I Can Move Mountains!!

Apologies for the lack updates.   I live in the Northeast and haven't stopped shoveling snow since early December.   That, and we've been retooling our entire terrain engine to make it hotter than a turbo chicken.

And I am here to report, it's all coming together nicely.

One of the first criticisms of our early "screenshots" where that the terrain appeared quite flat.  And well, it was flat - we used a single 2D texture - and while it looked okay in some places and angles, it wasn't quite cutting it.  Without a highly advanced (and expensive) set of 3D models/objects, it was going to be too hard to populate regions and successfully combat that overwhelming flat feeling.   Diablo pulled it off quite well in it's own way, but we saw the tools to make it better and got the itch to do so.  We wanted to make environments like this:

This is not flat - it's voluptuous and cozy.
Early mock up (sans 3D models/object) of the "Elder's Reach" region.

And now, several months later, we actually can.   When we add in our custom 3D graphics/characters, we're pretty damn excited to be seeing a game come together with visuals unlike any other on the XBLIG service (I believe that's at least semi-safe to say).   The horn has been tooted.

For those RPG/lore junkies in the house, that pic is a preview of a very pivotal area in the story, called Elder's Reach.   As the Pampali Dessert extends north and breaks through the mountain range, there is a pass (Northern Pass) that eventually opens up to this long peninsula.   Maya will meet someone here - someone who might not like her very much.

Feels good to be back on the bloggy blog - hit me up with comments and help us rally. :)