Technical Patch 10 Released: Core Systems Completed!

Dev-Com

Welcome, members of the Accord!

Welcome, members of the Accord!

First of all, I want to thank everyone for their patience. Creating this patch was a massive undertaking, and it required extra time because many of these changes happen at the engine level. I also want to give a special thank you to our community testers, Keilloram, Frogwisard, lucyrocketdog, NzombieG, and Shagz, for taking the time to help test the improvements included in this update.

Now, let’s move on to the patch notes. My apologies in advance, because there is a lot to cover.

This is what we call a Technical Patch, and it is the most important update before the full release of the game. It marks the completion of the main systems Penkura needs in order to reach its finished state.

With this patch, we are finalizing systems that have been in development for over two years:

• New Save System

• New Perception System

• Finished Navigation System

• Custom Anti-Aliasing

• New NPC distance and camera-frustum layered optimization system

• New location-based optimization system for objects, UI, animation, physics, and collision

• New Fog System

• New Map Discovery System

These systems were built specifically for Penkura to improve performance and reduce CPU, GPU, and memory usage. They were also designed from the ground up with co-op in mind, which we still plan to introduce near the end of development or shortly after release.

Most importantly, this patch changes Penkura’s development from 90% code and 10% content to 90% content and 10% code. From this point forward, the programming side should mainly focus on bug fixes and smaller improvements needed for new content. For the first time, we can truly shift our main effort toward creating the world, features, and experiences we want players to enjoy.

Let’s go through the changes.

Save System

The save system has been one of our biggest challenges since the very beginning. We tried many different methods, but only recently were we able to find the right balance between speed, file size, and future co-op accessibility.

From now on, new saves will be merged into a single file, with indexing that points to specific parts of that file. This allows the system to load only the data it actually needs, which improves loading times while also reducing the chance of errors to a minimum.

Because we promised that players would not have to restart the game when the new save system arrived, we also created a save conversion system. This system converts old save files into the new format. That was a difficult task, because the previous save structure split a single save slot into multiple files for loading-speed reasons.

Please keep in mind that some players had their save files corrupted while traveling between maps. This is one of the main reasons we decided to rebuild the save format from the ground up, to make sure problems like that do not happen again. However, the save conversion system cannot repair a broken save. It can only convert a working one.

Alongside this, we are also improving the autosave feature by adding save slot amount selection.

Partial Controller Support

We are introducing the first stage of Partial Controller Support.

This required a huge amount of work, because the UI adjustments alone were extensive. In this first stage of controller support, over 400 changes were required across the in-game UI. At this point, nearly the entire main menu, the dialogue system, some computer interfaces, and most of the basic controls are already implemented. Other parts are close to ready, but still require more testing.

We are also adding input control settings, so players can remap buttons if needed, along with sensitivity adjustment and horizontal or vertical inversion.

Over the coming week, aside from bug fixes, we will continue expanding Partial Controller Support with much broader UI accessibility improvements. Until that happens, we will not add the Partial Controller Support tag on the Steam store. We do not believe it is ready for that yet, but we still want to give players early access to what is already working.

New Light and Fog System

For some time, we wanted to improve lighting in Penkura and add more depth to the fog without relying on the very expensive Unreal Lumen system or Atmospheric Fog.

After a great deal of work, we managed to create an in-house dynamic lighting system that automatically adjusts light settings and material functions based on player distance and camera frustum. Thanks to this, we are significantly improving lighting quality while also reducing its performance cost.

More lighting changes will arrive in upcoming patches, but those will be part of the smaller content-focused updates coming soon.

New Custom Anti-Aliasing

Some time ago, we introduced enhanced anti-aliasing by modifying engine settings to reduce ghosting and shimmering. Unfortunately, that solution increased GPU usage by around 10%.

After a great deal of engine level work and analysis of what our project actually needs, we are now adding a custom anti-aliasing solution built specifically for Penkura. Not only does it drastically reduce ghosting and shimmering while improving image sharpness, it also lowers GPU usage by around 8%.

This is a major improvement, because it finally allows us to offer a better anti-aliasing solution to players with weaker hardware.

We are losing access to some engine features, because our changes introduce visual errors when Lumen is active, but at the moment we are not planning to use Lumen anyway.

Memory and CPU Optimization

We will keep this section short, because it is both highly technical and probably not the most exciting thing to read in detail.

In short, we significantly improved how 3D objects, textures, and data are loaded in the background, which lowers CPU usage and reduces memory consumption. On our largest test level, with three extensive bases and over 10,000 items loaded, the game uses around 2.5 GB of RAM.

At this point, we believe there is little value in pushing this optimization much further right now. The time required to improve it by even 1% would likely be measured in weeks. We are already pushing our limits.

PRAWIA Bot Programming Language Improvements

Our in-game programming language for bots, PRAWIA, which we introduced not long ago, is receiving a major update.

We are introducing three major improvements.

First, players will now be able to use building IDs directly in code without first needing to ping the building. This is an option, not a requirement, but we believe it will be a very useful addition for players who already know their base inside and out.

Second, we are introducing multi-word syntax support. It is a slightly awkward name, but the idea is simple: we can now assign multiple word variations to the same command. This will be especially useful for translation, but it will also make the language easier to learn.

For example, >go can now also be written as >goto or >go to, and later even as >idź, the Polish equivalent of “go”. It is a small change, but it gives us more freedom to improve code wording based on community feedback without alienating players who have already learned a specific syntax.

Lastly, and most importantly, we are adding AND, OR, AND NOT, and OR NOT to the IF / ELSE / THEN command structure.

This is a very important improvement that makes the programming language far more practical and rewarding for players who want to one day automate nearly their entire base. It will also make it much easier for us to build more content around the system in the future.

New Map Discovery System

The map system has also been updated.

From now on, players will see a very accurate holographic representation of the landscape they walk on, which they will need to uncover through exploration.

It may look simple at first glance, but this system was deceptively hard to create. The map is generated by scanning the entire walkable landscape, offset by rocks, boulders, mountains, and other terrain features. That information is then recalculated into a 3D mesh that we can generate directly in the engine with the press of a button.

Thanks to this system, future changes to the world map during development will no longer require us to manually export terrain into 3D software and spend hours adjusting and optimizing it for the player map. This will save an enormous amount of time and give us much more freedom to improve the landscape whenever we want.

We also want to add that this version of the map, is 1/5 of the original file size, which makes it way easier to load, and takes up less memory.

Navigation System

Because this is not a brand-new system but rather a major improvement to an existing one, I will keep it short.

We have updated our navigation system so that bots can semi-memorize the routes they take between bases, which lowers the amount of path calculation needed during travel.

We also implemented dynamic object avoidance. For example, if a player stands in front of a moving bot, the bot will do its best to avoid them. To save performance, this is not sweep-based calculation, but collision-trigger based. In other words, the bot may first give the player a little “kiss” before the avoidance system kicks in.

New Perception System

Let’s move on to the perception system.

Some time ago, we mentioned that we had started working on our own perception system and had already partially implemented it. With this patch, we are adding three major improvements to it.

First, memory. NPCs are now capable of remembering the last character and object that interacted with them. This is important because it means players can now use distractions on certain creatures. For example, throwing a flare into a group of Metoses can make them focus on the flare’s glow. It is a simple system, but it is an important building block for better AI.

Second, self-centered senses. Normally, perception systems work as a cone in front of the actor’s eyes. The problem is that when a player moves very close to an enemy, the cone can become too narrow, making the player surprisingly easy to miss. Thanks to self-centered senses, an NPC can now detect a player, object, or even another enemy if it comes close enough.

Please keep in mind that this does not mean enemies can see behind themselves. If a player stands behind an enemy, the enemy will still not see them, which allows stealth to remain meaningful.

Third, dynamic vision levels. For example, during the night the player is now harder to notice, unless they turn on a flashlight or use a flare, which effectively turns them into a beacon. This makes the AI smarter and more responsive to both the player and the world, improving immersion.

AI Improvements

Next are the AI improvements.

To be more specific, we added two new subsystems.

The first is Curiosity Mode. Some creatures can now become curious about activity in their surroundings, which gives players new opportunities to manipulate enemy attention. For example, using a flare to distract Metoses is one such use case. In future updates, we plan to add more items that interact with the curiosity system, giving players more ways to hide, distract, and even use flora and fauna to their advantage.

The second improvement is the expansion of subfactions, which we introduced a few patches ago. We are now expanding the system so the AI better understands faction context.

A Metos Drone is not the same as a Metos Royal Warrior. The player already understands that difference, and now the AI does too. Players will not see a dramatic difference right away, because for now we mostly have animals, but this is a critical step toward making the world feel more believable.

In the future, this will help prevent situations where, for example, a low level raider attacks a player wearing full exoskeletal combat armor as if it had any real chance. This is also one of the foundations for our next major AI improvement: fear.

Cell-Based Optimization System

We are finally near the end of the patch notes, and the last major system is one of the most important ones we have added.

This is the cell-based optimization system, and it will allow us to triple the size of the map in the future.

This is one of the most advanced systems we have created for Penkura, and it has one clear goal: take everything currently in the level and make it run as fast as possible.

This system affects nearly everything in the game: physics, animations, lights, shadows, AI calculations, collisions, triggers, and all of the systems mentioned earlier, including perception, navigation, and even smaller details such as wind on the grass.

It dynamically adjusts calculation speed, animation frame rate, light quality, and a huge number of other features and settings. The goal is not only to make the game run smoother by reducing spikes when something is loading, but also to adapt performance to the actual amount of content currently active in the level.

The more content is loaded, the stronger the improvement becomes.

Right now, we see performance gains of around 2% to 5% under normal circumstances. However, when we quadruple the map and all of its content for testing, performance improves by around 30% to 39%, which is already a very significant change.

We intend to use all of this extra performance headroom to create larger, denser, and more detailed worlds.

We are finally at the end of the patch notes.

This patch has been in development for a long time, and we are very happy to finally bring all of it together into one release. More than anything, it allows us to shift our workflow from 90% code and 10% art/content back to 90% art/content and 10% code.

Over the next week, we will focus on bug fixes and feature adjustments based on player feedback. After that, we will focus on adding a lot more meat to the bone.

Once again, thank you all for your patience, and thank you again to our community testers for helping us test this technical patch.

As always, for more information regarding the latest technical support, patches, and updates, please join our Discord Community. LINK ----> https://discord.gg/2ukYHQm

Till the next Dev-Com over and out.

Penkura Main Branch Adjustment

--------------------- ⊞ Bugs/Errors ⊞ ---------------------

◈ Bots and creatures did not correctly change their maximum movement speed when their inventory exceeded maximum capacity.

◈ PDS Computer UI did not properly become visible if the player loaded next to it or took control of a bot.

◈ Canceling bot movement did not fully reset movement values, which could lead to overlapping movement commands.

◈ Bots did not properly attach their bot attachments in the P.C.C.C.

◈ Fixed a rounding error that could prevent players from repairing some base equipment if they had the exact required amount of items.

◈ Mature Dynka could not be picked.

◈ Some UI intended for the player after the first rebirth was accessible earlier than intended.

◈ The mission log did not properly show which missions are still in development.

◈ Some 3d user interfaces did not properly load into view if the player loaded the game near them, requiring the player to move away and return to retrigger visibility.

◈ Some items did not properly enable gravity if the player loaded the game near them.

◈ Some AI did not properly reactivate their state if the player loaded the game too close to them.

------------------------------------------------- ⊞ Improvements / changes / additions ⊞ -------------------------------------------------

◈ Added partial controller support. Already supported: > dialogue system > main menu > some computer interfaces > basic controls

◈ Added a new fog system.

◈ Added a new lighting system.

◈ Added a new holographic map system.

◈ The Givinx map now has a full holographic map.

◈ The in-game map is no longer fully discovered at the start. Players can now uncover it through exploration.

◈ In-game map file sizes have been reduced by around 80%.

◈ Added a custom anti-aliasing system.

◈ Adjusted over 400 UI elements for controller support and optimized the amount of data sent between UI elements, reducing CPU usage.

◈ Improved material rendering, increasing color vibrancy by around 15%.

◈ Added controller remapping, sensitivity settings, and inversion options to the settings menu.

◈ Introduced multi-syntax code chunks.

◈ The "Go" code command can now also be used with the "Go To" and "Goto" syntax.

◈ The "Go" command can now use the (Building) argument and a building ID to bypass the >ping command.

◈ Added AND, OR, AND NOT, and OR NOT to the IF / ELSE / THEN system.

◈ Updated the P.C.C.C. help window with an advanced IF / ELSE / THEN section.

◈ Removed hitches on weaker machines when using the "Ping" code command.

◈ Significantly improved the custom navigation system for bots, creatures, and future NPCs.

◈ Increased Metos Royal Guard visibility range by 10%.

◈ Fixed an issue where AI did not stop moving after detecting the player, which could cause strange behavior such as idly moving while showing aggression.

◈ Added a new single-file save system.

◈ Added the following to the save procedure: > current weather > wind power > fog density > computer on/off states

◈ Added the new Perception System to every AI in the game.

◈ AI is now able to remain self-aware of its surroundings, allowing it to detect nearby targets beyond the standard 90-degree view angle while keeping the detection range small to simulate peripheral vision.

◈ Added a new distance- and visibility-based NPC optimization system.

◈ Added sub-factions to the Perception System and AI logic.

◈ Added Curiosity to AI behavior.

◈ Flares now trigger AI curiosity effects if the player was not previously visible to the enemy.

◈ Reworked player DNA stats.

• Genetic Adaptability > each point now gives +1 max HP > increases resistance to toxins and poisons > increases the effectiveness of positive effects > lowers the chance of overdose

• Molecular Density > each point now gives +10% melee damage (up from 5%) > each point now gives +1 max HP

• Bioelectric Conduction > lowers the chance of a biomodule causing a negative effect by 2%

• Metabolic Efficiency > lowers food and water consumption requirements by 5% > increases fatigue resistance

◈ Improved the bot emergency recall system in the Options > Help window.

◈ Added a 45 FPS limit setting to the options menu.

◈ We lowered the game file size by about 100 mb.