PC Alpha 18 Dev Diary!!

Alpha 18 Dev Diary!!

  • A18 Stable is Out!

    Votes: 2 66.7%

  • <img alt=":)" data-src="" src="___base_url___/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" />

    Votes: 1 33.3%
  • Total voters
    3
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Vultures happily attack people at 100% health now. I miss the old (and wrong, btw) theory that they only attack the injured.
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That was not changed. Biome spawned vultures don't attack full heath players. POI or BM spawned vultures always attack.

 
No its for baking a normal map that fakes all those details in for free.
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The latest build rocks in terms of performance, the entire team has done a stellar job;

2080Ti / 9900k / 32Gb / 4k (capped @ 58fps via MSI AB)







 
Some decent performance increases here..I'm still getting a few weird drops. But, it plays well enough on all computers to at least enjoy the game. Lowering\Disabling AF (which I did even before this patch) was the biggest increase for me.
For those still suffering to unplayable levels, and couldn't disable AF through your graphics control panel, don't forget to try the new AF console command for a possible large FPS boost.

Faatal and his team posted them here:

https://7daystodie.com/forums/showthread.php?111778-Alpha-18-Dev-Diary!!&p=1032210&viewfull=1#post1032210
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In console (F1 key) type:

gfx af 0

In the future, I'm planing on reducing af on some textures based on quality settings.

 
Quick question before I jump in game: what does gfx st budget and forceload do?
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budget is the streaming texture budget. By default it is 4096, which is in MB and the max it can be. Changing options right now forces it back to the default, but I'm removing that and the default will probably be based on VRAM amount. WIP.

forceload makes streaming mipmaps all load. I have not even tested that yet. Thought it might be useful.

 
even with the new patch I get 15 fps looking around outside, while I get 40 looking at the ground.Anyone know any settings I could try to improve my fps?
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#1 lower game's texture quality

#2 lower AF in driver settings or use "gfx af 0" ingame

#3 lower game's screen resolution

 
A few thoughts from last night's session:
Vultures happily attack people at 100% health now. I miss the old (and wrong, btw) theory that they only attack the injured.

The new small piles of canned food on tabletops in POI's are great, they're keeping me going in our 3-player game, and I think it's absolutely hilarious my kids walk right past them all the time. Since they're usually ahead of me that means I get the free food without having to fight every zombie for every can. Win!

The metallic clunk when that pack of wolves jumped me last night (I was wearing metal armor) threw me off for a couple seconds but after the fight was over I thought it was rather cool. Too metal-door sounding though, need one that's more muffled since the armor is on a fleshy thing. Shouldn't ring like scrap if the body is dampening the vibration.

Whoever was saying anvils are hard to get a few pages back, we had two on/by day 2. Working Stiff boxes in so many POI's really changes the balance of things like that. Loot more craft less. We also found the bellows and a forge book, right AFTER I took that skill point, I might add...RNG has a wicked sense of humor that way.
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Vultures attack you if injured. Same as 17. Vultures attack you on a vehicle. Same as 17. Vultures attack you if they are part of a poi spawn. Same as 17.

 
We're probably going to add an option like "Blood moon size", 25%, 50%, 75%, 100%, 150%, 200%, 250%, etc.
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Oh bueno.

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I'd like random stats for crafting but not allow t6 crafting. That level should remain loot only. But just like random stats have juiced up exploration, static mid-range stats for crafting have killed that part of the game or at least made it unexciting.
Another thought would be to allow for some limited LBD crafting on increasing the stats slightly on weapons and tools you've already crafted. The loot only parts help gate the frequency of crafting the same thing so nobody is going to be spam crafting compound bows. You are limited to the parts you've been able to find. But it might give crafting some juice if the player knows that the second or third compound bow he crafts will be slightly better.

First crafted bow: Midrange stats

Second crafted bow: Midrange stats +1

Third crafted bow: Midrange stats +2

etc. up to a ceiling.

Then crafters can become expert craftsmen in the things they perk into and it isn't general LBD and spam crafting on everything.
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...will you marry me?

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Its note even casuals, its new players. Our game is not for casuals. But even good fps guys from rust, ark, whatever need to come in and learn the game and that takes time. Those first 28 or 35 hours will be very fast for a new player and they will feel overwhelmed. The blood moon size option should help you out.
All I've read is forum guys loving it. It took you 28 hours to "think" it might be a snore fest? If you were ill prepared and died a few times, was learning this and that you would not be bored at all. Anyhow I insist you keep playing, IMO you'll think it gets crazy after a while, we have to give players time to prepare. You might be wasting that time being bored lol, it gets nasty.

Now if it gets nasty too slow? Then maybe that is something we need to tweak. I don't think so, but I've been through enough A18 blood moons to respect them.
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I should be caught up fixing other people's work crap this week, then I'm probably free til March. I'll bank some a18 hours. :)

 
I get lots of xp for building my base in flagstone and plenty more upgrading it to bricks, concrete and finally r concrete. I build next door to trader, so I sell all my things right on the way home, grab another quest, etc etc. I don't have to "move" later game. While you are moving and setting up a fort I've already got my farm up and I'm power leveling at that point. There is no right or wrong, its just a preference. I do dig quests and all that clay I use for flagstone and eventually fill my forges with it because you will be crafting 1000's of bullets. So I build my base mostly at night, early game its too risky to loot at night, you need good armor and good weapons and ample ammo to loot at night.
Something about hearing the trader horn saying "Trader Joel's is now open" makes me feel less alone too :)
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Yeh once I find a forest spot that's it. I don't use traders in so but I do notice there are a lot of them... But basically it's roofing it until I have the mats to make a super base. Unfortunately it's difficult for me not to meta what I know about ai behavior so my bases are usually rock solid. I'm with you on the different playstyles, to each their own, I'd just like all of them to be viable, if that's even possible. :)

 
The customization ability and xml. modding really allows you to play exactly the way that is most fun for you.
Personally I don't often 'attend' horde nights as there seems little point to it. XP is nice and all but easily gained elsewhere. If you just want to burn through ammo and kill stuff, sure its a good time. However zombie loot drops are rare and just more stuff you could get from scavenging.

I find it much more relaxing to putter around on whatever vehicle during bloodmoon. No base damage, no ammo use. Just some gas and the open road.

Live your best apocalypse I say.
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On sp I'm happy to sit safe and quiet waiting out horde nights, but in mp it feels a little cheesy. :)

/Peer pressure works

 
I ran into the dreaded choppy world generation bug too, even on Nvidia... Guess I should just use a pregen? I'm a little sick of waiting 15 minutes each worldgen to see if it comes out okay. Hope this gets solved soon.

As an aside, what the heck changed in the last few Alphas to make worldgen so intense? I remember it would take like, 2 minutes tops to roll a world; now it's an extremely intensive set of work that takes ages. You also spawn in the same exact spot every world start; is that intentional?

 
Awesome job on the update, playing much better now on my gtx1050. Actually playing on full textures with shadows, AA, SSAO, and sunrays at 1920x1080 and it looks ridiculous in the best way. Ok gotta go......

 
A wow moment for my first spawn in b143:

bM8Omym.jpg


 
I never expected A18 to be optimized so good and its not even fully optimized yet. Runs Very well on ultra-wide using gtx1080.

Give us more walking/outdoor zombies! lol

 
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I get where your coming from. Its a very tough line to balance, but I think part of the problem is since that items never decay getting a high quality item lasts forever. That combined with the trader or getting lucky with loot makes it so its far faster to buy/find high tier items then it would be to get the levels to craft them yourself.
If there was some form of decay in place that would alleviate alot of the issues i think since even if you get a good item its not gonna last forevor and you need backups. Crafting then becomes an always useful skill as your guaranteed to always have a top tier item available.

I just don't see any reason why i'd ever invest in 15 different crafting skills versus just leveling up my trader skills and doing some quests and getting them for a fraction of the cost via looting/questing.
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Because sometimes you can go a whole game without getting that item you want. Trader is still RNG luck.

 
As much as I dig the new junk turret I didn't find myself using it much if at all...

Then I got a Tier V Clear quest at one of the big factories...

I've named her Grace, as in "saving grace", she is my new BFF.

We should be able to craft engagement rings from our diamonds and install them as permanent mods cause this here lady is a keeper.

I should not be alive right now, but I am, and I am in love with a purple turret.

Oh 'pocalypse, you so drama.

 
Well I get catering towards the more casual player, because it's still a business and sales rule and I have zero problem with that, my concern is that a casual won't even reach day 35 because they're only playing 2 hours a week.
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He said new players, not casual.

 
I think Charismatic nature and better barter perks should be combined.

Charismatic natures fortitude and agility bonuses do not really do anything anymore and should probably be removed. The only real use would be abuse it in large groups, if it stacks, to power game those attributes.

Then you would have more reason to get the barter/charismatic nature perk.

I think some of the perks could be combined to make room for more interesting perks. It is pretty good the way it is though. Thumbs up.

 
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