[i]Dear Fans, Dear Followers, Old & new, Welcome to this (late!) January 2023 dev diary for Task Force Admiral.[/i] That was quite the busy month we had in January, and I had a bad cold right at the time I was supposed to upload all this stuff, so apologies for the unwanted delay...! We have mostly worked on ironing out bugs and introducing our view system, while implementing thoroughly combat systems aboard ships and visual effects too. That might sound a bit surprising considering views & visual effects are not usually an important part of the wargamer's toolkit to a good experience. Yet, in the specific 3D environment of TFA, they remain central to the enjoyment of the game, and a fair companion to any After-Action Report minded playthrough. Let's see why. [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/14eab4c71413f81de04026be7b862447698fa511.png[/img] [h2]The View System[/h2] Our view system is sticking to a few cardinal rules in its design which, hopefully, will satisfy the expectations of most, whether you use it for your in-game enjoyment or as a tool for a video or picture-based after-action report. [list] [*]The views should give you as much freedom as possible when it comes to picking an angle [*]They should be easy to navigate using a few keys, in an intuitive fashion, while making good use of the mouse without hampering gameplay functions [*]They should help with focusing on a given unit from your current PoV with handy padlock options [*]They should be fully interactive during pause as long as pause is a thing in your realism settings, and obviously will be as such when used in the future replay system [/list] The first video below gives you an idea of the basic PoVs one can pick for any naval or air unit, on either side. Basically the different views are: [list] [*]A default Orbit view around the selected unit [*]A Front view, at bridge-level for a ship, and above the engine cowling or the nose for an aircraft) [*]A Left side and Right side view, which also works for the vulture’s row on a carrier [*]A Rear view, which will puts you on the stern of a ship or the backseat of an airplane [*]A Chase view, which will allow you to follow dogfights & the action in general with a cool head bobbing effect[/list] [previewyoutube=EmMogzuaLLs;full][/previewyoutube] Of course this cannot equal all the options you would have in an actual plane or ship simulator, but we believe that it offers enough opportunities so as to keep you entertained. As you can see below, the free navigation lets you pick the angle you like best. Coupled potentially with a rewind function in the replay mode, you should be able to efficiently cover a given event under different angles without having to restart your track and pray to have it right the first time. At least, that’s the intent, time will tell if we manage to (pardon my French rugby lingo) convert our try by learning from the sins usually encountered in games with a comparable scope, while hoping we are not committing too many new ones while doing so! [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/14eab4c71413f81de04026be7b862447698fa511.png[/img] [h2]Of Padlocking & FoV[/h2] The padlock system works pretty well. It allows you to easily pick a friendly or enemy contact by switching between the different objects rather seamlessly. It allows for some dramatic angles, like these we’ve been showcasing in our shorter videos this month. Whether you are aboard a ship getting bombed, or seeing the action from the perspective of the aggressor, you will have you covered. Another nice feature is the ability for the player to tweak the Field of View on the fly so as to find the best setting for your shots. It does change the perspective quite a lot, as you can see below. It’s an old trick from our simulation days, something that I remember from the very first Il-2, which would definitely give your screenshots the sort of inspiring oomph actual photography can instil in real life. In this mode, the work done on the 3D models shines, and I am happy to say that our 3D artist Rizki's work managed to give them quite the oomph factor despite our originally very tight triangle budget. As for their looks, they will be improved (some of these ships are still in their original untreated base texture). With the playable slice approaching, our 2D artist Julien will be hard at work to weather in a credible way all this wood and this steel. [url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/3f8978a2a0ce0fdac8409ad0aeaae75daf83985f.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/5b2daef988963976a82a3ef4db648c93faad4009.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/6c85a8afb554d336245f90aacc38ee2686fcb872.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/139c748499101d57e1e1a0e6e51ea0285d96a527.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/1a4d9b06f8585cc99404620f9f13ef6c02b63d9c.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/3e1e12f33677b6297a04a2f258099d699e30f14a.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/ba6d72a54a582a5ba23db065f063d4f46fdb3195.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/5c1a071ee193c526a32de803c70a4a2daaff2722.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/7c8a787d63d3267efc2fd9cfe5d7cd3bfd0035b6.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/2337d27b2abe8acb8e3a77bd501dad5f9bbaffc8.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/61c22d2e6a41c629e12d2b6d14e9d111d7df800f.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/502283b22e052982b62d2a8101b7b1769feba9a5.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/c0731047ab3e77ccec2e521bf9424864fbcc4ddc.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/79d4703465e1da714d9c9e633d695b33fc505bbd.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/c384fcdba326399c9e2d319642d41f524b969253.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/7c128da2f598915be6ca96b41fb6389078a0ec37.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/f334991b383ab1b458f06ce68477be36e7743243.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/43ceed5e325bc555e5b665f08c22d3197c519c92.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/f7b73b99a330c4b7e9e56b059863fd24180db19b.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/4d78b430253948e7b75d1bae51fbfa1191e308c0.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/48cfa0400a5bacad5a5394dcb46f16ceaafdbc27.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/c5c0036084432f5f5e02b3ad5ce0467420e7991a.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/133b6ef62cb30658d30213814cc51ebb809ba926.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/02b043ae14c935ede98954edb633d071b9a57ed6.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/7fada712339d4357bccaa7824496fb1812386397.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/9b69b2652162b8d1a8702fbaff068fb736dc94a6.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/c8217b1de11aa32ab78f90b97331f6ef269cae7f.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/a1b90fa902c4bae5eb852d49d90a4e657327bb2d.png[/img][/url][url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/6c986ad3cd3e2c1ea961d1544649ffea6e182f4b.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/d1f147866405bfe7ec6933361f9373d866fe69ab.png[/img][/url] Altogether, the camera options seem to make for a fair, functional package. We will carry on with the rest of our development pipeline for now. Naturally, all of this needs to be properly refined based on tester experience later on, and changes will necessarily happen, but the basic functions seem to do their job for the time being. Once paired with the future replay system we envision, we will hopefully achieve a relatable level of customization in the way you want to watch your gameplay contents. As such, we hope that it will result in a satisfying solution for those among our followers who favour colourful contents for their battle reports, whether these are posted on message boards or video platforms. In the meantime, enjoy this lavish compilation below of all these aforementioned tools! [previewyoutube=WRX48LQf43g;full][/previewyoutube] [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/14eab4c71413f81de04026be7b862447698fa511.png[/img] [h2]Of Water, Fire, Guns & Fun[/h2] Another area of interest this month was the continuation of the work already done on the mounts. After assigning them basic properties, it was time for us to put them in a relevant environment so as to test them against actual aircraft. Quite logically, it also led to an increased interest in the implementation of the corresponding sound and visual effects. These were applied to the guns and their target area alike. For starters, the sounds were properly integrated in-game and are now firing with a convincing punch. The guns themselves were fine-tuned so as to fire with a little more randomness to them and avoid the feeling that everybody is shooting in unisson whenever it is not warranted. As for the visual effects, here’s a small demonstration below. Whether it is about water or fire, we went for solutions that might not seem always so popular with all developers, but we just could not accept the idea that billboards would look spectacular from one side, and suddenly look flat (well... like billboards are) the moment you rotate the camera to take a screen from another angle. Although this is certainly still work in progress, and will be improved over time, the water splash previously showcased really do work well and make you feel very much in the midst of the action. [previewyoutube=BtNWpjEUBxA;full][/previewyoutube] All these sweet videos might have gotten some of you readers a bit worried when it comes to the configuration needed to run Task Force Admiral. What was said on the store page back in the day is still pretty unchanged. Some time was devoted to the implementation of several techs that will allow the game to still run smoothly even if your computer is not NASA-grade. AMD FidelityFX™ Super Resolution (FSR) is among these technologies. The advantage of implementing the support for this tech in particular is that work with all manufacturers (unlike other comparable solutions) and will allow you to play at a higher resolution while dramatically improving performance by using upscaling smartly. Below, you can see the same scene, with native rendering on one side & a 0.75 rendering with FSR-managed upscaling. As you can see, differences are fairly minor - if you can't see immediately which is which, it is one of these rare times when it is actually good news ^^ - yet can mean the world to smaller rigs. It is in our interest to keep exploring solutions that will make TFA run smoothly on a larger panel of machines, so do expect us to keep optimization always in a good spot on our minds. [url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/4690f141a2523fbb9351fb461adf07fa532fb92e.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/4690f141a2523fbb9351fb461adf07fa532fb92e.png[/img][/url] [url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/6138df5755db59e71a879e2d690a7f86dd56c6e3.png][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/6138df5755db59e71a879e2d690a7f86dd56c6e3.png[/img][/url] [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/14eab4c71413f81de04026be7b862447698fa511.png[/img] That's all for today Folks! As a parting gift, here's the traditional Greetings card for the Lunar Year authored by Julien. The year of the rabbit was a good opportunity to honor VT-2, which served from 1943 onwards with a mix between Bugs Bunny & Oswald as a mascot, riding a (working & modified) Mk13 torpedo. Feel free to greet your friends who celebrate the Spring festival in style! [url={STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/a0240caa22cd7b4d1ed12a8df4a6639be93c6542.jpg] [img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/a0240caa22cd7b4d1ed12a8df4a6639be93c6542.jpg[/img][/url] As always, if you aren't too fond of Discord, Facebook, Twitter or else, don't forget that we have a mailing list here specifically made so as to keep you updated of all our Steam updates and other announcements which might be big enough to deserve a special treatment. Click on the pic below to access the form. [url=http://eepurl.com/gMCA4T][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/c2616940e22ac9a4701551fbd9b78a48f10ef3b7.jpg[/img][/url] Cheers & take care, and see you (earlier than usual then!) for the February update at the end of this very month! The Task Force Admiral team. [url=https://discord.gg/xyWqGak][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/e80ee0a9741f654567f884e9bb163776ad9a13d8.png[/img][/url] [url=https://twitter.com/DrydockDreams][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/3a1e97f2cf149c6dd4fa9c243f434178f5232067.png[/img][/url] [url=https://www.facebook.com/TaskForceAdmiral/][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/6e6ba1996ebbeab842854775398d296eecd31ac6.png[/img][/url] [url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv_rxX8PnLOVt77K3FaIPnw][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/afce089fb35fc0312b165cb1f1e7be638fc2e063.png[/img][/url] [url=https://space.bilibili.com/478394397][img]{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/37689795/6e999aff3471cd2fac37ccbdc0082a1a8a2634a3.png[/img][/url]