Dev Log 4 - Items and skills are working now

AaronTheAdmin

Hey stranger, it's been too long...

I know I haven't been posting as many updates as I originally intended, but I have been working on the next VP steadily.
You still won't be able to play the next version for a while, but here's an update on my progress:
What's done now:
- You can sign up, and immediately have a 'home kennel'.
- You can create dog imports.
- You can train a specific stat (currently only strength, agility, speed, and intelligence).
- There are skills for both players and dogs. All are hidden at first, but you can unlock them naturally as you play and do things.
- There is a store where you can buy items.

Items
You can buy items for VPC, or a sponsor for USD. There may or may not be other cash-only items in the future. Not sure yet. Maybe a sponsor just lets you access more VPC-only items? We'll see.

Some items can be used as training buttons.
For example, if you own the item "Weight Set Lvl 1", it becomes a button on the training page which costs more energy, but gives an increase to both the "strength" stat, and the "pull" skill. Doing so is one of the ways a dog can unlock the pull skill, which might come in handy for things like mushing.

Skills
Skills are similar to stats, but tend to be more specific. Every dog starts off with the same stats, but you have to unlock skills somehow. Certain breeds might naturally grant a skill, others you might get from items or other achievements.
Once you have a skill, you can build up your experience with it.
All stats and skills go from 0-100.
Having high experience in a skill can give bonuses in specific events and jobs.

What next?

1. Genetics/health/vet stuff
2. Breeding/Pedigree
3. Events
4. Jobs
5. A TON of small fixes and features
6. Release the Alpha version to the public
7. Continue fixing bugs and adding features forever

I don't want to mislead you. When you first see the next version, it won't be a polished gem. It'll be ugly, buggy, and missing features (like the current version).
But it will be a rock solid foundation on which I can work. I plan to play the game alongside you, keep talking to you, and keep improving it every day.

Hayley_bessette

Thank you for all the hard work you are doing to improve this game for all of us loyal players. We have waited a long time to be able to play with the same joy we did years ago. I hope we get to keep what we already have and paid for, such as: Sponsor status, kennel specialty, all of our personal imports with their special colors and purchased dogs, and our pupbucks (VPC).

Dramatic

This is amazing, thank you. I wonder if when the new version is released, if we will get the opportunity to start from scratch, or only pick up where we left off?

AaronTheAdmin

I'm going to work hard to preserve backwards compatibility, especially for stuff you paid for.

You can start from scratch, or pick up where you left off.

Some things are so buggy right now that carrying it over could be seen almost like cheating. There was a period where every breeding creating these crazy mutant dogs with super powerful stats. How can we smoothly transition those? One idea is to keep track of which dog were brought over, and which are new. Old blood vs new blood. Events can probably have a filter to allow one or both.

Another way might be a more classic mmo approach of having multiple servers for a game. You pick one and join it. In that case, there would be one for only new dogs, only old dogs, and a third as a free for all. I don't know which I'll choose, I would love feedback.

Midnight_Sway

So the one's who have spent a lot of money and time on this game will be able to keep what they have paid for right? I truly am happy that someone else has actually taken over this game, I cannot imagine what hoops you had to jump through to buy it. But this is truly amazing and I cannot wait to see what this will become and all your hard work into this is outstanding! I have been playing this game for almost 14 years!