Unreal Engine 5

Originally posted on Steam on January 9, 2024. We are catching up on the backlog and will eventually post the devblogs here as they are published.

Disclaimer: Features discussed in this post reflect what is currently under development and not necessarily what will be shipping with the next test. Anything mentioned below may change at any time due to the experimental nature of Pre-Alpha development. Nothing mentioned here should be taken as a promised feature or addition to the eventual game.

POINTS OF INTEREST

A major part of the next phase of map development is fleshing out the dark and unique history of Calligo through various points of interest. These include, but are not limited to, rundown or raided hovels, towns and small villages, religious sites, and temples. You’ll also find an expansion of smaller curiosities similar to those that some may have already stumbled upon.

Initially, these points of interest may appear as “Block Outs” that won’t represent their final form/layout — since Anvil is in early development, there will be many visual features that don’t have final art, which is a common practice in game development.

These locations will be filled with visual storytelling, expand the lore, and may contain frightening secrets hidden in the darkest corners. We’re excited to introduce many new features that build on the rich and dangerous world of Anvil Empires.

SEASONS

We showed a brief teaser on Seasons & Weather many devblogs ago. Our main goal is to have seasons and weather feel like a natural part of the sandbox that impacts many areas of gameplay in an organic manner.

We're finally going to see the initial implementation of seasons in Phase 5 of the Pre-Alpha. The world will rotate through four full seasons (Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter) changing the look and feel of the environment.

Seasons will also impact three environmental factors: Temperature, Wetness, and Wind. To start, Temperature will impact the player directly. Players characters will now have a temperature stat that can be monitored on the HUD alongside hunger, stamina, and health. If a player's temperature drops below zero they will begin taking damage. Players can recover temperature by standing near a source of fire or being indoors. While this initial interaction with gameplay is quite specific and narrow, the environment system is designed to integrate with many more features and content in the future.

The seasonal system is also designed to scale to climates, varying how seasons impact the environment at a specific location in the world. While this is supported in the code, it won't be enabled until the further future when the world is larger enough for it to be meaningful.

WEATHER EVENTS

Weather events are another system, distinct from seasons that impacts the three environmental factors. Weather events exist in the form of snow and rain storms, and will drastically alter Temperature, Wetness, and Wind. Seasons will impact the chance of a type of weather event happening (e.g. Snow storms are more likely in the winter).

Weather event simulation is sophisticated. Weather events have a lifecycle where they grow and shrink in intensity. They can move around dynamically in the world and multiple events can even collide with each other, stacking their environmental effects.

WORKBENCH REDESIGN

The Workbench mechanics and interface has been redesigned as part of our efforts in replacing legacy Settlement content like Blacksmiths with newer content like Anvils, Sawbucks, etc. The Workbench is now where the majority of player equipment is crafted. The Advanced Workbench has also been added for higher end items. An additional goal for the Workbenches is to have all the craftable equipment in the game to be visible at one (or two) structures so players can see at a glance what they can aspire to produce.

The Workbench now has a dedicated inventory for input items so resources can be delivered and stashed before crafting is done. The Workbench is now capable of crafting items of varying quality. With this new capability, it will also be replacing the Assembly Station as the structure to produce tools and weapons using materials made from the Blacksmithing process.

Be sure to add Anvil Empires to your wish list on Steam. If you want to join the community, head over the to official Discord server or Subreddit.