Kicking off the great week of development, I’m releasing update 0.542. This update focuses on fixes regarding AI, and implements a shot distance display to let you know roughly how far your ball will go, as in the image below:
The changelist for this version is below:
Added distance visualizer for the shooting
Increased size of trails/debug lines
Handled instances when the ball goes out of bounds
Tweaked movement acceleration for AI to avoid it from stupidly going off cliffs
Adjusted AI threshold for shots
Set the resort to stay open 24/7 for debugging purposes (always spawning new AI, not despawning AI suddenly)
Tweaked ball rolling drag to stop it from rolling endlessly on occasion
I’ve also removed the current grass renderer, as it was causing issues on Mac/Linux, and on non DirectX11 systems. I’ll think of a better solution later on.
That’s all for now folks! Builds are already updated, so go grab the update!
Have just released the 0.541 update, which fixes a couple of issues found on 0.54, and gives a better version of the path builder mesh.
Here’s the main points of change:
Tweaked time system and removed the day-night cycle. Terrain always looks nicer now on current lighting. Lighting will change later on depending on the season/weather.
Fixed path mesh. Generation is better and the intersection is also better.
Removed triangle alternation from terrain mesh so that it matches the terrain collider. This was causing the path to go underground, and the AI/ball to also disappear underground on occasion.
Fixed display of player shots. Now it obeys the arcs and power properly.
Tweaked the values of the AI arcs.
Increased movement speed for AI to balance the larger map
That’s all for now.
The Path tool will stay the way it is now, while I get to work on the new hole builder. You’ll plan out the hole all at once creating a kind of “yardage book” representation of it, placing the terrain tiles and whatnot, and then giving the order for it to be built. Any alteration you wish to do to the hole, will be done through its yardage book. This way you’ll also be able to save/load previously created yardage books!
A real life Yardage Book page. Boss Golf will feature something slightly similar!
And since in golf you can have multiple teeing locations, so will be the case in Boss Golf! No longer will you be constrained about simply placing the tee tile; you’ll be placing the tee object instead. Coming in 5 different colors, that mark the level of difficulty of a tee.
The same will be doable with the hole! You’ll now lay down the green are as you wish, and then place the hole object in the location you desire, giving you more options for customizing your hole.
All of these changes will come in 0.55!
Oh and as a bonus, next week is the famous Golden Week here in Japan. Meaning I’ll be crunching down to get the game to a great state to show off in May’s BitSummit! If you’re in Japan during that time, be sure to drop by and say hello! And play the exclusive resort featured at the event!
Finally released the 0.54 update to Boss Golf closed alpha!
It’s available in the same place as usual. (If you haven’t signed up for the alpha, you can do so here!)
The main focus of this update was getting the new path system in the game, and it has been implemented. Comes with 6 different types of path you can use. Later on, I’ll add the ability to choose the width too.
As always, bugs are to be expected and whatnot. I’d love if you guys could let me know of any issues you find, or features you’d like to see in the game! Our Reddit is a great place for it, so is our Discord channel!
Anywho, it’s here, enjoy making some new paths and the new UI.
Got the placement to stick, including the blending between different path types. Now tomorrow all that’s left will be saving and loading, which should be simple.
I’ve also taken the decision to leave the pathbuilding as instantaneous, instead of having the landscaper dude going around placing them. Makes more sense this way, since it’ll be something the player will be able to lay and relay quickly. Going to study more from now on what should be dealt by the landscaper/builders, and what should be instantaneous.
Anyway, check out how it’s looking like!
So nice, specially being able to move it in 8 directions! Breaks away from the usual grid style of building things.
Work on the new path is nearing an end for now, with release expected for tomorrow. All that’s left is loading/saving capabilities, and connection with the order system. But it’s working!
Together with it, 0.54 will bring a UI overhaul! The blue was alright and worked well, but the new edition brings a cleaner and more organized look, and also more in tune with the theme. You can see the new UI below!
You can also spot the new Path Builder on the bottom right, as well as some path-building action going on the screen, by placing a dirt path connecting some areas around.
One thing that’s different between the path builder in Boss Golf and in other similar games, is that you can simply drag the path from point A to point B, and the game will figure out the optimal placement for it. Alternatively, you can place your path in smaller stretches, to allow you to customize it to your liking. Either way, you can save time and be sure that the path will go wherever you tell it to go!
That’s all for now, folks. Stay tuned for tomorrow’s release! (Also, my birthday, hurray!)
Sorry for the silence recently. Sometimes life comes at you hard and you don’t have a lot of time to work on things!
I’ve been busy getting the new path-building system in. Right now, the preview display is in, and allows you to build paths in all 8 directions. As you can see below:
Right now, the preview is basically a line renderer with a very simple material, perfect for illustrating where your path is expected to go.
As you draw the path, you’ll see how much it’s expected to cost. Once you release the mouse button, the path will begin being built by the landscaper. You’ll be able to remove sections of the path at any time.
Later on you’ll also be able to choose the type of path you want to build, which will come with different materials, costs, and sizes! Should lead to some very interesting styles!
Now I’m working on implementing the procedural mesh for the path proper, which will take a bit of work but I think I can get it done this weekend. Being able to place the path in 8 directions will be pretty useful!
Boss Golf 