Adding paths to the game - Sapiens Devlog 51

[@Peckh]

Do consider a way to easily upgrade all the paths! something that frustrates me in other games with similar systems

[@zakiyafisher8718]

yes! this is such an important feature that is so frequently overlooked :(

[@majicDave]

I agree!

[@danielbrazell]

It makes sense that the sapiens wouldn't just make paths naturally, but I think it could be helpful if they would "trample out" the grass in areas they frequently walk. This could help the player find which areas should have a path instead of blindly guessing.

[@Plaufin]

I mean they really look really cool, it just feels more like a Roman stone path rather than a 1000 BC colony

[@blorger]

i don't see at all how the paths look roman

[@mathieu1lastar]

Yeah the look and dig and fill mechanics make it look more like paving than pathing. You'd feel that path would be easier to make and look simpler. But I really like the mechanic and the look of it !

[@manlyastronaut6984]

I think he’ll add age progress. So you might just unlock them once you enter the iron age

[@jpietersen519]

People were a lot more advanced 1000BC than you might think. But yes, for early hunter gatherers like he might be going for it looks too advanced

[@ryanmccauley1139]

I’m a fan of the stone ones... but I’ll be honest, I think the dirt paths look a bit silly with how far they pop out of the ground 😅. I still love the work!

[@zakiyafisher8718]

i love the path design it really adds so much to the feel of the village, its so much more connected and lived in :) I personally love the style and aesthetic of this particular path and i think that different variants are a good way to go as far as appealing to different styles. Im always so excited to see what new additions and tweaks you make to the game and its been such a wonderful journey watching it grow and evolve, cant wait to play it! :)

[@cazio8087]

THIS VIDEO SHOWS YOU NEED RANDOMLY GENERATED ROCK FORMATIONS!!! EVERYONE LOVES ROCKS!!

[@Magnogen]

ROCKS!!!

[@Garbaz]

6:34 That makes a lot of sense. Up to that point I considered the paths generating as people walk along them the best idea, since it would be quite fitting to the whole stone age theme, but I agree, given the lack of direct control over the people's movement, placing paths is better for gameplay.

[@colemanscollard2207]

Honestly I think the paths really make the aesthetic of the game. Everything has looked beautiful up unto this point, but the presence of the paths makes the village look lived in while also looking like it was made with simple tools. Honestly brilliant. Am so excited for this game! (But take your time :D)

[@UltraBot]

Always makes my day to see one of these uploaded!

[@Hotseewt]

same

[@Caolderick]

Those paths are fantastic, I love the parts where they form stairs, it makes the whole area feel that bit more alive.

[@mutboiz2532]

do whatever you want with the paths, because you have to remember who's been working on this game for years!

[@FuriousTedyBear]

I really like your dedication to the first person type of view (not topographic). It really gives the game immersion especially being able to walk through that beautiful tree path.

[@BeefJerkey]

Though I understand the reason for allowing the player to place paths, I still think it would make sense for the dirt to get packed down (and the grass trampled) over time if that area is walked across regularly. Sort of a path I guess, but no big dirt clods. Just a thought.

[@benrex7775]

Paths, fences and walls are what make up civilization. At least their look. Now that you started doing that I feel like bushes are missing. Your nature has the small plants (grass), and the big plants (trees) but the plants in between (bushes) are missing completely. And they are important for a good landscape.

[@fury3029]

Sapiens looks better and better each time I see it!

[@JakeyOhsogood]

The paths looks awesome Dave! I'm with you, I think they suit the game more than a straighter uniform path.

[@xmame100]

Favourite youtube series at the minute!

[@rasmustagu]

This series is by far one of my favorites on this website, always makes me happy and excited! Great video and nice progress!

[@rasmustagu]

That said I can't wait for combat!

[@hhfamily7528]

I never thought the idea of a path can change a game looks and feels. Imagine advancing and upgrading them for horse and cart connecting to mountain ranges for bulk ore trips!

[@Roo_Tech]

I remember playing blockheads all day when I was younger. So happy for this project!

[@RugbugRedfern]

Hey Dave! I love the game so far. It looks amazing! The only critique I have is the permanent partial circle at the bottom of the screen with the text telling you what you're looking at. It feels really intrusive. It feels a little annoying to have a part of UI covering the beautiful landscape of your game, especially when the rest of the UI is so minimal when you're not doing anything.

[@howdyhowdyhowdyhowdyhowdy]

It's really great to have seen how much progress has been made looking at this devlog and comparing it to devlog 1

[@feffo9908]

Impressive how something as simple as paths changed the look of the settlement! Very good job

[@louise19808]

The paths really bring the whole village to life! Very exciting! I think adding meat drying racks etc would make them look even more lived-in. Preservation of food is of ancient importance, and would add more usefulness to the hunting/butchery skill. I'd also love to see fishing implemented, and then drying fish on the racks.

[@harshivpatel6238]

The ones that rise above terrain level look bad IMO, the stone ones and the others that sort of snap to ground do look good. Maybe you'd use the extruding ones on uneven terrains as legitimate steps to climb ? As far as the terrain isn't too steep, the paths shouldn't be coming above the ground too much.

[@piteoswaldo]

I agree. Especially the dirt ones (the stone may be ok to be on top of the terrain). Natural paths are usually depressed into the ground, as the grass is killed and the soil eroded. It would be nice to see concave dirt paths.

[@majicDave]

I guess it wasn't clear in the video, but by the end, that is how it worked. The dirt blobs are flat on the terrain when the terrain is flat, and only poke out of the terrain to form steps on slopes.

[@samuelt7647]

So excited to try out Sapiens when it eventually comes out! The paths look great too. Can't wait for fences to be added and more decorations like bushes and flowers.

[@krat5576]

It's starting to look like such a nice village, I love it and cant wait to build something myself.

[@nuc13ar]

I think the paths look fine a game needs its own art style doesn’t need to be realistic like the way its going

[@999Souls]

the path gave the game so much more life for some reason.The game is looking fantastic. Keep it up :)

[@MrHeliMan]

I have to say it's starting to look very cosy and more relatable. Good job :)

[@peckish1587]

I’m really excited for this game! It’s so cool seeing it come along and seeing the passion being put into it. Keep it up man and best of luck!

[@manlyastronaut6984]

I love the paths. I feel like they fit the style of the game very well

[@GloomyPie1]

8:15 you should lock the camera when you hit the max build length

[@LEHtJong]

Hi Dave, great video. Small tip for the grass, use your 3D software to point vertex normals upwards, this will make the grass blend nicely with the terrain no matter how they are rotated.

[@Skeffles]

Fantastic explanation of this system. It looks great and I like seeing the tents connected together.

[@flowerreater]

This game has come so far, and I can't wait to play it! I would love to see more kinda of creatures running about, like mice and different types of birds

[@plaidpvcpipe3792]

14:12 I think that sapiens should be able to climb over fences if they need too. You could then have a wall that needs special things like ladders to get over.

[@Vistorri]

Looks like it's all starting to come together!

[@woshj]

Personally, I think the paths really suit the style I prefer the ones that pop out the ground instead of just recolouring the floor to look like a path I get others people points of view in regard to paths being trambled areas of ground but at the same time having to collect the materials to build up the paths allow you to work towards a quarry whilst also allowing you to increase the efficiency of the colony There's always a balance between what makes sense in the real world and what makes sense in a game and I think this is a great solution to paths

[@WaferKnight]

Good to see this step of the development "Path!"

[@Hello-qg4yk]

Hehe😏

[@Knight5ofKnox]

I think the dirt paths should be a little more even, as the dirt would naturally settle over time. I also think that the long paths should wonder and curve around the terrain, just to make it look a little more natural. I really love how this game is turning out though, the aesthetic of the game is really incredible!

[@zingzingzingbahh]

nice work! while placing long paths, it would be cool to have the option to make it curved / sinusoidal (scroll mouse wheel before placing, etc.) would also be nice to be able to place loops / circular paths

[@funkyskill1961]

I love watching the progress of this game!

[@koltzow]

You could achieve both your and the users wishes by having the spline automatically draw a narrow path initially and then increase the width upon use to show what paths are used the most so you could optimise your paths over time :)

[@rafaelcorrea7959]

I really miss some big boulders laying around the map

[@SnutiHQ]

Interesting seeing how you approached this features. 😊👍

[@dannystudy7779]

Adding some stones would be so nice around the world similar to what you did with the paths

[@ciberman]

Wait... this is all a CUSTOM C++ MADE ENGINE?! Omgggg... 20+ respect points

[@BoJaN4464]

I'm a bit late to the party but I think also adding the natural paths, where foot traffic wears down the grass to create a path over time would be neat. They would function as an early game path, with just a minor speed benefit but would also allow you to see the "hot paths" villagers are taking to better plan out your paths. Having both a natural path system and being able to plan out paths would really add to the aesthetic and make the world feel more alive. Plus you'd be able to see where all the lazy villagers are cutting corners.

[@HelamanGile]

It's so awesome to see your progress

[@plaidpvcpipe3792]

Those stone paths are my favorite

[@ZeroRelevance]

Wow, the bases are really starting to look like towns now, keep up the good work

[@Broockle]

ye, those paths do look pretty awesome ;D I didn't see this coming at all, what a happy surprise ^^

[@Harry-ho6kh]

Those paths look great. My only question as a player would be "What's the benefit of the higher tier paths?" Will there be a movement speed increase for each path tier higher than dirt?

[@nic5423]

I guess that would be nice, but I wouldn't be too bothered if it were just an aesthetic thing. It kinda seems a little "game logic"-y to implement that. Like if I'm walking on a trodden dirt path, it's gonna be easier than walking through the undergrowth. But walking along a tarmac road isn't going to be much of an improvement on top of that.

[@Simtar123]

@@nic5423 no no, I walk twice as fast on tarmac, I zoom past bikers and uphill I walk faster than mopeds. It's a level 3 road after all. 😁

[@neinherman9989]

Maybe if he adds carts thst can be pulled by humans or animals they might benefit from better roads

[@krat5576]

Maybe instead of increasing speed, they could deteriorate over time. Ofc, a stone road will deteriorate more slowly. But I'm fine with just aesthetics.

[@Simtar123]

@@neinherman9989 yes in case of anything on wheels, I feel like it would make a greater difference 👍

[@zachnerdydude6605]

I think manual path placing fits really well!

[@pythooonuser2233]

The paths look good. I guess they will get refined at some point. But it's a really nice addition to the game.

[@fakshen1973]

Paths that are flush with the ground look better imho. I would also have paths require regular maintenance or they will be overgrown (use that grass mechanic to your advantage) and then disappear. I'd add that feature to prevent players from spamming paths and roads everywhere. Your population can only do a finite amount of tasks, so maintaining paths would have a natural limit. As far of types of paths, higher quality paths would take more resources and time to build but last longer without maintenance.

[@blackdragoncool]

Really agree that paths should be placed by players in your game. I do think it would be interesting to have "animal trails" as purely aesthetic paths which form naturally if a given route is traversed a lot. In a game which is run by AI controlled agents, I think it's important to have visualization tools which you can use to access the general activity of your population (it could inform where you place new official paths, for instance). Of course this might not be a high priority though.

[@Siminfrance]

Great video again, thanks for the update. The paths look great ...

[@slweeb]

I love these so much, keep doing you

[@wherbe5037]

awesome path system! not sure why other games with building systems don't implement something like this too

[@WEE9]

I love the game and how it's developing :) How about a feature where you can control one of the humans similar to Totally Accurate Battle Simulator I think it'd be cool to control them and walk around.

[@marcustinkler]

I thing you should add bigger trees! like really big trees! very good devlog btw.

[@muttons8802]

Taking your points on creation of paths. Could they wear a temporary path in the grass that would 'grow back' if its not a player placed path? With sapiens opting for player placed paths if exist. Literally just a colour change on the grass rather than a full object. Like a dirt track in the countryside. This is probably simpler in my head than in code :). Paths look good too!

[@DeepDarkDweller]

Looking good Dave! Can't wait for a release. I also wanted to ask if you have considered a steam release of the blockheads? or maybe open-sourcing it so the community can do it ourselves? I haven't seen too many other games like it and would really like to see a PC version. Cheers.

[@qualia765]

make path connect to the ground much more gradually for dirt, but stone should have a move piece by piece look

[@TheBookDoctor]

I have to say, I'm not a huge fan of the look of the dirt paths, because dirt paths are never *raised*. They're sunken. There's a fundamental difference between an *emergent* path, one carved naturally by feet into the landscape, and a *constructed* path, made by bringing new material to the area. Emergent paths subtract from the landscape, while constructed paths add. I think the visual tension with the dirt paths right now is that they're trying to use an additive mechanic to show something that IRL would have been subtractive in nature. I think you can use the same path placement code for both, but for dirt paths, it should be enough just to say "path goes here", and there it is. It doesn't make sense to have to dig it out, or for the sapiens to have to dig elsewhere to get dirt for it, because such a path should emerge as a byproduct of the actions of the sapiens. For constructed paths, though, it's completely different: of course you need to dig and collect materials before you can build a stone path. IMO, recognizing the difference between emergent and constructed paths would go a long way to improving the overall look, satisfying the people who say paths should just appear where people walk (though in the game mechanic, the order of causality is flipped), and still providing for the different path types in a natural way.

[@majicDave]

I didn't explain it well enough in the video, but of course I know this, the issue isn't me not understanding how paths work. The issue is that rendering actual sunken paths would incur a significant performance cost (lower frame rates, longer load times), it wouldn't be as clear and simple for the player to work with, and I'd estimate it would take me roughly a further 6 weeks of work.

[@janikcodes]

For the skill menu, why not go with a bubble kinda RPG system. So u have those nodes that connect to different nodes. And u need to learn node 1 To be able to learn node 2 and 3. Skyrim did this with there skill ui

[@Rossilaz58]

I love these videos!

[@Garbaz]

Not sure what to think about the paths automatically connecting to the closest node. I think it would be good to have to option to choose a start node to connect to. So maybe when you try to start your path on an existing node, it instead starts from that node instead of placing a new one, if that makes sense.

[@plaidpvcpipe3792]

I think you should vary the color of the hexes on the path, like you did with the texture of the dirt.

[@I2Privet21]

I think the paths look great, but for dirt paths I think that you should add texture to it like you have for the rest of the dirt, but I haven't seen how It looks so im not completely sure if it would just blend in or not.

[@16m49x3]

I still like the organic path idea, but it's obvious you actually thought about it, so what more can we ask ^^ The path placing looks really good, although I agree the dirt paths look a bit off. What I don't think you mentioned however is what effect the paths have? I would assume the dirt path makes the sapiens faster, and the rock path even faster again? On that note, should it be possible to upgrade dirt paths to rock paths?

[@olliesacoustics]

Yes I love these so much 😍

[@ChuckyBTikTok]

Love it dave

[@StatesideBeast]

Just make it a option. Some days I might feel like making paths. Some days I won't feel like making paths. Who knows. Maybe one day I would want both.

[@kiwifrogg]

To me, it looks a bit odd that the wind is strong enough to move the grass and orange trees yet the smoke goes straight up.

[@AfonsodelCB]

my main issue with the dirt ones is that they all have the same colour/texture, so it's kind of like they don't match the rest of the terrain. normally I'd assume this was something you were aware of and planning to tackle later but what you said in the video made me doubt that

[@sijoalex5951]

Looks good! Which game engine do you use? Or is it your own developed ?

[@Shirroyd]

Pathing looks very sound! My question with the fencing though is if sapiens and larger animals would be able to climb/hop the fence? Or does it simply act as a wall/deterrent?

[@declanhofmeyr3184]

Modding support? Or am I missing something. Cause mods would be awesome. :)

[@christianmuriel8918]

He has already modding capabilities for LUA and C :)

[@declanhofmeyr3184]

Christian Muriel thought I was missing something.

[@droopmoose]

What is the conflict in the game? I have been watching this series for about a year and commented your progress, but is there a sense of danger? Something to counter your progress? I'm not sure what that would be exactly, but that's why I'm not a dev!

[@Hello-qg4yk]

Well. Not every game has something to counter your progress. Idk if this what you mean but the only keeping you from progressing in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is time and in game debt. You cant loose progress unless you forget to save or *manually* delete itz

[@thedestoryer21]

Fences make me think of hostile animals.

[@edajb]

1. Are you working on this on your own? If you are, that's amazing! 2. Can you do 'a day in the life of a game dev' video.... 3. What do you use to make this game?

[@plaidpvcpipe3792]

Dave uses his own engine for Sapiens, and he does it all by himself, with a bit of help from other people sometimes (like how he got other people to do female and child voices.)

[@hunter4hire]

I wonder why you chose a polygonal model for the path instead of a Bump + Displacement Texture.

[@peterlewis2178]

I love the stone paths, and do see the appeal in the aesthetic for the dirt paths, but they just feel unnatural to me. I fully agree that the paths shouldn't be automatically created by the Sapiens, but I feel like the dirt ones should at least look like they were created by constant foot traffic (as dirt paths and trails usually are), rather than placed manually.

[@EEDev]

Which path finding algorithm do you use?

[@trafficface]

Was this distance between nodes, then scale nodes between to fit?

[@Harry-ho6kh]

Noice!

[@Sk4lli]

What happened with Devlog 50? It jumped straight from 49 to 51. 😄 But nice feature, I like how the paths work.

[@siyandagwavu4492]

what is the timeline does the game end at ?. if im am correct i would say this currently at *the stone age* thus my question is will we be able to progress to *the bronze age* or even *the iron age* .

[@plaidpvcpipe3792]

I think in a previous video, he mentioned that he'd like to bring it all the way up to middle ages kind of tech. So I assume he'll have walls, large wheat farms, iron tools, and maybe mills near the end of the advancement tree. Although none of it is for certain.

[@HelamanGile]

Yay a new video

[@hm4266]

How many people are working on the game ?

[@TobbyTukaywan]

Fun idea: what if some sapiens were more likely to always walk on paths, and others were more likely to cut more corners?

[@OmgThatsIncredible]

Save him the extra coding work man... there's a lot of coding to be done already xd

[@TobbyTukaywan]

@@OmgThatsIncredible Haha you're probably right. Still think it'd be cool though.

[@Kishgofu]

are you going to be able to dig down and mine rare stuff?

[@yoloboogie3674]

is the blockheads dead now?

[@kevnar]

Honestly, if I have to build paths manually, tile-by-tile, I'm probably never going to do it. I'll be too busy with the game's other activities to bother with it. If I can set a start and end point for a path and have them build a path on their own between those two points, it's easier. But the easiest way would be to have the paths form themselves organically after excessive tread on the tile, as in Foundation, Ostriv, Settlers III, etc. Plus it feels wrong from a historical perspective. Manually digging up vegetation to create paths to resources is just not something a pre-agricultural tribe would spend time doing. Their lives were spent hunting and gathering. Repeatedly treading over the same terrain day after day would form trails naturally, so it wouldn't even be necessary. Eventually, humans got around to road building, but that wasn't a thing until they invented the wheel. It's a tough call, for you, though, as the game designer. You want to have enough activities in your game to keep it interesting. But you don't want to just add busy work for the sake of content. Perhaps by the time the game is done, there will be enough stuff to do that you feel better about organic paths.

[@bolicob]

I still disagree. Sapiens should still "create paths" (i.e. destroy grass) on the ground where they frequently walk. BUT, I also think you should be able to build paths too. idk why you can't do both. Cause that's how it works in real life.

[@mslindqu]

Stone paths looke pretty good. Dirt paths ooof, huge thumbs down, at least the raised bits. As others have said they don't look natural but what's worse is, if I were a person I'd choose to NOT use those paths due to the incredible unevenness and high probability of twisting my ankle compared to just walking through the grass. A path generally derives it's usefulness through being smoother and more uniform than the surrounding terrain. These are the opposite. The thought I had was that you could have a 'paths view' that lets you set up and view paths, and then as those paths get used more and more by the people, they start to appear (combination of control like you want, and dynamic where people are asking for the paths to just appear from use). It would be akin to the leader of the group asking everyone to use certain routes, and then those become esablished visible paths based on usage. Anyway.. good luck.

[@Dragon20C]

why am i hearing pingu noises lol

[@Rossilaz58]

I don't like the way paths look. They should stay just above the ground to be visible but not go higher