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DevBlog #27: iOS support completed, shops & stats and announcements

Yet another two weeks of massive progress towards closed beta release, and some announcements.

Hey there, Walkers! Closed beta release is creeping closer every step. This time we have some really good news!

Note: Login of Firefox works again on Portal.

Splash/concept art created by Sorgo for the halfling camp in GDTESplash/concept art created by Sorgo for the halfling camp in GDTE

Closed Beta To-Dos

In typical fashion for these devblogs close to the release date of closed beta, let’s once again kick off with the to-dos:

The to-do list, updated for this devblogThe to-do list, updated for this devblog

iOS support, testing and TestFlight pipeline

This was actually something that took more of my time than originally anticipated. We started building the support for WalkScape on iOS last week. The game had some expected hardware releated issues, especially when it comes to pedoemter data, but we managed to fix all of these in a few days. Now I’m happy to tell that the game is working on iOS just as well as it does on Android, meaning that we should be able to release the game on both platforms during the same release day.

And to show off the iOS support, we have a video here as well!

Watch it on Youtube

Steps bank

This one was one of the minor features, and was also added to the game during the last two weeks. We are also now renaming this to saved steps to better correct a general misunderstanding about the steps bank. Just to remind, saved steps work as follows:

If you work on limited activities (such as crafting where you can run out of materials, or traveling where you arrive at a location) you may have more steps than was possible to spend on the chosen activity. These steps that were “wasted” become saved steps.

If you have saved steps, every step you take counts as two while one saved step gets subtracted. So basically, you get your wasted steps back while doing whatever you meant to do next.

Here's the UI of this:

Saved steps UI when you have some steps that could have gone to wasteSaved steps UI when you have some steps that could have gone to waste

NPC Shops completed

As stated as the plan before this development blog in the previous development blog post, we finished up NPC shops.

Runa Norrberga welcoming you to Icy GobletRuna Norrberga welcoming you to Icy Goblet

Making the shop UI was quite a lot of work. Mostly because I tend to be quite perfectionist with UI, and the UI/UX when making the shops for a tiny screen is tricky. We also wanted to keep the awesome NPC shop art made by maxchill visible while you’re shopping.

The first big design choice here was if we want to have separate buy/sell actions, or have it work more like a trading system. With trading system I mean that you can buy and sell items on a single transaction, and the money gained/paid is basically the difference between the items you buy and sell. This type of system is quite popular in classic RPGs, but might feel slightly more complex initially.

I decided to go for a trading system instead of separate buy/sell menus. And I think the end result is great: I tried to make it feel like a typical online shop UI so it feels intuitive even for people not familiar with games, and managed to package it in a way where you can still see the shop.

Basically, you swipe left/right to switch between buying and selling. You have a preview as well, basically similar to a shopping cart in online stores where you can see a final breakdown of your trade. And pressing the trade button completes the transaction.

The shops have limited stocks, and the stocks are personal for each player. Stocks are currently refreshed for everyone at 12:00 UTC+0 on every shop. But my intension in the future is to have some shops where the stocks might refresh only once a week or so.

Here is another video of me doing some shopping!

Watch it on Youtube

Smaller features and improvements

More NPC shops

Maxchill managed to crunch a lot of new NPC shop art pieces for the game. We still have more to go, but in my opinion, these look awesome! I hope you guys also enjoy them:

JarvoJoy, a hobby & thrift store found in Jarvonia. If you like to level up your agility by ice skating or other sports like frisbee golf, this is the place to visit!JarvoJoy, a hobby & thrift store found in Jarvonia. If you like to level up your agility by ice skating or other sports like frisbee golf, this is the place to visit!

The Bilgemont Castle, the room that holds most importance and power in Erdwise. You might notice that the Erdwiss rulers really do like showing off their wealth.The Bilgemont Castle, the room that holds most importance and power in Erdwise. You might notice that the Erdwiss rulers really do like showing off their wealth.

The Bogside Bank of Prosperity. If you need to get some banking done in Trellin, make sure to visit the Bogside.
The Bogside Bank of Prosperity. If you need to get some banking done in Trellin, make sure to visit the Bogside.

Bureau of Moss. For you enthusiastic swamp travelers, you can make some great finds in here, or grab a pint or two to accompany your travels. Remember to leave your dirty swamp shoes next to the door. Bureau of Moss. For you enthusiastic swamp travelers, you can make some great finds in here, or grab a pint or two to accompany your travels. Remember to leave your dirty swamp shoes next to the door.

Traveling UI details page

One minor thing that was missing from traveling UI was the details page, where you can quickly check activities, services and buildings available in explored locations. This makes it easier for you to plan what to do next and where to go in the game. Ultimately, WalkPedia feature will make planning in game a lot easier in the future, but it’s coming only after the CBT is released.

More content

We added a lot of new content as well during the last two weeks, but I was more focused on iOS & Android store stuff and the final missing features. I’m now trying to balance finishing the final missing features while adding new content more slowly at the same time. During the final weeks before release when all of the features are already implemented, my plan is to then crunch the rest of the planned content while being able to fully utilize all of the implemented features to make the most of it.

Dynamic backgrounds

Another thing that was added were dynamic backgrounds. This is automatically turned on in the character creation, and means that your PFP's background image will change based on its current location. This makes it really easy to see where a character is in the game when looking at other player's profiles.

Alpha testing intensifying

We’ve also expanded the alpha testing a little bit, and started the process of polishing and fixing bugs. The dedicated alpha testing team consisting WS team and our closest friends has worked hard to break the game best to their capabilities, and we’ve found a bunch of errors that have been fixed. We will keep this intense testing up all the way until CBT is released, trying to make sure that as little bugs or exploits make it there. But it’s still a beta, and don’t expect a fully working game during the initial release - some bugs will still probably make it there, and we can’t polish everything I would like before the release.

The feedback from alpha testing has been pretty much what we were expecting: with the item stats and bunch of the content missing, it’s still not feeling like a “full experience”. But other than the missing important features and encountered bugs, most alpha testers have been quite pleased with the game, UI and the general feel and promise of the game.

Announcements

Some of the keen eyed folks following the dev blog might have already noticed that we are getting very close to the release date announcement. We promised to announce the release date about two weeks earlier than when the game goes live, but we want to make a little adjustment to this.

So, the release date will be announced in the next development blog post. But the next development blog will not be in the typical every two weeks fashion, but on 21. of December, so one week later than usually. Time between the announcement and the actual release date might be a little bit more than the originally planned two weeks, as we want to make sure we have enough time to write some posts about it to the media, test it as throughoutly as we can, and so on. You can expect the release date to be in January.

The reason for this small adjustment was pretty spot on speculated by Necria from our community:

Necria made a very good predictionNecria made a very good prediction

We want to enjoy the holidays for a bit before releasing the closed beta. I’ve spent a lot of time in the past couple of months crunching to get everything done pretty much alone. I and our team needs to spend the holidays with our families without having to stress about how the release is going. We will spend some of this extra time giving the game some more polishing and final testing as well.

So it’s small disappointment, but at least on 21. you will know the release date. We’ve also baked a small feature that wasn’t supposed to launch with the initial beta that we will reveal on 21. as our small Christmas present to you!

Although we needed one more slight adjustment to the release schedule of the first version, I hope you understand that we don’t want to have the game released during holidays. The extra time we gain here will also be put into polishing mostly, which ensures that the first version should be a lot less buggy and feel like much better experience.

Until next time

We are working hard to release the game before the end of the year. Hopefully, you can see the massive progress we have made in the past two weeks. In a few more weeks, we hope to reach a point where we can release it on app stores.

Stay safe, and keep walking! See you again in two weeks ❤️

30/11/2023 10:00
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12 comments

I think everyone understands the need to take a break during the holiday. New years launch sounds good to me.

30/11/2023 10:18

The Game is written in Flutter if I remember correctly. How would you describe your development experience?

30/11/2023 10:21
LimaWalker
Beta

Woop! Take a well deserved break for the holidays, we are exited for a new-years launch! :D

30/11/2023 10:23
HexalyseWalker
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dev
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This devblog had so much content! Definitely one of the most exciting devblog, and those videos got me even more hyped.

We all need a break during Christmas. I think delaying until January is a very good idea to ensure a good CBT launch without ruining family time.

30/11/2023 10:29
schamppu
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@flexiglas: Better development experience than what I've had with any other engine. Hot reload, ease of creating UI, Dart being a great programming language etc. is what truly makes it shine. But at the same time, programming my own game engine on top of Flutter has been the biggest time sink here. But that's also a good thing: having an engine that I've made myself makes it really easy to plan it to work exactly like I want for this kind of game. And the development tools for the game that I've made make adding content super fast and also surprisingly fun.

30/11/2023 10:30

Great to hear that we are eyeing a January launch! The NPC shop art pieces by Maxchill are just adorable. My favorite: the line of boots by the door in the Bureau of Moss. Good luck with your December crunching.

30/11/2023 10:42

Not disappointed at all. Take your time to enjoy the holidays -- many of us have waited the majority of the year, so a little while longer won't hurt.

30/11/2023 10:51
DaxanCult leader
Beta

Love the transparency! Holidays are a big pressure point, I super appreciate the thought and consideration that went into considering the release window. Great job and so much to look forward to, really well done. Excited!!!

30/11/2023 12:35
Dev1
Beta

Waku Waku (≧▽≦)

30/11/2023 12:59

Definitely take your time during the holidays! However, I am very excited to get to walking with everyone! :)

30/11/2023 13:26
RyanWalker
Beta

Echoing everyone else, we all need a break during this holiday season absolutely. And now I’m even more excited for the new year! Amazing devlog, enjoy the holidays!

30/11/2023 14:42

Can't wait! Thanks for the update.

06/12/2023 03:24

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