With Marc taking some well deserved vacation this month, October was a little less packed with advancement on OUTBRK gameplay integration, however we’re wrapping up the last elements of the Unity 2021 upgrade on the server side, have added 20+ realistic ground textures to our terrain, added new streamlined vegetation assets and refocused the design of the camera and reporting systems. [b] Ground Textures and New Vegetation[/b] With the Unity 2021 upgrade, we’ve been able to leverage additional capabilities for environmental shaders and textures that will help make a massive map feel distinct and alive. We’re looking to make each biome feel unique and realistic, and a lot of that comes from the ground vegetation. A colossal amount of work has also been made for each of our vegetation assets to behave the same when affected by wind. Here are some examples of what the vegetation used to look like, and how we’re able to improve it with the new editor update. [b][u]Old Vegetation[/u][/b] [b][u]New Vegetation[/u][/b] [b]Development Focus and Next Playtest:[/b] The latest stretch of OUTBRK development has been essential for readying the game for eventual Early Access release. From the get-go, we’ve been committed to being transparent through all stages of development. The last few months have contained substantial improvements to the game and we’re excited to be wrapping up several foundational components to the game so that we can start planning additional playtests. For the people that follow our public development Trello board, here are the two tasks we need to finish before starting to plan the next sessions of playtesting with community members: [b] [url=https://trello.com/c/YKUIH5Xu/411-new-camera-module ]New Camera Module:[/url] [/b] Following the last playtest’s feedback, we streamlined the camera and storm-element reporting process. We spent a bit of time in design to make sure that it will create a nice gaming experience and we’re now starting the integration in the game. [b] [url=https://trello.com/c/kAWglt48/434-must-fix-before-next-playtest]Must Fix Bugs Prior to Playtests: [/url][/b] As we completed the Unity update, we found some bugs on systems that were previously working. This was expected, but we have to fix this regression before letting some players back into the game. As always, our Discord is a great place to engage with our community and to learn more about where we’re at in Development. We’re getting ready to start going through scenarios that have been recommended to us, so if you’ve got an iconic severe weather day that needs to be in OUTBRK, be sure to let us know in the #outbrk-scenario-suggestion channel on Discord! Join the OUTBRK[url=https://discord.gg/PbgmksM] Discord server here[/url]: Stay tuned for the next Outlook, chasers! As always, be sure to follow along with development on our [url=https://trello.com/b/nsBmMfIa/outbrk-game]Trello Page[/url]! (Marc on his hard-earned vacation!) The OUTBRK team