HyperKat Support and Tester Forum
Mars Colony Frontier => Have your say on the new version => Topic started by: Hyper on June 18, 2013, 09:33:32 AM
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Construction of V 2.0 has started. We will post updates, news and progress here. We will be asking for your input when we start the alpha phase. More to come.....
This board is set for read only for now. Please dont flood the other boards with discussions about 2.0. We will unlock this board at a later date. Thanks ....
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Play area has been tested at 4x version 1 so we have 64 square kilometers now, will try to expand that.
Buildings can be placed by users to build any configuration
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Players can layout and build their base in any configuration they wish.
In game economy will allow users to purchase base sections, rovers and upgrades.
Work missions will be offered to players for experience and cash.
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Main base is being built now. RTO (Return to orbit) vehicle is being constructed. The idea here is transports from Earth go into orbit around Mars and the RTO launches and docks to get supplies or send materials and people to and from Earth.
We should have a dedicated server set up before the end of the year for testing. Please sign up on the forums if you are interested.
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Rovers are in and running at this point. New models of the base units are being made. NPC - AI is being worked on. We have a engine lighting issue at this point slowing things down.
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Development of Version 2 is on hold. The public Alpha test scheduled for January will be delayed till we can update our website....
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We have made good progress on the player built bases. Users can open a dialog, buy the modules they want to build and game will provide them. Big hurdle but it all works now.
We are currently testing the economy system. Supply and demand for commodities like ores, food, parts. Users will affect prices dynamically.
More to come....
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Any status update?.. ;)
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Yes we have a few updates
Dedicated server in and working (will have a load test soon)
NPC code is in testing as we speak
Player build base dialogs and spawns base units in
Game fully ported to new engine
Core economy in and working ( prices change on item quantity )
Databases now store in "Application Data" directory so you dont have to run as admin
Weather system is in and working but needs some polish
New HUD is in (hooking it all up now)
New player steer select code (right click to toggle steer/select)
Artwork is still in alpha. I will use the old art to get the game running
School is out for the summer so I have more time to work on it
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Here is a shot of the new HUD
Could use some feedback on this
(http://www.hyperkat.com/colony/HUD.png)
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It looks alright. The layout looks good.
A few things come to mind based on my personal opinions.
1: Would it be possible to also add numerical displays for things like pressure, radiation, etc? Either 'in' the bars, or shrink the bars down a little to add a spot for a numerical display next to the bars?
2: The 'background' of the bottom part of the HUD seems like it might be better if it extended to the sides, so it is also behind the External and EVA Suit stat bars. Maybe also make it a little darker/slightly less translucent. But perhaps not as dark as that small window off to the right side.
3: The font/HUD border color seems a little on the light side. Could it be made a little darker? Or perhaps an option added in the game option settings to allow for someone to customize the color, or otherwise have several colors to choose from? (such as blue, green, red, white, and black), with each color having a slight variation of the HUD background color?
On a related idea, having a few parts, like PRES, RAD, OXY or PWR change color (for it or the bar) when they are in a 'caution/very low/very high' and 'danger'/to high/to low' amounts?
4: Personally, I would also like to see a small translucent 'background' (like the bottom part) added to the area behind the compass at the top of the screen.
5: A few elements like the minimap seem a little 'small', but it might just be due to whatever resolution the image was taken at. At 1280.960 about the max my old CRT can handle), The mini-maps looks a little small when I zoom in on the pic so it fills the screen width wise in a picture viewer. If it would appear a little bigger when running at my resolution by default, then it is not an issue.
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I will pass this along to the Hudmaster. I am with you on the numbers then we got alot of flack for it. I am thinking a switch for those who want it.
Thanks..
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Here is a shot of the new HUD
Could use some feedback on this
(http://www.hyperkat.com/colony/HUD.png)
Chat font needs 2 be a little bigger...
Compass and rest of HUD could be smaller but I don't know if they change their scale according 2 resolution...
Map could be bigger and a transparent near borders...
X,Y,Elev - smaller font... And Elev should have .000 precision like on map screen (any way there is a space for it) - stuff would be helping during installation of transmitters... (I like 2 put them on a highest point precisely:))
MOAR hot-keys 4 inventory slots and rest stuff like mini-games...
Oh!.. And would be nice to see some change in system of opening doors... (Hard to had precise track on some in-game buttons by mouse)
"Press "E" to open" stuff at close range near interactable objects should do... ("R" for "turn off" if you desperately need more functions)
Visualization!..
Not exciting to search for EVA suit temperature digits every time... So, instead of putting numbers on screen you can put a visualized EVA suit colored in yellow while 20dgr C (max temp) and changing color to blue while going closer to Martian temp... And digits could be placed on that visualization to give more precise info about temp... (See tha picts)
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Here is a shot of the new HUD
Could use some feedback on this
(http://www.hyperkat.com/colony/HUD.png)
Stomach icon would be fine for food but gettin' empty space in it instead changin' color... (or changing color from green 2 yellow and 2 black)
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Here is a shot of the new HUD
Could use some feedback on this
(http://www.hyperkat.com/colony/HUD.png)
And MOAR that way...
PDA could provide more detailed info about base (temp, energy distribution/production/consumption, oxygen, other resources) but only while in range of radio transmitters... (Doubtfully that PDA has satellite uplink...)
Oh... And temperature of suit (and other sliders) should have a hotkey bindings 2...
I won't approve health bar because I saw no medicine skill in MCC...
Increased heartbeat sound/screen blurring/distorted breathing could've provide a necessary tip telling player that his avatar is not in perfect condition...
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Oh, and thank you Hyper 4 swift reply... :)
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I check every day. Trying to make this something we can all enjoy
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First dedicated server test run today. 2 clients ran the game for 4 hours with no issues.
I hope to have a alpha test within a month.
Most all systems are in and running.
Base building by players should be working by then.
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Any updates to come for this or is the project scratched off?
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Still working on things. Had a medical issue to deal with, people on vacation, etc.
Currently working on the mining aspect. Players can sell raw ores to NPC at the main base and market prices adjust. You can buy minerals from this vendor as well. GPR maps, drill hole maps, equipment locator maps all in and working.
One group is working on player built base dialogs and spawn code, mostly in and working now.
Players can claim a build site and set up a base. Owner of the site can add team members.
Design process is a bit more involved than I first thought but most of the mechanics are in and working.
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Nice!..
Hyper, have you considered making trailer yet?.. ;)
Oh, and will be alpha or beta available on Steam?..
If yes then when?..
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Still I'd like 2 know...
In MCC2, will there be some "robotization"?.. :o
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Still working on things. Had a medical issue to deal with, people on vacation, etc.
Currently working on the mining aspect. Players can sell raw ores to NPC at the main base and market prices adjust. You can buy minerals from this vendor as well. GPR maps, drill hole maps, equipment locator maps all in and working.
One group is working on player built base dialogs and spawn code, mostly in and working now.
Players can claim a build site and set up a base. Owner of the site can add team members.
Design process is a bit more involved than I first thought but most of the mechanics are in and working.
Thanks for the reply Hyper. I hope all the medical stuff is getting cleared and out of your way. Keep up the good work!
Still I'd like 2 know...
In MCC2, will there be some "robotization"?.. :o
Do you mean Controlled Robotics like Curiosity, Val, and Robonaut?
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Still working on things. Had a medical issue to deal with, people on vacation, etc.
Currently working on the mining aspect. Players can sell raw ores to NPC at the main base and market prices adjust. You can buy minerals from this vendor as well. GPR maps, drill hole maps, equipment locator maps all in and working.
One group is working on player built base dialogs and spawn code, mostly in and working now.
Players can claim a build site and set up a base. Owner of the site can add team members.
Design process is a bit more involved than I first thought but most of the mechanics are in and working.
Thanks for the reply Hyper. I hope all the medical stuff is getting cleared and out of your way. Keep up the good work!
Still I'd like 2 know...
In MCC2, will there be some "robotization"?.. :o
Do you mean Controlled Robotics like Curiosity, Val, and Robonaut?
Some automated logistics will be nice...
It can be not really exiting to carry ore from few mining posts by yourself...
And controlled would be useful 2...
...Like in Moon Base Alpha... :)
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NPC characters have been added
Mine equipment sales
Ore buy and sell
Organics plastics, seeds,
Essentials food meds
Close to final on player building bases, most everything works, equipment gets placed properly
Testing continues....
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NPC characters have been added
Mine equipment sales
Ore buy and sell
Organics plastics, seeds,
Essentials food meds
Close to final on player building bases, most everything works, equipment gets placed properly
Testing continues....
Any chance for steam early access?..
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We are still working on the mechanical details, the game art is not presentable enough for that kind of preview. Soon as we can yes it will be there.
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Newer game art is being worked on as we speak. For now the buildings all get a facelift. Starting with the major parts first. Should have a new game test soon. PM me for request to test area.
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New game zone is in, adding final tweaks.
Hope to have a test soon, testers read the info...
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Will the NPCs be physically present in the game world, or just in 'in the background'/behind the scenes and just be there on menus and stat screens and such.
If they are present in the game world, will they be mobile in any way and be able to do tasks, or just be stationary?
Will it be possible to interact with them, give them orders, etc?
I like the idea of having NPCs around the player's base, since it means a little more effort being needed for growing crops, keeping O2 levels up, plenty of water stocked, etc.
Is there anything new for 'mine equipment', or is it basically the same stuff as is in MC:C now?
Edit:
Oh, will there be anything like aeroponics or hydroponics possible? Be it from the start, or as an upgrade/expansion to basic farming systems later on? Perhaps a combination hydroponics/aquaponics could be done, to grow plants on/in the same tanks as fish and other aquatic critters are raised in?
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Hey there hyper. Just wanted to thank you for another year of being awesome and creating great games. I know they have yet to be a runaway success but not every game that matters will. I dont know if you ever feel like it is a waste of time or if you are always motivated, but I did want you to know I think your work here is work that benefits the world, possibly more than mankind will ever know.
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Thanks. I do this because I have to. Not many would understand that but it is something I have to do before I go. Also using it as a teaching tool for school. New version test coming soon you up for it?
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I do hope so. Things go from crazy to lazy around here but I am ready.
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sent you an email with the link for new version
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cant wait to see the new version! :) I still love this game a lot
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We are ALPHA testing it now. Would you like to join one of the sessions ?
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We are ALPHA testing it now. Would you like to join one of the sessions ?
What are requirements and responsibilities of testers?..
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You will get a list of test items, just complete them, verify they work or dont, issues etc. Versions change every week, we run a 48 hour test on a dedicated server. Just complete your part and done...
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Hello Hyper! I am so glad that you fixed/ enabled/ whatever as I could not register. I had become desperate and it was a true surprise that the forum registration was fixed.
I would also be very pleased if you would kindly let me test out the new version. I would be able to test (hopefully) all day Friday and Saturday as well as most of the day Sunday before returning to school on Monday. I can also test after school hours.
Thanks!
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I will add you to the test forum now.
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Thank you so much!!!
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I am also interested in helping to test the new version. With the holidays finally behind us I should have some extra time on my hands.
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Hello, Hyper. I had the pleasure of helping to test Mars Colony Challenger, and if you arn't inundated with testers then I would like to help out with this one, too. Cheers.
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I will add you to the test forum now.
I would like to get there to... 8) 8)
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Give if there is space and I haven't missed the time windows I'd live the chance to help test the new version.
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We will put you on the list. As the game develops we will need freshmeat
Thanks....
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hey there hyper and everyone else ,you probably still remember me very well hyper when we were testing version 1 and i was reporting bugs and testing along the development of it, i finally made it back into these forums after a long long time and i was curious about some stuff.
first question how do i take part in the new version testing? i just read about "new meat is needed" so im up for round 2 of a testing run and im curious about all the new stuff (player bases , economy etc sounds really cool)
second question is about the "old" mars colony challenger , well i did buy the game here on the forums when it was released here before all the steam stuff happened as you might remember (gave it a greenlight vote on steam aswell) and then i saw the steam price which was around 10 € then i remembered paying almost triple amount of that (around 25 €) and felt a bit ripped off to be honest but then i saw your post in steam and you said everyone who bought it before it came to steam would get the new version free or something? i cant actually remember but it was something along those lines and i just wanted to know , since game went over to steam how i could actually get a steam key? because pretty much all games that went over to steam handed out keys for them. becuse i love to have the majority of my games in steam because all patching and stuff is easier and download and all that.
also will the new version be on steam aswell? if yes do i get a steam key once it reaches steam? of course it might take a while to get there , im just curious
i will also try and help testing the new version aswell whenever i find the time to do that (and of course only if you let me take part in testing) but for now im glad to be back and see a new and even better game making progress and being in a testable state
P.S.: what happened to the idea of having a game where the base is actually mobile on wheels? or will it be a part of the v2? old image just came up to my mind :P
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Hey there Hyper! Proud owner of MCC here, and I was wondering if you were still in need for fresh meat :p I would be happy to go bug hunt :)
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Always looking for cold testing. I will PM you with details
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I saw the post with the link to the new Mars Colony Frontier page.
It looks interesting, except for one of the images.
The one of the RTOV.
Of stuff I have seen in the past for Mars mission concepts, such vehicles more closely resembled stuff like the Apollo, Orion or Dragon capsules/command modules.
The 'stubby space shuttle' look seems out of place.
If there is some purpose to needing wings, then maybe something more closely resembling a Russian Kliper would look better than the stubby Space Shuttle style.
I am also a little curious about the smaller rovers in the second to last image. (and of the big red 'cylinder with side door' in the background)
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We tried a variety of looks for the RTOV and just had to add a little more then just a capsule. At speed the wings would serve to steer some for orbit and rotation jets once in orbit other than that just needed something more than a funnel.
The rovers are not all that much smaller, we put them side by side and there is not alot of difference.
The cylinders are cargo pods dropped from orbit, we needed some metal for the textures at the main base and that seemed most likely to be laying around. The pods will serve as construction equipment containers. again mostly decoration to offer some visual deviance. I also put the original lander pods from the demo ala Mars Direct.
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With an atmosphere something like 1/160th the pressure of Earth's atmosphere, would wings/fins of such small size/surface area even be of much use on Mars, even at high speeds?
Looking over some videos and photos of assorted concept craft for a Mars mission, the assorted landers/MAVs/RTOVs I saw generally lacked stuff like fins/wings.
In defense of the 'boring old capsules'. "If it isn't broke, don't fix it."
The stubby space shuttle simply makes me scratch my head.
The big thick cylinder type landers/cargo pods are pretty close to those of the concept TROY Mars mission.
I was thinking about the rovers. Would their 'mud guards' (or whatever you would call it) over the front wheels be sufficient width wise to keep the front wheels from kicking up dust onto the sides of the rover? (if such potential realism were a factor, anyways...)
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A glider on Mars would have to travel 250 mph to get at stall speed. Small winglets at mach 3 or 4 would be enough to roll the craft into orbital alignment. Like I said we have to balance some cool factor with reality to stay above the boredom a bit.
I dont think the dust would be much issue since it is a dusty place but like you said minimal atmo density offsets any real issues there. If we are there long term or better if I was there I want to have a Hum V type of vehicles.
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Fair enough.
I think something like the Russian Kliper would nail both being functional and cool looking for a shuttle themed ROTV.
There are two designs I love that were proposed for transportation on Mars.
First being the Manned Mars Vehicle/Manned Mars Exploration Vehicle. It's like an RV with monster truck tires.
And the front/cab resembles a combine harvester, which I found out is due to the fact the designers have designed agricultural vehicles (like combine harvesters) for 25 years.
Second being the Versatile Environment Explorer, which has an nifty wheel design. Not much info on it that I can find.
And there is of course a worthy mention of the Mars/Lunar rover designed by a NASA group called D-RATS. Nifty because of having been put through real world testing, and being intended to be built using some 3D printed parts.
It's to bad such designs wouldn't be well suited for the game, since they are basically self contained vehicles. No real survival challenge with a vehicle one could potentially camp out in for days or even weeks at a time. Maybe something similar at least worthy of being used as decoration for the main base if players can visit it, or in any in game images of the main base. To give a hint that the main base might be better equipped than what the players might have accessible.
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Those types of rovers could be used in the game, with some adjustments to the current iteration. If you placed a severe limit on the air/power of an EVA suit, then using one of these rovers as a temporary mobile base would make more sense. Drive to an interesting point, get out and do some work, get back in and recharge your suit. The rover would also have a limited amount of air/power, but enough for a couple of EVAs. When it starts to get low you drive back to base and use that to refill the supplies on the rover.
As for wings on the RTOV, while I imagine their ability to even effect a roll would be limited due to how fast the atmosphere would thin as you sped towards escape velocity. However, they could provide at least some added stability at lower altitudes for only a minor mass increase. That could lower the necessary complexity of wholly relying on gimbaled thrusters in an atmosphere.
Also, they look cool 8).
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The rovers have a eva recharge ability now. I dont degrade the fuel / air of the rover much right now for testing purposes but they will drain faster. Users will have to upgrade the capability of the rover by building better controller / drive systems etc. The big rovers like nasa has now are great for first time exploration but I see the game a bit beyond that point and we would need small light fast vehicles I put in the game. Made of carbon fiber driven by light weight motors powered by fuel cells fast 4 wheel drive systems will be the way to go after the initial colonization IMHO.
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I am also interested in helping and test this new version, I already probe and assist in the old version and I would like to participate in this, thanks for all of your job
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hello?
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given this is your 2nd post we would need more information to help us decide to accept you into the testing group.
Thanks
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hello, if I said that information need to know happy to give it 'll be , I have over 12 years of experience in PC, a pc of 8 cores and graphics card r9 290x and 8GB of DDR3 RAM and SSD to prove what you need, and I have some basic knowledge on what type of programming language Basic and Java
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How many runs do you have on Mars Challenger or the demo?
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Hello, is the game still heading for a "due out June 2015" public release date like listed on the main site?
Been a fan of the Colony games for over 4 years now and can't wait for the new release with sandbox mode and the dynamic economy, been keeping myself busy with Take On Mars for the last couple of weeks but it just doesn't have that amazing amount of depth and detail that the Demo / Challenger has with manned missions.
Oh, and in case you're still looking for testers, I'd be very happy if I could participate.
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Looks like June will be a beta, we been adding more features and I think we have it locked down. Might have a early access by mid to end June. Stay tuned.
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Alright, thanks for the quick reply.
Will be keeping an eye on the website.