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KickStarter Gamedec - Definitive Edition - cyberpunk detective RPG set in virtual worlds

cyborgboy95

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Messages
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https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/917720/view/2974046742654606137

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Behold! Our newest trailer is here! This time, we focused entirely on the feature of decisions and actions that will branch the narrative during your gameplay session.

When will it occur? Why it’s essential to track your choices? Watch it closely, and you might find the answers you are looking for. And outcomes? There are plenty!

What’s new? We’ve shown new Gamedec models, brand new character creation scene, updated codex, and UI with tweaked avatars and 3D models.


How did you like the more crazy approach? Would you dare to check the trash bin to find the clue you’re looking for? How did you feel about the whole being-a-cat feature? If you want to discuss, be sure to join our Discord server and share your thoughts with other gamedecs like you.
 

cyborgboy95

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Aug 24, 2019
Messages
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https://steamcommunity.com/games/917720/announcements/detail/2974046742657953143

MONTHLY CHANGELOG – JUNE 2021
Hello! Gamedec's release is drawing near, all hands on deck and a tight schedule to fit all of the work that has to be done, but we're on the right track!


We're tweaking the final looks and 3D models for most of the characters and making sure all in-game mechanics are running smoothly. Mind that some of the assets are still in Polish – we’re working on the translation as we speak. So without further ado, let's jump straight into the bullets.

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Worked on various game levels [including Paradise Beach]

Paradise Beach was one of the levels still waiting to be finished. You might have heard about it in the very first demo, the same where you've met Geoffrey Haggis and his son Fredo. PB is a sim-date world, where people meet for dating purposes. You can wear a skin that makes you look more beautiful, and you'll quickly meet a partner within a few hours. What will be its purpose in the game? You'll have to wait to see

Tweaked the character creation feature


click the image to start video


We might be biased, but we really like the way we went with the character creation section. We don't want to dig deep into the whole system, but we can share a little sneak peek below. Remember, choosing the avatar's origin and backstory might affect the gameplay, so think carefully before making the final decision.

Reworked the final look of the avatars and 3D models for gamedecs and NPCs

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Our art team sat down and made sure the avatars shown during the dialogues and visible in many places in the game are even better than before. "It's in the details" – they said, and we couldn't agree more.

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New models are more detailed, and the avatars will better prepare you for what to expect, trying to guess the attitude and characteristics of the NPCs you're interacting with.

Reworked the Codex and its UI

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One of the most common feedback about our Codex was about the readability and UI. So naturally, we analyzed the issue, agreed, and focused on tweaking these two to make them more pleasant to read and easier to navigate through. So what do you think about the results?

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As you can see, we really appreciate valid feedback because, at the end of the day, we all want Gamedec to be the best experience possible. This is why we're…

Adding the support of accessibility features 

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No doubts about it – Gamedec has to support some accessibility features. We want people to play Gamedec without control barriers. One of the assumptions was to make it as simple to operate as possible, but that's not all we could do. We added the options to change the interaction UI size and font size and even change the font to better suit people suffering from dyslexia.

To make the gaming experience even more accessible, we now support different color schemes to ensure that everything important won't go unnoticed.

Last but not least – The Branching Narrative Trailer

How did you like the more crazy approach? Would you dare to check the trash bin to find the clue you’re looking for? How did you feel about the whole being-a-cat feature? If you want to discuss, be sure to join our Discord server and share your thoughts with other gamedecs like you.
 

Matt [Anshar Studios]

Anshar Studios
Developer
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
Messages
61
Come to think about it why would people in 2100 play games that are just full VR version of shit we have now with grinding and microtransactions? Why waste the potential of full immersion VR on somehting so trite as generic fantasy MMO?

There are many games in the gamedecverse. Imagine a game in which you can literally die. The neurons in your brain are bombarded with pain and critical medical data, so your brain thinks you're getting the injuries your character does in-game. If you get killed in the game, you die in the real world. A real treat for thrill-seekers. There are sim-date games, farm games, star-citizen-like games. You name it, Gamedecverse probably has it.
 

cyborgboy95

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https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/917720/view/2975175180232054221

About Gamedecverse #5: Everyday life in the 22nd century [Part III]
In the previous episode of this article series, we introduced you to the routines and ceremonies conducting the marriages of the citizens of the Gamedecan poleis. Today, we take a look at the various holidays and celebrations kept in the Gamedecverse. Enjoy!

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Giving Birth

In the Gamedecverse, people can be born in three ways:

By the forces of nature

That is, in the old, insidious way, where the forces of a child, mother, and blind chance fight for the survival of both the midwife and the newborn and that the baby is healthy. This is how the followers of old, orthodox religious denominations usually give birth.


By Caesarean section

The incision is small, the fetus is removed quickly and painlessly, there is no trace of suture because young mothers use "Scarstop." After removing from the uterus, the newborn baby undergoes a kind of delivery, namely, a particular machine (parturot) pushes the newborn through the birth canal, which presses the baby firmly from all sides, just as the birth canal does during natural childbirth. This creates the correct muscle tone (muscle tension). The babies do not have the urinary problems that babies had before the parturot era.


Extuter birth

This is still an exotic type of birth because the pregnancy is also different from what we see today. The exuter is an external artificial uterus, wavelike connected to the mother's body. Thanks to this, the fetus feels the mother's movements, hears her voice, feels her body, and the mother feels the baby in her belly, its movements, kicks, etc. The birth takes place in the presence of the family, and the mother waits right at the exit of the extuter for her baby, who undergoes a similar test of strength as in natural birth. The entire delivery proceeds as it would for a multiparous woman with a broad, "comfortable" pelvis. The fetus lands in the mother's embrace and immediately feels her warmth. The whole thing is filmed by the family. It would generally be a very joyful event if it were not for the groups of demonstrators who often gather in front of clinics with extuters. The demonstrators, usual followers of old religions, express their rebellion against the new kind of pregnancy (the so-called external pregnancy), claiming that it leads to the killing of the maternal instinct and, as a result, to the degeneration of humanity. In doing so, they ignore the fact that a mother with an external pregnancy receives an adequate dose of hormones before the birth of her child, thanks to which the breasts are ready for lactation. The body is flooded with oxytocin, or attachment hormone. An immediate, strong bond with the child is formed in the mother.

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Birthdays

Birthdays are celebrated today, but one no longer wishes "100 years", as most people live to be 100 (one retires at age 70). Now one wishes "A planetary system to own," "A smooth beelbies," "Lots of Youngin and Youngout," "Quarters on Gaia," and so on.


Name day

Also being celebrated. There is a return to the celebration of name days. Celebrations like celebrations. Guests, drinks, swagger.


Network initiation

In many families, the first entry of a young person into a network is celebrated. The cut-off age recommended by doctors is seven, but as a rule, the web initiation takes place when boys and girls turn five.

Children experience their entry into the network very strongly.

Usually, after a visit to the virtual world that lasts several hours (always in the presence of an adult, usually in some network café), they go from the euphoria phase to the depression phase, feeling a strong need to enter the network again. This is a susceptible period, and psychologists insist that adults control the length of time kids spend in virtual spaces and block access to certain sites (such as the infamous "Twisted & Perverted" game).

As a rule, to reduce the urge to go online again, parents present the child with a cool, real-life toy, usually used for physical play. Recently, a trendy toy has been a jukebox. It is worth noting that online initiation facilitates the loosening of emotional ties with Chibot.

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Zoenet Day - November 3

November 3. This is a fete in Brahma, during which huge parades are held featuring characters from many games. The parades in Brahma on the occasion of this festival cannot be compared with any other. On this day, the Brahma authorities allow unreal creatures to reside in this world, so no one should be surprised to see both spaceships and incredible animals next to each other. Fireworks take the shape of buildings, heroes, and monsters, and there are many illusions and projections. Whole towns in Brahma turn into amusement parks.


Neighbor's Day - first Saturday in May

An exciting holiday is Neighbor's Day, which is supposed to counteract the first cause of depression in Free Europe - loneliness. During this holiday, residents of a particular tower line the parking lots and air squares surrounding it, carrying refreshments, talking to each other, asking who is from which floor, what they do, etc. Holoprojectors, which participants mount on their shoulders, help to break the ice. Above the heads of the holiday participants, information can then be seen: "My name is Torkil Aymore, I live on the 324th floor, I'm a gamedec, I don't bite".


Thunderstorm Festival - First Saturday in July

Climates over the polis are moderated, and due to the destructive power of lightning, storms are not allowed. The festival of thunderstorms is no exception. Yes, a fair amount of nimbus (rain clouds) are gathered over the glade, but without storm potential. Lightning and thunderstorms are generated by special ilgens. They make such a powerful impression that experts on the subject unanimously claim that ordinary thunderstorms can hide next to the storms in Warsaw City. The festival takes place in the warmest month of the year, so it's normal for people to go out, dressed scantily, on airborne sidewalks and walking platforms, wait for the rain to wash over them, and enjoy the titanic lightning. As a rule, a lot of alcohol is drunk then, and it's easy to get pregnant too.

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Warsaw City Day - September 1

The inhabitants of Warsaw City are overwhelmingly fond of this polis, so when September 1 comes, an important day for former Poles, they flock to the airways to celebrate. The main streets of the air are lined with aurocars dressed in a multitude of illusions and holoprojections, along with smaller walking platforms and other ships, all with decks on which dancers dance. Their enlarged silhouettes are projected above the lines of carts. The whole fiesta lasts a few hours, and afterward, drinks are half price in all Warsaw City venues.


Gifts

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Walktel

It's always nice to get a new, more expensive model. Walktel is a portable device that performs all media functions. The screen is generated on the glasses synchronized with the device or (newer models) corner lenses, in which the transmitters stimulating the auditory, olfactory, and tactile centers (fingertips) are implanted.


Omnic

Gifts for the rich. It’s a wrist device, which performs any media functions. It is an upgraded, more modern equivalent of the older walktel.


Games

Mostly it's about a fee (semi-annual, annual) in some games, like Deep Past World. It belongs to a good tone to have constant access there.


Holms

If you buy someone a holm, it's only a virtual and interactive one, i.e., one where you influence the plot by making choices at critical moments. Imagine a 3D movie, where you are "in the middle" of it. You can watch it standing, sitting, or in VR. Holms are interactive - you can decide the main choices of heroes. It is impossible to see the whole holm at one seeing, as it is filmed by 360 degrees cameras.


ULM toys

ULM in the Gamedecverse is something of a Lego contemporary. Understanding Little Mind aims to not only entertain but to educate. This company's toys are always very complex and challenging. They often take on the appearance of apartment complexes, factories, or planets inhabited by communities of tiny robots.


Figures

Figurine and board games are thriving in an age of advanced aerial animation, advanced micromechanics, and electronics. Buyers of figurines and models in any scale can be found among adults and children (vide General Enrique Baczewski surrounded by World War I fighters fighting each other). The terrain boards for these games are richly animated and look remarkably realistic. The figures can move, fly, and fight. The games are either smooth or phased.

Even chess has been modified in games with an added random element (a pawn killed by a knight can win a duel in certain situations) and animation.

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Chibots

Chibot is otherwise known as Child Bot. It is good for young parents to buy a droid to accompany their child's play and development. The best Chibots are made by ULM. The Chibot has numerous algorithms to stimulate the child's play, respond to the child's behavior, subtly reward desirable behavior and demotivate undesirable behavior. Chibots often look like plush toys: teddy bears, humanoid ducks, and hairy creatures with pleasant appearance. The child has something to cuddle with and someone to sleep with. Chibots have a permanent guarantee of safe use and durability (which is why they are pretty expensive). Their service technicians are never late with periodic inspections. Some parents trust these plush cuddly creatures so implicitly that they can neglect raising their kids, which psychologists criticize.

Although it is tough for a child to break ties with a Chibot, as a rule, network initiation helps a lot in this regard.


Jetboard

A jet board is a board with an advanced gyroscopic system that, if the user sets the options of this device, will prevent the child from falling over. The jet board allows flight at heights of up to one and a half meters, has an anti-collision system, and develops speeds of up to thirty kilometers per hour (it has speed limiters that can also be adjusted in the options). Together with jet boards are sold special modular shoes and overalls to protect critical parts of the body. In Warsaw City, there are unique trails for jet boarders, and if you want to really go wild, visit the Skate Park, where you can compete with the pros. If you want to practice online, play Skaters Chal.


Tours

A tour is always a good gift. Orbital tours organized by private companies with orbital propellers are within reach of almost every pocket. You can also take a trip to another continent, to another polis, or to a nature park in the Peeska Forest, where the ABB barrier system has been bent so that visitors can get an up-close look at dangerous species of flora and fauna.

How did you like the article? What gift would you most like to receive?
 

Infinitron

I post news
Staff Member
Joined
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Messages
97,437
Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/917720/view/2975175180239036731

Gamedec showcase at Dreamhack Beyond

What is Dreamhack Beyond? Simply, it's both a free hybrid gaming festival AND an online game to complement and showcase the best of DreamHack in a fresh, new way.

You might be interested in the fact that Anshar Studios is teaming up with Digital Dragons to be a part of this exceptional event. After placing your first steps in the Dreamhack virtual venue, head to our booth, where we will be showcasing the Gamedec demo and some more stuff that you have to see with your own eyes. (Fun fact: Gamedec is a game about investigating other games, so we showcase games in the game inside the game. Inception!)

In addition to meeting us in the digital exhibition space, on 30th June at 2 PM, you can watch the panel discussion "Branching and parallel realities" featuring:
  • Marcin Sergiusz Przybyłek - Author of the Gamedec saga, Writer of the game
  • Agnieszka Mulak - Narrative Designer
  • Krzysztof Kurek - Narrative Designer
One of the existing and valid quantum physics theories is the multiverse theory. It says that there is an infinite number of parallel realities, and we access them by making choices. So there is an infinite number of You making an unbelievable variety of things. The problem is, you cannot see all the variants of your life. You see only one, based on your past choices. Pity, isn't it? Well, a similar problem is with game designers and players. The former see "the multiverse", and the latter - only one layer of it.


Panels will run daily ontwitch.tv/dreamhack and twitch.tv/dreamhackbeyond. It would be best for you to stay tuned for Indie Playground Trailer Showcase because you may see a certain detective investigating virtual worlds.

---------

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DreamHack Beyond is an all-digital, at-home, interactive experience. Players/attendees can enjoy the festival in any way they choose: In the video game, players can:

- Create and customize your character
- Collect limited edition pets and cosmetics
- Explore the story of the Sleepers by completing the campaign
- Cheer on your favorite teams with gear and custom animations
- Participate in various side quests to earn XP and find exclusive loot
- Many dynamically themed halls with their own lore

Or, attendees can skip the game and go right to a desired booth for a personalized, one-of-a-kind experience by attending panels, playing game demos, and taking part in the event through more traditional DreamHack festival activities.

So hop into your virtual outfit, take your friends and let's experience this year's Dreamhack together!
 

cyborgboy95

News Cyborg
Joined
Aug 24, 2019
Messages
2,759
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/917720/view/2969546947798983344
July, ah sweet July. Some of us took some time off with our families to unload the steam before the release. Others worked hard to make sure everything's in place. 

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Bug hunting!

Our core team meets every day in the morning and spends the first couple of hours playing the game repeatedly to catch bugs, blockers and reviewing the assets to make sure they're in the right place. 

Optimizing the game's graphics

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Cleaning up what's unnecessary, making sure we save some resources and boost the performance. That's a normal thing to do before securing the assets and locking additional tweaks.

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Improving the quality of children's models to make them look more detailed.

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Yes, we will have children's NPCs – if you follow our updates carefully, you'll know where to place them precisely. The initial models were low poly, but we knew we will fix them when we figure out the rest of the game. Now it's time to present the more polished version.

Making additional models presets for the NPCs – Male and Female swimsuits

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For one of our Virtual Worlds, we needed some more casual look into the NPCs outfits. There's not much more to say, so let's just admire the creativity of our team, sitting here in Katowice in July, dreaming about the fun times at the beach.

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Last but not least: our team went to Krakow to prepare something special for you, which we will share soon. We can't reveal too much now, so stay tuned :)

Thanks for reading this last changelog before the release of Gamedec. We can't wait to show you the final result of our work, and we're very excited to receive your feedback. Feel free to share the link to the game with your friends and add it to your wishlist. See you soon!
 

Harthwain

Magister
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
4,774
Are deductions a one-time things? I mean, if the solution is set in stone, then there is very little reason for you to make a different deduction. Or is the world reactive enough to "shape" the crime on the fly (or there are "sets" of crimes the game picks per playthrough), so you actually have to think about it next time, when you make a different character?
 

Hellion

Arcane
Joined
Feb 5, 2013
Messages
1,599
Are deductions a one-time things? I mean, if the solution is set in stone, then there is very little reason for you to make a different deduction. Or is the world reactive enough to "shape" the crime on the fly (or there are "sets" of crimes the game picks per playthrough), so you actually have to think about it next time, when you make a different character?

From what I've seen so far in the previews, there is a "correct" deduction out of all the ones that are offered, so the game's crimes are not "procedurally generated" or something like that. However:

-You don't get absolute confirmation regarding whether the deduction you reached is the "correct" one until after the case is closed, or in some cases not even then.

-Selecting different deductions seems to open up unique paths in each crime investigation, even if these deductions are the "wrong" ones, so a "wrong" deduction does not result in absolute failure or a game over. Even if you reach the "wrong deductions" for the entirety of a crime, and you reach some kind of resolution in the end, I think that the game doesn't end and you just proceed to the next investigation. Meaning that some things might play out differently depending on how you choose to interpret each crime.

-Each character/skillset has different means of approaching each crime, so even if the deductions you make end up being the same across different playthroughs, how you reach these deductions seems to be from a little to drastically different depending on your character's skills.

-I might be mistaken on this, but I get the impression that you can't discover 100% of each crime's specific conditions and events on a single character/skillset. During the first preview, for example, I'm pretty sure I did everything right and absolutely discovered the "correct" chain of events and deductions for the crime, but in the "debriefing" phase after the crime was solved, the game pretty much told me that "you didn't find everything there was to find - 3.5 out of 5 stars". Meaning that there are "choices" to be made in the game even outside the deductions system, apart from investigation paths that are locked behind skillchecks so that they can only be pursued by characters with specific skills.

I guess more definite info on that will come up as we reach the release date.
 

cyborgboy95

News Cyborg
Joined
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Messages
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https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/917720/view/5144786299697391158

Dev-Diary: About UI with Iza Mazur
One of the most common but, often unnoticeable aspects of video games is their User Interface. It is hard to design a system in which the player almost immediately knows what to do and everything is clear and easy to use.

Meet Iza Mazur, who tries to bring these factors together, and design a coherent UI to Gamedec – a game of many worlds and genres.


All of the images might be from different stages of game development, please don’t mind the occasional Polish words since this is still a work-in-progress state. :)
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GENERAL QUESTIONS

If you'd have to describe what you do in your job to a 10-year-old, what would you say?


I invent and draw all the icons and pop-ups you see when playing the game, changing options, or using your character's abilities. The number of bullets, the inventory, and icons representing items you've gained, simple things like a life bar or a mini-map. Even the screen where you save your progress in the game. This is what I do daily.

When did you decide to become a UI designer?


Spontaneously while working at my first company, when I was tasked with designing some skill icons. My first task was to work on storyboards. After some time, I was assigned to work on UI. It started with a few icons, ended with designing popups, and finally whole screens. As it turned out, most graphic designers hated working on UI, so as one of the few graphic designers who liked it, I was given more and more tasks related to it until I started to be interested in UX. And so it stayed.

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Why is UI design so important?


It helps the player grasp the gameplay and understand the game mechanics. If it wasn't for the UI, it would be hard to introduce the player to new mechanics or show how to navigate the game world at all.

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What UX information do you need to have before you start designing?


Any that would be useful But seriously, I need to know what kind of game mechanics the design envisions to determine what screens are required and what would be on them. Screens such as options or the main menu are usually not very problematic. For most gamers, The most demanding screens relate to the development of characters, where there are many elements. Everything depends on what the designers come up with and those unique to a particular game and hard to find references in other games.

GAMEDEC

What were your inspirations for Gamedec's UI?


There were different games at different stages, but mainly the AC series. After so many titles were released in the series, their UI is evident and straightforward. There was also inspiration from Dishonored and Deus Ex.

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How would you describe UI design in Gamedec? What was your design process, and how did you validate your decisions?


I started with a box-based sketch to show the placement of elements on the screen and determine if the flow was appropriate. Then I looked for the right style, based on what was done by 3D and Level Designers and the project's overall vision. Once the tone was clear, I made final mockups, which were then approved by the Art Director and given to the developers for review.

How challenging is designing a UI for an isometric game?


It depends on the size of the game and the complexity of the mechanics involved. The challenge is to create a clear UI when there is a lot of data to consider, and with RPGs, there is usually a lot of it. FPP games provide more opportunities for experimentation, at least in my opinion.

But that doesn’t mean that other genres have nothing to offer. To this day, I'm still fascinated by the minimal UI in Dead Space and how it was implemented and "written" into the gameplay.

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Was it hard to shuffle the UIs because of how many different environments Gamedec has?


Considering that each world has a dedicated HUD, it was a fun and stress-relieving task. It allowed me to break from creating the main UI and look at everything from a new perspective. I also enjoyed playing with the styles. I moved away from our theme and designed something completely new to fit a particular world.

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What element of UI are you most proud to work on?


From in-game UI and codex, They seem the clearest to me, and I hope people will appreciate the intuition of both.

What system needed a general overhaul, and how did it make to a way better design? What was your role in it?


The deduction was definitely the most challenging. It went through the most iterations. Because of the multitude of choices, it was hard to design everything to understand what they should do and why. The concept kept changing. From ordered folders through, somewhat chaotic neural connection, to screens à la Detroit: Become Human. Currently, the screen is a mixture of all the previous ideas. From each, we take the most exciting elements, creating a coherent and readable whole.

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How does the feedback from beta-testers and players influence the UI changes in the game?


They help me detect elements that are not intuitive for players. They show what they pay more attention to, what is ignored, and what should be visible. In general, I appreciate the comments of testers and players. It's from them that the most constructive and helpful feedback comes.

What part of the UI do you think people will appreciate the most?


I vote for Deduction because it was the most challenging to make it clear, easy to use.

PERSONAL

What are your design principles? On what do you focus the most? 


The most important thing for me is to have a simple and intuitive approach and maintain consistency on the screens. If a player starts to feel lost during the game and doesn't know where to find the information they need at the moment, it means that the UX needs improvement.

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Do you often experiment? Do you make any risky moves or just follow the safe path?


During the mockup phase, I usually give several suggestions from 3 categories:
  • safe and proven approaches,
  • ideas that were thrown during the brainstorm with the team
  • a completely new and unconventional approach

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Generally, creating the UI is about experimenting with different elements and choosing what will best fit the vision created by the rest of the team. The safe version is the one that already works in many games; the players are familiar with it, so they will certainly not feel lost. The ideas proposed by the team are usually a mixture of the first and third groups.

Experimenting is the most fun, but ideas are sometimes hard to implement in the game so that the player does not feel overwhelmed by too many new mechanics. Sometimes, however, there's no need to reinvent the wheel. If certain things exist and are universally recognized, then there is no need to change them. The "X" button is always in the top right corner of the popup, and that's where players will look for it, so placing it anywhere else will cause unnecessary confusion.

What software do you use when designing UI?


A sheet of paper and pencil for quick sketches based on boxes, PS for final mockups, and programs that automatically create textures from cut parts.

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How do you keep up with design trends?


I play the latest titles or at least watch streams of them. It's the best way to keep up with trends that change pretty quickly. I'm often helped by player comments or reviews. I then point out elements of the UI that the recipients liked and which they found unnecessary or confusing.

What You Love Most About UI Design?


I have a weakness in drawing icons of all kinds.

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What would you do if not UI?

I would draw tarot cards all day :)
 

cyborgboy95

News Cyborg
Joined
Aug 24, 2019
Messages
2,759
https://store.steampowered.com/news/app/917720/view/2959415117270498652

When talking about sci-fi and post-cyberpunk scenarios, many people are asking about the military and how it evolved with the passage of time. GamedecVerse has a lot to say about this matter, so be prepared for a solid dosage of knowledge!

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In the GamedecVerse, there are only four countries in the world: The Free States of the Americas (FSA), Free Europe (FE), the African Federation (AF), and the Pacific and Indian Ocean Federation (PIOF). Some of these countries have separate districts. E.g., FSA has South and North America, PIOF has Mother Russia, Middle Kingdom, Australia, etc.

Armies

Each of these four countries has its own professional armies, whose numbers, like technological advancement, vary greatly.

Free States of Americas [FSA]

The FSA army has two million soldiers and four million drones. It relies on modern equipment, unmanned warfare, and special forces. The best airships, the best submarines, the best spacecraft, the best-trained pilots, and commandos. And the most expensive equipment.

African Federation [AF]

This is the poorest and second-largest army. It consists of five million soldiers divided into armies according to tribal affiliation and one hundred thousand drones. Inadequate equipment and poor training, not the best motivation. FE is essentially a fictional country torn apart by corporations.

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Pacific and Indian Ocean Federation [PIOF]

Without a doubt the most powerful army globally, with forty million soldiers and ten million drones. Everything looks fantastic. Technology, however, does not catch up with that of the FSA, and experts have no doubt that in the event of a clash, the FSA would win.

Free Europe [FE]

Experts still cannot determine which army would be more effective: the one belonging to the PIOF or the one at the disposal of the FE. The European army consists of three million soldiers and three million drones. Still, it has reliable equipment and well-trained personnel. Like the FSE, it has airborne battleships, great aircraft, submarines, and because of its location, numerous special forces.

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Who carries the weapons?

In Free Europe, weapons are carried by:
  • Professional soldiers
  • Veterans
  • Police officers
  • Out-Rangers
Soldiers & Out-Rangers
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Mechanized armies at the end of the 22nd century are great sandboxes for the big boys: modern flying, riding, or swimming equipment and a bunch of knock-offs. The point is that an army is also a powerful conditioning machine that forces a soldier to shoot another human being and take his life on command. If you choose the profession of a soldier, remember that you have been brainwashed. You have been turned into a killing machine. The fuse that makes it difficult to carry out a terrible order has been "removed," and then before you leave the ranks, it has been "installed" again.

You most likely did not kill anyone during your career. However, you were, there is no doubt about it, taught how to take a life. In addition to this challenging knowledge, you carry pounds of valuable skills in your memory. You know how to repair equipment, how to drive heavy and light combat vehicles (remember, even tanks fly in the Gamedecverse). You are well versed in weapons, quick medical aid and know how your mind and body react under extreme exhaustion. - this gives you a significant advantage in all war games and situations of extreme fatigue.

Games simulating military clashes are to you what a remote-controlled pneumobil model is to a professional pilot.

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Armed Conflicts

In the Gamedecverse, the media is in the hands of corporations, and corporations don't want the public to know what they're really doing. And what do they do? When a former country, let's say Chile, wants to get a little autonomy in the FSA, immediately the jackals from the secret service appear and pacify the provocateurs. What happens in the news? The world gets the message that a dozen "terrorists" were neutralized.

When a company begins to advance dangerously, masked "terrorists" attack its factories and destroy them.

When engineers discover large deposits of precious minerals in some districts of some country, they will show up to install their man as mayor of the district. No matter where the corporation that wants to get its hands on them is headquartered. If there is trouble with other corporations, there will be "armed gang fights."

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The general rule is that when inter-corporate fighting occurs, the media talk about ethnic conflicts, liberation movements, separatist movements. They cover everything to maintain the illusion of states and their intra-state troubles. In fact, states exist so that there are different currencies, financial markets and so that you can still have financial instruments. If it weren't for that, there would probably have been a single state for a long time, over which corporations would extend their tentacles as they fight for power.

Armed conflicts go on all the time, but they are called "interventions", "missions", "reconnaissances", "negotiations", etc. The soldiers serving in FE are most often sent to Africa, less often to South America. They rarely guess that diamond, uranium, gold, or copper deposits are really involved. However, if they glanced at the mineral maps, they should guess.

The attitude towards the military

The doctrine of war introduced in the middle of the 20th century said that a soldier should inspire fear by his appearance. At this time, fearsome face masks and gruesome designs of weapons and armaments were introduced to the general public. Not much has changed since then. This is why soldiers inspire a mixture of fear and awe, especially those who have chosen to have any of their lost limbs replaced with combat-grade, mechanical prosthetics. (The Old Yet may have such a prosthesis).

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Depending on whom a veteran of conflicts in Africa or South America comes across, their perception will vary.

Informed person - Informed people have attended training at least once on how to treat veterans. These ones know that they should not be judged that it is okay to ask them about "what it was like," but accept that they will not tell you everything. Veterans have been forced to kill, and this part of their experience accounts for PTSD. An informed person will approach a veteran with respect, calm, and a listening attitude.

"Pacifist" - an aggressive anti-corporate militant. If a veteran comes across as a "pacifist," they may be met with hostility, accusations, spitting in the face, and terms like "corporate minion," "terrorist," and "murderer."

Uninformed person - people who are unaware of the great vulnerability of veterans but who are not hostile to them like "pacifists." They are often afraid of veterans, which only arouses the loneliness syndrome in them.

And that concludes our today's update! How do you find this detailed report on the state of the military in the 22nd century? Would you enlist or rather spend your time in the virtualias?
 

Infinitron

I post news
Staff Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2011
Messages
97,437
Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth


Press play and listen to the sounds of Gamedec. In this developer diary, we'll look at how four composers and an orchestra collaborated to create an out-of-the-box soundtrack.
 

lycanwarrior

Scholar
Joined
Jan 1, 2021
Messages
1,203
Man these smaller indie companies (Encased, Gamedec, etc.) seem to be wanting to commit financial suicide by releasing their games too closely due to PF WotR.

Well, hopefully they will still do well irregardless...
 

Jenkem

その目、だれの目?
Patron
Vatnik
Joined
Nov 30, 2016
Messages
8,889
Location
An oasis of love and friendship.
Make the Codex Great Again! Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. I helped put crap in Monomyth
maybe pozfinder can just fuck off.. tired of every fucking thread around here acting as if it's the end all be all of RPGs and nothing should ever release unless it's been out for over a year or something in which case the line will be "OmG i caNT BeliEve ThEy ArE RElEaSiNg This GaME So ClOse To POzFiNdER DLC!!!!"
 

Keshik

Arcane
Joined
Mar 22, 2012
Messages
2,121
Man these smaller indie companies (Encased, Gamedec, etc.) seem to be wanting to commit financial suicide by releasing their games too closely due to PF WotR.

Well, hopefully they will still do well irregardless...

Non neglibile amount of people that this appeals to more than Pathfinder, I'd have to imagine. Being cheaper also helps
 

Hellion

Arcane
Joined
Feb 5, 2013
Messages
1,599
Various bits of information on the game that I gathered in a PR presentation a few minutes ago:

-Choices we make during cases open or close possible paths in later cases. For example, we can accept to join a Clan during an investigation, and later on when we encounter that Clan again in a different case we have an easier time dealing with them because we are a member, but at the same time that closes various "subterfuge" paths because everyone knows who we are.

-There are no "good" or "bad" endings, only different ones. The devs were very specific that they didn't want to follow the typical design path that "someone who solves all the cases gets the good ending, and someone who roleplays "the stupidest gamedec in the world" gets the bad ending", so essentially your choices in the game affect which endings you can pursue, but none of them are "good" or "bad" per se.

-On the same note, there are also no "Right or Wrong" ways to pursue an investigation as far as the game is concerned, only different paths that branch the game in different ways. You can, of course, solve each case the "correct" way if you work towards this, but even selecting "wrong" deductions leads to distinct gameplay options.

-Average duration is about 12 hours, more or less. But replayability is naturally quite high.

-They have plans for DLC that adds more Virtualia.

Oh and

-EVERYONE asks them if they drew inspiration from Disco Elysium, but apparently they've been designing the game to be a non-combat RPG since before DE came out, and mainly drew inspiration from PnP games (as well as the Gamedec novels, of course).
 
Last edited:

toro

Arcane
Vatnik
Joined
Apr 14, 2009
Messages
14,084
Various bits of information on the game that I gathered in a PR presentation a few minutes ago:

-Choices we make during cases open or close possible paths in later cases. For example, we can accept to join a Clan during an investigation, and later on when we encounter that Clan again in a different case we have an easier time dealing with them because we are a member, but at the same time that closes various "subterfuge" paths because everyone knows who we are.

-There are no "good" or "bad" endings, only different ones. The devs were very specific that they didn't want to follow the typical design path that "someone who solves all the cases gets the good ending, and someone who roleplays "the stupidest gamedec in the world" gets the bad ending", so essentially your choices in the game affect which endings you can pursue, but none of them are "good" or "bad" per se.

-On the same note, there are also no "Right or Wrong" ways to pursue an investigation as far as the game is concerned, only different paths that branch the game in different ways. You can, of course, solve each case the "correct" way if you work towards this, but even selecting "wrong" deductions leads to distinct gameplay options.

-Average duration is about 12 hours, more or less. But replayability is naturally quite high.

-They have plans for DLC that adds more Virtualia.

Oh and

-EVERYONE asks them if they drew inspiration from Disco Elysium, but apparently they've been designing the game to be a non-combat RPG since before DE came out, and mainly drew inspiration from PnP games (as well as the Gamedec novels, of course).

Basically a more extensive version of Lacuna + Disco Elysium (!?)


Edit: This game is stretching the meaning of what is a RPG.
 

Harthwain

Magister
Joined
Dec 13, 2019
Messages
4,774
Edit: This game is stretching the meaning of what is a RPG.
But what is an RPG?

Still, I am going to look into that Lacuna game. Could be interesting as there aren't enough ACTUAL detective games (which involve deduction). Thanks.
 

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