Originally posted on Facebook on Tuesday, March 26, 2013 at 4:55pm...
Hello everyone, it has been an exciting time for us the past week and we hope you are as excited about as we are!
Horizon has been a grand project close to our heart from the start. A game we wanted to make for ourselves as well as for all who enjoy Sci-Fi and Strategy games. A different and more evolved game yet built on proven 4x core game mechanics.
Central to this, was the idea for a turn based tactical system not just for combat but as the core mechanic that governed other actions, such as travel and movement on the same open galaxy space. This to allow a more persistent game experience with fewer gameplay limitations.
The other thing we really wanted was a more immersive galaxy with it's own backstory. Unique alien races of different technological levels each with their own stories and schemes. Yet it had to remain a true sandbox game where every game played could provide a different outcome and unique and fun experience.
It has taken many years of hard work but we are getting closer. I will try to give updates along the way and answer questions you may have.
Iceberg has started the external QA (Quality Assurance) for our game and we are looking forward to completing this important phase in the coming months as we intensify our efforts to bring a quality game to you.
Developer Notes - cross-posted from Facebook
Developer Notes - cross-posted from Facebook
Horizon - Lead Designer | a.k.a. Raf
Re: Developer Notes
Posted on Saturday, May 11, 2013 at 5:08pm...
Greetings all, I wanted to give a little update on what we have been working on lately.
As I mentioned in my previous note we started Quality assurance (QA) testing of Horizon. Although testing goes on throughout development, QA is a much more systematic process and goes beyond just hunting for crash bugs and identifies gameplay and various other improvements that can or need to be made for a better gaming experience.
Some of the areas we have focused on included performance. Making sure there wouldn't be a long delay between turns when the AI is 'thinking' which has at times been a bottleneck for turn-based games. Making sure the game runs well on new computers as well as several year old PCs (as low as core2duo).
An ongoing challenge is balancing the various areas that encompass the whole and affect how the game progresses. While thankfully not as complicated as real-life world economies, the adage "It's the economy, stupid" also applies for 4x games. And thus we have been working on balancing the economy which in turns affects how you make decisions and how the game progresses from your early start and to the different stages of the game as you become more powerful in control of many worlds and a bigger economy.
Another important area is the Diplomacy AI. Diplomacy is a big part of 4x strategy games and it is important that it function in a coherant matter, that it react properly based on the race philosophy and events affecting it. Another thing we want is a meaningful diplomacy that allows that diplomat player to play the game using diplomacy as an effective mean to win the game. This by no means is perfect or where we want it to be yet but we are making good progress.
Beside these major points we have also been making numerous smaller changes, fixing rare crashes and additions as we make passes on different parts of the game. Adding more information in game via tooltips and so on. Also some fun features like after invasion options to exterminate, subjugate, assimilate, etc and much more.
Greetings all, I wanted to give a little update on what we have been working on lately.
As I mentioned in my previous note we started Quality assurance (QA) testing of Horizon. Although testing goes on throughout development, QA is a much more systematic process and goes beyond just hunting for crash bugs and identifies gameplay and various other improvements that can or need to be made for a better gaming experience.
Some of the areas we have focused on included performance. Making sure there wouldn't be a long delay between turns when the AI is 'thinking' which has at times been a bottleneck for turn-based games. Making sure the game runs well on new computers as well as several year old PCs (as low as core2duo).
An ongoing challenge is balancing the various areas that encompass the whole and affect how the game progresses. While thankfully not as complicated as real-life world economies, the adage "It's the economy, stupid" also applies for 4x games. And thus we have been working on balancing the economy which in turns affects how you make decisions and how the game progresses from your early start and to the different stages of the game as you become more powerful in control of many worlds and a bigger economy.
Another important area is the Diplomacy AI. Diplomacy is a big part of 4x strategy games and it is important that it function in a coherant matter, that it react properly based on the race philosophy and events affecting it. Another thing we want is a meaningful diplomacy that allows that diplomat player to play the game using diplomacy as an effective mean to win the game. This by no means is perfect or where we want it to be yet but we are making good progress.
Beside these major points we have also been making numerous smaller changes, fixing rare crashes and additions as we make passes on different parts of the game. Adding more information in game via tooltips and so on. Also some fun features like after invasion options to exterminate, subjugate, assimilate, etc and much more.
Horizon - Lead Designer | a.k.a. Raf
Developer Notes - Cross posted from Facebook
Developer Notes - Early Access launch
by Horizon Game (Notes) on Sunday, July 7, 2013 at 3:39pm
I hope you all had a great 1st week of July what with the release of Horizon, Canada Day here, as well as Independence Day for our friends in the United States!
We are very happy with how Horizon has been received so far from the community, with many of you who have tried the game telling us you are enjoying the game! The constructive feedback has been terrific and your early support means a lot to us! We will continue to work very hard to bring the game you want to see!
Look for regular updates being posted here on facebook. We also invite you join us on the official Horizon Forums if you want to get involved more.
by Horizon Game (Notes) on Sunday, July 7, 2013 at 3:39pm
I hope you all had a great 1st week of July what with the release of Horizon, Canada Day here, as well as Independence Day for our friends in the United States!
We are very happy with how Horizon has been received so far from the community, with many of you who have tried the game telling us you are enjoying the game! The constructive feedback has been terrific and your early support means a lot to us! We will continue to work very hard to bring the game you want to see!
Look for regular updates being posted here on facebook. We also invite you join us on the official Horizon Forums if you want to get involved more.
Horizon - Lead Designer | a.k.a. Raf
Re: Developer Notes - cross-posted from Facebook
Developer Notes - Roadmap to the Next Update
August 28, 2013 at 2:02pm
Hello everyone,
I would like to bring you up-to-date on what we have been working on the past several weeks and what we are planning for the next major update for Horizon, due sometime in mid-to-late September.
As I had mentioned previously, the feedback has been tremendous from our early adopters.. Which has also meant delving to assess each one, finding the most common requests, prioritizing them and updating our original roadmap.
Based on these and our own assessment we have identified these broad areas to focus on in the short term which I want to share with you.
AI Improvements
* A more aggressive and challenging AI that will make battle plans and execute them based on racial traits.
* Better planet and resource management by the AI races so they are more effective
* An improved combat AI which includes better pathfinding and smarter target selection
Economy and Colony Management
* A more balanced and challenging economy
* Adding more decision making when building colony structures/types
* Different representation/animations for each level of buildings
* Better display of pertinent information like maintenance and what each structure does
Ship Design
* Adding more ship graphic choices to pick for your designs
* Displaying weapon arcs in the design process
Diplomacy Relations
* A new Report Screen for each race accessible from Relations view, to track major events and your history with that race
* Make diplomatic relations less accommodating with regards to making alliances and certain other pacts (more balance)
Graphics
* Improved UI panels and windows
* Improved and updated in-game animation Videos in HD
Quests
* Adding more alien race related missions
The list is the main points to give you an idea, so the update will contain many smaller changes and we will likely include a few more things in time for this major update. If there are things you were looking forward to but aren't in this list, don't be concerned they are not forgotten, we are making every effort to get as many things done as soon as possible.
As always we welcome any feedback or suggestions you may have and we thank you for your interest and support.
August 28, 2013 at 2:02pm
Hello everyone,
I would like to bring you up-to-date on what we have been working on the past several weeks and what we are planning for the next major update for Horizon, due sometime in mid-to-late September.
As I had mentioned previously, the feedback has been tremendous from our early adopters.. Which has also meant delving to assess each one, finding the most common requests, prioritizing them and updating our original roadmap.
Based on these and our own assessment we have identified these broad areas to focus on in the short term which I want to share with you.
AI Improvements
* A more aggressive and challenging AI that will make battle plans and execute them based on racial traits.
* Better planet and resource management by the AI races so they are more effective
* An improved combat AI which includes better pathfinding and smarter target selection
Economy and Colony Management
* A more balanced and challenging economy
* Adding more decision making when building colony structures/types
* Different representation/animations for each level of buildings
* Better display of pertinent information like maintenance and what each structure does
Ship Design
* Adding more ship graphic choices to pick for your designs
* Displaying weapon arcs in the design process
Diplomacy Relations
* A new Report Screen for each race accessible from Relations view, to track major events and your history with that race
* Make diplomatic relations less accommodating with regards to making alliances and certain other pacts (more balance)
Graphics
* Improved UI panels and windows
* Improved and updated in-game animation Videos in HD
Quests
* Adding more alien race related missions
The list is the main points to give you an idea, so the update will contain many smaller changes and we will likely include a few more things in time for this major update. If there are things you were looking forward to but aren't in this list, don't be concerned they are not forgotten, we are making every effort to get as many things done as soon as possible.
As always we welcome any feedback or suggestions you may have and we thank you for your interest and support.
Horizon - Lead Designer | a.k.a. Raf