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What will weather be like in Dark and Light?
Thus far, it will be unlike anything you have ever seen before. We’ve all played games with the clouds meandering across the sky, or the deserts with their winds blowing sand across the dunes, but how about a game where the weather actually changes, not only by season, but by the actual weather conditions? In Dark and Light the developers have decided that weather is an important aspect in the immersion of the game, and therefore spent time making a system for weather. That’s right folks; we’re talking changing weather that follows predictable rules so that it can actually be forecast. So get ready to be blown away!
Weather Effects
In most games when you hear of weather effects, you think of the static sky above you, or maybe areas where the weather is more or less always the same. Have you ever wondered what a game would be like with a system where the weather was changing constantly, and by season? Where, on a cloudy day, if wind moved in you get a storm, but if cold moved in instead, you might end up with snow? How about if you were walking through the desert, and certain conditions were met, just at that day, and a sandstorm suddenly grew up. Well, you can find that in Dark and Light.
Besides visual effects, weather will also have an impact on game play, be it limiting your range of vision, or impeding your travel. Snow won’t merely be a white covering on top of the ground, but will actually build up to the point where your dwarf is trudging chin deep in snow to try and get somewhere. Are high winds a concern up there in the mountains? Well, then it might be bad to play a light little fairy who can be blown around in the high winds. Wandering through the desert? It would probably be best to take cover until the storm passes… or… if you’re lucky, you can catch sight of the weather before it gets to you, and take steps to avoid it entirely.
Microclimates
That’s right, you can see weather effects at full range in Dark and Light. If you and your group are trying to cross that pass, and you see that snow storm ahead, you might want to consider finding another route, because traveling through snow on foot is going to slow you down, especially that poor dwarf in your party. If you’ve got one of those cute little fairies in the party, keep an eye out for trees swaying in the wind, because it could slow her down. With this system in place, however, you can also create easy microclimates that make sense. While it’s storming over there, it might only be a shower on this side. An area as small as two square kilometers can have two different microclimates and still make sense, and the developers have even considered that snow above a certain altitude never melts.
Little Details
Taking things one-step further towards realism, the developers have included different coefficients for things like snow, and stiffness. Ever noticed when you’re out for a walk in the snow, and it seems to melt faster on rocks, than on the ground? Or have you ever noticed that some trees sway in the wind more than others? Well, you’ll see that in Dark and Light as well. And snow isn’t merely something that happens, but something that builds up over time as more and more snow falls, melting according to the material that it lands on.
Shooting stars, and other celestial effects will have an ingame function.
Vegetation can be snow covered, and hide things. On the flip side, when snow melts, it can reveal special items.
Some areas will require certain weather conditions to be available. Such as a frozen lake to get to the other side. |
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