Cyber Knights: Flashpoint

Cyber Knights: Flashpoint July Dev Update & Level Builder

Version
July Dev Update & Level Builder
Version Date
July 19, 2020
Links

Patch Notes

July Dev Update & Level Builder


With July already well underway, we’re back again for some show and tell about game dev progress and to deliver a reminder to everyone about the awesome MercerBot features on our Discord, and reveal the latest on both stretch goals and rewards. It’s a big one, so be sure to keep scrolling!

If you missed Update #31, we announced language pack support and debuted the snow leopard design. In Update #32, we announced the game’s reactive music/SFX and shared all of the concept art for the backer’s faces.

Level Builder


In the last few updates, we’ve talked a lot about the foundation elements of the Cyber Knights: Flashpoint game – including translation support, reactive sound design and our new UI toolkit. Another fundamental piece underpinning our ability to successfully build out the game is our Level Builder tool, which we are now excited to off in an early preview video.

Our goals in designing the Level Builder toolkit were simple but as this is a tool where we will spend an astronomical number of hours, we had to hold it to a very high standard. We’re excited to have hit the minimum requirements we set for ourselves – with lots of room for iterative improvement – and are now in motion with the Level Builder, logging bugs, improving its various themes and most importantly – building levels!

  • Author can rapidly block out of levels
  • Author never places individual elements that are prone to error (walls, floors, fences)
  • Author can play the level during development very easily
  • Level Builder optimizes objects and components for efficiency (merge geometry, box colliders)
  • Level Builder retains its ability to edit a level even after level is shipped to production (so that updates are easy and not painful)
  • Level Builder is prepared to be a cornerstone tool of our modkit

In this preview video you can see a high speed preview of “blocking out” of the level codenamed “Ascent”. This is the first phase of laying down a new level, in which it gains its basic shape and form. The video ends with adding the first few props and decorations. The Level Builder helps the designer setup all the basic pieces and prep the level for the later stages such as props, mission events and lighting. Keep in mind, at this stage this is a level with no grime, no graffiti and none of the visual details that will make it really shine which are all added in later stages.



Using MercerBot on Discord


To support our 5000+ backers on the Trese Brothers Verified Discord Server, we’ve written a custom Discord bot, styled after the terrifying cyber-tactician, Max Mercer. To communicate with MercerBot, you can type commands into any Discord channel on our server but you can also use the dedicated channel just for messing around with bots, #bot_talk.

Cyber Knights Volunteers

Volunteers are players interested in helping new players with advice or answer questions. You can become a Cyber Knights Volunteer using the commands “max!vol” to join, or the “max!unvol” to depart the group. Any user on the Discord server can mention the “@CKF Volunteer” role to ask for assistance with the Alpha Test, Discord or other community resources. We hope to have a sizable community of volunteers signed up by the time the game becomes publicly available so that these pro alpha players can help support the game and the community.


Cyber Knights Notifications

You can sign up to receive Cyber Knights Notifications from the Trese Brothers team using the commands “max!subscribe” to join the list and “max!unsubscribe” to depart from it. We will mention the “@CKF Notification” role when we publish new Kickstarter updates, Alpha builds or social media posts we think are worth checking out.

Star Traders: Frontiers Volunteers

Similar to Cyber Knights Volunteers, the server has a matching role for our previous Kickstarter, Star Traders: Frontiers. If you’d like to volunteer to provide support there, use the commands “max!vol_stf” to join, or the “max!unvol_stf” to depart the group. Any user on the Discord server can mention the “@STF Volunteer” role to ask for assistance with the game.

Twitch Notifications

You can sign up to receive Twitch Stream Notifications from the Trese Brothers team using the commands “max!twitch” to join the list and “max!untwitch” to leave. We will mention the “@Twitch Notification” role whenever we go live on Twitch.

Stretch Goal Outfits: Milsec & Corporate


You unlocked 3 different new outfit sets (street, military, corp) during the campaign’s funding run and we’re excited to share the second and third sets today – milsec and corp!

First, the milsec pair features a lighter set of armor of the all-day, every-day security soldier. Eschewing some of the trappings of heavier armor, the military tactsuit design enables a mobile street soldier who needs to balance speed, carry and defense.



And then those fancy corps have dressed to kill, pushing the stylistic limits of 2231 to ensure they are wearing the blaziest blaze.




Backer Faces in 3D


With all of the concept art now wrapped up for our Kickstarter backer’s faces, the 3D team is starting to migrate those faces into the pipeline and into the high poly sculpting phase. We’re very pleased to share the early results! These are, of course, earlier drafts but we can’t wait to see the entire crew in 3D glory.




Progress Bar


As a rule we include the progress bar in every update. The changes with this update are to add the “3D” tag to the New Military and New Corp Outfit stretch goals as they have passed through their concept phase. If you have any questions about the current state of stretch goals or rewards, just post a comment on this update or drop us a message and we can help out!



Thank you for your on-going support! Be sure to Wishlist Cyber Knights: Flashpoint if you haven't yet.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1021210/Cyber_Knights_Flashpoint/