Progress, and a minor delay. (Patreon)

First, the cool stuff:  We're finally getting the cats into a proper driving pose, when behind the wheel of a golf cart.

We finished our optimization review of the "Downtown" sectors.  These used to be the most problematic sectors - at one time weighing in at an insane 9 million triangles per frame.  After cleaning up the more poorly-baked objects, we got it down to 2.4 million tris, WITH vegetation!  There was a slight hit to draw calls, but WELL worth the trade-off.

While this is not 100% optimal, it is good enough for the Beta, and VERY close to our goal of 2 million tris (which is more or less standard for a game such as this.)

Framerates, of course, have improved in this region between 150-300% (I think our supporters will be VERY pleased with the next build's performance!)

I am in the middle of the beta review of the island's vegetation, which still remains a bit problematic, with the deep woods sometimes hovering near 6 million triangles.  To be honest, I'll consider it Beta-ready, if we get it to anything below 4 million.

UNFORTUNATELY, WE REQUIRE ONE MORE WEEK, BEFORE WE CAN SEND THE NEXT BUILD OUT TO OUR PLAYTESTERS.

I swore I would not release it, until we got the vegetation optimized, and the dialogue UI finalized.  It took us two days longer than anticipated to work out an issue that prevented foliage from fading out, when it got between that cat & the camera, and I finally gave in and realized that I need to create yet another shore biome, to ensure that the beach rocks would spawn in a more natural manner.

I also am WAY behind in answering the 1200-plus messages I have received since sending out a general inquiry about premium shipments - I need to take a day or two to handle those, before I can move on with optimization.

Laura completed placing every possible entry/exit point for interiors, and has moved on to creating a very special kind of shader. I dunno if you're aware, but prior to the invention of the atomic bomb, the most common industrial use for uranium was the coloration of glass - a practice which dates all the way back to the Roman Empire.

This kind of glass has recently enjoyed a minor rennaissance, but was most commonly produced during the 1930's, when such glassware was either sold for pennies, or given out for free.  It's still very common to see pieces of such glass in antique stores and thrift shops (typically labelled as "Depression Glass" here in the USA.)

What makes it special, is that when it is subjected to ultraviolet light, it will emit a brilliant green glow.  During the evening off I took for my birthday, I spent a few hours after nightfall searching for uranium sea glass - the 18 pieces I found were standard for such a trip.  To say it's "rare" is quite the understatement - there were nights in years past when an hours-long search would result in nothing.

While this shader is not necessary for the Beta, it's something Laura & I wanted to include in Peace Island's story since the very beginning.  Getting the emission just right is an exacting task - but if anyone is up for it, it's Laura- she has uncanny perception, when it comes to color.

To find out what role this plays in the story- well, you'll just have to wait...

Lance has continued work on a myriad of systems- most importantly, finalizing the NPC controller.  This was something necessary for the creation of a new Peace Island Trailer, among MANY other things...

SEE YA'LL NEXT WEEK - Thanks so much for your continued support, patience, and confidence- we're closer than ever to our goal!