Some nice features (and a performance boost)

I realised I never included an update log for updates 1.09 and 1.10 (and today 1.10.1) so here is what has changed with those updates!

Update 1.09

• Fixed seam in track

  • This was caused by the shadow of the track, and so shadows have been disabled for certain parts of the track and should be less noticeable

• Lighting changes made to all tracks

  • Lighting is now less harsh/bright to make the environment pop out more, but the track is still visible

• Changed hover effect

  • Should have less of a performance hit now and is now simplified

• Added a new player model to the interior of the car

  • The car is no longer being driven by a ghost

• Fixed leaderboards not updating when changing level

• Fixed the incorrect count for total leaderboard entries

• World best times now shown on the level select

• Removed old main menu theme from playing

• Added new speed indicator

  • This indicator can be flipped to either side depending on preference

Update 1.10

Added pop-up for when off-road for too long to tell you how to reset the car to the previous checkpoint

Improved performance for shadows

Changed RHI from directx12 to directx11

• This should help with shadow performance and there was other issues with directx12

• This has meant that lighting has needed to be rebuilt

• Updated car model

  • This new car model has a similar look to the older one, but with less of a performance hit (the game can now run stably at 60fps on a Steam Deck with shadows enabled)

Update 1.10.1

• Fixed replay pause menu creating multiple copies of itself when the pause key was pressed several times

• Fixed world best times not showing correctly in the level select menu (it only showed after changing the selected level)

• Added more variety to tree colouration for Forest_Run

Right now I am hard at work getting all the multiplayer side of the game working as when it was last tested (over 1.5 years ago!) it worked fine (mostly), however a lot has changed over that time so testing is needed to ensure it still works (don't worry, split-screen still works! That was tested at a local playtesting event 4 months ago and the game underwent fixes).

As well as creating new and exciting racetracks (with layout and "feel" being the first thing I typically design and test before going with a visual theme) there is plenty more to show off with Take The Wheels! in the future. As of writing, there are currently 14 tracks with layouts done and of those 14, 8 have partially completed visual decoration! (although because I am primarily a programmer, visually it will have a long way to come!). A few tracks that were created for the build of the game over 3 years ago are also being re-designed for the current movement for the car (the car was originally much grippier and less engaging to drive).

Otherwise, it has been amazing seeing so many times being set in the game (as of writing this, there are 98 times set currently across all tracks) and feedback of the game has been amazing to receive!

Thank you all very much!