Chaotic physics-based motion RPG Eternal Strands simply unveiled its roadmap, detailing plans for updates, changes and varied free DLC packages throughout to summer time. But as famous by RPS, developer Yellow Brick Games additionally took the chance to deal with varied complaints gamers have with the sport. Some of those it’s both fixing or has promised to repair, however in others its response has been a contact extra defensive.
This is particularly the case concerning character motion. “We heard your suggestions concerning the generally ‘slippery’ feeling of Brynn’s actions within the recreation,” writes Yellow Brick. “Some of you have got described that her strolling/working felt slightly bit an excessive amount of like ‘skating’ and that the dearth of precision could possibly be irritating at instances.”
Which does not sound perfect, to be sincere, however Yellow Brick explains this can be a consequence of Brynn’s motion being closely physics primarily based, very similar to the opposite methods within the recreation. “Much of the way it feels is meant and attributable to how a 100% physics-based sandbox recreation like Eternal Strands is designed to work,” the studio says. “Being an object that reacts to the physics surrounding her, similar to every other object on this planet, implies that her weight and inertia have an effect on her motion.” Consequently, Brynn “can take a while” to speed up or decelerate, and her motion “cannot be as snappy or reactive as it’s in video games that depend on animation”.
The apparent unanswered query right here is: why is Brynn’s motion physics primarily based within the first occasion? Sure, Yellow Brick mentions the entire recreation is closely physics-based, however what benefit does that convey with regard to participant motion. Or extra particularly, what benefit does it convey that is definitely worth the tradeoff of it feeling much less exact than standard animations?
In any case, this query is rendered considerably moot by Yellow Brick’s subsequent level, the place it says it has taken one other go on the motion anyway. “Based in your suggestions, we did take a better take a look at what we may change that may have an effect on motion precision”, Yellow Brick writes, including that it “did certainly determine and make just a few delicate however noticeable tweaks”. These embody enhancing Brynn’s minimal acceleration and making route adjustments “snappier”.
This is not the one change that the sport’s incoming replace will make. Combat has likewise been adjusted to be extra responsive. Enemy reactions have been improved so as to add extra “oomph”, whereas some skills now trigger even larger reactions that “interrupt enemy assaults”. VFX for participant strikes have equally been “tweaked to be made extra outstanding”.
Outside of fight, Yellow Brick has additionally “eliminated the penalty for falling deaths” to cease gamers being punished by lethal plummets which might be “totally out of [their] management. Again although, Yellow Brick is a little bit defensive on this level. “When you add traversal magic to a physics-based recreation set in a excessive verticality world with big enemies, a lot of chaos ensues”, the studio writes, including “that’s undoubtedly meant design.”
All these adjustments might be formally utilized someday in March. Looking additional forward, Eternal Strands has two free DLC packs coming over the following few months. Spring will convey new armour and weapon skins design in collaboration with Final Fantasy 14/16 idea artist Yusuke Mogi, alongside a brand new map and new magic energy. After that, a summer time patch will give gamers new “unique content material” developed in collaboration with Grasshopper Manufacture.
Despite the grumbling over its motion, Eternal Strands appears to have gone down nicely with gamers at massive. The recreation at the moment rests at a “Very Positive” ranking on Steam. PCG’s reviewer Kerry Brunskill was likewise impressed by Yellow Bricks’ motion RPG. Indeed, her solely actual criticism was that she may have performed a complete lot extra of it: “Open-ended journey video games typically depart me resenting their countless hamster wheels, smothering me with busywork for busywork’s sake. But the tight focus right here, at all times providing particular duties in well-defined areas that naturally led from one plot level to the following, meant I actually did not need the sport to finish.”
