Devlog #16 for 0.3.0.0 - World & Horse Care Overhaul

World And Horse Updates

Updated Horse Needs

As part of this update, we have revisited the horse needs system.

The hunger bar has been removed entirely. Instead, horses now rely on their daily hay requirement, while grain serves as a way to provide useful buffs rather than simply satisfying hunger.

Snacks remain in the game and continue to be an important way to strengthen the bond between you and your horse.

This creates a more meaningful balance between convenience and horse care, giving players another choice to consider when managing their stable.

Updated Stall Behavior

We've reworked the stall interactions for horses of every size.

The GIF below compares the smallest and the largest horse. Smaller horses naturally need to lift their heads to reach the stall hatch, while the largest horses lower their heads to fit through it. These adjustments make every horse size feel much more believable.

Do not worry the horse will not be able to get stuck.

We've also updated the animations for the hay net, feed-through, and water bucket interactions across all horse sizes. Each interaction has been adjusted to match the horse's height, creating more natural-looking animations.

Gardening Overhaul

This update brings a complete overhaul of the gardening system, making every crop more meaningful and rewarding to grow.

Hay Now Has a Purpose

Hay has become a much more important part of caring for your horses. Just like in real life, every horse now has a daily hay requirement. The amount depends on the horse's size, with smaller horses requiring less hay and larger horses needing more.

There are now two different types of hay:

• Grass Hay fills 1 point of the horse's daily hay requirement. - Alfalfa Hay fills 2 points, making it a more efficient feed option, but it is also more expensive to grow.

Because of this new system, alfalfa will no longer appear as a collectible plant in the wild.

Grain Buffs

Grain has also been redesigned to serve a much bigger purpose than simply filling a hunger bar.

Each type of grain now provides its own unique buff, allowing you to tailor your horse's diet depending on the activities you have planned. Since these buffs last for the entire in-game day, feeding grain in the morning gives you the maximum benefit.

A New Look for the Garden

The entire garden has received a visual update. The old fields have been replaced with planters, giving the gardening area a cleaner and more cohesive appearance.

Many crop meshes have also been redesigned. Grass and alfalfa now blend much more naturally into the world and better match the overall visual style.

Apple trees have also received updated models to better fit the new garden aesthetic.

Finally, we've adjusted the overall gardening balance. Most crops now have shorter growth times, while fertilizer bonuses and grain selling values have also been rebalanced.

These changes are designed to encourage more planning and decision-making. You'll need to decide whether it's worth selling your harvest or saving it for your horses, depending on your long-term goals.

Updated Harvestable Items

We've given our harvestable items a visual overhaul, starting with the poppy flower. Instead of placing individual flowers throughout the world, they now grow in natural-looking patches. This makes them easier to spot while also adding more variation, color, and life to the environment.

We've started introducing flower patches across different biomes, with each area featuring plants that fit its surroundings. The system isn't limited to harvestable items either, it also gives us a flexible way to populate the world with a wider variety of plants and environmental objects. We always enjoy creating features that can be reused in multiple ways.

Alongside this, we've continued updating many of our flora assets. New types of grass, mushrooms, and other plants have been added to make the world feel richer and more alive. The poppy flower has also received an updated model, as you can see below.

Continuing Forward

With the play test getting closer, we're now focusing on polishing some of the remaining systems. Our current priorities include refining horse interactions, finalizing the mane and tail materials, and putting the finishing touches on the ability system.

The upcoming weeks will be all about polishing, balancing, and making sure these new systems come together into the experience we've been working towards. We're excited to share more with you as we get closer to the play test.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support. Your feedback and encouragement mean a lot to us, and we're looking forward to having you join us in the upcoming play test!

Closing remarks

If you'd like to stay up to date and be the first to hear all the latest news, we highly recommend joining our Discord server, that's where we share updates first!

Follow our progress live on our public roadmap:

>> View the public roadmap here <<