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Ready Or Not (Elite SWAT Team)
Asid:
Volume #54 Ready or Not Development Update
Thu, 15 June 2023
The Sin and the Stance
Attention Officers,
Welcome to the 54th edition of our biweekly newsletter! This week we’ll be talking about our upcoming map, Sins of the Father, our new Devlog that will be dropping monthly alongside our newsletters starting next month!
The First Sin
Taking place after the attempted assassination of a US Lawmaker by a group of disenfranchised Veterans, Sins of the Father brings the team to an devilishly opulent penthouse suite packed to the brim with some of the toughest hostiles that the LSPD has come up against yet. This a very dangerous proposition when the LSPDs past victories include a squad of well equipped ex-military veterans, a large complex filled with deadly paramilitaries, and an incredibly well-entrenched ex-USIA officer.
Above: The long halls offer little cover from very aggressive hostiles, make good use of shields and doorways.
The Sinners
The capabilities of the hostiles contained within Sins will show from their rock solid morale, meaning the bodyguards will be some of the hardest suspects in the game to peacefully restrain, requiring the entire team to carefully clear, contain, and cuff each suspect with great care. This combined with their powerful weapons and individual uniforms purposefully selected to resemble the civilians within the map means Sin will be a tough nut to crack.
Above: The golden inlays, furniture, and decorations betray a level of wealth only attainable by either the incredibly lucky or the incredibly dirty.
Currently, to add an ever deeper layer of challenge, we are experimenting with giving the AI on Sin the ability to deploy non-lethal throwables. The exact same types that the LSPD bring to bear on particularly ornery suspects when the need arises, adding yet another sound that a team will need to carefully listen out for.
Though there is a silver lining to the increased capabilities of the hostiles, their conventional training means that they will not hide under beds or in closets and will not crawl through the available through-fares on the map, freeing any responding officer to direct their attention elsewhere.
Video Devlogs
Starting next month we will also be aiming to release monthly video dev logs detailing subjects that would be poorly served by a static newsletter or vastly improved via a video format. The coming video will mainly feature information relating to the mocap for all the characters in Ready or Not with the intended release date being July 17th.
Above: Our mocap artist Aaron starting the session with a T-pose for the first set of new mocap shoots.
In addition to the monthly Devlog videos that will be uploaded to our YouTube channel, we will also be delivering more news about the state of the Supporter Edition going into the future, and a much more clear picture of the future of the game that our team has worked so hard to build and our community has worked so hard to nurture.
—
Conclusion
This concludes our 54th briefing. Be sure to tune in next time for more development news!
If you’d like to help us test new content during playtesting periods on the Supporter exclusive experimental branch, provide us with your game feedback, and keep up with the Supporter community; you can become a supporter at www.voidinteractive.net or at our Steam store page.
Are you a content creator on youtube or twitch looking for new games? We got you covered; Ready or Not has partnered with Lurkit to elevate gameplay! Make sure to follow us here.
https://www.lurkit.com/games/ready-or-not
Keep your feet on the ground.
VOID Interactive
Asid:
Volume #55 Ready or Not Development Update
Fri, 7 July 2023
To Stream or not to Stream
Welcome to the 55th edition of our biweekly newsletter! In this post, we will synergize with our recent cinematic trailer, "Streamer", and showcase the in-game environment that our officers should expect.
Introduction
Michael, also known as Milky Toes in the online world, is a vibrant character who’s eagerly embraced the latest internet trend to make a name for himself. Shining his unruly and toxic personality in multiple aspects of his day-to-day life, he seldom stops to consider the consequences of his actions.
Shortly into one of his streams, a prank call was placed by his live audience; SWAT made haste to breach and secure the apartment complex. What they discovered was not only the disturbance created by Michael’s arguments with his mother but an awaiting truth that will hopefully be solved with time.
Above: The apartment exterior, presented through a floral aesthetic.
To Stream or not to Stream
While this may seem like a typical day for everyone, Michael’s group rarely shies away from his place. Even if the combat expertise may not be the same as the level of a professional, his friends would do anything to protect the active operations happening behind closed doors.
Above: A colorful bedroom depicting the main area of what looks to be the streaming activity.
The situation revolves around expecting the unexpected. The deployed squad will have to meticulously inspect every corner and potential hiding spots to ensure nothing is missed in the operation. Every encounter can be critical; sometimes, even a basic perspective can turn into a wide-ranging investigation.
Above: TOC to entry team. Proceed with caution.
Conclusion
This concludes our 55th briefing. Be sure to tune in next time for more development news!
If you’d like to help us test new content during playtesting periods on the Supporter exclusive experimental branch, provide us with your game feedback, and keep up with the Supporter community; you can become a supporter at www.voidinteractive.net or at our Steam store page.
Are you a content creator on YouTube or Twitch looking for new games? We got you covered; Ready or Not has officially partnered with Lurkit to elevate gameplay! Make sure to follow us here: https://www.lurkit.com/games/ready-or-not
Over and out,
VOID Interactive
Asid:
Volume #56 Ready or Not Development Update
Fri, 21 July 2023
Let your imagination flow
Welcome to the 56th edition of our biweekly newsletter! Today, it's time for a deep dive into one of the most essential aspects of development: concept art. We will explore a general approach to the creation of these styles for our tactical shooter, Ready or Not. By following the post, we will understand different levels of importance, together with exciting behind-the-scenes graphics.
In some instances, we are joined by one of the many remarkable artists and personalities here at VOID Interactive, Ropolio!
Introduction
Before checking behind the curtains, we must understand exactly what concept art is. To put it simply, it represents the visual design generation of an item, character, or even area that does not yet exist. This automatically creates a story that is able to flourish into something that players are able to personally experience in several projects, including those connected to the gaming industry.
Take a look at the following selection of outfits that precisely represent the Los Suenos Police Department’s progression when it comes to the vast imagination of the artists.
Above: Modular designs for detectives in the police department, or on the scene.
The history and connection to RON
Many of us are no strangers to the classics that owe their existence to this very practice. From iconic titles like Legend of Zelda and Grand Theft Auto, to mesmerizing adventures like Ori and the Blind Forest, all games have historical significance in gaming concept art. It represents an indispensable stage in video game pre-production, breathing life into imaginative worlds and laying the foundation for the experiences that await players.
It’s the same for Ready or Not, where everything must match the immersive environment, whether that be the equipment of the SWAT units, colors, or the next room that may require a tactical breach. The team at VOID Interactive is constantly working hard to bring these ideas to reality, and by using reference points, it can create an arsenal of goals for the project.
Our Police Station rework is a prime example of what thorough early analysis can offer players when they first step into this well-built structure. Together with other design departments, it can easily be said that concept art has the ability to transform into something memorable in the long run.
Above: The memorial area where the shrine can be seen through player navigation.
Giving life to Streamer and Michael
As discussed earlier, reference points play an important role in laying the groundwork for pre-production assets. Looking at our recent cinematic trailer and biweekly newsletter #55, we can easily inspect topics regarding Michael, also known as Milky Toes on the internet.
"Along with photobashing for clothing, I've been integrating artificial intelligence to speed up my workflow, specifically for faces and clothing folds. It helps create a likeness without using a real human's face. When talking about my main inspiration, I researched different youtubers and streamers to assist me in finalizing the necessary looks that created Michael."
━ 🎨 Ropolio
Even with Ready or Not being his first gaming project, Ropolio's talent and attention to detail allow him to dodge obstacles while providing intuitive visions for the project. Combining this with the strengths of other developers, the team can reach its designated goals much more smoothly.
Above: Early preview of the problematic individual himself, Michael Williams.
Extras
Before concluding our showcase, we are happy to show even more ambitious foundations to the community.
A quick look at the Debanco guards, a security group armed with non-lethal equipment such as pepper sprays and tasers, ready to defend their armored trucks from any perceived threat.
Armed with powerful weaponry and still representing style, Senator Forment's bodyguards are no beginners in the art of primary and secondary weapon combinations.
Last but not least, an early yet mysterious preview of the new farm.
Conclusion
This concludes our 56th briefing. Be sure to tune in next time for more development news!
If you’d like to help us test new content during playtesting periods on the Supporter exclusive experimental branch, provide us with your game feedback, and keep up with the Supporter community; you can become a supporter at www.voidinteractive.net or at our Steam store page.
Over and out,
VOID Interactive
Asid:
Volume #57 Ready or Not Development Update
Fri, 4 August 2023
It's almost time to show off your style
Welcome to the 57th edition of our biweekly newsletter! Today, we will share one of our community's highly requested topics, the upcoming customization in Ready or Not.
Remember that the following is an early preview of our customization system, and everything that the players see here will look entirely different later. This will incorporate the community's involvement at various stages rather than just during the final touches.
Introduction
The VOID Interactive team constantly uses their brushes and canvases to expand the clothing combinations so you can distinguish yourself easily when approaching the dangerous streets of Los Sueños.
Mery.G (Gerard), an ambitious character artist at VOID, will be joining different parts of our news to share more information about the process.
Presentation: Gloves
Kicking off with a practical but essential clothing piece for SWAT members, the players can choose from a long list of gloves through an available UI. We understand that aesthetics play an important role in an immersive game such as Ready or Not, so you will have the freedom to add or switch parts for your character while combining your favorite colors.
After talking to Gerard, he decided to dive a bit into his key references that make all these assets possible.
"When I started getting into the whole 3D creation realm, I started making content for a competition called 'Make ArmA not War.' The premise was simple: just create content. The better I got at it, the more I realized how simple and fun it is to be able to just replicate things you see or have used in real life, and that just stuck with me. I love anything art, painting, or music, so this is my way of expressing and enjoying myself, and I'm happy we have people excited about and enjoying the things we've released. Also, I love collaborating and working with others and, when possible, helping or teaching them, as I feel like I always learn something new from everyone I meet."
━ 🎨 Mery.G
Above: Multiple images representing some of the many skins when talking about gloves.
Read on: https://steamcommunity.com/games/1144200/announcements/detail/3651908241709893273
Asid:
Volume #58 - Ready or Not Development Update
Fri, 25 August 2023
Calling all units,
Welcome to the 58th edition of our biweekly newsletter! Today, we will introduce yet another highly anticipated feature, the upcoming Suspect AI in Ready or Not.
Please note that what is presented is a work in progress, and final results may look or play differently from what this newsletter represents.
Introduction
Our AI Design team is always looking for ways to enhance the gameplay loop, making the game feel even more realistic and challenging. Today’s newsletter will discuss the Suspect AI systems and how we aim to throw a spanner in your perfectly laid-out plans.
Join us as we speak about the suspect AI system and how our AI Designer, Bradley, tackles the challenge of making suspects behave more naturally toward player actions.
The Gameplay Loop
At its core, Ready or Not thrives on immersing players in a realistic, challenging, tactical first-person shooter environment. However, this comes with challenges:
‘How do we make the gameplay loop feel stable and challenging while still remaining fair?’
The answer to this is quite complex, and to properly immerse the player, we are exploring many ways that AI can interact and react to certain situations.
Suspect AI: Freedom of Movement
Many FPS games with enemy AI may set an 'optimal' combat distance when fighting the player. This makes AI (AKA ‘actors’) in those games have potentially undesirable behaviors on some levels, such as leaving rooms with the player at awkward moments.
In Ready or Not, though, we strive to give our AI freedom to improvise and re-approach situations and face players with the challenge of controlling that chaos.
"Something I think [Ready or Not] has an advantage over others in that department is we're able to embrace chaos. In traditional shooters, linear ones anyway, when level designers place down actors in a scene, it's generally with the intention that they work within the area they're placed in. In RoN, we only care about this in precombat, where we keep them constrained to the general area they spawn in.
Once the AI is alert, their interaction with the area will dictate how fights feel. So, for instance, in the Agency map, it's not uncommon to have more drawn-out intense gunfights in the lobby due to it having multiple interconnecting entrances and covers for the AI to attack from. Conversely, if you push into the hallway past it, they often duck into one of the rooms to flank you or wait for you since they can't find a good spot to take cover. Honestly, I really like that I can lean more into "chaos" in the game."
However, Bradley also describes the following new system intended to address crowded or empty AI spawn areas, allowing for an optimal gameplay flow on each given level:
"One thing we did recently is add a spawn grouping system. This will allow us to ensure specific parts of the map don't get too crowded or possibly too empty by setting a min/max desired number of characters to spawn within a certain group. This lets me do stuff like set a bunch of possible spawns in an area, then limit the group's max number to like 2 guys. So there could be ten possible spawns, but we won't have to worry about 10 guys in there."
See Below: Neutral AI moving in a set area before player interaction
Suspect AI: Decision-Making
“Suspects have unfortunately been seen as targets you have to stun or kill because they'll inevitably shoot at you once they become aware.”
One of the challenges we are tackling is to ensure that suspects behave more naturally. Based on player actions, we want to ensure that the suspects will act accordingly. You blow a door open; some suspects will act surprised and cower, and others may hold their ground. This aims to reinvigorate scenarios; players will never know what to expect when tackling obstacles.
Below: AI surrenders after being stunned.
Use of Force
In line with the above and some other scenarios, a suspect might not act aggressively. Based on what a player does, suspects may choose several actions, including surrendering, cowering, retreating, grouping, and, of course, showing aggression (to name a few).
But what happens when a suspect simply does not open fire? In moments like these, you have to consider the Use of Force Continuum - shooting a non-hostile suspect will have consequences. Proceed with the utmost caution and attempt to de-escalate using less-lethal methods. Though, of course, some situations cannot always be avoided.
“You shouldn't be shooting suspects who haven't shown aggression. So situations where a suspect does not open fire can potentially be more stressful - who knows if other suspects are on the way while you're trying to get him to comply!”
Below: AI Fake Surrender GIF
Conclusion
This concludes our 58th briefing. Be sure to tune in next time for more development news!
Are you a content creator on YouTube or Twitch looking for new games? We have you covered; Ready or Not has officially partnered with Lurkit to elevate gameplay! Make sure to follow us here:
https://www.lurkit.com/games/ready-or-not
Over and out,
VOID Interactive
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