait for you to discover all the pathways and routes we've added around the bridge to ensure you don't get too wet.
Besides all that, we have been experimenting with rivers, as some of the playtest feedback clearly stated that the rivers in Ardem are too steep and not visually appealing. After some experimentation, we found a good workflow that offers a good balance between effort and fidelity. For steeper gradients, we will now use shorter water terraces connected by small waterfalls instead of one overly steep river. We are very pleased with the results and believe it enhances the overall aesthetics.
So, as you can see, we are not only adding new places and pushing forward the general progress of the map, but we are also focusing on improving the aesthetics of the existing areas. We are committed to steadily enhancing the look and feel of the game.

Sounddesign

Huge progress has been made on the sound side, where we have completed the new Ardem main theme that will be featured in the game's main menu. While the old song was more of a placeholder, meant to be found in-game, the new theme encapsulates all the emotions that we believe define Ardem. With the main theme in place, we can create different iterations for various purposes such as in-game music, tutorial ambient music, and more. We might share the theme song in one of the upcoming dev diaries, so keep an eye out! We have also been working on sounds for many different object interactions, such as item consumption (eating and drinking), vehicle wreck doors, and tools like hammers, pickaxes, and saws, among many others. Next, we will be reworking all character footstep sounds to better represent the different ground materials in the game.

Programming

On the technical side, we have been working on robot AI and have implemented a first version of the robots for in-game testing. Robots now spawn and despawn based on player proximity. Once spawned, they follow a certain idle behavior, such as patrolling an area, until they perceive player movement and switch into combat mode. There are different types of robots (military, security, police, medical, etc.) that will spawn depending on their location. For example, when you enter a hospital, police and medic robots will spawn, while heavily armed military robots will spawn in military camps and outposts. Higher-tier loot areas lead to more robot presence. Additionally, robots mostly spawn near urban areas and structures and are less likely to be found in highly rural areas. During testing, we found a couple of technical issues that we are now addressing before deploying the AI to the alpha tester branch for more in-depth testing.
The new enhanced weapon system has made significant progress over the last couple of weeks. We have taken a lot of feedback from the playtest into account, and the range of changes and new mechanics is quite extensive. These changes can be divided into character behavior and weapon behavior. On the character side, we added leaning to enable players to lean around corners or perform the friendly dance by using the Q and E keys. Additionally, there is now an improved over-the-shoulder (OTS) camera when holding the right mouse button, and an aim-down-sight (ADS) mode when single-clicking RMB. This enables a more accurate aiming experience. On the weapon side, we have implemented weapon effects such as recoil and sway, as these go hand in hand with the new attachment system. The attachment system introduces several different attachment slots, such as handguards, buttstocks, and more. Each of these attachments can have certain functionalities like flashlights, lasers, etc., and/or increase values for sway, recoil, precision, etc. Attachments are generally rare and can mostly be found in military areas, guarded by corresponding robots. Even though we are not currently in a bug-fixing/polishing phase, there are game-breaking technical issues that need immediate attention. One such issue was found by our alpha testers (thanks to all active alpha testers!) and caused any level changes, such as base building, chopped trees, picked-up items, etc., to disappear under certain circumstances. Although it took some time to identify the cause, we discovered an in-engine limit for network packages and were able to fix the issue by splitting the packages into smaller ones.

Miscellaneous

There are a lot of things happening on the development side that are not directly visible to players but are very important in the long run. One of these is optimization, which, if done properly, will enable more players to enjoy the game even on weaker hardware. Over the last two weeks, we gave Albington a full optimization pass. This involved merging certain infrastructural parts of the city, unifying textures and materials, and creating LOD meshes for most of the larger structures in Albington. By doing this, we were able to replace around 10,000 objects, optimize collisions, significantly reduce RAM usage, and improve GPU performance.

[ 2024-06-01 22:30:53 CET ] [ Original post ]

Don't forget to join our Discord to always get the latest news on updates and events!

Attention, survivors!

We are finally back with the next episode of the dev diaries! As always, we are super excited to show you some of the progress that has been made over the last two weeks and provide you with some deeper insights into the development of Ardem. Let's dive in!

Art

If you've checked out our latest announcement, you might have noticed a sneak peek of the initial 3D draft of something resembling an antenna or a tower. Indeed, we've been working on a radio tower! The tower stands approximately 170 meters tall and supports antennas originally deployed for telecommunications and broadcasting. It's situated on the highest mountain in Ardem, nestled between the west and south coasts. Some of you may have noticed an empty area atop the mountain during the playtest. What many didn't know about the tower is that it has also served as a secret monitoring station and played a significant role in the lore of Ardem.
During the crisis, the military took control of the tower and established a base nearby. Yes, this means military loot! You asked for it, and here it is. The tower's size makes it highly recognizable from great distances, serving as an excellent landmark for navigation.
In our next dev diary, we'll delve into more detail about what's required to enter the radio tower, how you can operate it, and even use it as your private shelter. Additionally, we'll showcase more images from inside the tower and what you can expect. Trust us, this is going to be huge!

Level Design

Let's discuss our progress in level design, where we've made significant strides over the past two weeks. During the playtest, some of you may have noticed that the entire coastal area on the south coast isn't yet complete, leaving a sizable gap between Albington and the eastern mountains. Some spawn points even provided views of this large, empty area. To prevent these immersion-breaking gaps in the next playtest, we're focusing on finishing this area in design and preparing it for testing.
Our first step to fill this gap is introducing a small remote village. It comprises several residential houses and is predominantly characterized by agriculture and horticulture. The presence of these resources, along with a small creek running through the village, makes it very appealing to fresh spawns looking for a safe route for their initial loot run, steering clear of Albington. However, being nestled in a small valley, the village makes it easy for players to be observed by others on the surrounding hills.
Furthermore, in this village, we've experimented with new types of bushes featuring dense foliage. These bushes provide unarmed players with more hiding options from hostile players. They blend seamlessly with the surrounding foliage and, based on our in-game tests, offer excellent concealment opportunities.

Game Mechanics

Environmental Effects

On the game mechanics front, we've addressed some feedback that many players have raised, which was relatively easy for us to implement but will have a significant impact on gameplay in the next playtest. This feedback primarily revolves around three major aspects. Day and Night Cycle: We've resolved a bug that was ignoring our settings for the length of day and night in Ardem. Previously, it would consistently apply the day length to the night as well. This issue has been rectified, and we've adjusted the durations to 45 minutes of daytime and 15 minutes of nighttime. Additionally, we've artificially extended the durations of sunrise and sunset to enhance realism. Cardinal Directions: It came to our attention, thanks to your feedback, that the path of the sun didn't align with the correct cardinal directions, making it challenging to use the sun as a navigation tool. This has been rectified, and now the sun rises in the south and sets in the west. Happy navigating! Weather Durations: Some weather types, such as thunderstorms, have aesthetically pleasing visuals but excessively long durations, which impede navigation and hearing. We've implemented the ability to set the minimum and maximum durations of different weather types and have already decreased the duration of thunderstorms accordingly.

Lamps

During the playtest, many players utilized the electricity mechanics, connecting generators to houses and using interior lights. We've given the entire system a thorough overhaul, ensuring to adjust the brightness and light color of all lamps to achieve a more realistic appearance, avoiding cases where they resembled supernovas.
Additionally, we've introduced what we call "light attachment points" to all lamps in every house. These points serve as interaction spots for reattaching lamps. When you pick up a lamp from the ceiling, a corresponding attachment point in the form of cables will appear in the same location. With a lamp in hand, you can interact with these attachment points to reattach the lamp to the ceiling. This enhancement provides you with more freedom in customizing your base and allows you to take your favorite lamps with you to your shelters and bases.

Barrels

Last but not least, we've given all liquid containers (such as barrels, water tanks, etc.) in Ardem an overhaul. We noticed that many of you were confused by barrels and similar containers that could be opened and closed but had no further functionality. To address this, we've removed the option to open and close the lids and instead integrated our existing liquid container mechanic into them.
This enhancement allows you to transfer liquids like water or fuel from bottles or other smaller containers into barrels, water tanks, etc., allowing you to collect large quantities of certain liquids. This feature can be particularly useful for shelters or bases that lack easy access to a river or lake, as you can now conveniently store your water on site. While this dev diary covered numerous smaller improvements and features, rest assured that we have some major developments to showcase in the next update, and we're truly excited to share them with you. Stay tuned!

[ 2024-04-28 19:09:15 CET ] [ Original post ]

Survivors, just a reminder: this weekend is your last chance to join our public playtest for Ardem. Take advantage of this opportunity to try out the game and provide valuable feedback before the playtest ends!

Final Weekend

The playtest will conclude after this weekend, so don't miss out on your chance to explore the world of Ardem and help shape its development. You can request access to the playtest on our steampage and be a part of Ardem's development process! Everyone will be accepted automatically. Time is ticking, so make sure to jump in before it's too late. We look forward to seeing you in Ardem!

Join Our Discord

Join our Discord community to share your feedback, report bugs, and engage with other players. Your input is essential in improving Ardem and creating the best possible experience for everyone.

Thank You to Our Testers

We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all testers who have dedicated their time to playing Ardem, some for more than 10 hours, submitting over 200 bugs and issues, and leaving invaluable feedback. Your contributions are greatly appreciated and play a vital role in making Ardem the best it can be.

[ 2024-04-12 16:44:21 CET ] [ Original post ]

Don't forget to join our Discord to always get the latest news on updates and events!

Survivors, the time has come!

We are happy to announce that we have just opened applications for our second playtest and you can now request access on our steampage. The playtest will start on April 5th and last until April 14th. If you are planning to participate, please request access to help us estimating the number of servers per region that we have to spin up for the test. We will be sharing more information on the playtest as we are getting closer to the start, so keep your eyes open, we will keep you posted! Now, head out to your friends, family and online communities, spread the word and convince as many people as possible to take part in the test. Your feedback in the last playtest has helped us so much to find countless bugs and improve the overall game experience. You guys are truly amazing!

[ 2024-03-08 22:29:47 CET ] [ Original post ]

Don't forget to join our Discord to always get the latest news on updates and events!

Attention, survivors!

Survivors, it's time for the 4th episode of the Ardem Dev Diaries. As always, we are super excited to show you some of the progress that has been made over the last two weeks and provide you with some deeper insights into the development of Ardem. Let's dive in!

Art

On the art side, we've shifted our focus from the tunnel system to electricity-related assets. One of our upcoming major projects is integrating the electricity system into player base building. Currently, only existing buildings feature the electricity system, but in the future, players will have the ability to fully electrify their bases. They can build light switches, power sockets, and much more to make their homes more comfortable. Of course, there won't be any light without proper power production. To address this, we've implemented three sources of energy: fuel, solar, and wind, which players can use to generate power for their homes. In the image below, you can see the improvised wind wheel, one of the available power sources players can build.

Level Design

Level Design has been making good progress in the last two weeks. As we get closer to the playtest, our main focus is filling the gaps between the designed areas and Albington. This ensures a smooth transition without any blank spots, giving you easy access to Albington. Currently, we're working on a highway exit that allows entry into Albington. Designing the exit was a bit challenging, but we're satisfied with how it looks and feels. Road signs will be added later on.
The recent focus on Albington centered largely on the new tunnel system, which has made substantial progress. We've introduced additional assets to the set, allowing for cross-tunnels between the main passages. In these cross-tunnels, players can switch from one system to another, only able to crouch through them. It's a risky maneuver, but sometimes the only escape. The entire system has proven to be more complex than initially anticipated, especially when ensuring that the tunnel pieces seamlessly connect to all the different entry/exit points. However, overall, we've made good progress. The next steps involve adding proper post-processing elements to these underground tunnels, creating a dense and gritty atmosphere once you enter them.

Game Mechanics

Over the last two weeks, a key area of focus has been the melee system. In the previous playtest, we received some negative feedback regarding the inability to use items like baseball bats or knives. Regardless of the item held, the player character was essentially using fists. We've addressed this issue and implemented several different combat states for various objects and weapons to ensure authenticity in the fighting experience. With around 700 holdable items in our game currently, there might still be some incorrect combat states assigned to certain objects, but we eagerly await your feedback during the playtest to fine-tune this.
Also, due to a lot of player feedback that we have received in the last playtest, we have been working on the interaction system and the general user experience. We have changed the way of how the player interacts with most objects to hold down the interaction key instead of pressing it once and then sitting in front of your PC doing nothing while you see the animation playing. This change creates a more involved feeling and basically feels like you are actively doing something while chopping down a tree for example. The second change relates to the outlining effect on all objects. We've essentially eliminated the outlining effect and replaced it with a more subtle highlight effect that gently accentuates the targeted objects. The previous outlining effect was quite aggressive, causing discomfort, especially in darker surroundings. We're still experimenting with colors and transparency, but overall, it has been implemented and is ready for use.

On another note

We have now started to assign all our resources to QA and bug fixing to prepare for the upcoming playtest that we STILL did not officially announce. Internally, we have set a date and - we promise - will announce it VERY SOON. The next dev diaries might be a bit shorter or maybe even a bit of a different format as we are now fully focusing on bug fixing.

[ 2024-02-26 23:49:19 CET ] [ Original post ]

Don't forget to join our Discord to always get the latest news on updates and events!

Attention, survivors!

Welcome to Episode #3 of the Ardem Dev Diaries. We are thrilled to dive deeper into the events of the last two weeks and provide you with some intriguing insights into the development of Ardem. This one will be a bit shorter, but still a lot has happened. Let's dive in!

Art

Today, we will begin with art. As mentioned last time, in our new city, Albington, we wanted to explore something innovative and decided to implement a sewage canal system beneath the city. This system can be utilized by players to navigate the area without exposing themselves too much to the environment. In multiplayer, there is, of course, a high chance of encountering other players in the canal systems as well. The system will include several entry/exit points, providing players the option to reach specific places more efficiently and resurface when needed. Following an initial concept and research phase, during which we experimented with different shapes and styles, we have now settled on a design that we believe complements our visual style and the surrounding environment quite well. The various canal parts are currently in an early stage, with level designers incorporating them into the layout of the canal system. Simultaneously, we are still working on refining them, adding details, and making adjustments on the fly. We look forward to sharing more screenshots of the sewage canal system in the next update!

Level Design

Ihr werdet dies noch eine Weile hren, aber Albington bleibt unsere oberste Prioritt. Wir sind vom innerstdtischen Gewerbegebiet dazu bergegangen, uns strker auf die Wohnzone zu konzentrieren und alle schmalen Gassen und Gassen akribisch zu gestalten, die die Huser verbinden. Dabei stellen wir sicher, dass alles so authentisch wie mglich aussieht. Derzeit platzieren wir grere Requisiten wie Fahrzeuge und Schuppen und gestalten Strukturen wie Zune und Mauern, die die Grundstcke voneinander trennen. Insgesamt ist der Fortschritt in Albington vielversprechend, und bald werden wir noch viel mehr prsentieren knnen.
Additionally, we have decided against the idea of having a quarry as the local industry for Albington. Instead, we have started drafting plans for a hydrocarbon production plant, which will serve as the main industry branch in this city. More information on this will be provided in one of the upcoming updates. While the quarry is not entirely dismissed, it will be postponed and re-evaluated at a later stage. We are consistently elevating the visual aesthetics of the game to ensure the environment feels authentic and harmonizes with the US Midwest setting of Ardem. An initiative taken over the past two weeks focused on refining the vegetation, especially in dense forests. Alongside minor adjustments to the density of grass and undergrowth, we also replaced the majority of previously used ferns. Although this might appear as a minor alteration, it significantly influences the overall ambiance of the forests.
As we are also proceeding to work on the more rural areas that are leading up to Albington, we recently finished an important intersection that connects both the highway and the sawmill to Albington. Besides some trailer park-ish style, the intersection consists of a burned down gas station, a diner and a motel. A decent combo of buildings for some nice loot. As the intersection is quite close to the shore, we are expecting this place to be a good starting point for fresh spawns to gather some useful early loot and then be able to head more inlands.

Game Mechanics

On the game mechanics front, we have focused on the initial phase of the cooking system. This phase essentially involves grilling various foods over an open fire to transition them into a cooked state, making them more nutritious than in their raw form. It's crucial to note that leaving the food on the fire for too long after reaching the cooked state may result in it getting burned, rendering it inedible. Currently, various types of meat and grown vegetables can be placed on the grill for cooking. However, it's essential to have a proper grill grate to support the food. In the next stage, we plan to introduce the option for players to cook individual pieces of food on a stick by holding them over the fire, especially in the absence of a grill grate. Since sticks can be found virtually everywhere, this provides a practical way to cook food without requiring advanced gear.

[ 2024-02-25 14:50:30 CET ] [ Original post ]

Don't forget to join our Discord to always get the latest news on updates and events!

Attention, survivors!

Welcome to Episode #2 of the Ardem Dev Diaries. We are thrilled to dive deeper into the events of the last two weeks and provide you with some intriguing insights into the development of Ardem. Also we will move the dev diary to Sunday instead of Saturday to allow ourselves more time to work on the report. Let's dive in!

Level Design

One of our top priorities remains Albington, our second city. Last week, we successfully completed the infrastructure phase and transitioned into the detail phase. Here, we began placing smaller props to make the environment feel authentic. As shown in the picture, significant progress has been made, and the inner city is beginning to take shape. We've also decided to introduce something special and new to Albington by constructing a sewer system beneath the city. This system will feature several entrance/exit points, serving as strategic elements to avoid enemies or set up ambushes. We can't wait to see players utilize this in the next playtest. More details on the sewer system will be provided in our next dev diary. Creating a city like Albington, making it feel authentic, and populating it with loot is a task that spans several months. However, walking through the city with the team after each iteration is truly amazing.

As we continue populating the landscape with various points of interest, we are also working on the roads connecting them. Due to lore reasons, we've decided that roads and highways on the south coast suffer from more overgrowth, with more vehicles and military checkpoints obstructing them, sometimes leading to significant traffic jams. On one hand, this means you need to be cautious and drive slower at certain passages (beware of ambushes). On the other hand, it provides you with more loot when you decide to explore these vehicle wrecks. Overall, we've completed the design of a large portion of the highway that leads directly to Albington.
As promised in our last dev diary, let us provide you with more details on the sawmill we've been working on. We've made significant progress on this new point of interest and almost completed the polishing phase. While a few assets, particularly the roofs, are still in the whitebox stage, we are extremely satisfied with the results and are on the verge of adding loot spawn markers to the location.

Game Mechanics

On the game mechanics side, we have finally implemented a pickup notification system that displays a message on the top left screen, showing you what you've picked up and the new quantity of that item in your inventory. This feature proves especially useful for gathering crafting resources, allowing you to know your inventory contents without the need to open it. During playtests, it emerged as a significant quality-of-life improvement in Ardem.
As mentioned in the last dev diary, we successfully completed and polished the bow and arrow system, conducting extensive tests and addressing any issues related to the system. Additionally, we've made smaller improvements, such as arrows sticking in animals or other players. During our testing phase, we observed that tracking the arrow's trajectory can be challenging at times. To address this, we've added a feature to the arrow, creating a subtle "tail" behind it to visually indicate its path. Players can choose to deactivate this feature if they prefer a more challenging experience. Overall, we are highly satisfied with the new system; the shooting experience is excellent, and it introduces an additional method for obtaining food in the wilderness.
As we progress with implementing and balancing AI enemies, providing proper hit feedback becomes increasingly crucial for the player. We have now implemented a system to visualize received damage through a typical temporary screen effect, turning your screen red. This effect also serves as an indicator of the damage magnitude you've incurred. For instance, minor damage from punches will only cause the screen edges to fade to red, while major damage from firearms will momentarily fade the entire screen. Although the system requires further testing and polishing, it is expected to be finalized next week.

Miscellaneous

Following our Open Alpha playtest in October 2023, we observed that a significant number of players were utilizing low-to-medium hardware and experiencing issues with low framerates, even when using lower graphics settings. As we approach the upcoming playtest, we have initiated an initial optimization pass to ensure that more players can enjoy Ardem with high settings, even on less powerful hardware. Currently, our focus is on addressing the most accessible optimization opportunities, and we have already achieved up to a 25% increase in frame rates in certain areas.

[ 2024-01-29 09:31:10 CET ] [ Original post ]

Don't forget to join our Discord to always get the latest news and events!

Attention, survivors!

Welcome to the very first episode of the Ardem Dev Diaries. In this new biweekly format, we will provide you with exciting insights into the game's development, shedding more light on what the team has been working on. Please note that we will cover a selection of things we have been working on, and there might be additional aspects that didn't make it into this report. Let's dive in!

Level Design

After polishing the west coast of the map and fixing numerous bugs, we shifted our focus back to the south coast, where we began drafting the second city, Albington. It is expected to be roughly twice the size of Ottsburg, the city featured in the playtest, and will include exciting points of interest such as a local high school and a large quarry. Albington is currently in the infrastructure phase, where we define terrain details, street layouts, and building positions.
Additionally, we've been working on a cargo harbor, which has nearly completed the design pipeline and awaits the placement of loot spawn markers. As the cargo harbor is close to a medium-sized sawmill and used to provide urgently needed tools and spare parts, expect some valuable industrial loot! More updates on the sawmill coming in the next report.

Game Mechanics

Addressing feedback from the open alpha playtest, we have significantly reduced the animation length for pickup and tree-processing. Despite dissatisfaction with the current animation length by a lot of users, we plan to offer multiple configuration parameters for both players and server owners to customize their user experience. Furthermore, we have begun work on the bow-and-arrow system, confident of completing the implementation next week. This system includes shooting from standing and crouching positions, taking your stamina into account. Prolonged bow drawing will drain stamina, causing the character's arm to shiver and significantly reducing accuracy. Different bows will possess varying attributes such as impact force or max range. Despite minor animation and camera issues, we are pleased with the results and look forward to seeing you try it out in the next playtest.

AI

AI is a crucial focus for us in the upcoming playtest, encompassing two main groups: wild animal AI and hostile robot AI. Over the last two weeks, our focus has primarily been on wild animals, yielding positive results. Although we implemented basic AI for wild animals some time ago, it wasn't multiplayer-ready until recently. Now, wild animals roam the map, either solo or in different-sized herds, depending on the animal. All animals follow a basic needs system, prompting them to visit places for drinking, eating, sleeping, or exploring. Additionally, animals can be killed with guns, bows, or melee, and gutted for specific resources. The next steps for implementation involve adjustments to animations and addressing edge case behaviors like killing the herd leader or fleeing.
If there are specific topics you'd like us to cover in future dev diaries, please let us know!

[ 2024-01-14 01:01:43 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello everyone, We would like to thank you for your tireless feedback, suggestions, requests, and the countless bug reports that have reached us. After this Open Alpha and your great feedback, we are sure that the current direction of Ardem will find a large fanbase, and we have collected many valuable suggestions that we will gradually implement into the game. We will shut down the demo on Sunday and focus on development again. We are planning the next playtest in February 2024, but with numerous new features and enemy types. Here are the patch notes for 0.2.4196:

• Fixed an issue were scavenged wrecks would disappear completely
• Fixed an issue where fruits would disappear when harvested with full inventory
• Fixed an issue where the player could not come up after diving
• Fixed an issue where the game would not properly pause in a singleplayer session
• Fixed an issue that caused voice chat attenuation to not work for far distant players
• Fixed an issue where the player randomly died when switching between ragdoll rand falling movement state
• Items can now be dragged from container inventories directly to the floor
• Map scroll and zoom now persistent when re-opening the map
• Fixed an issue that caused camera to shake when switching quick slots while walking
• Fixed an issue that caused objects to be outlined as soon as there was an interaction even though the focused object did not offer any interactions.
• Added text to the map widget that hints the player that he needs to find the map item
• Fixed an issue that allowed you to walk on the ground of a lake
• Item in players hand is now put back to the inventory when entering the vehicle
• Flashlight now turns off when you put it back into the inventory
• Significantly decreased flashlight battery consumption
• Removed one battery from the player spawn inventory
• Minor changes on user interface
• Balanced threshold values for hunger and thirst system
• Slightly increased player stamina
• Fixed an issue where certain wrecks would not give vehicle parts on scavenge
• Fixed an issue where removed foliage reappeared when moving far distances
• Further performance optimization on server and client side
• Completely reworked collisions for all train tracks to be more accurate
• Completely reworked collisions for all wrecked vehicles to be more accurate
• Minor leveldesign fixes
• Fixed issues with certain loot spawners only spawning plastic bottles
• Added edible candy bars to the loot spawn
• Fixed issues with some items not being placable
• Removed unnecessary collisions from some items
• Increased interaction radius for most of existing items

[ 2023-11-10 23:36:58 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello Survivors! We're excited to announce that the open alpha for Ardem is just around the corner, scheduled to launch on October 27th! Once again, please spread the word to all your friends, gather your family members, and yes, even let your grandma know to mark her calendar for October 27th and join us in Ardem. For the open alpha, we will be providing servers in the EUROPE, US EAST, and US WEST regions, aiming to ensure that we can accommodate the majority of our player base and deliver an acceptable level of latency. In about a week's time, we'll be sharing more details about our goals for the open alpha and what you can anticipate. Keep a close watch on our upcoming news updates for this information. Stay tuned!

[ 2023-10-14 21:00:04 CET ] [ Original post ]

Hello, Survivors! We want to start by apologizing for any confusion our latest announcement might have caused. Right now, we're hard at work testing Ardem internally, and it's important to note that the open alpha is not yet live. But here's the good news we're making fantastic progress, and we're feeling confident that we'll be launching the open alpha in October. We've got some details to share with you already:

• In the open alpha, you'll have the option to dive into singleplayer sessions or hop onto online servers.
• Cooperative play won't be available in the open alpha, but we promise it's getting some extra polish.
• We'll be providing servers for both Europe and the US, each with room for up to 32 players.
• During the open alpha, we'll be turning off AI because it still needs a bit of fine-tuning.

So, we're reaching out to you and asking for a little favor please spread the word to your friends and have them add the game to their wishlists. Also, don't forget to join our Discord community. We'd love to have as many players as possible join the open alpha and provide us with their valuable feedback. Thanks for being awesome!

[ 2023-09-28 13:50:55 CET ] [ Original post ]

Greetings, Testers!

A big "Thank You" to all those who consistently reported issues. Your help and support mean the world to us, and we're happy to announce that the next update is ready to roll out today. Our team has poured their efforts into enhancing the current content and introducing new features to the game. Let's delve into the specifics of what this update entails.

User Interface

We've been fine-tuning Ardem's menu system. As the game evolves and we gear up for Steam Next Fest, we're rolling out a comprehensive menu revamp. Expect a sleek new main menu that captures the essence of Ardem, alongside essential submenus for options, keybindings, and more. Oh, and no more ALT+F4 exit routine. We've streamlined things with an in-game menu (ESC), ensuring a smoother transition within the gameplay experience.

Fishing

Fishing is now in the game. Equip your fishing rod and venture to lakes, rivers, or the vast ocean to test your fishing skills. Watch closely as the floater dips and your fishing line moves. Press the F key at the right moment to hook your catch. We're now proceedind to ramping up the system, soon introducing different baits that attract various types of fish.

Lootspawn

We've finally implemented random lootspawn! Right now, loot is plentiful everywhere, but we're working on fine-tuning it for a more balanced experience. Expect urban areas and structures to be rich with loot while more rural or even foresty areas are rather poor with loot. We are also actively working on a lot of crafting receipes that will consume your hard-earned loot.

Southcoast

Our level designers have been tirelessly working on the Southcoast region, continuing to work on a vast new expanse. Additionally, we're excited to introduce a captivating new point of interest the 'Sawmill,' now prominently featured on the main map in the southcoast region. While a few whitebox elements remain visible, feel free to explore the area and provide us with some valuable feedback regarding its aesthetics and ambiance.

Bugfixes:

• Fixed a server crash when a player was building a basebuilding piece
• Fixed a server crash when container inventory unloaded on client
• Fixed an issue where the player would spawn without spawn gear
• Fixed an issue when the player character rolled into water
• Fixed an issue where certain items could be picked up infinately
• Fixed an issue where you would get stuck in the basebuilding wheel input mode
• Fixed an issue where items would not stack when dragged from a container
• Fixed an issue where items from a container would ignore the players inventory space
• Fixed the wrong size of edible mushrooms to a more realistic size
• Fixed an issue where melee fight mode could be activated during sprint
• Fixed an issue where the player was moving a flashlight into its head during run
• Fixed missing upgrade options for roof overhang piece
• Fixed missing upgrade options for sunroof corner piece
• Fixed an issue where the engine repair animation got stuck in an endless loop
• Fixed a weird hand movement when consuming a mushroom
• Fixed smaller UI issues with wrong indicators after relog
• Fixed the bug report UI not removing the previous descriptions
• Fixed an issue where basebuilding placement shaders would not disappear
• Fixed missing placement shaders for Jerry Can
• Fixed the vehicle horn not having attenuation settings
• Fixed around 50 Leveldesign related issues

[ 2023-08-14 22:52:39 CET ] [ Original post ]