Update

It has been a very long time since I have posted an update here on Steam. My apologies for that, I will try to do more updates. MiLE HiGH TAXi is still in development - in fact I usually spend at least 4 hours a day on development, building the environment, tweaking, and optimizing performance. As one can imagine, a solo-developer packing all this stuff into a game can be challenging and time-consuming. But there has been definite forward-progression on the game's development since my last news update - most of which isn't visually apparent in the game since it deals with performance enhancements.

Voice Acting

I have recently engaged with additional voice acting talent through Fiverr and personal contacts. Most of the voice work is complete and I'm currently waiting on finals. I took some time to figure out an efficient way of "connecting" the voices with the pedestrians and passengers along with the subtitling and translation system. That's very close to being complete but does need some minor tweaks (see what I mean towards the end of the video below - things get chatty and volume adjustments are needed).

Environment Status

I'm well into the latter half of building out the environment. At this point I'd say that is about 75%+ complete and generally doesn't cause any complications as I progress. So that's just about putting in the hours, which I'm always doing.

Beta Testing

I'm getting very close to being ready for beta testing. As of this writing, there are three things I need to finish/fix before that can happen. [olist]

More in-game passengers

Join the various scenes, such as menu, tutorial, player selection, game play, etc

Some fixes to my traffic system [/olist] Don't hold me to it, but I believe those can all be done within a month, so if you're interested in beta testing and providing constructive feedback, please let me know here or reach out to me by other means. I'll aim for beginning of February 2022.

Steam Achievements

I wasn't originally planning on implementing Steam Achievements for initial release, but back around May/June I began tinkering with the API. I'm still not 100% it'll make it into the initial release (currently I've only built in 2 achievements) but if things move along quickly enough from here I'll see if I can finish that up too.

Latest DevLog Video

Here's my latest devlog video on YouTube. See you again soon! [previewyoutube=pm5636_jiP0;full][/previewyoutube]

Don't miss launch day savings. Wishlist Now!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1366560/MiLE_HiGH_TAXi

[ 2021-12-28 18:47:31 CET ] [ Original post ]

MiLE HiGH TAXi is The Fifth Element meets Crazy Taxi.

In this 24th century scifi game you're the driver of a flying taxi cab in a race against time to transport as many paying customers as you can before the meter runs out. Earn enough cash, experience and respect to work the upper floors and skywalks. The higher you work the cleaner the air, richer the customers, and the more cash you can make!

You'll play as Kyle, Emma, or Skyler, a down-on-your-luck citizen relegated to the polluted airs of the city's sub-100th floor level. Your new career as a taxi driver is an opportunity to get out of the slum, the smog, and the eternal shadows, earn money and promotions, and make it to clean air. As you drive through 24th century Toronto, pick up passengers from mile-high super skyscrapers and deliver them to their destinations as fast as you can. Do it fast enough and you'll earn bonus time and make happy customers. Happy customers are well paying customers. Use the GPS to help you navigate, and Driver App mode to find hidden customers. But keep your eyes on the sky - especially when using your Hyper Drive Boost! You're not the only one driving the Skyways and other cars and traffic obstacles will slow you down. Once you get a handle on your new job and learn the city, start using narrow back alleys to navigate the city faster. As you progress, expect to be promoted to the city's higher floor levels where you can earn more money. Become an expert and experience sunlight for your first time as you blast through Skyways at the 600+ floor levels.

MiLE HiGH TAXi is a single player, game controller or mouse-keyboard arcade game that you download and play on your PC (Windows, Linux) or Mac. It isn't about customizing your car or public achievements. There are no save points. Just start it up and get playing!