Development Update #40
Hello everyone, this update will show the new WIP Oi Wharf map, new Private Alpha cars, private alpha screenshots from bug testers, and give an update on the timeline of bug testing.
Bug testing on the Private Alpha started on the 5th of March, and it’s been going well! The game is stable and playable. A few bugs remain to be fixed, then it can be uploaded for all Patreons and Kickstarter backers.
Bug testing has been going well but has been an insane amount of work to make sure it doesn't take up too much time. It's been less than a month and it's slowly coming to an end. This is what caused the lack of updates this month, but the more important news is that the Private Alpha is playable and stable.
The Private Alpha currently has 3 fully playable car chassis;
S15 coupe
S15 Varietta
JZX100 Chaser (kouki+zenki)
A few more cars will be playable by the time the Private Alpha launches or just after;
JZX100 Mark II
JZX100 Cresta
Oi Wharf map progress images are attached. It's been going well and looks amazing, easily the best looking map so far. It's a 1:1 replica of the 2009 version of the Oi Wharf area.
The Oi Wharf map will grow over time, but for now it is just the main drifting area loop with the 3 roads in the center. Buildings will start to be added this week! It'll take some time to be added into the game once complete, but it's coming along at a really good pace.
It's being worked on by an artist whose only responsibility is making maps, so work on Oi Wharf is not taking any time away from bug fixes or main development.
Another developer is lined up to start at the end of next month. This person will be a junior dev and will mostly be responsible for importing cars. After the Private Alpha launch, a senior dev will be hired to take some of the workload off me.
Attached to the post are some screenshots from the Private Alpha bug testing crew. They are all raw in-game screenshots using the photo mode. The quality of car models and general visual improvements over the Prologue are really significant. It looks and plays so much better than the Prologue did.
Private Alpha performance so far is the same as Prologue despite the graphics upgrade. It has fewer stutters/hitches than Prologue, but very similar average FPS performance.
The Private Alpha will launch in roughly 2 weeks from this update, depending on how this final bug testing phase goes. The point of the Private Alpha is that it is a true Alpha/Beta build, so it may be a little rough around the edges at first. The bug testing is to eliminate most of the game-breaking bugs so it's playable.
See you all in 2 weeks time!