Skywatch #24 - Development Update

Welcome to Skywatch 24! 

We’ve got a lot of exciting updates this month, with the team making strides in everything from character customisations to worldbuilding.

Let’s go! 

Character Art & Customisations

Our 3D artist, Ed, has been busy crafting new character heads for more personalization. We’re testing custom skin textures with 4 male and 4 female heads. Additionally, you’ll be able to pick from a variety of face paints and hairstyles to truly make your character unique.

Ellen’s mockups for character creation are also shaping up, featuring body presets linked to the in-game cultures in Lost Skies. You’ll be able to customise your ancestry, skin complexion, and more, giving your character deeper connections to the world of Lost Skies.

UI Improvements

Ellen didn’t stop at character creation. This sprint, she’s been working with Design on finalising the user experience flow on the server select screens. We’re currently leaning toward an image-based button layout, making navigation more visually intuitive. This is also where you'll be able to customise your server rules and world to your liking.

Region 2

Tony has implemented a series of quality-of-life improvements for shipbuilding. Ship frames now feature a beveled extended lip on the external beams, enhancing the look while keeping the deck practical.

Region 2 is all about those autumnal tones and ancient ruins with lots of grapple opportunities. We think you will love it!

We held a 1-day internal game jam to create new Region 2 islands and play around with the current version of Island Creator. The jam was a great opportunity for fresh perspectives, with some of our newer team members using Island Creator for the first time. 

Klaudia has already been hard at work creating new ruins based on feedback. Let us know on Discord what other ruins or features you’d love to see for Region 2! 

Tom also experimented with raytraced global illumination for previewing lighting in the Island Creator, giving caves and overhangs a more accurate look when using Island Creator. DLSS upscaling was added to ensure smoother performance during previews. Expect more gear and tools to be available in the Island Creator toolbar soon! 

Puzzles! ?

Tom has also implemented the ‘Object Hole’ puzzle that many of you might remember from earlier Skywatch posts. It challenges you to correctly place spheres and cubes into a receiver. We love making puzzles!In this video you can see much of the new stuff Tom has been working on including ray tracing and puzzles.

Speaking of puzzles, check out these concepts for the new ‘Data Strand’ puzzle Jon did recently.

And here it is 3D modelled by Ross!

Map Table

One of the biggest features we’ve been working on for Milestone 11 is the map table. 

It will serve as a hub for navigation and progression tracking, while also giving you a nice spot for hanging out and planning adventures with your friends. We’re currently working on the interface to optimise the player experience and discussing what data can be tracked at the table. The map table will become an essential part of your ship. 

Concept Art

The Ark

More Ark concepts from Jon! Here you can see survival pods, more Ark interiors, and dynamic doors that signal their state through visual cues. Each new design ties deeply into the lore and functionality of the Ark as a core part of the game’s progression system.

Weapons

Jon has been hard at work creating concepts for lower-tier rifles, shotguns, pistols, and revolvers, all rooted in Saborian tech. We can’t wait to see these weapons in your hands!

Data Bank

Here is the updated concept for data banks that hold data disks vital for your progression via Ark computer trees.

Skybox and SFX

Klaudia has made significant updates to our skybox, adding stunning new vistas for you to discover. In the distance, you might start spotting some mysterious landmarks. 

Mark has been working on some excellent new sound effects, including the satisfying rolling of rocks and more ambient SFX to deepen the atmosphere of the world.

'World-building'

The main theme for milestone 11 has been ‘World-building’, Matt has been collaborating with the design team to define island difficulty across the world. The plan is for difficulty to scale based on your distance from the starting area. 

Higher-level AI and rarer resources will appear the further you venture, providing a steady progression challenge. To counter the difficulty curve, you will need higher level weapons which can be crafted with the resources you gather in the harder zones. Allowing you to tackle harder mobs! 

Ship Building

Tony continues to push forward with shipbuilding systems. Ship weight now uses dynamic part weights, you’ll see your ship's weight in the diagnostics screen. 

Scaffolding has been refined to exclude inner ship areas, making navigation easier, and individual materials can now be assigned to ship panels for more customisation options.

We’ve also updated shipbuilding with new sails, decorative panels, and flight instruments. 

Eventually, we’re looking to replace the current flight HUD with these new immersive instruments!

Combat

Our combat systems are evolving courtesy of John and Kenny! The Art team has finalised the model for the Tank Drone, the largest deadly drone you’ll face on the islands. They also upgraded an earlier machine gun design to make sure you’re well-equipped for a Herald battle.

Herald

Herald development continues! Kenny has started working on a new Herald shape! Check out the new shape and very early movement WIP. 

Kev has been working on the tech for multiple Heralds spawning in the world, using the voronoi grid system shared in previous updates. Meanwhile, Ian and Andy have been refining the VFX for Herald orbs and experimenting with a new silhouette for this intimidating boss.

That wraps up Skywatch 24! As always, thank you for your continued support and feedback. We’ve got so much more in the pipeline, and we can’t wait to share it all with you in the next update. In the meantime remember you can join our amazing community over on Discord and follow us on socials for behind the scene sneak peeks into the Lost Skies development. 

Cheers!

Adam