Greetings and welcome to the second Producer's Letter for Solace Crafting.
I'm Fab, and today, we're diving deeper into the exciting features coming on this journey toward version 1.5. While we've previously shared our broader vision, today well explore the nitty-gritty of what lies ahead.
But first, lets take a moment to celebrate another milestone: Kyle, the brilliant mind behind Solace Crafting, is now a proud father!
Insert from Kyle:
It's been a crazy week! I've got a healthy new baby boy, who will be home with my wife in another 36 hours from the time of me writing this!
We had some problems with our version control that completely stopped development but the support from the service that we use was quick to respond, all thing considered, and I was hard at work getting things sorted out when my wife's water broke and we were off to the hospital on Sunday night! It was a chunk of hours I knew I was going to have to take off at some point, but was hoping to get the first preview patch we've been working on up before then. The past few days I've been commuting home from my in-laws to work during the day and had to redo some things that got lost in the version control problems, but I'm planning to have the patch up tomorrow so I can take another day or two off to try and help my wife get some at home rest and recovery which she's very much in need of.
So, sorry again things got delayed a little, but we're still on track in our overall progress
You should hear from me again very soon!
- Kyle
Congratulations to Kyle and his growing family. It's truly poetic to see both a life project and personal life evolve simultaneously. With this in mind, we officially kick off the next chapter of Solace Crafting, starting with the new beta branch updates, outlined in our Patch Notes.
Let's go to the plans and Roadmap!
In the last month
Player Controller
- What we've done: We're starting out with improvements to the controller, to make it more responsive and make the character's handling more pleasant all around. That means smoother locomotion controls, which in turn will become more permissive gameplay-wise. Combat is also receiving a major update, where improved animations and controls will make the experience more dynamic overall.
- What we're planning: Further improvements to the Player Controller involving additional locomotion features to create class abilities like Blink, Slow Fall; advanced features like Sliding, Gravity adjustments and Swimming, as well Mount functions. As the worlds of Khora are receiving massive updates, so should your ability to navigate, explore and enjoy them.
Bot AI
- What we've done: Bot AI also gets its upgrade path. Monsters can now fight. They move around, attack, combo, block, dodge, melee and attack at range dynamically, and fight each other; not just through math and hit/miss notifications.
- What we're planning: This foundational update allows us to open the door to more ambitious features, such as social mobs with interdependent behaviors and strategies, as well as companion NPCs and pets, which can follow you around and obey orders.
Game Art
- What we've done: The first visual updates are locked in, with new assets for several biomes, such as plains, deserts and swamps, and early post-processing effects. We also have updated the player character. For the time being, this also means temporarily deactivating some functions like weather, skyboxes or NPCs in this beta branch, as well as character customization. We have a bit of work to make them all catch up with the update, which in some cases requires dedicated production. As it's nothing deeply technical, it's just a matter of time until everything is back in the game looking and working better than ever before.
- What we're planning: Short term, further updates to game art, especially in the realm of Solace/Building/Settlement textures and objects, allowing you to build better, more beautiful or expressive homes and villages. Improved atmospherics and post-processing are also planned for more atmospherics, more beautiful and more surprising worlds.
- Long term: New, better textures for environment assets and players, as well as texture variants to create a greater range of visuals for the same objects, whether trees, rocks, animals, clothing, etc.
World Generation
- What we've done: Considerable work has been added to updating the biomes, giving them specific flora and placeables, improving placement as well as overall shaping of biomes. Plains, Desert, Swamps, Highlands have received their first update. This too is a work in progress but another foundational update nonetheless. Weve also added a custom landscape feature system that now allows the procedural spawning of hand built features, such as mountains and oasis.
- What we're planning: Updating the Snow biome, finishing up the Ocean biome as well as fine tuning terrain shaping and landscape features spawning parameters to get richer, more immersive worlds overall. Dungeons will also receive the same kind of treatment, as we update their assets and ensure more intriguing and richer dungeon layouts.
November & December
Character Creation
- What were planning: A solid character creation, mixing lore, stats and visuals, is the best entry point into an RPG, so we will be seeking to bring Solace Craftings up to standards. This will be a way for us to begin distilling elements of the updated lore of Khora, which always sat far in the back, and give you a sense of identity and purpose for your character. It will also be a way to introduce Classes and their dynamics in a more seamless way.
- Also, as of the visual revamp were deploying on the beta branch, weve had to suspend the character customization features. Were planning to reintroduce them, enabling you to make good-looking characters that insert themselves seamlessly into the revamped world. This process will be an ongoing one rather than a one-off, as new assets, such as new clothes, textures and styling options gradually make their way into the game.
First Hour & Restructured Game Narrative
- What were planning: weve redesigned the games emergent narrative, that is what you do in the game in terms of its meaning within this particular universe. This will give more direction and motivation to doing things, as they will no longer simply be video game tasks that you perform to entertain yourself, but part of a narrative specific to Solace Crafting: why youre there, what Solaces are, why you use them, why you harvest resources and build things, what are the repercussions, what the progression logic is, etc. This should make entry into the game more meaningful, your actions more purposeful, but also tie up several aspects of the Solace Crafting experience together into something more flowy and immersive. The introduction of the tutorial quests were an important way to structure the first hour but we seek to go beyond that. We aim to give you something more organic, intuitive and evocative where you do things because you feel compelled to and experience tighter gameplay loops.
UI Update
- What were planning: With the visual update weve brought to the world and character graphics, as well as the restructured Game Narrative, we have to ensure the UI is clear enough to navigate and visually relaxing. This might be a longer update process, through which we will work with you to tailor finer improvements. However, unifying textures, fonts and adhering to more established UI standards is likely to be the object of a quicker first update that should in turn contribute to making the game more accessible and fun.
Lore & Story Update
- What were planning: Tied to the previous update items, we will do a lore unification pass to make as much content as possible world-specific, doing away with generic. From item names and descriptions to lore nuggets and quests, as well as narrative context introducing cultures, history and stakes, the goal is to help you feel like youre navigating the multiverse of Khora specifically and not any fantasy video game world. This is an ambitious target but another that we will deal with progressively, in layers.
Art Direction
- What were planning: Finally, it will be really important to us to elaborate on the visual identity of Solace Crafting not simply in terms of game graphics, but also in terms of artworks, themes, atmospheres, etc. Expect to see more on that front, as we work to flesh out this Multiverse a lot more for your immersion and enjoyment, enabling you to absorb or come up with new stories, new ideas, new inspiration!
Beyond
Improved Player Content Tools
- What were planning: Building Improvements, World Modification/Terraforming Improvements, Custom Quests
Items & Crafting Improvements
- What were planning: Resources Tiering & Harvesting Updates, Itemization Revamp
Immersion Improvements
- What were planning: NPC Relations, Companions & Pets, Exploration Updates
Revamped & Advanced Towers & Dungeons Mechanics
- What were planning: Architecture Updates, Gameplay Challenges, Resources & Bosses improvements
AND MORE!
This first series of updates and their follow-ups should take us to the spring of 2025 and profoundly change the face and structure of the game by adding a lot more fun, richness, depth, and accessibility to the Solace Crafting experience. Were essentially revamping everything, ambitiously but carefully. We are committed to taking this game to its next incarnation and doing so as transparently as possible. Through Kyles well-demonstrated work-ethic and dedication and my contribution in structuring and communicating, we want to improve both the game and your lives as its players.. Your support and feedback throughout this process, old players, returning ones and newcomers alike, are the lifeblood of this indie venture. Thank you! Fab
[ 2024-11-10 12:16:35 CET ] [ Original post ]
🕹️ Partial Controller Support
- Solace Crafting Linux [2.77 G]
Background
My name is Kyle Postlewait (35) and I got into game development years ago because I can't find the game that I want to play. I am not a veteran game developer. I do not have any published AAA titles. I am self-taught and I make mistakes. Having said that, I'm tired of survival crafting games being abandoned, focusing only on PvP and guns, or turning into major time sinks. I quit my day job in February of 2018 to focus on Solace Crafting full-time, and am doing everything I can to make a great fantasy survival RPG despite the tremendous challenge that is game development. Please don't buy into early access expecting a fully polished AAA game and then give it a bad review. In return, I promise to make sure that this game is NEVER ABANDONED. If sales are more than enough for me to survive, then I can hire more help. First and foremost I will always work to secure financial longevity and legal stability, and maintain all intellectual rights, never selling power to sponsors, publishers, or anything that could endanger continued development.
Early access ends when there is enough content to constitute selling the game without the above warning. Even after we leave early access the game will continue to be improved and expanded on, and has a long list of planned features post early access including other dimensions and multiplayer.
All features listed on this page are undergoing constant improvement and are subject to change.
Short description
Solace Crafting is a crafting and building heavy survival RPG focused around player crafting, building towns, and summoning NPC townspeople. With an open class system, open-recipe crafting, customizable enchanting, modular building, defensive structures, town management, distance-based difficulty, and an infinite game world, players are free to move and level at their own pace. With an uncapped leveling system you can try to push further than anyone ever has. You can try and make the ultimate sword, staff, or anything, thanks to complete control over all recipe settings. Build massive towns full of NPCs not limited by physics-based construction. Seek out rare enchants and exotic resources.About the game
SurvivalSolace Crafting starts out much like similar survival games: you need to make clothes to avoid freezing to death, you need to find food to keep from starving to death, and you should build shelter from the dangers of nightfall.
Crafting
Once you are surviving it's time to evolve. Build resource processing and crafting facilities to create improved weapons and armor. Leveling up your professions levels up your recipes and allows you to unlock new recipes and crafting abilities. Our crafting system is quite unique, allowing even the creation of custom sets. I definitely recommend you watch the getting started video available above.
Role-Playing Game
Once you're armed and ready it's time to push back against evil and it's minions. Level-up and develop your character using an open-class system of evolving skill trees. Mix melee, ranged, magic, and heals however you like. Skills are being designed with fun and visual uniqueness in mind, not minimalism and strict balance.
Solace Crafting
Crafting and placing a solace will allow you to instantly return to it from any other solace in the world, letting you create your own points of interest. Be careful though as the further you travel in any direction, the more difficult everything becomes. In order to level up a solace you'll have to defend it from waves of attackers that will try and stop the procedure. Build static defenses to help protect your solaces during upgrades.
Town Management
An upgraded solace allows you to summon townspeople. In order to summon higher level NPCs you'll need to push deeper into the wild, setting up towns of various sizes as you go.
Astral Travel (not yet under development)
When the time is right you will find your way to the Elemental Planes. Most heavily affected by the infectious anger and hatred, these have becomes dimensions of extreme danger, both environmental and sentient. You must find out where the hatred stems from and find a way to put an end to it once and for all. The Elemental Planes are also the birthplace of all resources mundane and exotic alike. Only here will you find the purest, most powerful resources for crafting and enchanting equipment worthy of a hero.
Developed by a gamer
I started learning how to make games years ago because the design decisions of so many of the games I played often made so little sense to me. Here are some of the design decisions I refined over the years that I do my best to uphold:- No pay-to-win, no pay-to-play, no paid DLC, no gacha or gamble mechanics
- No metered progression
- Level any and all professions freely, no arbitrary caps
- Minimal sub-ingredients, minimal crafting and refining timers
- Completely open, point and level based branching skill trees
- Multiple, incremental skill points every level
- Classic roles, not forced balance. Some classes may be harder than others.
- Unlimited player levels
- Completely open physics-based world, no off-limits
- No "realistic" building physics that destroy everything
- Unlimited access to parallel realities (alternate seeds)
- Shape and color your avatars freely instead of using preset races
- Allow alternate characters in the same world
I know how to, and will accomplish everything written here. It's only a matter of time. If the game sells I can hire help with what I'm bad at and focus on what I'm good at.
I know a lot of fans of the survival genre are pretty jaded, myself included, after so many titles have lost their leadership, changed projects, or plain given up. I'm here every day hoping to heal that sore and would very much appreciate your $15 support if any of this interests you. There are months of frequent patch notes and forum discussions between me and players here on Steam as proof that I'm capable of more than a couple new items after weeks of silence, something far too common in game development!
Multiplayer, and all of its many features will absolutely be implemented when a much more content rich single player experience has been achieved. Multiplayer like single-player will be PvE oriented and grief prevention/anti-cheat will always take top priority. Turning single-player towns into multiplayer guildhalls complete with defense quests and special achievements is something I very much look forward to, and have quite a few plans for.
Unix and Mac support will be tested and released soon.
The best is yet to come!
- OS: Ubuntu 12.04+
- Processor: Dual Core 3 ghzMemory: 4 GB RAM
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GTX 680
- Storage: 8 GB available space
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