60 Updates Later — Our Latest Bits and Bobs!
Welcome back to our weekly blog! We are 60 weeks in and like always, it’s been a busy but incredibly exciting week at Matterless! Let’s dive into the details.
Ready for wargaming?
Calling all Warhammer 40k fans! We’re thrilled to announce the latest update for Rightful Ruler, our tabletop wargaming toolkit that leverages augmented reality technology to provide real-time measurements and annotations.
With RR, measurements and annotations are projected in AR directly onto the game board. This makes the game more accessible to new players and opens new possibilities for esports-style competitions and content creation. For instance, you could display the measurements on a monitor next to the table for all participants and judges to see. Tournaments would be a more immersive experience for any spectator.
Robin’s passion project has opened for Beta testing.
On Incos!
JD and the Inco team have accomplished a significant milestone in updating the movement with the new Inco, Robbit! Previously, the Inco would wander around, which made it difficult to interact with it; however, with the new update, the Inco is now attempting to stay in front of the camera and follow the player. This makes playing with the Inco and using it in various interactions much more effortless. Check out the video below (who can resist this face?)
Eero completed the hand tracker refactor of the local hand tracker systems. The move-in point is now working, as shown in the video below — you can point to a spot with your hand, and the Inco will move there. The team is also working on introducing more gesture detections. (I can’t wait to see what the Inco will do next!)
Blasting Up (dates)!
Next up, Jason and Floorcraft team have been working on a laser turret prototype (it’s a mounted laser weapon equipped on certain types of attack vehicles, both ground-based attackers and spaceships). This prototype aims to make the single-player experience in Floorcraft: Blasters more fun.
While the primary focus of Floorcraft: Blasters is still intended to be multiplayer, we wanted to give players something to do before their friends join the game. The laser turret is an obstacle that spins and tries to shoot the player. There are also randomly spawning crates around the turret that the player can smash into, which will either lower the laser cooldown or give them points for the point crown (or both, we are still doing the game design for it).
The goal is to increase users' average time in the single-player mode from about 15 seconds to 60–90 seconds. While this may seem like a slight improvement, it can significantly improve the overall user experience.
Marko and Batu have been working together on some new VFX! Marko is doing the R&D, and Batu is implementing engine trails that follow your hovercraft, pick up to a certain speed, and they drop off when you stop moving. Now you can track your vehicle’s movement better.
On a slightly more experimental note, Merlin has been playing around with Instagram game filters; check them out here:
Charlie has been working on funneling up that dopamine experience within the Floorcraft: Blasters app, which means a lot of improvements for visual effects, animations, and transitions.
We learned the laser beam is opaque, so it can be difficult to see where its range. Marko has been improving the base of the laser beam, making it more solid.
Based on some feedback about the gameplay experience, Charlie mocked up some of these caller sign kind of gamertag ideas, which show a players' name and the kill count. The sweet spot is making it readable enough, but unobtrusive.
Arena Highlights!
Below is a sneak peak of a collection of different assets the art team put together, all coming together to create a cohesive and polished look for the Floorcraft: Arena game. These include power-ups and different vehicles, among others.
To improve legibility, we created a hexagonal shader that sits on a plane under your vehicle and highlights your vehicle from the player's perspective!
Finally, Dusko and Damir are back from a three-week trip to Hong Kong. Dusko is back in his studio, implementing some new voice juice for the voiceovers we made — male and female Japanese/English voice acting for various activities in the game, such as getting a kill or activating a power-up (think Unreal: Tournament announcer's voice).
Overall, it’s been an exciting and productive two weeks for all of us. We are buzzing with ideas and have a lot to implement in the following weeks. Stay tuned to see the polish we will apply to both Floorcraft: Blasters and Incos, and don’t forget to tag us in your Floorcraft: Arena and Floorcraft: Blasters game-play videos!
— Shwetha, digital marketing manager
