Hi everyone! Hope you are enjoying the summer as much as we are. Today I’d like to tell you a bit about how we are designing the world in Trailmakers.

Did you know that with just six 2x4 LEGO bricks you can make 915,103,765 different combinations? A truly staggering number of different constructions with only a few bricks. The problem is, most of them look very similar and none of them are particularly interesting. That’s what happens if you randomly put stuff together, with LEGO or with game development for that matter: Lots to see, not much to do with it.



Couldn’t fit pictures of the remaining 915,103,763

In Trailmakers, our world is not randomly generated, but we are using procedural tools that helps us make new landscapes faster. Tools like the ones in the timelapse gif below where we are first deforming the earth to make an island in the sea, then using another tool to shape some mountains on the island and finally adding vegetation in the form of trees with a third tool. These tools carry an element of randomization without being totally random.


Croissant Island

The way that island was made in just a few minutes is comparable to painting with a big paint brush. It’s quick and effective, but it’s missing the finer details, and it’s the fine details that makes the game fun to play. In Trailmakers, you will do a lot more than just explore the world - we want the environment to challenge you. For that to be certain we need carefully craft the challenges. The big brush can make the mountain, but we will handcraft the roads that lead to the mountain peak to ensure that it is sufficiently challenging.

The same principles apply when you start building vehicles in Trailmakers. We are giving you the different parts and making a few rules about how they can be stuck together. If you put them together randomly they might not function very well, but there are still thousands of possible combinations that will work magnificently.


It’s rainbow road all over again

As development of Trailmakers progresses, we are making more and more tools that makes it easier for us to create new worlds fast. We hope this will pay off in the long run when we can make worlds quicker for the content-hungry Early Access players.

Do you have any cool examples of procedural or random generation? Are you going to spend the summer making all 915,103,765 LEGO combinations?

Till next time!

Hi everyone! Hope you are enjoying the summer as much as we are. Today I’d like to tell you a bit about how we are designing the world in Trailmakers.

Did you know that with just six 2x4 LEGO bricks you can make 915,103,765 different combinations? A truly staggering number of different constructions with only a few bricks. The problem is, most of them look very similar and none of them are particularly interesting. That’s what happens if you randomly put stuff together, with LEGO or with game development for that matter: Lots to see, not much to do with it.



Couldn’t fit pictures of the remaining 915,103,763

In Trailmakers, our world is not randomly generated, but we are using procedural tools that helps us make new landscapes faster. Tools like the ones in the timelapse gif below where we are first deforming the earth to make an island in the sea, then using another tool to shape some mountains on the island and finally adding vegetation in the form of trees with a third tool. These tools carry an element of randomization without being totally random.


Croissant Island

The way that island was made in just a few minutes is comparable to painting with a big paint brush. It’s quick and effective, but it’s missing the finer details, and it’s the fine details that makes the game fun to play. In Trailmakers, you will do a lot more than just explore the world - we want the environment to challenge you. For that to be certain we need carefully craft the challenges. The big brush can make the mountain, but we will handcraft the roads that lead to the mountain peak to ensure that it is sufficiently challenging.

The same principles apply when you start building vehicles in Trailmakers. We are giving you the different parts and making a few rules about how they can be stuck together. If you put them together randomly they might not function very well, but there are still thousands of possible combinations that will work magnificently.


It’s rainbow road all over again

As development of Trailmakers progresses, we are making more and more tools that makes it easier for us to create new worlds fast. We hope this will pay off in the long run when we can make worlds quicker for the content-hungry Early Access players.

Do you have any cool examples of procedural or random generation? Are you going to spend the summer making all 915,103,765 LEGO combinations?

Till next time!

This development update is inspired by a forum post on the Steam Community Hub by a player called Coda. He asks “What level of control should we expect? When does physics go from a matter of making something fly for the fun of it, to micro-managing attack angles and points of force as a tedium?”

It is a topic we are still discussing on a daily basis in the development team. It is at the very core of the game design. Trailmakers has been physics-based from the beginning which means we will always use somewhat realistic aerodynamics, gravity, weight distribution etc. At the same time, we want the game to be accessible for everyone, even if you have no prior experience with vehicle building games.


Boop!

A big part of the discussion boils down to a simple question: “What is the most fun?”. It’s not fun if an engineering degree is required to build a simple 4-wheel car - that should be easy. Soon after you do that, you want to try making something more complex like an airplane. If that only requires putting wings on your car, you are not being challenged. We want you to at least think about where you place the wings. Failing to build something the right way can be fun if the result does something hilariously unexpected.


A helicopter without counter-torque is like a fidget spinner

It’s very important that you can see what you did wrong, so you know what to improve. You see your car topple over all the time? Probably a problem with the weight distribution or center of mass. Helicopter spins your cockpit? Add counter-rotation. When you finally get it right, it’s satisfying like solving a puzzle.

Coda wants to know to what extent our physics engine will challenge the player - how detailed is it? To answer briefly: It is more important to us that our in-game physics are predictable than that they are realistic. That being said, there should still be stuff to tinker with for players who want to fine-tune their creations. These things should just be optional. For example, right now in the Alpha Demo we have optional key mapping for mechanical parts. It allows some advanced sequencing, but is not required to complete the game. We hope we can make it impactful to actually bother with fine-tuning.


Weight distribution - how not to do it

Going forward in development, here are some design philosophies we use as guidelines:

• It should be simple to build something basic.
  
• It should feel satisfying to succeed in building something complex.
  
• It’s alright if it takes a bit of experimentation before you get it right.
  
• You have to be able to tell what is wrong when you build something that doesn't work.
  
• ‘Predictable’ is more important than ‘realistic’.
  
• Complexity should be possible but optional.

If you have a suggestion for a development update topic like Coda had, let us know in the comments!

This development update is inspired by a forum post on the Steam Community Hub by a player called Coda. He asks “What level of control should we expect? When does physics go from a matter of making something fly for the fun of it, to micro-managing attack angles and points of force as a tedium?”

It is a topic we are still discussing on a daily basis in the development team. It is at the very core of the game design. Trailmakers has been physics-based from the beginning which means we will always use somewhat realistic aerodynamics, gravity, weight distribution etc. At the same time, we want the game to be accessible for everyone, even if you have no prior experience with vehicle building games.


Boop!

A big part of the discussion boils down to a simple question: “What is the most fun?”. It’s not fun if an engineering degree is required to build a simple 4-wheel car - that should be easy. Soon after you do that, you want to try making something more complex like an airplane. If that only requires putting wings on your car, you are not being challenged. We want you to at least think about where you place the wings. Failing to build something the right way can be fun if the result does something hilariously unexpected.


A helicopter without counter-torque is like a fidget spinner

It’s very important that you can see what you did wrong, so you know what to improve. You see your car topple over all the time? Probably a problem with the weight distribution or center of mass. Helicopter spins your cockpit? Add counter-rotation. When you finally get it right, it’s satisfying like solving a puzzle.

Coda wants to know to what extent our physics engine will challenge the player - how detailed is it? To answer briefly: It is more important to us that our in-game physics are predictable than that they are realistic. That being said, there should still be stuff to tinker with for players who want to fine-tune their creations. These things should just be optional. For example, right now in the Alpha Demo we have optional key mapping for mechanical parts. It allows some advanced sequencing, but is not required to complete the game. We hope we can make it impactful to actually bother with fine-tuning.


Weight distribution - how not to do it

Going forward in development, here are some design philosophies we use as guidelines:

• It should be simple to build something basic.
  
• It should feel satisfying to succeed in building something complex.
  
• It’s alright if it takes a bit of experimentation before you get it right.
  
• You have to be able to tell what is wrong when you build something that doesn't work.
  
• ‘Predictable’ is more important than ‘realistic’.
  
• Complexity should be possible but optional.

If you have a suggestion for a development update topic like Coda had, let us know in the comments!

Wildlife in Trailmakers is something we have mentioned once or twice - in this development update, I’ll go into a bit more detail.

If you have seen any videos or even tried the Alpha Demo of Trailmakers, you might have noticed some flying carrion birds in the sky. This is a sneak peek of what you can expect in the Early Access version of the game coming to Steam later this year.


Johnni to the left, Rhino to the right

The setting of Trailmakers is a somewhat-abandoned world repurposed to host a weirdly dangerous rally expedition. It’s only natural that the world has been re-inhabited after people left it behind. The animals may seem familiar at first, but they are not normal. Many of them are very large, and most of them are very aggressive. Trailmakers is set in a very hostile environment, and the animals play a central role in keeping you on your toes.


“Turtle Power”

Wildlife helps a lot to make the world of Trailmakers feel more living. We set out to make a game that feels new to every player, and unpredictable even when you have played it for hundreds of hours. One of the ways we are doing this, is by having these unpredictable creatures to encounter. Each of them will behave differently, serve a specific purpose in the world, and challenge your engineering skills. You might have to put some armor on your car to survive butting heads with a rhino!


Land whale? Work in progress...

Another really great side effect of putting creatures in the game is the subliminal hint it can provide. We noticed that when players first see the birds in the game, they seem to realize that flight is a possibility, even before they find wings for their vehicle. This works really well to teach players about aspects of the game without putting it in a tutorial. Show - don’t tell.

Do you have any cool ideas for creatures we could put in the game? Leave a comment below :)

Wildlife in Trailmakers is something we have mentioned once or twice - in this development update, I’ll go into a bit more detail.

If you have seen any videos or even tried the Alpha Demo of Trailmakers, you might have noticed some flying carrion birds in the sky. This is a sneak peek of what you can expect in the Early Access version of the game coming to Steam later this year.


Johnni to the left, Rhino to the right

The setting of Trailmakers is a somewhat-abandoned world repurposed to host a weirdly dangerous rally expedition. It’s only natural that the world has been re-inhabited after people left it behind. The animals may seem familiar at first, but they are not normal. Many of them are very large, and most of them are very aggressive. Trailmakers is set in a very hostile environment, and the animals play a central role in keeping you on your toes.


“Turtle Power”

Wildlife helps a lot to make the world of Trailmakers feel more living. We set out to make a game that feels new to every player, and unpredictable even when you have played it for hundreds of hours. One of the ways we are doing this, is by having these unpredictable creatures to encounter. Each of them will behave differently, serve a specific purpose in the world, and challenge your engineering skills. You might have to put some armor on your car to survive butting heads with a rhino!


Land whale? Work in progress...

Another really great side effect of putting creatures in the game is the subliminal hint it can provide. We noticed that when players first see the birds in the game, they seem to realize that flight is a possibility, even before they find wings for their vehicle. This works really well to teach players about aspects of the game without putting it in a tutorial. Show - don’t tell.

Do you have any cool ideas for creatures we could put in the game? Leave a comment below :)

Hi everyone!

This development update is a bit more meta than the ones we have made before. It’s about the feature choices we make when developing a game for Steam Early Access.

When you buy something with the ‘Early Access’ tag on Steam, you expect a small slice of what the full game will be like, and that the developers will keep making the game better. You probably do it to support the development, maybe to save a bit of money, and definitely to try the game as soon as possible. It’s clear from reviews on Early Access games that players expect a relatively bug/crash free game, but are okay with lack of content as long as more is coming soon.

We have a HEAP of content planned for Trailmakers, so we have been discussing what to add during the Alpha, what we want to have ready for Early Access launch, and what we want in the full version of the game. Since Trailmakers is all about building vehicles, I will describe our possible approaches with… real estate metaphors. Close enough.



One approach is what we’ll call the Shanty Town. In a shanty town approach, we would make all the features we have planned for Trailmakers ready for Early Access, but in a very undeveloped and possibly fragile way. Sure, the features would all be there, but they might be frustratingly simple and lacking structure. Early Access would be spent on repairing, rebuilding and improving the many, many features.



The second approach is the Desolate Mansion. With this approach we would pick one feature for Trailmakers, finish it completely and then release Early Access with that feature and not any of the others we have planned. An example would be releasing with a finished Expedition Mode, leaving out Sandbox Mode, Multiplayer, Challenges etc. for later development. Early Access would be spent on adding more features one by one - populating the desert.



The third approach, the one we are going with, is the Skyscraper approach. For the Early Access Launch, we are making a solid foundation of fleshed-out features that serve as the core of the game. On top of that, we are creating the framework for more content making it as easy as possible for us to provide monthly content updates. As an example, this means we are building the whole game on a multiplayer framework, but not rolling out multiplayer in every game mode from launch. We think this will give the best experience for you guys, and a more fun Early Access period full of cool content updates!

Do you recognize any of these approaches from other games? What do you think about Early Access? Let us know in the comments.

Hi everyone!

This development update is a bit more meta than the ones we have made before. It’s about the feature choices we make when developing a game for Steam Early Access.

When you buy something with the ‘Early Access’ tag on Steam, you expect a small slice of what the full game will be like, and that the developers will keep making the game better. You probably do it to support the development, maybe to save a bit of money, and definitely to try the game as soon as possible. It’s clear from reviews on Early Access games that players expect a relatively bug/crash free game, but are okay with lack of content as long as more is coming soon.

We have a HEAP of content planned for Trailmakers, so we have been discussing what to add during the Alpha, what we want to have ready for Early Access launch, and what we want in the full version of the game. Since Trailmakers is all about building vehicles, I will describe our possible approaches with… real estate metaphors. Close enough.



One approach is what we’ll call the Shanty Town. In a shanty town approach, we would make all the features we have planned for Trailmakers ready for Early Access, but in a very undeveloped and possibly fragile way. Sure, the features would all be there, but they might be frustratingly simple and lacking structure. Early Access would be spent on repairing, rebuilding and improving the many, many features.



The second approach is the Desolate Mansion. With this approach we would pick one feature for Trailmakers, finish it completely and then release Early Access with that feature and not any of the others we have planned. An example would be releasing with a finished Expedition Mode, leaving out Sandbox Mode, Multiplayer, Challenges etc. for later development. Early Access would be spent on adding more features one by one - populating the desert.



The third approach, the one we are going with, is the Skyscraper approach. For the Early Access Launch, we are making a solid foundation of fleshed-out features that serve as the core of the game. On top of that, we are creating the framework for more content making it as easy as possible for us to provide monthly content updates. As an example, this means we are building the whole game on a multiplayer framework, but not rolling out multiplayer in every game mode from launch. We think this will give the best experience for you guys, and a more fun Early Access period full of cool content updates!

Do you recognize any of these approaches from other games? What do you think about Early Access? Let us know in the comments.

Hey everyone! Here is the next Trailmakers development update - this time about Challenges.



In the horizon you might spot a floating trophy, and when you reach it you can start a Challenge. This opens the builder, where you can create a custom-made vehicle for the task at hand. We have a lot of cool challenges planned, from long-jumps to races, so the vehicle you build will have to fit the challenge. Is the perfect race car small and aerodynamic or big with lots of jets? The challenge may include restrictions, such as limited total substance cost or limited amount of engines. Complete it and see how well you compare on the Leaderboard.

...but that’s just the start of it.



We are making a system that allows you to make your own challenges anywhere in the world. This will give you access to the same tools that we have. You can make a custom challenge with checkpoints, objects, vehicle restrictions etc. They can be engineering-heavy like an obstacle course with no wheels allowed or perhaps a triathlon where you have to drive, sail and fly? Afterwards, you can share the challenge with friends or other Trailmakers, and see who can get the best record. Essentially, we are building a system that allows you to customize parts of the world, create your own objectives and challenge other players.

The first version of Challenges is coming to the Alpha soon.

If you have any cool challenge ideas let us know in the comments!