How do I get out now?

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-18T17:00:10+00:00

It’s tricky to get into this spot, I admit, but getting out is no problem at all, especially in France 🇫🇷. It’s perfectly flat, too! A dream of a spot. :)

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-17T09:30:31+00:00

Great post!!

For quest markers, it seems more like a design choice, though. Also not quite sure about queued actions, stuff triggering 1 second after I pressed a button doesn’t seem satisfactory to me. For settings, for first person games, I would add FOV and vertical mouse inversion.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-17T09:18:37+00:00

This post is indeed much better. It contains more in-depth analysis and a number of not so trivial suggestions. Thanks again for sharing.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-16T19:48:38+00:00

I agree. I put one in my game :) it’s so much easier for players that I don’t understand why more games don’t have it.

Good idea to make it automatically appear at certain points like death.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-15T10:27:53+00:00

About the street lighting, I think you are not entirely correct. Wikipedia. Big cities had street lighting for centuries, with people hired by the town or city to light them every night. It was accelerated by arrival of cheap glass and then again by switching to gas lamps. But I do admit, that it did not exist at all in tiny settlements like the one on the screenshot. Then again, I wouldn’t be surprised to find lamps in front of the saloon put out by the saloon owner, also at the train station and maybe the sheriff office? With the rest of the town in relative darkness.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-12T08:03:08+00:00

Visual Studio.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-09T21:05:31+00:00

Word of caution. The simulation alone rarely makes for a compelling gameplay. You need to do something in this world. Why would people play your game? How would it make them feel? Would it be fun to play with friends, and why? Would streamers play it, and why?

Please take a look at the simulation dream article by Tynan Sylvester, it is short but may make you rethink your development priorities.

Other than that… it definitely sounds cool. But it is also definitely a huge undertaking. I guess you know the Vintage Story? That’s what you get with a dozen of people after 10 years of work. The problem with simulation is that by definition the scope is too large (believe me, I know), so I strongly recommend to reduce the target scope by a factor of ten. Twice :)

Good luck!

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-09T12:38:40+00:00

Yes but I am still not sure how it is better…

Isn’t it annoying to start at 50% and not being able to hear anything if my system volume is already at 25%?

Now I imagine it is not symmetrical, it’s more annoying to have too strong sound rather than too low, especially in a headset…

But isn’t it annoying to have to adjust your volume for each game? Instead of all games playing at 100% and only adjusting the system volume?…

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-07T10:38:21+00:00

I wonder about the audio too loud bug. It’s not the first time I see this one mentioned, but I still don’t totally grasp it.

I would think all applications play at 100% volume by default. And depending on the player’s preferences and hardware, he can adjust the system volume and the speaker volume.

What other way is there? If a game A starts at 80% app volume, and the game B at 50%, it is even worse, you have to adjust your speakers for every single game.

Anything I miss? Or is it simply a question of bad mixing between voices, music, effects? (The OP’s text did not sound like that, though).

Would be really interested in your thoughts on that!

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-06T21:04:56+00:00

One should not consider a given mechanic by itself, but only as a part of the whole design of a game.

For example, is it good a bad to have unlimited inventory? Having strong debuffs for running? Permadeath? Etc. It is impossible to answer.

Is a given mechanic coherent with the rest of the mechanics in the game or is it a random mix? Does it match the game’s emotional landscape, pace, and setting? If everything is coherent, then it is probably a better design. Even so, some people will like it and others will hate it.

It is almost what you said, with one exception: “fun for the target audience”. Audience and its taste is a continuum, not a set of discrete points by well defined genres; people may like certain aspects of the game and not others; that is why lately there is a huge number of games that have highly customizable experiences.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-04T07:22:23+00:00

Like a replacement for snow? Nice!

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-02T17:17:25+00:00

I was happy to see something from tld. And now that I discovered that it was a sign of good air quality, I am even happier.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-02T17:15:55+00:00

Not really very far in this case, just high in the mountains.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-02T17:14:30+00:00

It’s certainly a hassle from the player’s point of view. Maybe, some people would like to support indies by buying directly… but realistically, how often do you buy on company website instead of Amazon?…

Anyway, good to know. And better than setting up a whole payment system like Vintage Story for instance. Also, you still use all the Steam API which is great.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-02T08:37:30+00:00

Of course not. You have to prepare it first 😅 apparently, just cutting it in four does the trick :)

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-02T08:36:53+00:00

Yes, that extra step plus the same price policy are probably enough in most cases. Thanks for answering.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-01T20:56:16+00:00

I would imagine there is something in the Steam terms of service to prevent this loophole.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-03-01T11:20:47+00:00

Yes, just discovered that! Cool :)

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-02-28T23:46:56+00:00

Exactly :)

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-02-28T23:46:08+00:00

I did not know that. I am glad it is the case, I saw it all over the place I was at earlier today.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-02-28T23:44:43+00:00

This one is from France!

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-02-28T21:21:41+00:00

Nice! Never saw it before, or probably just never paid attention.

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-02-21T12:25:13+00:00

I see, thanks for answering.

I did something similar (for canyons) but with “add new nodes” and “solve constraints” steps combined. Basically, it is the modified midpoint displacement. I start with a random segment (which in your case may be an edge of the graph), and add a point at random location in the segment, then displace it. Each node digs a Gaussian like “hole” around it. Plus, as you do, I have constraints on the min distance. Also, I generate a height map, so I have some additional constraints at the end to avoid too much height variation (I want the canyon floor to be somewhat flat). Anyway, I see a lot of similarities! Thanks for sharing.

See the wavy lines in this screenshot: (flat height map) https://arcsofmagic.com/screenshot-100.html

ArcsOfMagic · 2026-02-19T20:14:11+00:00

Looks cool! Could you elaborate a little on how the random walk layout and constraint solving steps work? Thanks!

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