Knock on wood!

We're only a few weeks out from release of the "Final Alpha", and while I am hopeful, there is always the chance of a last-minute delay that might gum up the works.  

Tomorrow, we are planning on integrating the "follow" function with the UI - which is undergoing a slight overhaul.

The previous version was the default, and was just not compatible with the overall style we were going for.  This isn't the final, of course- just the most recent iteration.

You can also see that we are bumping up the sky & stars - although it will be far less pronounced within the "main exterior."  This has to do with a new approach to in-game time that I go into a bit more detail about, below.

The Peace Island Fanart contest ended, and while it wasn't exactly overrun with entries, some really neat stuff WAS submitted!

The above was submitted by Reddit user OswalderAnew - you can see the rest of the winners here! 

There was a week-long interruption in sending out premiums, but we will re-commence print & postcard shipments, starting tomorrow!  The delay was simply a lack of proper backing boards - but a new batch arrived Saturday - I spent half of Sunday assembling packs of prints + stickers, so it's just a matter of adding the postage & addresses.

So- "Island Time..."

Those who have played recent alphas will have noted that the days & nights seem to pass quite swiftly.  This was implemented several releases back so that players would be able to see the entire day/night cycle within 15 minutes of play.

This changes in the final alpha.  Days will be approximately 60 minutes long, and nights will be approximately 40.

This is one of the reasons why we are adding more luminescence to the nights, as mentioned above - currently, they tend to be rather gloomy, and on some occasions, tough to navigate.  

So- why so long?  At 100 minutes, the day/night cycle is longer than Skyrim!

Well, for several reasons:

Primarily because the player will eventually be required to balance the needs of nine cats.  Assume that the average supervised cat can go a maximum of 7 days before one of their three stats is completely drained.  Nine cats X three stats equals 27 separate items the player needs to manage within that average of seven days.  This cycle allows for a minimum average of +/- 30 minutes of play time until the needs of a cat (might) become an issue to address.

Getting this balanced JUST RIGHT is a tricky business - I am certain that some of ya'll reading this played "Grand Theft Auto 4" and felt that same frisson of absolute annoyance when one of your "friends" called up, demanding a trip to the bowling alley, or that you endure a lame "Comedy" show, just so you could get certain bonuses (or even deal with them at all.)  THAT was an example of a poorly-timed cooperative/management system, and was the first thing that modders removed.

Now- naturally, this management loop will always be changing: for example, if your cat is left alone and a bug wanders by, the cat will play with (or might eat) it without your input -  Just as in real life, a cat will not need your prodding to follow what it really wants.  Another variable is that when you are leading a group of cats, they will be able to more efficiently fulfil their needs collectively than as individuals, in many cases.

Plus - this extended cycle allows us to give the player a bit of a feel for a phenomena known as the aforementioned "Island Time."  

Urban Dictionary defines it best as:

"The time vacuum created by the ocean's presence. Similar to stoner's time, everything moves nice and slow."

We wanted to give players that feeling of "Geez- I went to the store, walked around the entire island, took a nap, had a few neat conversations, discovered a new location - and it ain't even noon - Time to go sit in the sun for a while."

See yall next week!